A Very Special Message

5 Nov

A friend of mine sent this email today … It was one of those emails that has been forwarded to the ends of the earth and back, so I almost didn’t even read it.  Something drew me to open it and I am so glad I did.  I’ve never seen this one before, and it is a great message!

I have no idea who wrote this, so my apologies to the author.  But this story needs to be read:


Subject:  Pennies
You always hear the usual stories of pennies on the sidewalk being good luck, gifts from angels, etc. This is the first time I’ve ever heard this twist on the story. Gives you something to think about. 

Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the home of her husband’s employer… 
my friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her house.. 

The first day and evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live. Her husband’s employer was quite generous as a host, and took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so was enjoying herself immensely. 

As the three of them were about to enter an exclusive restaurant one evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband.
He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment..
Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him….. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts. Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny.
He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. 
How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny? Why would he even take the time to stop and pick it up? 

Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer.. She casually mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value. 

A smile crept across the man’s face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for her to see. She had seen many pennies before! What was the point of this?

“Look at it,” he said. “Read what it says.”
She read the words, ” United States of America .” 

“No, not that. Read further.” 

“One cent?” 
“No, keep reading.” 

“In God we Trust?” 
“Yes!” 
“And?. … .” 

“And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin, I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him. Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray. I stop to see if my trust IS in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God; that I do trust in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God’s way of starting a conversation with me. Lucky for me, God is patient and pennies are plentiful!”

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, “In God We Trust,” and had to laugh. “Yes, God, I get the message!” 

It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful! And, God is patient.

Seeing things God’s way

3 Nov

Last night, we began a short study on Matthew 5, 6, & 7 (the Sermon on the Mount).  I love how Jesus began that discourse with the Beatitudes.  He basically set the tone for the entire sermon by saying “Everything you THINK you know to be true might not be.  You think the meek are downtrodden, but I tell you they will inherit the earth!  You think those that show mercy will be mowed over, but I tell you they will receive mercy!”  And on and on.

Jesus was spurring His disciples to realize that God sees things differently than we see them.  And Jesus would go on in the sermon to tell them exactly what that meant:  “You have heard it is wrong to commit adultery, but I am telling you it is wrong to even LUST after another woman!”  Jesus was telling them all it is our HEART that matters to God.  And if our HEART is in the right place, our actions will be, too!

Some might think it IMPOSSIBLE for us to really see things God’s way.  It would be impossible to see things from His perspective, because none of us actually ARE God!!  (Although some of us might want to be!!)  TRUE … But, why don’t we start praying to see things as God WANTS US to see them???

If we all pray that, it might just change the world!

Listening to the rain

31 Oct

I’ve never been a fan of rain. Or cold weather. But today it seems to be good therapy, so I will welcome them both.

One of the hardest things about being a pastor is pain. When your calling is to help others with their pain, you have two choices: either harden yourself to the place where you can fake empathy and don’t feel it, or take it on when you empathize and prepare for the storms that come with it. I choose the latter, because I’ve never been really good at faking anything.

So I pay the price. I find myself in times where my heart just feels raw. I think I need to go hide in a cave just to heal up a little, and more pours on. And I wonder if the next wave will drown me.

Then God sends me something. Sometimes it’s elaborate. And sometimes it’s as simple as raindrops. And He reminds me that I don’t have to carry this alone. And that makes the sound of the rain mean even more to me.

Thank you, Father, for the rain today!! I love You, too!!!!

Today’s Sermon: God’s Goals for the Church

30 Oct

You’ll only reap what you sow!!

26 Oct

Lately I’ve been reminded of this fact over and over again … Something I wish wasn’t true, but it is!!  And there is nothing anyone can do about it but YOU.

YOU will only get out of any relationship what YOU put in.  That goes for marriages, friendships, and YES, even church membership!  You will only get something out of church membership IF you are willing to put into it.  Rarely does it work for someone to come to a church long-term, only sit on a pew, and have a lasting relationship with that church.

If you don’t connect, if you don’t find a small group of friends, you won’t last.  And that is on YOU.  If you are coming to church to make your momma happy, or anyone else outside of YOURSELF, it will probably not last.  It will probably never work.  In fact, if you are coming to church for any other reason than to WORSHIP GOD, you are coming for the wrong reason.

You will only reap what you sow.  In any relationship.  What are you sowing at church???

