Showing posts with label giving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label giving. Show all posts
Monday, September 26, 2011
2011.9.26 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
Today, I want to share a story about God's embracing grace and my young college friend, Bill.
Bill and two good friends from his dorm pooled their resources so they could tour Europe "on the cheap." They traveled light, slept in youth hostels, and enjoyed the unique characteristics of every country and village they passed through.
The amazing part of Bill's story didn't happen during a visit to the cathedral; it happened in a pub in Ireland. The thee young travelers were enjoying a meal in a quaint Irish pub when they heard a loud groan. At a nearby table a man struggled to heave himself out of his chair. They saw immediately he had only one leg. He reached for his crutch, but lost his balance and began to fall. Instantly his companion at the table jumped up and caught him.
The man with one leg muttered, "Thanks! I'm as crippled as a blind man."
His friend steadied him while replying, "Well now...come to think of it, who of us here isn't crippled?" A hush fell over the pub as the friend continued, "to lend each other a hand when we're falling is maybe the one kind of work that really matters in the end."
With love, peace and affectionate regards,
Richard
Monday, August 8, 2011
2011.8.8 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
Today, I want to put in a good word for the gift of receiving. It is commonly said that it is more blessed to give than to receive, but I've learned there is virtue in receiving as well as in giving.
We praise people for doing good things for others, but who refuse to take any credit, any gift, any reward, for doing so. People like that should give others a chance to say thank you and show their gratitude. It is a fine thing to give, but it can be a mark of pride to refuse to receive thanks for acts of kindness.
Jesus received a boy's picnic lunch, and with it worked a miracle. (John 6:1-14). And He received the offer of the use of a room by some anonymous friend in Jerusalem, and used that room to institute "The Last Supper".
There is a courtesy in receiving as well as in giving. When the two meet, who knows what 'miracle' will follow?
With blessings and in friendship,
Richard
Today, I want to put in a good word for the gift of receiving. It is commonly said that it is more blessed to give than to receive, but I've learned there is virtue in receiving as well as in giving.
We praise people for doing good things for others, but who refuse to take any credit, any gift, any reward, for doing so. People like that should give others a chance to say thank you and show their gratitude. It is a fine thing to give, but it can be a mark of pride to refuse to receive thanks for acts of kindness.
Jesus received a boy's picnic lunch, and with it worked a miracle. (John 6:1-14). And He received the offer of the use of a room by some anonymous friend in Jerusalem, and used that room to institute "The Last Supper".
There is a courtesy in receiving as well as in giving. When the two meet, who knows what 'miracle' will follow?
With blessings and in friendship,
Richard
"A PEARL OF VALUE"
We're taught that it is more blessed
to give than to receive, but receiving
is also important in the development
of our soul.
We're taught that it is more blessed
to give than to receive, but receiving
is also important in the development
of our soul.
Monday, August 1, 2011
2011.8.1 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
Ancient Jewish teachers often strung together power packed thoughts and ideas without commentary. Good examples of this teaching pattern are found in the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:1-11, and Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, as well as throughout the
book of Proverbs.
This method had a certain appeal to me, and several years ago I began collecting short statements for motivation or inspiration, or both. I call them 'Pearls of Value', and I've been stringing each 'Pearl' on a make-believe necklace which hangs in my study, and to which I add 'Pearls' discovered in my reading.
Here are a few of my 'Pearls'. Perhaps you'll begin collecting your own 'Pearls' and sharing them with me. Together we ought to have a wonderful collection of motivation and inspiration!
"Time can be either an ally or an antagonist. It depends on
how we look upon time and how we use it."
"Not one who has much is rich, but one who gives much..."
"It often takes a serious threat to our blessings to make us
aware of them. And, sadly, sometimes we do not value
them until they are gone before retrieving."
Understanding/interpretation of each 'Pearl' depends on the reader/listener.
