Archive for the ‘Short Messages’ Category

Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at the church, the Pastor and his eleven year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts.

This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold outside, as well as pouring down rain. The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said, "OK, dad, I’m ready."  His Pastor dad asked, "Ready for what?"  "Dad, it’s time we gather our tracts together and go out." Dad responds, "Son, it’s very cold outside and it’s pouring down rain." The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking, "But Dad, aren’t people still going to Hell, even though it’s raining?"  Dad answers, "Son, I am not going out in this weather." Despondently, the boy asks, "Dad, can I go? Please?"  His father hesitated for a moment then said, "Son, you can go. Here are the tracts, be careful son."  "Thanks Dad!"

And with that, he was off and out into the rain. This eleven year old boy walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing everybody he met in the street a Gospel Tract.

After two hours of walking in the rain, he was soaking, bone-chilled wet and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked for someone to hand a tract to, but the streets were totally deserted. Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk to the front door and rang the door bell.. He rang the bell, but nobody answered…. He rang it again and again, but still no one answered.  He waited but still no answer. Finally, this eleven year old trooper turned to leave, but something stopped him…. Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly on the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the front porch He rang again and this time the door slowly opened. Standing in the doorway was a very sad-looking elderly lady. She softly asked, "What can I do for you, son?" With radiant eyes and a smile that lit up her world, this little boy said, "Ma’am, I’m sorry if I disturbed you, but I just want to tell you that *JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU* and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will tell you all about JESUS and His great LOVE."  With that, he handed her his last tract and turned to leave.  She called to him as he departed. "Thank you, son! And God Bless You!"

Well, the following Sunday morning in church Pastor Dad was in the pulpit.  As the service began, he asked, "Does anybody have testimony or want to say anything?  Slowly, in the back row of the church, an elderly lady stood to her feet.  As she began to speak, a look of glorious radiance came from her face, "No one in this church knows me. I’ve never been here before. You see, before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on some time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world.  Last Sunday, being a particularly cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart that I came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to live. So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic of my home…. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof, then stood on the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my neck. Standing on that chair, so lonely and broken-hearted I was about to leap off, when suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs startled me. I thought, "I’ll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go away.." I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and more insistent, and then the person ringing also started knocking loudly. I thought to myself again, "Who on earth could this be?  Nobody ever rings my bell or comes to see me." I loosened the rope from my neck and started for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and louder.  When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes, for there on my front porch was the most radiant and angelic little boy I had ever seen in my life. His SMILE, oh, I could never describe it to you!  The words that came from his mouth caused my heart that had long been dead, TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with a cherub-like voice,

"Ma’am, I just came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU."

Then he gave me this Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand.  As the little angel disappeared back out into the cold and rain, I closed my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I went up to my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn’t be needing them any more. You see, I am now a Happy Child of the KING. Since the address of your church was on the back of this Gospel Tract, I have come here to personally say THANK YOU to God’s little angel who came just in the nick of time and by so doing, spared my soul from an eternity in hell."

There was not a dry eye in the church. And as shouts of praise and honour to THE KING resounded off the very rafters of the building, Pastor Dad descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little angel was seated. He took his son in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably. Probably no church has had a more glorious moment, and probably this universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love and honour for his son… Except for One.

Our Father also allowed His Son to go out into a cold and dark world.. He received His Son back with joy unspeakable, and as all of heaven shouted praises and honour to The King, the Father sat His beloved Son on a throne far above all principality and power and every name that is named.

Remember, God’s message CAN make the difference in the life of someone close to you.

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A short little man assaults a strongly built man who is also a black-belt holder in martial arts. The strongly built man bites his lip but refuses to hit back. Instead he says "thank you" and begins to walk away. Onlookers murmur at the strong man’s action and chatter about his being a coward. The strong man pauses for a moment, calmly observes the jeering onlookers, and continues to walk away. Feeling full of himself and encouraged by the cheering onlookers, the little man follows the strong man and yells abuses after the strong man. In his head, the strong man thinks of a combination of two good punches and a quick follow-up kick that would put out the little man once and for all, but he hesitates and with a smile on his face, he continues to walk away. The little man feeling satisfied in his belief (though mistaken) that he has scared off the strong man, proudly returns to the cheers and applause of the onlookers made up of different people.

