The Ant And The Contact Lens

(A true story by Josh and Karen Zarandona)

Brenda was a young woman who was invited to go rock climbing. Although she was very scared, she went with her group to a tremendous granite cliff. In spite of her fear, she put on the gear, took hold of the rope, and started up the face of that rock.

Well, she got to a ledge where she could take a breather. As she was hanging on there, the safety rope snapped against Brenda's eye and knocked out her contact lens.

Well, here she is, on a rock ledge, with hundreds of feet below her and hundreds of feet above her. Of course, she looked and looked and looked, hoping it had landed on the ledge, but it just wasn't there.

Here she was, far from home, her sight now blurry. She was desperate and began to get upset, so she prayed to the Lord to help her to find it.

When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but there was no contact lens to be found. She sat down, despondent, with the rest of the party, waiting for the rest of them to make it up the face of the cliff.

She looked out across range after range of mountains, thinking of that verse that says, "The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth." She thought, "Lord, You can see

all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and You know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me."

Finally, they walked down the trail to the bottom. At the bottom there was a new party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff.

One of them shouted out, "Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?"

W ell, that would be startling enough, but you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across the face of the rock, carrying it on its back.

Brenda told me that her father is a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the ant, the prayer, and the contact lens, he drew a picture of an ant lugging that contact lens with the words, "Lord, I don't know why You want me to carry this thing. I can't eat it, and it's awfully heavy. But if this is what You want me to do, I'll carry it for You."

I think it would probably do some of us good to occasionally say, "God, I don't know why you want me to carry this load. I can see no good in it and it's awfully heavy. But, if you want God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.  Yes, I do love GOD.  He is my source of existence and my Savior.  He keeps me functioning each and every day.  Without Him, I am nothing, but with Him… I can do things through Christ which strengthens me. (Phil. 4:13)

Hanging By A Thread

A man named Jack was walking along a steep cliff one day when he accidentally got too close to the edge and fell. On the way down he grabbed a branch, which temporarily stopped his fall. He looked down and to his horror saw that the canyon fell straight down for more than a thousand feet.

He couldn't hang onto the branch forever, and there was no way for him to climb up the steep wall of the cliff. So Jack began yelling for help, hoping that someone passing by would hear him and lower a rope or something.

HELP! HELP! Is anyone up there? "HELP! He yelled for a long time, but no one heard him. He was about to give up when he heard a voice. "Jack, Jack, can you hear me?"

"Yes, yes! I can hear you. I'm down here!".”I can see you, Jack. Are you all right?".”Yes, but who are you, and where are you?".”I am the Lord, Jack. I'm everywhere. " ."The Lord? You mean, GOD?”.”That's Me."

"God, please help me! I promise if, you'll get me down from here, I'II stop sinning. I'II be a really good person. I'II serve You for the rest of my life."

"Easy on the promises, Jack. Let's get you off from there; then we can talk. Now, here's what I want you to do. Listen carefully.”.”I'll do anything, Lord. Just tell me what to do.”.”Okay. Let go of the branch. ““'What?"

"I said, let go of the branch, just trust Me. Let go"

There was a long silence. Finally Jack yelled, "HELP! HELP! IS ANYONE ELSE 'UP THERE??”

'Have you ever felt like Jack? We say that we want to know the will of God, but when we find out what it is, we can't handle it. Sounds too scary, too difficult. We decide to look elsewhere. When He says, "Let go of the things that stand between you and Me, and trust Me with your life," it sounds pretty scary. But when we let go, we find freedom and safety in His hands."

Act Like A Mule

A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer's well. The farmer  heard the mule 'braying' - or - whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. instead, he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened ... and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back ... a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back ... HE SHOULD SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP! This he did, blow after blow. "Shake it off and step up ... shake it off and step up ... shake it off and step up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought 'panic" and just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP!

You're right! It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, STEPPED TRIUMPHANTLY OVER THE WALL OF THAT WELL! What seemed like would bury him, actually blessed him ... all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.

THAT'S LIFE! If we face our problems and respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity ... THE ADVERSITIES THAT COME ALONG TO BURY US USUALLY HAVE WITHIN THEM THE POTENTIAL TO BENEFIT AND BLESS US!

Remember that FORGIVENESS--FAITH--PRAYER--PRAISE and HOPE ... all are excellent ways to "SHAKE

IT OFF AND STEP UP" out of the wells in which we find ourselves!

$20 Dollar Bill

A well-known speaker started off his seminar

by holding up a $20.00 bill. In the room of 200, he asked..............

"Who would like this $20 bill?"

Hands started going up.

He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you

but first, let me do this.

He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill.

He then asked, ''Who still wants It?"

Still the hands were up in the air.

Well, he replied, "What if I do this?"

And he dropped it on the ground

And started to grind it Into the floor with his shoe.

He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty.

