Jesus Lives 6
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SHMILY
From the pen of the prolific writer "anonymous",
I share with you this touching story:
My grandparents were married for over half a
century, and played their own special game from
the time they had met each other. The goal of
their game was to write the word "shmily" in a
surprise place for the other to find. They took
turns leaving "shmily" around the house, and as
soon as one of them discovered it, it was their
turn to hide it once more. They dragged "shmily"
with their fingers through the sugar and flour
containers to await whoever was preparing the
next meal. They smeared it in the dew on the
windows overlooking the patio where my grandma
always fed us warm, homemade pudding with blue
food coloring.
"Shmily" was written in the steam left on the
mirror after a hot shower, where it would
reappear bath after bath. At one point, my
grandmother even unrolled an entire roll of
toilet paper to leave "shmily" on the very last
sheet. There was no end to the places "shmily"
would pop up. Little notes with "shmily" scribbled
hurriedly were found on dashboards and car seats,
or taped to steering wheels. The notes were
stuffed inside shoes and left under pillows.
"Shmily" was written in the dust upon the mantel
and traced in the ashes of the fireplace. This
mysterious word was as much a part of my
grandparents' house as the furniture. It took me
a long time before I was able to fully appreciate
my grandparent's game.
Skepticism has kept me from believing in true love
one that is pure and enduring. However, I never
doubted my grandparents' relationship. They had
love down pat. It was more than their flirtatious
little games; it was a way of life. Their
relationship was based on a devotion and passionate
affection which not everyone is lucky enough to
experience. Grandma and Grandpa held hands every
chance they could. They stole kisses as they
bumped into each other in their tiny kitchen.
They finished each other's sentences and shared
the daily crossword puzzle and word jumble. My
grandma whispered to me about how cute my grandpa
was, how handsome an old man he had grown to be.
She claimed that she really knew "how to pick' em."
Before every meal they bowed heads and gave
thanks, marveling at their blessings: a wonderful
family, good fortune, and each other. But there
was a dark cloud in my grandparents' life: my
grandmother had breast cancer. The disease had
first appeared 10 years earlier. As always,
Grandpa was with her every step of the way. He
comforted her in their yellow room, painted that
color so she could always be surrounded by sunshine,
even when she was too sick to go outside. Now the
cancer was once again attacking her body. With
the help of a cane and my grandfather's steady hand,
they still went to church every Sunday morning.
But my grandmother grew steadily weaker until,
finally, she could not leave the house anymore.
For a while, Grandpa would go to church alone,
praying to God to watch over his wife. Then one
day, what we all dreaded finally happened.
Grandma was gone.
"Shmily." It was scrawled in yellow on the pink
ribbons of my grandmother's funeral bouquet. As
the crowd thinned and the last mourners turned to
leave, my aunts, uncles, cousins, and other
family members came forward and gathered around
Grandma one last time. Grandpa stepped up to my
grandmother's casket and, taking a shaky breath,
he began to sing to her. Through his tears and
grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby.
Shaking with my own sorrow, I will never forget
that moment. For I knew then that, although I
couldn't begin to fathom the depth of their love,
I had been privileged to witness its unmatched
beauty. S-h-m-i-l-y: See How Much I Love You.
Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for letting me
see. What a beautiful story! And what a valuable
lesson is contained here about the importance of
true and lasting love in a marriage relationship.
But allow me to head in a different direction for
just a moment. When Jesus was crucified, a sign
was posted above his head which said, "This is
Jesus the King of the Jews". That sign was posted
by Pilate. Had God posted the sign, it would have
been appropriate for it to say, "Shimly".
For indeed the cross shows us just how much love
God had for us. "In this the love of God was
manifested toward us, that God has sent His only
begotten Son into the world, that we might live
through Him." (I John 4:9). "But God demonstrates
His own love toward us, in that while we were
still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)
If you ever question God's love for you, take a
close look at the cross and listen as God says to us,
"See How Much I Love You".
Author Unknown
FROM KIDS
THE FAMILY BIBLE
A little boy opened the big and old family
Bible with fascination, and looked at the old
pages as he turned them. Suddenly, something
fell out of the Bible, and he picked it up and
looked at it closely. It was an old leaf from a
tree that had been pressed in between the pages.
"Momma, look what I found," the boy called out.
"What have you got there, dear?" his mother asked.
