A good friend looks a lot like……

…… Ruth, who was loyal even when times got tough. When her mother-in-law, Naomi, lost her husband and both sons (one of them was Ruth’s husband), Naomi decided to move far away to deal with her grief. She told Ruth to stay behind, but Ruth said no way: “Don’t urge me to leave you…… Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.” (See Ruth 1:1-22)

A bad friend looks a lot like……

…… Pharaoh’s cupbearer, who didn’t have a clue about showing appreciation. While in prison with Joseph, the two became friends. Joseph promised the cupbearer that he would soon be freed from prison and given a new chance at life——great news indeed! But when the cupbearer got out of jail, he “did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.” (See Genesis 40:1-23)

A good friend looks a lot like……

…… Jonathan, who would do anything, even risk his life, for a friend. Jonathan’s dad, King Saul, was jealous of David, Jonathan’s best bud. When Jonathan heard his dad wanted to kill David, he hatched a plan to save his friend’s life. Jonathan modeled the ultimate friendship when he told David, “Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it for you.” (See 1 Samuel 20:1-42)

A bad friend looks a lot like……

…… Ahithophel, who betrayed King David by befriending an enemy who wanted to overthrow the kingdom.  Ahithophel was supposedly David’s trusted counselor, but he gave lousy advice and spread vicious rumors about the king. He was the kind of “friend” David likely had in mind when he wrote Psalm 35:12-15: “They repay me evil for good……. Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting…… I went about mourning as though for my friend……. But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee.” (See 2 Samuel 15:12-17:23)

A good friend looks a lot like……

…… Paul, who was great at helping friends grow in their faith——not only by encouraging them, but also by being bold enough to tell them when they’d messed up. One side of Paul would say (as he did to his friend Philemon): “Grace to you and peace…… Your love has given me great joy and encouragement” (v. 3-7).  Another side of Paul told friends when to shape up, but always with grace: “I always thank God for you…… I am not writing this to shame you……. It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you……. Flee from sexual immorality…… Honor God with your body.” (See 1 Corinthians 4:14-6:20)

A bad friend looks a lot like……

…… Judas, who often acted like a friend, but put his own self-interests above everything else. He followed Jesus everywhere, yet was often guilty of faking it. Even when Jesus said Judas would betray him, Judas essentially replied, “No way! Not me!” He continued his charade to the moment of betrayal, by giving Jesus a kiss on the cheek, to which Jesus said, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” (See Matthew 26:15-17, 25; Luke 22:47-48)

A good friend looks a lot like……

…… Jesus, who was the ultimate friend to everyone. He was compassionate, encouraging, patient, loyal, understanding, loving. The best way to be a good friend is to be like Christ, to “clothe” ourselves with the things of God, as it says in Colossians 3:12-17. That’s the ultimate definition of what a good friend looks like.

INTRODUCTION

The Book of Job is a very important philosophical treatise on how to interpret and process pain and tragedy when it hits. Although there are some who teach this book is not relevant to the New Testament since the cross of Christ, the Book of James quotes Job as an example for us to follow (James 5:11).

While tragedy strikes many people, very few ever see everything they lost doubly restored! This book shows that in spite of God bragging about Job’s righteousness and obedience to Him, Job wasn’t exempt from trouble. The following twelve principles are essential to everyone desiring full restoration after experiencing life’s challenges.

  1. Job fell to the ground in worship after news of tragedy (Job 1:20).
     The Bible tells us to give thanks to God “in” everything, not “for” everything.
  God is not the author of sin and tragedy but sometimes allows the enemy to attack us.

  2. Job didn’t accuse God of any wrong doing (Job 1:22).
     Satan successfully tempted Eve to sin by accusing God’s motives (Genesis 3:1-6).

  3. Job maintained his integrity in spite of satanic attacks against his family and property (Job 2:3).
     Oftentimes, many Christians fall away from God when tragedy or trials strike because their faith
     is superficial and not interwoven into the very fabric of their being.