The Unknown Facts

The little man did not know that the man he assaulted and abused was a black-belt holder who came close to killing him. He did realize the strong build of the man he assaulted but because he was acting on the encouragement of the onlookers and because his ego carried him away, he failed to realize the danger in provoking an unknown person. Emotionally motivated and acting on his ego, he forgot that he was very ill and could not have taken a blow from even a kid. Some of the onlookers have just stepped out of a psychological class and wanted to see if the lecturer was right about some points he made about man, aggression, and forgiveness, but they did not know how close they came to being accomplices (or at least witnesses) to a criminal charge of homicide.

The strong man did not know that the little man was sick and that the little man would have died from the blow had the strong man delivered even a single punch with his strong fist. The strong man simply took in the insult and hearkened to the martial arts admonition to be humble and only use his martial art experience if needed for self-defence. He overcame the temptation to display his superior physical strength by pouncing on his little opponent. Rather, forgave the situation and walked away convinced that it was not worth his reaction. In the eyes of some of the onlookers, he walked away a coward and a fool but he spared himself the troubles of facing a criminal charge for homicide if he had punched the little man. Yet, to the knowledge of some of the onlookers he exhibited tolerance, forgiveness, and patience, although to the general public and even to the little man, the strong man may have appeared to be a coward and a fool.

THE REALITY

The above type of scenario plays out regularly in our daily lives whether at work, at home, on the road, at a vocation, or at an event. Such is the mechanics of character and the interpretation of behaviour, action, and reaction by men amongst fellow men. Some teachers and masters emphasize and exhibit the virtues of humility, forgiveness, tolerance, and patience, while some tend towards vengeance and the principle of getting even – "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." The reality is that man reserves the right to make decisions for himself for he will always be responsible for his actions or in-actions. Man may choose to forgive and seek revenge when provoked or "offended." He may choose to humble himself or act in vanity and egotism in the face of others. He may choose to exercise restraint, tolerance and forgiveness and thereby remain a loving being before God even when others think he is a fool. After all, man is always quick to judge and make conclusions even when he knows very little about the premise of his conclusions, and therefore far from being correct.

A FOOL FOR GOD

Vengeance (the lack of forgiveness) has never been known to resolve conflicts. Rather, it has always been known to encourage bitterness, sustain rancor, and escalate conflicts. This applies across the board in life and all our dealings and relationship with each other – whether in our relationships, businesses, jobs, or other forms of social, economical, political, or spiritual interaction. Some know that it matters not what name their fellow men call them or what adjectives are ascribed to their behaviour, principles, and lifestyles. They know when to stand up for their rights and the protection of their spaces, but they refuse to be discouraged from being truthful, honest, friendly, loving, caring, peaceful, and understanding while dealing with life. They know that what really matters is the substance and fulfilment of their words, actions, or in-actions beyond the common, ordinary and external impressions of orthodox lifestyles and dogmas.

Thus in the eyes of his fellow man, the man who does not act or react in accordance with common desires and expectations of the public or to the satisfaction of the ego and/or the lower self may appear to be a fool when he is indeed existing at a higher level of consciousness and enjoying the blessings of God with all the understanding, peace, and love that comes with it. This is only my understanding and I am still learning.

Copyright ©2004 Oliver Mbamara

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Earl C. Willer tells the story of two men who grew up best friends; though Jim was just a little older than Phillip and often assumed the role of leader, they did everything together. They even went to high school and college together.

After college they joined the Marines. By a unique series of circumstances they were sent to Germany together where they fought side by side in one of history’s ugliest wars. One sweltering day during a fierce battle, amid heavy gunfire, bombing, and close-quarters combat, they were given the command to retreat. As the men were running back, Jim noticed that Phillip had not returned with the others. Panic gripped his heart. Jim knew if Phillip was not back in another minute or two, then he wouldn’t make it.

Jim begged his commanding officer to let him go after his friend, but the officer forbade the request, saying it would be suicide. Risking his own life, Jim disobeyed and went after Phillip. His heart pounding he ran into the gunfire calling out for his friend. A short time later his platoon saw him hobbling across the field carrying a limp body in his arms.

Jim’s commanding officer upbraided him, shouting that it was a foolish waste of time and an outrageous risk. Your friend is dead, he added, and there is nothing you could do.

"No sir, you are wrong," Jim replied. "I got there just in time. Before he died, his last words were ‘I knew you would come.’"

Think of it friends. Someday, we’ll be together in Heaven and I’m certain that we’ll be rejoicing and saying pretty much the same thing. Jesus, I knew you would come back for me. He is the epitome of Loyalty. His love was so great for us that He gave up His life on the cross. He said that He would come back and take his Church back to Heaven to spend eternity with Him. You can count on that! I don’t believe that it’s a long time off in the future either.

Be ready.

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