Spiders Web

A young soldier found himself in a terrible and hopeless battle.

The enemy was soundly defeating this young man's army. He and his

comrades found themselves hastily retreating from the battle

field in defeat, running away in fear for their very lives. The

enemy gave chase. This young man ran hard and fast, full of fear

and desperation, but soon found himself cut off from his comrades

in arms.

He eventually came upon a rocky ledge containing a cave. Knowing

the enemy was close behind, and that he was exhausted from the

chase, he chose to hide there. After he crawled into the cave, he

fell to his face in the darkness, desperately crying to God to

save him and protect him from his enemies. He also made a bargain

with God, one which I (and perhaps you too?) have made before. He

promised that if God saved him, he would serve Him for the

remainder of his days.

When he looked up from his despairing plea for help, he saw a

spider beginning to weave its web at the entrance of the cave. As

he watched the delicate threads being slowly drawn across the

mouth of the cave, the young soldier pondered its irony. He

thought, "I asked God for protection and deliverance, and he sent

me a spider instead. How can a spider save me?"

His heart was hardened, knowing the enemy would soon discover his

hiding place and kill him. And soon he did hear the sound of his

enemies, who were now scouring the area looking for those in

hiding. One soldier with a gun slowly walked up to the cave's

entrance. As the young man crouched in the darkness, hoping to

surprise the enemy in a last-minute desperate attempt to save his

own life, he felt his heart pounding wildly out of control.

As the enemy cautiously moved forward to enter the cave, he came

upon the spider's web, which by now was completely strung across

the opening. He backed away and called out to a comrade, "There

can't be anyone in here. They would have had to break this

spider's web to enter the cave. Let's move on."

Years later, this young man, who made good his promise by

becoming a preacher and evangelist, wrote about that ordeal. What

he observed has stood by me in times of trouble, especially

during those times when everything seemed impossible.

He wrote: "Where God is, a spider's web is as a stone wall. Where

God is not, a stone wall is as a spider's web."

-- Author unknown

Ultimate Happiness

Leaders exist in all walks of life. More importantly, everyone has the potential of acting in a leadership position. We can all be more successful by establishing a positive attitude and also by having an attitude of gratitude. Leadership includes vitality, charm, being flexible and also having a good sense of humor. It also includes a knowingness that things will work out. By choosing or intending to operate from the position of being positive is the first thing we can do to improve whatever situation we are encountering or approaching.
Even as children we were groomed to be leaders. We may not fully realize that we have learned tremendous amounts of leadership skills on the play field, perhaps in Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts, and most certainly in classrooms throughout the country. As children, we may have earned very high grade levels or participated in extra curriculum activities, that without our realizing, has helped us to develop incredible leadership abilities. Our working and also participating in activities such as music, arts, and sports has also provided us with amazing leadership abilities. These activities taught us how to work with others. We learned valuable time management skills, and also gained visual or other creative outlets. Our participation in these activities may have also included our working within a teamed environment or perhaps working independently. And as we progressed through school and achieved higher levels of academic success our participation also resulted in our confidence levels increasing.
Confidence is an extraordinary gift that allows us to assess a situation and make appropriate decisions. In being confident allows us also to take on more responsibilities and also be able to delegate tasks to others. Our confidence also allows us to accept credit for doing a good job and furthermore allows us to be able to extend credit to others for their good work and participation. It may also include communicating effectively. Dependability allows us to follow through with projects in a timely manner and also helps keep the project moving in a constructive and forward manner. Good judgment is a by-product of being positive as it provides us with an ability to make rational decisions – especially in times of stress. Creativity includes utilizing a visual or inner knowing that may also be expressive in an original way of thinking — similar to the way musicians and artists use to create songs or other works of art.
When we are calm and use or rely on our own inner gifts and talents, we are capable of making wiser decisions. When we are happy to be included in a project and also enjoy the work that we are doing, we are certainly much more inclined to be flexible, responsible, and determined to participate and accomplish the tasks that we are overseeing or are responsible to complete. Leadership is about making worthwhile contributions and also learning from past mistakes. Learning when to listen or perhaps assessing when it is necessary to assert ourselves. Our being an advocate for the project and perhaps for the staff assigned to working with us also helps us to be a part of creating something worthwhile.
Each time we interact with ourselves or others in a positive manner helps to ensure the success of our projects. Each time we clarify details and expectations related to our projects also helps the projects to be even more successful. These simple recommendations are mostly common sense. Leadership is about moving forward within one project, and then on to another, and another. Leadership is also about continuing to develop skills that will keep us aligned in the direction of our business, completing our projects, and accomplishing our short and long termed goals. However, if we are spinning, we are not acting in a manner that is conducive to positive team building or completion of our current projects or tasks. Achieving positive results, in a timely manner, is always necessary and included on some level within any goal. And if by chance, we or members of our teams are not achieving positive results in a timely manner, we need to determine what is out of alignment and quickly make constructive changes. Sometimes what may be out of alignment are our expectations. We may expect ourselves or others to perform in a manner that is unrealistic. We may be short-handed, limited in resources or perhaps unmotivated. We may also be relying on others who are also challenged in similar ways. Continuing to work in these manners realistically prevents us from achieving our goals.
So how do we keep ourselves and others motivated to continue moving forward? As effective leaders, we have to come from a position of acceptance and love. It is helpful to be in gratitude. It is also helpful for us to keep track of gains of progress in order to remind ourselves and our team members of how much that we have accomplished. Keeping success logs or files that includes positive quotes or articles is also helpful and encouraging. All of our skills come into play when we are engaging in leadership activities. A good sense of humor helps keep the atmosphere and our role aligned with being in the state of enjoyment. Remaining optimistic and present helps to motivate and incent ourselves and others that we can achieve our goals. The most important leadership skill that we possess is holding in mind what we would like to achieve. Stay focused and be certain to get feedback so you know that you are on target.
Be certain to always have a positive intention for each level of your project. Comments like, “Everything will work out Ok!” Or “It’s all good!” Or perhaps something like, “Our team members are highly qualified and always do a wonderful job!” These types of intentions always help us to achieve even better results. By focusing on being positive and seeing our projects as completed exactly the way we would like, is helping us to move forward in an effortless manner. This mindset helps us to be even more effective leaders.
The Release Technique, L. Crane

