Daddy's Empty Chair

A man's daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father.
When the minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows.

An empty chair sat beside his bed.
The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.

'I guess you were expecting me, he said.

'No, who are you?' said the father.

The minister told him his name and then remarked,
'I saw the empty chair and 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 minister shut the door.

'I have 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 went right over my head.'
I abandoned any attempt at prayer,' the old man continued, '
until one day four years ago, my best friend said to me,

'Johnny, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus.

Here is what I suggest.
'Sit down in 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 will be with you always'.

'Then just speak to him 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 minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old man to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil, and returned to the church.

Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her daddy had died that afternoon..

Did he die in peace?' he asked.

Yes, when I left the house about two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside,
told me he loved me and kissed me on the cheek.

When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him .
But there was something strange about his death.

Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair
beside the bed. What do you make of that?'

The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, 'I wish we could all go like that.'

Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive.

I asked God for water, He gave me an ocean.
I asked God for a flower, He gave me a garden.
I asked God for a friend, He gave me all of YOU....
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.

Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

An Effective Prayer

"Loving Lord and heavenly Father,
I offer up today
all that I am,
all that I have, all that I do,
and all that I suffer,
to be Yours today and Yours forever.
Give me grace, Lord,
to do all that I know of Your holy will.
Purify my heart,
sanctify my thinking,
correct my desires.
Teach me,
in all of today's work and trouble and joy,
to respond with honest praise,
simple trust,
and instant obedience,
that my life may be in truth a living sacrifice,
by the power of Your Holy Spirit
and in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ,
my Master and my all. Amen."
~Prayer by Elisabeth Elliot

Sometimes, we get so overwhelmed by the many troubles we have that we want to surrender. When this time happens, take a moment to be silent and cleanse your thoughts and then say a little prayer to calm your soul.

Whenever Trouble Comes Your Way

Whenever trouble comes your way let it be an opportunity for joy.

For when your faith is tested your endurance has a chance to grow.

So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed you will be strong in character

and ready for anything. If you need wisdom - if you want to know what God wants you to do

ask him and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking.

James 1:2-6

Some Learnings In Life

1) Be kind to yourself.

2) Looking good is feeling good inside.

3) You're not out to please everybody.

4) Expect little but do your best and dream big.

5) Smiling is healthy.

6) Laugh your heart out, be silly.

7) Live light and keep it simple.

8) Failure is a good starting point.

9) You're blessed, don't forget to say Thank You.

10) There is always time for everything. God answers.

Shopping for X-mas!

That time of the year again is fast approaching where we are all so generous and want to make everyone happy. Yes I am talking about Christmas and Christmas shopping because some of us are already making their list of the gifts they want to buy for their loved ones.

There is a new place on the web that is perfect for shopping and sale addicts, Shopwiki.com. They catalog everything and anything for sale on the net regardless if they are an advertiser or not. On sale items starts from $1 and items could range from clothing items, to electronics, games and even home and garden equipment.

With all those very awesome sale items at Shopwiki.com a shopper can get overwhelmed, but never fret because they have a buying guide and gift guide page to help any shopper pick out the perfect item they are looking for.