God's Miracle Of Love

Like any good mother, when Karen found out that another baby was on the way, she did what she could to help her 3-year-old son, Michael, prepare for a new sibling. They found out that the new baby was going to be a girl, and day after day, night after night, Michael sang to his sister in Mommy's tummy. He was building a bond of love with his little sister before he even met her.

The pregnancy progressed normally for Karen, an active member of the Panther Creek United Methodist Church in Morristown, Tennessee. In time, the labor pains came. Soon it was every five minutes..every three.... every minute. But serious complications arose during delivery and Karen found herself in hours of labor. Would a C-section be required? Finally, after a long struggle, Michael's little sister was born. But she was in very serious condition. With a siren howling in the night, the ambulance rushed the infant to the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Mary's Hospital, Knoxville, Tennessee. The days inched by. The little girl got worse. The pediatric specialist regretfully had to tell the parents, "There is very little hope. Be prepared for the worst."

Karen and her husband contacted a local cemetery about a burial plot. They had fixed up a special room in their home for the new baby - but now they found themselves having to plan for a funeral. Michael, however, kept begging his parents to let him see his sister. "I want to sing to her," he kept saying. Week two in intensive care looked as if a funeral would come before the week was over. Michael kept nagging about singing to his sister, but kids are never allowed in Intensive Care.

Karen made up her mind, though. She would take Michael whether they liked it or not! If he didn't see his sister right then, he may never see her alive. She dressed him in an oversized scrub suit and marched him into ICU. He looked like a walking laundry basket. But the head nurse recognized him as a child and bellowed, "Get that kid out of here now! No children are allowed."

The mother rose up strong in Karen, and the usually mild-mannered lady glared steel-eyed right into the head nurse's face, her lips a firm line. "He is not leaving until he sings to his sister!" Karen towed Michael to his sister's bedside.

He gazed at the tiny infant losing the battle to live. After a moment, he began to sing. In the pure-hearted voice of a 3-year-old, Michael sang: "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are grey---" Instantly the baby girl seemed to respond. The pulse rate began to calm down and become steady.

"Keep on singing, Michael," encouraged Karen with tears in her eyes.

"You never know, dear, how much I love you, Please don't take my sunshine away"

As Michael sang to his sister, the baby's ragged, strained breathing became as smooth as a kitten's purr. "Keep on singing, sweetheart!"

"The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping, I dreamed I held you in my arms..." Michael's little sister began to relax as rest, healing rest, seemed to sweep over her.

"Keep on singing, Michael." Tears had now conquered the face of the bossy head nurse. Karen glowed.

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. Please don't, take my sunshine away..."

The next, day...the very next day...the little girl was well enough to go home! Woman's Day Magazine called it "The Miracle of a Brother's Song." The medical staff just called it a miracle.

Karen called it a miracle of God's love!

The Water

It was one of the hottest days of the dry season. We had not seen rain in almost a month. The crops were dying. Cows had stopped giving milk. The creeks and streams were long gone back into the earth. It was a dry season that would bankrupt several farmers before it was through. Every day, my husband and his brothers would go about the arduous process of trying to get water to the fields. Lately this process had involved taking a truck to the local water rendering plant and filling it up with water. But severe rationing had cut everyone off. If we didn't see some rain soon, we would lose everything.


It was on this day that I learned the true lesson of sharing and witnessed the only miracle I have seen with my own eyes. I was in the kitchen making lunch for my husband and his brothers when I saw my six-year old son, Billy, walking toward the woods. He wasn't walking with the usual carefree abandon of a youth but with a serious purpose. I could only see his back. He was obviously walking with a great effort, trying to be as still as possible. Minutes after he disappeared into the woods, he came running out again, toward the house. I went back to making sandwiches; thinking that whatever task he had been doing was completed.

