Valentine Roses

A touching story.......



Red roses were her favorites, her name was also Rose.
And every year her husband sent them, tied with pretty bows.
The year he died, the roses were delivered to her door.
The card said, "Be my Valentine," like all the years before.



Each year he sent her roses, and the note would always say,
"I love you even more this year, than last year on this day."
"My love for you will always grow, with every passing year."
She knew this was the last time that the roses would appear.



She thought, he ordered roses in advance before this day.
Her loving husband did not know, that he would pass away.
He always liked to do things early, way before the time.
Then, if he got too busy, everything would work out fine.



She trimmed the stems, and placed them in a very special vase.
Then, sat the vase beside the portrait of his smiling face.
She would sit for hours, in her husband's favorite chair.
While staring at his picture, and the roses sitting there.



A year went by, and it was hard to live without her mate.
With loneliness and solitude, that had become her fate.
Then, the very hour, as on Valentines before,
The doorbell rang, and there were roses, sitting by her door

She brought the roses in, and then just looked at them in shock.
Then, went to get the telephone, to call the florist shop.
The owner answered, and she asked him, if he would explain,
Why would someone do this to her, causing her such pain?






"I know your husband passed away, more than a year ago,"
The owner said, "I knew you'd call, and you would want to know."
"The flowers you received today, were paid for in advance."
"Your husband always planned ahead, he left nothing to chance."

"There is a standing order, that I have on file down here,
And he has paid, well in advance, you'll get them every year.
There also is another thing, that I think you should know,
He wrote a special little card...he did this years ago."



"Then, should ever, I find out that he's no longer here,
That's the card...that should be sent, to you the following year."
She thanked him and hung up the phone, her tears now flowing hard.
Her fingers shaking, as she slowly reached to get the card.

Inside the card, she saw that he had written her a note.
Then, as she stared in total silence, this is what he wrote...
"Hello my love, I know it's been a year since I've been gone,
I hope it hasn't been too hard for you to overcome."



"I know it must be lonely, and the pain is very real.
For if it was the other way, I know how I would feel.
The love we shared made everything so beautiful in life.
I loved you more than words can say, you were the perfect wife."

"You were my friend and lover, you fulfilled my every need.
I know it's only been a year, but please try not to grieve.
I want you to be happy, even when you shed your tears.
That is why the roses will be sent to you for years."

"When you get these roses, think of all the happiness,
That we had together, and how both of us were blessed.
I have always loved you and I know I always will.
But, my love, you must go on, you have some living still."



"Please...try to find happiness, while living out your days.
I know it is not easy, but I hope you find some ways.
The roses will come every year, and they will only stop,
When your door's not answered, when the florist stops to knock."

"He will come five times that day, in case you have gone out.
But after his last visit, he will know without a doubt,
To take the roses to the place, where I've instructed him,
And place the roses where we are, together once again."

Farmer and his winning formula

There was a Nebraska farmer who grew award-winning corn. Each year he entered his corn in the state fair where it won a blue ribbon...

One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learned something interesting about how he grew it. The reporter discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbors.

"How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbors when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?" the reporter asked.

"Why sir," said the farmer, "didn't you know? The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn."

He is very much aware of the connectedness of life. His corn cannot improve unless his neighbor's corn also improves.

So it is in other dimensions. Those who choose to be at peace must help their neighbors to be at peace. Those who choose to live well must help others to live well, for the value of a life is measured by the lives it touches. And those who choose to be happy must help others to find happiness for the welfare of each is bound up with the welfare of all.

The lesson for each of us is this: if we are to grow good corn, we must help our neighbors grow good corn.

Pencil story

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.

"There are 5 things you need to know," he told the pencil, "Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be."

"One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone's hand."

"Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you'll need it to become a better pencil."

"Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make."

"Four: The most important part of you will always be what's inside."

"And Five: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write."

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.


Now replacing the place of the pencil with you. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best person you can be.

One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God's hand. And allow other human beings to access you for the many gifts you possess.

Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various problems in life, but you'll need it to become a stronger person.

Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.

Four: The most important part of you will always be what's on the inside.

And Five: On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the situation, you must continue to do your duties.



Allow this parable on the pencil to encourage you to know that you are a special person and only you can fulfill the purpose to which you were born to accomplish.

Never allow yourself to get discouraged and think that your life is insignificant and cannot make a change.

