Sunday Quotes

 

“God’s purpose for my life was that I have a passion for God’s glory and that I have a passion for my joy in that glory, and that these two are one passion.” (Jonathan Edwards)

“What you are is God's gift to you, what you become is your gift to God.” (Hans Urs von Balthasar)

“Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.” (John Wesley)

“We may speak about a place where there are no tears, no death, no fear, no night; but those are just the benefits of heaven. The beauty of heaven is seeing God.” (Max Lucado)

“We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts.” (A.W.Tozer)

“Men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.” (R.C.Sproul)

“When we are securely rooted in personal intimacy with the source of life, it will be possible to remain flexible without being relativistic, convinced without being rigid, willing to confront without being offensive, gentle and forgiving without being soft, and true witnesses without being manipulative.” (Henri J.M. Nouwen)

“Of all the knowledge that we can ever obtain, the knowledge of God, and the knowledge of ourselves, are the most important.” (Jonathan Edwards)

“As the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, so the denial of God is the height of foolishness.” (R.C.Sproul)

“If you board the wrong train, it is no use running along the corridor in the other direction.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

“Jesus tends to his people individually. He personally sees to our needs. We all receive Jesus' touch. We experience his care.” (Max Lucado)

“Satan is so much more in earnest than we are—he buys up the opportunity while we are wondering how much it will cost.” (Amy Carmichael)

“A truly Christian love, either to God or men, is a humble broken-hearted love. The desires of the saints, however earnest, are humble desires. Their hope is a humble hope; and their joy, even when it is unspeakable and full of glory, is a humble broken-hearted joy, and leaves the Christian more poor in spirit, and more like a little child, and more disposed to a universal lowliness of behavior.” (Jonathan Edwards)

“He that loveth little prayeth little, he that loveth much prayeth much.” (St. Augustine)

“I have never met the man I could despair of after discerning what lies in me apart from the grace of God.” (Oswald Chambers)

“If by doing some work which the undiscerning consider ‘not spiritual work’ I can best help others, and I inwardly rebel, thinking it is the spiritual for which I crave, when in truth it is the interesting and exciting, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” (Amy Carmichael)

“God wants the whole person and He will not rest till He gets us in entirety. No part of the man will do." (A.W.Tozer)

“Truth is the agreement of our ideas with the ideas of God.”

(Jonathan Edwards)

“The Christians are right: it is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.” (C.S.Lewis)

“Oh, will you pray? Stop now and pray, lest desire turn to feeling and feeling evaporate.” (Amy Carmichael)

“A truly humble man is sensible of his natural distance from God; of his dependence on Him; of the insufficiency of his own power and wisdom; and that it is by God's power that he is upheld and provided for, and that he needs God's wisdom to lead and guide him, and His might to enable him to do what he ought to do for Him.” (Jonathan Edwards)

Monday Quotes

When the Christian faith becomes defined by who we are and what we do and not by who Christ is and what he did for us, we miss the gospel - and we, ironically, become more disobedient. Tullian Tchividjian

The truth is the real Christian experience is truly about repenting every day because there is no Christian that doesn't sin. Stephen Baldwin

I'm excited to create more awareness about the importance of giving the youth of America a choice. There's a 24-hour music channel. There's a 24-hour comedy channel. I believe there's a 24-hour gay channel coming. Why isn't there a 24-hour Christian channel that's edgy and hip and cool and new and different, like all that other stuff? Stephen Baldwin

Some of us live a Christian life as if we're always under the stern, watchful eye of our Father and he is very impossible to please... No, God delights even in our heartfelt attempts at obedience. Kevin DeYoung

If creators of Christian culture hope to produce work that will bear good fruit, we must draw our life from the true source - our living Savior. He is real. He is present. But all too often we reduce him to an abstraction, giving him intellectual assent, but not our hearts. Michael O'Brien

I never heard a Christian sermon preached in a church. Lincoln Steffens

Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened. Billy Graham

The greatest legacy one can pass on to one's children and grandchildren is not money or other material things accumulated in one's life, but rather a legacy of character and faith. Billy Graham

You're born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there's a loophole. Billy Graham

Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. John Wesley

Is it not hard that even those who are with us should be against us - that a man's enemies, in some degree, should be those of the same household of faith? Yet so it is. John Wesley

Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction. Blaise Pascal

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. Mahatma Gandhi

You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty. Mahatma Gandhi

I'm a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican, in that order. Mike Pence

We relish news of our heroes, forgetting that we are extraordinary to somebody too. Helen Hayes

The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but to reveal to him his own. Benjamin Disraeli

O never give me over to my own heart's desires, nor let me follow my own imaginations! John Wesley

It is not talking but walking that will bring us to heaven. Matthew Henry

He whose head is in heaven need not fear to put his feet into the grave. Matthew Henry

It is common for those that are farthest from God, to boast themselves most of their being near to the Church. Matthew Henry

Money, Money, Money

Money is never enough. We keep striving and working for more. This is not new; it is from eons that we already always trying to earn money and more money.

