Respect Opinions

It's okay to disagree with the thoughts or opinions expressed by other people. That doesn't give you the right to deny any sense they might make. Nor does it give you a right to accuse someone of poorly expressing their beliefs just because you don't like what they are saying. Learn to recognise good writing when you read it, even if it means overcoming your pride and opening your mind beyond what is comfortable.

Others' Secrets

Funny how when you're about to be given something precious, something you've wanted for a long time, you suddenly feel nervous over taking it.
Everyone wants more than anything to be allowed into someone else's most secret self. Everyone wants to allow someone into their most secret self. Everyone feels so alone inside that their deepest wish is for someone to know their secret being, because then they are alone no longer. Don't we all long for this? Yet when it's offered it's frightening, because you might not live up to the desires of the one who bestows the gift. And frightening because you know that accepting such a gift means you'll want-perhaps be expected- to offer a similar gift in return. Which means giving your *self* away. And what's more frightening than that?

Untrue feeling about happiness

The belief that unhappiness is selfless and happiness is selfish is misguided. It's more selfless to act happy. It takes energy, generosity, and discipline to be unfailing-ly lighthearted, yet everyone takes the happy person for granted.
No one is careful of his feelings or tries to keep his spirits high. He seems self-sufficient; he becomes a cushion for others. And because happiness seems unforced, that person usually gets no credit.

the pastor's caution from stealing

Several years ago, a preacher from out-of-state accepted a call to a church in town. Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride a bus from his home to the downtown area. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him N50 more than his correct change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, 'You'd better give the N50 back. It would be wrong to keep it. Then he thought, "Oh, forget it, it's only N50; who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a 'gift from God' and keep quiet."When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the N50 to the driver and said,'Here, you gave me too much change.' The driver, with a smile, replied,'Aren't you the new preacher in town?' 'Yes' he replied.'Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I'll see you at church later. When the preacher stepped off of the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, 'Oh God, I almost sold your Son for a N50.'Our lives are the only Bible some people will ever read. This is a really scary example of how much people watch us as Christians, and will put us to the test! Always be on guard -- and remember -- You carry the name of Christ on your shoulders when you call yourself 'Christian.'Watch your thoughts;they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny. I'm glad a friend forwarded this to me as a reminder and I chose to forward it to you. Forward it to someone, and you would have ministered to someone today.

Right in you

There is inside you;
All of the potential
To be whatever you want to be;
All of the energy
To do whatever you want to do.
Imagine yourself as you would like to be,
Doing what you want to do,
And each day, take one step
Towards your dream.
And though at times it may seem too difficult to continue,
Hold on to your dream.
One morning you will awake to find
That you are the person you dreamed of,
Doing what you wanted to do,
Simply because you had the courage
To believe in your potential
And to hold on to your dream.

Life's difficult

Life is indeed difficult; partly because of the real difficulties we must overcome in order to survive, and partly because of our own innate desire to always do better, to overcome new challenges, to self-actualize. Happiness is experienced largely in striving towards a goal and not in having attained things; because our nature is always to want to go on to the next endeavour.

accusations

To accuse others for one's own misfortunes is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete.

purpose of goals

Goals give you more than a reason to get up in the morning; they are an incentive to keep you going all day. Goals tend to tap the deeper resources and draw the best out of life.

What if we could deactivate treatments after use to cut the rise of antibiotic resistance?

I got this off BBC website and I couldn't feel anymore better concerning this issue. Human bodies resisting antibiotics is terrifying. Kinda long...but take a whack

 

"The voices warning of the demise of our antibiotic defences are getting louder. With common pathogens such as E. coli and the pneumonia bug K. pneumoniae developing resistance to our antibiotics of last resort, leading pharmacologists, clinicians and epidemiologists say we risk being cast back to a time when even routine surgery put Victorians at risk of fatal infection.

It’s no mystery what the problem is. Complacent over-prescription of antibiotics by doctors, and their reckless, profligate use in livestock rearing, has provided ample opportunity for resistant strains of pathogenic bacteria to proliferate through natural selection. The solution is less obvious. An imminent and widespread outbreak of responsible antibiotic use seems unlikely. The financial incentive that usually drives private sector drug development is weakened by the knowledge that more profitable all-purpose antibiotics become obsolete more quickly because of the likely faster emergence of resistance.