  4. Job didn’t allow the backslidden state of his family to bring him down during his time of trial
     (Job 2:9-10).
     Many allow those weaker in the faith to bring them down to their level of emotional and spiritual
     lack during times of testing.

  5. Job didn’t allow sinful talk to come out of his mouth (Job 2:10).
     During times of testing we must be very careful what we allow to come out of our mouths because
     our words can control the direction of our hearts and minds (James 3:1-6).

  6. Job’s commitment to God transcended his physical life and the things of this world (Job 13:15).
     Like Paul, he lived the crucified life (Galatians 2:20).
     Many, like those spoken about in the parable of the sower and the seed (Mark 4), backslide
     because of the cares of this world, desires of this world, and the lust for money and material
     things.

  7. Job maintained his faith and ultimate hope in God to redeem and resurrect him on the last day
     (Job 19:25-27).
     In spite of his emotional pain, his belief in the basic tenets of the faith remained unshaken.

  8. Job didn’t allow the negative words of his friends to confuse and condemn him (Job 16:2-5).

  9. Job heard the voice of the Lord “out of the storm” (Job 38:1).
     The storms in life are God’s way of showing us who we really are and what our true goals should be.
     The storms in life provide a great opportunity to refocus your life and mission.
     The storms in life are a great opportunity to allow God to speak to us.

 10. Job stood up like a man (Job 40:7).
     Even when tragedy strikes, men are called to continue to function in their role as leaders of
     their families and communities.

 11. Job submitted himself to the wisdom of God’s sovereignty (Job 42:2).
     Although God promises divine health, wealth, and an abundant life (1 Peter 2:24; John 10:10)
     there are times when things contrary to this happen and we must trust in God’s ultimate wisdom
     for allowing it.
     In many instances, God allows certain things because of hidden sins, unbelief in His power, and
     numerous other issues that allow an open door to the enemy in our lives and families.

 12. Job didn’t hold resentment against disloyal people around him and even prayed for them (Job 42:10).

             For the Christian Prayer is not an option but an opportunity.
          “In prayer; expect setbacks, but refuse retreat.”  Richard Eastman
                     Do your best, bring out the best in others,
                     Don’t tell the Lord how big the problem is,
                       tell the problem how Great the Lord is!

Posted: October 18, 2007

The Palestinians and Israelis are scheduled to meet at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., this November. This major “peace summit” is the brainchild of the Bush administration and is under the supervision of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

Though most of the world – especially the Arab world – seems dubious about the summit’s prospects for success, the United States appears bent on forcing some sort of “peace” upon that troubled region. To do so, Secretary Rice is pressuring Israel to drop all of its redline demands. Redlines are the points that cannot be conceded.

Both sides have redlines. Both sides have points they will not give up, boundaries they will not cross. But the State Department is pressuring Israel to drop all of its redline conditions. For the first time, the division of Jerusalem is on the table. Since 1967, Israel had steadfastly claimed a united Jerusalem as “its eternal capital, never to be divided again.”

I will never forget when Gen. Moshe Dayan first stood before the Western Wall after the amazing six-day victory in June of 1967. He dramatically declared, “We have returned to all that is holy in our land. We have returned never to be parted from it again.”

Evidently, to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, “eternal” and “never” means about 40 years. According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the Palestinians are pressuring Secretary Rice to guarantee that Israel will relinquish sovereignty over the Temple Mount.

What’s more, they’re making this guarantee a pre-condition before they’ll even show up at the conference! According to a senior Palestinian official quoted by Haaretz, “No Arab country would agree for a final-status arrangement in which the Temple Mount was not in Muslim hands, particularly not Saudi Arabia.”

So, while Israel is not permitted any redline issues, the Palestinian redlines are not only permitted, but Secretary Rice is seeking guarantees of Israeli acceptance of them. And their No. 1 redline demand is that Israel must surrender the very heart and soul of Judaism as the price of admission to even start discussing peace.