Ice Cream

Last week I took my children to a restaurant. My six-year-old son

asked if he could say grace. As we bowed our heads he said: "God

is good. God is great. Thank you for the food, and I would even

thank you more if mom gets us ice cream for dessert,and Liberty

and justice for all! Amen."

Along with the laughter from the other customers nearby, I heard

a woman remark, "That's what's wrong with this country. Kids

today don't even know how to pray. Asking God for ice-cream! Why,

I never!"

Hearing this, my son burst into tears and asked me, "Did I do it

wrong? Is God mad at me?" As I held him and assured him that he

had done a terrific job and God was certainly not mad at him, an

elderly gentleman approached the table. He winked at my son and

said, "I happen to know that God thought that was a great

prayer." "Really?" my son asked. "Cross my heart." Then in a

theatrical whisper he added (indicating the woman whose remark

had started this whole thing), "Too bad she never asks God for

ice cream. A little ice cream is good for the soul sometimes."

Naturally, I bought my kids ice cream at the end of the meal. My

son stared at his for a moment and then did something I will

remember the rest of my life. He picked up his sundae and,

without saying a word, walked over and placed it in front of the

woman that made the remark. With a big smile he told her, "Here,

this is for you. Ice cream is good for the soul sometimes, and my

soul is good already."

-- Author Unknown

Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression

Non-surgical spinal decompression

In nonsurgical spinal decompression, a patient is strapped securely to a table.

Straps.

Mechanical traction slowly and temporarily alleviates spinal pressure.

Non-surgical spinal decompression is achieved through the use of a mechanical traction device applied through an on-board computer that controls the force and angle of disc distraction, which reduces the body’s natural propensity to resist external force and/or generate muscle spasm. This enhanced control allows non-surgical spinal decompression tables to apply a traction force to the discs of the spinal column reducing intradiscal pressure, unlike previous non-computer controlled traction tables.
Inversion therapy, which involves hanging upside down, is a form of mechanical traction used for spinal decompression.^[4]
The practice is promoted as safe and effective without the normal risks associated with invasive procedures such as injections, anesthesia or surgery. Spinal decompression works through a series of 15 one minute alternating decompression (using a logarithmic decompression curve) and relaxation cycles with a total treatment time of 30 minutes. During the decompression ^[5] phase the pressure in the disc is reduced and a vacuum type of effect is produced on the nucleus pulposis. At the same time nutrition is diffused into the disc allowing the annulus fibrosis to heal. Very rarely is the nerve root compressed from the herniated disc and usually the back and leg pain associated with these conditions is a result of irritation to the nerve root sleeve by the inflammatory chemicals that are released as a result of inflammation in the disc.^[6]
For the low back, the patient lies comfortably on his/her back or stomach on the decompression table, with a set of nicely padded straps snug around the waist and another set around the lower chest. For the neck, the patient lies comfortably on his/her back with a pair of soft rubber pads behind the neck. Many patients enjoy the treatment, as it is usually quite comfortable and well tolerated.^[7]
The treatment has several varying versions, including articulating spinal decompression or range-of-motion (ROM) decompression, which enables the doctor or therapist to adjust the patient's spinal posture during the decompression. Varying the spine's posture enables the decompressive pulling forces to reach into spinal areas and tissues that basic linear decompression misses. The Antalgic-Trak is a brand name for an articulating decompression system.^[8]

Source: Wikipedia

Spinal Stenosis and Spinal Decompression

Spinal Stenosis occurs with a narrowing of the spinal canal. This can be caused by disc damage, and excessive bone growth. The end result is pain, weakness and numbness into the buttocks, legs and feet. Patients with spinal stenosis receive relief from spinal decompression by the repositioning and rejuvenating effect on the spinal discs.