Category: Random Thoughts

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Work together to better our communities and our world


062 Every one of us has a story, each one of us influences the world around us. How we influence and how much we contribute is up to us. But there is no such thing as an unimportant person, we all are important, special and unique to God. We all are a part of the great machine called life. We as individuals can change our little worlds and as a group can influence change on a global scale. This is one of the unique qualities of human beings, we can change our environments to suit our needs as well as change the course of our worlds destiny / fate.  Protests, revolutions, grass root projects and just plain speaking up can cause political, social and even cultural changes. I prefer the non violent methods of enacting change, usually the violent path only brings suffering and brings either temporary or negative results.  There are of course some circumstances that violent action is the only path but it should be the last resort.

I blog quite often about how governments tend to be out of touch with the needs of the citizens and are more focused on the rich or the powerful. How the governments fail at actually coming up with solutions to problems due to party politics and the interest groups lobbying them. We can not rely on our governments to carry the weight and should as a nation and or global community start dealing with some of the problems ourselves. Poverty, hunger, homelessness and the environment are things we as citizens can make a difference in. If we organize and work together to better our communities and our world we can achieve almost anything. Some can give money, some can just volunteer time or their expertise as well as doing grass-roots education. So much we can do on our own and probably do a far better job of it than the government could do. It is the right way to do it and almost every religion supports the idea of taking care of our fellow human beings. We can put aside our religious and cultural differences to make this world a better place if we chose to do so.

 

Just some thoughts, Right or Wrong there here for all to see.

 

 

“Love, Compassion and peace are the keys to a better world.”

Raymond Barbier

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Our children and grandchildren will inherit a toxic planet if we don’t stop


IMG_1077 While Scientists argue over what is causing the climate change we pump toxic gases into our air. As they debate how little man influences our environment more and more toxic waste is buried in the ground and illegally dumped into our water sources.  Regardless what they say we affect our environment negatively with our chemicals, gasses and poisonous by-products. So what if the sun is part of the reason to the temperature increase it is not the only thing effecting our environment. Birth defects, mysterious diseases and health problems increasing in our world. Too much evidence to our negative influence on our environment to ignore. Our children and grandchildren will inherit a toxic planet if we don’t stop mistreating our home. All of this is put aside in the name of profit, the mighty dollar seems more important than the health of future generations, the water and food we consume and the human race’s survival. Seems silly to put greed before survival as well as the wellbeing of your future generations but that is the message the big companies are sending along with our government. When they do attempt to do something to help the environment they do it in a way that it causes job loss and an economic decline in the towns that rely on the industry. Coal is one example, they limit the amount of new coal permits which causes coal companies to lay off workers. They need to first offer job re-education programs and help get new industries in the areas that will be effected by the closing or slowing of the coal industry. So that the coal miners and related workers can find new employment locally to support their families. Once there is new jobs and the coal workers are trained and placed in the new jobs the coal industry can be shut down. Though I don’t see how we can actually discontinue coal use for energy at this point in time, but in the decades ahead we may find a safer alternative to coal besides nuclear. Natural gas, wind and solar are viable replacements but solar and wind are still not as efficient or economical as of yet.  It would definitely would be a phase out in a decade or two kind of plan so to give time to get new industry in the areas and retrain the workers.

 

In the end we need a clean and renewable energy source. We need to find less toxic ways to manufacture our goods and make more recyclable products. We can not continue on this disposable product path, we need to make everything as recyclable and reusable as possible. The public and commercial sectors need to become even more green minded than they already are. Maybe give tax breaks to families and business that go green and recycle. Just a thought anyway…

 

Lets all go Green, Renewable, Recyclable and reusable .

Raymond Barbier

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And we should know that fear is not what God wants for his children


cross Fear, one of the greatest enemies to civilization and to our happiness is way too commonplace in the modern world. You would think with all the technology and advances in the sciences we would be a more secure and less fearful world. Fear is one of the devils favorite weapons because it creates doubt in god and his word. Though fear itself can not destroy the word of god it can make some to doubt it as well as create a lifetime of worry. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” ~ 2 Timothy 1:7 That verse sums it up, we should not give into fear for it is not the spirit that god gave us. We should surrender the fear to god and keep faith. For fear keeps one from having a sound mind and it saps their power by keeping doubt in the front of their mind. It can be a great obstacle to moving forward or doing the works god desires for you. Through fear you can become deceived, you can be led to believe you can not accomplish what either you or God has planned for you to do.