Cheers and all the best,
Richard
Monday, May 30, 2011
2011.5.30 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes on this day after Memorial Day from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
Memorial Day began in the United States in the late 1860's, after the American Civil War, when a women's Sunday School Class in a small southern town adopted a spring project. The women decided to decorate the graves of their sons, husbands and sweethearts with flowers out of their gardens.
Upon arriving at the cemetery, they expanded their plan. The graves of all soldiers were decorated, including the graves of soldiers from the North.
It was one small step toward reconciliation!
When their project was reported in newspapers, the Sunday School Class began to get letters from people in the North, thanking them for putting flowers on the graves of their loved ones, buried so far away from home.
Soon the practice spread, and for decades May 30th was called Decoration Day, now it is called Memorial Day - a day the nation stops to give thanks for the sacrifice made in all the wars for the preservation of liberty and freedom.
Let us never forget the cost paid for our freedom, and let us resolve never to abuse that freedom or soil it.
Let us remember ... and may God's grace and mercy remain with you, and your loved ones, always.
Richard
Monday, March 21, 2011
2011.3.21 Monday Morning
Greetings from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma, the second oldest town in the state, founded in 1871. Eleven years later, in 1882, our Presbyterian Church was organized. It continues a vital ministry, sharing God's redeeming love and forgiveness with all people.
Our Bible tells us that "it is more blessed to give than to receive." Of course, children and young people are not likely to agree. They love getting birthday and Christmas presents.
As we get older, we find giving more satisfying than receiving. This is evident as we see care and concern flow to the disaster stricken people living in Japan.
How gratifying it is to see the international community offer prayers and material aid as symbols of the deepest feelings for those suffering from a three-fold disaster; earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis.
There are times when we think selfishness rules, but it doesn't. In the long run selfishness fails. If we do not learn that in advance, we will learn it afterward in catastrophe.
With blessings and in friendship,
Richard
P. S. We are thankful that the editor of our BLOG, Brian Dishman, and his wife, Motoko, and their daughter, Rina, all living in Japan, are safe. Sadly, members of their family are either dead or missing, and our heartfelt sympathy goes to them.
Our Bible tells us that "it is more blessed to give than to receive." Of course, children and young people are not likely to agree. They love getting birthday and Christmas presents.
As we get older, we find giving more satisfying than receiving. This is evident as we see care and concern flow to the disaster stricken people living in Japan.
How gratifying it is to see the international community offer prayers and material aid as symbols of the deepest feelings for those suffering from a three-fold disaster; earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis.
There are times when we think selfishness rules, but it doesn't. In the long run selfishness fails. If we do not learn that in advance, we will learn it afterward in catastrophe.
With blessings and in friendship,
Richard
P. S. We are thankful that the editor of our BLOG, Brian Dishman, and his wife, Motoko, and their daughter, Rina, all living in Japan, are safe. Sadly, members of their family are either dead or missing, and our heartfelt sympathy goes to them.
Monday, December 13, 2010
2010.12.13 Monday Morning!
Best wishes for a MERRY CHRISTMAS from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
Christmas is a time for lights. Beautiful lights are shining in every city and village. Lights are an important part of Christmas, symbols of the Christmas story:
The true light that enlightens every person has come
into the world in the birth of Jesus. In him was life,
and the life was light for all people. His light shines
in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
(Will you read John 1:1-18, please?)
The mood of despair, however, is familiar in our dark patches. Immense problems face our nation and the world; war, an economic recession, unemployment, hunger, home foreclosures, terrorism.
And, there are personal difficulties: problems within families and among friends, jobs that no longer give satisfaction, loss of health, unexpected death of a loved one.
I understand how people may feel abandoned by God. Sometimes I ask myself "Is there really a God who cares?"
Then the light of Christmas comes with the assurance that in smooth and rough places "God is with us". None of us is alone. Confident of that helps disperse times of darkness. I haven't answers to the many questions that bother me, but of this I am sure; God is with me and helps me carry on with courage and strength.
