Tithing Education - Giving From Guilt

If you're part of any organized religion and donate money on a regular basis, do you know where your money is going? Have you ever asked what they are spending the money on? Are you one of those people who feels that your pastor and church leaders know best and never even ask them, because you might feel inferior to them? Have you asked in the past and were told not to worry about it but still would like to know.

Before you give your hard earned money away, whether you're doing it out of guilt or pleasure, make sure you're supporting the right organization. You should never feel the need to donate money if you don't have it to give.

I went to a church that had funds for everything, building funds, starvation funds, church funds and even funds to fund of funds if they ran out of money. Okay I just threw that last part in their but all kidding aside, there's plenty of stuff to be done in our country, to help the starving, the poor and the needy. Why do we need to go to other countries?

I want to make a suggestion to people who can't afford to give their money away but feel guilty if they don't. In the Bible it tells you to give away 10% of your earnings to the church. The part that it doesn't tell you is what to do if you can't afford to give 10% to the church. I personally have known quite a few people who give money out of guilt and fear but will tell you that this is a requirement of their religion and its okay. God will take care of us and he always does.

I don't really believe God, the all powerful all-knowing and loving creator, wants us to suffer, if we just don't make enough money to survive. If you're planning on sending your child to a Christian private school and could only afford to send them to that school, using the money that you were going to tithe to the church, what will you do? Tithe the money to the church so that they can use it to feed hungry people in other countries or build a new church somewhere or help with your child's education.

Some of these decisions are made difficult by religious doctrine and these are the parts of organized religion that I have problems with. When do we use common sense, combined with a little education to seek the truth. Does your religion ask you to seek the truth but not to gather your information beyond their religious boundaries?

Only give what you can afford to give and feel good about it. If you don't feel good about giving your money away, don't do it. Take care of yourself, so that you can take care of others, if you choose to. Living a life of fear and guilt doesn't make sense.

Question Your Religion

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Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a religious help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

When Do We Get to Meet God's Parents?

If God is the creator of the universe, who is the creator of God? When I was born, I had a mother and a father and supposedly the two of them together had created me. One could not have created me without the other and therefore I am a product of my parents. I know who my parents are and I even know who their parents are but who is God's parents and were we made in the images of our parents or creators.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth but before that, we know very little about God. Did he have brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, grandparents and even God parents. If he did have brothers and sisters, did they create worlds like he did or she did, we don't know whether God is a man or a woman, transvestite, homosexual or a combination of all of these. We really don't know what God is, even though Michelangelo painted him on the Sistine Chapel.

In the book of revelations it mentions, Revelation 22:13 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." God says that he is the first and the last, does this mean that there was no one or no entity before him. It goes back to the chicken and the egg, what was first the chicken or the egg, no one knows. Well god knows doesn't he. I don't know why I keep referring to God as a he but bear with me on this one.

I wonder if God was disciplined as a child or even if he was a child. Maybe God was born a full grown person or even a mysterious entity in the form of a smoky cloud. That couldn't be, because God made us in his image and I'm sure that his mother and father look like us. Well, hopefully they look better than us, maybe someone like Brad Pitt or Jennifer Aniston. I hope that he wasn't an ugly person or entity. That would be discouraging.

I guess that's enough of the humor, I rarely hear anyone talk about, who created God. If God formed out of nothingness, why couldn't our earth have formed from nothingness, without God. If God did have parents, brothers and sisters, have they created other universes and what is the purpose of their creations. Are we just one big experiment, part of a big science project?

Anyone interested in using this article to make a movie, feel free to use this information at no charge, I would love to see the movie, when it's done.

Good Christian News

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Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

If you're really seeking the kingdom of heaven, the glory of God and the true vision that Jesus had, check out some great Christian articles. These articles are designed to teach and educate Christians.

Rethinking Today's Religions - Misleading Our Children

When I was a young man, my parents told me about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. Every Christmas, there would be presents underneath the tree from Santa Claus and on Easter I would get a basket full of candy and eggs. However, when I was 11 years old, my parents broke the devastating news to me, there was no Santa Claus or Easter Bunny.

As you can imagine, I cried for hours over the frustration and disappointment. For one, I thought that I wasn't going to get any more Christmas gifts, but my parents provided me with the needed psychological relief and told me that they were going to provide Christmas gifts for me, until I died. Even though I was upset, I was relieved and confused.

If my parents lied about this, could they have possibly lied about something else, anything else. Have you ever thought about this and is there a situation in your life today that could be an old habit that never got corrected. Some theme that your parents told you when you were a child that was a lie and they never told you the truth. Maybe they never told you the truth because they don't even know themselves that it's a lie.

Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were obviously disappointments to me and most people that I've talked to about their experiences, with their parents and even their children. Why do we do this as parents to our children, even though we didn't like it when it was done to us. Hard to explain why we can't break certain habits and certain traditions.

I love Christmas and the joy of giving. Even though I am no longer a Christian, I enjoy going over to my relatives homes and spending Christmas or Christmas Eve with them. Now for the bad news, if you were raised to believe in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism or any other large religious organization. Let me ask you this, do you think that it could be like Santa Claus, do you think the religion you believe in so strongly could be a story that has gotten out of control over the centuries.

I've spent a life time rethinking today's religions and can't find very many facts to prove any one religion is superior over another. Do your own research and find your own answers. Enlightenment could be as simple as gathering the right information.

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended books, You Can Have It All

Greg is currently working on a self help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Where Did God Come From?

If you believe in certain religions, like Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and even Buddhism, there's a good chance that you believe in some sort of God like being or cosmic force, especially the one that created our world that we live in today.

Where did God come from? What are we doing here? And where are we going, after we die. Some of these questions, are hard to answer and scientifically difficult to prove. There is very little evidence to prove, where God actually came from, what are we suppose to be doing here and where we are going to go, after we die.

If nobody knows where God came from, why are there so many religions, that believe in a God? Think about it for a moment, the Christian God, was the creator of the universe, and the creator of everything. Where's the proof? Why do people continue to study the Bible, and believe in a God, that they can't really even put their hands on?

If God is truly real, why wouldn't we have ever seen him? It doesn't make a lot of sense, to believe in imaginary beings, or invisible entities and pray to a God that we might not ever see or touch. It might not make a lot of sense, but if you ask serious religious followers, of these religions a question like, can you prove that there actually is a God, there's a good chance that these religious believers will reply, with a simple yes.

They have no proof, no evidence, and almost base their entire beliefs on faith, instead of facts. Rarely do they seek any evidence or even read their religious text, with a goal to understand what they're reading. Most of these people take everything that they learn, lock it away in their head, and never ask any serious questions about their religious beliefs, like these.

If there is a God, why wouldn't he show himself? If there is a God, why wouldn't he prove that he does exist, so that others wouldn't have to doubt his existence? Something to think about, on the days that you're not going to your place of worship.

Who's God Is More Powerful

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If your interested in a different point of view READ THESE ARTICLES - Great Articles For Christians

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible.

People With Self Confidence Get Noticed

I went to a meeting last week which drove me to write this article.

"Who's that loser sitting there, right at the back. The one with his head down, fiddling with his fingernails?" I heard the person two seats away to my right whisper rather loudly to her friend.

Her friend turned to have a look and both had a good old giggle. "What a loser," they both reiterated simultaneously, their giggles turning into laughter.

I did not need to have a look, for the giggly girls described him rather well to me.

The certain individual they were referring to was not a loser. He simply lacked self confidence. And that lack was portrayed in his posture; in the way he sat and fidgeted with his nails.

Those people who do not have self confidence end up not achieving very much in life. On the other hand, those who possess a good level of self confidence achieve many things; their aspirations, goals and dreams.

The individuals who have self confidence tend to accomplish much more and are noticed more that those who lack self confidence. You will find them at the front row participating in meetings, unlike the poor fellow the girls were making fun of.

Self confidence is a very important element to achievements and success in all areas of life.

With self confidence you can have great relationships, personally and professionally. We cannot do away with relationships. It is through our relationships that we become more and have more.

Here are three tips as to how you can build your self confidence to establish and retain productive relationships:

1. Play a more active role with the friends you already have. Go out with them more often, meet their friends and work your way up to having more self confidence where you can get more involved and chat more easily and openly. Watch how a particular confident friend acts and do the things he or she does. Act like him or her. And it is very important that you stay clear of people who lack self confidence.

2. Increase your range of interests, take up more hobbies. Enroll in evening classes or clubs. This way you will have to meet people. Sit with them during coffee breaks, ask them questions about themselves. Keep them talking. And by the time they ask you a question, you will be more relaxed and self confident. Find new interests; learn a new language or improve upon a language, take up photography, painting, whatever it is that takes your fancy. Keep your mind on your interest and the people there. You will be happy, fulfilled and you will build on your self confidence.

3. Go find yourself a business or executive coach, or even a life coach. A coach is a great catalyst to help you reach your goal of self confidence much faster than on your own. Maybe your self confidence is gradually increasing, yet you want to become more confident for a particular reason much quicker; for example, for a party, a wedding, a meeting, a presentation. With the advice and support of the coach, you will most likely be ready for the event sooner than you might think possible.