Tom Harper explains this from a Biblical perspective.

Imagine you suddenly find $100 million in your bank account (and it's rightfully yours). What would you do with it?

Once you've celebrated, paid off all your debt, bought a couple cars and moved into your new private-island home, what would be next in life?

An Indian saint and poet, Sant Kabir Das, said thus - 

"Sayeen Itna Deejiye, Ja Mein Kutumb Samaye.

Main Bhi Bhookha Na Rahun, Sadhu Na Bhookha Jaye".

(Please God, give me enough so that I can support myself and my family, and so that no one goes hungry, not me nor any saint who comes to my home). 

Proverbs 30:8-9 also says it so well:

"…give me neither poverty nor riches!

Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.

For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, "Who is the Lord?"

And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God's holy name".

Ecclesiastes chapter 5 directly addresses this dreamy scenario of finding the rainbowed pot of gold. Here are a few points Solomon makes in verses 10 and 11:

1. Those who love money will never have enough.

2. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!

3. The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it.

4. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers!

These pithy statements are straight from the New Living Translation. And how true they are!

The main point, which is also a universal truth as we have seen, is in verse 15 "We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can't take our riches with us."

If we can't take it with us, why do we strive for more than we need?

Trusting God for just enough is a way of describing how God provides what is needed in the moment, while also requiring trust in what will come next. 

Monday Quotes

Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible. Francis of Assisi

Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence. Vince Lombardi

Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. Warren Buffett

When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost. Billy Graham

My home is in Heaven. I'm just traveling through this world. Billy Graham

Comfort and prosperity have never enriched the world as much as adversity has. Billy Graham

The main rule to me is to honor God with your life. To life a life of integrity. Not be selfish. You know, help others. But that's really the essence of the Christian faith. Joel Osteen

When a man becomes a Christian, he becomes industrious, trustworthy and prosperous. Now, if that man, when he gets all he can and saves all he can, does not give all he can, I have more hope for Judas Iscariot than for that man! John Wesley

The Christian missionary may preach the gospel to the poor naked heathen, but the spiritual heathen who populate Europe have as yet heard nothing of Christianity. Carl Jung

Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone's face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come. Henri Nouwen

First of all, the Jewish religion has a great deal in common with the Christian religion because, as Rabbi Gillman points out in the show, Christianity is based on Judaism. Christ was Jewish. Barbara Walters

The sometimes-tough love of the Christian faith of my childhood demanded a certain amount of self-reflection and, occasionally, self-criticism. J. D. Vance

The bird is powered by its own life and by its motivation. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right. Abraham Lincoln

Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous. Albert Einstein

There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'All right, then, have it your way.' C. S. Lewis

God meets daily needs daily. Not weekly or annually. He will give you what you need when it is needed. Max Lucado

This is a paradox of man: compared to God, man is nothing; yet we are everything to God. Dieter F. Uchtdorf

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. Mahatma Gandhi

Pastor Rajiv's Mid-Week Message

 

What's in it for Me?

“Religion today is not transforming people— it is being transformed by people. It is not raising the moral level of society— it is descending to society's own level and congratulating itself that it has scored a victory because society is smiling, accepting its surrender.” - A. W. TOZER (1897-1963)

These words reflect the true state of society and Christianity today. As Christians, do we embody Christianity? Or do we take what is convenient and ignore or justify the rest.

Christianity is not a convenience. It is a way of life to be led by emulating Christ for the Glory of our Father in Heaven. Don't we pray that? When we help someone in need is it for Gods glory or our own? When we perform church activities, is it for our own name to be up in lights or for the body of Christ? When we pray for someone to be healed is it for Gods glory or because we just like that person? Do we use the church as a social and networking platform or THE house of God? Do we follow Christ with a zero agenda ?

The fact is today's society views every thing with the lens of WIFM (what's in it for me) instead of "what's in it for God".

