Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloak forbid not to take thy coat also. Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again. Luke 6:28-30
A woman was waiting at an airport one night, with several long hours before her flight. So she hunted for a good book in the airport shops, bought herself a bag of cookies and found a place to sit down and read.
She was engrossed in her book, but happened to see that the man sitting beside her was as bold as could be. Each time she took a cookie from her bag the man would grab one. She tried very hard to ignore the man and avoid a scene.
As she munched the cookies and watched the clock, the gutsy cookie thief was diminishing her stock of cookies. She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by, thinking, "If I wasn't so nice, I would blacken his eye!"
With each cookie she took, he continued to take one also, when only one was left, she wondered what he would do. With a smile on his face, and a nervous laugh, he took the last cookie and broke it in half.
He then offered her half, as he ate the other. She snatched the cookie from him and thought... ooh, brother. This guy has some nerve and he's so rude, why he didn't even show any gratitude!
She had never known when she had been so galled and sighed with relief when her flight was called. She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate, refusing to look back at the thieving ingrate!
She boarded the plane and sank into her seat, then she sought her book, which was almost complete. As she reached into her tote, she gasped with surprise, there was her bag of cookies, in front of her eyes!
If mine are here, she moaned in despair, then the other bag of cookies must have belonged to the man, who tried to share them. She quickly grasped what had happened, but it was too late to apologize. She fully realized with grief, that she had been the rude one, the ingrate and the thief!
- Authored by Valerie Cox
For those of us who have siblings, you might remember the skill, our moms had to have in making sure each glass of Kool-Aid was filled to the exact same spot. And, the cookie count, to make sure no one received more than the other.
Sharing does not come naturally or easily for most of us, so I can only imagine how bad this woman must have felt when the truth revealed itself!
When we look to God's Word, it tells us to go even further then what someone would ask of us. No matter what we have to give... our God delights in and loves a cheerful giver! 2 Corinthians 9:7 And, if things are taken from us, we are not to try to get them back. Luke 6:30
We are to love our enemies and they should bring out the best in us... not the worst! When people take unfair advantage of us, it is our moment to practice a servant's life! We are not to be as little children, making sure things are "equal!"
As children of God we are to live generously!
A simple "rule of thumb" of our behaviors, is to ask ourselves, "What do we want from others?" This is an important and opportune time to do for them, without
worry or measure!
We must do self-checks on what we do... and our motives for doing them! If we only love the lovable... are we not looking for the accolades... even sinners know to do that.
If we do for only those we know and care for,... what does that say about us? That kind of caring, is even easy for the garden-variety of sinners.
Now, if we do... just to see what we can get... whatever it is that we are doing is not being done out of Christ like love! Every sinner does this!
Learning to give... simply because we love... is the most rewarding act of kindness we can show to others. When we bless others... we always will feel blessed more than anything we've done or given!
So, which are you? Are you the real cookie monster?
Remember: Life lived with Faith and Love always bears Peace, joy and Generosity!!
A woman was waiting at an airport one night, with several long hours before her flight. So she hunted for a good book in the airport shops, bought herself a bag of cookies and found a place to sit down and read.
She was engrossed in her book, but happened to see that the man sitting beside her was as bold as could be. Each time she took a cookie from her bag the man would grab one. She tried very hard to ignore the man and avoid a scene.
As she munched the cookies and watched the clock, the gutsy cookie thief was diminishing her stock of cookies. She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by, thinking, "If I wasn't so nice, I would blacken his eye!"
With each cookie she took, he continued to take one also, when only one was left, she wondered what he would do. With a smile on his face, and a nervous laugh, he took the last cookie and broke it in half.
He then offered her half, as he ate the other. She snatched the cookie from him and thought... ooh, brother. This guy has some nerve and he's so rude, why he didn't even show any gratitude!
She had never known when she had been so galled and sighed with relief when her flight was called. She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate, refusing to look back at the thieving ingrate!
She boarded the plane and sank into her seat, then she sought her book, which was almost complete. As she reached into her tote, she gasped with surprise, there was her bag of cookies, in front of her eyes!
If mine are here, she moaned in despair, then the other bag of cookies must have belonged to the man, who tried to share them. She quickly grasped what had happened, but it was too late to apologize. She fully realized with grief, that she had been the rude one, the ingrate and the thief!
- Authored by Valerie Cox
For those of us who have siblings, you might remember the skill, our moms had to have in making sure each glass of Kool-Aid was filled to the exact same spot. And, the cookie count, to make sure no one received more than the other.
Sharing does not come naturally or easily for most of us, so I can only imagine how bad this woman must have felt when the truth revealed itself!
When we look to God's Word, it tells us to go even further then what someone would ask of us. No matter what we have to give... our God delights in and loves a cheerful giver! 2 Corinthians 9:7 And, if things are taken from us, we are not to try to get them back. Luke 6:30
We are to love our enemies and they should bring out the best in us... not the worst! When people take unfair advantage of us, it is our moment to practice a servant's life! We are not to be as little children, making sure things are "equal!"
As children of God we are to live generously!
A simple "rule of thumb" of our behaviors, is to ask ourselves, "What do we want from others?" This is an important and opportune time to do for them, without
worry or measure!
We must do self-checks on what we do... and our motives for doing them! If we only love the lovable... are we not looking for the accolades... even sinners know to do that.
If we do for only those we know and care for,... what does that say about us? That kind of caring, is even easy for the garden-variety of sinners.
Now, if we do... just to see what we can get... whatever it is that we are doing is not being done out of Christ like love! Every sinner does this!
Learning to give... simply because we love... is the most rewarding act of kindness we can show to others. When we bless others... we always will feel blessed more than anything we've done or given!
So, which are you? Are you the real cookie monster?
Remember: Life lived with Faith and Love always bears Peace, joy and Generosity!!
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