The Mystery of the Present Moment

We can only meet God in the present moment. This is an area where God chooses to place limits on His own Power.
We choose whether or not to live in the present moment.
Because we can encounter God only in that present moment, whenever we live in the past or in the future, we place ourselves beyond His reach.
We can only make decisions in the present moment.
We can only enjoy sights and sounds in the present moment.
We can only love or hate in the present moment.
The present moment is the interface between ourselves and the rest of the Universe, and, more importantly, it is the only point of contact between the individual and God.
Of all the possible points of time, only the present moment is available for Repentance. The past cannot be taken back and remade. The future remains forever outside our reach.
The present moment may appear to be tiny in duration – so much so that the human mind thinks it hardly exists at all – but in depth it is infinite.
Actually, it has no shape or form.
There is nothing to measure here, and that really infuriates the mind, since measurement is what the mind is good at.
It is remarkable that this quality, so essential to our existence, has no shape. It just is. And it just is in a way which the past and future cannot be. The past is a done deal, the future is all guesswork.
The formless present moment may be experienced as large or small.
In some senses it is of almost no duration. In other ways, it is Eternal Life.
Whichever we choose, it is, nevertheless, the only space within which we can operate.
Indeed, this is the unique means through which we can confront the Reality God grants us second by second.
It is odd that we do not consciously spend more time in the present moment than we do.
Unfortunately, the mind blocks the availability of the present moment whenever it has the chance to do so.
The mind cannot trust the present moment, since it cannot control it, and is thus almost always at enmity with it.
I think this may be part of what our Lord Jesus means when He contrasts “this world” with His Eternal Kingdom. (The
The mind cannot control the present moment, the time during which things can arise, so it pretends that it does not exist.
This causes us to behave in a completely unconscious way, forcing us to wait for the mind to absorb an event (which by then has become an event in the past) before we are allowed to experience it.

Sacred Lessons - September 2010

A MIRROR

As a proclamation, an anonymous pious soul circulated a list of the characteristics of a humble man. “Whoever reads it in the spirit of a good student, his soul will take delight, he will be content and he will pray”.

THE PORTRAIT OF A HUMBLE MAN

A humble man:

 Is cheerful – he is not glum
 Is simple – he is not suspect
 Is easy – he does not cause difficulties
 Is soft-spoken – he does not hurt anyone
 Is peace-loving – he does not cause clashes
 Is helpful –nothing is too difficult
 Is lenient – he does not condemn others
 Is grateful – he does not forget his benefactors
 Is approachable – he does not forge distances
 Is contented – he never complains
 Is even-tempered – he does not become agitated
 Is affable – he disdains no-one
 Is grounded – he is not a day-dreamer
 Is prudent – he is not rash
 Is obedient – he does not contradict
 Is patient – he is not anxious
 Is composed – he is not led astray
 Is useful – he does not cross his arms

He has been Graced with all the above and that is why he is Loved by all his fellow human beings and Pleasing to God.

NB: Therefore, this chart tells us that humility is not a weakness of humanity, but an adornment and a distinction.

Lord, make us better parents.

Teach us how to understand our children.

To listen patiently to whatever they have to tell us and to answer them politely when they ask questions.

Guard us from the danger of acting curtly.

Help us not to hurt their feelings, not to harm their sense of dignity, not to punish them at times of anger and temper.

Enlighten us that we may admonish them calmly and serenely and at all times inspire them through our example.

Make us overlook the small and insignificant errors of our children and help us to see their talents and the good things they do.

Give us the right words for rightful praise.

Help us to support them, to behave towards them according to their age and not to make excessive demands of them.

Help us to assist them the realization of all their good aspirations. Make us good and fair, wise and companionable.

Make us to be loving and to give a true Christian example.

Finally, help us through our lives and all our expressions to show them the road that leads to YOU. Amen.

