Posts Tagged ‘food’

Not First Thing In the Morning, Please!

Posted: May 13, 2013 in Employment, Food, friendship, life, management, personnel characteristics, words, work
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quiet_pleaseI’ve never been much of a morning person and I am sure I never will be.

Having said that, despite working flexi time and not actually having to be in until 10am, I’m usually at work sometime between 8.30 and 9.15. Even so, I still like a bit a quietness then…at least until I’ve had my first coffee of the morning!

It’s funny how some of us like to get up early in the morning and just get on with things right away, while others of us like to have a long lie and like to slowly get into things. I definitely fall into that second category, how about you?

Just because I’m not a morning person and like to slowly move into my day, doesn’t mean I don’t get much done, it simply means I probably finish things a bit later. e.g. In a work sense, I’m often one of the last to leave the office at night.

So please, for those of you who are morning people, please remember some of us are not morning people and we like a quiet peaceful start to our mornings, thank you.

Starving

Posted: September 3, 2012 in homeless, life, love, nature, religion
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Have you looked around you recently? No, not just a quick look around you without taking in the reality of the situations you see around you, but a proper look where you notice the heartache felt by the man next door, or the exhaustion on the face of the new mother at the end of your street etc.

People all around us are starving for love and kindness.

When we think about starvation, I guess we always think about those who don’t get enough food and water to sustain their life. However as the above statement reminds us, starvation comes in many forms. No matter what form starvation takes though, it can have devastating consequences if left untreated.

So here’s my challenge to each one of us today…what are we going to do to try to put an end to this type of starvation? After all in this day and age, how can there still be those in our towns and cities who don’t know what it means to be loved and have never experienced the kindness of another human being!

I Just Had To

Posted: May 12, 2012 in blogging, Charity, Food, friendship, Health, homeless, life, Motherwell, poverty, Shopping, UK, work
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I don’t know whether it’s because of what I’ve been focusing on in my blog posts this last week, I found myself doing something on Tuesday that I’ve never done before, and it even surprised me when I did it!

When I was out on Tuesday lunchtime for my daily walk, I came across a homeless person who was asking every passerby for money. In these situations I must admit I usually do what many folk do, I keep my head down, ignore them and walk on. Well Tuesday was no different as I did walk on past her, however this time I did apologise to her for not having any money I could give her.

I continued on my walk and by the time I got round to the local supermarket a few minutes later, I had decided to buy the woman a sandwich and a drink. This shocked me as it’s just not the kind of thing I usually do – I usually much more hands-off, being far more likely to donate to a charity which will help folk, than actually do something proactive myself.

Anyway, having made my purchases, I met one of my friends from work as I was leaving the supermarket, and we started walking back to our office. There are several routes back to the office from the supermarket, so my friend asked which way I usually go. I told her but then added that I wanted to go a different way as I’d bought a sandwich and drink for a homeless person I’d passed on my way there. She told me that was a really nice thing to do, but thinking about it now, didn’t seem very surprised!

When we got to where the homeless lady had been, she was nowhere to be seen. My friend told me that at least I’d tried to do something good for her…

As we continued walking back to our office I spotted the homeless lady sitting on the ground in the main shopping area. So I went over to her and gave her the food and drink I’d bought for her. She was very grateful and told me I didn’t have to do that for her, and as I started to leave her she said, “God bless you“…that brought a tear to my eye.

It felt good having done something for that lady, even thought ultimately it wasn’t much to me. However it did seem to mean the world to her, and that was what really touched me more than anything.

It is true what they say, that sometimes the smallest word or action from one person can mean the world to someone else.

Go on, do a good deed today!

For God

Posted: September 23, 2011 in Bellshill, family, friendship, Harvest, life, music, religion, Salvation Army
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This week, in various blog posts, I’ve referred to us celebrating harvest last weekend at Bellshill Salvation Army, but do you actually know what that means?

Here’s one definition I found:

Harvest Festival is a celebration of the food grown on the land. Harvest Festivals remind Christians of all the good things God gives them. This makes them want to share with others who are not so fortunate. In schools and in Churches, people bring food from home to a Harvest Festival Service. After the service, the food that has been put on display is usually made into parcels and given to people in need.

These days we don’t talk about “harvesting the crops” like they used to in the past, because we live in more urban communities where we rarely see crops let alone consider when they need to be harvested. However in the past, when the crops were gathered in. it was customary to give the best of the crops to God. The best crops are normally the first ones gathered.

Exodus 23:16 (NIV)

Celebrate the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the crops you sow in your field.