Remember the story of David and Goliath, All the grown soldiers were shaking in their boots and were surrendering to their fear and any of them would have failed to defeat Goliath. But David with his faith in god and with courage (not fear) was able to take on the giant Goliath and slay him. This proves fear in the end is both a weakening force and an obstruction to ones true potential. Face your fear with faith and give it to God, keep faith and go out and do gods will. And we should know that fear is not what God wants for his children…

God Bless
Raymond Barbier

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Love – So sought out and so easily took for granted.


p10053 Love, Such an illusive emotion and such a powerful force. When you are within its warm embrace life is wonderful but when you wander away from it you feel the cold reality of life. Hard to find but so easily given away, impossible to capture but simply surrendered too. So many levels and so many depths, so fleeting yet so eternal. Not just a biochemical reaction and more than just a word. It is so grand you can not see its boundaries and it has no limits. So sought out and so easily took for granted. One of the greatest treasure one could find and the easiest one to give away.

Love has no prejudice, it comes to the rich, poor, powerful and the weak. Love humbles the strong and then it gives strength to the meek. Love has been blamed for the start of wars as well as bringing peace. Such a wonderful thing love can be and it still remains one of mankind’s biggest mysteries.

 

 

Love is the question and it is the answer as well.
Raymond Barbier

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Focus more on the light within each other instead of the shadows


65242I have noticed that most people tend to find it easy to point out the faults and shortcomings of others. The funny part most of the time the faults they point out in others they usually have themselves. I guess as a humans we tend to hate characteristics in others that we despise or fear of having within ourselves. To be perfectly honest, I believe the only one we have the right to judge or criticize is our own selves. We are far from perfect and fall short of the glory of god as much as the next person and all sin is equal except for blaspheme of the holy spirit. So no sinner is greater or lesser than the next and all can be saved and forgiven. Point is we are all equal in having faults and shortcomings so why bother pointing out the obvious in others when we should tend to our own. If you insist on judging others just remember that the way you judge others is the way you will be judged. So judge with compassion and understanding as well as with a forgiving heart so you too will receive the same mercy. If we would only focus more on the light within each other instead of the shadows and dark spots we would be a far better species and a much happier world. I guess I am nothing but a dreamer with an optimistic view. Just one of my shortcomings I guess, but its one I tend to like within myself.

 

Do not hesitate to express your love to others and fear not rejection for it isn’t as bad as loneliness.

Raymond Barbier

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Those who could really make a difference


023 Is another Renaissance period upon us? Seems we are in need of a great change in our cultures as well as in our method of thinking. I think it would be a great thing to have the resurgence of the interest in the arts and sciences once again. Definitely we need a change in our world, too much imbalance of wealth and power. I am all for people making profits as long as they do it both responsibly and with some morality mixed in. Seems way to much power has been given to the few and not enough to those who could really make a difference. So many voices unheard and ideas left unexplored by those in power. The creative, imaginative and honest common people are usually ignored or looked upon as just as the taxpayers whom they need to pacify. For some reason many governments think the lower middle class and the poor are nothing more than the piggy bank for as taxes go. The rich get all the tax breaks and usually a lower tax rate while those struggling to make ends meet pay the highest tax rate possible. So much inequality in our present era and that is a sign that change is not only needed but is on the horizon.

 

Across the globe we are seeing the oppressed rising up to challenge their oppressive governments and even forcing a regime change in some cases. Unfortunately they become targets for violent crack downs in an attempt to squash the protests and civil unrest. So it seems change is already in motion, peaceful change it the right path but it seems sometimes those in charge force it to become violent. In a democratic republic such as The United States it will be a more peaceful change though there will be a lot of protests and probably confrontations between police and protestors but nothing on a grand scale. We have already experienced some of the confrontations with the Occupy movement across the U.S.

 

The demand for change by the working and lower class is the first sign of cultural change and it also shows that our mindset as people is changing along with the world. It is all going to take time to get the world to change and patience is something we all must have. Change brought about by a peaceful means usually is a long-lasting change unlike that brought by conflict which usually lasts until a new conflict arises. Time for change for the status quo is no longer acceptable to the working class, the backbone of the world’s economy.

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We should embrace them but only for the moment they exist.


097 Truth can be com from the mouths of babes, fools, your allies as well as the mouths of your enemies. Wisdom can be found in observation of all things around you and within you.  Emotions such as anger, fear, self-pity and arrogance seem to cloud ones mind from truth and wisdom as well as shut down the logical part of the mind. Rarely does one find truth or wisdom while experiencing the negative emotions. Too much of a positive emotion also can distract one from the truth around them. We should avoid negative emotions and thoughts as much as we can but we also should keep all emotions tempered for too much of a good thing can be bad. I am not saying don’t be happy, I am just saying don’t allow your happiness to distract you from your life path. Strange thing about emotions both the negative and positive is they can be like drugs, they can become addictive. This would cause our focus to be on the emotion we seek and not on the path we walk. Emotions are good and have many purposes that they fulfill in our lives, we should embrace them but only for the moment they exist. We should never allow ourselves to become obsessed with or addicted to them.

