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Jon 2: 1-2  "From deep inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God:
Jon 2:2 "In my distress, O LORD, I called to you, and you answered me. From deep in the world of the dead I cried for help, and you heard me. "

Good Reading 28

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"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at the next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the mpurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire.

If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it."

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We walked Side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels.

My angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, "This is the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received."

I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from people all over the world. Then we moved on down a long corridor til we reached the second section.

The angel then said to me, "This is the Packaging and Delivery Section. Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and delivered to the living persons who asked for them." I noticed again how busy it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since many blessings had been requested and being packaged for delivery to Earth.

Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the door of a small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated there, doing nothing. "This is the Acknowledgment Section," my angel friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed. "How is it that? There's no work going on here?" I asked.

"So sad," the angel sighed. "After people receive the blessings that they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments.

• "How does one acknowledge God's blessings?" I asked.
• "Simple," the angel answered. "Just say, "Thank you, Lord"
• "What blessings should they acknowledge?" I asked.

"If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep .. you are richer than 75% of this world."

"If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy."

"And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the world who has that opportunity."

"If you woke up this morning with more health than illness …..you are more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day."

"If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation … you are ahead of 700 million people in the world"

"If you can attend a church meeting without the fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death . you are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people in the world."

"If your parents are still alive and still married .. you are very rare."

"If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm, you are unique to all those in doubt and despair."

"Ok, what now? How can I start?"

Author Unknown

Sometimes we wonder, "What did I do to deserve this?" or "Why did God have to do this to me?" Here is a wonderful explanation! A daughter is telling her Mother how everything is going wrong, she's failing algebra, her boyfriend broke up with her and her best friend is moving away.

Meanwhile, her Mother is baking a cake and asks her daughter if she would like a snack, and the daughter says, "Absolutely Mom, I love your cake."

"Here, have some cooking oil," her Mother offers. "Yuck" says her daughter.

"How about a couple raw eggs?" "Gross, Mom!"

"Would you like some flour then? Or maybe baking soda?" "Mom, those are all yucky!"

To which the mother replies: "Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves. But when they are put together in the right way, they make a wonderfully delicious cake!

God works the same way. Many times we wonder why He would let us go through such bad and difficult times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good! We just have to trust Him and, eventually, they will all make something wonderful!

God is crazy about you. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning.

Whenever you want to talk, He'll listen. He can live anywhere in the universe, and He chose your heart.

If you like this, send this on to the people you really care about. I did.

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance.

Author unknown

What is enough?

Recently I overheard a mother and daughter in their last moments together at the airport.

They had announced the departure. Standing near the security gate, they hugged and the mother said "I love you and I wish you enough".

The daughter replied, "Mom, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Mom".

They kissed and the daughter left. The mother walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see she wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on her privacy but she welcomed me in by asking "Did you ever say goodbye to someone knowing it would be forever?"

"Yes, I have," I replied.

"Forgive me for asking but why is this a forever goodbye?"

"I am old and she lives so far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is the next trip back will be for my funeral" she said.

"When you were saying goodbye, I heard you say 'I wish you enough'. May I ask what that means?"

. She began to smile. "That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone". She paused a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail she smiled even more. "When we said 'I wish you enough' we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them".

Then turning toward me she shared the following as if she were reciting it from memory…..

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.

I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

She then began to cry and walked away.

They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them.

TAKE TIME TO LIVE…. To all my friends and loved ones, I WISH YOU ENOUGH

GOD:  Angels, do you know what I was just thinking about?

ANGELS:  What were you thinking about?

GOD:  Christians seem to have forgotten what kind of power they have available and the devil keeps on deceiving them.

ANGELS:  God, exactly what are you driving at?

GOD:  I have made my children in such a way that when the people of the world is sitting, they would be standing, when the world is standing, they will stand out, when the world stands out, my children must be outstanding and when the devil dares the world to be outstanding, my people will be the standards to be used.

