The Value of a Friend

Love and Friendship summarized

The Value of a Friend

Mark was walking home from school one day when he noticed the boy ahead of him had tripped and dropped all of the books he was carrying, along with two sweaters, a baseball bat, a glove and a small tape recorder.

Mark knelt down and helped the boy pick up the scattered articles. Since they were going the same way, he helped to carry part of the burden. As they walked Mark discovered the boy's name was Bill, that he loved video games, baseball and history, and that he was having lots of trouble with his other subjects and that he had just broken up with his girlfriend.

They arrived at Bill's home first and Mark was invited in for a Coke and to watch some television. The afternoon passed pleasantly with a few laughs and some shared small talk, then Mark went home. They continued to see each other around school, had lunch together once or twice, then both graduated from junior high school. They ended up in the same high school where they had brief contacts over the years.

Finally the long-awaited senior year came and three weeks before graduation, Bill asked Mark if they could talk. Bill reminded him of theday years ago when they had first met. "Did you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day?" asked Bill. "You see, I cleaned out my locker because I didn't want to leave a mess for anyone else. I had stored away some of my mother's sleeping pills and I was going home to commit suicide. But after we spent some time together talking and laughing, I realized that if I had killed myself, I would have missed that time and so many others that might follow. So you see, Mark, when you picked up those books that day, you did a lot more, you saved my life."

Every little hello, every little smile, every helping hand, can save a hurting heart.

True Intimacy by Henri Nouwen

True Intimacy

Human relationships easily become possessive. Our hearts so much desire to be loved that we are inclined to cling to the person who offers us love, affection, friendship, care, or support. Once we have seen or felt a hint of love, we want more of it. That explains why lovers so often bicker with each other. Lovers' quarrels are quarrels between people who want more of each other than they are able or willing to give.

It is very hard for love not to become possessive because our hearts look for perfect love and no human being is capable of that. Only God can offer perfect love. Therefore, the art of loving includes the art of giving one another space. When we invade one another's space and do not allow the other to be his or her own free person, we cause great suffering in our relationships. But when we give another space to move and share our gifts, true intimacy becomes possible.


The Balance Between Closeness and Distance

Intimacy between people requires closeness as well as distance. It is like dancing. Sometimes we are very close, touching each other or holding each other; sometimes we move away from each other and let the space between us become an area where we can freely move.

To keep the right balance between closeness and distance requires hard work, especially since the needs of the partners may be quite different at a given moment. One might desire closeness while the other wants distance. One might want to be held while the other looks for independence. A perfect balance seldom occurs, but the honest and open search for that balance can give birth to a beautiful dance, worthy to behold.

Humor 02/19/2011

The local news station was interviewing an 80-year-old lady because she had just gotten married for the fourth time. (Her previous 3 husbands had passes away.) The interviewer asked her questions about her life, about what it felt like to be marrying again at 80, and then about her new husband's occupation. "He's a funeral director," she answered.

"Interesting," the newsman thought.

He then asked her if she wouldn't mind telling him a little about her first three husbands and what they did for a living. She paused for a few moments, needing time to reflect on all those years.

After a short time, a smile came to her face and she answered proudly, explaining that she had first married a banker when she was in her early 20's, then a circus ringmaster when in her 40's, and a preacher when in her 60's, and now in her 80's, a funeral director.

The interviewer looked at her, quite astonished, and asked why she had married four men with such diverse careers.

She smiled and explained, "I married one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go."

The Presence of His Love

(By Rev. John F. Perling)
[Edited]

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he'd told her was empty. Then she settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg.

It had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. Once a fiercely independent woman, Susan now felt condemned by this terrible twist of fate to become a powerless, helpless burden on everyone around her.

"How could this have happened to me?" she would plead, her heart knotted with anger. But no matter how much she cried or ranted or prayed, she knew the painful truth her sight was never going to return. A cloud of depression hung over Susan's once optimistic spirit. Just getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and exhaustion. And all she had to cling to was her husband Mark.

