A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was "too crowded."
"I can't go to Sunday School," she sobbed to the pastor as hewalked by. Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, thepastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took herinside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class.
The child was so happy that they found room for her, and shewent to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.
Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poortenement buildings. Her parents called for the kind-hearted pastorwho had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements.
As her poor little body was being moved, a worn and crumpled redpurse was found which seemed to have been rummagedfrom some trash dump.Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled ina child's handwriting, which read:
"This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School."For two years she had saved for this offering of love. When thePastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do.Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to thepulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion.
He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building. But the story does not end there...
A newspaper learned of the story and published it. It was read by awealthy realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands of dollars.When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered to sell it to the little church for 57 cents.
Church members made large donations.Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl's gift had increased to $250,000.00....a huge sum for that time (near the turn of the century).Her unselfish love had paid large dividends.
When you are in the city of Philadelphia, look up Temple BaptistChurch, with a seating capacity of 3,300. And be sure to visitTemple University, where thousands of students are educated.Have a look too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at a Sunday School building which houses hundreds of beautiful children,built so that no child in the area will ever need to be leftoutside during Sunday school time.
In one of the rooms can be seen the picture of the sweet face of thelittle girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, made suchremarkable history. Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor,Dr. Russell H. Conwell, author of the book, "Acres of Diamonds." This is a true story, which goes to show
I see the king of glory Coming down the clouds with fire The whole earth shakes, the whole earth shakes
I see his love and mercy Washing over all our sin The people sing, the people sing
Hosanna, hosanna Hosanna in the highest
I see a generation Rising up to take the place With selfless faith, with selfless faith
I see a new revival Staring as we pray and seek We're on our knees, we're on our knees
Heal my heart and make it clean Open up my eyes to the things unseen Show me how to love like you have loved me Break my heart for what is yours Everything I am for your kingdom's cause As I walk from earth into eternity
keep the inspiring articles and beautiful pictures coming! Some of our members have commented that they are blessed by this blog. =) Hehe... this morning's worship was great, right? our Abba God will never let us go. =) was reminded of this song that i heard in the radio recently. (yes... recently i'm into oldies. haha) i thought the lyrics are very meaningful. God loves us just as we are! =) (but He loves us too much to leave us the way we are)
Ok, enough preaching! haha... enjoy, Siew
Air Supply Just As I Am
I've had a lot of big dreams I've made a lot of bad moves I know you could walk away But you never do I've met a lot of cold hearts I've learned to smile and deceive I know I'm hard to be around But you never leave
I'm not easy to understand But you hold out your hand
And you say you love me Just as I am You always treat me The best that you can You say you want me, need me Love me, baby Just as I am, just as I am
I've made a lot of heartaches I've found a lot of closed doors When all the others turn away You love me more You love me more
I want to love forever To keep our world together And be the best that I can be Baby, every time the world caves in on me
*Five (5) lessons**about the way we treat people. **1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady. ** During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious studentand had breezed through the questions until I read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen thecleaning woman several times. She was tall,dark-haired and in her 50's, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, ! one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade. "Absolutely, " said the professor. "In your careers,you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you dois smile and say "hello." I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned hername was Dorothy. ** 2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain. ** One night, at 11:30 p.m. , an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car.A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960's. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant color TV console was delivered to his home. A special note was attached. It read:"Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along.Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away... God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others." Sincerely,Mrs. Nat King Cole . ** 3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember thosewho serve. ** In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less,a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water infront of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" ! he asked."Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it. "Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired. By now more people were waiting for a table and thewaitress was growing impatient. " Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill onthe table and walked away. The boy finished the icecream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish,were two nickels and five pennies.. You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip. ** ** 4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path. ** In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand! Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition. ** ** 5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts... ** Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at ahospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz whowas suffering from a rare &serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it if it will save her." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away". Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her. * When is the last time u did an act of kindness for the people u love?when is the last time u sacrifice for ur friends?remember to look back and finish the race together with all the people around u...=)
Joe and James are siblings. There are only 2 years apart and they are very close as brothers. They share a lot of good childhood memories. But there is one thing that smeared it. They lived under a abusive father who is an alcoholic.
Many nights they will suffer the under the influence of liqor. Scars have to be hidden under their school uniform, away from everyone, away from anyone. To protect the reputation of their father, to protect the dignity of self. This was how they grew up.
. . .
Years later on the 2nd March 2007. James received an award for his thesis titled "Mindset of an Alcoholic". His mother only barely make it just in time for the photo-taking session. Upon exchanging some whisper James mum buried her face in his chest with tears. Only because Joe, the younger brother has been sentenced to a 5 years jail sentence for possession of drugs.
A reporter covering the award ceremony heard of this story, and followed up on it. She arranged an interview with the two brothers seperately, having the intention to find out what is the difference between their upbringing that brought such major difference in their lives.
To her surprise, it wasn't any difference that brought their lives to different paths. When asked about the reason for their behaviour and the possibility of the results in their life.
Both gave the same answer.
"Because my dad is an alcoholic"
. . .
You see, in life bad things do happen, and they usually happen to good people. But what really matters is our attitude and our decision towards it.
We can have a "alcoholic father". But its our choice to be a "James" or a "Joe".
Nick Vujicic is a living example of someone who lives his life beyond the limits of his physical disabilities. Today he is a proud holder of 2 degrees and a world renowned motivational speaker. He is also the founder and director of Life Without Limbs, an organisation with an ultimate goal to reach out to people with the love if Jesus Christ.
Come and be inspired by his life changing testimony.
Remember Nick Vujici? Pst talked about him last weekend. This week, he is coming to share his testimony with us, how he pulled through, struggled, against the hardships. So guys, let's all invite our friends for this life-transforming and sounding weekend!