Moments later, however, he was once again walking in that slow purposeful stride toward the woods. This activity went on for an hour: walk carefully to the woods, run back to the house. Finally I couldn't take it any longer and I crept out of the house and followed him on his journey (being very careful not to be seen, as he was obviously doing important work and didn't need his Mommy checking up on him).

He was cupping both hands in front of him as he walked; being very careful not to spill the water he held in them...maybe two or three tablespoons were held in his tiny hands. I sneaked close as he went into the woods. Branches and thorns slapped his little face but he did not try to avoid them. He had a much higher purpose. As I leaned in to spy on him, I saw the most amazing site.

Several large deer loomed in front of him. Billy walked right up to them. I almost screamed for him to get away. A huge buck with elaborate antlers was dangerously close. But the buck did not threaten him, he didn't even move as Billy knelt down. And I saw a tiny fawn laying on the ground,obviously suffering from dehydration and heat exhaustion, lift its head with great effort to lap up the water cupped in my beautiful boy's hand.

When the water was gone, Billy jumped up to run back to the house and I hid behind a tree. I followed him back to the house; to a spigot that we had shut off the water to. Billy opened it all the way up and a small trickle began to creep out. He knelt there, letting the drip drip slowly fill up his makeshift "cup", as the sun beat down on his little back. And it came clear to me. The trouble he had gotten into for playing with the hose the week before. The lecture he had received about the importance of not wasting water. The reason he didn't ask me to help him.

It took almost twenty minutes for the drops to fill his hands. When he stood up and began the trek back, I was there in front of him. His little eyes just filled with tears. "I'm not wasting," was all he said. As he began his walk, I joined him with a small pot of water from the kitchen. I let him tend to the fawn. I stayed away. It was his job.

I stood on the edge of the woods watching the most beautiful heart I have ever known working so hard to save another life. As the tears that rolled down my face began to hit the ground, they were suddenly joined by other drops and more drops and more. I looked up at the sky. It was as if God, himself, was weeping with pride.

Some will probably say that this was all just a huge coincidence. That miracles don't really exist. That it was bound to rain sometime. And I can't argue with that, I'm not going to try. All I can say is that the rain that came that day saved our farm, just like that actions of one little boy saved another.

Would You Have Been As Unselfish?

A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. "Your son is here," she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened. Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young man in the Marine Corps uniform standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand.

The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement. The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit alongside the bed.

Nights are long in hospitals, but at Christmas they are even harder, though all through this one night a man's son, a young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength.

Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile. He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital, the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients. Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine placed the lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited. Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her. "Who was that man?" he asked.

The nurse was startled, "Was he not your father" she answered.

"No, he wasn't," the Marine replied. "I never saw him before in my life."

"Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?"

"I knew right away, there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, I knew how much he needed me. I stayed."

The next time someone needs you, be there. Stay. You'll be glad you did. Jesus did the same for all of us.

Sail On!

Life is very much like sailing. God is your Captain and knows the seas of life. Many are content to just sail around in the safe harbors and not really go anywhere with their life; whereas others set their sails toward the horizon and head out into the open sea. It takes faith to set out into the unknown, to believe that His Word is true and that He will keep you safe and lead you on a true course. This type of faith is learned through difficult situations where you do what He shows you to do and you find that it works out.

This life and its limited existence can be so full of care‚ worry, and fear if you let those things in. But if you instead choose to accept His love and His perspective in all things, you will begin to see the opportunity in every difficulty, the positive in every negative situation. You will have the faith to rise above this finite world and accept that there is a higher plan for your life and that He is the One Who is ultimately in control.

With each test comes stronger faith. The shores of His blessings are not visible to those who stay in the harbor and never venture out; it takes faith to set sail and find them. Don't believe the doubter who has never ventured out of the safety of his harbor and who says, "There are no new shores, no new challenges, nothing new to learn." Be the First to Venture Out, to Let Him Set the Course of Your Life!"

