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THE WEEKLY ENCOURAGER
OCTOBER 2, 2008
A DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT FOR THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK:
AN INSPIRATIONAL MOMENT - "THE CIRCUS"
“Than the King shall answer and say unto them, NERILY I SAY UNTO YOU, INASMUCH AS YE HAVE DONE IT UNTO ONE OF THE LEAST OF THESE MY BRETHERN , ye have done it unto me.” Matthew 25:40
Once when I was a teenager, my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus. Finally, there was only one family between us and the ticket counter. That family made a big impression on me. There were eight children, all probably under the age of 12. By the way they were dressed, you could tell they didn't have a lot of money, but their clothes were neat and clean.
The children were well-behaved; all of them standing in line, two-by-two behind their parents, holding hands. They were excitedly jabbering about the clowns, animals, and all the acts they would be seeing that night. By their excitement, you could sense they had never been to the circus before. It would be a highlight of their
lives.
The father and mother were at the head of the pack standing proud as could be. The mother was holding her husband's hand, looking up at him as if to say, "You're my knight in shining armor." He was smiling and enjoying his family.
The ticket lady asked the man how many tickets he wanted. He proudly responded, "I'd like to buy eight child tickets and two adult tickets, so I can take my family to the circus." The ticket lady stated the price.
The man's wife let go of his hand, her head dropped, and the man's lip began to quiver. Then he leaned a little closer and asked, "How much did you say?" The ticket lady again stated the price. The man didn't have enough money.
How was he supposed to turn and tell his eight kids that he didn't have enough money to take them to the circus?
Seeing what was going on, my dad reached into his pocket, pulled out a $20 bill, and then dropped it on the ground. (We were not wealthy in any sense of the word!) My father bent down, picked up the $20 bill, tapped the man on the shoulder and said, "Excuse me, sir, this fell out of your pocket."
The man knew what was going on. He wasn't begging for a handout, but certainly appreciated the help in a desperate, heartbreaking, embarrassing situation. He looked straight into my dad's eyes, took my dad's hand in both of his, squeezed tightly onto the $20 bill, and with his lip quivering and a tear streaming down
his cheek, he replied, "Thank you, thank you, sir. This really means a lot to me and my family."
My father and I went back to our car and drove home. The $20 that my dad gave away was what we were going to buy our own tickets with. Although we didn't get to see the circus that night, we both felt a joy inside us that was far greater than seeing the circus could ever provide.
-- Author Unknown
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT FAITH BIBLE CHURCH THIS WEEK?
1. SUNDAY OCTOBER 5th
9:30am - Bible school classes for children and adults.
This week a New Adult Bible Class topic will be introduced. Pastor will continue his series on THE BIBLICAL COVENANTS. Regular classes will be in session for the children and the teens each and every week of the summer. Come join your group this week for a Bible blessing.
10:30am. - Morning Worship Hour –Come worship with us this Sunday. We will begin our regular time of Worship, fellowship, prayer and Bible lesson at 10:30am. Pastor will continue his series from I Corinthians with a messaged entitled “RESURRECTION – FACT OR FICTION” as seen in I Corinthians 15:5-19. We hope to see you and your family this Sunday.
Sunday Evening Fellowship Hour – 7:00pm. Join us for a wonderful time of fellowship, testimony, song and Bible study from Isaiah 27. SEE YOU ALL THEN!!!
2. Have you gotten a MESSAGE CD of a Sunday Morning message recently? . If you want one pick them up on the back table each week or contact the church office and a copy can be mailed to you. This is a great tool to use in introducing your friends and neighbors to the ministry of our church.
3. The Annual CHURCH CONGREGATIONAL MEETING will take place on Wednesday Oct. 22nd. Member please plan to attend. The proposed budget and also Nominations Committee reports are posted for your prayerful consideration. Pray now for the Lords leading.
4. MISSIONS CONFERENCE is coming October 12 – 14. We hope everyone will plan to attend all the meetings beginning on Sunday Morning Oct 12th in the Bible School Hour. We will enjoy the ministry of several missionaries new to our church fellowship. Come meet them yourself.
5. MENS BIBLE STUDY will return to action on Monday and Tuesday Oct. 20-21. The materials on I John chapter 5 are on the table at church for men to prepare in advance. The Ladies Bible studies will return shortly there after on Monday Evenings and be studying the book of Genesis.
6. Our Next LET'S GO EVENT will be our HARVEST DINNER which will take place at the Oxford Rod and Gun Club on Sunday afternoon Nov. 2nd. Plan to join us for a good time of fellowship, some great food and a time of Thanksgiving Blessing.
SOMETHING TO SMILE ABOUT THIS WEEK: Laugh every day. It's like inner jogging.
Ponder This
A bus station is where a bus stops.
A train station is where a train stops.
On my desk I have a work station .........
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A SPECIAL FEW FOR DRIVERS:
Robbery
My cousin described an incident that happened to her son Buck in New York. A couple of weeks ago he was walking from the bus depot to his dad's apartment in upper Manhattan when he realized he was flanked by two young men.
“Give me your wallet."
"No."
"This is a gun. Give me your wallet or I'll shoot you."
"No."
"Hey, man. You don't understand. We're robbing you. Give me your wallet."
"No."
"Give me your wallet or I'll knife you."
"No."
"Give me your wallet or we'll beat you up." By now the robber was whining.
"No." Buck had continued walking and after a while he noticed he was no longer accompanied. When he told me about it, I asked him, "Weren't you scared?"
"Of course. What else would I be?"
"Why didn't you give them your wallet?"
"My learner's permit's in it."
- from Pulpit Supply
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Personalized Plate
While waiting in line at the Department of Vehicle Services for my personalized license plate, I heard the clerk shout out, "E I E I O."
