Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

"For where two or three meet in My Name,
I shall be there with them" (Matthew 18:20)

Reflection:.

The pastor of an inner-city Church tells
about an unexpected, but beautifully
enriching experience of Christ's Presence
in his life. He says ... When I learned that
I was to be the new pastor of this Church
located in a so-called "War Zone"
neighborhood, I regarded it as "mission"
territory. My purpose was to bring Christ
there. But, to my shame, I soon discovered,
quite unexpectedly, that Christ already was
there, in the honesty and generosity and
love of the people I had come to change.
Through them, the experience of the Christ
Presence came to me as never before.
Through them, Christ had changed me.
Through them, I realized, as never before,
that Jesus Christ makes His Presence
known to us in the most unexpected places.

Who could have expected that the
promised Messiah of God would first present
Himself to the world in a lowly stable?

It was summer. The days were long and the
heat of the desert wastes blew in on
Caesarea Philippi. Jesus turned aside from
the crowds and went away to the mountains
with a few close friends. The tall pines
swayed in the cool breeze. A clear stream
flowed at their feet, splashing against the
boulders in its path. The Apostle Peter
marveled at the beauty of the everlasting
hills as he said, "Surely God is in this place.
" But Jesus said, "If you really want to see
God working, come with Me." To Peter's
dismay they were going down from the
mountain, back to the heat, the dust, and
the sweaty crowds at Caesarea. As they
came down from the mountain, a man was
waiting with an afflicted son. Jesus touched
the boy and made him well again. And
Peter said to himself, "It's hard to get used
to the idea that we're closest to God when
we meet him in the needs of our sisters
and brothers."

HAVE YOU MET HIM THERE?

(from Sunday Sermons Online)

The following were taken from papers
written by a class of 8-year-olds:

WHAT IS A GRANDPARENT?

Grandparents are a lady and a man
who have no little children of their own.
They like other people's.

A grandfather is a man, & a grandmother
is a lady!

Grandparents don't have to do anything
except be there when we come to see
them.. They are so old they shouldn't play
hard or run. It is good if they drive us to
the shops and give us money.

When they take us for walks, they slow
down past things like pretty leaves and
caterpillars.

They show us and talk to us about the
colors of the flowers and also why we
shouldn't step on 'cracks.'

They don't say, 'Hurry up.'

Usually grandmothers are fat but not
too fat to tie your shoes.

They wear glasses and funny
underwear.

They can take their teeth and gums out.

Grandparents don't have to be smart.

They have to answer questions like
'Why isn't God married?' and 'How come
dogs chase cats?'

When they read to us, they don't skip.
They don't mind if we ask for the same
story over again.

Everybody should try to have a
grandmother, especially if you don't have
television because they are the only
grownups who like to spend time with us.

They know we should have snack time
before bed time, and they say prayers
with us and kiss us even when we've
acted bad.

MY GRANDMOTHER LIVE S AT THE
AIRPORT AND WHEN WE WANT HER,
WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN WHEN
WE'RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE
TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.

GRANDPA IS THE SMARTEST MAN
ON EARTH! HE TEACHES ME GOOD
THINGS, BUT I DON'T GET TO SEE HIM
ENOUGH TO GET AS SMART AS HIM!

HAPPY GRANDPARENTS DAY!

A husband and wife were walking through
an arcade at a seashore resort. The
husband dropped a coin in a big scale
that not only told his weight, but also
printed out a "character reading." Then he
stepped on the scale and the machine
produced a ticket which said, "You are
the proud possessor of that keen
competitive edge that can leave the whole
world behind." The man beamed as he
handed his wife the ticket. She read the
statement with a smile, and said, "I notice,
dear, that they got your weight wrong, too."

(Sunday Sermons on Line)