The First British Christian Martyr Saint Alban

HOLY MARTYRS OF THE ROMAN PERIOD
The martyrdom of St. Alban
The protomartyr of Britain, is variously dated to the reigns of Septimius Severus, Decius, Valerian and Diocletian. The balance of scholarly opinion ascribes it to sometime in the third century. Dr. John Morris of London dates the execution to June 22, 209. "The search for the source on which Gildas, about 540,and thence Bede, about 700, drew for their accounts of the martyrdom was rewarded by the discovery in 1901 of a copy in Turin of Constantius' life of St. Germaine, originally written in about 480 .... Constantius gives the day of St. Alban's execution as June 22nd, but not the year. He does, however, state that the Roman Emperor involved was Septimus Severus, and says 'Then the emperor Severus went to Britain...When it became clear that there were very many Christians there, with his customary fury he ordered them all to be put to the sword.' Gildas, copying from this, apparently read 'Severus' as an adjective, and, in a gloss, supposed the emperor was the notorious anti-Christian, Diocletian. Bede omitted the 'supposed' and incorporated the gloss in the text and so the Diocletian dating became established." In any case, Dr. Morris points out, it couldn't have been in that emperor's time, because he ruled only in the East. Maximian ruled the West of the empire and under him Constantius was responsible for Spain, Gaul and Britain. His wife, Helen, was a Christian. A contemporary account emphatically states that while this Caesar 'showed willing' by knocking down a few meeting places of the Christians, he killed none. Returning now to Severus: he was in England from the summer of 208 till his death in 211. He had his wife and two sons with him. In 209 he went north with the
elder son to deal with the Caledonians, leaving his youngest son Geta Caesar in charge of Britain for three or four months till his return. The Turin MS says that after St. Alban's death, 'Then the evil Caesar, aghast at such wonders, ordered the persecutions to end, without the orders of the emperors, setting down in his report that the religion actually prospered from the slaughter of the saints...To this baffling passage Morris offers the solution "that the evil Caesar was in fact the acting one Geta, and so confidently places the martyrdom on June 22, 209."


This same "Guide" also states that St. Alban "was almost certainly a high-born native of Verulamium who had probably held military rank, privileged with Roman citizenship in the same way as was the Jew, St. Paul of Tarsus..."

Writing in the sixth century, St. Gildas the Wise writes: “By God’s own free gift, in the time of persecution…, lest Britain be totally plunged into the thick gloom of black night, He kindled for us the brilliant lamps of the holy martyrs… I mean St. Alban of Verulamium [today’s St. Alban’s], together with Aaron and Julius, citizens of the City of the Legion [Caerleon in Wales].”

“This Alban,” writes the Venerable Bede in the eighth century, “who was as yet a pagan, received into his house a certain priest fleeing from persecution at the time when the commands of the heathen emperors were raging against the Christians. Seeing that this man applied himself night and day to constant prayer and vigils, and influenced by God's grace, he began to imitate his example of faith and piety. Gradually he was taught by the man's salutary encouragement, and relinquishing the dark¬ness of idolatry became a whole-hearted Christian. While the aforementioned priest was being entertained in his house for some days, news reached the ears of the impious prince that one of Christ's confessors, for whom the role of martyr had not yet been assigned, was lying low in the house of Alban. As a result he straight away ordered soldiers to make a careful search for him. When they came to the martyr's cottage, St Alban soon showed himself to the soldiers in place of his guest and mentor, dressed in the man's clothes, the hooded cloak that he wore, and was led off to the judge in bonds. It happened that at the time Alban was brought to him the judge was offering sacrifices to the pagan gods at the altars. When he saw Alban, he became enflamed with anger at the fact that Alban had ventured to offer himself of his own free will to the soldiers in place of the guest he had harboured, and thus to expose himself to danger . He ordered him to be dragged to the images of the gods before which he stood and said: `Since you preferred to conceal that profane rebel rather than surrender him to the soldiers so that he might pay the penalty he deserves for his blasphemy and contempt of the gods, you will suffer the penalty for which he was due if you attempt to reject the rites of our religion.' But St Alban, who had voluntarily given himself up to the persecutors as a Christian, was not ¬in the least afraid of the prince's threats. Rather, being girded with the armour of spiritual warfare, he openly declared he would not obey his commands. Then the judge said: `Of what house and stock are you?' Alban replied: `What business is it of yours of what lineage I am born? If on the other hand you desire to hear the truth of my religion, know that I am now a Christian and devote myself to Christian service.' The judge said: `I seek your name, so tell me it without delay.' The other replied: `The name given me by my parents is Alban, and I revere and ever worship the true living God, Who created all things.' Then, filled with anger, the judge said: you wish to enjoy the blessings of a long life, do not refuse to offer sacrifice to the great gods.' Alban replied: `These sacrifices which you offer to the pagan gods can neither help their recipients nor fulfil the wishes and desires of those praying. Rather, whoever offers sacrifice to these images shall receive as his reward the eternal punishment of Hell.' When the judge heard this, he was roused to great fury and ordered the holy confessor of God to be beaten by the torturers in the belief that since words had failed, he could weaken the constancy of his heart with the lash. Though afflicted in most cruel torture, AIban bore it with patience and even with joy for God's sake, and when the judge realised that he could not be overcome bv torture or enticed from the rites of the Christian religion, he ordered him to be beheaded.