 
“If the grass seems greener on the other side of the fence, Then you must have not cared for your own lawn.”

Raymond Barbier
A fool seeking to be a sage

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Send positivity back to the source


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Negativity, something we all must face from sources both inward and externally. How does one deal with negativity? I know of only three ways of dealing with negativity either you absorb it , avoid it or try to convert it to positivity. Absorbing it or internalizing it causes too much stress on one’s body and mind, avoiding it which is my first choice usually is a very hard thing to do. Converting it is  to temporarily absorb it and to convert it into positivity in the hopes of returning the positivity to the one who sent the negativity. The third choice is not easy to master and takes quite a bit of effort but in the end is the best choice. Not only do you rid yourself of the negativity but you send positivity back to the source which will dilute the negativity remaining in it.  Also I notice if you are very positive minded and charged it seems to repel a lot of negativity and usually attracts more positive people. There of course is always a few negative people who charge straight at the positive, they seem to find some kind of enjoyment out of causing others to suffer along with them. I guess the old saying is true “Suffering Loves Company”…

I am but a student of life and am still in search of better ways to face the problems of modern life as well as the human dilemma. I share what I find and hope to learn more as I go and grow. I never claim I know the only answer or even the right answer, I just relay what I have found to work and so far has proven to be true. For I am only a fool seeking to be a sage who looks for fellow travelers along the way.

 

Peace and Love to all

Raymond Barbier

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an invitation to be kind or to smile


p10328 To be true to yourself, to be who you are and be happy with yourself and to realize that what others think matter very little in the long run. That is one of the paths to self-assurance and a healthier self-image, a self-esteem built upon the real you not the reflection of you off of others. One of the hardest thing to quit or correct is ones tendency to rely on others for both our self-worth and our happiness. No one can add or remove either your worth or happiness besides your own self. The illusion someone else can make you happier or make you a better person is one most of us fall for. The truth is that you make yourself happier and a better person and the other person is either an inspiration or a guiding force towards both. Yes they can help fuel the happiness within you and help you find the better person within you through their guidance or just their kindness, but the choices to be happy or to improve yourself is solely yours and requires your effort alone to bring them about.

A child’s smile can knock on the door of your kindness and then you can open the door in return. The child’s smile was an invitation to be kind or to smile you have to choose to comply or not. The choices of who and what you are and can become are yours as well as the power to make the changes.  The only time an outside force can change you and your life is if you give it the power to do so.  So be true to yourself and be who you are as well as love who you are. Do not let the negativity of others affect you or damage your self-worth. For in Gods eyes we all are precious and he loves all of us equally. And no man can take away the gifts God has given and has promised to us all. Besides our own will and choices Only God’s will can directly change us into a better person and bring us happiness.  Let God’s love and kindness flow through you and seek out his will and the path he set out before you. Try and surrender to his will as well as put aside your own.

God Bless

Raymond Barbier

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Love each moment you get in life


65242 Life is a road that will eventually come to an end when our time is up, the length of the journey  is not as important as the experiences we have along the way. We can choose to spend the whole journey looking backwards at where we have been, looking forward to what yet may come or just keep focused on the place we are at. Getting fixed on the past or on what come in the future only distracts us from the importance of the present. Seize the moment, live for today, live in the now and live each day like its your last are words of wisdom passed to us from the sages of the past. There is no other time as important as now, we must remember the past and its lessons as well as plan for the future but if we ignore the present then we miss out on life itself. Waste little energy or time on the negative emotions and focus on the positive ones so that your experiences of the now are positive for you and those around you. Forgive those whom have done you harm and seek forgiveness for your own mistakes and wrong doings. Love each moment you get in life for we have such a short time to live here in this interesting world.

Try to be a positive influence on this world and avoid feeding the ego, for the ego is self-centered and cares only for itself. Selfishness is like an infinite void that can never be filled while Selflessness is like a renewable fuel source for when you give you receive and therefore there is never a void to fill. The bible teaches us it is better to give than to receive and it also teaches us to be humble. It also teaches us to be swift to hear, slow to speak and  be slow to anger. Listen and you will learn many things, be low to speak and you may hear more as well as avoid saying things out of haste. It is always wise to be slow to become angry for many misunderstandings and quick tempers have started feuds and great wars. Life is short so live it happily and with as much compassion as you can muster. For we all have faults and none of us are without sin. It is much harder to point your finger in accusation of another when yourself are guilty of a sin that is equal in stature. For all sin is the same except for blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. So none of are greater or lesser than the other in life and non is without blemish.

 

May God will be your guide through life and his love be the foundation you build upon.

Raymond Barbier

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