My thoughts and prayers are with friends for whom 2010 has been a shattering year.
Richard.
Monday, December 6, 2010
2010.12.06 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
Do me a favor this week? Will you read a story found in Matthew 25:1-13? You may think it is an odd request for this Advent season, but, like all Bible stories it is a guide from which we can receive ancient wisdom into our life.
Five of the maidens discovered they could not borrow oil for their flickering lamps. There are things in life we cannot borrow, and faith is one of them. We can't live off the spiritual capital of someone else.
The birth of Jesus is an opportunity to rekindle connection to "God with us", and to the responsibilities those three little words place upon us.
God needs our services. By our little and big acts at this season - by writing cards and notes to friends from the past, by visiting a shut-in, by phoning a lonely person, we affirm our contact to "God with us." We become God's instruments of love and friendship.
Share the depth of your spiritual capital.
Cheers,
Richard
Monday, May 24, 2010
2010.05.24 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
George Bernard Shaw wrote that "the true joy in life is being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one." What lies nearest to your heart?
There is no mistaking what was nearest to the hearts of an early group of 120 followers of Jesus. They recognized their mighty purpose was to tell the story of the gospel to the world. Their passionate commitment to that MESSAGE resulted in a new MOVEMENT, the Christian Church.
The MESSAGE and the MOVEMENT go hand in hand. As Christians, our function is to be a finger, an arm, a signpost pointing to the MESSAGE of God and God's redemptive love.
Inward renewal and outgoing concern are decisive for the effectiveness of the MOVEMENT. The MESSAGE created the MOVEMENT, which confirms the MESSAGE and goes on to demonstrate that caring matters. We live to tell the story and to show how much God cares: "for God so loved the world that he gave..."
Do you remember "tell and show" days in school? Don't abandon those days in your adult life.
Cheers,
Richard
George Bernard Shaw wrote that "the true joy in life is being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one." What lies nearest to your heart?
There is no mistaking what was nearest to the hearts of an early group of 120 followers of Jesus. They recognized their mighty purpose was to tell the story of the gospel to the world. Their passionate commitment to that MESSAGE resulted in a new MOVEMENT, the Christian Church.
The MESSAGE and the MOVEMENT go hand in hand. As Christians, our function is to be a finger, an arm, a signpost pointing to the MESSAGE of God and God's redemptive love.
Inward renewal and outgoing concern are decisive for the effectiveness of the MOVEMENT. The MESSAGE created the MOVEMENT, which confirms the MESSAGE and goes on to demonstrate that caring matters. We live to tell the story and to show how much God cares: "for God so loved the world that he gave..."
Do you remember "tell and show" days in school? Don't abandon those days in your adult life.
Cheers,
Richard
Monday, May 10, 2010
2010.05.10 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church.
Sometimes our Christian life calls us to tasks which involve effort and energy. Often it is easier and more comfortable to stay where we are, so we resist the call. Happily that is not true in our small congregation of 50 members. Spurred on by Joyce Dishman, chairperson of our Mission and Outreach Committee, I want to share with you a Minute for Mission which Joyce presented to the congregation, accompanied by graphs, on the last Sunday in April. Thank you Joyce!
Sometimes our Christian life calls us to tasks which involve effort and energy. Often it is easier and more comfortable to stay where we are, so we resist the call. Happily that is not true in our small congregation of 50 members. Spurred on by Joyce Dishman, chairperson of our Mission and Outreach Committee, I want to share with you a Minute for Mission which Joyce presented to the congregation, accompanied by graphs, on the last Sunday in April. Thank you Joyce!
There are many ways we as a congregation contribute to various mission projects. Each month we send $150.00 to Eastern Oklahoma Presbytery for general missions making a yearly total of $1,800.00 The yearly budgeted local missions include the following: Malawi Partnership: $300; Dwight Mission: $1,000; Ministerial Alliance: $300; Salvation Army Backpack Program: $200. Also we budget $180 per year for the Theological Education Fund which aids in developing mission-minded leaders for the Church. This year we gave $475.00 to the One Great Hour of Sharing which is an increase over last year’s offering.