“As he was being led to his death, Alban came to a river which separated the town from the place of his execution bv its verv swift course. There he saw a large crowd of people, both men and women of all ages and social class, who were clearly drawn by divine impulse to follow the blessed confessor and martvr. Thev filled the bridge over the river to such an extent that they could scarcely all get over before nightfall. Indeed since almost all had gone forth, the judge was left in the city without any attendants. So, St Alban, in whose mind was a burning desire to come quicklv to his martyrdom, approached the torrent, and raising his eyes to heaven, he saw the bed of the river instantly drv up and the water withdraw and make a path for his steps. When the executioner himself saw this along with others, he hastened to meet Alban when he came to the place appointed for his execution, doubtless urged on in this by divine impulse. Casting away the sword he held ready drawn, he threw himself at his feet and earnestly desired that he himself be thought worthy of being executed either with the martyr he was ordered to slay or in his place . . .

“So while he was turned from a persecutor into a companion in the true faith, and while there was a very proper hesitation among the other executioners in taking up the sword which lay on the ground, the most reverend confessor ascended the hill with the crowds. This hill lay about five hundred paces from the arena, and, as was fitting, it was fair, shining and beautiful, adorned, indeed clothed, on all sides with wild flowers of every kind; nowhere was it steep or precipitous or sheer but Nature had provided it with wide, long-sloping sides stretching smoothly down to the level of the plain. In fact its natural beauty had long fitted it as a place to be hallowed by the blood of a blessed martyr. When he reached the top of the hill, St. Alban asked God to give him water and at once a perpetual spring bubbled up, confined within its channel and at his very feet, so that all could see that even the stream rendered service to the martyr. For it could not have happened that the martyr who had left no water remaining the river would have desired it on the top of the hill, if he had not realized that this was fitting. The river, when it had fulfilled its duty and completed its pious service, returned to its natural course, but it left behind a witness of its ministry. And so in this spot the valiant martyr was beheaded and received the crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him. But the man who set his unholv hands upon that pious neck was not allowed to rejoice over the death: for his eves fell to the ground along with the head of the blessed martvr. Beheaded too at that time was the soldier who previouslv had been impelled by the will of Heaven to refuse to strike the holv confessor of God . . . Then the judge, daunted bv such great and unprecedented heav¬enly miracles, soon ordered a halt to the persecution. He was beginning, in fact, to pay honour to the slaughter of saints, through which he previouslv believed he could force them to give up their allegiance to the Christian faith. The blessed Alban suffered on the 22nd of June near the city of Verulamium… Here when peaceful Christian times returned, a church of wonderful workmanship was built, a worthy memorial of his martyrdom. To this day sick people are healed at this place and the working of frequent miracles to bring it renown.