We cant pick and choose as we do. Living the Christian life means going out of our comfort zone and our "convenience zone", with a zero agenda. It means taking a step back from self glorification.

Christianity is not supposed to be the surrender of the church but our own surrender to God. It can involve surrendering small things throughout the day, or surrendering bigger things like hopes and dreams. Are we ready for that or is it an inconvenience?

A Small Peg in the Wall

                                          

A Pastor in Haiti related this parable to make a very strong point. We relate it as it is:

A certain man wanted to sell his house for $2000. Another man wanted to buy it very badly, but he was a poor man and he couldn't give the full price. After much bargaining, the owner agreed to sell the house to the man for $1000. But the reduced price came with a stipulation. The owner would sell the house, but he would keep ownership of a large nail, protruding from over the front door.

Several years later, the original owner decided he wanted to buy the house back. Understandably, the new owner was unwilling to sell.

As a result, the original owner went out, found the carcass of a dead dog in the street, and hung it from the nail he still owned. Soon, the house became unlivable, and the family was forced to sell to the owner of the nail.

The Haitian pastor concluded the story with these words: "If we leave the devil with even one small peg in our life, he will return to hang his rotten garbage on it."

The Coffee Story

The coffee story is quite a common analogy to human nature. If you are carrying a cup of hot coffee and someone jostles your hand, the coffee in the cup (or whatever is in it) spills over.

Similarly, in humans, hidden feelings, frustrations, fear etc spill over and out of us when our life is jostled by circumstances or someone's behaviour. We can take some ones advice negatively and react or some thing which hurts us.

In our life stresses and "jostles" are inevitable.

Consider the cup to be the heart and mind and whatever is in it to be the coffee. Whatever we fill in the cup is what will spill out, when jostled.

King David's cup ran over with Gods goodness and provision in his life because he recognised God. He understood His works. He talked, God answered and he listened. David was Gods friend. King David's heart was filled with God. His cup ran over with God.

Today let us meditate on ourselves: when we are under stress what spills out of our cup? Can I fill my heart with the Spirit of God rather than anger, abuse and violence so that when I am jostled, His spirit spills over?

"You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil;

my cup runneth over. ."

Quotes to Inspire

 

"God never said that the journey would be easy, but He did say that the arrival would be worthwhile." — Max Lucado

"You are the only Bible some unbelievers will ever read." — John MacArthur

"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important." — C.S. Lewis

"It is not the trials in your life that develop or destroy you, but rather your response to those hardships." — Charles Stanley

"If you believe in a God who controls the big things, you have to believe in a God who controls the little things. It is we, of course, to whom things look 'little' or 'big.'" — Elisabeth Elliot

"We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations." — Chuck Swindoll

"The greater your knowledge of the goodness and grace of God on your life, the more likely you are to praise Him in the storm." — Matt Chandler

"It is great to be faced with the impossible, for nothing is impossible if one is meant to do it. Wisdom will be given, and strength. When the Lord leads, He always strengthens." — Amy Carmichael

"Life is God's novel. Let him write it." — Isaac Bashevis Singer

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe." — Saint Augustine

"When I consider the cross of Christ, how can anything that I do be called a sacrifice?" — Amy Carmichael

"One of the Devil's great lies is that the path to a fulfilling life is to live for one's self." — Andrew B. Ray

"If not for the tests in our lives some of us would not learn to pray." — Aminata Coote

Make Me a Blessing

We all love ourselves more than other people, but we care more about their opinions than our own. Because of this we tend to do, or not do, things which maybe right in our conscience.

But, doing the right thing is a priority in Christian life, following Jesus' way. He said  “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

Luke 3:11

Isiaah 1 verses 17-20 lay it out clearly as well. 

Pastor David Jacobs, commenting on these verses from Isiaah says -

"It is not easy for the oppressed to stand up for themselves. Think about the downtrodden and unfortunate in history: the slaves in Egypt and the Americas, the Holocaust, or the plight of women in some parts of the world. It is difficult to hear their voices because they have no power. Nobody is listening. It is our duty, according to Isaiah, to listen and find a solution".

What other people think should not matter. When Jesus ate with the tax men, he knew what others were thinking but that did not bother Him. Healing on a Sabbath was considered wrong but that did not stop Him.

Serving people who are in need is an opportunity. An opportunity to be a blessing.

Remember this song we sang in Sunday school? We asked to become a blessing. 

Make Me a Blessing 

Out in the highways and byways of life,

many are weary and sad;

Carry the sunshine where darkness is rife

making the sorrowing glad.