Praying hands

Back in the fifteenth century, in a tiny village near Nuremberg, lived a family with eighteen children. Eighteen! In order merely to keep food on the table for this mob, the father and head of the household, a goldsmith by profession, worked almost eighteen hours a day at his trade and any other paying chore he could find in the neighborhood. Despite their seemingly hopeless condition, two of Albrecht Durer the Elder's children had a dream. They both wanted to pursue their talent for art, but they knew full well that their father would never be financially able to send either of them to Nuremberg to study at the Academy.

After many long discussions at night in their crowded bed, the two boys finally worked out a pact. They would toss a coin. The loser would go down into the nearby mines and, with his earnings, support his brother while he attended the academy. Then, when that brother who won the toss completed his studies, in four years, he would support the other brother at the academy, either with sales of his artwork or, if necessary, also by laboring in the mines.

They tossed a coin on a Sunday morning after church. Albrecht Durer won the toss and went off to Nuremberg. Albert went down into the dangerous mines and, for the next four years, financed his brother, whose work at the academy was almost an immediate sensation. Albrecht's etchings, his woodcuts, and his oils were far better than those of most of his professors, and by the time he graduated, he was beginning to earn considerable fees for his commissioned works.

When the young artist returned to his village, the Durer family held a festive dinner on their lawn to celebrate Albrecht's triumphant homecoming. After a long and memorable meal, punctuated with music and laughter, Albrecht rose from his honored position at the head of the table to drink a toast to his beloved brother for the years of sacrifice that had enabled Albrecht to fulfill his ambition. His closing words were, "And now, Albert, blessed brother of mine, now it is your turn. Now you can go to Nuremberg to pursue your dream, and I will take care of you."

All heads turned in eager expectation to the far end of the table where Albert sat, tears streaming down his pale face, shaking his lowered head from side to side while he sobbed and repeated, over and over, "No ...no ...no ...no."

Finally, Albert rose and wiped the tears from his cheeks. He glanced down the long table at the faces he loved, and then, holding his hands close to his right cheek, he said softly, "No, brother. I cannot go to Nuremberg. It is too late for me. Look ... look what four years in the mines have done to my hands! The bones in every finger have been smashed at least once, and lately I have been suffering from arthritis so badly in my right hand that I cannot even hold a glass to return your toast, much less make delicate lines on parchment or canvas with a pen or a brush. No, brother ...
for me it is too late."

More than 450 years have passed. By now, Albrecht Durer's hundreds of masterful portraits, pen and silver-point sketches, watercolors, charcoals, woodcuts, and copper engravings hang in every great museum in the world, but the odds are great that you, like most people, are familiar with only one of Albrecht Durer's works. More than merely being familiar with it, you very well may have a reproduction hanging in your home or office.

One day, to pay homage to Albert for all that he had sacrificed, Albrecht Durer painstakingly drew his brother's abused hands with palms together and thin fingers stretched skyward. He called his powerful drawing simply "Hands," but the entire world almost immediately opened their hearts to his great masterpiece and renamed his tribute of love "The Praying Hands."

The next time you see a copy of that touching creation, take a second look. Let it be your reminder, if you still need one, that no one - no one - - ever makes it alone!

~Source Unknown~

Even though the story is fiction,
I hope the intent of the story is appreciated,
whether true or not.

EAGLES IN A STORM

Did you know that an eagle knows when a storm is approaching long before it breaks?

The eagle will fly to some high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits, it sets its wings so that the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm. While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it.

The eagle does not escape the storm. It simply uses the storm to lift it higher. It rises on the winds that bring the storm.

When the storms of life come upon us - and all of us will experience them - we can rise above them by setting our minds and our belief toward God. The storms do not have to overcome us. We can allow God's power to lift us above them.

God enables us to ride the winds of the storm that bring sickness, tragedy, failure and disappointment in our lives. We can soar above the storm.

Remember, it is not the burdens of life that weigh us down, it is how we handle them.

Sand and Stone

A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand: "TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE."

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one, who had been slapped, got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him. After the friend recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone: "TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE."

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?"

The other friend replied: "When someone hurts us, we should write it down in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."

LEARN TO WRITE YOUR HURTS IN THE SAND, AND TO CARVE YOUR BENEFITS IN STONE

The Making Of A Mother

By the time the Lord made mothers, He was into the sixth day working overtime. An Angel appeared and said "Why are you spending so much time on this one?"

And the Lord answered and said, "Have you read the spec sheet on her? She has to be completely washable, but not elastic; have 200 movable parts, all replaceable; run on black coffee and leftovers; have a lap that can hold three children at one time and that disappears when she stands up; have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart; and have six pairs of hands."

