The Rabbi's Gift
A monastery had fallen upon hard times.
Once a great order, cultural changes over the past few hundred
years had sapped its strength. All of its branch houses were
closed and there were only five monks left in the decaying
mother house: the abbot and four others, all over 70 years of
age. Clearly it was a dying order.
In the deep woods surrounding the monastery there was a little
hut that a rabbi from a nearby town occasionally used for a
hermitage. The monks could always sense when the rabbi was in
the woods, and during one such visit it occurred to the abbot to
pay the rabbi a visit and to ask if he might have some advice
that could save the monastery.
The rabbi welcomed the abbot at his hut. But when the abbot
explained the purpose of his visit, the rabbi could only
commiserate with him. "I know how it is," he said. "The spirit
has gone out of the people. It is the same in my town. Almost
no one comes to the synagogue anymore."
So the old men wept together. They read parts of sacred
scriptures and spoke quietly of deep things. When the abbot
finally rose to leave, they embraced, and he asked again:
"Is there nothing you can tell me to help me save my dying
order?" "No, I am sorry," the rabbi responded. "I have no advice
to give.
The only thing I can say is that one of you is the Messiah."
When the abbot returned to the monastery, his fellow monks
gathered around him to ask, "Well, what did the rabbi say?"
"He couldn't help," the abbot answered. "We just wept and read
holy scriptures together. Although, just as I was leaving, he
did say something rather strange. He said that the Messiah is
one of us. I don't know what he meant."
In the days and weeks that followed, the old monks pondered this
and wondered whether there was any possible significance to the
rabbi's words.
The Messiah is one of us? Could he possibly have meant one of
us monks here at the monastery? If that's the case, which one?
Do you suppose he meant the abbot? Yes, if he meant anyone, he
probably meant Father Abbot. On the other hand, he might have
meant Brother Thomas. Certainly Brother Thomas is a holy man.
He surely could not have meant Brother Eldred! Eldred is always
so crotchety. Though, come to think of it, Eldred is virtually
always right. Often very right. Maybe the rabbi did mean
Brother Eldred.
But certainly not Brother Phillip. Phillip is so passive, a
real nobody. But then, almost mysteriously, he has a gift for
somehow always being there for you when you need him. Maybe
Phillip is the Messiah.
Of course the rabbi didn't mean me, each of them thought in turn
about themselves. He couldn't possibly have meant me. I'm just
an ordinary person. Yet suppose he did? Suppose I am the Messiah?
O, God, not me, each thought. I couldn't be that much for the
others,
Could I?
As they each contemplated in this manner, the old monks began to
treat each other with extraordinary respect on the off chance
that one among them might be the Messiah. And on the off, off
chance that each monk himself might be the Messiah, they began
to treat themselves with extraordinary respect.
It so happened that people still occasionally came to visit the
monastery, to picnic on its green lawn, to wander along its many
paths, even to sit in the old chapel to meditate. As they did
so, without even being conscious of it, they sensed this aura of
extraordinary respect that now began to surround the five old
monks and seemed to radiate out from them and permeate the
atmosphere of the place.
Hardly knowing why, they began to come back to the monastery
more frequently to picnic, to play, to pray.
They began to bring their friends to show them this special
place. And their friends brought their friends.
Then it happened that some of the younger visitors started to
talk more and more with the old monks.
After awhile, one asked if he could join them.
Then another. And another.
Within a few years, the monastery had once again become a
thriving order and thanks to the rabbi's gift, a vibrant
community of spirituality and light.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
The Virus
The Virus
Two men were diagnosed with a deadly virus. They were told that
the cure would change their life forever. Their families might
disown them, and friends could turn their backs on them.
One man decided to decline the offer; he didn't want to be left
out of anything. At first everything seemed ok. He drank with
his friends and family and ignored what the doctors said.
Time went past and life took a turn for the worst. The virus
began to consume his life. He had to quit his job and lost his
source of income. The people he called friends didn't help,
they told him it was his problem not theirs. Everyday was a
struggle for life. His days were long and painful. On his
deathbed his last words were, I should've taken the cure.
The other man decided to take the cure.