In non-budgeted missions it is very important to say thank you for the generosity in donations of time and resources to our church and our community. It is impressive considering all that we do to enrich and empower, and assist others. Your generous support is very much appreciated, and in a few weeks we will extend an opportunity for continued support to some projects that will be set up in the Narthex. This church really can make a difference!
In non-budgeted missions it is very important to say thank you for the generosity in donations of time and resources to our church and our community. It is impressive considering all that we do to enrich and empower, and assist others. Your generous support is very much appreciated, and in a few weeks we will extend an opportunity for continued support to some projects that will be set up in the Narthex. This church really can make a difference!
Monday, April 5, 2010
2010.04.05 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
"The Lord takes pleasure in his people" - Psalm 149:4. That God delights in us is a neglected Bible insight. Whatever our gifts, great or small, when we exercise them to the full, God delights in us.
Sometimes we think our gifts are too little to be responsible for great things. Not true! in our personal lives little things play a greater role than we realize.
I have known single mothers who cared for their children, year after year, with inexhaustible love. I knew a delightful lady in my parish near Albany, NY who was stricken with polio. For years she had the 24/7 care and love of her husband and two teenage sons.
You know busy people with the capacity to bring cheer to the lonely and, who without being asked, reach out to help those in need.
Our little gifts give us an opportunity to do great things.
Cheers to you who are doing little things well. God delights in you!
Richard
"The Lord takes pleasure in his people" - Psalm 149:4. That God delights in us is a neglected Bible insight. Whatever our gifts, great or small, when we exercise them to the full, God delights in us.
Sometimes we think our gifts are too little to be responsible for great things. Not true! in our personal lives little things play a greater role than we realize.
I have known single mothers who cared for their children, year after year, with inexhaustible love. I knew a delightful lady in my parish near Albany, NY who was stricken with polio. For years she had the 24/7 care and love of her husband and two teenage sons.
You know busy people with the capacity to bring cheer to the lonely and, who without being asked, reach out to help those in need.
Our little gifts give us an opportunity to do great things.
Cheers to you who are doing little things well. God delights in you!
Richard
Monday, March 22, 2010
2010.03.22 Monday Morning!
Top of this Monday Morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
We are told often that we are living in a period in which the Gospel is not relevant and the Church is ineffective. The result has been ceasing to expect anything and realizing our expectation.
There is plenty in the world to make us prophets of gloom and doom. However, Christians can tune into another message which shows signs of hope rather than despair.
One such message comes with an opportunity to give to an annual appeal called the One Great Hour of Sharing. Our Presbyterian Church joins with other Churches in receiving this offering.
You are invited to walk the "Road of Service" (the Jericho Road) and involve yourself in ministry to the physical needs of those crushed by disaster, persecution and war, those trapped in poverty, homelessness, suffering.
For Christians this offering is a moment of spiritual opportunity:
Jesus said: "Truly, as you gave to one of the least of brother and sisters, you did it to me."
"Feed my sheep" with your gift to the One Great Hour of Sharing, which will be dedicated at Pilgrim Church on Palm Sunday, March 28.
The quality of mercy still is twice blessed!
Richard
We are told often that we are living in a period in which the Gospel is not relevant and the Church is ineffective. The result has been ceasing to expect anything and realizing our expectation.
There is plenty in the world to make us prophets of gloom and doom. However, Christians can tune into another message which shows signs of hope rather than despair.
One such message comes with an opportunity to give to an annual appeal called the One Great Hour of Sharing. Our Presbyterian Church joins with other Churches in receiving this offering.
You are invited to walk the "Road of Service" (the Jericho Road) and involve yourself in ministry to the physical needs of those crushed by disaster, persecution and war, those trapped in poverty, homelessness, suffering.
