Door to Door
by Letty Zook
Jody Larson clutched her vinyl purse and tugged at the collar of her double-knit, tailored dress. She stared at the peeling paint above the doorbell and then over at the couple standing beside her. She was glad her church's visitation program was not a solitary venture. The man in the trio checked a notebook. "Yes, this is the place." He patted Jody's shoulder. "Don't be nervous. The holy-boldness-of-God will sustain you."
"Always remember you're not responsible," said the woman beside him. "We give them the Word; and if they reject it, our hands are clean." She linked one clean hand to her husband's arm. Gerald and Gloria Steele were very similar in appearance. Blond hair-his short, hers long--set faces, and firm grips on large Bibles.
"Just follow the pattern you were taught in Visitation Class," added Gerald.
At that moment, the door was opened by a young woman in her early twenties. She was dressed in cut-off jeans and a tight black leather top. Behind heavy mascara her eyes were neither unfriendly nor welcoming.
"Andrea Blake? We're from Grace Church," said Gerald with a crisp smile. "You visited us one Sunday with--" he checked the note in his hand-- "Mary Reynolds."
On cue, Gloria said, "Are you busy? Might we chat with you?"
The woman hitched up one elbow and muttered, "I s'pose." She led them into a musty, smoky living room. Jody gulped when she saw the room was already filled with five lounging bodies, two female, three male, clad in jeans and wearing the same non committal look.
Gerald and Gloria were not disconcerted. "Ah, you have company," said Gerald, as he sat in a chair near the door. "I hope they too will listen to what-we-have-to-say." He gave Jody the go-ahead signal.
She swallowed and began. "I'm told you work with Mary Reynolds. H-how nice of you to visit our church."
"She kept bugging me," said the young woman from the depths of an overstuffed couch. "I went finally to make her lay off me."
Jody blanched and was silenced. She could sense Andrea Blake's friends sharing a silent laugh. When it was clear his protege was unable to continue, Gerald said, "Well, well; to some it might seem like er-bugging." His voice became solemn. "You will not get-by forever laughing. Those who reject the-precious-truth will be lost-in-a-fiery-hell."
Jody looked at her senior with surprise. In Visitation Training Class they were instructed to fill fifteen minutes with small-talk before broaching spiritual matters.
Gloria chimed in at this point. "And here are some tracts to point you to the way-of-life."
"Life can be hell," said one of the lounging bodies.
Gerald's eyes rebuked the young man who had spoken. "You are privileged to live in a country which possesses freedom and great material blessing. How would you like to live in the slums of some third-world-country?"
This made Andrea Blake curl a cynical lip and say, "Maybe you should go there and try out your sermons. See if they can change anything."
"Read the tracts," said Gerald. "The hope-of-heaven will satisfy." He looked at his watch. "We must leave. So nice talking with you."
"What is your church like?" asked one of Andrea's female friends. She was looking at Jody. "What did you do the last time you met?"
"We had a pot-luck supper," said Jody.
Gerald have her a sharp glance. "You might fill that in a bit more, Jody. Don't forget the magician who, after his act, gave-the-gospel to the kids."
"What are the kids like?" asked another voice.
"We have a fine group of young persons." This came from Gloria. She eyed the sprawling bodies. "They keep their appearance nice and dress like Christians."
This remark made Gerald take action. He hustled the two women toward the door. Andrea rose suddenly and came over to clutch Jody's arm. "Don't they see they only make us angry?"
Her intensity halted the retreating group momentarily; but Gerald quickly recovered himself. "You are possessed by the spirit-of-destruction," he said, as he reached for the doorknob.
"And what possesses you people?" taunted Andrea. Her mocking voice made Jody stand still.
"Jody!" Herald's tone was a command; and since she was accustomed to submission, she went after him. At the door, though, something compelled her to turn and answer Andrea's question.
"A spirit called Triviality," she said, sadly. "He also destroys."
When the trio were finally outside the closed apartment door, Gerald and Gloria exchanged meaningful glances. They pulled Jody along the sidewalk, one on either side of her.
"As you probably noticed," said Gerald, "we were anxious to leave that place."
"And really, Jody!" Gloria's voice was exasperated. "Another five minutes and I believe you would have been completely brainwashed. I pegged them as unreachables immediately."