So that’s what harvest festivals are all about. But what about us, what does God expect from us, His people, at harvest?

Well, as was mentioned in the definition above, it’s a chance for us to bring food to our harvest festival so that it can later be passed out to the needy in our communities. But it’s also much more than that, it’s a chance for us to say thank you to God again, for all He gives us each day.

We live in a world where we’re all so busy rushing around all the time that I suspect if you’re anything like me, you forget to say thank you to God for the all He provides for us. I’m not talking about all the complicated things in life, but the basics, things like food, water, a home, clothes, our education, our family and friends…and then theirs the world around us, the rivers, trees, flowers, plants, hills…

How many of those things I’ve just listed have you thanked God for recently?

Take time out this Harvest to just say “thank you” to God for all the things we have in life, the things that we so often take for granted.

Simple Actions

Posted: July 27, 2011 in bible, family, friendship, Health, homeless, life, love, music, pray, religion
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Matthew 25:35-36 (NIV)

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.

How many of us would actually do all those things mentioned in the above bible passage?

Yes we might all manage to give those who are hungry or thirsty food or water, but would we invite a stranger into our homes, give someone clothes, look after someone who was sick or even visit someone in prison?

I may have taken this passage of scripture quite literally , but I think in this instance it shows some distinct ways in which we may or may not be willing to “put ourselves out” for others.

If we profess to be Christians, God expects us to do all we can to help others, so we must give of our times and our processions to help others whenever we can – Whether that be giving the homeless food/water/clothes, phoning or visiting someone who is ill or has not attended church for a while, spreading God’s message to those who don’t yet know Him.

Sometimes we can do things that can mean the world to someone else, just by a simple action, so go on reach out and help someone today.

I’ll Still Stand By You

Posted: June 21, 2011 in friendship, life, love, music, religion
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Today I make no apologies for using the same song (different artist) as I did yesterday – I’ll Stand By You, this time sung by Carrie Underwood:

The phrase in this song I want to concentrate on today is:

When you’re standing at the crossroads
And don’t know which path to choose
Let me come along
‘Cause even if you’re wrong
I’ll stand by you, I’ll stand by you

In our lives we face many decisions, many crossroads, but do we always make the right decisions and go down the right path? Definitely not! When we face difficult decisions in our lives it can be extremely difficult to determine what is the right path for us, that’s why we must always remember that no matter whether we choose the right or the wrong road in life, God will always remain by our side, supporting us.

I love the above words because they remind me that God will always support us even when we do make the wrong decisions.

Put your full trust and faith in God, because I can guarantee that He will always stand by you!

Rant!

Posted: December 2, 2010 in Glasgow, life, Shopping, work
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As we’ve been experiencing some of the worse winter weather we’ve had for a while, and as travelling is quite difficult and dangerous, we decided last night to oder our groceries on-line and get them delivered straight to our house. We did this quite a lot in the past but lately as I’ve been taking my Mum shopping at least once a week, we haven’t done this for a while.

So we got our delivery slot for between 6 and 8 pm tonight from Tesco’s, ordered what we needed and also what my Mum and Dad needed - this will stop them having to go out in the cold weather as hubby and I will take their shopping over to them after it’s delivered to ours.

So all organised…we just needed to make sure we got home from work by 6 in case the shopping was delivered right as the start of our delivery slot.

Well we got home about 5.15pm and decided to wait until the shopping was delivered before we had or dinner, as otherwise the shopping was bound to be delivered just when we sat down to our dinner!

Then about 6pm hubby decided to check his emails only to discover he had an email from Tesco informing him that our delivery had been cancelled “due to the adverse weather conditions in our area”! We were astounded…why were they cancelling our order, we only placed it last night when the weather was just as bad here as it is today!

Thanks Tesco! You didn’t even offer to organise/gather our shopping for us so we could just pick it up from the shop, all you told us to do was place another order with them” once the weather in our area had improved”! Thanks, that’s helpful!

I know those folk who work for Tesco will have been experiencing the same difficulties as the rest of us getting to/from work due to the adverse weather, however what has really annoyed us is that you were quite happy to accept our order yesterday for delivery this evening when the weather here was just as bad yesterday as it is today!

Fortunately both us and my Mum and Dad weren’t desperate for shopping tonight, so now hubby and me are going to go to the supermarket ourselves tomorrow night after work and get our shopping ourselves…thanks again Tesco!