For Christians this offering is a moment of spiritual opportunity:
Jesus said: "Truly, as you gave to one of the least of brother and sisters, you did it to me."
"Feed my sheep" with your gift to the One Great Hour of Sharing, which will be dedicated at Pilgrim Church on Palm Sunday, March 28.
The quality of mercy still is twice blessed!
Richard
Sunday, December 13, 2009
2009.12.14 Monday Morning!
Christmas is in the air, and as we make our way to the cradle of the Christ child, we send greetings of joy and good tidings from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
The town is decked out in its best Christmas attire, and despite an economic downturn, people are shopping for gifts. I hear much complaint about commercialism at Christmas time, but I wonder if that is all bad. It seems to me that there are two kinds of people in our world - people who want to share and people who don't want to share.
If Christmas brings out a spirit of sharing, I'm all for it. Doesn't the Christmas story tell us that men from the east brought gifts for Jesus, the babe in a manger?
Giving to your Church and your favorite charity in the spirit of Christmas isn't a bad idea. And, being generous with your gifts to loved ones may be just the ticket to get you in the mood to rediscover the help and love of God which all of us need year 'round.
Cheers! No Scrooge am I,
Richard
Monday, November 2, 2009
2009.11.02 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, Vinita, Oklahoma.
This morning my thoughts go back in time when I was in a Contemporary Literature Class at the University of Wisconsin. We were discussing the life and work of the great Russian author, Tolstoy.
Tolstoy was exalted by his peers and biographers, but for some reason or other I remember more distinctly than anything words of his wife. Though I can't quote her, this is the gist of what she said:
His many good works are prompted by his principles, not by the warmth of his heart. Never has he given me five minutes help carrying water, nor sitting for five minutes alongside the bedside of our sick son.
A lot of us are at our best in society and at our worst at home.
A pearl of value: An act of loving kindness is a humane response to human need, and it should begin at home, with a warm heart.
Richard
This morning my thoughts go back in time when I was in a Contemporary Literature Class at the University of Wisconsin. We were discussing the life and work of the great Russian author, Tolstoy.
Tolstoy was exalted by his peers and biographers, but for some reason or other I remember more distinctly than anything words of his wife. Though I can't quote her, this is the gist of what she said:
His many good works are prompted by his principles, not by the warmth of his heart. Never has he given me five minutes help carrying water, nor sitting for five minutes alongside the bedside of our sick son.
A lot of us are at our best in society and at our worst at home.
A pearl of value: An act of loving kindness is a humane response to human need, and it should begin at home, with a warm heart.
Richard
Sunday, December 21, 2008
2008.12.22 Monday Morning!
Fond best wishes for a Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones from historic Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
Have a fun-filled, memorable Christmas day! As you get together with family and friends to open gifts, eat and drink (both in moderation, of course), no squabbling please!!!. Play games rather than argue politics and/or religion!
We've sung our carols and hymns, listened to the lessons from the prophets and gospels, and prayed for you, near and far. Now is the time to celebrate.
Jesus loved parties, and I hope you do as well. ENJOY!! Some friends may complain about "commercialism" at Christmas. If the result of "commercialism" is no worse than to prompt a person to give gifts to a spouse, to parents, to children and grandchildren, and to be extravagantly generous for once, I assure you that there could be many worse things.
Celebrate!! Enjoy!!
Merry Christmas,
Richard
Have a fun-filled, memorable Christmas day! As you get together with family and friends to open gifts, eat and drink (both in moderation, of course), no squabbling please!!!. Play games rather than argue politics and/or religion!
We've sung our carols and hymns, listened to the lessons from the prophets and gospels, and prayed for you, near and far. Now is the time to celebrate.
Jesus loved parties, and I hope you do as well. ENJOY!! Some friends may complain about "commercialism" at Christmas. If the result of "commercialism" is no worse than to prompt a person to give gifts to a spouse, to parents, to children and grandchildren, and to be extravagantly generous for once, I assure you that there could be many worse things.
