INSPIRATIONAL STORY (The Pig and The Horse)

The Pig and The Horse

   There was a farmer who had many horses and a pig. One day, one horse became very ill so the farmer called a veterinarian to come and look at him.

   When the vet arrived and after an extensive examination of the horse, he told the farmer, "Well, your horse has a virus. He must take this medicine for three days. I'll come back then and if he's not better we'll have to put him down."

   The pig was nearby and heard the conversation so the next day, he observed  as the farmer gave the horse the medicine then left.

   The pig approached the horse and said, "Be strong, my friend. Get up or they're going to put you to sleep."

   On the second day, the farmer gave the horse the medicine again and left. Again, the pig came and told the horse, "Come on buddy, get up or else you're going to die! Come on, I'll help you get up. Let's go! One, two three..."

   The horse struggled to get up but only made it to it's knees and fell back over onto the ground.

   On the third day, the vet arrived and walked with the farmer to give the horse his medicine. The horse laid still. Then the vet said, "Unfortunately, we're going to have to put him down tomorrow, otherwise, the virus might spread and infect the other horses." The vet and farmer then left together.

   When they left, the pig approached the horse again and said, "Listen, pal, it's now or never! Get up! Come on! Have courage! Come on! Get up! Get up!" the pig began nudging at the horse with encouragement.

   Slowly the horse stood up but was a little wobbly. "That's it! Great! You did it!" said the pig excitedly. "Now run! Run!" The horse began to gallop around the yard. "Faster! Faster! Fantastic. Keep running! Faster and faster." the pig was ecstatic. "Yes! Yay! Yes! You did it! You're a champion!"

   The horse ran as fast as he could until night came and he went to sleep.

   The next day the vet again arrived. The farmer and the vet went to where the horse was suppose to be. But as they approached the barn the farmer noticed the horse running in the field and began shouting, "It's a miracle! My horse is cured! We must have a grand celebration! Let's go kill the pig!"

The lesson: This often happens in the workplace. Nobody truly knows which employee actually derserves recogniton or who's actually contributing the necessary support to make things happen. But remember... Learning to live without recognition is a skill!!!!

If anybody ever tells you that your work is unprofessional, remember....

Amateur's built the Ark (which saved all the species God created) and professionals built the Titantic (which most died tragically when it sank).

Don't look to become a person of success... Look to become a person with values!!!

  

   Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

INSPIRATIONAL STORY (The Heart)

The Heart

   "Tomorrow morning," the surgeon began, "I'll open up your heart..."

   "You'll find Jesus there." the little boy interrupted.

   The surgeon looked up annoyed. "I'll cut your heart open," he continued,"to see how much damage has been done...."

   "But when you open up my heart, you'll find Jesus in there." said the little boy.

   The surgeon looked at the parents who sat quietly nearby. "When I see how much damage has been done, I'll sew your heart and chest back up and I'll plan what to do next."

   "But you'll find Jesus in my heart. The Bible says He lives in your heart. The hymns all say He lives there. you'll find Him in my heart."

   The surgeon had had enough. After losing so many patients during or after surgeries, he had lost faith in Jesus. Frustrated at the little boy's faith, he said, "I'll cut your heart open," he continued, "I'll tell you what I'll find in your heart. I'll find damaged muscle, low blood supply and weakened vessels. and I'll find out if I can make you well."

   "You'll find Jesus there, too. He live there." the little boy said as he smiled at the surgeon.

   The next day, after surgery on the little boy, the surgeon was in his office recording notes. "... damaged aorta, damaged pulmonary vein, widespread muscle degeneration. No hope for transplant, no hope for cure. Assesment: painkillers and bed rest. Prognosis," the surgeon paused for a brief moment then continued, "death within one year."

    Feeling angry and sadden he asked aloud, "Why? Why did You do this? You've put him here. You put him in this pain and You've cursed him to an early death. Why?'

   The Lord answered, "The boy, My lamb, was not meant for your flock for long, for he is part of My flock and will forever be. Here, in My flock, he will feel no pain and will be comforted as you cannot imagine. His parents will one day join him here and they will know peace and My flock will continue to grow."

   The surgeon's tears trickled down his face as he angrily said, "You created that boy and You created that heart. He'll be dead in months. Why?"