“About this time there also suffered Aaron and Julius, citizens of Caerleon, and many others, both men and women, in various places. They were racked by many kinds of torture and their limbs were indescribably mangled but, when their sufferings were over, their souls were carried to the joys of the Heavenly City.”

In the fifth century, Saints Germanus of Auxerre and Lupus of Troyes prayed at the shrine of St. Alban, and through the influence of St. Germanus several French churches and villages were named after him. Nine ancient English churches were dedicated to him.

By tradition, the name of the priest whom St. Alban sheltered is known to have been Amphibalus. He also received the crown of martyrdom (although this is disputed), and it is claimed that his relics were recovered at Redbourn in 1177. Churches were dedicated to Saints Julius and Aaron in and near Caerleon.

As Robert Thornsberry writes, “the relics of holy Alban, Amphibalus, and perhaps the soldier as well, were preserved. A church, and later a cathedral, were built upon the site of the martyrdom and burial. During the invasions of the pagan Danes, they were removed for safekeeping. This later led to a shameful altercation between the monks of St. Albans and Ely that lasted for centuries. After the conquest [of 1066], the Normans, in order to impress the populace with their reverence for the island’s saints, repaired and rebuilt the cathedral. Early in the fourteenth century, a new chapel and an elaborate shrine were constructed to house the relics. In the sixteenth century, the impious hands of the minions of Henry VIII destroyed the shrine during the dissolution of the monasteries. I do not know what became of the relics. Many years later, the shrine was laboriously pieced back together from the approximately two thousand fragments into which it had been smashed, and now stands in its former glory in the Anglican cathedral of St. Alban’s.”

(Sources: Gildas, On the Destruction of Britain; Bede, History of the English Church and People, I, 7; Robert Edward Thornsberry, “Saint Alban, Protomartyr of Britain”, Living Orthodoxy, vol. V, no. 3, May-June, 1983, pp. 5-7; David Farmer, The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, Oxford: Clarendon, 1978, pp. 8-9, 16, 227-228; Fr. Panagiotis Carras)

I said to the 80-year old Elder Ascetic…

“Tell me, my fathers, why on this earth, night and day are inseparable?

Why do the thorn and flower, laughter and tears grow together as twins?

Why do scorpions, vipers and cold poisons nest in the most beautiful greenery of the forest?

Why, before the delicate bud can emerge and open its beauty to the light, does a black worm come and stab it an leave it as a lifeless rag in its crib?

Finally, why does confusion and disorder push its way into the harmony of the world?...”

Lifting his right hand to heaven and with his deep voice, the ascetic replied:

“Behind those golden clouds, the Most Blessed One is busy creating a priceless piece of embroidery.

And as we walk down here on earth, we see the rear view of it, my child.

And it is obvious then that we will see errors at a time when we should be giving thanks and praise.

As a Christian, wait for the day when your winged soul will fly through the sky

And you will see God’s masterpiece from its proper view and then…you will see that all is methodical and ordered”.

OUR CROSS

A man who was weary, exhausted by the heavy Cross (trials) which he bore, said to the Lord:

“Lord, have mercy on me. Take this heavy Cross which I cannot bear, from me”

The Lord took pity on me. He took him to a large hall full of Crosses. Small one, medium ones, large ones. He said to him: “Leave your Cross hear and choose whichever one you want”.

Overjoyed, he started searching. Some Crosses were very light, others were impossible to lift. After searching for a long time, he found a Cr4oss which he could bear and lift easily. So he said to Christ: “Lord, I have found a Cross which is my size” and then Christ answered him, saying: “Go well, my child. But know this – the Cross which you found was the one which you left when you entered the hall”.

This tells us simply: Obedience to the will of God. Let us patiently accept our Cross, which sometimes brings us to our knees because it is so heavy. The Lord knows how much we can endure and He will not leave us.

Be grateful to:

Your friends who forgive you
Your enemies who make you careful
Difficulties which make you strive
Needs which make you humble
Hardships which make you strong
Disappointments which make you persevere
So that:
At the end of the year you will reach a point where
all are grateful to you.