Just suppose for a moment that Israel and the Muslims were in reverse circumstances. Can you imagine the reaction to Israel demanding that the Muslims guarantee the surrender of Mecca as a precondition to “discussing” peace? The world would consider such a demand unthinkable.

Yet, according to a report in WorldNetDaily, Secretary Rice singled out areas of Jerusalem that will become part of a future Palestinian state. She reportedly told Palestinian negotiators that she would publicly blame Israel for the failure of next month’s summit if the Jewish state didn’t agree to evacuate east Jerusalem neighborhoods.

Rice traveled to the Middle East this week to help the Israelis and Palestinians formulate a joint statement ahead of November’s conference. The Palestinians want the statement to outline specifically a Palestinian state including the Gaza Strip, West Bank and essentially all of east Jerusalem, which includes not only the Muslim holy places, but those of the Jews and Christians as well. They are ostensibly to be put under Jordanian supervision.

But I remember what that was like before June 1967. There were walls and barbed wire separating East Jerusalem from Israel. Christian pilgrims had to carry their own luggage across an intimidating no man’s land of about 40 meters while unfriendly Jordanian soldiers looked on.

I am stunned the Bush administration is pressuring Israel to agree to all of the Palestinian demands in advance, with the threat that they’ll be blamed for the summit’s failure if they don’t.

In view of this, my question is, “What’s the point of the conference?” “What’s left to negotiate?” President Bush and Secretary Rice have already done the Palestinians’ negotiating for them. And all of this despite the fact that the Palestinians have not lived up to one prerequisite condition outlined in Bush’s own “Road Map for Peace.”

You know, I fear for both President Bush and Secretary Rice. I also fear for my beloved country. They must be ignorant of a prophecy God made 2,500 years ago through the Hebrew prophet Zechariah. It applies to this precise time and situation in history. God said, “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples. .” The people surrounding Jerusalem are all the current Muslim nations.

As predicted, they have become intoxicated over possessing Jerusalem. Like drunken people, their emotions, inflamed with religious zeal, are causing them to do unwise, reckless and violent things.

The truth is hardly any Muslims traveled to visit Jerusalem before the Jews returned to it. Now you would think there is no other holy place on earth as important to them.

These are the exact conditions Zechariah predicted would be part of the last stages of this age. He continues, “And it shall happen in that day that I WILL make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for ALL PEOPLES. .” – meaning the entire world. Now here’s the punch line: “ALL who would seek to heave it away will surely be cut in pieces.” The original Hebrew makes the meaning of this even clearer. It reveals that everyone who tries to remove the heavy burden of the Jerusalem crisis will be utterly destroyed for getting involved with it. Isaac and Ishmael’s fight over possession of Jerusalem has drawn the whole world into it – just as the prophets predicted. It is the culmination of Ishmael’s 4,000-year-old hatred of his half-brother Isaac, the forefather of the Israelites.

I pray that somehow this message will get through to President Bush and Secretary Rice. This prophecy applies to this very moment in which we live. And in light of what they are forcing on Israel, it applies to them personally.

While Bush and Rice strive to create legacies for themselves – just as most presidents have tried to do with the Middle East conflict for the last 40 years – they not only endanger themselves, but also endanger this nation with the divine curse promised above. Mr. President, there is nothing on this earth worth what you are doing. In the power of God’s Spirit, I warn them both, “Stop, before it’s too late!”

To view the entire article, visit http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=58215

2. OFFENCES ARE PART OF LIFE
Offences are part of life. We can be offended by our friends, family, colleagues, church, work and even God. There is hardly a day that passes in life when we are not confronted with the possibility of picking up an offence. We speak about ‘picking up’ an offence. This indicates that often we actually take on an offence. It is a deliberate action that often takes place moments after we are affronted, hurt or challenged. We must learn to recognize offences and deal with them before they get a hold on us and become a stumbling block in our lives. Offences are the bait of satan. The devil uses the offences of life to bait us so that we will fall into the snare and be destroyed.