Mark was an Air Force officer and he loved Susan with all of his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again. Mark's military background had trained him well to deal with sensitive situations, and yet he know this was the most difficult battle he would ever face.

Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city. At first, this comforted Susan and fulfilled Mark's need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task.

Soon, however, Mark realized that this arrangement wasn't working - it was hectic, and costly. Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again, he admitted to himself. But just the thought of mentioning it to her made him cringe. She was still so fragile, so angry. How would she react?

Just as Mark predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again. "I'm blind!" she responded bitterly. "How am I supposed to know where I'm going? I feel like you're abandoning me."

Mark's heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it. And that is exactly what happened.

For two solid weeks, Mark, military uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat. He made her laugh, even on those not-so-good days when she would trip exiting the bus, or drop her briefcase.

Each morning they made the journey together, and Mark would take a cab back to his office. Although this routine was even more costly and exhausting than the previous one, Mark knew it was only a matter of time before Susan would be able to ride the bus on her own. He believed in her, in the Susan he used to know before she'd lost her sight, who wasn't afraid of any challenge and who would never, ever quit.

Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Mark, her temporary bus riding companion, her husband, and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his patience, his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday... Each day on her own went perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it! She was going to work all by herself!

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the driver said, "Boy, I sure envy you." Susan wasn't sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year? Curious, she asked the driver, "Why do you say that you envy me?"

The driver responded, "It must feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are." Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, and asked again, "What do you mean?"

The driver answered, "You know, every morning for the past week, a fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and walks away. You are one blessed lady."

Tears of happiness poured down Susan's cheeks. For although she couldn't physically see him, she had always felt Mark's presence. She was blessed, so blessed, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn't need to see to believe - the gift of love that can bring light where there had been darkness.

God watches over us in just the same way. We may not know He is present. We may not be able to see His face, but He is there nonetheless! Be blessed in this thought: "God Loves You - even when you are not looking."

Your laughter ~Pablo Neruda

Take breath away from me, if you wish,
take air away, but
do not take from me your laughter.

Do not take away the rose,
the lanceflower that you pluck,
the water that suddenly
bursts forth in your joy,
the sudden wave
of silver born in you.

My struggle is harsh and I come back
with eyes tired
at times from having seen
the unchanging earth,
but when your laughter enters
it rises to the sky seeking me
and it opens for me all
the doors of life.

My love, in the darkest
hour your laughter
opens, and if suddenly
you see my blood staining
the stones of the street,
laugh, because your laughter
will be for my hands
like a fresh sword.

Next to the sea in the autumn,
your laughter must raise
its foamy cascade,
and in the spring, love,
I want your laughter like
the flower I was waiting for,
the blue flower, the rose
of my echoing country.

Laugh at the night,
at the day, at the moon,
laugh at the twisted
streets of the island,
laugh at this clumsy
boy who loves you,
but when I open
my eyes and close them,
when my steps go,
when my steps return,
deny me bread, air,
light, spring,
but never your laughter
for I would die.

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Praise and Worship: Hungry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKcgJzj6WBU

To You, O God, belong wisdom and power;

Counsel and understanding are Yours.

Job 12:13

You are holy;

You are enthroned on the praise of Israel.

Psalm 22:3

Pause to express your thoughts of praise and worship

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Food for thought:

Love is the one ingredient of which our world never tires and of which there is never an abundance. It is needed in the marketplace and in the mansions. It is needed in the ghettos and in the governments. It is needed in homes, in hospitals, and in individual hearts. The world will never outgrow its need for love.

--C. Neil Strait

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Westminster Shorter Catechism:

What is God?

God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

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Prayer for Zion, City of our God:

Psalm 51:18

“In your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.”

Lord, in your good pleasure,

Prosper us,

Build up our walls,

Make us strong in the face of all our spiritual adversaries,

That in your strength we may triumph over them,

And that we might be that glorious city of God

-that place of the dwelling of God into

which other come,

See you,

And are drawn to you.

For your name’s sake we pray.

Amen.

