Tell Me a Story Blog Party Week 01/25/16

Reading Dolly a True Story
 

You are invited to enter YOUR True Story at our Blog Party.

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Bartering (A True Story from my Book, "Rescue the Stories Book Two"

 

Trade, exchange, negotiate, haggle these are words used to explain that bartering is simply giving and receiving. 

We had a friend, from our church, named John, who would often ask my husband to help him in his enterprises.  John had two brothers and two sisters.  Their mother was a widow, so the five young children gained work after school and week end jobs to help the family budget.  The boys in their teens would take on painting work, the girls baby sitting, or selling products. 

John later became a baker working in a bakery at night.  This gave him freedom to earn money in other ways during the day. 

One day John asked my husband to help him purchase small trailers and fix them up.  I had some drapery remnants and sewed some curtains for the windows, and Robert painted the insides.  John would place the trailers in a friend’s mobile home park, and rent them out.  World War II military men were especially happy to have a reasonable priced place to house their family as they were shipped out over seas. 

John began to save his money and purchase houses in his neighborhood for low down payments, and the rent would pay for the mortgage.  Some of the houses were from Estate sales, and often there was furniture or other items left in the homes.  John asked Robert to help him paint inside the homes prior to renting them. 

One year John sold Christmas trees and asked my hubby to lend a hand.  For all the labor, we did during several years; we did not receive any monetary gain.  However during that time, John helped us paint inside our home that was for sale; he gave us a Christmas tree, an older Cadillac car, an upright piano, and a 30 year old dining room table and six matching chairs. 

John noticed that we were using a picnic table and benches for our dining room, and I suppose that is why he decided to give us the beautiful table made from maple wood.  

While at first I did not appreciate my table, I learned to be rather fond of it, and to enjoy the fact that the two end extensions would enable us to serve a large group of family and friends. 

Bartering is often something done between club members, or between friends.  There are bartering groups that trade professional services for a variety of other services. 

God was the Apex of bartering, when He proclaimed, I will give the World my Son to save them from their Sins, and I will ask in return that they will give me their life.  That is quite an exchange; our old sinful life in exchange for His new Eternal Life.  

John 3:16  "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting  life.

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Tell Me A True Story Blog Party - Week of 01/18/16

Grand Dad Reading a True Story

You are invited to enter YOUR True Story at our Blog Party.

Have you tried reading and commenting on a few posts near you?

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My Friend, Arthur Katz a Jew for Christ - A True story

 

He was extremely vehement, anti-religionist and anti-Christian.  

Our children attended Oakland High School where this Jewish teacher, by the name of Arthur Katz taught classes on history, and practiced his right to freedom of speech.   

One eventful day, Ruth, one of his students handed him a New Testament, and challenged him to read it through.  The teacher accepted the book, and took it with him as he left on a trip to Europe to hitch hike and live as a vagabond for the summer.   

Having nothing better to do, he decided to read the New Testament he had been given.  Art was stunned as the words virtually leaped from the pages striking direct into his heart. 

This cynical and unbelieving atheist was radically apprehended by a God who was actively seeking him.  This encounter with Jesus left him dramatically transformed and filled with the Holy Spirit. 

Returning from his trip to Europe, he sought out a church that was close by to where he lived, and found our church.  He was bubbling and ready to share his salvation experience with all who would listen. 

One of our board members, remarked to me, “He will not last, but will backslide soon.”

I couldn’t believe the negative attitude of my Christian friend, so I spoke up and declared,

“You and I will not allow him to fall and this is what we will do.”  I continued - - -

“Each morning as we prepare to leave for work, at a set hour of the morning we will pray something like this - - Lord, give Art Katz a good day, surround him with your love, and keep his steps from falling.”  My friend the board member, hesitated, but agreed to participate in this short ritual. 

We determined to believe that if two or three agree on earth as touching anything, it will be done.  We continued this short prayer for many months, until we could see that Art was established and strong in the Lord.

Rev. Art Katz, a great scholar, became one of the outstanding Charismatic Evangelists of our day, writing several books and winning many to Christ.  His basic message was of Jesus and the cross.

Art Katz passed away a few years ago, but his messages linger on.  http://artkatzministries.org/category/audio-messages/  

So, you see my friend, no matter how small it is when the Holy Spirit nudges you to give a blessing, a word, a testimony, a prayer, a book, or perhaps a New Testament to a person or friend, just obey that leading.   