From then on his life changed. His family betrayed him, and
said it was a waste of money. They didn't talk to him anymore
because they didn't believe in what he was doing. His friends
left because he couldn't do all the stuff he used to do. At
first he cursed the doctors for the way people were treating
him.
After time he began to get better. He was getting promoted
because he was able to focus on his job. His family apologized
for the way they treated him. He got new friends that helped
him daily. Life to him was a gift. He thanked God daily that
he decided to take that cure.
That virus is like our problems.
If we hold on to them and ignore them they will begin to consume
us. They will take over our life and no matter what we do, we
won't be able to get rid of them.
If we give our problems to God he can heal us.
He is the cure for any problem we might have.
Yes we might be treated differently, but in the end we can say
thank you God.
Two men were diagnosed with a deadly virus. They were told that
the cure would change their life forever. Their families might
disown them, and friends could turn their backs on them.
One man decided to decline the offer; he didn't want to be left
out of anything. At first everything seemed ok. He drank with
his friends and family and ignored what the doctors said.
Time went past and life took a turn for the worst. The virus
began to consume his life. He had to quit his job and lost his
source of income. The people he called friends didn't help,
they told him it was his problem not theirs. Everyday was a
struggle for life. His days were long and painful. On his
deathbed his last words were, I should've taken the cure.
The other man decided to take the cure.
From then on his life changed. His family betrayed him, and
said it was a waste of money. They didn't talk to him anymore
because they didn't believe in what he was doing. His friends
left because he couldn't do all the stuff he used to do. At
first he cursed the doctors for the way people were treating
him.
After time he began to get better. He was getting promoted
because he was able to focus on his job. His family apologized
for the way they treated him. He got new friends that helped
him daily. Life to him was a gift. He thanked God daily that
he decided to take that cure.
That virus is like our problems.
If we hold on to them and ignore them they will begin to consume
us. They will take over our life and no matter what we do, we
won't be able to get rid of them.
If we give our problems to God he can heal us.
He is the cure for any problem we might have.
Yes we might be treated differently, but in the end we can say
thank you God.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Prayer
PRAYER
Of times I pray with words ;
Or else just close my eyes
And listen to rapt birds
Petitioning the skies
With song ;once a deep flood
Of reverence drowned my woes
When a jade-sheathed bud
Unpetaled to a rose .
And when my lips would pray
In a soft-lighted church ,
They found no words to say ;
Strangely ,outside ,a birch ,
So like an angel there
With wings bent to the winds ,
Murmured a truant prayer
My dumb lips could not find .
Bells chiming hymns I knew
Were silvery as the tree
O’ershadowing a pew
Wherein God knelt with me .
Jan Bagwell
Of times I pray with words ;
Or else just close my eyes
And listen to rapt birds
Petitioning the skies
With song ;once a deep flood
Of reverence drowned my woes
When a jade-sheathed bud
Unpetaled to a rose .
And when my lips would pray
In a soft-lighted church ,
They found no words to say ;
Strangely ,outside ,a birch ,
So like an angel there
With wings bent to the winds ,
Murmured a truant prayer
My dumb lips could not find .
Bells chiming hymns I knew
Were silvery as the tree
O’ershadowing a pew
Wherein God knelt with me .
Jan Bagwell
Thursday, April 8, 2010
The Lord is my Shepherd
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.--PS. xxiii. 1.
They that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.--PS. xxxiv. 10.
God, who the universe doth hold
In his fold,
Is my shepherd kind and heedful,
Is my shepherd, and doth keep
Me, his sheep,
Still supplied with all things needful.
Who is it that is your shepherd? The Lord! Oh, my friends, what a wonderful announcement! The Lord God of heaven and earth, the almighty Creator of all things, He who holds the universe in His hand as though it were a very little thing,--HE is your shepherd, and has charged Himself with the care and keeping of you, as a shepherd is charged with the care and keeping of his sheep. If your hearts could really take in this thought, you would never have a fear or a care again; for with such a shepherd, how could it be possible for you ever to want any good thing?
They that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.--PS. xxxiv. 10.
God, who the universe doth hold
In his fold,
Is my shepherd kind and heedful,
Is my shepherd, and doth keep
Me, his sheep,
Still supplied with all things needful.