The Angel was astounded at the requirements for this one. "Six pairs of hands! No way!" said the Angel.

The Lord replied, "Oh, it's not the hands that are the problem. It's the three pairs of eyes that mothers must have!"

"And that's on the standard model?" the Angel asked.

The Lord nodded in agreement, "Yep, one pair of eyes are to see through the closed door as she asks her children what they are doing even though she already knows. Another pair in the back of her head are to see what she needs to know even though no one thinks she can. And the third pair are here in the front of her head. They are for looking at an errant child and saying that she understands and loves him or her without even saying a single word."

The Angel tried to stop the Lord "This is too much work for one day. Wait until tomorrow to finish."

"But I can't!" The Lord protested, "I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart. She already heals herself when she is sick AND can feed a family of six on a pound of hamburger and can get a nine year old to stand in the shower."

The Angel moved closer and touched the woman, "But you have made her so soft, Lord."

"She is soft," the Lord agreed, "but I have also made her tough. You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish."

"Will she be able to think?" asked the Angel.

The Lord replied, "Not only will she be able to think, she will be able to reason, and negotiate."

The Angel then noticed something and reached out and touched the woman's cheek. "Oops, it looks like You have a leak with this model. I told You that You were trying to put too much into this one."

"That's not a leak." the Lord objected. "That's a tear!"

"What's the tear for?" the Angel asked.

The Lord said, "The tear is her way of expressing her joy, her sorrow, her disappointment, her pain, her loneliness, her grief, and her pride."

The Angel was impressed. "You are a genius, Lord. You thought of everything for this one. You even created the tear!"

The Lord looked at the Angel and smiled and said, "I'm afraid you are wrong again. I created the woman, but she created the tear!"

Alexander Fleming

His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to eke out a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog. There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow
and terrifying death.
The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman's sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved.
"I want to repay you," said the nobleman. "You saved my son's life."
"No, I can't accept payment for what I did," the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer. At that moment, the farmer's own son came to the door of the family hovel.
"Is that your son?" the nobleman asked. "Yes," the farmer replied proudly.
"I'll make you a deal. Let me take him and give him a good education.
If the lad is anything like his father, he'll grow to a man you can be proud of."
And that he did. In time, Farmer Fleming's son graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin.
Years afterward, the nobleman's son was stricken with pneumonia.
What saved him? Penicillin.
The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill.
His son's name? Sir Winston Churchill.

Love and Time

Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love. One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all constructed boats and left. Except for Love.

Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to hold out until the last possible moment.

When the island had almost sunk, Love decided to ask for help.

Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said,
"Richness, can you take me with you?"
Richness answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you."

Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel. "Vanity, please help me!"
"I can't help you, Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat," Vanity answered.

Sadness was close by so Love asked, "Sadness, let me go with you."
"Oh . . . Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!"

Happiness passed by Love, too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her.

Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come, Love, I will take you." It was an elder. So blessed and overjoyed, Love even forgot to ask the elder where they were going. When they arrived at dry land, the elder went her own way. Realizing how much was owed the elder,

Love asked Knowledge, another elder, "Who Helped me?"
"It was Time," Knowledge answered.
"Time?" asked Love. "But why did Time help me?"
Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, "Because only Time is capable of understanding how valuable Love is."

Dad's blessing

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.

As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautifully wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold. Angry, he raised his voice to his father and said "With all your money, you give me a Bible?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible.

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things.

When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. And as he did, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words PAID IN FULL.

How many times do we miss Spirit's blessings and answers to our prayers because they do not arrive exactly as we have expected?

TODAY'S's affirmation: "Today I look beyond the obvious and allow miracles to be created in my life."

Carpenter

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go & asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but over time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, "This is your house... my gift to you."

The carpenter was shocked!

What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.

So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock, we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we would do it much differently.

But, you cannot go back. You are the carpenter, and every day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said, "Life is a do-it-yourself project." Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the "house" you will live in tomorrow. Therefore, Build wisely!

Two frogs

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them
fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs saw how deep the pit
was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The
two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit
with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop,
that they were as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took
heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down
and died.

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again,
the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He
jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the
other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to
them that he was deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the
entire time.

This story teaches two lessons:

1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging
word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it
through the day.

2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes
to kill them.

Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your
path. The power of words... it is sometimes hard to understand
that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak
words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in
difficult times. Special is the individual who will take the time
to encourage another.