Make me a blessing,

Make me a blessing,

Out of my life

May Jesus shine;

Make me a blessing, O savior, I pray,

Make me a blessing to someone today.

Give as 'twas given to you in your need;

Love as the Master loved you;

Be to the helpless a helper indeed;

Unto your mission be true.

Full Song is available here 

Sunday Quotes

                            

"We can look at Job, we can look at Lamentations, we can look at the Psalms, we can look at so many heroes of the faith who at different times had questions, who faced unbelief, yet God kept them, and they continued, in their doubts, to lean towards God, to lean and doubt in a way that continued to keep them attached to the vine and seeking Jesus in all of it." — Laura Wifler

"Every single thing He has ever or will ever say is true. The simplicity of faith is this: taking God’s Word for it." — Jackie Hill Perry

"No matter what has happened to you in the past or what is going on in your life right now, it has no power to keep you from having an amazingly good future if you will walk by faith in God. God loves you! He wants you to live with victory over sin so you can possess His promises for your life today!" — Joyce Meyer

"Hearing how God is moving in other places encourages and inspires our faith for what God wants to do in our own corner of the world." — Matt Brown

"The smallest seed of faith is better than the largest fruit of happiness." — Henry David Thoreau

"A grateful heart is a beginning of greatness. It is an expression of humility. It is a foundation for the development of such virtues as prayer, faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love, and well-being." — James E. Faust

"Faith and prayer are the vitamins of the soul; man cannot live in health without them." — Mahalia Jackson

"The greatest legacy one can pass on to one's children and grandchildren is not money or other material things accumulated in one's life, but rather a legacy of character and faith." — Billy Graham

"Faith is taking the first step, even when you don't see the whole staircase." – Martin Luther King Jr.

"She stood in the storm and when the wind did not blow her away, she adjusted her sails." – Elizabeth Edwards

"Every single thing He has ever or will ever say is true. The simplicity of faith is this: taking God’s Word for it." — Jackie Hill Perry

"We can let go of burdens like condemnation and worry, perfectionism and insecurity. And we can cling desperately—even through tears—to the assurance that God knows, he cares, and he loves us with an infinite love. We can lay our burdens at the feet of Christ and receive what he offers instead." — Sarah J. Hauser

"Faith, in the sense in which I am here using the word, is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted, in spite of your changing moods.” — C.S. Lewis

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe." — Saint Augustine

"In faith, there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don’t." — Blaise Pascal

"Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe." — Voltaire

Peace and Justice for All

A wise judge once said, "it is not only necessary for justice to be done, but as importantly, it needs to be seen to be done."

Drawing from these wise words, as Christians, it is not only important to follow Christ in letter and spirit, but also to be seen as followers of Christ, in our behavior and our attitudes to fellow men. We ourselves are the biggest witnesses to Christ and we are also our own enemy. We may preach the best of sermons, be most devout in our day-to-day devotions or know the Bible verbatim, but if our language, behavior and attitude does not reflect Christ, it is all in vain.

Christ Himself spoke at length about the way we are to behave toward others; friends and enemies. More than that, however, the life He lived, accentuated by His love and compassion for the lost, provides the consummate example of what Christian behavior should look like, enabled by the Holy Spirit.

The best barometer is how one reacts or behaves when facing extreme pressure of a threat or a loss. Do we remain calm trusting in God or do we react with screaming, shouting, threatening and possibly worse?

If the Holy Spirit is living within us, the natural outpouring of behaviors will be “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). This will spread love, respect, peace and a spirit of justice towards all, bring glory to Gods name and most importantly give the world a glimpse of Gods character, building a bridge for others to know God as well.

Make Me a Blessing

                                           

Out in the highways and byways of life,
Many are weary and sad;
Carry the sunshine where darkness is rife,
Making the sorrowing glad.

Make me a blessing, Make me a blessing.
Out of my life may Jesus shine;
Make me a blessing, O Savior, I pray.
Make me a blessing to someone today.

Have you ever heard this hymn? It was introduced in Sunday schools in 1924 and music added a decade later. These simple words are often used to challenge believers to make their lives useful to God.

Today, let's try and understand this simple yet powerful hymn and how we can implement it in our lives.

blessing can be defined as conferring prosperity, approval, or happiness. But what does it mean for a person to be a blessing? Perhaps this means that through our actions we help bring happiness and peace to those around us.

It's not about money. Even someone who is marginalised or poor or needy can become a blessing to someone else. When we take care of them, we also recieve emotional and physical blessings.