Who is it that is your shepherd? The Lord! Oh, my friends, what a wonderful announcement! The Lord God of heaven and earth, the almighty Creator of all things, He who holds the universe in His hand as though it were a very little thing,--HE is your shepherd, and has charged Himself with the care and keeping of you, as a shepherd is charged with the care and keeping of his sheep. If your hearts could really take in this thought, you would never have a fear or a care again; for with such a shepherd, how could it be possible for you ever to want any good thing?
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
He walked a mile
He Walked A Mile
Before the threads of time began
was pre-ordained a mighty plan
that is should walk with Him alone
the chords of trust unbroken
but the fate foresaw my wander in eye
that none could yet restrain
to violate the friendship I
would cause so much pain
And every time I close my eyes
I see the nail,
I hear the cries
He did not keep Himself away
He was no stranger to my pain
He walked a mile in my shoes
He walked a mile
feet so dusty cracked with heat
but carried on by love's heartbeat
a man of sorrows filled with grief
Forgiveness was His anthem
No feeble blow from tongue or pen
could ever sway my love for Him
Across the echoed hills He trod
and reached into my world
Before the threads of time began
was pre-ordained a mighty plan
that is should walk with Him alone
the chords of trust unbroken
but the fate foresaw my wander in eye
that none could yet restrain
to violate the friendship I
would cause so much pain
And every time I close my eyes
I see the nail,
I hear the cries
He did not keep Himself away
He was no stranger to my pain
He walked a mile in my shoes
He walked a mile
feet so dusty cracked with heat
but carried on by love's heartbeat
a man of sorrows filled with grief
Forgiveness was His anthem
No feeble blow from tongue or pen
could ever sway my love for Him
Across the echoed hills He trod
and reached into my world
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Creating Your Niche
Every business must have a unique niche if you wish to separate yourself from others to compete in the marketplace. This is especially true if you are competing in an industry that is very crowded with competition and low price is a driving incentive for the customer.
It used to be that a cup of coffee was just a cup of coffee. Then a company came along and completely changed the rules. They violated every marketing rule. They overpriced their product. They changed the language - a small is actually a "tall." A medium is "grande." You get the idea.
Starbucks, the specialty coffee retailer, is one of the great 21st century American success stories. Considered as one of the most successful and admired companies today, Starbucks has grown from a single store begun by a Jewish man in Seattle 33 years ago to 12,000 stores, almost 4,000 of which are in 36 countries outside the U.S. In fiscal 2006, the company posted revenues of more than $8 billion.* Cup by cup, Starbucks has changed the way people drink coffee.
More remarkably, the company successfully transformed a pedestrian commodity into a high-end accessory. It has created a "Starbucks lifestyle" that more people continue to embrace in the United States and abroad. They created community around their product.
If you're thinking about starting a business, or making an existing business better, ask yourself this question: "What's unique about my business or product?"
God created each of us to be unique. Define this uniqueness in your work life and promote it with integrity, and you'll have a good chance for success.
It used to be that a cup of coffee was just a cup of coffee. Then a company came along and completely changed the rules. They violated every marketing rule. They overpriced their product. They changed the language - a small is actually a "tall." A medium is "grande." You get the idea.
Starbucks, the specialty coffee retailer, is one of the great 21st century American success stories. Considered as one of the most successful and admired companies today, Starbucks has grown from a single store begun by a Jewish man in Seattle 33 years ago to 12,000 stores, almost 4,000 of which are in 36 countries outside the U.S. In fiscal 2006, the company posted revenues of more than $8 billion.* Cup by cup, Starbucks has changed the way people drink coffee.
More remarkably, the company successfully transformed a pedestrian commodity into a high-end accessory. It has created a "Starbucks lifestyle" that more people continue to embrace in the United States and abroad. They created community around their product.
If you're thinking about starting a business, or making an existing business better, ask yourself this question: "What's unique about my business or product?"
God created each of us to be unique. Define this uniqueness in your work life and promote it with integrity, and you'll have a good chance for success.
Monday, April 5, 2010
The Blessing of Thorns
The Blessing Of Thorns
=======================
Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes as she pushed
against a November gust and the florist shop door. Her life had
been easy, like a spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of
her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole her
ease.
During this Thanksgiving week she would have delivered a son.
