What is the best gift you can think of that you have ever gotten.
What is it? (I'm giving you room to think.)
Now, keep that gift in your mind, and answer this question for me:
Could that gift be stolen? Get lost? Break?
That would really stink I bet. I know I'd be really mad.
But it's a fact of life: things can get stolen. Things can get lost. Things can break.
Now how would you like an unbreakable gift?
One that couldn't get taken away from you...
Hope.
Joy.
Peace.
Love.
These are just a few of the gifts that you can receive that will never break.
Now you may think that you don't always have hope, or peace.
You may not always feel joyful or feel loved.
But you can.
These gifts don't break, although sometimes we do.
They don't get stolen, unless we allow them to be stolen.
They don't get lost; we get lost from them.
Think of these as precious gifts that you can always have with us through God.
Hope strengthens.
Have you ever met those people who keep up hope when all seems lost?
There are plenty of movies like that, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy for example.
Everyone thinks that evil has finally triumphed, that the world is going to end, that nothing good will ever happen again and that no one can save them.
Except for the hero.
The hero (or group of heroes) still have hope, and as long as they have hope, they keep fighting until the world is saved, the evil has been vanquished, and all is set right again.
These heroes were strengthened by hope, and the enemy could not take it away from them.
A person of hope is a person of strength.
As the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians:
"I am able to do all things through [God] who strengthens me." (Phil. 4:13)
And Paul was definitely the hero type who endured everything and always had hope.
Joy lightens.
Have you ever met those people who just radiated joy?
There are people out there who really could be described as sunshine on a cloudy day.
You know who I mean, those people who seem to always have a smile on their face, who always seem to know what to say to make you feel better, who can seem happy even when they are struggling through a situation that should make them feel miserable.
I have always envied those people.
Joy is different from being happy.
Happiness is a feeling that you get, the temporary elation you feel when something goes right.
The opposite to happiness is sadness.
Joy is deeper than that.
Joy is the constant feeling of well-being you can get when you are firmly rooted in Good.
Joy is the contentment that comes from knowing who you are and where you are going.
Joy is the feeling that no matter what pain and hardship you may be going through,
there is something brighter and more beautiful in the world than your situation.
Joy is knowing there is more to my life than the terrible, and my purpose is greater than whatever I am subjected to, and by dwelling on the bad I will miss out on the greater good.
And the greater good can be given to you by God.
God lightens your heavy load with joy.
Peace heals.
Have you ever met those people who never get flustered?
The people who can calmly accept any news and who can find a compromise in any situation?
Peaceful people are more than just the hippies who are opposed to war, but also the people who are the bomb-diffusers, who can take a stressful situation and turn it into a calm one.
A person who can walk across a fire pit without burning their feet.
We may give much more attention to war and claim that it is necessary, but when has war healed a nation? It took the times of peace to heal the nations.
Think of leaders who led peaceful revolutions.
How much more effective were they in their mission?
How many lives were healed through their peace?
Here are the top 10 as listed from
http://www.thetransitlounge.com.au/international/240-top-10-peaceful-revolutionaries.html
10) Lady Godiva
9) Swami Vivekananda
8) Aung San Suu Kyi
7) Meena and the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan
6) Mother Teresa
5) Nelson Mandela
4) Martin Luther King Jr.
3) Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dali Lama of Tibet
2) Mahatma Gandhi
and
*drum roll*
1) Jesus Christ
And the common thread that wove its way through these different non-violent revolutions?
Love endures.
"Love one another just as I have loved you." (Luke 6:31)
"Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:39)
"The greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)
These are just some of the many verses on love that are found in the Bible.
Of the many unbreakable gifts, love is the most important.
The more love you give, the more love you get in return.
Love does not follow any of the laws of physics, or the laws of life.
But most importantly, love is an action.
To choose to love someone is hard, but love will endure as long as you continue to act in love.
Love makes life more beautiful.
Hope.
Joy.
Peace.
Love.
When you wish for any gift this year, first choose these, as they will help fill your life with strength, light, healing, and enduring beauty.
And....
These gifts won't break.
