Devotion – Friday, July 26, 2013 BAD HAND WRITING “Do everything without complaining or arguing.” (Philippians 2:14) A man writing at the post office desk was approached by an older gentleman with a postcard in his hand. The older man said, “Sir, could you please help me? My hands are full of arthritis and I can barely hold a pen. Would you please address this postcard for me?” The younger man was glad to help. He noticed that the postcard was blank on the other side. “Sir, would you like me to write a message?” “Sure!” said the old man. He proceeded to tell him what to write and where to send it. Finally the younger man asked, “Is there anything else I can do for you?” The old man looked over the postcard and thought for a minute. “Yes, at the end could you add a P.S.?” The younger man was happy to oblige. “What do you want the P.S. to say?” Much to the astonishment of the younger man, the older man said, “Write, ‘please excuse the sloppy hand writing’!” Sometimes we can’t do enough to please others. At other times, they can’t do enough to please us. We are constantly asking God to answer our prayers. When things don’t go our way we tend to complain and ask why. We are complainers. Since the creation, man has complained against each other and God. After eating from the “tree of knowledge” Adam complained to God that it was His fault for creating Eve. “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit and I ate it.” (Genesis 3:12) God gave us His only Son. Through Him we have eternal life. What more could we ask for? But believe me, we ask and ask and ask. Like kids at Christmas, we want everything and when we don’t get it, we gripe and whine. As servants of Christ, we are also to have love and compassion toward others. We are to give without expecting anything in return. We are to serve gladly! HUMOR: A guy joins a monastery and takes a vow of silence: he’s allowed to say two words every seven years. After the first seven years, the elders bring him in and ask for his two words. "Cold floors," he says. They nod and send him away. Seven more years pass. They bring him back in and ask for his two words. He clears his throat. "Bad food," he says. They nod and send him away. Seven more years pass. They bring him in for his two words. "I quit," he says. "That’s not surprising," the elders say. "You’ve done nothing but complain since you got here." PRAYER: “Father, may I not complain or argue today!”
Posted on: Fri, 26 Jul 2013 19:07:54 +0000