A response to Bronnie Ware's list of the top five regrets of the dying.

I just read about Bronnie Ware's list of the top five regrets of the dying she noted during her time spent as a nurse working with the terminally ill.  She has written a book detailing her experiences called The Top Five Regrets of the Dying:  A Life Transformed By The Dearly Departing.  It caused me to meditate upon what one's regrets will possibly be when standing before the King of Glory.  I will list each of Bronnie's top five regrets and I will see if perhaps each regret might be a little different before the Throne of Glory.

Regret #1:  I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

Revised Regret #1:  I wish I'd had the courage to live my life true to the way the Lord had intended for me to live and that I hadn't spent so much time trying to please myself or others.

Regret #2:  I wish I'd hadn't worked so hard.

Revised Regret #2:  I wish I'd taken time to rest on the Lord's Sabbath as He commanded and that I had done all of the work I was expected to do for God's Kingdom.

Regret #3:  I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.

Revised Regret #3:  I wish I'd had the courage to speak God's words to others and to speak about God's wonderful way of salvation.

Regret #4:  I wish that I had stayed in touch with my friends.

Revised Regret #4:  I wish that I had remained in fellowship with the Lord.

Regret #5:  I wish that I had let myself be happier.

Revised Regret #5:  I wish that I'd followed God's ways which would have filled my heart with joy.

Of one thing I am certain, those who follow after Yeshua will have a lot fewer regrets than those who don't.  He is the Way, the Truth and the Life!  May His Name be praised forever!

A friend e-mailed this to me and it was too good not to add to my blog.  I just added a few images to enhance it.

A very interesting column.. COMPLETELY NEUTRAL
Be sure to Read the Poem at the end.

Charley Reese's final column for the Orlando Sentinel...
He has been a journalist for 49 years.
He is retiring and this is HIS LAST COLUMN.

Be sure to read the Tax List at the end.

This is about as clear and easy to understand as it can be. The article
below is completely neutral, neither anti-republican or democrat. Charlie
Reese, a retired reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, has hit the nail
directly on the head, defining clearly who it is that in the final analysis
must assume responsibility for the judgments made that impact each one of
us every day. It's a short but good read. Worth the time. Worth
remembering!

545 vs. 300,000,000 People
-By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then
campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are
against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and
high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on
appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme
Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are
directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic
problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem
was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional
duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private,
central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They
have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a
congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if
they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the
power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is
the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what
they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless
of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive
amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who
stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The President
can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.


It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace
545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and
irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not
traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain
truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it
must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it's because they want
them in Iraq and Afghanistan ...

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan
not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire
and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they
can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from
whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the
belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy,"
"inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an
oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are
their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees...

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

What you do with this article now that you have read it... is up to you .
This might be funny if it weren't so true .
Be sure to read all the way to the end:

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table,
At which he's fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his work,
Tax his pay,
He works for
peanuts anyway!

Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.

Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.

Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries
Tax his tears.

Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass.

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers;
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.

Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid...

Put these words
Upon his tomb,
'Taxes drove me
to my doom...'

When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.





Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge Tax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
Sales Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax


STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most
prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the
world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What in the heck happened? Can you spell 'politicians?'

I hope this goes around THE USA at least 545 times!!! YOU can help it get
there!!!

GO AHEAD. . . BE AN AMERICAN!!!

Three Things to Share

I was reading the scriptures this morning, as is my habit, and these three were so lovely that I want to share them:

Psalm 66:8-12:  Bless our God, you peoples, and make the voice of His praise to be heard; Who has set our soul in life, and suffered not our foot to be moved.  For You, O God, have tried us; You have refined us, as silver is refined.  You brought us into the hold; You laid constraint upon our loins.  You have caused men to ride over our heads; We went through fire and through water; But You brought us out unto abundance.

Just as silver is tested and purified in the refiner's crucible, Israel was made to pass through the fires of suffering and came forth cleansed of dross.  They were nearly crushed by troubles.  Then they were brought out to a place of abundance. 