With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he
answered: "I think it's Adam's suit!"
THE PREACHER
The preacher was wired for sound with a lapel
mike, and as he preached, he moved briskly about
the platform, jerking the mike cord as he went.
Then he moved to one side, getting wound up in
the cord and nearly tripping before jerking it
again. After several circles and jerks, a little
girl in the third pew leaned toward her mother
and whispered, "If he gets loose,
will he hurt us?"
SHHHHHHH!
Six-year-old Angie and her four-year-old brother
Joel were sitting together in church. Joel
giggled, sang, and talked out loud. Finally, his
big sister had had enough. "You're not supposed
to talk out loud in church." "Why? Who's going
to stop me?" Joel asked. Angie pointed to the
back of the church and said, "See those two men
standing by the door? They're hushers."
Authors Unknown
THE TREASURE
The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was
almost five. Waiting with her mother at the
checkout stand, she saw them: a circle of glistening
white pearls in a pink foil box. "Oh please, Mommy.
Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please!"
Quickly, the mother checked the back of the
little foil box and then looked back into the
pleading blue eyes of her little girl's
upturned face. "A dollar ninety-five. That's
almost $2.00!" If you really want them, I'll
think of some extra chores for you and in no
time you can save enough money to buy them
for yourself. Your birthday's only a week
away and you might get another crisp dollar
bill from Grandma."
As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her
penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After
dinner, she did more than her share of chores
and she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs.
McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents.
On her birthday, Grandma did give her another
new dollar bill and at last she had enough
money to buy the necklace. Jenny loved her
pearls. They made her feel dressed up and
grown up. She wore them everywhere--Sunday
school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only
time she took them off was when she went
swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if
they got wet, they might turn her neck green.
Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night
when she was ready for bed, he would stop
whatever he was doing and come upstairs to
read her a story. One night when he finished
the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?"
"Oh yes, Daddy. You know that I love you."
"Then give me your pearls." "Oh, Daddy, not
my pearls. But you can have Princess--the
white horse from my collection. The one with
the pink tail. Remember, Daddy? The one you
gave me. She's my favorite." "That's okay,
Honey, Daddy loves you. Good night." And he
brushed her cheek with a kiss.
About a week later, after the story time,
Jenny's daddy asked again, "Do you love me?"
"Daddy, you know I love you." "Then give me
your pearls." "Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But
you can have my babydoll. The brand new one
I got for my birthday. She is so beautiful
and you can have the yellow blanket that
matches her sleeper." "That's okay. Sleep
well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves
you." And as always, he brushed her cheek
with a gentle kiss.
A few nights later when her daddy came in,
Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs
crossed Indian-style. As he came close, he
noticed her chin was trembling and one silent
tear rolled down her cheek. "What is it,
Jenny? What's the matter?" Jenny didn't
say anything but lifted her little hand
up to her daddy. And when she opened it,
there was her little pearl necklace. With a
little quiver, she finally said, "Here, Daddy.
It's for you." With tears gathering in his own
eyes, Jenny's kind daddy reached out with one
hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with
the other hand he reached into his pocket and
pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of
genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny. He
had had them all the time. He was just waiting
for her to give up the dime-store stuff so
he could give her genuine treasure.
So like our Heavenly Father.
What are you hanging on to?
Author Unknown
HEAVEN'S GROCERY STORE
I was walking down life's highway a long
time ago. One day I saw a sign that read,
"HEAVEN'S GROCERY STORE. As I got a little
closer the door came open wide, and when I
came to myself I was standing inside. I saw
a host of ANGELS. They were standing
everywhere. One handed me a basket and said,
"My Child shop with care."
Everything a Christian needed was in that
grocery store. And all you couldn't carry,
you could come back the next day for more.
First, I got some PATIENCE. LOVE was in the
same row. Further down was UNDERSTANDING: you
need that everywhere you go. I got a box or
two of WISDOM, a bag or two of FAITH. I just
couldn't miss the HOLY GHOST, for it was all
over the place.I stopped to get some STRENGTH
and COURAGE to help me run this race. By
then my basket was getting full, but I
remembered I needed some GRACE. I didn't
forget SALVATION, for SALVATION was free,
so I tried to get enough of that to save
both you and me. Then I started up to the
counter to pay my grocery bill, for I thought
I had everything to do the MASTER'S will. As
I went up the aisle, I saw PRAYER: and I
just had to put that in, for I knew when I
stepped outside, I would run into sin.