 "Although, I owe you no explanations for what I am doing, I see how much you do not know," God replied. "The boy, My lamb, shall return to My flock for he has done his duty. I did not put My lamb with your flock to lose him... but to retrieve another lost lamb."

   The surgeon then realized the revelation God had exposed to him. He was the lost lamb God sent the boy to retrieve. He dried his eyes and waited a few moments before going to the little boys room to inform the parents of his medical findings.

   When he entered the little boys room, he went over and sat beside his bed while the parents sat across from him. The boy, feeling droggy from the anesthesia, looked at the surgeon and whispered, "Did you cut open my heart?'

   "Yes, I did." replied the surgeon. 

   "What did you find?" asked the boy.

   "I found Jesus there." the surgeon gently replied.

James 5:19-20   My dear brothers and sisters, if someone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back, you can be sure that whoever brings that someone back will save that person from death and bring about forgiveness of many sins.                                                        NLT

Sometimes God will take one of His sheep home in order that it will save many others. Remember...  He took Jesus Christ home and it saved all of mankind.

  

POEM (Best Poem in the World)

Best Poem in the World

I was shocked, confused, bewildered

   As I entered Heaven's door,

   Not by the beauty of it all,

   Nor the lights or it's decor.

     But it was the folks in Heaven

      Who made me sputter and gasp ---

 The thieves, the liars, the sinners,

      The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade

    Who swiped my lunch money twice.

  Next to him was my old neighbor,

      Who never said anything nice.

       Bob, who I always thought

       Was rotting away in hell,

was sitting pretty on cloud nine,

  Loooking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus, "What's the deal?

   I would love to hear Your take.

    How did all these sinners get up here?

God must've made a mistake.

       And why is everyone so quiet

    So somber --- give me a clue!"

        "Hush, my child," Jesus said "they're all in shock.

           No one thought they'd be seeing you."

                                         JUDGE NOT!!!

Remember... Just going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in your garage makes you a car!

Every saint has a PAST...

Every sinner has a FUTURE!

Hope you share this poem with others.

Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil...

It has no point!

Be blessed and be a blessing!

TIME TO TESTIFY ( I Smile)

I Smile

     After I posted my testimony "Hold On To Faith" on the 'Amazing Grace- My Chains are Gone' Facebook page, one "Faithbook sister (we are known as the Faithbook family) posted this comment:

          "God sends us through trials and tribulations so that we will lean on HIM because we get in our heads that we can do things ourselves, when the truth of the matter is, we can do NOTHING without Jesus Christ, our Lord!"

   This comment is so very true and I knew this truth from studying the Bible. So I made the commitment to praise my Wonderful Father everyday! I thanked Him daily because I knew where my blessings came from. I knew I was in the wonderfully blessed position I was in only because God made it all possible.

   But, although I did the right things to please God, I was becoming comfortable with my blessings. I was thanking and worshiping God, yes... but I wasn't really leaning on Him. He blessed me with everything already. What could I possibly lean on Him for?

   No matter how blessed we think we are or how much we think we couldn't possibly need anything more from God, we do. And He wants to give us so much more. He wants us to continuously lean upon Him for our spiritual growth. He wants us to lean upon Him for more of His Truth because no matter how much we try to learn everything... we just never will. We will never fully know God like we want to but as long as we continue to lean upon Him we will grow into the person He created us to be.

   Sure, I read my Bible and devotionals daily. I watched Joyce Meyers, The Christian Ministry teacher, every morning --- she came on different stations consecutively so sometimes, if her teachings were really good, I'd watch her two or three times a day. But that isn't enough. To spiritually grow, not only do we need to study the Word and meditate on it, but we must act on it!

   My "season of trials" taught me about passivity. God doesn't want us to become passive. How can He use us to accomplish His Will if we are passive? He needs us as His instrument to reach others and bring them to Him. He needs us active so He can bless others through us. We can't shine our light in the darkness of the world if we're passive. And if we don't shine our light in the world then how will we give glory and honor to God?

   Matthew 5:13-16  "You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost it's flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
   You are the light of the world --- like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.                                                             NLT
         

   The Lord knew I was grateful for the blessings He gave me. He knew the cross I carried from previous years and, because I was faithful, obedient and allowed Him to transform me, He allowed me to rest. But I was just sitting on the side of the road on that narrow path. In order to grow and become the person He wanted me to be I could not become stagnant.
  
