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Received by email
page 2
The following are snippets which
were received by email, and are shared here for your
encouragement.
God and
the Spider
During World War II, a US marine was separated from his
unit on a Pacific island. The fighting had been intense,
and in the smoke and the crossfire he had lost touch
with his comrades.
Alone in the jungle, he could hear enemy soldiers coming
in his direction. Scrambling for cover, he found his way
up a high ridge to several small caves in the rock.
Quickly he crawled inside one of the caves. Although
safe for the moment, he realized that once the enemy
soldiers looking for him swept up the ridge, they would
quickly search all the caves and he would be killed.
As he waited, he prayed, Lord, if it be your will,
please protect me. Whatever your will though, I love you
and trust you. Amen.
After praying, he lay quietly listening to the enemy
begin to draw close. He thought, well, I guess the Lord
isn't going to help me out of this one. Then he saw a
spider begin to build a web over the front of his cave.
As he watched, listening to the enemy searching for him
all the while, the spider layered strand after strand of
web across the opening of the cave. Hah, he thought.
What I need is a brick wall and what the Lord has sent
me
is a spider web. God does have a sense of humour.
As the enemy drew closer he watched from the darkness of
his hideout and could see them searching one cave after
another. As they came to his, he got ready to make his
last stand. To his amazement, however, after glancing in
the direction of his cave, they moved on. Suddenly, he
realized that with the spider web over the entrance, his
cave looked as if no one had entered for quite a while.
Lord, forgive me, prayed the young man. I had forgotten
that in you a spider's web is stronger than a brick
wall.
We all face times of great trouble. When we do, it is so
easy to forget the victories that God would work in our
lives, sometimes in the most surprising ways.
Remember: Whatever is happening in your life, with God,
a mere spider’s web can become a brick wall of
protection. Believe He is with you always and you will
see His great power and love for you. Have an awesome
day, and know that someone who thinks you're great has
and has thought about you today!
~ author unknown ~
Heaven and Hell
A holy man was having a
conversation with the Lord one day and said, Lord, I
would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like."
The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of
the doors and the holy man looked in. In the middle of
the room was a large round table. In the middle of the
table was a large pot of stew which smelled delicious
and made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and
sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding
spoons with very long handles that were strapped to
their arms and each found it possible to reach into the
pot of stew and take a spoonful, but because the handle
was
longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons
back into their mouths.
The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and
suffering. The Lord said, "You have seen Hell."
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was
exactly the same as the first one. There was the large
round table with the large pot of stew which made the
holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with
the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were
well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy
man said, "I don't understand."
It is simple" said the Lord, "it requires but one skill.
You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the
greedy think only of themselves."
God Knows
Where You Are
(By Ken Gaub - Yakima, Washington)
"Call unto me,
and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty
things, which thou knowest not."
- Jer 33:3
Do you believe
that God not only loves you, but knows where you are and
what you're doing every minute of the day?
I certainly do
after an amazing experience I had several years ago. At
the time I was driving on 1-75 near Dayton, Ohio, with
my wife and children. We turned off the highway for a
rest and refreshment stop. My wife Barbara and children
went into the restaurant.
I suddenly
felt the need to stretch my legs, so waved them off
ahead saying I'd join them later. I bought a soft drink,
and as I walked toward a Dairy Queen, feelings of
self-pity enshrouded my mind. I loved the Lord and my
ministry, but I felt drained, burdened. My cup was
empty. Suddenly the impatient ringing of a telephone
nearby jarred me out of my doldrums. It was coming from
a phone booth at a service station on the corner. Wasn't
anyone going to answer the phone?
Noise from the
traffic flowing through the busy intersection must have
drowned out the sound because the service station
attendant continued looking after his customers,
oblivious to the incessant ringing.
"Why doesn't
somebody answer that phone?" I muttered. I began
reasoning. It may be important. What if it's an
emergency? Curiosity overcame my indifference. I stepped
inside the booth and picked up the phone. "Hello," I
said casually and took a big sip of my drink. The
operator said:" Long distance call for Ken Gaub."
My eyes
widened, and I almost choked on a chunk of ice.
Swallowing hard, I said, "You're crazy!" Then realizing
I shouldn't speak to an operator like that, I added,
"This can't be! I was walking down the road, not
bothering anyone, and the phone was ringing...
"Is Ken Gaub
there?" the operator interrupted, "I have a long
distance call for him."
