601AFC010606
Happy Aloha Friday! Here is a message about praying. That’s the main reason we have the MBN – to be intercessors. “It’s a love thing.”
Power of prayer
Louise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work, they had seven children, and they needed food.
John Longhouse, the grocer scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said: “Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can.”
John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store. Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, “Do you have a grocery list?”
Louise replied, “Yes sir.”
“O. K.” he said, “put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries.”
Louise, hesitated a moment with a bowed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed. The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down. The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, “I can’t believe it.” The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more.
The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement. It was not a grocery list; it was a prayer, which said: “Dear Lord, you know my Needs. I am leaving this in your hands.”
The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store. The customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said, “It was worth every penny of it.”
Only God Knows how much a prayer weighs.
POWER OF PRAYER: When you receive this, say a prayer. That’s all you have to do. Just stop right now, and say a prayer for the one who sent this to you. Then please send this to all your friends and relatives. Don’t just delete this, please. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards.
Remember the six simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
6. Share the Joy as you pass The Word along.
No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. God didn’t promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.
Disappointments are like road bumps, they slow you down a bit but you enjoy the smooth road afterwards. Don’t stay on the bumps too long, though. Move on! When you feel down because you didn’t get what you want, just sit tight and be happy, because God has thought of something better to give you. When something happens to you, good or bad, consider what it means. There’s a purpose to life’s events, to teach you how to laugh more or not to cry too hard.
You can’t make someone love you, all you can do is become someone who can be loved, and the rest is up to the person to realize your worth.
It’s better to lose your pride to the one you love, than to lose the one you love because of pride. We spend too much time looking for the right person to love or finding fault with those we already love, when instead we should be perfecting the love we give.
Never abandon an old friend. You will never find one who can take his or her place. I love having friends, and I have loving friends. I actively cultivate friendships. As I told you, I try never to end a friendship; in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever, ever completely rejected a friend, or stopped loving him or her as a friend. I truly believe one should never kill love or terminate a friendship, even if your friend betrays you.
Never let love die; you can stop nurturing it so that it won’t grow, but you should never wipe it out. If you kill love or let it die, it becomes a permanent ugly, painful, sometimes crippling scar because when you kill love, you kill part of yourself, too. Sometimes it’s enough to make it “all the way up” to neutral because being hateful is self-destructive and sometimes so is being loving if it causes you pain and that is certainly self-destructive.
So if you can get to a place that is neutral (and that doesn’t mean being indifferent because indifference is worse than hatred; indifference is the complete dehumanization of a person), then you’ve done well, and maybe done some good in the process. When the relationship between two people is a lifetime partnership (or should be) the same thing applies. Don’t kill it if it falls apart, but do put it in neutral. That goes for parents, siblings, spouses, and offspring. Pets, too.
Pass it on to your dear friends. I just did.
chick
601AFC010606
Happy Aloha Friday! Here is a message about praying. That’s the main reason we have the MBN – to be intercessors. “It’s a love thing.”
Power of prayer
Louise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work, they had seven children, and they needed food.
John Longhouse, the grocer scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said: “Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can.”
John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store. Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, “Do you have a grocery list?”
Louise replied, “Yes sir.”
“O. K.” he said, “put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries.”
Louise, hesitated a moment with a bowed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed. The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down. The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, “I can’t believe it.” The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more.
The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement. It was not a grocery list; it was a prayer, which said: “Dear Lord, you know my Needs. I am leaving this in your hands.”
The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store. The customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said, “It was worth every penny of it.”
Only God Knows how much a prayer weighs.
POWER OF PRAYER: When you receive this, say a prayer. That’s all you have to do. Just stop right now, and say a prayer for the one who sent this to you. Then please send this to all your friends and relatives. Don’t just delete this, please. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards.
Remember the six simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
6. Share the Joy as you pass The Word along.
No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. God didn’t promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.
Disappointments are like road bumps, they slow you down a bit but you enjoy the smooth road afterwards. Don’t stay on the bumps too long, though. Move on! When you feel down because you didn’t get what you want, just sit tight and be happy, because God has thought of something better to give you. When something happens to you, good or bad, consider what it means. There’s a purpose to life’s events, to teach you how to laugh more or not to cry too hard.
You can’t make someone love you, all you can do is become someone who can be loved, and the rest is up to the person to realize your worth.
It’s better to lose your pride to the one you love, than to lose the one you love because of pride. We spend too much time looking for the right person to love or finding fault with those we already love, when instead we should be perfecting the love we give.
Never abandon an old friend. You will never find one who can take his or her place. I love having friends, and I have loving friends. I actively cultivate friendships. As I told you, I try never to end a friendship; in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever, ever completely rejected a friend, or stopped loving him or her as a friend. I truly believe one should never kill love or terminate a friendship, even if your friend betrays you.
Never let love die; you can stop nurturing it so that it won’t grow, but you should never wipe it out. If you kill love or let it die, it becomes a permanent ugly, painful, sometimes crippling scar because when you kill love, you kill part of yourself, too. Sometimes it’s enough to make it “all the way up” to neutral because being hateful is self-destructive and sometimes so is being loving if it causes you pain and that is certainly self-destructive.
So if you can get to a place that is neutral (and that doesn’t mean being indifferent because indifference is worse than hatred; indifference is the complete dehumanization of a person), then you’ve done well, and maybe done some good in the process. When the relationship between two people is a lifetime partnership (or should be) the same thing applies. Don’t kill it if it falls apart, but do put it in neutral. That goes for parents, siblings, spouses, and offspring. Pets, too.
Pass it on to your dear friends. I just did.
chick
About Chick Todd
American Roman Catholic reared as a "Baptiterian" in Denver Colorado. Now living on Kauaʻi. USAF Vet. Married for over 50 years. Scripture study has been my passion ever since my first "Bible talk" at age 6 in VBS.