"I Took Your Place"

One day, a man went to visit a church. He arrived early, parked his car, and got out. Another car pulled up near him, and the driver told him, "I always park there. You took my place.

The visitor went inside for Sunday School, found an empty seat, and sat down. A young lady from the church approached him and stated, "That's my seat! You took my place!" the visitor was somewhat distressed by this rude welcome, but said nothing.

After Sunday School, the visitor went into the church sanctuary and sat down. Another member walked up to him and said, "That's where I always sit. You took my place!" The visitor was even more troubled by this treatment, but still said nothing.

Later, as the congrgation was praying for Christ to dwell among them, the visitor stood, and his appearance began to change. Horrible scars became visible on his hands and on his feet. Someone from the congregation noticed him and called out, "What happened to you?"

The visitor replied, "I TOOK YOUR PLACE!"

Our Physical Greatest Wealth

We are born with Two Eyes in front because we must not always look behind, but see what lies ahead beyond ourselves.



We are born to have Two Ears, one left, one right, so we can hear both sides, collect both the compliments and criticisms, to see which are right.



We are born with a Brain concealed in a skull, that no matter how poor we are, we are still rich, for no one can steal what our brain contains, packing in more jewels and rings than you can think.



We are born with two eyes, two ears, but one Mouth, for the mouth is a sharp weapon... it can hurt, flirt, and kill. Remember our motto: TALK LESS, LISTEN and SEE MORE.



We are born with only one HEART, deep in our ribs.... it reminds us to appreciate and give LOVE FROM DEEP WITHIN.

The Alphabet Of God's Love

A-lthough things are not perfect

B-ecause of trial or pain

C-ontinue in thanksgiving

D-o not begin to blame

E-ven when the times are hard

F-ierce winds are bound to blow

G-od is forever able

H-old on to what you know

I-magine life without His love

J-oy would cease to be

K-eep thanking Him for all the things

L-ove imparts to thee

M-ove out of "Camp Complaining"

N-o weapon that is known

O-n earth can yield the power

P-raise can do alone

Q-uit looking at the future

R-edeem the time at hand

S-tart every day with worship

T-o "thank" is a command

U-ntil we see Him coming

V-ictorious in the sky

W-e'll run the race with gratitude

X-alting God most high

Y-es, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...

Z-ion waits in glory...where none are ever sad!

The Real Comforter

There was an atheist couple who had a child. The couple never told their daughter anything about the Lord. One night when the little girl was 5 years old, the parents fought with each other and the dad shot the mom, right in front of the child. Then, the dad shot himself.

The little girl watched it all.
She then was sent to a foster home. The foster mother was a Christian and took the child to church. On the first day of Sunday School, the foster mother told the teacher that the girl had never heard of Jesus, and to have patience with her.
The teacher held up a picture of Jesus and said, "Does anyone know who this is?"

The little girl said, "I do, that's the man who was holding me the night my parents died."

The Accident- A Great Miracle Of God

One afternoon, a couple was traveling on the road when all of a sudden at a far distance they saw a woman in the middle of the road asking them to stop. The wife told her husband to keep on driving because it might be too dangerous, but the husband decided to pass by slowly so he wouldn't stay with the doubt on his mind of what might have happened and the chances of anyone being hurt. As they got closer, they noticed a woman with cuts and bruises on her face as well as on her arms.

They then decide to stop and see if they could be of any help. The cut and bruised woman was begging for help telling them that she had been in a car accident and that her husband and son, a new born baby, were still inside the car which was in a deep ditch. She told them that the husband was already dead but that her baby seemed to still be alive.

The husband that was traveling decided to get down and try to rescue the baby and he asked the hurt woman to stay with his wife inside the their car. When he got down he noticed two people in the front seats of the car but he didn't pay any importance to it and took the baby out quickly and got up to take the baby to it's mother.

When he got up on the road, he didn't see the mother anywhere so he asked his wife where she had gone. She told him that the woman followed him back to the crashed car.