Orthodox Miracle Snakes of the Theotokos

The phenomenon of the Holy Snakes of the Virgin Mary has been occurring for centuries during the festivities to the Theotokos between August 5 and August 15 in the village of Markopoulo on the island of Kefalonia, Greece. The small black snakes appear at the church of Panagia of Langouvarda on the site of a monastery, established as a nunnery and dedicated to Our Lady of Langouvarda.

The myth about these snakes is attached to the year the monastery was attacked by pirates in 1705. The nuns prayed fervently to the Virgin Mary for protection and were subsequently transformed into the snakes to avoid being taken as prisoners.

The snakes have a small cross on their head and their tongues are also in the shape of a cross. They are known to belong to the Telescopus fallax species, also known as the European Cat Snake, and they appear in and around the courtyard of the church, on the walls and on the bell tower. The snakes show no fear while the services are held and are harmless during the festivities. As soon as the Liturgy concludes on the 15th of August, they become hostile and aggressive and disappear back into the wilderness of the area. The snakes cannot be found until the following year.

The inhabitants of the villages consider them to be holy, collecting them and setting them on the silver icon of the Virgin of the Snakes (Panagia Fidoussa). It has been documented by the locals that during World War II and the year of the island's destructive 1953 earthquake in August, the snakes failed to appear. The locals now use this as a sign that if the snakes do not show just before the 15th of August that something bad is imminent.

THOUGHT YOU MIGHT FIND THIS INTERESTING ESPECIALLY FOR THE STRONG AND SCARY FOR THE WEAK. GOOD VIEWING!!

Formerly -- the Sears Tower

Not content with having the tallest building in America , the owners of Willis Tower in Chicago have installed four glass box viewing platforms which stick out of the building 103 floors up.

The balconies are suspended 1,353 feet in the air and just out four feet from the building's Skydeck.

Visitors get their first view from The Ledge -- four glass balconies suspended from the Tower.

Designers say the platforms - collectively dubbed The Ledge - have been purposely created to make visitors feel as they are floating above the city.
The reward is unobstructed views of Chicago from the building's west side and a heart-stopping vista of the street and Chicago River below - for those brave enough to look straight down.
It's like walking on ice.

John Huston, one of the owners of the Willis Tower, even admitted to getting 'a little queasy' when he ventured out on to the balcony. However, after 30 or 40 trips, he seems to have gotten used to it.

Long way up: Even the floor of the platforms are glass
- few are brave enough to look straight down.
Although some adults felt dizzy after experiencing The Ledge, children seemed to take it in their stride.

Fearless: Five-year-old Anna Kane spreads out on the floor of the 10ft square box which is 1,353 ft up.

Thrill seekers: The boxes jut out four feet from the building and were specifically designed to attract visitors.
The Willis Tower has always been about superlatives - tallest, largest, most iconic.

The Ledge is the world's most awesome view, the world's most precipitous view, the view with the most wow in the world.
The balconies are 10ft high and 10ft wide, can hold five tons, and have glass which is 1.5 inch thick.

Inspiration came from the hundreds of forehead prints visitors left behind on The Skydeck windows every week.
Now, staff have a new glass surface to clean: floors!

Architect Ross Wimer said:
'We did studies that showed a 4' X 4' deep enclosure
makes you feel like you're detached from the building particularly since
there's only room for one row of people.'

The Ledge is accessible from The Skydeck which attracts 25,000 visitors on clear days.
They each pay $15 to take an elevator ride up to the 103rd floor of the 110-story office building
that opened in 1973.

Whew! After seeing this
I think I will just drink my bucket of grouse instead!

DONKEY CHAT IN JERUSALEM!!

Some donkeys were in the field nearby Jerusalem . One donkey said;

"I don't understand it, just yesterday everyone was throwing their clothes and palms on the road
when I was carrying Jesus on my back but now I am back to being a nothing. Those people don't even
see its me who was carrying Jesus."