It took a
moment to gain control of my babbling, but I finally
replied, "Yes, he is here." Searching for a possible
explanation, I wondered if I could possibly be on Candid
Camera! Still shaken, perplexed, I asked, "How in the
world did you reach me here? I was walking down the
road, the pay phone started ringing, and I just
answered it on chance. You can't mean me."
"Well," the
operator asked, "is Mr. Gaub there or isn't he?" "Yes, I
am Ken Gaub,"
I said,
finally convinced by the tone of her voice that the call
was real. Then I heard another voice say, "Yes, that's
him, operator. That's Ken Gaub."
I listened
dumbfounded to a strange voice identify herself. "I'm
Millie from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. You don't know me,
Mr. Gaub, but I'm desperate. Please help me."
"What can I do
for you?"
She began
weeping. Finally she regained control and continued. "I
was about to commit suicide, had just finished writing a
note, when I began to pray and tell God I really didn't
want to do this. Then I suddenly remembered seeing you
on television and thought if I could just talk to you,
you could help me. I knew that was impossible because I
didn't know how to reach you, I didn't know anyone who
could help me find you. Then some numbers came to my
mind, and I scribbled them down."
At this point
she began weeping again, and I prayed silently for
wisdom to help her. She continued, "I looked at the
numbers And thought, 'Wouldn't it be wonderful if I had
a miracle from God, and He has given me Ken's phone
number?'
I decided to
try calling it. I can't believe I'm talking to you. Are
you in your office in California?"
I replied,
"Lady, I don't have an office in California. My office
is in Yakima, Washington."
A little
surprised, she asked, "Oh really, then where are you?"
"Don't you know?"
I responded.
"You made the call."
She explained,
"But I don't even know what area I'm calling. I just
dialled the number that I had on this paper."
"Ma'am, you
won't believe this, but I'm in a phone booth in Dayton,
Ohio!"
"Really?" she
exclaimed. "Well, what are you doing there?"
I kidded her
gently, "Well, I'm answering the phone. It was ringing
as I walked by, so I answered it."
Knowing this
encounter could only have been arranged by God, I began
to counsel the woman. As she told me of her despair and
frustration, the presence of the Holy Spirit flooded
the phone booth giving me words of wisdom beyond my
ability. In a matter of moments, she prayed the sinner's
prayer and met the One who would lead her out of her
situation into a new life.
I walked away
from that telephone booth with an electrifying sense of
our heavenly Father's concern for each of His children.
What were the astronomical odds of this happening? With
all the millions of phones and innumerable
combinations of numbers, only an all-knowing God could
have caused that woman to call that number in that phone
booth at that moment in time.
Forgetting my
drink and nearly bursting with exhilaration, I headed
back to my family, wondering if they would believe my
story. Maybe I better not tell this, I thought, but I
couldn't contain it. "Barb, you won't believe this! God
knows where I am!"
God Also Knows
Where You Are. Place Yourself In His Hands, Concentrate
On Knowing His Will For Your Life, And He Will Never
Forsake Or Forget You.
With thanks to
Barbara Nell
SOMEBODY'S RAISING THEIR KID
RIGHT!
One day a 6 year old girl was sitting in a
classroom. The teacher was going to explain
evolution to the children. The teacher asked
a little boy: Tommy do you see the tree
outside?
TOMMY: Yes.
TEACHER: Tommy, do you see the grass
outside?
TOMMY: Yes.
TEACHER: Go outside and look up and see
if you can see the sky.
TOMMY: Okay. (He returned a few minutes
later) Yes, I saw the sky.
TEACHER: Did you see God up there?
TOMMY: No.
TEACHER: That's my point. We can't see
God because he isn't there. Possibly he just
doesn't exist.
A little girl spoke up and wanted to ask the
boy some questions.
The teacher agreed and the little girl asked
the boy: Tommy, do you see the tree
outside?
TOMMY: Yes.
LITTLE GIRL: Tommy do you see the grass
outside?
TOMMY: Yessssss!
LITTLE GIRL: Did you see the sky?
TOMMY: Yessssss!
LITTLE GIRL: Tommy, do you see the
teacher?
TOMMY: Yes
LITTLE GIRL: Do you see her brain?
TOMMY: No
LITTLE GIRL: Then according to what we
were taught today in school, she possibly
may not even have one!
(You Go Girl!)
FOR WE WALK BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT"
II CORINTHIANS 5:7
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