Spreading Christmas Cheer

Christmas break…the perfect time to be out spreading Christmas cheer through canvassing the most valuable message books!  This Christmas break I spent canvassing near Pine Bluff Arkansas.  It was the best thing I could have ever done!  Here are just a few of my favorite experiences from the past three days, enjoy!

Sunday, my first day canvassing, I was a little surprised to be dropped off at a mall in down town Little Rock (among sky scrapers) to start the day off!  I was not scared, though a little unsure of myself, but up for a new experience and perhaps a challenge.  The first lady I spoke to me told me that Dillard's policy was no soliciting. I graciously thanked her and went to the rest of the mall. It was somewhat uneventful until I found myself back in Dillard's - a different floor. I figured since I was on a different floor - no worries about being kicked out.  I saw a cashier who didn't look busy at all.  I went and greeted her and started talking with her and canvassing her on the books.  She told me that she was looking for a church.  As I canvassed her, I felt impressed to pray that money wouldn't be an issue for her, and so I silently prayed as I canvassed her.  She was interested in the Desire of Ages and went to look in her wallet.  She came back with $10.  "I was sure I only had $5" she said, "but I found another $5 bill rolled up in my wallet."  She signed up for correspondence Bible studies as I left.  I like to think that God put the other $5 bill in her purse, although I have no way of knowing.

My next place to work was an apartment building - twelve stories high!  The door was locked, but I didn't have much time to wonder how I was going to get in as a lady sitting in the lobby came and let me in.  "Thank you!" I said.  "You are welcome, it doesn't hurt to do a kind deed in a day!" She replied.  I canvassed her, as I began she said, "I read the Bible every day, that is the only thing that enables me to live in this world the way it is today!"  I told her about the Great Controversy and highly recommended it, so we went up to her apartment room where she bought the book.  What perfect timing God has!

As I walked down the street, nearing an old white house that looked abandoned, I saw a pick up truck pull into the drive was and drive back past where I could see. I'm going to go and talk to whoever is back there, I decided as I continued to walk.  When I got back I found that it was three Hispanic guys. They lived in a dumpy trailer house, the yard scattered with empty beer bottles and cans.  I started talking to the one man, but he couldn't understand English; his friend could though.  I told him that I could get Peace Above the Storm in Spanish. "How soon?"  he asked me.  I could get it right now, I replied.  He started talking to his friend in Spanish as he continued flipping through the book for what seemed like a long time, since I couldn't tell what he was saying.  "I'll take two of them" he finally told me.  I called my leader over the radio and the man bought two books for $20!  Another experience with the perfect timing!  I want to learn Spanish, but I'm thankful that my lack thereof didn't keep me from selling not one, but two books to them!  I hope that they will read them and find true peace!

Before I knew it, it was Christmas Eve.  I wondered what it would be like canvassing on that day.  In the small town we went to, there was a church that had a Christmas Eve service at 6 pm.  It was 5 pm, and I was dropped off on a street.  The first lady I talked to bought a Peace Above the Storm. At the next door a lady bought a Lessons of Love.  In a 20 or 30 minutes, 4 books went out on that street!

Another favorite experience was when I canvassed a younger man on the Desire of Ages (among other books).  It has a picture of Jesus on the front.  When I closed him he said "I'll take this one, (the Desire of Ages) I need Jesus".  How beautiful when people see their true need - Jesus - the only one who can satisfy!

I love Christmas lights, I love Christmas, I love the beauty of the season.  I had just been dropped offed at a trailer home that had a fence around it.  It was covered in beautiful Christmas lights, even the fence and gate was beautifully colored with lights.  "Whoever lives in that house must be cheerful," my canvassing leader remarked.  I was surprised by who I saw come out of the door.  He was an older man with some tattoos, a big mustache and beard.  I could tell he had a kind heart, as I closed him on the books he said, "I don’t have any money, I am a contractor, and there is no work this time of the year.  I don’t even have enough money to buy a Christmas gift for my mother."  He hung his head, "Let's not go there."  All of a sudden an idea came to my mind!  "Does your mom read?"  I asked him.  "Yes, she reads the Bible" he answered.  I pulled out Peace Above the Storm and handed it to him.  "Here, give this to your mom for Christmas, it has large print, and it is a beautiful book, I'm sure she will enjoy it!"  It looked like a tear was  coming into his eyes as I left, all he could say was "Oh, thank you!"

Our van totaled 62 books that day, God blessed me with 13 books.  Some were sold for full price, some for less, a few were given away.  There was the lady on oxygen who bought a Peace Above the Storm, the man in the gas station who bought a Great Controversy, the waitress in a Café who bought a My Friend Jesus for her little son and daughter, and many other I can't remember the details to.  But by far my favorite experience was this one.   Being able to warm the heart of someone who otherwise, was somewhat discouraged in the holiday season!  Bring cheer to someone who looked cheery from the outside Christmas lights, that cheered me!  It truly is more blessed to give then to receive!

Broken Hearts

How do you define heart break?  A dictionary definition defines it as "Devastating sorrow and despair!"  Pain is something I don't like, the idea of being broken just doesn't sound comfortable.  I want to be competent, successful, happy, you feel in the blank, ANYTHING but hurt, broken, empty....

