United State's Map

A father wanted to read a magazine but was being bothered by his little girl, Shelby. She wanted to know what the United States looked like. Finally, he tore a sheet out of his new magazine on which was printed the map of the country. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to Shelby, and said, "Go into the other room and see if you can put this together.This will show you our whole country today. After a few minutes,Shelby returned and handed him the map, correctly fitted and taped together. The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly. "Oh," she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged,then our country just came together."

Do You Love Me?

One day I woke early in the morning to watch the sunrise.Ah, the beauty of God's creation is beyond description.As I watched, I praised God for His beautiful work.As I sat there, the Lord brought His Presence on me.He asked me,"Do you love me?" I answered,"Of course, God! you are my Lord and my Savior!"Then He asked,"If you were physically handicapped, would you still love me?"
I was perplexed. I looked down upon my arms, legs, and the rest of my body;And wondered how many things I wouldn't be able to do - The things that I took for granted.
And I answered,"It would be tough, Lord, but I would still love You."Then the Lord said,"If you were blind, would you still love My creation?"
How could I love something without being able to see it?
Then I thought of all the blind people in the world,And how many of them still loved God and His creation.So I answered,"It's hard to think of it, but I would still love You."The Lord then asked me,"If you were deaf, would you still listen to My Word?"
How could I listen to anything, being deaf?
Then I understood. Listening to God's Word is not merely using our ears, but our hearts.I answered,"it would be tough, but I would still listen to Your Word."The Lord then asked,"If you were mute, would you still praise My Name?"
How could I praise without a voice?
Then it occurred to me,God wants us to sing from our very heart and soul.It never matters what we sound like.And praising God is not always with a song,But also when we are persecuted.We give God praise with our words of thanks.So I answered,"Though I could not physically sing, I would still praise Your Name."And the Lord asked,"Do you really love Me?"With courage and a strong conviction, I answered boldly,"Yes Lord, I love You, because You are the One and True God!"I thought I had answered well, but God asked,"Then why do you sin?"I answered,"Because I am only human. I am not perfect."
"Then why in times of peace do you stray the furthest?""Why only in times of trouble do you pray the earnest?"
No answer; only tears.
The Lord continued,"Why only sing at fellowships and retreats?Why seek Me only in times of worship?Why ask things so selfishly?Why ask things so unfaithfully?"
The tears continued to roll down my cheek.
"Why are you ashamed of Me?Why are you not spreading the Good News?Why in times of persecution, you cry to others,When I offer you My Shoulder to cry on?Why make excuses, when I give you opportunities to serve in My Name?"
I tried to answer, but there was no answer to give.
"You are blessed with life.I made you not to throw this gift away.I have blessed you with talents to serve Me,But you continue to turn away.I have stretched forth My Word to you, but you do not gain knowledge.I have spoken to you, but your eyes were turned away.I have sent you My servants, but you sat idly by as they were pushed away.I have heard your prayers, and have answered them all."
"Do you truly love Me?"
I could not answer. How could I?I was embarrassed beyond belief. I had no excuse.What could I say to this?When my heart had cried out, and the tears had flowed, I said,"Please forgive me, Lord. I am unworthy to be Your child.
The Lord answered,"That is My Grace, My child."
I asked,"Why do You continue to forgive me?Why do You love me so?"
The Lord answered,"Because you are My creation; you are My child. I will never abandon you.When you cry, I will have compassion and cry with you.When you scream in joy, I will laugh with you.When you are down, I will encourage you.When you fall, I will raise you up.When you are tired, I will carry you.I will be with you ‘til the end of the days, and I will love you forever."
Never had I cried so hard before.How could I have been so cold?How could I have hurt God as I had done?I asked God,"How much do You love me?"
And the Lord stretched out His Arms,As they were nailed to the cross.I bowed down at the Feet of Christ, my Savior. And for the first time,I truly prayed.
The question is: Do we love Him? Do you love Him? Do I love Him?
Author Unknown

This Will Give You Chills

No matter how religious you may ormay not be, this can give you chills. Phil. 4:13 states: "I can doall things through Christ which strengthen me......" Here's the story: A young man who had been raised as an atheist was training to be an Olympic diver. The only religious influence in his life came from his outspoken Christian friend. The young diver never really paid much attention to his friend's sermons, but he heard them often.One night the diver went to the indoor pool at the college he attended. The lights were all off, but as the pool had big skylights and the moon was bright, there was plenty of light to practice by.The young man climbed up to the highest diving board and as he turned his back to the pool on the edge of the board and extended his arms out, he saw his shadow on the wall. The shadow of his body, was in the shape of a cross. The man felt a strange feeling, like someone was speaking to him. Instead of diving, he knelt down and finally asked God to come into his life. As the young man stood, a maintenance man walked in and turned the lights on. The pool had been drained ! for repairs.

The Little Old Lady

There was a little old lady, who every morning. stepped onto her front porch, raised her arms to the sky, and shouted: "PRAISE THE LORD!" One day an atheist moved into the house next door. He became irritated at the little old lady. Every morning he'd step onto his front porch after her and yell: "THERE IS NO LORD!" Time passed with the two of them carrying on this way every day.One morning, in the middle of winter, the little old lady stepped onto her front porch and shouted: "PRAISE THE LORD! Please Lord, I have no food and I am starving, provide for me, oh Lord! The next morning she stepped out onto her porch and there were two huge bags of groceries sitting there. "PRAISE THE LORD!" she cried out. "HE HAS PROVIDED GROCERIES FOR ME!"The atheist neighbor jumped out of the hedges and shouted:"THERE IS NO LORD; I BOUGHT THOSE GROCERIES!!"The little old lady threw her arms into the air and shouted: "PRAISE THE LORD! HE HAS PROVIDED ME WITH GROCERIES AND MADE THE DEVIL PAY FOR THEM!"

Baptizing A Drunk

A man is stumbling through the woods, totally drunk, when he comes upon a preacher baptizing people in the river.He proceeds to walk into the water and subsequently bumps into the preacher. The preacher turns around and is almost overcome by the smell of alcohol, whereupon he asks the drunk, "Are you ready to find Jesus?"The drunk answers, "Yes, I am." So the preacher grabs him and dunks him in the water.He pulls him up and asks the drunk,"Brother, have you found Jesus?"The drunk replies, "No, I haven't found Jesus."The preacher, shocked at the answer, dunks him into the water again for a little longer.He again pulls him out of the water and asks again, "Have you found Jesus, my brother?"The drunk again answers, "No, I haven't found Jesus."By this time the preacher is at his wits end and dunks the drunk in the water again -- - but this time holds him downfor about 30 seconds and when he begins kicking his arms and legs he pulls him up.The preacher again asks the drunk, "For the love of God, have you found Jesus?"The drunk wipes his eyes and catches his breath and says to the preacher,*****"Are you sure this is where he fell in?"