WHAT A FRIEND

There is an ear that listening bends

Ere we for mercy plead

There is a grace which far transcends

Our utmost sense of need

There is a Friend whose goodness flows

Eternal as his throne,

Oh happy is the heart that knows

And calls that Friend its own

BUNNY CONVERTS

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PIOUS PESTS

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Rabbits had overrun three churches in town. After much prayer, the elders of the first Presbyterian church determined that the animals were predestined to be there. Who were they to interfere with God's will? they reasoned. Soon, the rabbits multiplied.

The priests of the second church, run by the the Franciscan order ,deciding that they could not harm any of God's creatures, humanely trapped the rabbits and set them free outside of town. Three days later, the rabbits were back.

It was only the third Anglican church that succeeded in keeping the pests away. The vicar baptized the rabbits and registered them as members of the church. Now they only see them at Christmas and Easter.

SAVING OF THE HEART

(Christine Peloquin)

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"Forgiveness is the economy

of the heart.…

forgiveness saves

the expense of anger,

the cost of hatred,

the waste of spirits."

.

Hannah More

APPROACHING THE THRONE

15 th century Dutch

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The king . . . held out to Esther the golden scepter. . . . Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.

OUR HELP IN TIME OF NEED

“If he cries to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.”
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.—Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.— For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.—We have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.—Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

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Esth. 5:2; Ex. 22:27; 1 John 4:16-19; Heb. 10:22;

Eph. 2:18; Eph. 3:12; Heb. 4:16

AIDAN POWER REMEMBERED

A youthful Aidan ponders !

My friend Aidan died just a year ago, he is warmly and fondly remembered and greatly missed by his family, friends and a wide circle who were touched by his generous life.

AT LAST...

Is it just a single year
Since your sudden leaving ?
Seems more like a lifetime ago,
When on that black Tuesday
You pulled down the blinds,
On your rich and tortured life…
Exited, stage left
Unable to bear the pain,
Stifled one last wounded scream
And stepped into the Silence…

Stumbling here on the rough-trod path
Free falling to Eternal purpose.

Trust you are still now
At peace, with answers,
Loved and at last understood
And you understanding all mysteries,
All paradox and irony resolved,
Contentment for you dear friend
As you see beyond the Veil.

Is it just a year today ?
Since we heard your golden voice
Such a rush of days
Since we felt your kindness,
Looked into your searching eyes
In vain to reassure you,
That in His love all is well,
And in His time all would be revealed.

You know it now, better than we
You have traded at the very last
Substance for the hope of faith
And found that golden city
Built and kept by God.

Gerard O'Shea

http://dewofhermon.blogspot.com/2008/02/aidan-at-limerick-hilton-aidan-power.html

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY...

GOD'S RESCUE REMEDY

The Bible is a large body of work comprising of 66 books within its covers, and sometimes for life’s emergencies it can be difficult to find just the right word for a particular situation. For such eventualities this list of selected verses may be useful, a sort of inspired Rescue Remedy for the troubled spirit.

Anxious For Dear Ones----Psalms 121 & Luke 17

Business is Poor---Psalms 37; 92 & Eccl 5

Christian Assurance---Romans 8:1-30

Courage for Your Task----Joshua 1

Discouraged---Psalms 23; 42 & 43 and Isaiah 40

Down & Out------Romans 8:31-39

Doubts Come Upon You-----John 7:17

Everything seems to go from bad to worse----2 Timothy 3 & Hebrews 13

Faith Needs Stirring----Hebrews 11

Friends seem to go back on you----Matthew 5 & 1 Corinthians 13

Men Fail You------Psalms 27

Sorrow Overtakes You-----Psalms 46; Matthew 28 & John 14

Tempted to do Wrong---Psalms 15; 19 & 139; Matthew 4 & James 1

Things Look Blue------Psalms 34; 71 and Isaiah 40

You Can't Go To Sleep-----Psalms 4; 56 & 130

You Have Quarrelled-----Matthew 18; Ephesians 4 & James 4

You are Weary-----Psalms 95:1-7 and Matthew 11

You Want Rest & Peace------Matthew 11:25-30

Wanting to Live Successfully with your Fellow Man---Romans 12

World Seems Bigger Than God-------Psalms 90

TURNING GRIEF

ALCHEMY

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I lift my heart as spring lifts up

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A yellow daisy to the rain;

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My heart will be a lovely cup

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Altho' it holds but pain.

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For I shall learn from flower and leaf

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That colour every drop they hold,

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To change the lifeless wine of grief

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To living gold.

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Sara Teasdale