These words pierced Jody's dazed thoughts and broke the spell. She yanked her arms away from the couple and turned away. She did not look back. At the peeling door, she ignored the doorbell and simply stepped back into the living room.
Andrea looked up and laughed. "Were you ex-communicated on the spot?"
"I would like to tell you," said Jody quietly, "about Jesus Christ, the One who builds..."
Three months later the Women's Missionary Society of Grace Church were holding their monthly meeting. The project that day was rolling bandages.
"Who gets these?" asked one lady.
"Some hospital in Africa."
"No, Laura, you're wrong. It's some place in the Middle East."
Laura shrugged a shoulder. "It's all the same."
"Did you hear about Jody Larson," came a sibilant whisper.
"Yes! The Official Board is very upset, my husband says."
"She and her band of misfits are taking over some teen hangout in the city and calling it Agape House."
The women shook their heads and pursed disapproving lips while busy fingers continued rolling white sheets.
One younger woman looked up. "I asked her about it," said Mary Reynold. (All ears stretched closer.) "She said we should stop arguing about whether church pews should be padded or unpadded and start building shelters for an empty, hungry world."
The words sank into the room and brought absolute silence. Even the busy fingers stopped. Then a calm voice shattered the moment. "Poor Jody has fallen into the modernistic error," said Gloria Steele. "We work for heavenly buildings. Our job is to get people saved, and Grace Church has always been faithful. After all, we have our Visitation Training Class."
Bodies rustled once again and fingers rapidly resumed their rolling. Conversation held a hint of relief. Of course! Everything was just fine.
Copyright (c) 1998-2000 by Letitia L. Zook.
This work may be copied and distributed freely, but only in its entirety, including this copyright
notice, and without any changes.
The other night I had a most horrifying dream. I dreamt I was in a supermarket. In my dream, the supermarket was divided into two sides. On the right side, there were drinks that lined the wall and fruits stacked in cases that reached to one's shoulders. There were apples of many colors and varieties, oranges both large and small, lemons and pears.
On the left side of the room, there were packets of meat and fresh vegetables of all varieties, still wet from whichever farm they had arrived from.
The large room itself was crowded. It was filled to the capacity that you could still walk around, but not without bumping into someone or other at every few steps. You can imagine what it was like, people walking, some looking at a product, some picking out something, some talking to friends, some just walking around aimlessly. It was all what you would expect to see at a grocery store. Except in this case, I saw that every single person as far as I could see was blind. Some had on dark sunglasses, as if to shield their weak eyes from any glare of the light. But others just walked around without anything to cover their eyes. It was a terrifying sight, needless to say. There were some eyes that were sealed shut, some that were glazed over with a thick opaque color and some that had no opening for eyes at all.
I dreamt that I stood there, motionless, lost, caught in a paralyzing terror to see all these blind people, and yet I had a morbid fascination and I did not turn away, but remained, staring, watching. I do not know why.
One woman who was standing particularly close to me was fingering an orange that she had just touched and picked up from the crate of oranges. She pressed it carefully between her fingers and slowly brought it up to her nose as if to smell it. I looked at the orange she was holding and saw that it was smashed on one side and that the juice was leaking out. A fly, attracted to the sweet sap from the broken orange began buzzing closer.
In the next instant I responded as quickly as I could and touched the lady on her arm.
"Excuse me," I said, trying to be as polite and sensitive as I could be in such a situation. "I realize you cannot see. But I can. I just want to tell you that this orange that you have here is bad." I looked at the crate quickly and saw another much better orange. "Here," I said, "Take this instead."
The lady turned towards me. Her eyes I could see were shut with a sticky substance, very much like tears resting on her eyelids. She looked like one who was about to scream or cry out in pain. She took the good orange that I had placed in her hand and threw it down with such vehemence and anger that I was taken aback and struck dumbfounded for a moment. Then she turned her back on me and, clutching the rotten orange to her breast, began to make her way out of the crowded supermarket without even as much as a backward glance.
Perhaps it had been the way I had said it. I did not know, but as soon as I thought that, someone behind me said, "You cannot choose for her. That is not the way. But if you would give her eyes to see, then she might have chosen the better orange."
