THE APPLE BASKET

One day an elderly man entered into a hospital. He was grumpy from being on medication and the nurses thought him to be insane, as he yelled for his wife to get the apple basket. By the time they had checked him into his room the nurses were exhausted from the fight he was putting up.

"Sir you have to calm down we are doing everything we can for you" they would try to explain.

"I don't need your help" the grumpy man would yell "I want my apple basket". He finally slept. The nurses sighed with relief and talked among themselves whether they should call the hospital psychologist about the old man and his obsession with the apple basket.

As they talked and laughed about the situation the wife came in carrying the basket of apples. They looked kind of stunned as she asked if she could see her husband and deliver his basket. Sure, they agreed as they watched her slip past into his room.

Curiosity consumed them over the next few weeks as they tended to the elderly man. He was eaten with cancer and the doctors had given him no hope of survival. He turned out to be a very calm, happy man once he had his basket. His wife, they noticed, would come in with apples and go out with apples and the curiosity grew even more till one nurse couldn't stand the suspense.

One night as he was nearing the end, the nurse sat down in a chair by the wife." May I ask why do you have that apple basket? I just don't understand the significance."

"I am an apple farmer by trade he sighed. From the time I was 20 till the day I do die I will forever have my apples." The nurse nodded thinking she understood. He just likes his work, she thought, assured now he was a little bit crazy.

As she started to leave, the old man asked her to sit down. "At age 20 I was saved, I accepted the Lord as my Savior." Oh no, the nurse thought. Here comes the lecture on religion. The old man continued. "The day I accepted the Lord as my Savior I got this basket, and each time I had a problem or concern that I could not handle, I put an apple in the basket un-shined."

"Why?" the nurse said shaking her head.

"Because it reminded me to give those problems to the Lord for him to shine. See my basket now," he stated. "As my problems disappear so do the apples. As I get new problems, ones I cannot handle alone, I put an apple in."

The humble nurse looked into the basket...only one apple was there.

With that, he took a big breath and grabbed his wife by the hand and faded into eternal sleep. The wife paused for a moment and got up from her place to take from the basket the last remaining apple. She whispered in his ear that his reward awaits him in heaven.

The nurse stayed still and asked with tears in her eyes, "what do you think his riches will be?"

The wife knew what they were, eternal life with Jesus Christ. But she could see the concern and sadness upon the young nurses' face and handed her the apple and said "the biggest apple pie you can imagine!"

That was the day the young nurse was saved, and from that day on she always had a basket by her bed.

~~Unknown

[Forwarded from Cheryl]

A friend sent this to me, and I thought the reminder to pray for our nation was worth passing on.

Life is not a problem to be solved, but a gift to be enjoyed. "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Our nation is/has been on the slippery slope for a long time. If you look around you will find corruption, greed, moral decay, and a steady move away from the things that made us great. The principles upon which this nation was founded are no longer our backbone. However, we can reverse this trend.
In God's word he states, "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." 2 Chron. 7:14
We must pray for our nation and its leaders and ask for forgiveness. So I ask you to join me in this plea to our Lord.
Would you please send this to at least 25 people in your address book, (send it to all of them). Ask them to pray EVERYDAY. (25 to the 5th power is 9,765,625 people..) IMAGINE if each person reaches TEN others...or all TWENTY FIVE!
If you do and they comply, we will lift up millions and millions of prayers a day to our Creator.. He will hear us and in faith will answer.
Ronald Reagan said “ "If we ever forget that we are one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under." I truly believe this is why the United States of America is in the shape we are in today. Most people have forgotten that we are one nation under God! Let us, as Christians, stand up and remind people of this.. ~ Have a blessed day!
~unkown

[Forwarded from Cheryl]

IS GOD DANCING ON YOUR POTATO CHIPS?


Not too long ago I had "one of those days." I was feeling pressure from a
Writing deadline. I had company arriving in a couple days and the toilet was
Clogged. I went to the bank, and the trainee teller processing my deposit
Had to start over three times. I swung by the supermarket to pick up a few
Things and the lines were serpentine. By the time I got home, I was frazzled
And sweaty and in a hurry to get something on the table for dinner.

Deciding on Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup, I grabbed a can opener,
Cranked open the can, then remembered I had forgotten to buy milk at the
Store. Nix the soup idea. Setting the can aside, I went to plan B, which was
Leftover baked beans. I grabbed the Tupperware container from the fridge,
Popped the seal, took a look and groaned. My husband isn't a picky eater,
But even HE won't eat baked beans that look like caterpillars.