She grieved over her loss. As if that weren't enough, her
husband's company threatened a transfer. Then her sister, whose
annual holiday visit she coveted, called saying she could not
come.
What's worse, Sandra's friend infuriated her by suggesting her
grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to
empathize with others who suffer. "She has no idea what I'm
feeling," thought Sandra with a shudder.
"Thanksgiving? Thankful for what?" she wondered aloud. For a
careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-
ended her? For an airbag that saved her life but took that of
her child?
"Good afternoon, can I help you?"
The shop clerk's approach startled her.
"I....I need an arrangement, "stammered Sandra. "For
Thanksgiving?
Do you want beautiful but ordinary, or would you like to
challenge the day with a customer favorite I call the
Thanksgiving Special?" asked the shop clerk.
"I'm convinced that flowers tell stories," she continued.
"Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this
Thanksgiving?
"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months,
everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. " Sandra
regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the shop clerk
said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."
Then the door's small bell rang, and the shop clerk said, "Hi
Barbara...let me get your order." She politely excused herself
and walked toward a small workroom, then quickly reappeared,
carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and long-stemmed
thorny roses.
Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped...there
were no flowers.
"Want this in a box?" asked the clerk.
Sandra watched for the customer's response. Was this a joke?
Who would want rose stems with no flowers!?! She waited for
laughter, but neither woman laughed. "Yes, please," Barbara
replied with an appreciative smile.
"You'd think after three years of getting the special, I
wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it
right here, all over again," she said as she gently tapped her
chest.
"Uhh," stammered Sandra, "that lady just left with, uhh... she
just left with no flowers!"
"Right...I cut off the flowers. That's the Special... I call
it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet.
"Oh, come on, you can't tell me someone is willing to pay for
that?" exclaimed Sandra.
"Barbara came into the shop three years ago feeling very much
like you feel today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had
very little to be thankful for. She had lost her father to
cancer, the family business was failing, her son was into drugs,
and she was facing major surgery."
"That same year I had lost my husband, "continued the clerk,"
and for the first time in my life, I had to spend the holidays
alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too
great a debt to allow any travel.
"So what did you do?" asked Sandra. "I learned to be thankful
for thorns," answered the clerk quietly. "I've always thanked
God for good things in life and never thought to ask Him why
those good things happened to me, but when bad stuff hit, did I
ever ask! It took time for me to learn that dark times are
important.
I always enjoyed the 'flowers' of life, but it took
thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort. You know, the
Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from
His consolation we learn to comfort others.
"Sandra sucked in her breath as she thought about the very thing
her friend had tried to tell her. "I guess the truth is I don't
want comfort.
I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."
Just then someone else walked in the shop.
"Hey, Phil!" shouted the clerk to the balding, rotund man.
"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement
....twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems!" laughed Phil as the
clerk handed him a tissue-wrapped arrangement from the
refrigerator.
"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra incredulously. "Do you
mind me asking why she wants something that looks like that?
"No...I'm glad you asked," Phil replied. "Four years ago my
wife and I nearly divorced. After forty years, we were in a
real mess, but with the Lord's grace and guidance, we slogged
through problem after problem.
He rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she
kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she learned from
"thorny" times, and that was good enough for me. I took home
some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one
for a specific "problem" and give thanks to Him for what that
problem taught us."
As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend
the Special!"
"I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life."
Sandra said to the clerk. "It's all too... fresh."
"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me
that thorns make roses more precious. We treasure God's
providential care more during trouble than at any other time.
Remember, it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might
know His love. Don't resent the thorns."
Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the
accident, she loosened her grip on resentment. "I'll take those
twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.
"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them
ready in a minute."
"Thank you. What do I owe you?" asked Sandra.
"Nothing." said the clerk.
"Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart. The
first year's arrangement is always on me. "The clerk smiled and
handed a card to Sandra.
"I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you'd like
to read it first."
It read:
"Dear God, I have never thanked you for my thorns. I have
thanked you a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my
thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the
value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to you
along the path of pain.
Show me that, through my tears, the colors of your rainbow look
much more brilliant."
Thank you for inviting Jan Bagwell Ministries in your mail box
=======================
Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes as she pushed
against a November gust and the florist shop door. Her life had
been easy, like a spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of
her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole her
ease.
