Insignificant?
The U.S. penny, once called a pence, and minor (for minor or insignificant coin), was first minted around 1787. Here are a few penny quotes and facts someone found who counted a few pennies last week. A penny for your thoughts, pennies make dollars, a penny saved is a penny earned, and one you probably haven’t heard - when you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other. In today’s economy, we couldn’t buy a loaf of bread, a piece of bread, not even a crust of bread with one penny. And lilies, I haven’t priced any lately, but a penny for a lily, I think not. More pennies have been pressed than any other coin in the US. If you ever have the opportunity to sort and roll hundreds of dollars worth of change, you will know that is a fact. Did you know when you look at approximately a gazillion pennies they all pretty much look the same and each one seems a little more insignificant than the last? Did you also know when you get a gazillion insignificant pennies together they can make an impact on someone’s world somewhere? They can buy a lot of loaves of bread and I guess a lot of lilies. As I looked at Lincoln’s profile over and over, I thought about pennies; saved, earned, shiny, nasty, rolling on the floor, and finally flying out our doors to reach the world. Thanks for supporting the recent change drive. The change will be significant.
A Time to Embrace
Mothers are a special lot; they know when a tummy aches, or when a fever gets too hot… So begins a poem someone wrote about mothers. The words, all true, come from living the life of a real life mother for a lot of years. Did you know mothers will do things for you that no one else will ever do? When you are an infant, mothers will sit all night to make sure you are breathing. When you are a child, did you know mothers have been known to do your homework when you aren’t looking? When you are a teenager, mothers will stop giving hugs even though their arms ache to hold you. When you are all grown up, did you know mothers will still support you any way they can? They will clean your house, keep your children, and pick berries in a thicket in the summer heat to make you a pie on your birthday. They will bravely throw rocks at the vicious dog that just chased your cat up a tree while you are working. They will even climb into a creek and get rocks you want to landscape your yard with. Mothers continue to love you just as much as the first time they held you in their arms even when the time comes that you hold your own babies in your arms. They embrace and cease to embrace, and have even been known to cast and gather a few stones. Yes mothers are a special lot. Now is the time to embrace them. Ecclesiastes 3:5A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing
Graciously Graced with God’s Grace
In a Sunday school class a lesson centered on the fact that we are saved by grace through faith. Most of the children understood that faith means believing, but didn’t understand the meaning of the word grace. God graciously graced the teacher with a demonstration. A mom brought cupcakes to share with the class She graciously offered the cupcakes to the children. However they weren’t forced to take them. It was their choice. If they had faith to believe the cupcakes were something that would be beneficial, fill them they could take one. But if they chose not to take the cupcake freely offered, they could remain empty, unsaved from their hunger. After the explanation, one little girl said; “Now I understand.” Words we use and understand everyday, such as ‘God’s grace’ isn’t something non believers always know the meaning of. Helping adults who have not yet experienced God’s grace to understand it requires giving of ourselves Our lives should be a demonstration of grace. that prompts others to say “Now I understand.”
Remember Jesus
Memorial Day is a day set aside to remember men and women who have died in military service to this country. As people gather to remember and memorialize, there will be many tears shed for loved ones who are no longer here. Many will have the comfort of knowing that their loved ones are with Jesus. Even though they lost their lives, they now live with Him. In II Timothy, Paul wrote words to comfort Timothy. He told him to remember Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. The words were not only meant to remind Timothy of the actual event of Jesus being resurrected. Paul wasn't simply saying, "Remember the day they found the empty tomb, " but he wanted Timothy to remember Jesus Christ Himself. Paul wanted Timothy to know: He is alive. There is hope. It is worth every single trial you are going through. In verse11, Paul goes on to tell Timothy, if we die to ourselves, if we dead with Him, if we follow Him and serve Him, one day we will be alive with Him. Remember Jesus today. One day every trial, every tear, every battle we have fought will be remembered and He will say, " Well done my good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the the Lord.
II Timothy 2:8 Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised for the the dead according to my gospel; 11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him.