Faith and Trust

25 Oct

A lifelong lesson I am still learning is about trust and faith … I still remember the first time I was disappointed by a fellow Christian.  I was in shock:  How could a person who called themselves a follower of Christ do something like that???  How could they live like that??  It took me a long time to get over that one.  It was many years ago.  And God has taught me several lessons since then:

1.  My ULTIMATE FAITH & TRUST is in GOD ALONE (God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit).  GOD ALONE is deserving of my total and ultimate faith and trust.  He will NEVER let me down.

2.  I DO need to have faith & trust in my fellow peeps.  Especially those who call themselves followers of Christ.  And I need to do it in the proper perspective, with appropriate understanding of who they are and who I am!  Jesus said “Not everyone who calls me Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”  (Matt 7:21)  ALSO, there ARE good, sincere Christians WHO MAKE MISTAKES.  ( I AM one of those)  I’ve got to always remember these things!!!

3.  There will be times when pride, greed, ungodly motivations, unforgiving hearts will rear themselves in relationships.  The best thing to do is LOVE!!!  Peter reminded us that love overlooks a multitude of sins.  I can never forget that, and I am thankful for those who have remembered that when dealing with me!!

TRUST GOD COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY!!  But don’t be afraid to trust your brothers and sisters as well!!!!

Be SURE

24 Oct

Numbers 32:23 warns us to “be sure your sins will find you out.”  Be SURE … CERTAIN our sins will catch up to us.

The writer of Numbers, inspired by God to write this (as the ENTIRE Bible is inspired by God), is reminding us there are NO secret sins.  God knows EVERYTHING said in secret, done in secret, even THOUGHT in secret.  This adds an element to life we don’t expect.  It is a certainty that MANY men and women have taken secrets to their graves, secrets NO ONE ON EARTH COULD POSSIBLY KNOW.  But God knows.

When we try to hide sins, we are just fooling ourselves because we CANNOT FOOL GOD.  God knows EVERYTHING.  He is not bound by time, space, or dimension.  He knows our thoughts way before we think them.  He knows our motives, our agendas, and when they don’t line up with His will … and when they don’t build His kingdom … He is NOT AMUSED.  Because our sin is repulsive to Him.

I was talking to a friend recently who is very concerned about some getting away with some very ungodly behavior.  It looks as if they will get away with something with no repercussion.  But NEVER FORGET THIS:  GOD IS IN CONTROL.  He is STILL on His throne and His justice will be complete.  And we might never know about it, but God WILL have His day.

Be SURE of that!!

Today’s sermon – God’s Gifts to the Church

23 Oct

In honor of my nephew, a pilot in the USAF

20 Oct
RULES OF THE AIR FOR PILOTS

~ Every takeoff is optional. Every landing is mandatory.

~ If you push the stick forward, the houses get bigger. If you pull the stick back, they get smaller. That is, unless you keep pulling the stick all the way back, then they get bigger again.

~ It’s always better to be down here wishing you were up there than up there wishing you were down here.

~ When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.

~ A ‘good’ landing is one from which you can walk away. A ‘great’ landing is one after which they can use the plane again.

~ Never let an aircraft take you somewhere your brain didn’t get to five minutes earlier.

~ Stay out of clouds. The silver lining everyone keeps talking about might be another airplane going in the opposite direction. Reliable sources also report that mountains have been known to hide out in clouds.

~ There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately no one knows what they are.

~ You start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of

~ Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, the experience usually comes from bad judgment.

~ Keep looking around. There’s always something you’ve missed.

~ Remember, gravity is not just a good idea. It’s the law. And it’s not subject to repeal.

~ The three most useless things to a pilot are the altitude above you, runway behind you and a tenth of a second ago.

~ There are old pilots and there are bold pilots. There are, however, no old, bold pilots.

(This was today’s funny from mikeysfunnies.com)

A real challenge ahead for the church

17 Oct

There is a challenge ahead for the church in North America.  One like she hasn’t faced in DECADES.  And I wonder if we are as strong as our forefathers were … The survival of the church is in the balance!

With our economy in the pits, we who follow Christ are tempted to follow suit with the world and trust ourselves and our judgment more than God.  This affects the Body of Christ far more than we can imagine.  It’s not just a financial thing, although our faithfulness in stewardship IS heavily affected by this.  This part of the trend is heavily documented, as many churches run behind in their budget giving like never before.

Even sadder is the way this affects our FAITHFULNESS in other areas.  We trust God less and less and therefore step out on faith with Him less and less.  And this directly stifles our effectiveness in the kingdom of God.  Not only are we not giving, we are not doing and we are not going.

If there is ONE THING God demands from us, it is our ABSOLUTE and TOTAL TRUST.  Nothing less will do.  And then we will GIVE, GO, and DO.  And my prayer is this challenge will be met and overcome.  SOON!!!

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