Grace and Peace,
Virginia Yates
What is it? (I'm giving you room to think.)
Now, keep that gift in your mind, and answer this question for me:
Could that gift be stolen? Get lost? Break?
That would really stink I bet. I know I'd be really mad.
But it's a fact of life: things can get stolen. Things can get lost. Things can break.
Now how would you like an unbreakable gift?
One that couldn't get taken away from you...
Hope.
Joy.
Peace.
Love.
These are just a few of the gifts that you can receive that will never break.
Now you may think that you don't always have hope, or peace.
You may not always feel joyful or feel loved.
But you can.
These gifts don't break, although sometimes we do.
They don't get stolen, unless we allow them to be stolen.
They don't get lost; we get lost from them.
Think of these as precious gifts that you can always have with us through God.
Hope strengthens.
Have you ever met those people who keep up hope when all seems lost?
There are plenty of movies like that, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy for example.
Everyone thinks that evil has finally triumphed, that the world is going to end, that nothing good will ever happen again and that no one can save them.
Except for the hero.
The hero (or group of heroes) still have hope, and as long as they have hope, they keep fighting until the world is saved, the evil has been vanquished, and all is set right again.
These heroes were strengthened by hope, and the enemy could not take it away from them.
A person of hope is a person of strength.
As the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians:
"I am able to do all things through [God] who strengthens me." (Phil. 4:13)
And Paul was definitely the hero type who endured everything and always had hope.
Joy lightens.
Have you ever met those people who just radiated joy?
There are people out there who really could be described as sunshine on a cloudy day.
You know who I mean, those people who seem to always have a smile on their face, who always seem to know what to say to make you feel better, who can seem happy even when they are struggling through a situation that should make them feel miserable.
I have always envied those people.
Joy is different from being happy.
Happiness is a feeling that you get, the temporary elation you feel when something goes right.
The opposite to happiness is sadness.
Joy is deeper than that.
Joy is the constant feeling of well-being you can get when you are firmly rooted in Good.
Joy is the contentment that comes from knowing who you are and where you are going.
Joy is the feeling that no matter what pain and hardship you may be going through,
there is something brighter and more beautiful in the world than your situation.
Joy is knowing there is more to my life than the terrible, and my purpose is greater than whatever I am subjected to, and by dwelling on the bad I will miss out on the greater good.
And the greater good can be given to you by God.
God lightens your heavy load with joy.
Peace heals.
Have you ever met those people who never get flustered?
The people who can calmly accept any news and who can find a compromise in any situation?
Peaceful people are more than just the hippies who are opposed to war, but also the people who are the bomb-diffusers, who can take a stressful situation and turn it into a calm one.
A person who can walk across a fire pit without burning their feet.
We may give much more attention to war and claim that it is necessary, but when has war healed a nation? It took the times of peace to heal the nations.
Think of leaders who led peaceful revolutions.
How much more effective were they in their mission?
How many lives were healed through their peace?
Here are the top 10 as listed from
http://www.thetransitlounge.com.au/international/240-top-10-peaceful-revolutionaries.html
10) Lady Godiva
9) Swami Vivekananda
8) Aung San Suu Kyi
7) Meena and the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan
6) Mother Teresa
5) Nelson Mandela
4) Martin Luther King Jr.
3) Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dali Lama of Tibet
2) Mahatma Gandhi
and
*drum roll*
1) Jesus Christ
And the common thread that wove its way through these different non-violent revolutions?
Love endures.
"Love one another just as I have loved you." (Luke 6:31)
"Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:39)
"The greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)
These are just some of the many verses on love that are found in the Bible.
Of the many unbreakable gifts, love is the most important.
The more love you give, the more love you get in return.
Love does not follow any of the laws of physics, or the laws of life.
But most importantly, love is an action.
To choose to love someone is hard, but love will endure as long as you continue to act in love.
Love makes life more beautiful.
Hope.
Joy.
Peace.
Love.
When you wish for any gift this year, first choose these, as they will help fill your life with strength, light, healing, and enduring beauty.
And....
These gifts won't break.
Grace and Peace,
Virginia Yates
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