These are simple steps that you can take. Why not pick up the phone now or write an email to a friend and suggest having a coffee together. Start to build your self confidence with an email.

Download the free sample of Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps and start benefiting today. Visit: http://www.free-self-confidence.com.

Hani Al-Qasem is a published author and personal growth specialist. He co-authored Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps.

Daily Motivation: 7 Methods

Isn't a lack of daily motivation one of the biggest problems we face when trying to better ourselves? We often know what to do, or at least the first few steps. But we hesitate, something else catches our attention, or we just don't feel like doing what we need to do.

Want some help? Here are seven ways to get motivated - ways that have worked for others. If you find only one or two here that work for you, you'll be on your way.

Seven Methods For Daily Motivation

1. Create desire. See the rewards of your effort clearly. This motivates many to sign up for get-rich-quick plans. A good salesman can have you living in your imagined dream home in minutes, and you'll feel motivated to do anything to make it real. Learn to be your own salesman.

2. Create pain. In Neuro-Linguistic Programming they teach you to link pain with not acting. An imaginary scene of your wife walking out the door with another man, as you sit there silently - that might motivate you to have that talk you've been avoiding.

3. Talk about your plans. By the time I tell my wife about the newsletter I'm going to write, I'm out of my slump and back at the keyboard.

4. Have a true interest. No interest at all might mean you need to do something else, but if it's just a task you dislike, relate it clearly in your mind to the greater goal. I don't like to drive, but when I remember those mountains I'm going to, I get motivated to drive.

5. Have energy. Caffeine will substitute for health for a while, but one way or another, you need some energy to have daily motivation. Exercise, sleep well, and watch out for sugary foods - the "sugar blues" will kill your motivation.

6. Create the proper mental state. It's hard to be depressed and motivated. Resolve some of your negative feelings, or at least do your important work when you are in a better mood.

7. Take a small step. Commit to raking up one bag of leaves, and soon you'll want to finish the yard. Any small step towards your goals feeds your daily motivation.

Now you have seven ways to self-motivation, but you have to actually use them. How do you get motivated to do that? Oh the irony! You'll have to figure that one out yourself. By the way, here's a bonus motivation method: Humor. Laughter often breaks up the feeling of being overwhelmed that sucks away motivation.

Steve Gillman writes on many self help topics including boosting brainpower, losing weight, meditation, habits of mind, creative problem solving, learning gratitude, generating luck and anything related to self improvement. You'll find more at http://www. Self Improvement Now .com

Old Versus New Construction Adhesives

When I first started building in 1978 as a young carpenter and an apprentice to my father. I had the grand illusions of becoming what they call on the east coast a master carpenter and on the West Coast a journeyman carpenter.

Part of my training in construction was learning to use the proper adhesive and caulking for different parts of the building project. We used to use a standard solvent-based construction adhesive when we were building our stairs and they would also use this adhesive on the floors to eliminate squeaks.

This glue dried extremely hard and everyone thought the harder the better. This construction adhesive was great when I started using it in 1978. There wasn't the polyethylene super elastic expandable multi-use glue and caulking construction adhesives at that time.

We used this brittle glue and it always seemed like a waste of time. As the wood dried and started to shrink the brittle hard glue would crack and break away from the wood it was glued to. Normally the glue was breaking away from plywood floor sheeting. I have seen 2 x 12 shrink 3/8 of an inch before in as little as a few months during the summer.

Now as time went on the old construction adhesives were replaced with a new window sealant made by a company called TOPS. This stuff was the hottest and best product of the decade to me. I used this stuff for everything.

This new urethane glue was now being used for sub floors, stair treads, sealing the windows flashing and siding. This stuff is still in use today and is a great choice for all of the uses I mentioned above. The price for this sealant is about double that of most water-based or solvent-based glues. But it's worth it.

So there you have it I like the urethane glues because of their flexibility, elasticity, their ability to adhere to wood concrete or metal and their performance in the years ahead.

There is one thing to keep in mind when using construction adhesives. Most construction workers seem to ignore the fact that the wood needs to be dry and clean before applying the construction adhesive. There have been quite a few times I have witnessed carpenters working with me and ignoring my advice.

Don't put yourself into this category. Doing quality work and following the manufacturers recommended installation instructions for their product will decrease your liability if there is ever a problem. Read the instructions carefully on all of the building products you use.

The manufacturers of these construction adhesives have thoroughly tested them. So use them properly and follow all safety warnings.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

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