    After carrying the cross, God does allow us to rest for a bit but when we start to get too comfortable, as I was, He stands us up, hands us our cross and gets us back on that journey again.    1 Peter 5:10-11  In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered for a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever. Amen. 
 

   Yes, I'm glad He helped me through those trials. I'm grateful the Holy Spirit kept me from falling and encouraged me not to give in to sin. It's such a good feeling to get through to the other side then think back on the struggle and rejoice in victory!

   1 Peter 1:6-7   So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold -- though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith  remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.                            NLT

   Another thing my "season of trials" taught me is that my faith will always be tested. And I believe it's more for our sake that anything. God knows us. He already knows our heart, our thoughts, our next move. But we don't really know ourselves. We often say we trust God but then we catch ourselves sometimes asking, "But what if? What if God is not going to answer my prayer because I got angry this morning? What if God isn't going to help me because I always turn away from Him?"

   Satan worked hard to cast doubt on my belief in God's promises. He used anyone and anything he could to try and bring me down. He wanted to cut the lines of communication between God and I. And I admit, he was almost successful. But right when I was about to give up, that's when the Holy Spirit whispered in my ear, "Don't give up now. Your breakthrough is just around the corner. Trust God!"

   My faith has been tried and I know it will always be tried. Because true faith will be tested. I realize I only understand my trial when I reach the blessing. The trial is my learning period and I don't understand it until I get through it.

Brothers and sisters, I want to encourage you to accept whatever comes your way and TRUST GOD! For if you think back on other struggles in your life you'll realize that you made it through and God was with you all the time. When you got through it, you were able to rest a bit before the next struggle came. But life is a constant struggle. It will never be a walk in the park forever. But with each struggle, we are growing spiritually and becoming stronger.

   Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me so much and never giving up on me. Thank You for Your understanding when I would get frustrated and about to throw in the towel. Thank You for guiding me on the way I should go. Father, what I really want to say... THANK YOU! I love You, Lord! Amen.

  

  

PRAYER FOR THOSE SEARCHING for GOD

                                     Prayer For Those Searching for God

O Lord my God,
Teach my heart this day where and how to see You,
Where and how to find You.
You have made me and remade me,
All the good things I possess,
And still I do not know You,
I have not yet done that
For which I was made.
Teach me to seek You,
For I cannot seek You
Unless You teach me,
Or find You
Unless You show Yourself to me.
Let me seek You in my desire,
Let me desire You in my seeking.
Let me find You by loving You,
Let me love You when I find You.

-- St Anseim

INSIGHTFUL MESSAGE (Keep Your Eyes on Jesus)

Keep Your Eyes on Jesus

   Hebrews 12:1-3     Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding it's shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won't become weary and give up.                            NLT

   After my season of trials, I was able to sit down and reflect on everything and what it all meant. This is the one of the lessons I learned from it all.

   We must keep our eyes on Jesus so our faith can become a living testimony to the witnesses whom surround us daily. We live in a very dark time and people are looking for the Truth.

   We must remember, God will not give us anything we cannot handle. With God, all things are possible, therefore, when we place our trust in Him, He gives us the ability to do what He knows we can do and He does whatever we cannot do. It is a team effort with God as the captain.

   We mustn't think we are not able or simply can't endure anymore. Allowing God to reside within us, the word can't  becomes obsolete.

   God knows our experiences and He can relate to them because He sees what we go through and He has been through it Himself. Many of our trials are minor compared to what God endures with us.

   Consider this:

• He gave His only Son to save us from sin and we still sin.
• When we repent He forgives us of our sins on a daily basis. He is forever forgiving us. Can you imagine where we would be if He told us, "That's it! I'm done! I'm tired of your crap! You'll never learn!" But He doesn't tell us that and He never will because He loves us so much that, by His grace, He has mercy on us and forgives us everytime.
• He loves us unconditionally. We might ignore Him, disobey Him, and maybe not even trust Him but He always love us and never leaves us.

   So what more could we possibly need?

   I've made the commitment to keep my eyes on Jesus and I pray you will join me.

   I'm going to let my light shine in all the dark areas I encounter. All for the glory and honor of Our Wonderful Heavenly Father.

   Please join me and do not become weary and give up. Light up the world!!! Let your light shine!!

