Sacrificial Love

AFTER A FEW OF THE USUAL SUNDAY EVENING HYMNS,
THE CHURCH'S PASTOR SLOWLY STOOD UP,
WALKED OVER TO THE PULPIT AND,

BEFORE HE GAVE HIS SERMON FOR THE EVENING,

HE BRIEFLY INTRODUCED A GUEST MINISTER
WHO WAS IN THE SERVICE THAT EVENING.


IN THE INTRODUCTION, THE PASTOR TOLD THE

CONGREGATION THAT THE GUEST MINISTER WAS

ONE OF HIS DEAREST CHILDHOOD FRIENDS AND
THAT HE WANTED HIM TO HAVE A FEW MOMENTS

TO GREET THE CHURCH AND SHARE WHATEVER
HE FELT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE FOR THE SERVICE..
WITH THAT, AN ELDERLY MAN STEPPED UP TO THE
PULPIT AND BEGAN TO SPEAK.


'A FATHER, HIS SON, AND A FRIEND OF HIS SON WERE
SAILING OFF THE PACIFIC COAST ,' HE BEGAN.
'WHEN A FAST APPROACHING STORM BLOCKED ANY
ATTEMPT TO GET BACK TO THE SHORE.
THE WAVES WERE SO HIGH, THAT EVEN THOUGH THE
FATHER WAS AN EXPERIENCED SAILOR, HE COULD NOT

KEEP THE BOAT UPRIGHT AND THE THREE WERE SWEPT
INTO THE OCEAN AS THE BOAT CAPSIZED.'


THE OLD MAN HESITATED FOR A MOMENT,
MAKING EYE CONTACT WITH TWO TEENAGERS WHO WERE,
FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE SERVICE BEGAN,
LOOKING SOMEWHAT INTERESTED IN HIS STORY.
THE AGED MINISTER CONTINUED WITH HIS STORY,

'GRABBING A RESCUE LINE, THE FATHER HAD TO MAKE THE

MOST EXCRUCIATING DECISION OF HIS LIFE: TO WHICH BOY
WOULD HE THROW THE OTHER END OF THE LIFE LINE.
HE ONLY HAD SECONDS TO MAKE THE DECISION.
THE FATHER KNEW THAT HIS SON WAS A CHRISTIAN AND
HE, ALSO, KNEW THAT HIS SON'S FRIEND WAS NOT.
THE AGONY OF HIS DECISION COULD NOT BE MATCHED BY

THE TORRENT OF WAVES.


AS THE FATHER YELLED OUT, 'I LOVE YOU, SON!'
HE THREW OUT THE LIFE LINE TO HIS SON'S FRIEND.

BY THE TIME THE FATHER HAD PULLED THE FRIEND BACK
TO THE CAPSIZED BOAT, HIS SON HAD DISAPPEARED BENEATH

THE RAGING SWELLS INTO THE BLACK OF NIGHT.


HIS BODY WAS NEVER RECOVERED.


BY THIS TIME, THE TWO TEENAGERS WERE SITTING UP
STRAIGHT IN THE PEW, ANXIOUSLY WAITING FOR THE NEXT
WORDS TO COME OUT OF THE OLD MINISTER'S MOUTH.
'THE FATHER,' HE CONTINUED, 'KNEW HIS SON WOULD
STEP INTO ETERNITY WITH JESUS AND HE COULD NOT
BEAR THE THOUGHT OF HIS SON'S FRIEND STEPPING INTO
AN ETERNITY WITHOUT JESUS.. THEREFORE, HE SACRIFICED
HIS SON TO SAVE THE SON'S FRIEND. '


HOW GREAT IS THE LOVE OF GOD THAT HE SHOULD DO THE
SAME FOR US. OUR HEAVENLY FATHER SACRIFICED HIS ONLY
BEGOTTEN SON THAT WE COULD BE SAVED. I URGE YOU TO

ACCEPT HIS OFFER TO RESCUE YOU AND TAKE A HOLD OF THE
LIFE LINE HE IS THROWING OUT TO YOU IN THIS SERVICE.'

WITH THAT, THE OLD MAN TURNED AND SAT BACK DOWN IN
HIS CHAIR AS SILENCE FILLED THE ROOM.


THE PASTOR AGAIN WALKED SLOWLY TO THE PULPIT AND
DELIVERED A BRIEF SERMON WITH AN INVITATION AT THE
END. HOWEVER, NO ONE RESPONDED TO THE APPEAL.


WITHIN MINUTES AFTER THE SERVICE ENDED, THE TWO
TEENAGERS WERE AT THE OLD MAN'S SIDE.


