March 3, 2004 V2N9
Don't We All?
One evening I was parked in front of the mall wiping off my car. I had just come from the car wash and was waiting for my wife to get out of work. Coming my way from across the parking lot was what society would consider a bum. From the looks of him, he had no car, no home, no clean clothes, and no money. There are times when you feel generous but there are other times that you just don't want to be bothered. This was one of the "Don't want to be bothered" times.
"I hope he doesn't ask me for money," I thought. He didn't. He came and sat on the curb in front of the bus stop and he didn't look like he could have enough money to even ride the bus. After a few minutes he spoke. "That's a very nice car," he said. He was ragged but had an air of dignity around him. I said, "Thanks," and continued wiping off my car.
He sat there quietly as I worked. The expected plea for money never came. As the silence between us widened something inside said, 'ask him if he needs any help.' I was sure that he would say yes, but I held true to the inner voice.
"Do you need any help?" I asked. He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall never forget. We often look for wisdom in great men and women. We expect it from those of higher learning and accomplishments. I expected nothing but an outstretched grimy hand. He spoke three words that shook me.
"Don't we all?" he said.
I needed help. Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep, but I needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus fare but enough to get a warm meal and shelter for the day. Those three little words still ring true. No matter how much you have, no matter how much you have accomplished, you need help too. No matter how little you have, no matter how loaded you are with problems, even without money or a place to sleep, you can give help. Even if it's just a compliment, you can give that.
You never know when you may see someone that appears to have it all. They are waiting on you to give them what they don't have. A different perspective on life, a glimpse at something beautiful, a respite from daily chaos, that only you through a torn world can see.
Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the streets. Maybe he was more than that. Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and wise to minister to a soul too comfortable in themselves.
Maybe God looked down, called an Angel, dressed him like a bum, then said, "Go minister to that man cleaning the car, that man needs help."
"Don't We All?"
~submitted by Loretta Miller
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God Bless you!
I asked the Lord to bless you
As I prayed for you today
To guide you and protect you
As you go along your way....
His love is always with you
His promises are true,
You know in all our struggles
He will see us through
So when the road you're traveling on
Seems difficult at best
Take a moment, say a prayer
And God will do the rest.
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Word Study
By AprilRose Pilgrim, Arriba, Colorado.
Submit and variations of it is used only 16 times in the entire Bible.
Submit 12x
Submitted 3x
Submitting 1x
From Websters Dictionary:
To lower: to yield to governance or authority: to subject to a regime, condition, or practice: to commit to another: to make available: Offer: to put forward as an opinion: Affirm: to yield oneself to the authority or will of another: to permit oneself to be subjected to something: to defer to the opinion or authority of another.
From Strong's Bible Concordance;
To yield: be '' weak'': to surrender: submit self: to subordinate: to obey: be under: obedience: put under: subdue unto: subject: be put in subjection: submit self unto: Humble.
Chasten self: abase self: afflict: chasten self: looking down on or browbeating.
( Genesis 16:9)
To be untrue in word ( to lie , feign, disown) or deed ( to disappoint, fail, cringe) decieve, deny, dissemble, fail, deal flasely, be found liars, lie, lying, submit selves.
( Psalms 81: 15)
I did not list the meaning from 3027 ( 1 Chronicles 29:24), as it was long and had numerous meanings.
Again, if anyone is interested in taking over the Word Study, please let me know. Or if anyone has ideas, thoughts or comments, please email me: missrosepetal84@yahoo.com God Bless!
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Church Signs
5. "Searching for a new look? Have your faith lifted here!"
6. An ad for one Church has a picture of two hands holding stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments are inscribed and a headline that reads, "For fast, fast, fast relief, take two tablets."
7. When the restaurant next to another Church put out a big sign with red letters that said, "Open Sundays," the church reciprocated with its own message: "We are open on Sundays, too."
8. "People are like tea bags -- you have to put them in hot water before you know how strong they are."
~submitted by April Pilgrim
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Point2Ponder
We sing "Sweet Hour of Prayer"...and content ourselves with a few minutes.
We sing, "Onward Christian Soldiers"...and wait to be dragged into the Lord's service.
We sing, "Oh for a Thousand Tongues"...without rightly using the one we have.
We sing, "Blest be the Tie That Binds"...and let the least offense sever it.
We sing, "Serve the Lord with Gladness"...and gripe about all we have to do.
We sing, "I love to Tell the Story"...and never mention it to friends and associates.
We sing, "Cast Thy Burdens on the Lord"...and worry ourselves into nervous breakdowns.
We sing, "The Whole Wide World for Jesus"...and never invite our next-door neighbor to church.
We sing, "Throw out the Life Line"...and content ourselves with throwing out a fishing line on Sunday.
~Unknown
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Selected Sayings
1. You'll never leave where you are until you decide where you'd rather be.
2. The only lasting treasure is spiritual, the only perfect freedom is serving God. -Malcolm Muggidge
3. The foolish and the dead alone never change their opinion. -Tayes R. Lowell
4. To attempt to resist tenptation, abandon our bad habits, and to control our dominant passions in our own unaided strength is like attempting to check by a spider's thread the progress of a ship borne along before the wind and tide. -Benjamin Waugh
Smiley
A fire started in the grasslands close to a farm. The county fire department rushed to the scene, but the fire was more than they could handle. Someone suggested calling the volunteer fire department. Despite some doubt that they would be of any assistance, they were called.
The volunteers arrived in a dilapidated old fire truck. They rumbled straight towards the fire, drove right into the middle of the flames and stopped! The firefighters jumped from the truck and frantically started spraying water in all directions. Soon they had snuffed out the centre of the fire and leaving two parts which were easily put out.
As the farmer watched all this, he was impressed and grateful that his house and farm had been spared. He quickly got his chequebook and donated $1000 to the volunteer fire department.
A local news reporter asked the volunteer fire captain how they planned to use the funds.
The captain replied, "The first thing we're gonna do is get the brakes on our fire truck fixed!"
Thanks to all of you who read and contributed to this issue! If you have anything that might be of interest to R4A, please email it to ready4anything_2003@yahoo.com. Right now I especially need more participation in the Verse of the Week section. And anything else you have, I'd love to see.
The website is at www.oocities.org/ready4anything_2003. If you have thoughts or comments on how it can be improved, let me know.
God bless your day!
Staff: Editor in Chief: Jesus Christ
Assistant editors: Jamie Scharf & April Pilgrim
Website Coodinator: Joshua Champagne
Columninst: April Pilgrim
Contributers: Loretta Miller
April Pilgrim