Heart cries to Heaven. A Book of Prayers by David Campbell

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Youtube:

-Devils & Angels

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQRMvg5TAl8

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TRUE VALENTINES
By Dr. Michael A. Halleen

"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God." (1 John 4:7)

Valentine's Day is coming up. This love business is a tricky thing. In western culture, we have it all wrapped up with emotion, as though love springs from liking someone enough to have warm feelings toward them. In fact, love is a way of acting toward another, regardless of feelings.

Mr. Alwin was my English teacher in high school and director of the junior class play in which I had a role requiring me to kiss Sally Brunzell. Inexperienced at sixteen, I had never kissed a girl before, and my first attempts in rehearsal were evidently awkward even beyond what's expected in a high school play. Mr. Alwin called Sally and me into his classroom after school one afternoon and told us we had to improve. "I want you to practice here and now," he said, "until you get it right!" He judiciously kept the door open and remained at his desk while we went to the back of the room to practice.

"No, no, no!" he said loudly after our first faltering attempts. "What's the matter with you, Halleen?" (The fault obviously was mine.) I mumbled something to the effect that I could kiss Sally better if we loved each other. "Feelings have nothing to do with how to kiss her!" he roared from across the room. "This is for the stage!" He proceeded to give me specific direction on the proper techniques of a stage kiss. It was the first time I had to think about separating feelings of love from actions of love.

A few years later, while in college and living with my widowed grandfather, I asked him about something we had read in a student Bible study about loving God. I confessed that I was having a hard time mustering up any feelings for God. "Love for God has nothing to do with feelings," this wise veteran preacher told me. "To love God is to obey God. It's about what you do, not what you feel."

Mr. Alwin's classroom and my grandfather's dinner table were two places where I began to understand love's reality. Feelings come and go, but actions can be carried out with a degree of consistency. If love demands that I feel warm and cozy toward an enemy, or even a friend, I'm lost. But if it requires only that I act in a way that is kind and truthful, whatever my feelings, there's hope. And that's the love to which God calls us. That's being a *true* valentine.
Sally's and my stage kiss was carried out successfully. "I knew you could do it," Mr. Alwin said.

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You can contact Mike at mhalleen@mediacombb.net. Also check out Mike's book "You Are Rich: Discovering Faith in Everyday Moments":
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1597523437/mikeysfunnies-20

Copyright 2009 Dr. Michael A. Halleen. Permission is granted to send this to others, with attribution, but not for commercial purposes.

Blessed are...

Blessed are the husband and wife who are as polite and courteous to one another as they are to their friends.

Blessed are they who love their mates more than any other person in the world, and who joyfully fulfill their marriage vow of a lifetime of fidelity and mutual helpfulness to one another.

Blessed are they who attain parenthood, for children are a heritage of the Lord.

Blessed are they who remember to thank God for their food before they partake of it, and who set apart some time each day for the reading of the Bible and for prayer.

Blessed are those mates who never speak loudly to one another, and who make their home a place “where seldom is heard a discouraging word.”

Blessed are the husband and wife who faithfully attend the worship service of the church, and who work together in the church for the advancement of Christ’s kingdom.

Blessed are the husband and wife who can work out the problems of adjustment without interference from relatives.

Blessed is the couple sharing a well-informed understanding about financial matters, and have worked out a healthy partnership, with all money under the control of both.

Cup O’Cheer

Syber Sam: Power of Prayer

Syber Sam: Power of Prayer: "Power of Prayer The story of the two newly saved Chinese young women is one of the most dramatic we have ever printed in..."

Power of Prayer

Power of Prayer

The story of the two newly saved Chinese young women is one of the most dramatic we have ever printed in our quarterly DAWN REPORT Magazine. It is so improbable, in fact, that we went to considerable lengths to verify it. Now we know from several eyewitnesses and independent sources that what you are about to read actually happened as reported.

These young ladies in Mainland China had became Christians as teenagers while listening to radio broadcasts and both felt an immediate call to be missionaries. They met with their pastor who wanted to teach them how to witness right where they were.