Saying Grace

Posted: September 27, 2010 in pray, religion
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Yesterday I asked if you knew what grace means and gave you some definitions of grace (Yesterday’s post was entitled Grace and you can read it using this link). In yesterday’s blog I talked about God’s grace (His promise to protect us), so today I’d like to look at grace in the form of a prayer said before meal-times.

So here’s a fuller descriptions of the word grace when used in this context:

In our tradition grace in this context is usually referred to as “saying grace“. Grace is a short prayer that is said either out load or is said to oneself, thanking God for providing food and nourishment that you are about to partake in. It is a way of offering thanks to God for providing sustenance to us. It is a way of asking God to impart a blessing on the meal.

If grace is to be said, it is considered impolite to start eating before grace has been said and completed.

Do you say grace before every meal you eat?

I must be honest and say I don’t, and never really have done apart from many years ago when we used to go to my gran’s for Sunday lunch between our morning and afternoon services.

Are you surprised by my admission? Well let me explain – I think it all come back to the fact that while my Mum and I are Christians and attend the Salvation Army, my Dad does not believe in God, so I guess we never said grace at home, because we respected my Dad’s belief that God did not exist. These days, since I’ve been married, I have a similar situation to what I had when I lived with Mum and Dad, in that hubby is not a Christian, though, unlike my Dad, he does believe there is a God.

So does this make me a bad Christian because I don’t say grace before I eat? No I don’t think so, because it doesn’t stop me from thanking God for the food I eat during my prayer times throughout each day. I would however make me a bad Christian if I was ungrateful to God for all He provides for me, but I certainly hope when I pray I do extend my thanks and gratefulness to God for all He provides for me, not just the food!

In conclusion, whether you say grace or not before you eat, I personally do not think is the real issue. The real issue is whether you thank God for all the things He provides for you in your life, whether it be food, clothing, a roof over your head, love of family and friends etc.

Take time today to say thank you to God for all He has done for you, and continues to do for you.

The Airline and the Servicemen

Posted: June 5, 2010 in life, work
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I was sent the following story in an email recently – I just had to share it with you:

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my assigned seat.
It was  going to be a long flight from Gatwick.
‘I’m glad I have a good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short sleep,’ I thought.
 
Just before take-off, a line of British Army Youngsters  came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me.  
I decided to start a conversation.
‘Where are you blokes headed?’ I asked the young man seated nearest to me.
Cyprus . We’ll be there for two weeks  for special training, and then we’re being deployed to Afghanistan .  
 
After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that lunches were available for five pounds.
It would be several hours before we reached Cyprus , and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the time..
As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his mate if he planned to buy lunch.
‘No, that seems like a lot of money for just an airline lunch. Probably  wouldn’t be worth five Quid. I’ll wait till we get to Cyprus .    
His mate agreed.
 
I looked around at the other soldiers.
None were buying lunch.
I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a
fifty Pound note.
‘Take a lunch to all those soldiers..’
She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly.
Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me.
‘My young bloke was a soldier in Iraq, it’s almost like you are doing it for him.’
 
Picking up ten lunch boxes, she headed up the aisle to where the boys were seated.  
She stopped at my seat and asked, ‘Which do you like best – beef or chicken?’
‘Chicken,’ I replied, wondering why she asked..
She turned and went to the front  of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class.  
 This is your thanks.
 
After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading  for the rest room.  
 An old bloke stopped me.  ‘I saw what you did. I want to be part of it.  Here, take this.’  
He handed me twenty-five pounds..
 
Soon after I returned to my  seat, I saw the Captain coming down the aisle, looking  at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he wasn’t looking  for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my side of the plane.
When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, ’I want to shake your hand.’
Quickly unfastening my seat-belt I stood and took the Captain’s hand.
With a booming voice he said,  ’I was an army pilot a long time back. Once someone bought me lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot.’ 
 
I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers.
Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs.
A kid who looked about 18 was sitting about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake mine.  
He left another twenty-five pounds in my palm.
 
When we landed I gathered my  belongings and started to depart.
Waiting just inside the aeroplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word.
Another twenty-five Pounds!
Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip  up to their training area..  
 I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five pounds.
‘It will take you some time to reach your training area. It will be about time for a sandwich.  God Bless You Blokes.’
 
Ten young blokes left that flight feeling the love and respect of their fellow Brits.
As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer for their  safe return.
These soldiers were giving their all for our country.
I could only give them a couple of meals.
It seemed so little…
A British Serviceman is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank cheque made payable to ‘ United Kingdom ‘ for an amount of ‘up to and including my life.’
That is Honour, and there are way too many people in this country who don’t understand it.’