Take My Son

This week I do not want to share of my thoughts but I want to publish this beautiful story, which author is unknown, but I am sure it will speak hips into your heart. It is a bit long but worthy every word of it. I want you to take everything so this is why I am sharing with you this:

"A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.

When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.

About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.

He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly.

He often talked about you, and your love for art." The young man held out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."

The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. "Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift."

The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.

On the platform sat the painting of the son The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?"

There was silence.

Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the
famous paintings. Skip this one."

But the auctioneer persisted. "Will somebody bid for this painting. Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?"

Another voice angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"

But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?"

Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the

long time gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the
painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.

"We have $10, who will bid $20?"

"Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters."

"$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"

The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.

They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!"

A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the collection!"

The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over."
"What about the paintings?"

"I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal the stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.
The man who took the son gets everything!"

God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: "The son, the son, who'll take the son?"
Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything"
Have a blessed week and think about this story.
Marcia

What do they think of me?

Many women live their life wondering what others think of her. Some go to the point of changing what they really are just to match other people’s opinion on how she should be.

Sad though that many changes are done, external and internal, but not because as a human being they will feel better like this or that but just to agree to the general opinion of society or their interacting group.

At they end of the day, many are frustrated and not fulfilled because they do not look like, behave or live as they would actually enjoy.

There is something I have learnt in my walking with God and it may be the answer or changing of attitude for those who fit in the above examples.

I do enjoy and respect other people’s opinions, suggestions, and observations about myself or about any project I might be working on but I care much more for God’s opinion on my life.

Before making any decision, before planning something, before doing any change on my interior, I wonder what is God thinking about that.

Do you know what God thinks of you? I am going to invite you to hear directly from Him:
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.” (Jeremiah 29:11-12)

God is the source of all goodness in your life, He loves you and cares for you, His plans are to fulfil you - why not to give Him more ears than to criticism and words that constantly put you down?

Experience God’s plans in your life and all changes you might do will only make you whole.

What is your New Year’s Resolution?

There is a year-end tradition throughout the world, very fashionable amongst women I must say, that is to think, plan and proclaim our New Year’s Resolution.

Every month of December, we start planning the year ahead of us and many things come across our mind: a diet, a change of job position, an evening course, some handcraft, some reading, gym, to learn a new language, to visit a country, to restore broken friendships, to get married, to broaden our group of action, to quit an addiction, to do some charity work, to engage in a religious practice, and the list goes on.

I might not have mentioned a particular resolution but I guess you have identified yourself with couple of above ones.
We get so motivated to the New Year’s events, we buy new Year Planners, desk calendars, birthday notebooks, journals and diaries to host all our plans that are many and of great deal.
We look forward to the crossing of the watch into the first minutes of the New Year, mainly if 2007 was not one of the few you could count as profitable in your life.

So much excitement, so much anticipation, so much planning and the time has arrived. We jump into the New Year and guess what? We find out that already into the first hours, nothing has changed - we do not feel different.
First weeks go by and you keep on postponing the starting date for all the special tasks you have assigned yourself for.

By February, lately March, you do not look much into your diary or journal and by mid of the year; you do not even know where you kept your Year Planner. When you realize, you have forgotten to greet so many friends and relatives for their birthdays, over the past few months, either because you did not bother to look into your birthday notebook or because you did not have time to mark down such important dates after all.

The New Year fever is gone and you feel like you are back to old times. Actually, what you have not reckoned is that there was no change not even for few days because you concentrated so much in planning changes around you and you forgot to dwell in changes inside you.

How to do different this year? I propose you two courses of action:
First, take a time to reflect over what you want to do or change and seek for the motives behind such changes. I must say 90% of needs for exterior changes in my life or myself where a direct result of dissatisfaction with whom I was. So, invest in strengthening who you are, value your qualities, work on to improve the good you found in you, love yourself and then after deal with what you want to be.

Second, learn to prioritise. How much does it count to have a list of 10 New Year’s Resolution and when you get to Dec 2008, you find out you have not achieved more than 1 of them. Think about what really matters and concentrate on 2 or 3 that you can really apply all your efforts to accomplish them and such accomplishment will bring you real inner reward.

Above all, remember, you cannot conquer real achievement if you go on the strength of your arm for the Lord says: “…apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 NKJV

Start your diary, Year Planner, Desk Calendar by writing a love declaration to your Lord and invite Him to be the first in everything you plan or do from the 1st of January on.

Oh, another important attitude: forget your past – it is a New Year so why to bring all old memories to a newness of life?