April 15, 2010
Editor Note: We have sent "Invitations" to all the email addresses that you sent to us - there were thousands - thanks so much! But now it's time to start another list so we can continue to reach out to others. "Please" continue to send more addresses. If you can, the best way is to save all those addresses that appear in your incoming mail, especially on forwarded messages that you receive. It doesn't take long to build up a list of hundreds and thousands of addresses that we can send "Invitations" to. We still need your help. Thanks!
HUMOR
They say that a preacher's wife is always his number one assistant.
An example of this comes one Sunday morning after the preacher had just finished his sermon. He went and sat down with his wife and she asked him how he thought the church service went.
The Preacher shrugged and said, "The worship was excellent, and I think the prayer and communion times went quite well, but," he continued, "I just don't think the sermon ever got off the ground."
The wife looked over at him, and before she could stop herself, she said, "Well, it sure did taxi long enough!"
.....Mikey's Funnies (http://www.mikeysFunnies.com) by way of "Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
THOUGHT PROVOKING – INSPIRATIONAL
WHERE THE LIGHT IS
There is a delightful, old story that always brings a smile to my face. One day a man was walking down the street and saw his friend crawling around on his hands and knees looking for something. The man asks his friend what he is looking for on the ground. His friend says, "I lost my key." The man feels sorry for his friend and gets down to help look for it. After a long time of looking without success the man asks his friend where he was standing when he lost his key. The friend replies, "Oh, I lost it in my house." Outraged by this the man asks why they are looking on the street then. His friend says, "Because there is more light here."
As funny as that sounds it is the way a lot of people think. They want to know the purpose of their lives. They want to figure out the secret to their own happiness. They want to find the key to living a loving and joyous life. Yet, they look everywhere except inside of themselves. Perhaps they think it is too dark and frightening to look within for these answers. They keep looking on the outside instead because they think the light is better there.
The truth is if they were willing to look within they would find a light far brighter and more illuminating than any on the outside. They would find the glorious glow of their own souls that have been patiently waiting for their arrival. They would find the love of God that lights up the world and the light of their own love as well. They would find a beautiful fire that would warm their hearts and that they could give to everyone everywhere.
Don’t be afraid to look on the inside. The light on the outside is nowhere near as magnificent and golden as the loving light that shines from your own soul. God’s loving light lives within each of us. That is the light you should seek. That is the light that will guide you to a joyous life and that is the light that you should share with the whole world.
.....Joseph J. Mazzella (joemazzella@frontier.com) by way of
"Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)
Bottom of Form
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
TO BE IN HIS CONTROL!
Control is an interesting thing. When we're in it, we feel confident and secure. When we lose it, we become fearful and impatient. When we use it, we sense importance and power. When we're out of it, we are angry and unreasonable. And the more we claim it, the more we find we don't have it after all.
One day I decided to make my own special chili. I put the ingredients on the counter, separating them into their own little piles. I was in control. I carefully cut the meat, chopped the onions and bell peppers, and sautéed everything on the stove. I was using control. Then I sliced the tomatoes and added them to the mixture, along with just the right amount of spices. Not too much. I was exercising control. Now it was time for the main ingredients.
Chili peppers come in all shapes and sizes. Some are large and sweet with just a bit of a kick, and others will peel the paint off a new car. My peppers were medium on the burn scale, but it was still important to be in control. That usually means frequently washing your hands while handling the peppers as well as using a fan to ventilate the fumes. Usually, that's what that means. But I was in a hurry. So I went about slicing, deseeding, and chopping the peppers into little bitty pieces.
Half way through this process I noticed my left hand was tingling. Instead of washing it, I decided to speed things up. As the tingling increased to a noticeable irritation, skin turning red and that sort of thing, I worked even faster. Then I noticed an uncomfortable burning sensation in my throat, my nose feeling a little funny, and my eyes tearing up. But instead of turning on the fan, I rushed through the last of the chopping, gathered everything up, and dumped the load into my simmering concoction.
I smiled as tears rolled down my cheeks and said, "It is good." Then suddenly something happened I had not planned on. I sneezed. One of those great big, from deep in your lungs kind of sneezes. And instantly I realized what a dragon would feel like as the molten, skin-searing blast from the fiery depths of hell had just exploded through its nostrils.
It's hard to describe the intensity of the burning I felt just then, mainly because I lost control. I grabbed a glass of water and threw it on my face. No help at all. I decided to stop breathing entirely, but that was only temporary relief. Then I got my handkerchief and blew my nose. I'm not exactly sure why I did that, especially since it simply re-ignited the fire.
Finally, as a last ditch effort, I hurried to the fridge. (At this point I would like to thank my Heavenly Father for allowing us to have one that makes ice, not in cubes, but in long, more oval shapes.) Reaching into the freezer I grabbed two rods of ice and shoved them up my nose. They were a little large but I didn't care because the burning stopped. I then retired to a comfortable chair in the den, a shaft of melting ice protruding from each nostril. Might as well, seeing as I was in no shape to cook at the moment.
What occurred to me , as I contemplated what had just happened, was while all the time I thought I was in control, it certainly didn't take long to completely lose it. One minute I'm chopping and stirring, the next I'm running around the kitchen with ice up my nose. Where did it all go wrong? Ah...when I became satisfied with my own ability.
We often do that as Christians. Instead of looking to God to provide His ability to exercise control, we forget about Him and try to make it in life relying on our own. It doesn't work. There are too many things this world can throw at us. Too many frustrations and irritations; too many disappointments and broken dreams. Anger, fear, anxiety, pain, sorrow, confusion...there's just too much. But not for God!
I know what it is to be in need and what it is to have more than enough. I have learned this secret, so that anywhere, at any time, I am content, whether I am full or hungry, whether I have too much or too little. I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me.
Philippians 4:12-13 (TEV)
Let God be in control. He will give us the strength to face it all. And in that, there is great peace.
.....Chuck as seen in "A Note of Encouragement" by way of Cup O'Cheer (cheer316@sc.rr.com) and "Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
We continue to reach out to as many people as we possibly can and wherever we can, but we need your help to do that.
Please, please send us email addresses of people we can contact and "Invite" to try "Christian Voices".
We make sure that each individual email address is contacted only once.
We do not keep any record of who sends us what addresses so your confidentiality is always maintained.
Help us contact as many others as we possibly can – keep sending us all the email addresses that you can throughout the whole year.
It is a tremendous help!!!
Please send them to ChristianVoices@att.net
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
Notes, cards, and contributions are always welcome – please send them to “Christian Voices”; P.O. Box 1002; La Vergne, TN 37086.
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
The official web site for "Christian Voices" is
www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net
Please don't be confused by others
who have web sites of similar names.
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
TO SUBSCRIBE
(Click-on the appropriate link or type that entire web address in your browser.)
For Yahoo addresses: http://mail.family-safe-mail.com/SubscribePages/CV-subscribe-yahoo.html
For All Other Addresses: http://mail.family-safe-mail.com/SubscribePages/CV-subscribe.htmlTO VISIT THE "CHRISTIAN VOICES" WEB SITE
www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net
You are subscribes from %%emailaddress%%
To leave Christian voices Cl;ick Unsubscribe me from this list