Author Unknown

Good night Prayer

"God, forgive us for today...
For not being more understanding
when those problems came our way...

For not handling situations in the way
You wanted us to...for getting angry
and losing our temper,

Things we know You don't want us to do.

And, God, please give us more patience,
Help us make it through another day,
We'll do better tomorrow,
We promise.
In Jesus' name
We pray."

The Vain Jackdaw

The Vain Jackdaw

One day, the birds of a certain forest got together to select a king from among themselves. "Who shall we name King?" they cried.

Some of the birds suggested that they go to the Sun for help. "O mighty Sun, all living creatures in the air and on the ground pass under your fierce gaze. Surely you will be able to choose from among all the birds you see, one that is most beautiful, to be our King," said one of the birds.

"I can help you, little creatures. Return to me tomorrow with every single bird of the forest and I will select the most striking of all to be your king," said the Sun.

In the midst of the birds was a young Jackdaw. He was terribly eager to be chosen king. But he also knew that he was dull and unattractive, with nothing but black and grey feathers all over his body.

The Jackdaw looked around in despair after the birds had gone, searching for some means of changing the way he looked.

To his good fortune, he found a number of feathers strewn all over the place where all the birds had collected. "I can dress my drab feathers in these pretty colours!" he cawed, and set about sticking the many-hued plumes in between his own.

The next day all the birds got together once more before the Sun, as decided. And who should be chosen King, but the Jackdaw!

But that wasn't for long, for the other birds flared up in protest. They weren't fooled by the Jackdaw's disguise and called loudly to the Sun to see the hoax before him. They then went about plucking off all the false feathers of the Jackdaw.

They even picked out many of his real ones! The vain bird was finally left standing alone, sorry and ashamed, and uglier than he ever was!


Moral
It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds

The Wild Ass and the Lion

The Wild Ass and the Lion

One day a Wild Ass and a Lion decided to go hunting together as partners. "I will use my mighty strength," said the Lion, while the Wild Ass offered to use his powerful speed to out run their prey.

Before long the two predators had caught more animals than they would need for weeks! However, when it was time to divide the spoils, the Lion said, "Let us divide the dead animals into three shares."

"Into three shares?" asked the Wild Ass.

"Yes," said the Lion, "I will take the first share because I am King. The second share because I am a partner with you. And the last one, well, the last one, if you do value your life, you'd better let me have that too!" roared the Lion.

The Wild Ass, fearing now for his own life, took to his heels and ran off as fast as he could!


Moral
In the world, might is often right.

The Wolf and the Crane

The Wolf and the Crane

It was the Wolf's lucky day. He had found food! A young fawn lay in his path as he prowled through the bushes in the forest, and the hungry animal lost no time in tearing it to pieces.

Suddenly a bone got stuck in his throat and he found himself coughing and choking in distress! "Help!" he squeaked, frightened, and ran about helter-skelter looking for someone or something to relieve his pain.

"I would give anything to the creature that takes the bone out of my throat!" cried the Wolf to the animals that passed him by.

The Crane, famed for her long neck and beak, finally agreed to try. She told the Wolf to open his jaws as wide as he could. Then delicately placing her beak in his throat, she shook the bone loose with her beak and before long, got it right out of his mouth.

The Wolf gave a great sigh of relief, but when the Crane came forward for her reward, he bared his teeth in a wide, mean grin and said, "You put your head into the mouth of a Wolf, dear Crane, and are still alive; that should be reward enough for you!"
Moral
Be careful who you trust.

The Wolf and the Kid

The Wolf and the Kid

There was once a Kid (a baby goat) who climbed high onto the roof of a house. His mother had warned him not to wander too far away and told him of the scary Wolf who could catch and eat him if he wasn't careful.

But the little Kid often disobeyed his mother and made up his mind one day to try out the shaky stairs leading to the rooftop.

Before long the Wolf came sauntering along the road down below. But instead of being frightened the Kid knew that he was too high up for the Wolf to do him any harm. He decided then to taunt him with words. "You are a robber!" he shouted. "Why have you come here? Don't you know what a bad name you have in our village? Go away!"

The Wolf growled in anger, "I know, smart alec, that you have the courage to say what you have just said only because I cannot reach you!"


Moral

It is easy to be brave from a distance

The Wolf and the Lamb

The Wolf and the Lamb

One sunny day, a Wolf sat quenching his thirst at a calm hillside spring. As he lapped up the cool water, he saw from the corner of his eye, a Lamb drinking from the same spring a little lower down the hill.