During this Thanksgiving week she would have delivered a son.
She grieved over her loss. As if that weren't enough, her
husband's company threatened a transfer. Then her sister, whose
annual holiday visit she coveted, called saying she could not
come.
What's worse, Sandra's friend infuriated her by suggesting her
grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to
empathize with others who suffer. "She has no idea what I'm
feeling," thought Sandra with a shudder.
"Thanksgiving? Thankful for what?" she wondered aloud. For a
careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-
ended her? For an airbag that saved her life but took that of
her child?
"Good afternoon, can I help you?"
The shop clerk's approach startled her.
"I....I need an arrangement, "stammered Sandra. "For
Thanksgiving?
Do you want beautiful but ordinary, or would you like to
challenge the day with a customer favorite I call the
Thanksgiving Special?" asked the shop clerk.
"I'm convinced that flowers tell stories," she continued.
"Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this
Thanksgiving?
"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months,
everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. " Sandra
regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the shop clerk
said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."
Then the door's small bell rang, and the shop clerk said, "Hi
Barbara...let me get your order." She politely excused herself
and walked toward a small workroom, then quickly reappeared,
carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and long-stemmed
thorny roses.
Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped...there
were no flowers.
"Want this in a box?" asked the clerk.
Sandra watched for the customer's response. Was this a joke?
Who would want rose stems with no flowers!?! She waited for
laughter, but neither woman laughed. "Yes, please," Barbara
replied with an appreciative smile.
"You'd think after three years of getting the special, I
wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it
right here, all over again," she said as she gently tapped her
chest.
"Uhh," stammered Sandra, "that lady just left with, uhh... she
just left with no flowers!"
"Right...I cut off the flowers. That's the Special... I call
it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet.
"Oh, come on, you can't tell me someone is willing to pay for
that?" exclaimed Sandra.
"Barbara came into the shop three years ago feeling very much
like you feel today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had
very little to be thankful for. She had lost her father to
cancer, the family business was failing, her son was into drugs,
and she was facing major surgery."
"That same year I had lost my husband, "continued the clerk,"
and for the first time in my life, I had to spend the holidays
alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too
great a debt to allow any travel.
"So what did you do?" asked Sandra. "I learned to be thankful
for thorns," answered the clerk quietly. "I've always thanked
God for good things in life and never thought to ask Him why
those good things happened to me, but when bad stuff hit, did I
ever ask! It took time for me to learn that dark times are
important.
I always enjoyed the 'flowers' of life, but it took
thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort. You know, the
Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from
His consolation we learn to comfort others.
"Sandra sucked in her breath as she thought about the very thing
her friend had tried to tell her. "I guess the truth is I don't
want comfort.
I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."
Just then someone else walked in the shop.
"Hey, Phil!" shouted the clerk to the balding, rotund man.
"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement
....twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems!" laughed Phil as the
clerk handed him a tissue-wrapped arrangement from the
refrigerator.
"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra incredulously. "Do you
mind me asking why she wants something that looks like that?
"No...I'm glad you asked," Phil replied. "Four years ago my
wife and I nearly divorced. After forty years, we were in a
real mess, but with the Lord's grace and guidance, we slogged
through problem after problem.
He rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she
kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she learned from
"thorny" times, and that was good enough for me. I took home
some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one
for a specific "problem" and give thanks to Him for what that
problem taught us."
As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend
the Special!"
"I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life."
Sandra said to the clerk. "It's all too... fresh."
"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me
that thorns make roses more precious. We treasure God's
providential care more during trouble than at any other time.
Remember, it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might
know His love. Don't resent the thorns."
Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the
accident, she loosened her grip on resentment. "I'll take those
twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.
"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them
ready in a minute."
"Thank you. What do I owe you?" asked Sandra.
"Nothing." said the clerk.
"Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart. The
first year's arrangement is always on me. "The clerk smiled and
handed a card to Sandra.
"I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you'd like
to read it first."
It read:
"Dear God, I have never thanked you for my thorns. I have
thanked you a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my
thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the
value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to you
along the path of pain.
Show me that, through my tears, the colors of your rainbow look
much more brilliant."
Thank you for inviting Jan Bagwell Ministries in your mail box
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