"I prefer to find my joy in the very things that are my weakness; and then the power of Christ will come and rest upon me. I am well content with these humiliations of mine, the hardships, the persecutions, the times of difficulty I undergo for Christ; for when I am weak, it is then that I am strong." II Corinthians 12:9-10
I have scars all over my body. Where my appendix was taken out, where I had a bike wreck, where I stepped on an oyster bed barefooted, and on and on: From head to toe, I have scars from past encounters with sharp items. Bet some of you do too. But did you know your soul has scars too? A friend of mine calls them “soul scars.” You know, those areas in your life where you have been hurt, where you have failed, where God had to remove something harmful from your life, where you feel inadequate or ashamed. We all have them, but few admit it. Like models on the cover of Cover Girl Magazine, we want to look perfect to those around us, so we try to cover the scars up. But for Christians, the very scar we are trying to cover up is in fact a reminder of His victory. It is a place where He gently encouraged, strengthened and helped us release past hurts. That scar can be something He can show others, not about how good you are, but how wonderful He is. Then, when He has restored you, the positive power of God can be seen coming from Him and not us. Got any scars you can show the world today? Share God’s victory in your life with someone today.
Thought for the week: “Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail.”
Funny for the week: Two funnies this week…
The minister gave his Sunday morning service, as usual, but this particular Sunday, it was considerably longer than normal.
Later, at the door, shaking hands with parishioners as they moved out, one man said, "Your sermon, Pastor, was simply wonderful - so invigorating and inspiring and refreshing."
The minister of course, broke out in a big smile, only to hear the man say, "Why I felt like a new man when I woke up!"
And then there was….
Dr. Cutter is the local Veterinarian, known for his wry humor. He surpassed himself one summer day when a city dog was brought to him after an encounter with a porcupine.
After almost an hour of prying, pulling, cutting and stitching, he returned the dog to its owner, who asked what she owed.
"A hundred and fifty dollars, Ma'am," he answered.
"Why that's simply outrageous!" she stormed. "That's what's wrong with you Maine people, you're always trying to over charge summer visitors. Whatever do you do in the winter, when we're not being gypped here?"
"Raise porcupines, Ma'am.
Chaplain Barnes
Last week’s answer: Who was the father of Abimelech? (Gideon Judges 8:31)
This week’s question: Whom did Hazael murder and take the throne from?
No comments:
Post a Comment