I turned around immediately. I was not aware that anyone had been watching me or following my movements. But I could not identify the speaker. No one was talking to me. No one was looking at me. I did not see the speaker of those words, but I did see an old man who kept on tripping and falling over objects on the floor that other people had carelessly dropped. In fact as I looked, he fell forward, sliding on a large leave of green vegetable, and hit his head on the weighing scale that hung from the ceiling.
I felt a tug of pain on my heart as I saw the sight and moved towards that old man at once. I took his hand and said as gently as possible, "Old father, I can see. Let me help lead you through."
The old man reached for my hand, and his grip tightened over mine. With his other hand, he reached up and searched for my face, whereupon his fingers touched my eyelids lightly. I blinked to show him that I had full use of my eyes. He patted my hand and for a moment I thought he would trust me. But then he suddenly relaxed his grip. To my utter dismay he let go of my hand.
This time the voice said, "You cannot take him while he is yet blind." By this time I was suddenly overcome by an overwhelming sense of dread and desperation. I became like what you would call, a man gone wild. I felt as if a certain blindness had suddenly crowded over my own heart and it was suffocating me. I had to help them all, each and everyone of them. I ran around the room. I tried to help the blind girls walk, I tried to help a man put eggs in his basket that kept on falling and breaking on the ground. I tried to help people choose what was good from what was clearly rotten. But over and over again the response was the same. If I gave a man one thing, he would take another, angrily. If I replaced a product that was bad with one that was good, the person reacted in hostility and changed the product back. It was hopeless. I was helpless. I began to weep and weep as the blind men and women stumbled, fell and banged their heads into the wall.
And then I heard the voice again and this time it said, "Remember this."
Then I awoke.
The Empty Chair
author unknown
A man's daughter had asked the local priest to come and pray with her father. When the priest arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows and an empty chair beside his bed. The priest assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit. "I guess you were expecting me," he said.
"No, who are you?"
"I'm the new associate at your parish," the priest replied. "When I saw the empty chair, I figured you knew I was going to show up."
"Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"
Puzzled, the priest shut the door.
"I've never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. "But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At the Sunday Mass I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it always went right over my head.."
"I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here's what I suggest. Sit down on a chair, place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, 'I'll be with you always.' Then just speak to him and listen in the same way you're doing with me right now."
"So, Father, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful, though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm."
The priest was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old guy to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil, and returned to the rectory.
Two nights later the daughter called to tell the priest that her daddy had died that afternoon.
"Did he seem to die in peace?" he asked.
"Yes, when I left the house around two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me one of his corny jokes, and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange, Father. In fact, beyond strange--kinda weird. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on a chair beside the bed."
Emergency Numbers
author unknown
When in sorrow, call ~ John 14
When others fail you, call ~ Psalms 27
If you want to be fruitful, call ~ John 15
When you have sinned, call ~ Psalms 51
When you worry, call ~ Matthew 6:19-34
When you are in danger, call ~ Psalms 91
When God seems far away, call ~ Psalms 139
When your faith needs stirring, call ~ Hebrews 11
When you are lonely and fearful, call ~ Psalms 23
When you grow bitter and critical, call ~ 1 Corinthians 13
For Paul's secret to happiness, call ~ Colossians 3:12-17
For an idea of Christianity, call ~ 1 Corinthians 5:15-19
When you feel down and out, call ~ Romans 8:31-39
When you want peace and rest, call ~ Matthew 11:25-30
When the world seems bigger than God, call ~ Psalms 90
When you leave home for labor or travel, call ~ Psalms 121
When your prayers grow narrow and selfish, call ~ Psalms 67
For great invention/opportunity, call ~ Isaiah 55
When you want courage for a task, call ~ Joshua 1
How to get along with a fellowmen, call ~ Romans 12
When you think of investments/returns, call ~ Mark 10
If you are depressed, call ~ Psalms 27
If your pocketbook/wallet is empty, call ~ Psalms 37
If you are losing confidence in people, call ~ 1 Corinthians 13
If people seem unkind, call ~ John 15
If you are discouraged about your work, call ~ Psalms 126
If you find the world growing small and yourself great, call ~ Psalms 19
Emergency numbers may be dialed direct.
No operator assistance is necessary.
All lines to heaven are open 24 hours a day.