Celebrate!! Enjoy!!
Merry Christmas,
Richard
Sunday, November 23, 2008
2008.11.24 Monday Morning!
Thanksgiving greetings from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma. We worship as a family each Sunday morning at ten o'clock. Whenever possible, come and share in our service. If you can't be with us, say a little prayer for us in the "friendly Church of the faith."
At times, all of us have specific reasons to be thankful. At other times, lacking specific reasons, we may become cynical and say "I've got nothing to be thankful for."
A worthwhile Thanksgiving Day exercise might consist of sitting down with two sheets of paper. On one we might list all the things we crave and are yearning to acquire. On the other sheet we would enumerate all those things we have and could lose. I rather think that we would find the first list quickly exhausted, while the second would appear endless. We might then understand better the meaning of the prayer:
Happy Thanksgiving,
Richard
At times, all of us have specific reasons to be thankful. At other times, lacking specific reasons, we may become cynical and say "I've got nothing to be thankful for."
A worthwhile Thanksgiving Day exercise might consist of sitting down with two sheets of paper. On one we might list all the things we crave and are yearning to acquire. On the other sheet we would enumerate all those things we have and could lose. I rather think that we would find the first list quickly exhausted, while the second would appear endless. We might then understand better the meaning of the prayer:
"You have given so much to me, O God.
Give me one thing more - a grateful heart."
Happy Thanksgiving,
Richard
Sunday, November 2, 2008
2008.11.03 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, 125 years young, and still sending Christ's message to a post-Christian world! We'll be celebrating our past with an eye to serving our Lord and Master Sunday next - November 9 - beginning with worship at 10:00 a.m. If you can't attend, please send an email greeting. The congregation will be delighted to hear from you!
Everyone has a story to tell, but it was Jesus who was the Master storyteller. His teaching arose out of real life situations, and were used to evoke a response. Perhaps his story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37) is his most popular and best known of the 50-60 stories recorded in the New Testament.
The Good Samaritan had this view of Life: "What is mine, is mine, I'll share it." That is amazing, considering the bad blood that existed between ancient Jews and Samaritans.
When a traveler was robbed and left half dead on the roadside, a passing Priest ignored the victim. However, the despised Samaritan stopped to help. The message is clear - while we may not like people of different nations, cultures and languages, or people in our own country who are different in color, speech and beliefs from us - we are all God's children.
Jesus calls his followers to unite and assume renewed responsibility for the peace and well-being of all.
We can't change the world, but with civility and decency we can respect those who are different from us, and we can show acts of kindness and infectious cheer. It's surprising how gifts of small acts, of mercy, "are twice blessed". And often the giver is helped more than the receiver. Giving gives meaning to existence!
What's mine is mine, and I'll share it. It's no wonder we call that Samaritan "Good".
Cheers,
Richard
Everyone has a story to tell, but it was Jesus who was the Master storyteller. His teaching arose out of real life situations, and were used to evoke a response. Perhaps his story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37) is his most popular and best known of the 50-60 stories recorded in the New Testament.
The Good Samaritan had this view of Life: "What is mine, is mine, I'll share it." That is amazing, considering the bad blood that existed between ancient Jews and Samaritans.
When a traveler was robbed and left half dead on the roadside, a passing Priest ignored the victim. However, the despised Samaritan stopped to help. The message is clear - while we may not like people of different nations, cultures and languages, or people in our own country who are different in color, speech and beliefs from us - we are all God's children.
Jesus calls his followers to unite and assume renewed responsibility for the peace and well-being of all.
We can't change the world, but with civility and decency we can respect those who are different from us, and we can show acts of kindness and infectious cheer. It's surprising how gifts of small acts, of mercy, "are twice blessed". And often the giver is helped more than the receiver. Giving gives meaning to existence!
What's mine is mine, and I'll share it. It's no wonder we call that Samaritan "Good".
Cheers,
Richard
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