"Now, who still wants It?"

Still the hands went into the air.

My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson.

No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it

Because it did not decrease in value.

It was still worth $20.

Many times in our lives,

we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt

by the decisions we make and

The circumstances that come our way.

We feel as though we are worthless.

But no matter what has happened or

What will happen, you will never lose your value.

.

1

Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased,

You are still priceless to The Lord

The worth of our lives comes not

In what we do or who we know,

But by WHO WE ARE.

You are special- Don't EVER forget it."

The Trouble Tree

The carpenter I hired to help me restore an old farmhouse had just finished a rough first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and now his ancient pickup truck refused to start.

While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching tips of the branches with both hands. When opening the door, he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

Afterward he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier. Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one thing's for sure, troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again."

"Funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out in the morning to pick 'em up, there ain't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before."

God's Scales

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 and 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. 

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Remember the five 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. 

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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. 

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It's better to lose your pride to the one you love, than to lose the one you love because of pride. 

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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. 

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Never abandon an old friend. You will never find one who can take his place.  Friendship is like wine, it gets better as it grows older. 

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We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds. Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath.

The Map

A father wanted to read a magazine but was interrupted by his little girl.  She wanted to know what the United States looked like.  Finally, he tore a sheet out of his new magazine on which was printed the map of the country.  Tearing it into small pieces for each state, he gave it to his daughter, and said, "See if you can put this together. This will show you our whole country today."

After a few minutes, she handed him the map correctly fitted together with tape.   The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly.   "Oh," she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged, then our country just came together."

Can I hear an AMEN!!!!!!

Time

Imagine there’s a bank that credits your account every morning with 86,400 dollars. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? DRAW OUT ALL OF IT, of course!!!

Each of us has such a bank. It’s name is TIME. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against “tomorrow.” You must live in the present on today’s deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success! The clock is running. Make the most of today.

To realize the value of one year

Ask a student who has failed a

final exam.

To realize the value of a month:

Ask a mother who has given birth

to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one week:

Ask an editor of a weekly

newspaper.

To realize the value of one hour:

Ask the lovers who are waiting to

meet.

To realize the value of one minute:

Ask a person who has missed the

train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one second:

Ask a person who has survived an

accident.

To realize the value of one millisecond:

Ask the person who has won a

silver medal in the Olympics.

Treasure every moment you have! And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special … special enough to spend your time.

And remember that time waits for no one. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is mystery. Today is a gift — that is why it is called the PRESENT!

The Anchor Holds

Devotional by Barbara Sanders

Hebrews 6:19 which [hope] we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;

A storm arises, and the ship is caught at sea, tossing and turning in the high waves. The only thing that will save that ship is an anchor, hopefully steadying it until the storm ceases.

We are like that ship in this world, being tossed to and fro, needing something to steady our walk. The gospel 'HOPE' is our anchor for this steadiness and surety in the Lord. The grace of God and the influence of the Holy Spirit are the grounds of this hope. God is the object of this HOPE we have.

Without this HOPE, Jesus Christ, we are lost out in the world today, being pushed and shoved, going nowhere fast! We struggle to make it through, to make ends meet, to have a life, to have peace, yet we still have a longing that nothing in this world can ease.

If you don't have the assurance of this anchor in your life, why not consider coming to Christ today? Why not give your life to God, by asking him for forgiveness of your sins, believing that he is GOD, that he died on the cross for your sins, that he was buried, arose again in 3 days, and now is at the right hand of the Father, ready to make intercession for you. Turn your life over to Him, putting your faith and trust in Him, that he will take you and mold you into what he'd have you be. You can then take solace in the fact that you now have the ANCHOR that will surely hold, no matter how much you are tossed and turned!

Lord, we thank you for the anchor of hope we have, serving you in this world. We know that one day we will spend eternity with you, never again having to face the sea of life again, to be tossed to and fro in the waves of life. For those that haven't made the commitment to you, lay conviction in their hearts, that they will desire to come to know you as their anchor. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Life's Echo

A son and his father were walking on the mountains.

Suddenly, the son falls hurts himself and screams: "AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!l"

To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain: "AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!"

Curious, he yells: "Who are you?"

He receives the answer:  "Who are you?"

Angered at the response, he screams:  "Coward!"

He receives the answer: "Coward!"

He looks to his father and asks: "What's going on?"

The father smiles and says: "My son, pay attention."

And then he screams to the mountain: "I admire you"

The voice answers: "l admire you!"

Again the man screams: "You are a champion!"

The voice answers: "You are a champion!"

The boy is surprised, but does not understand.

Then the father explains: "People call this Echo, but really this is Life.

It gives you back everything you say or do.

Our life is simply a reflection of our actions.

If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart.

lf you want more competence in your team, improve your competence.

This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life.

Life will give you back everything you have given to it.