You never know how far reaching your small act of obedience will go in changing the live of not only your friend, but the lives of many others, by the ripple effect !!

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Tell Me a True Story - Week of 01/11/16

Reading a True Story

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A True story from my Book, Rescue the Stories book one. 

Birth Certificate

The year was 1931, and the old dimly lit ranch house belonging to my Grandparents welcomed into this world the first-born daughter, Hazel to my mother and father. The attending nurse was able to stay, and instruct the new mother in all that was necessary to care for her new baby, but the hurried doctor was anxious to leave for a scheduled fishing trip. In his haste, he neglected to fill out the paper work for a birth certificate.

 

Ultimately, the birth of the new baby was never documented at the county recorder’s office.

A few years later, during World War II, each family was requested to report to their local grammar school to apply for food and gasoline ration books. Proof that each person was a member of the household was verified by presentation of a legal birth certificate.  

By this time, there were two other children in the household with recorded birth certificates, but none for the oldest child. The oldest child agonized with a whiny complaint, “Now I know that I was adopted, and I have suspected it for some time!”

Because she was the elder child, she was expected to take on more responsibility. This caused her to feel “put upon” and somehow, different from the other children. Her mother assured her that she was not adopted, and that steps were already being taken to prove that she was indeed a bona-fide member of the family.

The doctor had since passed away, but the nurse was located. Her memories of the birth at the old farm house were clear, and she was willing to sign an affidavit of birth for the anxious parents. With that behind them, the paperwork was taken care of speedily, enabling each family member to obtain their ration books.

As we reminisce about the importance of having our names subscribed to a recorded certificate-of-birth here on this earth, it is also of the utmost significance to understand the eternal magnitude of having our names written down in God’s book in heaven!

Entrance into heaven is only as we are able to present to the gatekeeper, our Second Birth Certificate. Some call it being Born-Again, which is an excellent term for receiving Jesus into our heart.

If you have not already done so, it is essential that you do so today! Jesus stands at your heart’s door and is knocking for entrance. The door of your heart is opened by a decision and can be voice activated. Just speak with your mouth and invite him in.

Revelations 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with me. 

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Tell Me a True Story Week of 01/04/16

Reading a True Story

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A True story from my Book, Rescue the Stories book three.  Give It To Em !!

 

How pretty they were !! Shiny, fancy, expensive hubcaps, that came with our new car. 

Last minute, we decided to drive from California to Camp Meeting and arrived a day early.  We elected to attend church that morning at Sheridan Assembly in Tulsa, OK. 

The service was meaningful, and we were in excellent spirits as we exited the church that afternoon. 

Wait - - something was wrong!  Our beautiful hubcaps were gone!  Someone had stolen our hubcaps while we were in church! 

Deflated in heart, we were also quite a bit angry to think about someone being so low down as to steal our hubcaps on a Sunday and to boot, openly in the church parking lot !! 

Too sick at heart to even eat lunch, my husband decided to call one of our friends and unload our woes on him for comfort. 

“Hi Bob, how are ya all doing?” was the cheerful greeting on the other end of the line. 

My husband blurted out, “Simon, you won’t believe this, but today in the church parking lot, they stole my fancy new hubcaps.”   

The quick reply was, “Bob, don’t let em steal your hubcaps.” 

 

My husband resounded, “You don’t understand, they already stole my hubcaps.” 

The gentle answer came again, “Bob, don’t let em steal your hubcaps, GIVE them to em.” 

My husband couldn’t believe his ears.  “What did you say?”   

Sweetly here it came again, “If you give them to em, they can’t steal your hubcaps.” 

We can’t actually say that we enjoyed those words of wisdom, but as we considered it thoughtfully, we could understand that if we gave the thieves the hubcaps, it would heal the hardness of our heart - - and all the un-forgiveness, that we were already feeling. 

Letting go is often difficult to do.  Especially if it was something you dearly enjoyed or loved.  

Many times, we would rather wallow in our misery and harbor our resentment and hug our offense.  The longer we sit in the seat of the scornful, the suffering is only prolonged.

If we would quickly “Give it to em,” it would speedily heal our wounded spirit and we could continue walking with Jesus at our normal pace.  So I say to you, next time something like this happens to YOU simply, “Give it to em.”

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