JESUS:  They (Christians) are also forgetting the words in Ephesians 1:3

GOD:  Please read it out.

ANGEL:  PRAISE BE TO THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, WHO HAS BLESSED US IN THE HEAVENLY PLACES WITH EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN CHRIST

ANGEL:  So what do we do now since the end is almost near?

HOLY SPIRIT:  My presence is still among men and I will teach and remind the Christians of all that we have discussed. I will also make sure that they pass this message on. JESUS: I will also keep on interceding for them and stand in for them even in their weaknesses.

GOD:  I will also make sure that I give to all those who ask of me, seek me and try to find me. The blessings I have promised them through my son Jesus Christ will be delivered to all those who discover that I, Jehovah, I am ready to bless them. Not because of any special things that they have done, but just because I LOVE THEM.

JESUS:  I will also give all my followers who are willing to pass this conversation on, enough strength to carry on.

ANGELS:  We are all backing THE TRINITY and even the devil cannot stop us. How funny. Christians are finally taking over and……

DEVIL (eavesdropping behind the gates):  I hope you all heard. I will deploy more troops (demons) and make sure the Christians pray less, read their Bibles less, preach less and make sure this mail does not move anywhere Also….

This is how the story goes….

A few weeks ago a woman teacher was killed in an auto accident. She was very, very well liked, so the school systems shut down for her funeral and it was on the news and so on. On the day the workers came back to work, they found this poem in their e-mail that the deceased woman had sent on Friday before She left for home.

If tomorrow starts without me, And I'm not there to see, If the sun should rise and find your eyes all filled with tears for me.

I wish so much you wouldn't cry the way you did today, While thinking of the many things, We didn't get to say.

I know how much you love me, As much as I love you, And each time that you think of me, I know you'll miss me too, But when tomorrow starts without me, Please try to understand.

That an angel came and called my name, And took me by the hand, And said my place was ready, In heaven far above, And that I'd have to leave behind; All those I dearly love.

But as I turned to walk away, A tear fell from my eye for all my life, I'd always thought, I didn't want to die.

I had so much to live for, So much left yet to do, It seemed almost impossible, That I was leaving you.

I thought of all the yesterdays, The good ones and the bad, I thought of all that we shared, And all the fun we had.

If I could relive yesterday, Just even for a while, I'd say good-bye and kiss you and maybe see you smile.

But then I fully realized, That this could never be, For emptiness and memories, would take the place of me.

And when I thought of worldly things, I might miss come tomorrow, I thought of you, and when I did, My heart was filled with sorrow.

But when I walked through heaven's gates, I felt so much at home.

When God looked down and smiled at me, From His great golden throne, He said, "This is eternity, And all I've promised you."

Today your life on earth is past, but here life starts anew.

I promise no tomorrow, But today will always last, and since each day's the same way, There's no longing for the past.

You have been so faithful, So trusting and so true.

Though there were times you did some things, You knew you shouldn't do.

But you have been forgiven, and now at last you're free.

So won't you come and take my hand, and share my life with me?

So when tomorrow starts without me, don't think we're far apart, For every time you think of me, I'm right here, in your heart.

A young, new preacher was walking with an older, more seasoned preacher in the garden one day. Feeling a bit insecure about what God had for him to do, he was asking the older preacher for some advice.

The older preacher walked up to a rose bush and handed the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing any of the petals.

The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older preacher and was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting to know the will of God for his life and ministry. But, because of his great respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to try and unfold the rosebud while keeping every petal intact. . It wasn't long before he realized how impossible this was to do.

Noticing the young preacher's inability to unfold the rosebud without tearing it, the older preacher began to recite the following poem:

It is only a tiny rosebud
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine.

The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so sweetly,
Then, in my hands, they die.

If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
The flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?

So, I'll trust in Him for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to Him for His guidance
Each step of the Pilgrim's way.

The pathway that lies before me
Only my Heavenly Father knows.
I'll trust him to unfold the moments,
Just as He unfolds the rose.