“There’s my supper,” he thought. “It looks like easy prey, but I must think of a way to open up a quarrel with him.” He then called out to the Lamb, “how dare you muddy the water from which I am drinking!”

“Oh no!” cried the Lamb, “it cannot be me making your water muddy. The water runs down from you to me and surely, I cannot be the cause of it.”

“Well then, exactly a year ago at this very spot you called me bad names. Why did you do that?“ tried the Wolf once more.

“I could not have called you names,” said the Lamb, “for I am only six months old.”

“I don’t care,” snarled the Wolf, “if it was not you, then it was your father!”

And with that he rushed upon the poor little Lamb and gobbled him up.



Moral

A bully will do anything to get what he wants.

The Wolf and the Kid

The Wolf and the Kid

A kid was once happily skipping home from the pasture, long after the rest of the flock. He was all alone and the path did have some danger.

So before long a Wolf appeared from behind the bushes, crouched and ready to pounce. The Kid knew that he had no escape except to run and then be outrun, but instead of doing that, he decided to stay and talk to the Wolf: “I know, dear friend, that you are going to kill me. But before I die I would ask you one favour. Please play a tune for me to dance to.”

The Wolf thought it was a strange request but agreed anyway and started to play a tune. While he was piping and the kid dancing, some dogs heard the sounds of the pipe. Growling and grinding their teeth they followed the sounds and before the song ended, began chasing the Wolf. Running now for his life, the Wolf said to the Kid, “This is just what I deserve; how could I have tried to be a piper to please you when I am only a butcher!”

Moral
Dont do things that distract you from your original purpose.

The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Once upon a time, a Wolf decided to disguise himself as a Sheep in order to catch his prey more easily. He was hungry and knew that the shepherds of the area guarded their sheep well.

Covering himself completely with an old sheepskin, he wandered into the pasture nearby. A flock of sheep was grazing there, blissful under the morning sun. "When the shepherd turns his back I will slide in with them," said the Wolf, making his sly move into the flock eventually.

Soon evening fell and the shepherd led his sheep away, back into the fold.

He locked the gate securely and left. "Aha! Now is my chance!" said the Wolf, and was about to take off his disguise when the shepherd returned.

He had come back to the fold to choose one of the animals for its meat, for the next day's meal. To the Wolf's bad luck, it was he, in sheep's disguise, who was chosen to be cut up!

The Wolf found himself instantly under the sharp knife of the shepherd, and soon very much dead: the hunter becoming the hunted!

The Story of Zacchaeus up a Tree

The Story of Zacchaeus up a Tree


...you should know about Zacchaeus.

Zacchaeus was a little man.

And Zacchaeus was a rich man.

And nobody liked him very much.

Okay, that’s three things.



Nobody liked Zacchaeus very much mostly because he got rich taking money from other people and giving it to the Romans.

Nobody liked the Romans much either. That was because they came in from another country like a bunch of big bullies. They came with all their soldiers and swords and spears and stuff and made people do things they didn’t want to do, like give them money.

That's what Zacchaeus did. He collected money for the Romans. They called it "collecting taxes." Some of the money he gave to the Romans - but lots of it he kept for himself. And that’s how he got rich.

Zacchaeus was a very rich man...

And Zacchaeus was a little man... without a lot of friends.



Zacchaeus lived in a town called Jericho a long time ago. You might remember Jericho, if you heard the story about the walls that came tumbling down when the trumpets blew. But that was way before Zacchaeus’s time.



One bright, sunny day, Zacchaeus looked down the dirt road that came into Jericho and he saw a crowd of people coming his way.

Back then, everybody was taking about a guy named Jesus. Everywhere Jesus went, people who were sick got better, people who couldn’t walk could walk again, people who were blind could see again. Jesus was a pretty amazing guy! And everybody wanted to see just who this Jesus guy was. Including Zacchaeus.

The only trouble was, everywhere Jesus went there were always crowds of people all around him - and remember, Zacchaeus was a little man. He knew that he’d never be able see over a great crowd of people.

Zacchaeus ran up to the edge of the crowd and stood on his tiptoes to see what the big deal was.

But all he could see were the backs of people’s heads.

He tried jumping up and down. He bounced from one side and then to the other. But still he couldn’t see.

But then, on one lucky bounce, he saw the man at the center of the crowd. It was Jesus!

Zacchaeus tried to push his way through the crowd, but everyone wanted to see Jesus, and they wouldn’t let him through.