Feed your faith, and I doubt you will starve to death!
Ever Get Discouraged?
author unknown
Ever look around the church and get discouraged? I do. The Enemy seems to be making gains on all fronts. However, consider how you'd feel if you were on the *other* side -- the Enemy's side. Put yourself in the shoes of one committed to destroying Christian faith. Talk about discouragement! You'd be thinking something like this:
"These Christians are a stubborn lot, almost impossible to get rid of. For 20 centuries we've tried to stomp them out, yet, in spite of our efforts, they've spread their religion to every corner of the world. It's an awfully hard religion to destroy -- you cut off a head, and twenty grow back.
You persecute them, and they go underground and develop a purer strain of their religion. You kill them and they build on their martyr's blood. Get them to water down their faith, and a little group somewhere will rediscover the real faith and they'll start over again - they have an infuriating way of regenerating themselves.
And these Christians know how to turn a negative into a positive. They turn our best laid plans upside down. Get a couple of their famous religious figures to commit adultery or visit to a prostitute, and they'll simply produce a thousand seminars and books on sexual fidelity, and the net effect will be greater morality among many of them, not lesser. It's discouraging!
Denominations are, of course, good targets. However, as quickly as one cools off, they'll start a new one. These Christians produce new denominations faster than roaches reproduce baby roaches. Same with local churches. No sooner than we get a local church to die spiritually and there'll be two brand new ones cropping up in some school auditorium across town. Its hopeless, I tell you!
A few times in history we've pretty well got the whole church to go lukewarm. But, not for long. Then along comes a John Wesley or a John Knox, and a whole nation turns back to God. Even when all of organized religion is waning, they go out and launch a new strain of pure Christianity in some religious order or para-church organization.
Make 'em poor, and they praise God. Make them rich, and someone like St. Francis will come along and teach them to live the opposite way. Get them totally absorbed with their fancy buildings and elegant worship and some Quaker-like group will sprout up and reintroduce a religion of simplicity and plainness.
Close all their buildings and lock their doors, and they'll shrug their shoulders and move into homes, declaring it an improvement. Close a nation to missionaries, and they'll just sneak in as tentmakers, and infect people one at a time. Kick out all the missionaries and suppress Christianity like we did in China, and what did we get? Twenty-five years later we got several hundred thousand committed Christians who simply practiced their faith underground. They're hard to get rid of, I tell you.
Introduce division and strife among the churches and they'll invent something like promise-keepers or these new Citywide Worship Events and restore a sense of unity. Divide them and they multiply; create strive and they make peace.
And they've got money - lots of money! They give Billions every week! That's B as in Billions, and W as in every week. Christianity is the largest single economic enterprise in the world, dwarfing pip-squeak outfits like General motors. Millions of them give 10% of their income every week. It adds up! Just think if non-believers were that committed.
And they support a zillion different enterprises: Colleges and universities to train millions of their youth, radio programs up and down the dial - even entire radio stations now, and they sponsor TV programs, bookstores, publishing houses, seminars, training programs, and even have their own full line Christian music. I tell you, its discouraging for us non-believers at times. As soon as our side gets hold of a new medium, Christians come running along second and swamp us with their Christian message. Look what they did with books, and radio, TV and even the Waterfront Hall. My goodness, who knows what they'll do on the Internet!
We do have one advantage. Christians are easy to get off track. But the discouraging thing is, once we've got them sidetracked, a whole new wave comes along and gets the church back on track -- its as if there is an invisible spirit of some sort correcting and guiding them. It's discouraging, I tell you!
How do we crush these Christians out of existence? It's hard to do, I tell you. Rome couldn't do it. The dark ages didn't do it. State religion didn't do it. Darwin couldn't either. Rationalism couldn't. Neither could liberalism, communism, socialism, democracy, nor even modernity. You can't tax them into oblivion, or legislate them out of existence. And if you ignore them, they won't go away. I tell you they're hard to beat!
Divide them and they'll unify, beat them down and they pop back up. Create strife and they make peace. Criticize them and they listen with a smile, hate them and they love you back. Take their coat and they'll give you their cloak too. Persecute them and they'll multiply, arrest them and they witness to you, beat them and they sing, kill them and they simply go to heaven! I tell you, you can't beat them!