3. OFFENCES CAUSE DAMAGE
Offences have a way of infiltrating our lives and bring destruction as a result. This damage can effect us in many ways:
1. Hurt & Bitterness.
2. Sickness & Weakness
3. Breakdown in relationships.
4. Hatred, Revenge & violence.

4. THE DOWNWARD CYCLE
The process that begins with offence is a downward spiral. Offence that is not dealt with will lead downward to something worse. What started as a simple offence can end with disastrous results. Offence can lead to hurt, hurt can lead to bitterness, bitterness can lead to hatred and hatred can lead to murder. It may not go the whole way, but all along the way there is damage. The answer is not to get into the downward spiral to start with. We can do this as we deal with offences before they deal with us.

5. EXAMPLES FROM THE BIBLE
There are two examples I would like to highlight. The first is Zacharias. (Luke 1) He was a High Priest in the Temple. He and his wife Elizabeth had wanted children and prayed and asked God for a child. Many years passed and they did not have any children. One day as Zacharias was ministering in the Temple the angel appeared to Zacharias and told him that his wife Elizabeth would have a child. However, Zacharias was offended and his offence can be seen in his response. He reacted and said: ‘How can this be?’ He went further to tell the angel that this was not possible as his wife was old.
Luke 1:18 Zacharias said to the angel, “But this is impossible! I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.”
The angel responded and said that because of his unbelief, he would be dumb until the child was born. For four months he could not speak, until the child (John the Baptist) was born. Zacharias was offended because God had not answered their prayer.
The second is John the Baptist. John fulfilled a great role. He was the forerunner of Christ and even baptized Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus continues His ministry and John ends up in jail. Perhaps he had anticipated something different, but here he sits in jail. He begins to question Jesus and sends a message to Jesus to ask Him if He is in fact the Christ. Jesus responds and says: “And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” (Luke 7:23)

6. FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION
It is interesting to see that both Zechariah and his son John the Baptist were offended. Like father like son. The circumstances were different but the similarity between the two was that both become offended. When we become offended it rubs off on those around us. If we allow offences to take root in our lives we can be sure that our children will also readily pick up offences. As a result the scourge of offences can be passed from one generation to the next. It is time to break the chain of offences that effect generation after generation.

7. EXAMPLES OF THOSE WHO OVERCAME OFFENCE
There are two examples I want to look at and both come from the Old Testament. The first is Joseph. Joseph was his father’s favourite son. His father had even made him a special coat of many colours. His brothers were offended and attempted to get rid of him by throwing him in a pit. Then they pulled him out of the pit and sold him into slavery in Egypt. Here in Egypt he was falsely accused and ended up in prison and even those people in prison forgot all about him when they left the prison. There was plenty of reason and opportunity for Joseph to become offended. Yet he did not become offended! As a result when the day came, God could lift him from the prison to the throne and God could use him.
The second example is David. David was a man who served his king. He would play his harp for the king and the king would throw his spear at him. Eventually his life was threatened and he had to go into hiding. He was hunted down for years like a common criminal. This went on for years and yet he was able to keep his heart tender and free of offence and ultimately God could use him and he became king. God can use those people who will not allow offences to take hold of them.

8. DEALING WITH OFFENCES
Offences happen! But God wants us to deal with those offences. We cannot simply ignore an offence and think that it will just go away. It will fester like an infection and lead to great harm.
Hosea 5:15 I will return to My place [on high] until they acknowledge their offense.
Notice the following aspect: ‘Acknowledge their offence’. We have to get to the stage where we can admit and say yes we have been offended. Jesus said that there was a blessing for those who were not offended. Jesus knew how destructive offences can be and warned us in His message to John the Baptist. Are you ready to acknowledge your offence and ask God to forgive and release you?