Researchers in the Netherlands are exploring a novel way forward. What if antibiotics could be deactivated after use so that they no longer accumulate in the environment where they encourage the emergence of resistant bugs? A team at the University of Groningen has demonstrated a way to switch off antibiotic agents after just a few hours using warmth or sunlight.

The basic concept is to equip drug molecules with chemical components that change shape in response to heat or light. Many drugs work by sticking to and deactivating particular enzyme molecules in the body, disabling their function. Antibiotics typically work by disrupting functions that are essential to the survival of bacterial cells. And the way a drug binds to its target usually depends on it having a shape that fits rather precisely into a “slot” on the target enzyme. So if a drug changes shape, it might no longer work.

Light-switchable drugs have been explored in other fields such as cancer therapy, but not for antibiotics. Organic chemist Ben Feringa at Groningen and his co-workers used an existing light-switchable unit called azobenzene, which consists of two benzene molecules joined together by two nitrogen atoms linked by a double chemical bond. The double bond prevents the benzene group at each end from rotating around the "axle" linking them. They must remain either both on the same side of the molecule in a flattened C shape, or on opposite sides like a Z. These two different forms are called isomers: molecules with the same molecular formula but different structures and properties.

Crucially, heat and light can temporarily loosen up the bond between the nitrogen atoms, allowing them to rotate. If the Z-shaped isomer absorbs ultraviolet light, it will become switch to the C-shaped isomer. The reverse shape change can be induced by visible light or gentle heating at around body temperature.

Feringa and colleagues substituted the azobenzene switch for a similar chemical grouping within several variants of an antibacterial molecule called a quinolone, which tackle some types of bacteria by binding to an enzyme essential for replicating DNA. Several of these modified quinolones remained active against E. coli and other bacteria. Or at least they were after exposure to ultraviolet light made them switch to the C-isomer. Later, after being warmed inside the body or exposed to sunlight, they reverted to the Z-form, which is all but useless as an antibiotic.

Not only could this innovation prevent accumulation of active antibiotics in the environment, but it might also help to reduce side effects. One of these comes from their indiscriminate nature: when swallowed, they tend to attack the “friendly” bacteria in the gut as well as pathogens. Drugs equipped with activation switches could be administered orally and then turned on with light once they reach the part of the body (the throat or lungs, say) where the harmful bacteria are lurking.

Switching on drugs with ultraviolet light is not ideal in practice because it can have harmful effects. Feringa says he is now working on developing molecules than can be shape-shifted with visible light, or better still infrared, which can penetrate into the body without causing any harm."

when life..

When life gets bitter, let the problems sweeten it. The sorrows make it a mixture of everything. Always remember the more you experience sufferings, the more you see the meaning of life.

life as a snowflake

We have all heard that no two snowflakes are alike. Each snowflake takes the perfect form for the maximum efficiency and effectiveness for its journey. And while the universal force of gravity gives them a shared destination, the expansive space in the air gives each snowflake the opportunity to take their own path. They are on the same journey, but each takes a different path.

Along this gravity-driven journey, some snowflakes collide and damage each other, some collide and join together, some are influenced by wind... there are so many transitions and changes that take place along the journey of the snowflake. But, no matter what the transition, the snowflake always finds itself perfectly shaped for its journey. 

I find parallels in nature to be a beautiful reflection of grand orchestration. One of these parallels is of snowflakes and us. We, too, are all headed in the same direction. We are being driven by a universal force to the same destination. We are all individuals taking different journeys and along our journey, we sometimes bump into each other, we cross paths, we become altered... we take different physical forms. But at all times we too are 100% perfectly imperfect. At every given moment we are absolutely perfect for what is required for our journey. I’m not perfect for your journey and you’re not perfect for my journey, but I’m perfect for my journey and you’re perfect for your journey. We’re heading to the same place, we’re taking different routes, but we’re both exactly perfect the way we are. 

Think of what understanding this great orchestration could mean for relationships. Imagine interacting with others knowing that they too each share this parallel with the snowflake. Like you, they are headed to the same place and no matter what they may appear like to you, they have taken the perfect form for their journey. How strong our relationships would be if we could see an