From: "Dwayne Savaya" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> God's Work Ministry E-Mail
Dear Friend, We should be quick to show our generosity towards those in need around us and remember that we will reap exactly what we have sown. No good deed will ever go unnoticed by the Lord because He has promised that every deed done openly and in secret will have a just reward. The Bible declares in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7, "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." Be encouraged to allow the Lord to bless you by the blessings that you bestow upon others. We can never out give God so we should do for others all that we can with a pure heart and in doing we who gave will receive the greater blessing. (Galatians 6:7) (Matthew 6:3-4) I pray this message inspires your heart to love others unconditionally just as God loves you and I hope you are challenged to give with a pure heart knowing that God will be well pleased with how you treated His creation. THREE COWS It was a year I will never forget! 1988 would see my family move back to the States after spending eight of the most rewarding years of our lives in the mission field of Thailand. Our departure was more sudden than we had anticipated, as there were problems in our home congregation and the money just was not there. Paula and I prayed for wisdom, and the answer came loud and clear. Yet, we had made so many friends; and it was difficult to pack up eight years into shipping crates and footlockers, get on a train which would take us to an airplane, and just leave! But we did! However, before we left, we spent several weeks traveling all over the country saying good bye to those we loved so much. It was a difficult assignment, but God provided the grace we all needed. I remember one particular good bye that will stay with me forever, or I hope it does. His name was Paw Phim. Paw in the Thai language is a term of respect and endearment for older men. It is equivalent to our "Father". Paw Phim had become like a second father to me, for it was in his village that I preached my first sermon in Thai. On that particular day, I knew no one understood, but Paw Phim took my hand after the sermon and told me it was one of the finest sermons he had ever heard. Years later I would ask Paw Phim if he really understood what I said, and he told me, "Of course not, but what your face and heart said on that day spoke much louder than what came out of your mouth. I knew then that you loved the Thai people, and it was then I became to love you like a son." Wow! Aren't I a lucky man? Paw Phim was the last stop on my circuit of "good byes". It was the most difficult. I didn't usually bring food when I went to visit him because it offended him. But I was tired of seeing him get up at 4:00 in the morning and walk over a mile on those swollen, beaten up knees, to go to a small pond to seine a few little fish for me to have in my soup and rice for breakfast. I was tired of seeing his family do without so I could have a little meat with my rice and vegetables at the evening meal. For my last visit, I brought two chickens and a bag full of vegetables and fruit. He didn't like it one bit and accepted it begrudgingly. However, I was not to outdo Paw Phim! At our last meal, we had roasted beef along with a host of other delicacies. It was unbelievable! We never had beef -- there just wasn't any to be had -- water buffalo, yes, but not real beef from a cow! Yet there it was. I asked him where he got it and he told me not to worry about it. I was to eat it and enjoy it for this was the least he could do for me before we had to say our good byes. I kept digging, because I wanted to know what he had just done for me. It was then that my heart began to break, for I found out that Paw Phim had slaughtered his only cow, which gave milk to his grand- kids, so I could have beef at our last meal. I gently rebuked him and offered to give him money to buy another cow. It was then that these words poured out of his weather-beaten face, "Joe, I didn't give my cow to you, I gave it to God. Do you think I would do that for you?" Again, Wow! How does God make people like this? I don't know, but everyone should have a Paw Phim in his or her life! This story came to its powerful conclusion three years later. I went back to visit my second home in Thailand. Of course I went to see Paw Phim. His health was bad, but his mind and heart were the same. He asked me if I remembered that cow he had slaughtered, and I said that I had. He then took my hand and led me to the back of his house. Standing there were three beautiful cows! I asked Paw Phim where he got them, and his answer? "Where do you think I got them, Joe? God delivered them to me three weeks after you left!" No, I didn't buy those cows, but someone did! How God provided those three cows I'll never know, but I don't need to know! The point of this story is not about the cows, but about the faith and trust of a Thai Christian named Paw Phim who lives on the other side of the world, yet still teaches us that faith and trust will always win the day! Thank you Paw Phim! I'll see you soon. By Joe Bagby Read and meditate on these scriptures: 1 John 4:18-21 "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love Him, because He first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from Him, That he who loveth God love his brother also." Romans 12:9-10 "Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another." Hebrews 13:1-3 "Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity as being yourselves also in the body." Revelation 22:12-13 Jesus declares "...Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible. Today's Selected Poem: MESSAGES TO REMEMBER Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/inpoem110.htm Today's Selected Testimony: SAVED IN CHILDBEARING Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony111.htm ============================================= From: "Dwayne Savaya" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> God's Work Ministry E-Mail Dear Friend, We are to always remember that God is by our side no matter what we may go through in life. In the good times and in the bad, we can always rely on the Lord and trust that He will be there to laugh with us in the good times and lift us up when we fall down in the tough times. The Bible declares in Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." Friends may leave our side when life gets tough, but the Lord has made an eternal covenant promising that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Be encouraged to rest in the goodness of the Lord knowing that God is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. (Psalm 91:9-16) I hope this message encourages your heart to remember that with God by your side all will be well no matter what may be going wrong in your life. THE VISIT My dad, Angelo, was in the hospital in Tacoma, Washington. A former Marine and veteran of the Korean War, he was having his third knee replacement surgery. A long and very painful operation was going to be made even worse because Dad was going through it alone. There was no one to hold his hand, no familiar soft voices to reassure him. His wife was ill and unable to accompany him or even visit during his weeklong stay. My sisters and brother lived in California, and I lived even farther away, in Indiana. There wasn't even anyone to drive him to the hospital, so he had arrived that morning by taxi. The thought of my dad lying there alone was more than I could stand. But what could I do from here? I picked up the phone and called information for the Puyallup, Washington, Marine Corps recruiting station, where I joined the Marines ten years before. I thought that if I could talk to a Marine and explain the situation; maybe one of them would visit my dad. I called the number. A man answered the phone and in a very confident voice said, "United States Marines, Sergeant Vanes. May I help you?" Feeling just as certain, I replied, "Sergeant Vanes, you may find this request a little strange, but this is why I am calling..." I proceeded to tell him who I was and that my father was also a former Marine and 100 percent disabled from the Korean War. I explained that he was in the hospital, alone, without anyone to visit and asked if Sergeant Vanes would please go and see him. Without hesitation, he answered, "Absolutely." Then I asked, "If I send flowers to the recruiting station, would you deliver them to my dad when you go to the hospital?" "Ma'am, I will be happy to take the flowers to your dad. I'll give you my address. You send them, and I will make sure that he receives them," he replied. The next morning, I sent the flowers to Sergeant Vane's office just as we had planned. I went to work, and that evening, I returned home and phoned my dad to inquire about his surprise visitor. If you have ever talked with a small child after that child has just seen Santa Claus, you will understand the glee I heard in my dad's voice. "I was just waking up when I thought I saw two Marines in their dress blue uniforms standing at the foot of my bed," he told me excitedly. "I thought I had died and gone to heaven. But they were really there!" I began to laugh, partly at his excitement, but also because he didn't even mention his operation. He felt so honored: Two Marines he had never met took time out to visit an old Marine like him. He told me again and again how sharp they looked and how all the nurses thought he was so important. "But how did you ever get them to do that?" he asked me. "It was easy. We are all Marines, Dad, past and present; it's the bond." After hanging up with my dad, I called Sergeant Vanes to thank him for visiting my dad. And to thank him for the extra things he did to make it special: wearing his dress blue uniform, bringing another Marine along -- he even took a digital camera with him. He had pictures taken of the two Marines with my dad right beside his bed. That evening, he e-mailed them to me so I could see for myself that my dad was not alone and that he was going to be okay. As for the flowers, they hardly mattered, but I was glad for the opportunity to express my feelings. The card read: "Daddy, I didn't want just anyone bringing you flowers...so I sent the World's Finest. Semper Fi." By Tre' M. Barron Read and meditate on these scriptures: 1 John 4:20-21 "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from Him, That he who loveth God love his brother also." Psalm 16:8-11 "I have set the LORD always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." Psalm 147:3-5 "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars; He calleth them all by their names. Great is our Lord, and of great power: His understanding is infinite." Psalm 118:5-9 "I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me? The LORD taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes." All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible. Today's Selected Poem: THE RIGHT WORDS Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/inpoem173.htm Today's Selected Testimony: JESUS STILLS HEALS TODAY Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony35.htm In Christ's Service, Dwayne Savaya God's Work Ministry Please feel free to visit the Website to read more Encouraging and Inspirational stories, poems and testimonies. Our E-mail Archives are available as well to read the messages that have been sent in the past. You can now hear our stories and poems by ordering Voice Messages. Each volume contains 15 messages that can be heard and enjoyed anywhere a CD player is available. To order your copy, please click on this link: http://www.Godswork.org/voicemessages.htm You can also send Free E-cards to friends and loved ones with the many choices available. You are also welcome to post your prayer requests in our Prayer Forum. All this and more available at --- http://www.Godswork.org You can also send prayer requests to --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] Add your E-mail address if you'd like correspondence with the prayer partners. .