I recently found these paragraphs regarding a broken heart:

"Jesus gazes upon the scene, and the vast multitude hush their shouts, spellbound by the sudden vision of beauty. All eyes turn upon the Saviour, expecting to see in His countenance the admiration they themselves feel. But instead of this they behold a cloud of sorrow. They are surprised and disappointed to see His eyes fill with tears, and His body rock to and fro like a tree before the tempest, while a wail of anguish bursts from His quivering lips, as if from the depths of a broken heart. What a sight was this for angels to behold! their loved Commander in an agony of tears! What a sight was this for the glad throng that with shouts of triumph and the waving of palm branches were escorting Him to the glorious city, where they fondly hoped He was about to reign! Jesus had wept at the grave of Lazarus, but it was in a godlike grief in sympathy with human woe. But this sudden sorrow was like a note of wailing in a grand triumphal chorus. In the midst of a scene of rejoicing, where all were paying Him homage, Israel’s King was in tears; not silent tears of gladness, but tears and groans of insuppressible agony. The multitude were struck with a sudden gloom. Their acclamations were silenced. Many wept in sympathy with a grief they could not comprehend." DA 575.3

"The tears of Jesus were not in anticipation of His own suffering. Just before Him was Gethsemane, where soon the horror of a great darkness would overshadow Him. The sheepgate also was in sight, through which for centuries the beasts for sacrificial offerings had been led. This gate was soon to open for Him, the great Antitype, toward whose sacrifice for the sins of the world all these offerings had pointed. Near by was Calvary, the scene of His approaching agony. Yet it was not because of these reminders of His cruel death that the Redeemer wept and groaned in anguish of spirit. His was no selfish sorrow. The thought of His own agony did not intimidate that noble, self-sacrificing soul. It was the sight of Jerusalem that pierced the heart of Jesus—Jerusalem that had rejected the Son of God and scorned His love, that refused to be convinced by His mighty miracles, and was about to take His life. He saw what she was in her guilt of rejecting her Redeemer, and what she might have been had she accepted Him who alone could heal her wound. He had come to save her; how could He give her up?" DA 576.1

What really struck me as I read this is that Jesus' tears were NOT in anticipation of His own suffering, not for the separation from is Father or for the cruel death He was about to endure!  Just let that sink in...I had to!  What unselfishness!  What love!  For all the times I've been afraid of being hurt, afraid of pain, for all the times I've complained to God and said "I can't take this", and yet look at the example He has set for me!

What breaks my heart?  What do I weep over?  Where are my affections?  How often am I upset over selfish reason?  I find myself so self-centered and focused on what pleases me.  What about the souls whom Christ died for?  What about those who have never heard the name Jesus before?  What about the children starving in other countries, while I have more than enough?  Should not my heart ache for those souls?  Should not my heart throb in unison with my Savior who desires that none should perish, but that all should come to repentance?

My mind goes back several weeks ago, as I was sitting in class.  We had a guest speaker speaking, his topic was world religions.  I set enthrolled, learning of religions I knew little about.  As I heard about those who believe that life=suffering, that we are reincarnated, and the whole purpose of life is to never live again, but to die and be at peace, my heart felt something I have never felt to that extent before!  An aching for those who know nothing of Jesus' love, a burden for the unreached.  I started crying and couldn't stop till I was alone in prayer after class.  I wish I could say that has been the only thing I have cried over this semester!  I wish I could say this was more common, but sadly it isn't.

How often does loneliness, separation, or broken hopes, make us feel broken-hearted?  And yet, Jesus was willing to go through separation, the cruelest death ever, but what broke his heart was the thought that maybe His sacrifice would not be accepted and would not break my stubborn heart!  The chosen nation He had poured so much into was rejecting Him, His CLOSEST friends, betrayed Him, but HE DIDN'T give up.  He knew not if His hope that souls would be eternally saved, would come to pass, He couldn't see past the tomb.  FOREVER separtated from the love of His Heavenly Father, from the place where He was loved appreciated, accepted, worshiped, adored.  AND YET, He was willing to take the risk, for me....for you!  Even though He didn't KNOW we would accept!  What love is this!

What a rebuke to me when I wonder why I invest in friendships, why I need to live in vulnerability, why I need to be a part of community, why I need to love with no ulterior motives.  My heart is so proud!  How hard-hearted I am!

I found these definitions to the word "broken" particularly interesting: "Reduced to fragments, not functioning properly."  Ironically, that is just what God desires of us - that we be reduced to fragments, that self would not be seen but that only Christ's Character can show through!  We can never function properly alone, as hard as it may be for proud human being to admit!  Without Christ, we are broken fragments! Our heart is aching to be filled with a love that only Someone Who's heart has already been broken for ours, can truly satisfy! 

"God...will respect the broken heart, the confession of sins, the contrition of the soul.  The cry of the humble, broken heart He will not despise."

Heavenly Father, give me a TRULY broken heart for You, I pray!

I love how God ties everything together, and gives us just the message we need to here when we need to hear it!  I had that twice today!  Once in morning prayer group, and once in worship this evening.  Even sang the same song (with a different group of people)!  When I hear something once that I know is from God, I go "Yes, that is good!  Thank you Lord!"  But I guess some of us need to hear things twice to really get the message and take it to heart! So when I hear the same thing twice I think, "Wow!  I need to really DO something about that!" All of the sudden the things I am holding on to pale in comparison to the message of peace God is offering me!

The topic was about how God gives us peace and He doesn't want us to be anxious.  To know God is to know peace, no God=no peace.  God truly wants me to trust him-in fact, He is willing to help me trust Him - to teach me how to trust!  If He cares for the birds, the grass and the flowers, I know he cares for every little thing that concerns me!  What a wonderful Heavenly Father I have!  What helped me is to fill in the blank, I may not be worrying about food or clothes, but to put my own worries, my own perplexities into it made it more personal.  And then to think that those are all the things that the Gentiles seek after!  Mercy!  Where is my heart? Why do I worry about the things I do?  What keeps me from trusting God more fully?

Could it be that I want to be in control?  I want to be the one to know what my future is going to hold, what decisions to make next, etc., etc.  The verse "seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" took on new meaning to me.  Am I seeking God and His kingdom first, or am I seeking to satisfy myself?

May we each truly seek God and follow the true peace-Giver!