One day a farmer's donkey fell into an abandoned well.  Terrified, the animal cried miserably for hours, while the farmer tried to figure out something to do to get him out.  Finally, the farmer decided that the donkey was old and it would be impossible to retrieve him.  The well was already dry and needed to be covered anyway to prevent any further losses. He felt that is really was not worth pulling the donkey out of the well.

He invited all of his neighbors to come help him.  They each grabbed a shovel and began to throw dirt into the well.

The donkey realized that he was being buried alive and he cried horribly.  Then, to everyone's surprise, he quieted down after a few shovelfuls of dirt.

The farmer finally looked down into the well and was amazed at what he saw!  With each shovelful of dirt, the donkey was doing something incredible.  With each shovelful of dirt that hit the donkey's back, he was shaking off the dirt and stepping on top of the dirt.  As the farmer and his neighbors continued to throw dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take another step up.  Very soon everyone was amazed as the donkey reached the mouth of the well, stepped up over the edge of it and happily trotted off!

The moral of this story is this:  Life is going to throw dirt at you, all kinds of dirt, and attempt to bury you.  The trick to getting out of the hole is to shake off what life throws at you and use it to step up.  No one ever gets out of life's wells by giving up.  Each of our problems is something for us to rise above.  We can get out of the deepest holes if we do not give up!  So, shake the dirt off and take a step up!

Remember the rules to be happy:
1.  Free your heart from hate.
2.  Free your mind from distraction.
3.  Simplify your life.
4.  Give more and expect less. 
5.  Love more!
6.  Be a part of the solution, not the problem.
7.  Place your faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

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