Community Chat

[DoubleJ]

God uses our trials to draw us closer to Him. Sometimes it's the only way
that He
gets our attention. Lord, I accept with joy the times that You test me and
give You
my joy as a prayer in the times that I lack for nothing. In You I am
complete.

Scripture for the day:

Jesus said, "If the same person sins against you seven times a day, and
turns back to you seven times and says, 'I repent,' you must
forgive." The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" The
Lord replied, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to
this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey
you. ~Luke 17:4-6

Meditation for the day:

When I overcome myself, then I can truly forgive other people for injuries
done to me. The self in me does not forgive injuries. The very thought of
wrongs means that my self is in the foreground. Since the self does not
forgive, I can work at overcoming my selfishness. I can cease trying to
forgive those who fretted and wronged me. It can be a mistake for me even
to think about these injuries. I can aim at overcoming myself in my daily
life and then I can find there is nothing in me that remembers injury,
because the only thing injured, my selfishness, is gone.

Prayer for the day:

I pray that I may hold no resentments. I pray that my mind may be washed
clean of all past hates and fears.

Hello my friends, I may be getting a bit better, but still have somewhat of
a fever and sore throat, so I'm not eating much at all. Thanks for praying
for me, I need it!
Sammy jumped on the bed by me today - he hasn't jumped that high since he
got his lamb leg, so he must be getting better. Praying for you all and
offering my sickness for you, in union with the suffering Jesus had. Too sick again to call Corporate.

Although things are not perfect
Because of trial or pain
Continue in thanksgiving
Do not begin to blame
Even when the times are hard
Fierce winds are bound to blow
God is forever able
Hold on to what you know
Imagine life without His love
Joy would cease to be
Keep thanking Him for all the things
Love imparts to thee
Move out of "Camp Complaining"
No weapon that is known
On earth can yield the power
Praise can do alone
Quit looking at the future
Redeem the time at hand
Start every day with worship
To "thank" is a command
Until we see Him coming
Victorious in the sky
We'll run the race with gratitude
Xalting God most high
Yes, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Zion waits in glory...where none are ever sad!



"I AM Too blessed to be stressed!" The shortest distance between a problem
and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.
The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything. Love and peace be
with you forever, Amen.

Dear Lord,

Our relationship with you is usually like this:

Just another day for me - plenty of things to do
Go to work, come home late, nothing really new

Sat in bed put my head to rest grabbed my mobile phone
About to call my girlfriend now to tell her I loved her so

But before I had the chance to phone I received an incoming call
I had to look twice at the Caller ID to see if I was sure

It was a friend of mine his name was John an odd call at this time
We haven´t spoken for years, busy I guess, we're all guilty of this crime

What does he want? I thought to myself, a favour he must need
So I answered the phone and said hello, the rest I'll let you read

Minutes went by, no favour so far, maybe I could be wrong
But there it was - the favour he needs - I knew it all along

That’s the reason why he called me today - I guess we all do the same
Its only when we need something that we look to find their name

That’s the relationship we have with God - sad but it is true
We have to change the way we think - a message for me and you.

The Little Girl and the Piano

A little girl wanted to become a great pianist, but all she could play on
the piano was the simple little tune, "Chopsticks." No matter how hard she
tried, that was the best she could do. Her parents decided after some time
to arrange for a great maestro to teach her to play properly. Of course, the
little girl was delighted.

When the little girl and her parents arrived at the maestro's mansion for
the first lesson, they were escorted by the butler into the parlor, where
they saw a beautiful concert grand piano. Immediately, the little girl
dashed over to the piano and began playing "Chopsticks." Her embarrassed
parents started across the room to tell her to stop, but as she played, the
maestro entered the room and encouraged the little girl to continue.

The maestro then took a seat on the piano bench next to the little girl,
listening to her play. After a moment he began to play along with her,
adding chords, runs, and arpeggios. The little girl continued to play
"Chopsticks." The parents couldn't believe their ears. They were hearing a
beautiful piano duet, played by their daughter and the maestro, and
amazingly enough, the central theme of it was still "Chopsticks."