In some traditions, the blessings of those who are marginalized, or suffering are seen as particularly potent.

The simple thought is to share a part of our lives with someone who may need it. Someone who may be lonely, or sad or broken hearted. 

A touch, a smile, a sharing of ideas and thoughts can mean a lot to someone today. Be a Blessing!

Paradise Gained

Man does nothing without a reason.

President Dieter Uchtdorf once said ... "what we love determines what we seek. What we seek determines what we think and do. What we think and do determines who we are — and who we will become". He was speaking about how and why we love God.

So, the question today is - why do we love God and Jesus? Is the reason temporal or eternal? If eternal, are we really so concerned about life and death after we have died here, a state we cannot see today. Or are we more concerned about the business of life today.

Why we love God, Jesus and His Holy Spirit is a very personal question, different for each one of us. An anonymous writer says this-

"I was recently asked Why I love God, His only Son and His word? It is quite simple really. Because I am not satisfied with what I have in this world today.

I want to be in a world where I can play with a lion, run with the deer, walk where I want without the fear of being hurt. A world where there is no sickness. A world without borders and visas where I can travel anytime to meet anyone, anywhere. A world which does not need electricity or air conditioning. Where there are no poor or hungry, no violence against man, woman or child. A world where there is no fear, because there is only love. Where we are never going to be parted from our loved ones. A world where everyone loves and respects everyone else. There is no hate. There is no envy. No possessions to dictate a status. No languages to differentiate people. A world filled with love and laughter.

There is no government in this "world" because there is nothing to govern. There is only the creator and Son, and one can walk up to them at anytime and shake their hand, and praise them for what they have created and done. Where they are the parent to each one, loving us beyond anything we have known or experienced. Where there is no punishment because there is no crime.

Does a place like that exist outside of our minds? Absolutely.

We would have been in such a place, but for these Adam and Eve charectors. But today, to get there I need to get myself a mystical ticket - being distributed by this mystical being called Jesus. No money is required except we must believe that His ticket is valid to get us through. He earned this job by paying a very high price - His own physical torture and death. He paid that price so he could give these tickets to anyone who believed in Him.

The ticket window is open 24X7 and the ticket Giver is always available. If you haven't got a ticket, I will advise you to get is asap. The window is a trifle hard to find but here is the route map."

Now is the Time!

For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

Forgiveness, kindness, communications of love, between acquaintances, friends and relatives cannot be left for another day, it may be too late.

Sometimes we, being carried away by the business of life, job and activities, do not have time to talk to close friends and  relatives who we may have spent life with. We keep putting it off, with long absences. One day, suddenly, we get the news that the relative died giving no one time to say goodbye.

This situation is familiar to millions of people during covid and happens all the time around the world.

The net result is lifelong regrets and self blame.

Similar situations can happen in our relationship with Jesus and God and His Holy Spirit. God waits for our attention everyday, and every hour. But many of us, keep searching for a convenient time and place.

The learning is that that time and that place may never come. That time and place is NOW, whether to talk to our God, or to people who value us, and need our attention. Parents who long to see us and be loved and valued, as they loved us; Or people we need to show kindness to; or people we need to ask for forgiveness or forgive. 

The time is now!

Sunday Quotes

It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching. – Francis of Assisi

The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor – Charles Stanley

Jesus’ mission is not to make converts, and it never has been. His mission is to make disciples. – Jim Putnam

It is the duty of every Christian to be Christ to his neighbor. – Martin Luther

The greatest proof that the Bible is inspired is that it has stood so much bad preaching. – A.T. Robertson

We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first. – Oswald J. Smith

Revival is when God gets so sick and tired of being misrepresented that He shows Himself. – Leonard Ravenhill

God uses men who are weak and feeble enough to lean on him. – Hudson Taylor

The most difficult lie I have ever contended with is this: life is a story about me. – Donald Miller

The world needs Christians who don’t tolerate the complacency of their own lives. – Francis Chan

Dear Jesus…how foolish of me to have called for human help when You are here. – Corrie ten Boom

We have to pray with our eyes on God, not on the difficulties. – Oswald Chambers

Our love grows soft if it is not strengthened by truth, and our truth grows hard if it is not softened by love. – John Stott

We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations. – Charles Swindoll

Nothing so clearly discovers a spiritual man as his treatment of an erring brother. – St. Augustine

The Wise Woman's Stone: A Micro Story

Author Unknown

A wise woman who was travelling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.

when she asked him why he returned the stone, he said, "I've been thinking: I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone."