Since you can't beat them... why not join them?"
Fear not, for those who are with us are more
than those are more than those that are with them.
Author Known 2 Kings 6:16
Every Christian Should Go Fishing
by Larry Ondrejack
During lunch one day, I was listening to two fishermen talking about their favorite pastime--fishing the
nearby ponds, lakes, streams and rivers. They were comparing notes about favorite fishing holes, the best bait,
and their most recent catches.
When I was able to break into their conversation, I told them my grandson was coming for a visit and asked when
was the best time to take him fishing. "When the fish are biting," they answered with a smile. When I
asked how I would know when the fish were biting, they smiled again and told me, "You'll have to go fishing
to find out."
I'd Rather Be Fishing
I got the point. An avid fisherman does not wait for the best time. He goes fishing every chance he gets. I
once saw this bumper sticker on the back of an old pickup truck: "A bad day of fishing is better than a good
day of anything else!" Recently, I saw this one on a business man's car: "A bad day of fishing is better
than a good day at the office."
I know an executive who has a small plaque on his desk that says, "I'd rather be fishing." Over that
simple message is the Christian symbol of a fish. This man is not a gifted evangelist, but he loves to do the work
of the evangelist every chance he gets. No matter what his other spiritual occupations may be, he also loves fishing
for men. Shouldn't this be every Christian's attitude?
Nothing compares with fishing for lost souls. Fishing, one of the Lord's central images for saving souls, is a
work to which He calls every one of His followers. Timothy was not a gifted evangelist when Paul encouraged him
in his ministry. Yet he included evangelism, because doing "the work of the evangelist" is the duty of
every believer (2 Tim. 4:5, esp. NIV and Amplified versions).
A fisher's attitude is what the Lord wants us to develop regarding lost souls. That's why he says, "Follow
Me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Mt. 4:19; Mk. 1:17). When the Lord spoke these words to Peter, Andrew,
James and John, they were already successful fishermen. Their response to His invitation to follow Him converted
them from being mere fishermen to becoming fishers of men.
Learn from the Best
But how does the Lord develop in His disciples this desire to become fishers of men? A fisherman once told me,
"You learn to fish by fishing, not by wishing." Another said, "The best way to learn to fish is
by doing it, not talking or reading about it." But the most valuable and important advice came from an expert
who taught fly fishing at a local community college: "If you are really serious about learning to fish, go
fishing with a master."
And that's exactly what the disciples did. The Lord said, "Follow Me and I will develop in you a love for
fish (lost souls) that cannot be quenched, as well as a yearning to fish (evangelism) that cannot be satisfied.
I will both teach you how to fish, and open your eyes to where the fish are."
Consider what the disciples learned from the Lord's encounter with the woman at the well. Their mistaken notion
was that their purpose in following Him was to take care of His needs. When they returned with food they acquired
for Him, He surprised them with these words: "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me." Then He
points to the men whom the woman led to the Lord, and tells them this is the food and the occupation He wants them
to enjoy: "Look at the fields, for they are already white for the harvest" (Jn. 4:33, 35). The relationship
between following Christ and becoming fishers for lost souls is unmistakably significant.
Give Up and Take Up
Another lesson the prospective fisher for men learns from the Lord is that following Him requires giving up
something. Look what happened to the first ones the Lord called. Peter and Andrew immediately "left their
nets." James and John "left the boat and their father, and followed Him" (Mt. 4:20-22). Without
a second thought, Matthew gave up his lucrative job as a tax collector when the Lord called him (Mt. 9:9; Mk. 2:14;
Lk. 5:27). Learning to fish for men requires a willingness to give up occupations, responsibilities and even family
ties (Mt. 8:22; Lk. 9:59). Fishing becomes the most important thing to the fisher of men.
When the rich young ruler asked, "What must I do to gain eternal life?" the Lord answered, "Sell
what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come follow Me" (Mt. 19:21).
Following the Lord requires a willingness to rid ourselves not only of the possessions that encumber us, but more
so the selfish attitude that keeps us hanging on to them. The rich young ruler "went away sorrowful for he
had many possessions" which he could not part with (Mt. 19:22; Lk. 18:22).
Freedom from encumbrances makes it easier for us to become fishers of men.