What could he do? He wanted to see Jesus too!

Then Zacchaeus turned around and saw a sycamore tree growing right beside the road Jesus was walking along.

Zacchaeus had an idea!

He ran on ahead and climbed up the Sycamore tree. He didn’t care if he looked silly or not. He wanted to see Jesus!

Sure enough, Jesus stopped right under the sycamore tree. He looked up, and there was Zacchaeus peeking through the branches.



“Zacchaeus!” Jesus said to him, “Hurry down from there!

“I must stay at your house today!”



“How does he know my name??!” Zacchaeus thought to himself. “But he does! He knows my name! And he wants to come and stay at MY house!”

Zacchaeus flew down that tree quicker than you could say “Zacchaeus, Zacchaeus sitting in a tree.”

When his feet hit the ground, he was so happy he nearly did a little dance! But that’s just what Jesus does to people. Jesus laughed and slapped his arm around Zacchaeus’s shoulder, and together they started off towards Zacchaeus’s house.

But the people in the crowd were not so happy.

They had spent all day in the hot sun following Jesus, and now he was going to stay at the house of Zacchaeus, a rich, cheating tax collector. They began to grumble about Zacchaeus...

“This man is a sinner!” one woman said.

“He cheats and steals from his own people!” said an old man.

“He isn’t good enough for Jesus to come and stay at his house!”

Zacchaeus heard what the people were saying about him, and he must have known that they were right. So he said, “Listen! I will give half of everything I have to the poor! And if I cheated anyone, I will pay them back four times as much!”

Jesus was going to be a guest at his house. And what do you do when you are expecting company? You clean things up!

That’s just what Zacchaeus did. Only he cleaned himself up on the inside first. Zacchaeus wanted to make things right for Jesus. He was so happy that Jesus wanted to come to his house, he wanted to make Jesus happy too.

And Jesus WAS happy!

Jesus said to Zacchaeus, “Today salvation has come to this house!

“Your life was all wrong, but now it is all right. You were lost, but now you have been saved!

“That why I am here. I came to find and save the lost!”

Zacchaeus was a little man, but now he felt ten feet tall!



And you know what?

Jesus knows you too! Jesus knows you by name, just like he knew Zacchaeus.

He wants to come and tell you how much he loves you.

He wants to tell you the good news of his home in heaven. He wants to laugh with you and cry with you, and be with you no matter what.

But Jesus can’t exactly walk up to your front door and ring the bell. It would take a LONG time for Jesus to walk up to every house in the world! You’d be all old and wrinkly by the time he finally got to yours... and he wouldn’t be able to stay very long. There are a LOT of houses in the world to get to!

Back when Jesus stayed at Zacchaeus’s house, all the other people grumbled because each one of them wanted Jesus to stay at THEIR house. But when Jesus was on earth, he just couldn’t stay at every house every night.

That’s why Jesus went to heaven. Jesus went to heaven so he could send his Spirit to live with each of us - all at the same time!

Of course, you can’t see his Spirit.

But you can’t see love either. You can’t hear it or smell it or touch it. But you know when love is there. That’s how it is with Jesus. When Jesus comes to you, you can’t see him, or hear him, or touch him. But you know that he is there.

Jesus wants to come to your house today!

All you have to do is ask him in!


Courtesy
http://www.holyspiritinteractive.net

Story 1 God still hears prayers

A young man had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The Pastor shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, "Does God still speak to people?"
After service he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways.

It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, "God.. If you still speak to people, speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey."

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought, to stop and buy a gallon of milk.

He shook his head and said "God, is that you?" He didn't get a reply and started on home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. "Okay, God, in case that is you. I will buy the milk." It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home. As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, turn down that street. "This is crazy", he thought and drove on past the intersection. Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street.

At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, "Okay, God, I will." He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi-commercial area of town. It wasn't the best, but it wasn't the worst of either.

The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed. Again, he sensed something. "Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street."

The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat. "Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid." Again he felt like he should go and give the milk.

Finally, he opened the door, "Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here." He walked across the street and rang the bell, He could hear some noise inside.

A man's voice yelled out, "Who is it? What do you want?" Then the door opened before the young man could get away. The man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt.
He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. "What is it?" The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, "Here, I brought this to you."

The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway speaking loudly in Spanish. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen.

The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking half crying, "We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk."

His wife in the kitchen yelled out, "I ask him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?" The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put it in the man's hand.

He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face.
He knew that God still answers prayers.