Really frustrated now, I decided on a menu that promised to be as foolproof
As it is nutrition-free: hot dogs and potato chips. Retrieving a brand new
Bag of chips from the cupboard, I grabbed the cellophane and gave a hearty
Pull. The bag didn't open. I tried again. Nothing happened. I took a breath,
Doubled my muscle, and gave the bag a hearty wrestle. With a loud pop, the
Cellophane suddenly gave way, ripping wide from top to bottom. Chips flew
Sky high. I was left holding the bag, and it was empty.

It was the final straw. I let out a blood curdling scream. "I CAN'T TAKE IT
ANYMORE!" My husband heard my unorthodox cry for help. Within minutes he was
Standing at the doorway to the kitchen, where he surveyed the damage: an
Opened can of soup, melting groceries, moldy baked beans, and one quivering
Wife standing ankle deep in potato chips. My husband did the most helpful
Thing he could think of at the moment. He took a flying leap, landing
Flat-footed in the pile of chips. And then he began to stomp and dance and
Twirl, grinding those chips into my linoleum in the process!

I stared. I fumed. Pretty soon I was working to stifle a smile. Eventually I
Had to laugh. And finally I decided to join him. I, too, took a leap onto
The chips. And then I danced. Now I'll be the first to admit that my
Husband's response wasn't the one I was looking for. But the truth is, it
Was exactly what I needed. I didn't need a cleanup crew as much as I needed
An attitude adjustment, and the laughter from that rather funky moment
Provided just that.

So now I have a question for you, and it's simply this: Has God ever stomped
On your chips? I know that, in my life, there have been plenty of times when
I've gotten myself into frustrating situations and I've cried out for help,
All the while hoping God would show up with a celestial broom and clean up
The mess.

What often happens instead is that God dances on my chips, answering my
Prayer in a completely different manner than I had expected, but in the
Manner that is best for me after all. Sometimes I can see right away that
God's response was the best one after all. Sometimes I have to wait weeks or
Months before I begin to understand how and why God answered a particular
Prayer the way he did. There are even some situations that, years later, I'm
Still trying to understand. I figure God will fill me in sooner or later,
Either this side of Heaven or beyond.

Do I trust Him? Even when he's answering my prayers in a way that is
Completely different from my expectations? Even when he's dancing and
Stomping instead of sweeping and mopping:? Can I embrace what He's offering?
Can I let His joy adjust my attitude? Am I going to stand on the sidelines
And sulk, or am I willing to learn the steps of the dance he's dancin' with
My needs in mind? I'll be honest with you: Sometimes I sulk. Sometimes I
Dance. I'm working on doing more of the latter than the former. I guess the
Older I get the more I realize that He really does know what He's doing. He
Loves me and I can trust Him. Even when the chips are down.

~~Unknown

[forwarded from Cheryl] THE WHISPER

There is a whisper that comes to us all in countless ways every day.
Sometimes it is soft and sometimes it is loud. Sometimes it echoes in our mind,
sometimes it tickles our ear but it can always be heard most clearly in our hearts
no matter what form it takes.

This whisper came to me in a lot of ways today. It started out with a thump and a slurp
as my beeping alarm clock inspired my beagle pup to jump on my chest and lick my face
until I sat up in bed. Next it came to me with a purr and a nuzzle as my big,
gray cat refused to eat her breakfast until she had gotten her morning head scratch.
The whisper came down the hall with a "good morning" and a hug from my son too.
Then as I went out to get the morning newspaper it came through loud and clear with
a dazzling sunrise and a chorus of birdsong. Later in the day I also heard it hiding
in the sweet music coming from the radio and the not so sweet sound of my own voice
singing along. As I was bringing my boys home from school it came to me once more this
time in the smile and wave of my friend and neighbor who lives down the hill from me.

This whisper was the gentle voice of God saying, "I love you my child", and every time
I heard it I could feel my heart grow warmer and my soul shine brighter. It took me a
long time to see just how much, how often, and in how many ways God whispers His love
for us every day. His love for us is everywhere, in everything, and flows through all
of us as well. His love is what created the universe and His love is what can help us
to become who we were meant to be.

Open your ears, eyes, mind, and heart. Listen carefully with them all, each day of your
life. Hear the gentle voice of our Father telling you just how much He loves you.
Then joyously say, "I love you too God and I thank you for my life." God's love whispers
on the winds of everything in this world. Let it whisper through your voice and your life as well.


.....Joseph J. Mazzella

 

[Forwarded from Rebbca]  7 reasons not to mess with children.

  A little girl was talking to her teacher about whales. 
     The teacher said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a 
 human because even though it was a very large mammal its throat was
 very small. 
  The little girl stated that Jonah was swallowed by a whale. 
   Irritated, the teacher reiterated that a whale could not swallow a
human; it was physically impossible. 
   The little girl said, 'When I get to heaven I will ask Jonah'. 
    The teacher asked, 'What if Jonah went to hell?' 
     The little girl replied, 'Then you ask him'. 

