What is Christmas for me?

“The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.”- C.S. Lewis

I love Christmas…this is one of the holidays that I love because most of the time, I see smiles on people’s faces, myself included. We all love the Christmas presents, the Christmas parties, the Christmas raffles, Christmas gatherings,  Family and Friends reunion, the Christmas vacation off-work, and many more…But with all these temporary happiness and high brought about by the holiday, let us not forget the true essence of Christmas.

I would like to share with you what Christmas means to me:

1. Christmas is a reminder of God’s great Love to us.
Jesus Christ was not born in a hospital or had a fancy crib. He was born in a manger- a feed-trough for animals. It is stinky, it is rough, it is dirty, uncomfortable to be a bed, it definitely is not the place where you would want your baby to sleep. But why was the son of God born in a manger then? Because God is giving us the message that He could reach out and meet us even in our darkest place. That He wants to love us and embrace us even if we’re in the darkest point of our lives.

2. Christmas is God’s Assurance to us of our Happiness.

“But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”- Luke 2:10-11

This Bible verse is telling us that God wants us to experience great joy so He gave us Jesus- to be our Savior, our Messiah, our Lord.

Happiness without God is only temporary. Your relationships, money, status, success, beauty & health- these could give you happiness but not everlasting.
If you want real and lasting joy, open your heart and life to God and start experiencing His abundant blessings.

I wish you all a Merry Blessed Christmas! 🙂

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Happy Thoughts: SUNNY DISPOSITION

SMILE and the World will smile back at You…

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A Blog Worth Sharing- #8: THOUGHT AVENUE: Speak Your Mind

Hello Everyone!

Today, I am excited to share with you again another blog that I find really awesome! 🙂 I can guarantee that you will not be wasting your time when you give this blog a visit because each post written is very rich in content. The Author is simply full of ideas that he expresses so eloquently in his writings.

I hope that you will enjoy Andrei’s blog as much as I do.

“Thank you Andrei for your amazing blog! It’s truly inspirational, motivational, & provocative!”

BLOG NAME: THOUGHT AVENUE: Speak Your Mind
POST TITLE: Your Word is Your Bond

“Every time you give your word, you’re putting your honor on the line. You’re implying that others can place their trust in you because you value integrity and would never let them down. It goes without saying that if you don’t live up to your word, you may end up tarnishing your credibility, damaging your relationships, and defaming your reputation. Most importantly, you’ll be letting yourself down.”

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Keep Small Problems as they are…small.

I was on my way to work. I needed to be in the office at least an hour earlier because there was a pre-shift meeting that I had to attend to. So for the very first time, I scheduled a ride, and to my unexpected surprise it arrived 19 minutes late. Somewhere along the way, I got stuck on a heavy traffic. I felt as if I was having my own version of “series of unfortunate events”. It is as if circumstances were testing my patience. I started to feel pissed off. But I calmed myself.

Instead of feeling bad and regretting my decision in scheduling a ride, and feeling nervous and stressed out whenever I saw the heavy traffic- I chose to relax and told myself, “It’s okay.” Why? Because obviously, there is NOTHING that I could do about the situation.

HOWEVER, I can choose to do something useful for the “extra” time that the traffic seems to be giving me. So I closed my eyes and used the time to pray and just talk to God… and when I am finished and still not in my destination, I brought out my cellphone next and read articles from other blogs. I enjoyed myself reading so much that I did not even notice that we have finally arrived to my office building. And guess what? I was not late. 🙂

If I have allowed myself, I could have just stayed to be on a bad mood,feeling pissed and stressed out all throughout the travel time- which in the end would have been useless and unreasonable at all!

The next time you feel like your world is being torn apart, pause a moment and ask yourself, is it really?

Don’t let little unfortunate things ruin your beautiful day. Keep small problems as they are…small. 🙂

Have a great day everyone!

Cheers,
Nina

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Believe In Others

“As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” – Nelson Mandela

When I was working as a supervisor in one Telecommunications Call Center, I had a “problem agent.” He came to work late most of the time, he could not finish his 8-hours phone time within our 8-hour shift, he did not follow our QA call-flow…In short, he is the epitome of an agent that any Supervisor would not wish to have in his team.

But I did not give up on this person. In fact, I spent more time with him than I should on normal circumstances. Instead of giving him a hard time and issuing him memos, I did exactly the opposite. I told him I know that he is good and that he just have to take his job more seriously. I also often reminded him the benefits that he would get if only he would just improve his performance. During our coaching sessions, I pointed out his areas for improvement, but I also highlighted the good stuffs. Guess what happened? I was able to turn this guy around. He was really good indeed; and he was also happy when finally, he got to experience the perks of being a performer.

I was touched during one of our teambuilding when this particular guy thanked me for what I did to him. For him, it was such a big deal. But what exactly did I do? I only helped him realized that he is capable. I helped him believe in himself.

My friends, there is always someone out there in need of a “little push” who can also eventually help others if only someone would believe in them. Be that someone. Be that life-changing person. Who knows how many more will be blessed by your simple act of kindness.

I wish all of you a great weekend ahead. God bless!

Cheers,
Nina

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Happy Thoughts: PAIN & LIFE

Someday you’ll look back and see that the things you’re upset about now DO NOT REALLY MATTER…

Someday you’ll realize that all the pains you’re feeling now will be INVISIBLE…

Because THERE IS MORE TO LIFE than what you’re experiencing in the moment…

LIVE LIGHT…learn to LET GO.

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– Negative+Positive(x3)= Happy Relationship

“The single most important factor in our long-term happiness is the relationships we have with our family and close friends.”-  Clayton M. Christensen

Just recently, my 5-year old daughter and I were reviewing for her exams. She was able to pick up most of the lessons, but like any other student, she also had difficulty in understanding some, so we spent more time in learning those. However, even after more minutes of teaching and explaining, still she would not grasp them- and so I got upset and frustrated.

My frustration was very obvious. My eyes got bigger, my lips thinner, my voice got louder…yes, my daughter felt me getting angry, and it made her cry. Honestly, I felt bad too and guilty for poorly handling the situation- for not being more patient and in control of my emotion. My goodness! How “un-intelligent” my daughter must have felt when I turn into this “monster mom!”

But you know what? After our review, I made sure to tell her that I love her very much even if I get mad at her sometimes. Then I felt so much better seeing the smile back in her face.

In other circumstances, I praise her whenever she get a “star” in her workbook, or a “great  job!” marked on her hands. I make it a really BIG deal, and she would get very happy! I also recognize whenever I see her do a good things- like when she fix her toys after playing, when she helps me make the bed, when she is being kind to others. There are also the times when I tell her that she is pretty (she really is!), or that I am proud of her, or that she is smart when she does something witty.

My point is- in every one bad thing that you do, make sure you do good three times more. If you discipline one time, praise and motivate three times more. If you hurt someone (whether intentional or not), make up for it three times. WHY? SO THAT THE GOOD THINGS WILL BE REMEMBERED AND NOT THE BAD ONE. At the end of the day, we want to put emphasis on the good and not the bad. We want to build loving, happy relationships.

So, the next time you do something that may have hurt someone, don’t be too hard on yourself because now, we know better what to do next…

Wishing you all a fun-tastic weekend ahead! 🙂

Cheers,

Nina

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