I used to wonder,
Why the disparity between
What I aspire to do,
And actual performance?
Then one day it dawned,
Why it's lack of conformance
To the guidelines Jesus gave:
"If any man serve me,
Him will my Father honor."*
When we shift from self to Christ,
We find life well worth living,
For ourselves and all mankind.
(John 12:26)
Friday, February 21, 2020
Sunday, February 16, 2020
How God cares for us
I had a very interesting experience on Friday when I had just left a busy shopping center with 3 bags of canned dog food. As I turned onto the road out, something happened with my car. Could be the battery I thought. Anyway, I called Triple A to come. The man said, with Valentine Day traffic, worse than Christmas, it might be a long wait.
A lady who was nearby came over and asked if she could help. She saw that the 3 plastic bags I had and was moving a bit to put into the tow truck, had broken and some cans rolled out. She said, "Here, take this backpack. They'll all fit nicely." I said, "Oh no, but thank you. I'll manage when the tow truck comes I'm sure." She insisted. I declined
Then a gentleman some distance away asked if things were ok. I stepped over to speak to him, and when I turned back, the lady's bag was right there and she had walked away! This met my need perfectly and I hope to see her again to not only thank her, but offer to pay her.
A lady who was nearby came over and asked if she could help. She saw that the 3 plastic bags I had and was moving a bit to put into the tow truck, had broken and some cans rolled out. She said, "Here, take this backpack. They'll all fit nicely." I said, "Oh no, but thank you. I'll manage when the tow truck comes I'm sure." She insisted. I declined
Then a gentleman some distance away asked if things were ok. I stepped over to speak to him, and when I turned back, the lady's bag was right there and she had walked away! This met my need perfectly and I hope to see her again to not only thank her, but offer to pay her.
Thursday, February 6, 2020
Love thy neighbor
I was thinking the other night of Jesus' command to "Love thy neighbor", and wishing I had something meaningful to do to carry this out.
Well, in the space of less than a day and a half, 3 ways to do this came to thought:
The trash pick-up on our street was delayed from early morning to after dark. It occurred to me to go out and roll my next-door neighbor's trash receptacle up her long driveway to right in front of her garage. Such a simple thing to do. The phone rang almost the minute I got back in the house. She was just about to go out and get it herself She said, "Bless your heart for doing this!" It meant more to her than I expected.
Then, at Starbuck where I often go for breakfast, I asked the manager, "How is your daughter?" She and I had had a run-in much earlier over a botched-up order, and had not greeted each other too warmly. She beamed (as mothers seem to do) and got out her phone with a photo of her 2-year old. My asking pleased her no end.
And I felt led to email a friend in another state who had been worried about getting through the winter in a l25-year old farm house. My asking, "How are things?" meant way more to her than I thought it would. My reaching out to her apparently came at the right time as she was missing a family member no longer with her.
So, this all showed me we don't have to do something spectacular to love our neighbors.
Well, in the space of less than a day and a half, 3 ways to do this came to thought:
The trash pick-up on our street was delayed from early morning to after dark. It occurred to me to go out and roll my next-door neighbor's trash receptacle up her long driveway to right in front of her garage. Such a simple thing to do. The phone rang almost the minute I got back in the house. She was just about to go out and get it herself She said, "Bless your heart for doing this!" It meant more to her than I expected.
Then, at Starbuck where I often go for breakfast, I asked the manager, "How is your daughter?" She and I had had a run-in much earlier over a botched-up order, and had not greeted each other too warmly. She beamed (as mothers seem to do) and got out her phone with a photo of her 2-year old. My asking pleased her no end.
And I felt led to email a friend in another state who had been worried about getting through the winter in a l25-year old farm house. My asking, "How are things?" meant way more to her than I thought it would. My reaching out to her apparently came at the right time as she was missing a family member no longer with her.
So, this all showed me we don't have to do something spectacular to love our neighbors.
Saturday, February 1, 2020
To love and keep Jesus' words
Nothing is more crucial to mankind in God's scheme of salvation than loving and obeying the living words He gave His Son to give us. Our present and eternal well-being depends on it.
Jesus said, "If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him."
(John 14:23)
It's hard to think of anything more wonderful!
Jesus said, "If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him."
(John 14:23)
It's hard to think of anything more wonderful!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)