Author Unknown
NO TIME
I knelt to pray but not for long,
I had too much to do.
I had to hurry and get to work
For bills would soon be due.
So I knelt and said a hurried prayer,
And jumped up off my knees.
My Christian duty was now done
My soul could rest at ease.
All day long I had no time
To spread a word of cheer.
No time to speak of Christ to friends,
They'd laugh at me I'd fear.
No time, no time, too much to do,
That was my constant cry,
No time to give to souls in need
But at last the time to die.
I went before the Lord, I came,
I stood with downcast eyes.
For in his hands God held a book;
It was the book of life.
God looked into his book and said
"Your name I cannot find.
I once was going to write it down...
But never found the time."
Author Unknown
THE BIBLE IN 50 WORDS
--------------------------
God made
Adam bit
Noah arked
Abraham split
Joseph ruled
Jacob fooled
Bush talked
Moses balked
Pharaoh plagued
People walked
Sea divided
Tablets guided
Promise landed
Saul freaked
David peeked
Prophets warned
Jesus born
God walked
Love talked
Anger crucified
Hope died
Love rose
Spirit flamed
Word spread
God remained.
Author Unknown
WHEN I SAY . . . I AM A CHRISTIAN
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I'm not shouting I am saved."
I'm whispering "I get lost,
That is why I chose this way."
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble
and need someone to be my guide.
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I am weak
and pray for the strength to carry on.
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed
and cannot ever pay the debt.
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I'm not claiming to be perfect.
My flaws are too visible
but God believes I'm worth it.
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches
which is why I seek HIS name.
When I say . . . I am a Christian
I do not wish to judge.
I have no authority
I only know I am loved.
Author: Carol Wimmer
THE LITTLE GIRL
A 4-year-old was brought to the ER with a
severe cough. She kept up a non-stop
conversation while a nurse was trying to
assess her lung sounds.
Finally, the nurse said, "Shhh, I have to see
if Barney is in there." The child looked at her
and calmly stated, "I have Jesus in my heart...
Barney is on my underwear!"
Author Unknown
THE FLOWER GARDEN
A few weeks ago, Michael (4) was given a
little "flower garden" in a cup. In it was
rich dark potting soil, a perfect growing
environment for the little seed that lay within.
We brought it home and gave it just enough water
and put it in the window to catch the most
sunlight as it grew. And grow it did! We keep
a watchful eye and water it lovingly and really
enjoy this "flower garden"!
Tamara (2), a week or so later, was given the
same "flower garden" that she could grow. When
I looked inside, it looked like dirt that
someone had gotten out of the driveway in a
hurry, full of rocks and very choppy and dry.
I was not even sure that there was a seed in
this cup. I held out little hope that we would
have as much luck with this garden as with
Michael's. I had Tamara try to help me water
it. The first try was ok. We got enough in
there to wet the soil nicely. Then, in her
two-year-old exuberance, she poured the
remaining water into the cup. It filled the
entire cup. I poured what excess water off that
I could and sat it in the same window as the
other. We still put water into it for the next
few days, but we did it mainly to appease
Tamara because Michael got to water his plant.
My husband was helping Tamara water hers one
day and said, "Could this be a plant?" We
looked, but weren't sure. A few days later,
it was confirmed. Although very tiny in
comparison to Michael's, there was indeed a
little sprout growing out of this garden of
such poor beginnings.
We are enjoying this flower garden just as
much as Michael's now! I didn't hold out any
hope that it would happen, but I have learned
that some of us are given wonderful potting
soil in which to grow and thrive. We are given
just the right nurturing care and we grow
strong and tall. There are others who begin
their journey here in the poorest of
circumstances. Their soil is used, old, and
full of rocks and sand. Sometimes, they are
given a tremendous blow (i.e., too much water
more than once), but still, they grow. They
don't grow as quickly or as tall, but they grow.
They show their strength. They are still given
loving sunshine from our Father.
We, too, must remember that, though we may
have been given the good soil or maybe even
the bad, we can still make the best of our
circumstances and grow and be strong. Heavenly
Father's love is not selective. He loves us all
so much and, if we do our part, he will bless
us tremendously. May we all remember those around
us and help them to grow.
Author: Sylvia E. Reed
Page 7
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