9. HOW DO WE DEAL WITH OFFENCES?
Here are a few simple steps to help us deal with offences:
1. The first step is to acknowledge your offence.
Hosea 5:15 I will return to My place [on high] until they acknowledge their offense.
This means to admit that you have been offended or have picked up an offence.
2. Confess this to God.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins to Him, He can be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.
3. Ask God to forgive you.
4. Forgive. Unforgiveness indicates that we are still holding onto our offences. We forgive, not because those who caused the offence deserve it, but because we deserve the freedom that forgiveness can bring us.
5. Release and let go of that offence.
6. As we extend grace and mercy to others, God’s grace and mercy can be extended towards us and we can be free of the offences we have carried.

10.  GOD IS WAITING
In a sense God is waiting for us to deal with the offences in our lives so that He can bless us and bring about His purpose in our lives. When we become offended and hold onto our offence, it is as though God steps back and waits. It is for this reason that, in the depth of our offence, God can seem far from us. It really does not matter what caused the offence or how justified we were to be so offended. We may even be offended with God! Until we can find it in our hearts to deal with the offence, we cannot really move forward into what God has for us.
Hosea 5:15 I will return to My place [on high] until they acknowledge their offense.
We must deal ruthlessly with offences on a day-by-day basis so that nothing will get in the way of what God has in store for us. God wants each one of us to be free from every hindrance, so that we can step into His purpose, plan and destiny for our lives.

www.alivetogod.com

Satan called a worldwide convention of demons. In his opening address he said, “We can’t keep Christians from going to church.” “We can’t keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth.” “We can’t even keep them from forming an intimate relationship with their saviour.” “Once they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is broken.” “So let them go to their churches; let them have their covered dish dinners, BUT steal their time, so they don’t have time to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ..” “This is what I want you to do,” said the devil: “Distract them from gaining hold of their Saviour and maintaining that vital connection throughout their day!” “How shall we do this?” his demons shouted. “Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent innumerable schemes to occupy their minds,” he answered.

“Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow.”  “Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford their empty lifestyles.” “Keep them from spending time with their children.” “As their families fragment, soon, their homes will offer no escape from the pressures of work!” “Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still, small voice.” “Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they drive; To keep the TV, VCR, CDs and their PCs going constantly in their home and see to it that every store and restaurant in the world plays non-biblical music constantly.” “This will jam their minds and break that union with Christ.” “Fill the coffee tables with magazines and newspapers.” “Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day.” “Invade their driving moments with billboards.” “Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs, sweepstakes, and every kind of newsletter and promotional offering free products, services and false hopes.” “Keep skinny, beautiful models on the magazines and TV so their husbands will believe that outward beauty is what’s important, and they’ll become dissatisfied with their wives.” “Keep the wives too tired to love their husbands at night.” “Give them headaches too!” “If they don’t give their husbands the love they need, they will begin to look elsewhere.” “That will fragment their families quickly!” “Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their children the real meaning of Christmas.” “Give them an Easter bunny so they won’t talk about his resurrection and power over sin and death.” “Even in their recreation, let them be excessive.” “Have them return from their recreation exhausted.” “Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect on God’s creation. Send them to amusement parks, sporting events, plays, concerts, and movies instead.” “Keep them busy, busy, busy!” “And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences.” “Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to seek power from Jesus.”

“Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health and family for the good of the cause.” “It will work!” “It will work!” It was quite a plan! The demons went eagerly to their assignments causing Christians everywhere to get busier and more rushed, going here and there. Having little time for their God or their families. Having no time to tell others about the power of Jesus to change lives. I guess the question is, has the devil been successful in his schemes?
 
You be the judge!!!!!

Does “BUSY” mean: B-eing U-nder S-atan’s Y-oke?