Being Blessed

When you've cried for so long and your heart is in such anguish...God has counted your tears.

If you feel that your life is on hold and time has just passed you by... God is waiting with you.

When you're lonely and your friends are too busy to call or can't understand...God is by your side.

When you think you've tried everything and don't know where else to turn...God has a solution.

When nothing makes sense and you are hurt, confused or frustrated...God has the answer.

If suddenly your outlook is brighter and you find traces of hope in life.....God has whispered to you.

When things are going well and you have much to be thankful for...God has blessed you.

When something amazing happens and you find that special someone...God has smiled upon you.

When you have a dream to follow and also a reality to live...God has opened your eyes and called your name.

Remember that wherever you are or whatever you are facing now... GOD KNOWS!!

"You can tell the true character of a man by the way he treats someone who can do absolutely nothing for him." –

Author Unknown

The Dart Test

A young lady named Sally relates an experience she had in a seminary class, given by her teacher, Dr. Smith. She says that Dr. Smith was known for his elaborate object lessons. One particular day, Sally walked into the seminary and knew they were in for a fun day. On the wall was a big target and on a nearby table were many darts. Dr. Smith told the students to draw a picture of someone that they disliked or someone who had made them angry, and he would allow them to throw darts at the person's picture. Sally's friend drew a picture of who had stolen her boyfriend. Another friend drew a picture of his little brother. Sally drew a picture of a former friend, putting a great deal of detail into her drawing, even drawing pimples on the face. Sally was pleased with the overall effect she had achieved. The class lined up and began throwing darts. Some of the students threw their darts with such force that their targets were ripping apart. Sally looked forward to her turn, and was filled with disappointment when Dr. Smith, because of time limits, asked the students to return to their seats. As Sally sat thinking about how angry she was because she didn't have a chance to throw any darts at her target. Dr. Smith began removing the target from the wall. Underneath the target was a picture of Jesus.

A hush fell over the room as each student viewed the mangled picture of Jesus; holes and jagged marks covered His face and His eyes were pierced. Dr. Smith said only these words... "In as much as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Matthew 25:40. No other words were necessary; the tears filled eyes of the students focused only on the picture of Christ. This is an easy test; you score 100 or zero. It's your choice. If you aren't ashamed to do this, please follow the directions. Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you, before My Father." Not ashamed ... pass this on. Ashamed ... delete it. One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught the world full of people down there. Set me a trap used bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got 'em all!" "What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked. Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have fun! I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each other, how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse. I'm gonna teach them how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I'm really gonna have fun!" "And what will you do when you get done with them?" Jesus asked. "Oh, I'll kill 'em," Satan glared proudly. "How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked. "Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good. Why, you'll take them and they'll just hate you. They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you!! You don't want those people!!" "How much?" He asked again. Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your tears, and all your blood." Jesus said, "DONE!" Then He paid the price. Isn't it funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Isn't it funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Isn't it funny how everyone wants to go to heaven provided they do not have to believe, think, say, or do anything the Bible says. Or is it scary? Isn't it funny how someone can say "I believe in God" but still follow Satan (who, by the way, also "believes" in God). Isn't it funny how you can send a thousand jokes through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Isn't it funny how the lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but the public discussion of Jesus is suppressed in the school and workplace. Isn't it funny how someone can be so fired up for Christ on Sunday, but be an invisible Christian the rest of the week. Are you laughing? Isn't it funny how when you go to forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it to them. Isn't it funny how I can be more worried about what other people think of me than what God thinks of me. Will YOU pass this on? .... I did

Cocoon

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.

One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther. Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.

The butterfly then emerged easily.

But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.

It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been.

And we could never fly.

Good Day Starter

PRAY THIS EVEN IF YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE IT!! IT WILL ONLY TAKE A MINUTE.

You never know when God is going to bless you!! Good things happen when you least expect

them to !!!!!!!!

 

Change the number in the subject box when you forward it by adding one!!!

Dear Lord, I thank You for this day. I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you.

I ask now for Your forgiveness. Please keep me safe from all danger and harm. Help me to start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You. Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things. Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over.

And It's the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits.

I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart. Continue to use me to do Your will. Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others. Keep me strong that I may help the weak... Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others. I pray for those that are lost and can't find their way. I pray for those that are misjudged and misunderstood. I pray for those who don't know You intimately. I pray for those that will delete this without sharing it with others. I pray for those that don't believe.

But I thank you that I believe. I believe that God changes people and God changes things. I pray for all my sisters and brothers. For each and every family member in their households. I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes that they are out of debt and all their needs are met. I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than G od. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight.

I pray that these words be received into the hearts of every eye that sees it.

If you prayed this prayer, change the number in the subject box before

forwarding the message so people can See how many people have done so. God Bless!!!!!!!!!!! Just repeat this phrase and see how God moves!!

God

I love you and I need you, come into my heart, please.