Another donkey said:
"It works like that my brother; without Jesus you are nothing in this world"

Elder Ephraim of Philotheou

Elder Ephraim was born in 1927 in Volos, Greece, originally with the name John, and the boy spent his childhood in poverty, helping his father at his work, but always following the pious example of his mother. At the age of 14 he began to yearn for monasticism, but it was not until he was 19 that his spiritual father gave him a blessing to go to Mount Athos. On his arrival there, he went straight to Elder Joseph, who accepted him into his brotherhood, and tonsured him nine months later, in 1948, with the name Ephraim. Out of obedience to his elder, Fr Ephraim was ordained a deacon and subsequently a priest. After Elder Joseph's repose in 1959, people aspiring to strict monasticism began gathering around Elder Ephraim, who himself was acquiring a reputation as a discerning spiritual guide. As his community grew, they moved to Provata, where there was a larger building, but this also soon proved too small. Then, in 1973, he was asked by the Supervisors of the Holy Mountain to move his brotherhood into the Holy Monastery of Philotheou and become its abbot. Because of his growing fame as an elder with great spiritual discernment, Philotheou became so full that the Supervisors of the Holy Mountain asked him to send groups of his disciples to repopulate three other monasteries on the Mountain: Xeropotamou, Konstamonitou, and Karakallou. He was also asked to repopulate the Great Lavra, but declined. In the second volume of his works, Life in the Spirit, Elder Aimilianos, Abbot of the Holy Monastery of Simonos Petras, describes the monk as an apostle who must be ready, at any moment, to be told: 'Get up from here and go there. Leave this and do that.' Elder Ephraim clearly fulfils this ideal, for in 1979 he made a brief visit to Canada and the United States, where he realized that it was God's will for him to return. Since then he has made annual trips to the North America and most of his time is spent travelling to Greek Orthodox Churches in various cities across the two countries. His spiritual children now number tens of thousands: lay people, monastics, and priests. He continued to be the spiritual father of his monasteries on Mount Athos and eight women's monasteries throughout Greece, but since it became impractical to continue as Abbot of Philotheou because of his extended absences in North America, he resigned in 1990 and left a disciple of his to assume the monastery's responsibilities.

Voice of our beloved Elder Ephraim praying: "Jesus Christ, have mercy on me", or "Most Holy Theotokos, save us":

Painted feathers

The painters of these feathers are outstanding but the message below is even better.


God's Wings
A little something to put things in perspective, after a forest fire in Yellowstone National Park , forest rangers began
their trek up a mountain to assess the inferno's damage.

One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, perched statuesquely on the ground at the base of a tree.
Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he knocked over the bird with a stick. When he gently struck it, three tiny
chicks scurried from under their dead mother's wings.

The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and had
gathered them under her wings, instinctively knowing that the toxic smoke would rise. She could have flown to
safety but had refused to abandon her babies.

Then the blaze had arrived and the heat had scorched her small body, the mother had remained steadfast
because she had been willing to die, so those under the cover of her wings would live.

'He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge.' (Psalm 91:4)

Being loved this much should make a difference in your life. Remember the One who loves you, and then be
different because of it.

PURE FAITH

A nurse on the pediatric ward, before listening to the little ones chests,
would plug the stethoscope into their ears and let them listen to their own hearts.
Their eyes would always light up with awe, but she never got a response equal to four-year old David's comment.
Gently she tucked the stethoscope into his ears and placed the disk over his heart.
"Listen", she said..........."What do you suppose that is?"
He drew his eyebrows together in a puzzled line and looked up
as if lost in the mystery of the strange tap - tap - tapping deep in his chest.
Then his face broke out in a wondrous grin and he asked, "Is that Jesus knocking?"

Sitka Icon. Sitka, Alaska, USA.

History of the Wonder-working Sitka icon of the Mother of God
The Sitka Icon of the Mother of God Located at the Cathedral of St Michael the Archangel in Sitka, Alaska is one of the most revered Icons in North America: the Sitka Mother of God.