"Follow Me," not only requires giving up something, but also taking up something. The Lord tells the
follower to "deny himself and take up his cross" (Mt. 16:24; Mk. 8:34; Lk. 9:23). Denial of self refers
to giving up self interests, occupations and relationships. Taking up one's cross refers to bearing that particular
persecution which comes upon each one who identifies himself with the Savior. The writer of Hebrews wasn't joking
when he wrote that identification with Jesus means that we will suffer and bear His reproach (Heb. 13:13).
Learning to Fish
Peter had to learn this significant lesson as a part of his training to be a fisher of men. Before his willingness
to follow was put to the test, he boasted, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."
But under the real pressure of being identified with the scorned, rejected and persecuted Christ, he did exactly
the opposite of his boast and exactly what the Lord predicted: "You will deny three times that you know Me"
(Lk. 22:33-34).
In the depression brought on by the shame of his denial, Peter could not even fish for fish successfully, let alone
become a fisher of men. But the Lord very lovingly showed Peter that success at fishing--whether for fish or men--depends
on a willingness to follow in simple obedience. The Lord canceled Peter's three denials by asking him three times,
"Do you love Me?" Peter's honest and humble answers demonstrated that he was ready to fish for lost souls.
And the Lord blessed him with a full net (Jn. 21:3-17).
With Net or Line?
In the Gospels, net fishing seems to stand out in most people's minds. When asked to name a net fisherman, Peter's
name is always mentioned first. While other disciples were fishermen, Peter is the one known as "the fisherman,"
most likely because of his great catches, and the fact that the Lord told him, "From now on you will catch
men" (Lk. 5:5-10).
For example, at Pentecost, the Lord used Peter to add 3000 members to the Church with just one sermon (Acts 2:41).
If more fish are caught with a net than a hook, is it always better to fish with a net? That depends on whether
the Lord asks you to fish by the ocean or a stream, for a lot of fish or just one fish.
Net fishers are judged by the number of fish they catch, while line fishers are rated by the size of the fish they
catch. Would that make Andrew the most noted line fisher for men? He brought Peter to the Lord with these words:
"We have found the Messiah" (Jn. 1:41), and in so doing caught the fish who became best known for catching
fish!
Consider the loss had Andrew never gone line fishing for Peter. Consider the loss had Paul not brought the gospel
to Europe by catching just two fish, Lydia and the jailer, from two different social classes in Phillipi. Consider
the loss had Philip not delivered the gospel to Ethiopia by catching one fish--in the desert of all places!
Consider the loss if those who claim to be followers of Christ do not respond to His call to become fishers of
men wherever they live. We must ask ourselves this question: "Am I doing the work of an evangelist?"
A negative answer means that something is missing in our service for the Lord.
What's Important?
It is very important for every Christian to see the relationship God intends between following Him and serving
Him as a fisher of men. It is also important for all believers to see that no matter what their gifts may be, they
are all called to engage in some form of evangelistic work. Finally, it is encouraging to see that God values both
net and line fishing.
If the Lord puts you on the seashore with a net in hand, fish. If He puts you next to a stream with a line in hand,
fish. How you fish is not as important as doing so in obedience to the Master. Every fish caught is important to
the Lord, because after they are caught, He makes them fishers of men. How? By following Him.
Explaining God
by Danny Dutton, age 8
Chula Vista, California
Third grade homework assignment to "Explain God"
"One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die so there will be enough people to take care of things here on earth. He doesn't make grown-ups, just babies. I think because they are smaller and easier to make. That way, He doesn't have to take up His valuable time teaching them to talk and walk, He can just leave that to mothers and fathers.
God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times besides bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV on account of this. Since He hears everything, not only prayers, there must be a terrible lot of noise in His ears, unless He has thought of a way to turn it off.
God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere, which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting His time by going over your parent's head asking for something they said you couldn't have. Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista. At least there aren't any who come to our church. Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God.
They finally got tired of Him preaching to them and they crucified Him. But He was good and kind like His Father and He told His Father that they didn't know what they were doing and to forgive them and God said OK. His Dad (God) appreciated everything that He had done and all His hard work on earth so He told Him He didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So He did. And now He helps His Dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones He can take care of Himself without having to bother God. Like a secretary, only more important, of course. You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to hear you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time.
