阅读报告 《古人今读II》 by Philip

姓名：林洪涛
书名：古人今读（二）
作者：潘朝伟博士 页数：142

一直都喜欢圣经里的故事，尤其是旧约时代的列王故事，从中可以学习到许多的教导。 这本古人今读，就很详细地解释了有名的王——扫罗王，大卫王，所罗门王，罗波安和亚哈王，他们在位时所作的一切。 很喜欢这本书是因为它解答了我许多不明白的地方，

如：

.大卫载运约柜时，途中突然牛失蹄，乌撒赶紧伸手扶住约柜；照理来说应该是好的啊，他避免约柜跌下来，但，上帝却处死他，为什么呢？

· 押沙龙是大卫的第三子，是最俊美，最聪明的，但他怎样夺取大卫的王位呢？夺取后怎样失败呢？

· 当押沙龙死去后，大卫为何痛苦？这样做有什么不对呢？· 大卫做全国人口调查，到底错在哪里呢？

· 亚哈王在位时，政治稳定，国运昌盛，唯独多拜偶像——尤其是巴力。为何上帝用旱灾来惩罚他？

这些疑问，此书都有很详细的解释，从当时的背景，圣经的记载等解释，具有十足的说服力。除此之外，每篇故事的最后，还有生活的应用，教导我们如何吸取古时王的失败，不要重蹈复测。 让我印象最深刻的是这个故事（列王之下2：23-25）的解释：当以利沙从耶利哥上伯特利时，遭受几十个童子嘲笑：“秃头的上去吧！”以利沙听后很生气，就奉上帝的名咒诅他们，然后就有两只母熊攻击他们，咬死了其中42人。

读时我就很奇怪，小孩子笑你秃头嘛，就当他们不懂事就好了，需要这样生气杀死他们哦？这么残忍…… 原来，童子在这里的意思是门徒的意思，是在伯特利学习的门徒，是大人。他们讽刺以利沙：“秃头的上去吧！” 秃头，可能是嘲笑以利沙不是受过正规训练的先知，因为当时受训的先知的头上都有特别的记号。此外，也可能他们也怀疑以利沙的师傅以利亚升天，因此嘲讽以利沙为失去师傅而剃头。

上去吧，可能有两个意思：1-嘲讽以利亚并不是真的升天，2-他们拒绝接待以利沙，嘲笑他也会像他的师傅一样，离奇地死掉（升天）。 难怪以利沙会这么生气…… 虽然这本书读了很久（差不多两个月），但却让我受益良多。盼望大家也能借这本书来看，此外，也多阅读属灵书籍，好好利用我们图书馆的资源，在主的道上更加扎根

~ By, Philip

Choose To Be Happy !!!

A positive attitude can help you feel good and spread cheer

People want to be happy. They want a fulfilling career and a satisfying life filled with good experiences. They want good relationships and a job they enjoy and can be proud of. They want to see their dreams come true. And they want to be loved, liked and respected by all.

Unfortunately, happiness is not something that you can acquire – either you are happy or you choose to be.Everybody has different ideas on what will make them happy. In 1957, a large number of people in the United Sates were asked whether they were happy with what they had in life. About a third said “yes”

Then in 1962, when the researchers conducted the same study, again a third said “yes” despite the fact that the standard of living had increased substantially.So what does the study mean? It means that about one-third of the people interviewed knew the secret of being happy.

Happiness comes from within. It depends not on what possessions you have but on what you are and what you experience.Many people think they are happy when they buy that next possession or achieve another goal. This is a mirage! The reality is they will stop being happy after a while until the next thing comes along to buy or chase after.

So how happy are you? Do you have an accurate self-assessment, a high degree of self-confidence and an accurate self-awareness of who and what you are? Can you make yourself happy even in dire economic times?

If you take the time to focus on what you already have and be appreciative and thankful for it, you are a good candidate for happiness.Rather than pine for the material success that you want to pursue, why not simply just decide to be happy now?

Try to see the glass as half full, rather than half empty. At work, don’t moan, complain, whine, condemn or criticize. You certainly won’t gain happiness that way. Stop being a liability to yourself by indulging in this unseemly and negative behavior.

Stop sucking away like a vacuum cleaner whatever goodness the office environment may offer and replace it with a sour and negative environment.

Simply decide to act positively. Even if you don’t feel positive, try putting a smile on your face that says you’re happy! Research shows that a positive attitude can influence the way you feel. In other words, choose to be happy and you will be happy.

Be positive about your fellow work mates and the future. Be grateful fro what you have instead of focusing on what you don’t have.

I am not suggesting that you ignore the bad news about you.When financial times are not so good and the organization has to take people off the payroll, or if a project’s gone badly wrong, then discuss it. Face the facts and discuss them in the right context.

It is not possible to skip into the office daily, wearing a false smile and pretending that life is perfect.But you can monitor your thoughts and avoid whining and complaining in a negative fashion.So choose to be happy and you will be happy. Count your blessings. Put a smile on your face. Do something nice for someone and spread some happiness.

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Article by Ricky Lien, a specialist in conflict resolution, communication and emotional intelligence