In today's circumstances, sometimes it may make more sense and wisdom to give someone in need a skill, a tool or a job, rather than just money. It may have more impact. 

Remember: A little boy gave up his lunch to Jesus to be able to feed others. He never ever could have imagined his "one" lunch would feed 10,000. Similarly, we never know the impact one act of our kindness can have.

Kindness is a norm. Not an act.

Sunday Quotes

                      

1. “If you sell your soul to the Devil, you will spend the rest of eternity trying to buy it back.” – Matshona Dhliwayo
2. “If Noah waited for signs of rain to build an ark, he would have been swept away by the flood.” – Matshona Dhliwayo
3. “Before you look for dirt in people, look for treasure.” – Matshoa Dhliwayo
4. "Wisdom is the capacity to see things from God's viewpoint." – Charles Stanley
5. "Do not judge others, we do not know the battles they face. Love and be kind, for it costs nothing.” – Henrietta Newton Martin
6. “One of the enemy's sneaky attacks against the joy of our salvation is to put us in the spiral of self-condemnation.” – Linda Evans Shepherd
7. “If you want to know your worth, look at the old rugged Cross.” – Gift Gugu Mona
8. “The fact that I'm a biker doesn't make me a different kinda Christian, but the fact that I'm a Christian makes me a different kinda biker.” – Dano Janowski
9. “Forgiveness brings us closer to those who have hurt us and helps them to experience the forgiveness and love of Jesus through us who forgives them.” – Omoakhuana Anthonia
10 “Shine your light at all times; you never know who you are leading out of the dark.” – Matshona Dhliwayo
11. "Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength." – Corrie Ten Boom
12. "If you put your faith in yourself and your abilities, intellect and dreams, then your foundation is only as strong as you are." – Charles Stanley

One Glass of Milk : A Short Story

“He that watereth, shall be watered also himself” Proverbs 11:25

"I read this touching true story of a boy selling from door to door to pay for his school. One day he found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.

He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house.

However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal, he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry and brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it so slowly and then asked, how much do I owe you?”

You don’t owe me anything,” she replied. “mother has taught us never to accept pay for kindness.”

He said … “then I thank you from my heart.”

As he left the house, he felt physically stronger, and his faith in God and man was strong. He had been ready to give up and quit.

Many years later, that same young woman became critically ill.

The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease.

A doctor named Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. A strange light filled his eyes when he heard the name of the town she came from.

Immediately he rose and went down the hospital hall to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown, he went in to see her. He recognized her at once.

He returned to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day, he gave special attention to her case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won, and Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval.

He looked at it, wrote something on edge, and sent the bill to her room.

She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all.

Finally, she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She read these words … “paid in full with one glass of milk.”

(signed) Dr Howard Kelly.

Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: “thank you, god, that your love has spread broad through human hearts and hands.” 

- shared by Shubha Apte on medium.com

This, friends, is a true story. Dr. Howard Kelly (1858–1943) was a distinguished physician who was one of the four founding doctors of Johns Hopkins, the first medical research university in the USA. 

Here we are taught a great lesson: To get we must give; to accumulate we must scatter; to make us happy, we must make others happy. So, "Spread the Ripple. Be kind to someone today".  

This story was brought to you by Spread the Ripple. A publication dedicated to kindness. Kindness is our superpower. Read more stories and come and write with us here:

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Living the Word

Man giving his own slippers to a child. (The Kindness Blog)

It’s a paradigm shift…
Let’s look at this from 30,000 feet…
At the end of the day…
Let’s get our heads around this…

The world us full of buzz words and jargon. I guess they make the speaker feel a little wiser and knowledgeable and "in".

Dis you know that Christianity too has a lot of buzzwords ? One of the many is "The Living Word" . Yes we all know what it means but do we really live it? Jesus said many will say Lord Lord... Matthew 7:22.

Yes, Jesus is the living word from God to us. His ressurection proved that.

The problem is unless we don't live the word it's a dead word as far as we are concerned.

He also made it so simple: love and honor God above all else and love people. Do we love people apart from Sundays in church? Do we help our neighbors even if it's inconvenient? If someone Need's medical support, though we may not be doctors, we could arrange for them to meet a doc. Or if someone needs money genuinely, and I don't have it, I could use my friends and family to come together to help.

The point is we should be genuinely interested and concerned enough to do it. Following Jesus takes effort and a commitment to live the word. Let's Live the Word!