At times you may feel like you're a nobody, that you will never accomplish
great things. But think of that little girl. All she could play was
"Chopsticks." Nobody wanted to hear "Chopsticks." It was an embarrassment to
her parents and annoying to everyone else. Yet the maestro encouraged her to
keep on playing.

God knows what you can do. He created you with gifts and talents. Sure,
compared to some people's abilities, your gifts and talents may seem like
"Chopsticks"-- not very original and not very spectacular. But God says,
"Keep on playing--and make some room on the piano bench for Me." God is able
to take the little that we are able to do and turn it into something
beautiful for Him.

Author Unknown

Jack tossed the papers on my desk -- his eyebrows knit into a straight line
as he glared at me. "What's wrong?" I asked.
He jabbed a finger at the proposal. "Next time you want to change anything,
ask me first," he said, turning on his heels and leaving me stewing in
anger. How dare he treat me like that, I thought. I had changed one long
sentence, and corrected grammar -- something I thought I was paid to do.
It's not that I hadn't been warned. The other women, who had served in my
place before me, called him names I couldn't repeat. One co-worker took me
aside the first day. "He's personally responsible for two different
secretaries leaving the firm," she whispered.
As the weeks went by, I grew to despise Jack. It was against everything I
believed in -- turn the other cheek and love your enemies. But Jack quickly
slapped a verbal insult on any cheek turned his way. I prayed about it, but
to be honest, I wanted to put him in his place, not love him.
One day, another of his episodes left me in tears. I stormed into his
office, prepared to lose my job if needed, but not before I let the man know
how I felt. I opened the door and Jack glanced up.
"What?" he said abruptly.
Suddenly I knew what I had to do. After all, he deserved it. I sat across
from him. "Jack, the way you've been treating me is wrong. I've never had
anyone speak to me that way. As a professional, it's wrong, and it's wrong
for me to allow it to continue," I said.
Jack snickered nervously and leaned back in his chair. I closed my eyes
briefly. God help me, I prayed. "I want to make you a promise. I will be a
friend," I said. "I will treat you as you deserve to be treated, with
respect and kindness. You deserve that," I said. "Everybody does." I slipped
out of the chair and closed the door behind me.
Jack avoided me the rest of the week. Proposals, specs, and letters appeared
on my desk while I was at lunch, and the corrected versions were not seen
again. I brought cookies to the office one day and left a batch on Jack's
desk. Another day I left a note. "Hope your day is going great," it read.
Over the next few weeks, Jack reappeared. He was reserved, but there were no
other episodes. Co-workers cornered me in the break room.
"Guess you got to Jack," they said. "You must have told him off good."
I shook my head. "Jack and I are becoming friends," I said in faith.
I refused to talk about him. Every time I saw Jack in the hall, I smiled at
him. After all, that's what friends do.
One year after our "talk," I discovered I had breast cancer. I was 32, the
mother of three beautiful young children, and scared. The cancer had
metastasized to my lymph nodes and the statistics were not great for
long-term survival. After surgery, I visited with friends and loved ones who
tried to find the right words to say. No one knew what to say. Many said the
wrong things . Others wept, and I tried to encourage them. I clung to hope.
The last day of my hospital stay, the door darkened and Jack stood awkwardly
on the threshold. I waved him in with a smile and he walked over to my bed
and, without a word, placed a bundle beside me. Inside lay several bulbs.
"Tulips," he said.
I smiled, not understanding.
He cleared his throat. "If you plant them when you get home, they'll come up
next Spring." He shuffled his feet. "I just wanted you to know that I think
you'll be there to see them when they come up."
Tears clouded my eyes and I reached out my hand. "Thank you," I whispered.
Jack grasped my hand and gruffly replied, "You're welcome. You can't see it
now, but next Spring you'll see the colors I picked out for you." He turned
and left without a word.
I have seen those red and white striped tulips push through the soil every
Spring for over ten years now. In fact, this September the doctor will
declare me cured. I've seen my children graduate from high school and enter
college. In a moment when I prayed for just the right word, a man with very
few words said all the right things. After all, that's what friends do.