The man decided to go look for the woman, when he noticed that clearly the two people in the front seats were dead; a woman and a man with both their seat belts on. When he looked closer, he saw that it was the exact same woman that was begging them for help in the beginning.

Do you think that it was a miracle of God?

The Baby now lives with family members and he will live to tell the story.

If you believe in the Almighty and that miracles like these can truly happen, send this to your friends. If you don't send it, nothing will happen, only that some people won't be able to know of the greatness of the Lord.

Author Unknown

Failure Does Not Equal Defeat

Failure does not equal defeat; they are two separate things.

Failure is a part of every life; everyone fails at times.

Defeat is when you don't rebound, but instead allow failure to turn what could be a successful life into a wasted one through self-pity and fear of the opinions of men.

Feelings of inferiority are Satan's attempts to deny the power of God within you.

*

One good thing about failure is that you appreciate the victory all the more.

It's not the failing that counts, but what you do with it.

No one has ever made a discovery, won a victory, or had a breakthrough without first experiencing some failures, yet refusing to let those failures defeat them.

*

Failing is often God’s way of helping you to zero in on His highest and best.

As your own programs crumble into dust, He’s right there with a new blueprint for something much better.

You can fail many times—in different things—and you will.

But you're not a failure as long as you keep getting up and trying again.

*

Always remember that there's a difference between failure, —which happens many times in our lives, and being a failure —which only happens if we decide to give up and quit.

There's a big difference between saying "I fail" and "I'm a failure."

There's no disgrace in saying the first—which is just a fact of life—but you should never say "I'm a failure" unless you've decided to give up.

The basic rules for success may be defined as follows: Know what you want. Find out what it takes to get it. Act on it and persevere.

No one is a failure who can truly say, "I have done my best."

Indian Truth- The Two Wolves

An elder Cherokee was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me... it is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity,humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too."

They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"

The old Cherokee simply replied... "The one you feed."

The Real Angel

    Bare foot and dirty, the girl just sat and watched the people go by. She never tried to speak, she never said a word. Many people passed, but never did one person stop. Just so happens the next day I decided to go back to the park, to see if the little girl would still be there.Right in the very spot as she was yesterday she sat perched on high, with the saddest look in her eyes. Today I was to make my own move and walk over to the little girl. As we all know a park full of strange people is not a place for young children to play alone. As I began walking towards her I could see the back of the little girl's dress indicated a deformity. I figured that was the reason the people just passed by and made no effort to help. As I got closer, the little girl slightly lowered her eyes to avoid my intent stare. I could see the shape of her back more clearly. It was grotesquely shaped in a humped over form. I smiled to let her know it was ok, I was there to help, to talk. I sat down beside her and opened with a simple "Hello".
The little girl acted shocked and stammered a "Hi" after a long stare into my eyes. I smiled and she shyly smiled back. We talked 'til darkness fell and the park was completely empty. Everyone was gone and we at once was alone.

     I asked the girl why she was so sad. The little girl looked at me and with a sad face said "Because I'm different."
 
    I immediately said "That you are!" and smiled. The little girl acted even sadder, she said, "I know."
"Little girl," I said, "you remind me of an angel, sweet and innocent." She looked at me and smiled, slowly she stood to her feet, and said, "Really?"
"Yes, ma'am, your like a little guardian angel sent to watch over all those people walking by."
She nodded her head yes and smiled, and with that she spread her wings and said, "I am. I'm your guardian angel," with a twinkle in her eye.

    I was speechless, sure I was seeing things. She said, "For once you thought of someone other than yourself, my job here is done." Immediately I stood to my feet and said, "Wait, so why did no one stop to help an angel?"
She looked at me and smiled, "You're the only one who could see me, and you believe it in your heart." And She was gone. And with that my life was changed dramatically.

    So, when you think you're all you have, remember, your angel is always watching over you. Mine was.

Eternal Sunshine