   Be blessed and be a blessing!

                                                                                                                Shalom,

                                                                                                                     Dejon

Because we are salt and light:

Matthew 5:14-16   "You are the light of the world -- like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. no one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let our good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."                       NLT

Let Your Light Shine!!!

INSPIRATIONAL STORY (Just Checking In)

Just Checking In

   One day around lunchtime, a pastor was walking through the church sanctuary checking to make sure everything was in it's proper place. As he stopped at the altar to gather prayer requests, he heard the entrance door to the church open and shut. He was a little caught off guard when he turned around to see a scraggly old man walking down the aisle.

   Frowning, the pastor noticed the man's beard had not been trimmed or combed, it seemed, for quite some time. His shirt and pants were filthy and stained and his shabby coat was two sizes too small for him. 

   Yet, the man never looked at the pastor nor said a word. He went straight to the altar, knelt and bowed his head for a few moments, then he stood up and walked out the door.

   After three days of this man's regular routine, the pastor was somewhat concerned. Thinking this man was down on his luck and needed help, when he entered that day, the pastor walked up to him and spoke, "Excuse me, sir. I'm the pastor here and for the last three days I've noticed you coming in to pray. Is there something, maybe, I can do for you?"

    He humbly lifted his head so his eyes would meet the pastors. In a very quiet, meek voice, the man answered, "Oh, I help the construction crew up the road picking up loose nails, wood chips and such. Da' boss man, he's a real nice feller. He gives me little bit of money everyday. Ain't much, but pays the bills, I guess. And dem boys working, sumtimes they gives me sum their lunch. I does alright, I guess."

   Then the man took his eyes off the pastor, lowered his head and shamefully spoke, "When I was a child, my mom and dad was kilt in a car crash. I lived with different folks, mostly my other kinfolk, for awhile. Then they has to put me in an orphanage cause they couldn't afford it no mo'. But when I comes of age I left and got off on my own. But I never knew God.

   I married this Christian woman. She really love her God. I watched her pray to Him all the time -- mornin', afternoon, suppertime, and even before she went ta bed at night. But she passed away 3 years ago and things ain't been the same since.

   So at lunchtime, I comes down here to pray. It seemed to do sumthin' for my wife so I thought I might as well try it myself. Ain't got nuttin' else to lose. When I finish I do seem to feel a bit stronger and at peace, tho."

   The man lifts his head and with an apologetic look on his face he continues to speak, "I don't stay very long, see, 'cause the site is a bit far for an old man like me to be walkin'. But when I kneel down to talk to the Lord, this is what I say, 'I just came again to tell You, Lord, how happy I've been since we found each others friendship and You took away my sin. I don't know much of how to pray, but I think about You everyday. So, Jesus, this is Jim just checkin' in. Amen.' But it's time for me to go now. Been nice talkin' wit cha. Bye." Then he hurried out the door.

   The pastor was moved by this because he, himself, had not said a heartfelt prayer in awhile. His prayers had been by rote, therefore, his heart had hardened a little and become cold. But at that altar, he met with Jesus and was warmed by Jesus' love. So he knelt and repeated Jim's prayer, "I just came again to tell You, Lord, how happy I've been since we found each others friendship and You took away my sins. It's been awhile since I prayed a heartfelt prayer but I think about You everyday. So, Jesus, this is me just checking in."

   The next few days, the pastor waited with anticipation, for Jim to come in because he wanted to pray with him.After a week passed and still no sign of him, he began to worry. He called the local hospital and discovered that Jim had been admitted just two days prior because he had a severe case of pneumonia. So the pastor rushed to the hospital and stayed at Jim's bedside.

   The nurses mentioned to the pastor their concern that no friends or family came to show they cared and it seemed he had no one to turn to.

   Jim overheard what the nurses said and with a smile he told them, "Oh but you're so wrong. But I guess you couldn't have knowed; all da' time I been layin' here, everyday at noon He's here, a dear friend of mine. Ya see, He sits right down, takes my hand, leans over and says to me, 'I just came again to tell you, Jim, how happy I have been since we found this friendship and I took away your sins. I always love to hear you pray. I think about you everyday and so, Jim, this is Jesus checking in.'"

Psalm 18:25  To the faithful you show yourself faithful; to those with integrity you show integrity. NLT