LESSON OF THE DAY 1256

Ayahs of the Day:
By the night when it covers, and the day when it comes to light, and the creation of male and female, your striving is surely diverse. As for those who are generous and conscientious trusting in the happy end, We will facilitate ease for them. As for those who are stingy and complacent repudiating the happy end, We will facilitate hardship for them, and their wealth won't help them when they fall. [92: 1 to 11]

Hadith of the Day:
All of you are shepherds, each of you is responsible for his flock. [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Beware of Allah, O believers, and fear His punishment. And ward off His punishment by performing what He has obligated and abstaining from what is in disobedience to Him, and do the things that bring you closer to Him, and exhort all of your efforts (for that goal). [Al-Tabari]

Guidance of the Day:
Do not go to bed mad: When you make the decision to never go to bed mad, it helps you see the innocence in your own behavior and in that of your family members. It keeps the channels of communications open. It reminds you that you are a family and despite your problems and disagreements, you love, need, and treasure each other. The decision that it's never a good idea to go to bed mad is a built-in reset button that protects your family from stress, hostility, and resentment.

Perhaps it's easier to see the importance of such a policy in its absence. Without a family policy such as this, arguments and anger are open-ended. No one will have created a boundary, a set of rules that protect your family from extended unnecessary anger. Without a rule to suggest otherwise, family members can hold on to their anger and justify doing so. This policy ensures that ninety-nine times out of a hundred, we'll wake up the next morning with love in our hearts and with an attitude of "This is a new day."

I hope that you'll give this strategy a fair try. It's certainly not always easy, and you probably won't bat 100 percent, but it's well worth the effort. Remember, life is short. Nothing is so important that it's worth ruining your day, nor anything so significant that it's worth going to bed mad. Have a nice sleep. [Carlson, Don't Sweat the Small Stuff--with your family]

Food for Thought:
While faith makes all things possible, it is love that makes all things easy. Love is the greatest constraining power in the world. Tell me what you love, and I will tell you what your are. The man who loves needs no law to impel him to action. This works on both sides of the moral line. The man who loves right and righteousness will do right, law or no law, while the man who loves wrong will do wrong in spite of all law.