"No", they insisted, "the Bible you gave us says Jesus said to go to all the world. We want to go". "But", he argued, "you have only been Christians six months, and you are so young".

"Pastor", they replied, "we have read everything Jesus said and nowhere does he ask people how old they are. We want to go." "Very well. We need some workers on Hainan Island. It is very rough. There are no Christians there. For young ladies it might be very dangerous."

They looked at each other, "Hainan, yes, Hainan. That is where the Lord wants us to go. Two years later, they were in Hong Kong for a short period to get more Bibles and other literature. Several high-ranking church leaders from Europe happened to be in the area and wanted to meet a "real" church planter in China.

The pastor of the young missionaries, who had not seen them since their return, arranged a visit in the hotel where he was staying. He went to the lobby at the appointed time and waited for the ladies to arrive. He watched the bellboys in their crisp, tailored uniforms, and the tourists who attempted to be casual in their designer clothes. Then he spotted the two women. "Oh no", he thought as they walked in. Their black pajamas and broad-brimmed fisherman hats stood in stark contrast to the appearance of the sophisticated hotel receptionist making her way towards them.

The pastor moved quickly to intercede. "It's alright, they are here to see me." He took them to his room where the visitors from Europe were waiting. They began asking questions as the pastor interpreted.

"Pastor, ask them how many churches they have established in Hainan".

The women put their heads down and answered, "Oh Pastor, we have only been there 2 years, yes, two years. Not many. Not very many". Their voices were apologetic.

"How Many?"

"Oh, not many. The people were not very friendly. Sometimes they became very vicious. They told us they were going to drown us in the ocean. Several men threatened us. Even some of the ladies did not like us. They called us terrible names. So not many churches .. no, not many".

The pastor interrupted and slowly repeated the words, "How many? How many?"

There was a moment of silence, then one of the women looked up with embarrassment and anguish, as though confessing a crime.

"Only ... thirteen".

The pastor looked astonished and interpreted for the guests, "Thirteen". One of the guests repeated the number, "Only thirteen, only... my goodness. I haven't planted that many churches in my lifetime".

One the pastor's assistants interrupted, "No, Pastor, she did not say thirteen. She said thirty".

The pastor looked at the two young women and asked, "Thirty?"

"Oh, yes, not many, we have done very poorly. Only thirty."

"The two guests could only mutter, "Thirty churches in 2 years. My word".

"How many people are in the churches?" the Pastor asked.

"Oh, not many. Not many".

The process repeated itself until the Pastor looked like he was ready to shake them and practically yelled, "How many?"

"Only 220. Not many, no, not many".

"220 in 30 churches?" the Pastor asked.

"Oh, no, in only one, but that one was a very small church, very small. There are bigger ones".

As the pastor interrupted, he heard the numbers repeated by his guests."220 is small? Dear Lord, I wish I had some that large".

"And how many in the big churches? You know, the biggest one?"

"Oh, not many..."

"I know, 'not many'. But please, ladies, how many?"

"Oh less than 5,000. Only 4,900. We have just started".

From behind the pastor the sound of weeping: "Dear Lord, forgive us". "What did they do? How did they do it? Ask them what they did?"

"Why nothing", they said with astonishment. "Yes, we did nothing, nothing".

"You did nothing? You have 30 churches... the smallest with 220 people, the largest with almost 5,000 new Christians! And you did nothing".

"No, nothing. We just prayed. After we prayed, the Holy Spirit would tell us exactly what to do. We would keep praying and He would tell us what to do and we would do it".

"Dear Lord, they JUST prayed — and the Holy Spirit told them exactly what to do and they did it".

The Pastor laid his hands on the shoulders of the two sisters. Behind him his 2 guests, on their knees weeping, joined as they "just prayed".

Jim and Lyn Montgomery

I guess we have not understood the power of prayer... and have been relying more on our own strength than in God. May u be encouraged to bring all your plans to the Lord in prayer!

"In ALL your ways ACKNOWLEDGE Him.... and He will make your paths STRAIGHT!" Pro 3:6