2 Corinthians 8:7-8

Can you recall Jesus’ radical philosophy: “Be a servant, give to others”? The basis of that statement is tucked away in Luke 9:23. Following Christ is a costly, unselfish decision. He says: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

When you look closely at Jesus’ statement, a couple of things seem important. First, those who desire to follow Him closely must come to terms with self-denial. And second, this decision to give ourselves to others (taking up our cross) has to be a daily matter.

Some questions we must ask and answer ourselves are:

Am I serious about being a follower of Jesus Christ?

Do I think of others to such an extent that self-denial is becoming the rule rather than the exception in my life?

Is my walk with Him a daily thing?

A thorough self-examination is one of the requisites for following closely. Paul tells us to abound in generosity, be givers, be people who excel in unselfishness. That’s costly stuff, terribly expensive. Can you pay the price?

Don’t kid yourself; where your treasure is, your heart will be also.

Insight.for.Living@insight.org

Taken from Charles R. Swindoll, Day by Day with Charles Swindoll (Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2000). Copyright © 2000 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Well,” she said, “I think I’ll braid my hair today?”  So she did and she had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.

“H-M-M,” she said, “I think I’ll part my hair down the middle today?”  So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head.

“Well,” she said, “today I’m going to wear my hair in a pony tail.”   So she did and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn’t a single hair on her head.

“YEA!” she exclaimed, “I don’t have to fix my hair today!”

Attitude is everything.

Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

He told me he’d been hunting for a room since noon but with no success, no one seemed to have a room “I guess it’s my face. I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says it needs a few more treatments.”  For a moment I hesitated, but his next word s convinced me: “I could sleep in this rocking chair on the porch.  My bus leaves early in the morning.”  I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch. I went inside and finished getting supper.  When we were ready, I asked the old man if he would join us. “No, thank you. I have plenty.” And he held up a brown paper bag.  When I had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with him a few minutes.  It didn’t take a long time to see that this old man had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body.  He told me he fished for a living to support his daughter, her 5 children, and her husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury.  He didn’t tell it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was prefaced with thanks to God for a blessing.  He was grateful that no pain accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer.  He thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going.  At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children’s room for him.  When I got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded and the little man was out on the porch.

He refused breakfast, but just before he left for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favor, he said, “Could I please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment?  I won’t put you out a bit.   I can sleep fine in a chair.” He paused a moment and then added, “Your children made me feel at home.  Grownups are bothered by my face, but children don’t seem to mind.”  I told him he was welcome to come again. And, on his next trip, he arrived a little after 7 in the morning.  As a gift he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I had ever seen! He said he had shucked them that morning before he left so that they’d be nice and fresh. I knew his bus left at 4:00 a.m. and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us.
 
In the years he came to stay overnight with us, there was never a time that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden.  Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or kale, every leaf carefully washed.  Knowing that he must walk 3 miles to mail these, and knowing how little money he had made the gifts doubly precious.  When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a comment our next-door neighbor made after he left that first morning. “Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away!  You can lose roomers by putting up such people!”  Maybe we did lose roomers once or twice.  But, oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their illnesses would have been easier to bear.  I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God.

Recently I was visiting a friend who has a greenhouse.  As she showed me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a Golden Chrysanthemum bursting with blooms.  But to my great surprise, it was growing in an old dented, rusty bucket.  I thought to myself, “If this were
my plant, I’d put it in the loveliest container I had!”  My friend changed my mind. “I ran short of pots,” she explained, “and knowing how beautiful this one would be, I thought it wouldn’t mind starting out in this old pail.  It’s just for a little while, till I can put it out in the garden.  She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was imagining just such a scene in heaven.  “Here’s an especially beautiful one,” God might have said when he came to the soul of the sweet old fisherman.  “He won’t mind starting in this small body.”

All this happened long ago – and now, in God’s garden, how tall this lovely soul must stand. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at.  Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7b)  Friends are very special.  They make you smile and encourage you to succeed.  They lend an ear and they share a word of praise.