Jam packed? There's still room for coffee...

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar… and the coffee…

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.  They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “yes.”

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, ” I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.  The golf balls are the important things – God, family, your children, health, friends, and your favorite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else – the small stuff.”

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”

There's an Apple in the bag that you don't know of!

A maths teacher asked her 7-year-old pupil, “If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?” Within a few seconds he confidently replied, “Four!”

The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three).  She was disappointed.  “Maybe he did not listen properly,” she thought.  She repeated, “Listen carefully.  If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?”

The boy had seen the disappointment on his teacher’s face.  He calculated again on his fingers and was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy.  His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy.  This time hesitatingly he replied, “Four…”

The disappointment stayed on the teacher’s face.  She remembered that he liked strawberries.  She thought maybe he doesn’t like apples and that is making him loose focus. This time with an exaggerated excitement and twinkling in her eyes she asked, “If I give you one strawberry and one strawberry and one strawberry, then how many you will have?”

Seeing the teacher happy, the boy calculated on his fingers again.  There was no pressure on him, but a little on the teacher. She wanted her new approach to succeed. With a hesitating smile he enquired, “Three?”

The teacher now had a victorious smile.  Her approach had succeeded.  She wanted to congratulate herself.  But one last thing remained.  Once again she asked him, “Now if I give you one apple and one apple and one more apple how many will you have?” Promptly he answered, “Four!”

The teacher was aghast.  “Now tell me how?” she demanded in a little stern and irritated voice. In a voice that was low and hesitating the boy replied, “that is because I already have one apple in my bag.”

“When someone gives an answer that is different from what you expect don't think they are wrong.  There may be an angle that you haven’t thought of. You will have to listen and understand, but never listen with a predetermined notion.”

What's inside that unappealing gift?

A young man was getting ready to graduate college. For 
many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's 
showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told 
him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited
 signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the 
morning of his graduation his father called him into his private 
study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine
 son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son
 a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed the young man
 opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible. Angrily,
 he raised his voice at his father and said, "With all your money you
 give me just a Bible?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the holy
book.

 Many years passed and the young man was very successful in 
business. 
He had a beautiful home and a wonderful family, but realized his 
father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He
 had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make 
arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had
 passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son and
needed to come home immediately to take care of things for him. When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and
 regret filled his heart. He began to search his father's important papers and
 saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With
 tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. As he 
read those words, a car key dropped from an envelope 
taped behind the Bible. 
It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the
 sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation and the words...PAID IN FULL. How many times do we miss God's blessings because they are not
 packaged as we expected?