You should always go to Church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God. Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong! And, besides, the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway.
If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared in the dark or when you can't swim very good and you get thrown into real deep water by big kids. But you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and He can take me back anytime He pleases. And that's why I believe in God."
Faith Can Move Mountains
author unknown
A small congregation in the foothills of the Great Smokies built a new sanctuary on a piece of land willed to them by a church member. Ten days before the new church was to open, the local building inspector informed the pastor that the parking lot was inadequate for the size of the building. Until the church doubled the size of the parking lot, they would not be able to use the new sanctuary. Unfortunately, the church with its undersized lot had used every inch of their land except for the mountain against which it had been built. In order to build more parking spaces, they would have to move the mountain out of the back yard. Undaunted, the pastor announced the next Sunday morning that he would meet that evening with all members who had "mountain moving faith." They would hold a prayer session asking God to remove the mountain from the back yard and to somehow provide enough money to have it paved and painted before the scheduled opening dedication service the following week.
At the appointed time, 24 of the congregation's 300 members assembled for prayer. They prayed for nearly three hours. At ten o'clock the pastor said the final "Amen." "We'll open next Sunday as scheduled," he assured everyone. "God has never let us down before, and I believe He will be faithful this time too."
The next morning as he was working in his study there came a loud knock at his door. When he called "come in," a rough looking construction foreman appeared, removing his hard hat as he entered. "Excuse me, Reverend. I'm from Acme Construction Company over in the next county. We're building a huge new shopping mall over there and we need some fill dirt. Would you be willing to sell us a chunk of that mountain behind the church? We'll pay you for the dirt we remove and pave all the exposed area free of charge, if we can have it right away. We can't do anything else until we get the dirt in and allow it to settle properly." The little church was dedicated the next Sunday as originally planned and there were far more members with "mountain moving faith" on opening Sunday than there had been the previous week!
Would you have shown up for that prayer meeting? Some people say faith comes from miracles. But others know: MIRACLES COME FROM FAITH!
The Father's Eyes
Author Unknown
I can do all things in Him who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13
A teenage boy lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. The boy played football at his school. Even though he was always on the bench, his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game.
This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high school. But his father continued to encourage him but also made it very clear that he did not have to play football if he didn't want to. But the young man loved football and decided to hang in there. He was determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice or a game, but remained a bench warmer all four years. His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him.
When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a "walk-on". Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach admitted that he kept him on the roster because he always put his heart and soul into
every practice, and at the same time, provided his team mates with the spirit and hustle they badly needed. The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games.
This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in the game. It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big play off game, the coach met him with a telegram. The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent.
Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?" The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.
Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful team mate back so soon.
"Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today," said the young man. The
coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in. "All right," he said. "You can go in."
Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This small unknown player, who had never played before was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied.
In the closing seconds of the game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown. The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you've never heard!
Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that the young man was sitting quietly in the corner all alone. The coach came to him and said, "I just can't believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?"
He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, "Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?" The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, "Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!"
So Remember Always:
Somebody is very proud of you.
... is thinking of you.
... cares about you.
... misses you.
... wants to talk to you.
... wants to be with you.
... hopes you are not in trouble.
... is thankful for the support you have given.
... wants to hold your hand.
... hopes everything turns out all right.
... wants you to be happy.
... wants you to find him/her.
... wants to give you a gift.
... wants to hug you.
... thinks you ARE a gift.
... admires your strength.
... wants to protect you.
... can't wait to see you.
... treasures your spirit.
... is glad that you are their friend.
... want to get to know you better.
... wants to be near you.
... wants you to know they are there for you.
... would do anything for you.
... wants to share their dreams with you.
... is alive because of you.
... needs your support.
... will cry when they read this.
... needs you to have faith in them.
... trusts you.
... hears a song that reminds them of you.
... loves you for who you are.
Encourage one another and build one another up.
1 Thessalonians 5:11
The light of the eyes rejoices the heart.
Proverbs 15:30
Footprints
By Mary Stevenson
(Born 11/8/22 Died 1/6/99)
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonging to him, and the other to the Lord.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that at many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. " Lord... you said that once I decided to follow You, You'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I do not understand why You'd leave me when I needed You the most."
The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child, I love and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.
|
|