"I'm here," the woman standing next to me answered.
Curious, I asked if she was a farmer or maybe taught kindergarten.
"Neither," she replied. "My name is McDonald."
Funny Signs
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Fast Driver
My mother has a "lead foot," so I was not surprised when a state trooper pulled us over as we were speeding through Georgia.
Hoping to get off with a warning, Mom tried to appear shocked when the trooper walked up to the car.
"I have never been stopped like this before," she said to the officer.
"What do they usually do, ma'am," he asked, "shoot the tires out?"
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In the window of a Kentucky appliance store: "Don't kill your wife. Let our washing machine do the dirty work."
In a funeral parlor: "Ask about our layaway plan."
In a clothing store: "Wonderful bargains for men with 16 and 17 necks."
In a Tacoma, Washington men's clothing store: "15 men's wool suits, $10. They won't last an hour!"
On a shopping mall marquee: "Archery Tournament-Ears pierced"
Outside a country shop: "We buy junk and sell antiques."
In the window of an Oregon store: "Why go elsewhere and be cheated when you can come here?"
In the vestry of a New England church: "Will the last person to leave please see that the perpetual light is extinguished."
- from AcraMax Jokes
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DISNEY SPELLS
John explains to his doctor, "Doc, when I got up this morning, I put on a pair of white gloves and started calling my wife Minnie. Then on the way to work I couldn't help singing, 'Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's off to work I go', and when I got there I started calling everyone Happy, Grumpy, Dopey and so on. What's the matter with me?"
"That's easy," replies the doctor. "You're having Disney spells."
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MOUSE LOVE SONGS
Scientists have determined that the high-frequency sounds male lab mice make when they pick up the scent of a female mouse are songs, presumably with courtship as their theme. What songs are on the Mouse Hit Parade of Love? Here are the top 9...
9 Uncaged Melody
8 Dreamboat Minnie
7 You've Lost That Gnawing Feeling
6 Please Cheese Me
5 Maybe I'm Mazed
4 A Hard Habitrail to Break
3 Suite: Judy Pink Eyes
2 Why Don't We Do It in the Roquefort
and -- the Number 1 Mouse Love Song...
1 She Blinded Me With Behavioral Science Research
Received from: Teddi's Humor
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"BOSSES NIGHT"
At an annual Bosses Night dinner for Helena, Montana, lawyers, sponsored by legal secretaries, it was time to announce the Boss of the Year. The master of ceremonies began: "First of all, our winner is a graduate of the University of Montana. So that already eliminates some of you as candidates."
"Our winner also is a partner in a downtown Helena law firm. That eliminates some more of you. "Our nominee is honest, upright, dedicated..."
A voice from the audience cut in: "Well, there go the rest of us!"
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SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK:
King Arthur and Women
Young King Arthur was ambushed and imprisoned by the monarch of a neighboring kingdom.
The monarch could have killed him but was moved by Arthur's youth and ideas. So, the monarch offered him his freedom, as long as he could answer a very difficult question.
Arthur would have a year to figure out the answer and, if after a year, he still had no answer, he would be put to death.
The question?....What do women really want?
Such a question would perplex even the most knowledgeable man, and to young Arthur, it seemed an impossible query. But, since it was better than death, he accepted the monarch's proposition to have an answer by year's end.
He returned to his kingdom and began to poll everyone: the princess, the priests, the wise men and even the court jester. He spoke with everyone, but no one could give him a satisfactory answer. Many people advised him to consult the old witch, for only she would have the answer. But the price would be high, as the witch was famous throughout the kingdom for the
exorbitant prices she charged.
The last day of the year arrived and Arthur had no choice but to talk to the witch. She agreed to answer the question, but he would have to agree to her price first. The old witch wanted to marry Sir Lancelot, the most noble of the Knights of the Round Table and Arthur's closest friend!
Young Arthur was horrified. She was hunchbacked and hideous, had only one tooth, smelled like sewage and made obscene noises, etc. He had never encountered such a repugnant creature in all his life.
He refused to force his friend to marry her and endure such a terrible burden, but Lancelot, learning of the proposal, spoke with Arthur. He said nothing was too big of a sacrifice compared to Arthur's life and the preservation of the Round Table.
Hence, a wedding was proclaimed and the witch answered Arthur's question thus: What a woman really wants, she answered....is to be in charge of her own life.
Everyone in the kingdom instantly knew that the witch had uttered a great truth and that Arthur's life would be spared. And so it was, the neighboring monarch granted Arthur his freedom and Lancelot and the witch had a wonderful wedding.
The honeymoon hour approached and Lancelot, steeling himself for a horrific experience, entered the bedroom. But, what a sight awaited him. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen, lay before him on the bed. The astounded Lancelot asked what had happened.
The beauty replied that since he had been so kind to her when she appeared as a witch, she would henceforth, be her horrible deformed self only half the time and the beautiful maiden the other half. Which would he prefer? Beautiful during the day....or night?
Lancelot pondered the predicament. During the day, a beautiful woman to show off to his friends, but at night, in the privacy of his castle, an old witch? Or, would he prefer having a hideous witch during the day, but by night, a beautiful woman for him to enjoy wondrous, intimate moments with?
What would YOU do?
What Lancelot chose is below. BUT....make YOUR choice before you scroll down below. OKAY?
Noble Lancelot, knowing the answer the witch gave Arthur to his question, said that he would allow HER to make the choice herself.
Upon hearing this, she announced that she would be beautiful all the time because he had respected her enough to let her be in charge of her own life.
Now....what is the moral to this story? Scroll down again......
The moral is..... If you don't let a woman have her own way........things are going to get ugly.
FEEL FREE TO PASS THE WEEKLY ENCOURAGER ALONG TO YOUR FRIENDS WHO NEED A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT TODAY. |
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