This Icon has been attributed to a famous Iconographer, Vladimir Lukich Borovikovsky (1758-1826), a protégé of the Empress Catherine II
who was instructed at the Academy of Arts in St.Petersburg, Russia. In addition to being a great portrait painter, Borovikovsky also painted many of the Icons for the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon in
St Petersburg.

Painted in the style of the Kazan Mother of God Icon, on canvas, the Sitka Mother of God Icon is 36 x 17½ inches in size. An exceptionally beautiful and detailed riza of silver covers the Icon of the Theotokos and Christ child, and the Image of God the Father blessing from above.

The Cathedral received the Icon as a gift from the laborers of the Russian American Company in 1850, two years after the Cathedral was completed. Even with their meager wages, these men generously made their contribution to the Church.

Miracles have been attributed to the Sitka Mother of God Icon over the years. It is believed that the gaze of the eyes of the Theotokos have led to the restored health of those who prayed before the Icon.
Because of the peaceful gaze of the Theotokos, the Icon has been described as a “pearl of Russian ecclesiastical art of ineffable gentleness, purity and harmony….” And “…the most beautiful face of the Mother of God with the Divine Child in her arms is so delicately and
artistically done that the more one looks at it the more difficult it is to tear one’s gaze away.”

Originally part of the main Iconostasis at the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel in Sitka, Alaska, the Icon is now permanently located on the far left side of the Iconostasis in a special place of honor.

Deer Visits Cat Daily

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace" Jimi Hendrix



A deer visits a cat in a yard every morning...
There is nothing more wonderful than animals!
This cat in Harrisburg has her friend that comes to see her every morning.
The owner finally took pics.

THE SNEEZE

They walked in tandem, each of the ninety-two students filing into the already crowded auditorium. With their rich maroon gowns flowing... and the traditional caps, they looked almost... as grown up as they felt.

Dads swallowed hard behind broad smiles, and Moms freely brushed away tears.

This class would NOT pray during the commencements----not by choice, but because of a recent court ruling prohibiting it.


The principal and several students were careful to stay within the guidelines allowed by the ruling. They gave inspirational and challenging speeches, but no one mentioned divine guidance and no one asked for blessings on the graduates or their families.

The speeches were nice, but they were routine.....until the final speech received a standing ovation.

A solitary student walked proudly to the microphone. He stood still and silent for just a moment, and then, it happened.

All 92 students, every single one of them, suddenly SNEEZED!!!!


The student on stage... Simply looked at the audience and said,

‘GOD BLESS YOU
And he walked off stage...


The audience exploded into applause. This graduating class had found a unique way to invoke God’s blessing on their future with or without the court’s approval.

Isn’t this a wonderful story? Pass it on to all your friends..........and

GOD BLESSES YOU!!!!

This is a true story; it happened at the University of Maryland.



Oh, how I wish THIS one would take off and FILL the whole Country!!

COURAGE AND HOPE

One day a young lady was driving along with her father.
They came upon a storm, and the young lady asked her father, What should I do?"


He said "keep driving". Cars began to pull over to the side, the storm was getting worse.

"What should I do." The young lady asked?
"Keep driving," her father replied.

On up a few feet, she noticed that eighteen wheelers were also pulling over. She told her dad, "I must pull over, I can barely see ahead. It is terrible, and everyone is pulling over!"


Her father told her, "Don't give up, just keep driving!"

Now the storm was terrible, but she never stopped driving, and soon she could see a little more clearly. After a couple of miles she was again on dry land, and the sun came out.

Her father said, "Now you can pull over and get out."

She said "But why now?"

He said "When you get out, look back at all the people that gave up and are still in the storm, because you never gave up your storm is now over.

This is a testimony for anyone who is going through "hard times".

Just because everyone else, even the strongest, gives up. You don't have to...if you keep going, soon your storm will be over and the sun will shine upon your face again.

This story touched me! I hope it touches you!

Feel free to pass it on to someone you know, who is going through tough times. Tell them never give up, because GOD will never give up on them!
"I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me!"

..everything is made from flowers...

..everything is made from flowers...