Christmas Positive StoriesA lady was asked by a coworker what it was like to believe in God. She replied, "It's like being a pumpkin God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off you may have gotten from the other pumpkins. Then he cuts the top off and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc., then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."
Psalm 23
The Lord is my Shepherd --- THAT'S RELATIONSHIP!
I shall not want --- THAT'S SUPPLY!
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures --- THAT'S REST!
He leadeth me beside still waters --- THAT'S REFRESHMENT!
He restoreth my soul --- THAT'S HEALING!
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness --- THAT'S GUIDANCE!
For His name sake --- THAT'S PURPOSE!
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death -THAT'S TESTING!
I will fear no evil --- THAT'S PROTECTION!
For thou art with me --- THAT'S FAITHFULNESS!
Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me --- THAT'S DISCIPLINE!
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies---THAT'S HOPE!
Thou anointest my head with oil --- THAT'S CONSECRATION!
My cup runneth over --- THAT'S ABUNDANCE!
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life---THAT'S BLESSINGS!
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord --- THAT'S SECURITY!
Forever --- THAT'S ETERNITY!
~ Author Unknown
The Empty Chair
A man's daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father. When the minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows. An empty chair sat beside his bed. The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.
"I guess you were expecting me," he said, "No, who are you?" said the father. The minister told him his name and then remarked, "I see the empty chair; figured you knew I was going to show up." "Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?" Puzzled, the minister shut the door. "I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man, "but all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it went right over my head. I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Johnny, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest. Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, "I'll be with you always." Then just speak to him in the same way you're doing with me right now."
"So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm." The minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old man to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil, and returned to the church.
Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her daddy had died that afternoon. "Did he die in peace?" he asked. "Yes, when I left the house about two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me he loved me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange about his death. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make of that?"
THREE TREES
Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods.
They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the
first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure
chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and
precious gems.
I could be decorated with intricate carving and
everyone would see the beauty."
Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty
ship.? I will take kings and queens across the waters
and sail to the corners of the world.
Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength
of my hull." Finally the third tree said, "I want to
grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the
forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look
up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God
and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the
greatest tree of all time and people will always
remember me."
After a few years of praying that their dreams would
come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees.
When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks
like a strong tree, I think I should be able to
sell the wood to a carpenter" ... and he began cutting
it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the
carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.
At the second tree a woodsman said, "This looks like a
strong tree, I should be able to sell it to the
shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew
he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.
When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree
was frightened because he knew that if they cut him
down his dreams would not come true.
One of the woodsmen said, "I don't need anything
special from my tree so I'll take this one", and he
cut it down."
when the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was
made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed
in a barn and filled with hay.
This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second
tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His
dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had
come to an end. The third tree was cut into large
pieces and left alone in the dark. The years went by,
and the trees forgot about their dreams.
Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She
gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the
feed box that was made from the first tree.
The man wished that he could have made a crib for the
baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could
feel the importance of this event and knew that it had
held the greatest treasure of all time.
Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat
made from the second tree. One of them was tired and
went to sleep.
while they were out on the water, a great storm arose
and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep
the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and he
stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this
time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of
Kings in its boat.
Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was
carried through the streets as the people mocked the
man who was carrying it.
When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the
tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a
hill.
When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it
was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and
be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had
been crucified on it.
The moral of this story is that when things don't seem
to be going your way, always know that God has a plan
for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you
great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted,
just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always
know what God's plans are for us.
We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His
ways are always best.
The Weight of a 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 request and asked that she leave his store.Visualizing her family needs she said....Please sir I will bring you the money as soon as I get it..John told her he could not give her credit..as she didn't have a charge account at his store.
Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation bewteen the two.. The customer walked forward and told the grocerman that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocerman said in a very reluctant voice.. "Do you have a grocery list?" Louise replied "yes sir" "OK" 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 grocerman and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down. The grocerman, starring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly,"I cant believe it". The customer smiled and the grocerman 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 grocerman 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 and I am leaving this in your hands."
The grocerman gave her the groceries that he had gathered and placed on the scales and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store. The customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to John as he said "It was worth every penny of it" It was sometime later that John Longhouse discovered the scales were broken,therefore only GOD knows how much a prayer weighs.
Interview with God
I dreamed I had an interview with God.
"Come in," God said. "So, you would like to interview me?"
"If you have the time," I said.
God smiled and said: "My time is eternity and is enough to do everything;What questions do you have in mind to ask me?"
"What surprises you most about mankind?"
God answered;
"That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again.
That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health.
That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future.
That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if hey had never lived... God's hands took mine and we were silent for awhile then I asked....
"As a parent, what are some of life's lessons you want your children to learn?"
God replied with a smile:
"To learn that they cannot make anyone love them. What they can do is to let themselves be loved.
To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives.
To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis!
To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is the onewho needs the least.
To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them.
To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness.
To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings.
To learn that money can buy everything but happiness.
To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally differently.
To learn that a TRUE FRIEND is someone who knows everything about them and likes them anyway
To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves."
I sat there for awhile enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for his time and for all that He has done for me and my family, and He replied, "Anytime. I'm here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for me, and I'll answer."
~ Author Unknown
Explaining Death
A sick man turned to his doctor, as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said, "Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side."
Very quietly, the doctor said, "I don't know." "You don't know? You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?" The doctor was holding the handle of the door; on the other side of which came a sound of scratching and whining, and as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness. Turning to the patient, the doctor said, "Did you notice my dog? He's never been in this room before. He didn't know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear. I know little of what is on the other side of death, but I do know one thing...I know my Master is there and that is enough."
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