"Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul, And sings the tune--without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me." ~ Emily Dickinson, Hope "The word which God has written on the brow of every man is Hope." ~ Victor Hugo from Les Misérables One day a young man was standing in the middle of the town proclaiming that he had the most beautiful heart in the whole valley. A large crowd gathered and they all admired his heart for it was perfect. There was not a mark or a flaw in it. Yes, they all agreed it truly was the most beautiful heart they had ever seen.
The young man was very proud and boasted more loudly about his beautiful heart. Suddenly, an old man appeared at the front of the crowd and said "Why your heart is not nearly as beautiful as mine." The crowd and the young man looked at the old man's heart. It was beating strongly, but full of scars, it had places where pieces had been removed and other pieces put in, but they didn't fit quite right and there were several jagged edges. In fact, in some places there were deep gouges where whole pieces were missing. The people stared - how can he say his heart is more beautiful, they thought? The young man looked at the old man's heart and saw its state and laughed. "You must be joking," he said. "Compare your heart with mine, mine is perfect and yours is a mess of scars and tears." "Yes," said the old man, "Yours is perfect looking but I would never trade with you. You see, every scar represents a person to whom I have given my love. I tear out a piece of my heart and give it to them, and often they give me a piece of their heart which fits into the empty place in my heart. But, because the pieces aren't exact, I have some rough edges, which I cherish, because they remind me of the love we shared. Sometimes I have given pieces of my heart away, and the other person hasn't returned a piece of his heart to me. These are the empty gouges - giving love is taking a chance. Although these gouges are painful, they stay open, reminding me of the love I have for these people, I hope someday they may return and fill the space I have waiting. So now do you see what true beauty is?" The young man stood silently with tears running down his cheeks. He walked up to the old man, reached into his perfect young and beautiful heart, and ripped a piece out. He offered it to the old man with trembling hands. The old man took his offering, placed it in his heart and then took a piece from his old scarred heart and placed it in the wound in the young man's heart. It fit, but not perfectly, as there were some jagged edges. The young man looked at his heart, not perfect anymore but more beautiful than ever, since love from the old man's heart flowed into his. They embraced and walked away side by side. How sad it must be to go through life with a whole heart. Remember... Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody is watching. God's loves you and has gives His heart to all of us Today, when I awoke, I suddenly realized that this is the best day of my life, ever
There were times when I wondered if I would make it to today; but I did! And because I did I'm going to celebrate! Today, I'm going to celebrate what an unbelievable life I have had so far: the accomplishments, the many blessings, and, yes, even the hardships because they have served to make me stronger and strengthened my faith In God. I will go through this day with my head held high and a happy heart. I will marvel at God's seemingly simple gifts: the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees,! the flowers, the birds. No, none of these miraculous creations will escape my notice today. Today, I will share my excitement for life with other people. I'll make someone smile. I'll go out of my way to perform an unexpected act of kindness for someone I don't even know. Today, I'll give a sincere compliment to someone who seems down. Today is the day I quit worrying about what I don't have and start being grateful for all the wonderful things God has already given me. I'll remember that to worry is just a waste of time because my faith in God and his Divine Plan ensures everything will be just fine. And tonight, before I go to bed, I'll go outside and raise my eyes to the heavens. I will stand in awe at the beauty of the stars and the moon, and I will praise God for these magnificent treasures. As the day ends and I lay my head down on my pillow, I will thank the Almighty for the best day of my life. And I will sleep the sleep of a contented child, excited with expectation because I know tomorrow is going to be the best day of my life, ever! Moreover, the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live. (Deuteronomy 30:6) When Richard Nixon ran for President in 1968, the Vietnam War was at its height. One of Nixon's TV commercials showed a photo of an American soldier in Vietnam with the word "Love" written on his helmet. The image bothered Harry Treleavan, one of Nixon's media men. "They don't think it's the sort of thing soldiers should be writing on their helmets." About a week later, however, a letter arrived from the mother of the soldier. She said how thrilled she was to see the photo of her son in Nixon's TV commercial. She wondered if she could obtain a copy of the photo. The letter was signed "Mrs. William Love." That's an interesting story. The soldier was not making a statement about his feelings at all. He was simply putting his name, Love, on his helmet. The question for us today is: do people know who we are? When people observe us do they see Christ's love shining through us? Do they see our Love? No, we shouldn't have to write it on our foreheads, but people should be able to see Christ working through us. Ek het vanoggend so 'n mooi beeld in 'n boek raakgelees:
Die outeur skryf dat wanneer 'n mens in die bosveld langs 'n groot knetterende kampvuur sit, hoor 'n mens feitlik geen dieregeluide in die bos nie. Jy is regtig nie eens bewus van enige gevaar van leeus of olifante of wat ook al nie. Maar as daardie vuurtjie begin doodgaan, begin die gevaar al hoe groter raak en raak 'n mens ook al hoe meer bewus van die dieregeluide. Net iemand wat regtig al gesit het langs 'n kampvuur in die bos wanneer dit besig is om dood te gaan, sal hierdie beeld presies verstaan. Die vuurtjie word al hoe kleiner, en dit word al hoe kouer, en die nag word al hoe swarter… en jy wonder al hoe meer oor die gevare wat in die bos skuil. Toe skryf die persoon dat dit presies ook so gaan met ons geestelike lewe: Hoe sterker die vuur van die Heilige Gees in ons brand, hoe minder vrees ons gevare van buite. Maar hoe flouer God se Gees in ons lewe brand, hoe groter word die gevaar van buite. This is one I can honestly say I have never seen circulating in the emails so; if it touches you, you may want to forward it. Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? I never noticed this.... The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed separate from the grave clothes. Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!' Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see.. The other disciple outran Peter and got there first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side. Was that important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes! In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it.. The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished. Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done'. But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because.......... The folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!' He is Coming Back! Proverbs 8:17 I love those who seek me and those who seek me early and diligently shall find me. See also (1Sam2:30 Honor God, Psalm 91:14 Our deliverance form affliction , John14:21 His love for us, James 1:5 God is always there for us)
On one side of the fence, stood an angel; on the other, the devil. The angel did not stop encouraging the man to jump off the fence on his side, the good side. The devil said nothing.
The angel kept up his appeals for the man to come down from the fence on the good side. The devil said nothing. The angel never let up as he pleaded with the man to decide for God and get off the fence. The devil said nothing. The man was intrigued that the angel spoke fervently and insistently, while the devil said nothing. "Why," he asked the devil, "have you said nothing so far?" "Because," replied the devil, "the fence is mine." Straddling the fence is not a neutral position. It is sitting on the devil's property. |
Ana & Andre Schoonbee God uses us to motivate and encourage the body. Authors
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