   A Kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while
 they were drawing. She would occasionally walk around to see each
 child's work. 
   As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked
what the drawing was.     The girl replied, 'I'm drawing God.' 
     The teacher paused and said, 'But no one knows what God looks like.' 
     Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing, the girl
replied, 'They will in a minute.' 

  A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her
five and six year olds. 
   After explaining the commandment to 'honour' thy Father and thy
Mother, she asked, 'Is there a commandment that teaches us how to
treat our brothers and sisters?' 
     Without missing a beat one little boy (the oldest of a family)
answered, 'Thou shall not kill.' 

  One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the
dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had
several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette
head. 
   She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, 'Why are some of
your hairs white, Mom?' 
   Her mother replied, 'Well, every time that you do something wrong and
make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white.' 
   The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then
said, 'Momma, how come ALL of grandma's hairs are white?' 

   The children had all been photographed, and the teacher was trying
to persuade them each to buy a copy of the group picture. 
'Just think how nice it will be to look at it when you are all grown
up and say, 'There's Jennifer, she's a lawyer,' or 'That's Michael,  He's
a doctor.'
  A small voice at the back of the room rang out, 'And there's the teacher,
she's dead.' 

   A teacher was giving a lesson on the circulation of the blood.
Trying to make the matter clearer, she said, 'Now, class, if I stood on my
 head, the blood, as you know, would run into it, and I would turn red
 in the face.' 
   'Yes,' the class said. 
   'Then why is it that while I am standing upright in the ordinary
 position the blood doesn't run into my feet?' 
   A little fellow shouted,
 'Cause your feet ain't empty.' 

  The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary
school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. 
   The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray:
  'Take only ONE . God is watching.' 
     Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was 
a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. 
   A child had written a note, 'Take all you want. God is watching the
  apples.'

Like the little old lady who returned your wallet yesterday.

Like the taxi driver who told you that
Your eyes light up the world, when you smile.

Like the small child who showed you
The wonder in simple things.

Like the poor man who offered
To share his lunch with you.

Like the rich man who showed you it
Really is all possible, if only you believe.

Like the stranger who just happened to come along,
When you had lost your way.

Like the friend who touched your heart,
When you didn't think you had one left to touch.

Angels come in all sizes and shapes,
All ages and skin types.

Some with freckles, some with dimples,
Some with wrinkles, some without.

They come disguised as friends, enemies,
Teachers, students, lovers and fools.

They don't take life too seriously,
They travel light.

They leave no forwarding address,
They ask for nothing in return.

They wear sneakers with gossamer wings,
They get a deal on dry cleaning.

They are hard to find when your eyes are closed, But
They are everywhere you look when you choose to see.


© 1990, Veronica M. Hay
Published with her kind permission.

After much reading this is what I found out regarding the delta's between the 4801 and 5501:

The 4801 make use of the legacy IDE drivers in the kernel where the 5501 uses the SATA/PATA CS5536 drivers. 4801 uses /dev/hda(x) and the 5501 uses /dev/sda(x). to build a hard drive for the 4801 use the Gentoo 2007 LiveCD and for the 5501 use the Gentoo 2008 LiveCD.

Regarding the ethernet delta's, for the 4801 use the NATSEMI pci ethernet driver and for the 5501 use the VIA_RHINE pci ethernet driver.

If you are building a pfSense firewall the 1.2.2 embedded image will boot direct to the gui on a 4801. If you install the flashed Cf card in a 5501 you need to use a serial console cable (set at 9600,8,n,1) and when the box boots set vr0 to LAN, vr1 to WAN, vr2 to OPT1 and vr3 to OPT2. You can backup the 4801 Firewall Rules, System, NAT to seperate xml files to upload to the 5501. You can not upload a full 4801 backup due to the change in ethernet interfaces.

Keep this for your records/reference

[Forwarded from Cheryl]

THE PERFECT MISTAKE
 
 
My Mother's father worked as a carpenter. On this particular day, he was
Building some crates for the clothes his church was sending to orphanages in
China. On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his
Glasses, but they were gone.  When he mentally replayed his earlier actions,
He realized what had happened; the glasses had slipped out of his pocket
Unnoticed and fallen into one of the crates, which he had nailed shut. His
Brand new glasses were heading for China!
 
 
The Great Depression was at it's height and Grandpa had six children. He had
Spent $20 for those glasses that very morning. He was upset by the thought
Of having to buy another pair. "It's not fair," he told God as he drove home
In frustration. "I've been very faithful in giving of my time and money to
Your work, and now this."
 
 

I visited Congress today. The beauty of the building is without words. Watched Congress in session. I highly recommend all to see what I have witnessed today....