Malachi 3:1-4 (NASB):   ¹ “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the LORD of hosts. ² “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. ³ He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness. ⁴ Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.

He who gives life to our soul also refines us through suffering to produce righteousness.

Psalm 66:16-20:  Come, and hearken, all you that fear God, and I will declare what He has done for my soul.  I cried unto Him with my mouth, and He was extolled with my tongue.  If I had regarded iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not hear; but verily God has heard; He has attended to the voice of my prayer.  Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me.

When the king was in peril, he cried out unto the Lord.  If he had been guilty of any wrong-doing, the Lord would not have heard his prayer.  The king praises God for His mercy, not with a complacent self-justification on the score of his own righteousness.  He does not regard God's hearing of prayer as due to him for his integrity, but as an act of grace for which the Divine name should be praised. - Davison, Prof. (Christian Hebraist), The Psalms I-LXXII (The Century Bible).

When we come to the Lord in prayer, we must examine ourselves to see if we are guilty of any wrong-doing first and, if so, do teshuvah (repentance) first and be reconciled to God. 

Psalm 119:169-176:  Let my cry come near before You, O Lord; give me understanding according to Your word.  Let my supplication come before You; deliver me according to Your word.  Let my lips utter praise:  because You teach me Your statutes.  Let my tongue sing of Your word; for all Your commandments are righteousness. Let Your hand be ready to help me; for I have chosen Your precepts.  I have longed for Your salvation, O Lord; and Your law is my delight.  Let my soul live, and it shall praise You; and let Your ordinances help me.  I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant; for I have not forgotten Your commandments. 

The note of joy in the commandments, because of their moral perfection, is distinctively Hebraic.  The king pleads three reasons for an answer to his prayers:-he has deliberately resolved to obey God's precepts; he has long been waiting eagerly for deliverance from the hindrances to obedience which surround him; his devotion has been no grudging service, but his constant delight. 

Unfortunately, those who are called Christians have been taught that God's laws are to be ignored and of little worth.  Obviously, they don't know the scriptures which hold them in the highest esteem.  The laws of God reveal His Divine will for us and if we love Him, wouldn't we naturally want to walk in a manner that pleases Him?  Yeshua never said that the commandments of God were no longer important....Read Matthew 5:17-20:

Matthew 5:17-20:  ¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. ¹⁹ Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

"I have gone astray" The Hebrew accentuation supports the rendering: 'Should I go astray, like a lost sheep, seek Your servant.'  The Psalmist may be alluding to the frailty which is part of human nature, and prays that, should he ever succomb to his weakness and err, God will speedily restore him to the fold, because His commandments are always in his mind and he longs to be obedient to them.  He may, on the other hand, be using the image of a lost sheep as the symbol of forlorn helplessness and liability to attack without a protector.  If he is in such a condition and at the mercy of the wicked, may God be to him like a watchful shepherd.

"I have not forgotten Your commandments"  The concluding clause of the Psalm sums up its purpose, of which Oesterley gives this fine estimate: 'It is perfectly true that the main purpose of the Psalmist is the glorification of the Law, and the setting forth of the joy that he, as a truly godly man, experiences in observing its precepts; but as he constantly emphasizes, the Law is the expression of the Divine will.  It is not the Law, per se, that he loves; he loves the Law because it tells of God's will; and he loves it because he loves God first. 

Yeshua said: 

Matthew 19:16-17:  ¹⁶ And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” ¹⁷ And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

Yeshua also said this in John 14:15:    ¹⁵ “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

It is also written in 1 John 5:1-4:   ¹ Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. ² By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. ³ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. ⁴ For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

In the end of days, the faithful will also be keeping the commandments, for it is written  in the Book of Revelation, 14:9-13:  ⁹ Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, ¹⁰ he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. ¹¹ And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.” ¹² Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. ¹³ And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.”

Please note that the scriptures that I use or paraphrase come from either The Psalms from the Soncino Books of the Bible, or from the NASB.