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Many years ago all feelings and emotions have gathered to spend their vacation on a coastal island. Each of them was having a good time, but one day there was announced a warning of a storm and everyone had to leave the island.
This caused a panic, all rushed to their boats and only Love did not wish to be in a hurry. There was so much to do, so Love was the last, who realized that it was time to leave. However, no free boats were left and Love looked around with hope.
As Prosperity was passing by in its classy boat, Love asked: "Please, take me in your boat“. But Prosperity replied: "My boat is full of gold and other precious possessions, there is no place for you“.
"Then Vanity came by in a lovely boat. Love asked: "Vanity, could you take me in your boat? Please, help e.” Vanity said: "No, your feet are muddy, and I don‘t want my boat get dirty.”
A bit later Sorrow was passing by and Love called for help. But Sorrow answered: "I am so sad, I want to be by myself“.
Then Happiness came by, Love asked for help, but Happiness was too happy, it hardly concerned about anyone.
Suddenly somebody called out: "Love, I will take you with me“. Love did not recognize its saviour, just gratefully jumped on to the boat.
When everyone had reached safe place, Love get off the boat and met Knowledge. Love asked: "Knowledge, do you know who helped me when everyone else turned away?”
Knowledge smiled: "That was Time, because only Time knows Love‘s true value and what Love is capable of. Only Love can bring peace and happiness.”
The message of this story is that when we are prosperous, we underrate Love.
When we feel important, we do not appreciate love.
And even in happiness and sorrow we overlook love.
Only with time we realize the true value of love. Why wait and not cherish Love every day of your life?
A man's daughter had asked the local pastor to come and pray with her father. When the pastor arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows and an empty chair beside his bed. The priest assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.
"I guess you were expecting me," he said.
"No, who are you?"
"I'm the new associate at your local church," the pastor replied.
"When I saw the empty chair, I figured you knew I was going to show up."
"Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"
Puzzled, the pastor shut the door.
"I've never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man.
"But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it always went right over my head.."
"I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here's what I suggest. Sit down on a chair, place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, 'I'll be with you always.' Then just speak to him and listen in the same way you're doing with me right now."
"So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful, though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm."
The pastor was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old guy to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, and returned to the church.
Two nights later the daughter called to tell the pastor that her daddy had died that afternoon.
"Did he seem to die in peace?" he asked.
"Yes, when I left the house around two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me one of his corny jokes, and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange, in fact, beyond strange-kinda weird.
Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on a chair beside the bed."
The following story is from a young women we met over 50 years ago. She has suffered the loss of a son who took his own life. Her great suffering goes on day by day.
Gracefully Broken!
I was in Dollar Tree last night and there was a lady and two kids behind me in the LONG line. One was a big kid, one was a toddler. The bigger one had a pack of glow sticks and the baby was screaming for them so the Mom opened the pack and gave him one, which stopped his tears.
He walked around with it smiling, but then the bigger boy took it and the baby started screaming again.
Just as the Mom was about to fuss at the older child, he bent the glow sticks and handed it back to the baby.
As we walked outside at the same time, the baby noticed that the stick was now glowing and his brother said "I had to break it so you could get the full effect from it."
I almost ran because l could hear God saying to me, "I had to break you to show you why I created you. You had to go through it so you could fulfill your purpose."
That little baby was happy just swinging that "unbroken" glow stick around in the air because he didn't understand what it was created to do which was "glow".
There are some people who will be content just "being" but some of us that God has chosen, we have to be "broken". We have to get sick. We have to lose a job. We go through divorce. We have to bury our spouse, parents, best friend, or our child because, in those moments of desperation, God is breaking us but when the breaking is done, then we will be able to see the reason for which we were created.. so when you see us glowing just know that we have been broken but healed by his Grace and Mercy!!!
Are our broadest hopes broad enough? Shall there be a nook or abyss, in all the universe of God, finally unlightened by the Cross? Shall there be a sin, or sorrow, or pain unhealed? Is the very universe, is creation in all its extent, a field wide enough for the Son of God?
We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another.
Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are.
After that we're frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with, we will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage.
We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire.
The truth is there's no better time to be happy than right now.
If not now, when?
Your life will always be filled with challenges.
It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway.
One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D Souza.
He said, "For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin -real life.
But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin.
At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life."
This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness.
Happiness is the way, so, treasure every moment that you have.
And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time...
and remember that time waits for no one.
So stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you gain ten pounds,
until you have kids, until your kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off,
until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until you are off welfare, until the first or fifteenth, until your song comes on, until you've had a drink, until you've sobered up, until you die, until you are born again to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy...
Here is a great story of HOPE--INSPIRATION--and TEACHINGS of CHRIST
During the summer of 2017, when temperatures reached triple digits in Arizona, four women drove to a vast desert wilderness along the southwestern border with Mexico. They brought water jugs and canned food — items they later said they were leaving for dehydrated migrants crossing the unfriendly terrain to get to the United States.
Jesus said, WHEN I WAS THIRSTY...
BUT....
The women were later charged with misdemeanor crimes. Prosecutors said they violated federal law by entering Cabeza Prieta, a protected 860,000-acre refuge, without a permit and leaving water and food there. A judge convicted them on Friday in the latest example of growing tension between aid workers and the U.S. Border Patrol.
Miracles come in moments. Sometimes they save our lives. Sometimes they change our lives. Sometimes they offer us insight. And sometimes they give us a gentle reminder and the strength to go on. The scene of this minor miracle takes place in the living room of my house under an old, broken ceiling fan with a little glass angel hanging from its pull string.
My youngest son has a severe form of Autism.
Even though he is in his twenties now he still has the mind of a small child. He speaks only a few words. He is lost in his own world most of the time. Things I find silly delight him and little changes that wouldn't bother me at all bother him greatly. Most of the time he is happy but there are also times when he can be terribly upset. He will tear things up and cry for no reason that I can see. He will even hit himself. It always hurts me to see him suffer this way especially when there is little I can do to help. This morning was particularly trying for him. He ripped up a new shirt I'd bought him and cried on and off for an hour. Finally he calmed down again. I was still feeling stressed, however, and wearily sat down at my computer to see if I could get a little work done.
As I was turning it on, though, I heard my son laugh for the first time all day. I turned my head and saw him standing directly under the glass angel hanging from our ceiling fan. The light from our house lamps seemed to shine and sparkle all around him like a halo. His eyes sparkled too as the little angel swung gently above his head. He laughed again and smiled at me. In that moment my heart opened. I could see that God was reminding me that my son was more than his Autism. I instead saw the shining soul within. I saw the love and light of his spirit and knew he was here for a purpose. I could see too that angels were watching over him today and always. My eyes watered and I thanked God for this minor miracle and gentle reminder of His love for all of us.
Miracles and angels are all around us, but we can't always see them with our eyes.
We often have to see them with our hearts. Keep your heart open to them then. Let God's love speak to you in your own life. Let Heaven guide you through your own days. And let yourself be the miracle you were meant to be!
-J.J. Mazzella-
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