'THAT WAS A NICE STORY,' POLITELY STATED ONE OF
THEM,'BUT I DON'T THINK IT WAS VERY REALISTIC FOR A
FATHER TO GIVE UP HIS ONLY SON'S LIFE IN HOPES THAT
THE OTHER BOY WOULD BECOME A CHRISTIAN.'


'WELL, YOU'VE GOT A POINT THERE,' THE OLD MAN REPLIED,

GLANCING DOWN AT HIS WORN BIBLE. A BIG SMILE BROADENED

HIS NARROW FACE. HE ONCE AGAIN LOOKED UP AT THE BOYS
AND SAID, 'IT SURE ISN'T VERY REALISTIC, IS IT?

BUT,
I'M STANDING HERE TODAY TO TELL YOU THAT STORY THAT GIVES

ME A GLIMPSE OF WHAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE FOR GOD
TO GIVE UP HIS SON FOR ME.




YOU SEE...





I WAS THAT FATHER AND YOUR PASTOR IS MY SON'S

FRIEND.'

The Sack Lunches

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. 'I'm glad I have a
good book to read Perhaps I will get a short nap,' I thought.

Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and
filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to
start a conversation. 'Where are you headed?' I asked the soldier
seated nearest to me.

'Petawawa. We'll be there for two weeks for special training, and then
we're being deployed to Afghanistan

After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack
lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours
before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch would help
pass the time..

As I reached for my wallet, I overheard soldier ask his buddy if he
planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money for just a
sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we
get to base '

His friend agreed.

I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I
walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a
fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch to all those soldiers.' She grabbed
my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked
me. 'My son was a soldier in Iraq ; it's almost like you are doing it
for him.'

Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers
were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which do you like
best - beef or chicken?'

'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to
the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from
first class. 'This is your thanks.'

After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane,
heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I
want to be part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me twenty-five
dollars.

Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain coming down
the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he was
not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on
my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held
out his hand, an said, 'I want to shake your hand.'

Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the Captain's hand.
With a booming voice he said, 'I was a soldier and I was a military
pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I
never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of
the passengers.

Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs.
A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his
hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in
my palm.

When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane.
Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put
something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a
word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their
trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five
dollars. 'It will take you some time to reach the base. It will be
about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'

Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their
fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer
for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our
country. I could only give them a couple of meals.

It seemed so little...

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life,wrote a blank check
made payable to 'Canada for an amount of 'up to and including my
life.'

That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who
no longer understand it.'

Happiness Is A Voyage

We convince ourselves that life will be better once we are married,

have a baby, then another.

Then we get frustrated because our children are not old enough,

and that all will be well when they are older.

Then we are frustrated because they reach adolescence

and we must deal with them.

Surely we'll be happier when they grow out of the teen years.

We tell ourselves our life will be better

when our spouse gets his/her act together,

when we have a nicer car,

when we can take a vacation,

when we finally retire.

The truth is that.....

there is no better time to be happy than right now.

If not, then when?

Your life will always be full of challenges.

It is better to admit as much,

and decide to be happy in spite of it all.

For the longest time, it seemed

that life was about to start.

Real life.

But there was always some obstacle along the way,

an ordeal to get through,

some work to be finished,

some time to be given,

a bill to be paid.

Then life would start.

I finally came to understand that those obstacles

were life.

That point of view helped me see

that there isn't any road to happiness.

Happiness IS the road.

So enjoy every moment.

Stop waiting....

for school to end,

for a return to school,

to lose ten pounds,

to gain ten pounds,

for work to begin,

to get married,

for Friday evening,

for Sunday morning,

for a new car,

for your mortgage to be paid off,

for spring, for summer,

for fall, for winter,

for the first or the fifteenth of the month,

for your song to be played on the radio,

to die, to be reborn.......

before deciding to be happy.

Happiness is a voyage,

Not a destination.

There is no better time to be happy than.....

NOW!

Live and enjoy the moment.

Author Unknown

I Believe In Miracles

Sung By Pastor Philip Mantofa

Our Juni's Gone Home To The Lord

Today, our hearts are broken. We are deeply grieved. No words can describe the pain that so overwhelms us. Today, our beloved Juni, who just turned 5 years old a week ago has suddenly left us. Just like that, his tiny heart stopped beating. This is so unreal. I still can't believe it.....no, this is just a bad nightmare....dear God, please let us wake up and find Juni chewing on his little toy caterpillar. But it's true, God has taken him home to join the heavenly choir. Gone from our presence but forever in our hearts. We will miss him so much, and already the silence in the house is deafening!

Goodbye our beautiful , beloved Juni. Mama, Jeh-jeh, Kenji kor kor, Xian kor kor and Storm will miss you. Fly to Jesus, little one and sing with the angels.

GOING BACK TO JESUS - Heritage Singers

This is in remembrance of our beloved Juni.