The bargain

During one of the many battles of the era, a young soldier found himself and his army being soundly defeated by the enemy.
He and his comrades hastily retreated from the battlefield in defeat, running away in fear of their very lives.
The enemy gave chase. The young man ran hard and fast, full of fear and desperation, and soon found himself cut off from his comrades. The soldier eventually came upon a rocky ledge containing a cave.
Knowing the enemy was close behind, and that he was exhausted from the chase, he chose to hide there. After he crawled in, he fell to his face in the darkness, desperately crying to God to save him and protect him from his enemies. He made a bargain with God. He promised that if God saved him, he would serve Him for the remainder of his days.
When he looked up from his despairing plea for help, he saw a spider beginning to weave its web at the entrance to the cave.
As he watched the delicate threads being slowly drawn across the mouth of the cave, the young soldier pondered its irony.
He thought, "I asked God for protection and deliverance, and He sent me a spider instead. How can a spider save me?"
His heart was hardened, knowing the enemy would soon discover his hiding place and kill him. Soon he did hear the sound of his enemies, who were now scouring the area looking for those in hiding.

One soldier with a gun slowly walked up to the cave's entrance.
As the young man crouched in the darkness, hoping to surprise the enemy in a last-minute desperate attempt to save his own life, he felt his heart pounding wildly out of control.

As the enemy cautiously moved forward to enter the cave, he came upon the spider's web, which by now was completely strung across the opening. He backed away and called out to a comrade,

"There can't be anyone in here. They would have had to break this spider's web to enter the cave. Let's move on."
Years later, this young man, who made good his promise by becoming a preacher and evangelist, wrote about that ordeal.

What he observed has stood by me in times of trouble, especially during those times when everything seemed impossible:
"Where God is, a spider's web is as a stone wall.
Where God is not, a stone wall is as a spider's web."

~Author Unknown~

Prince of peace

In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. 
—John 16:33
In the midst of troubles, peace can be found in Jesus.

The Donut Master

There was a boy by the name of Steve who was attending college
where Brother Christianson taught seminary.
 
One day, Brother Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so
he could talk with him.  After class, Bro. Christianson pulled
Steve aside and said, "You think you're pretty tough, don't you?"
 
Steve's answer was, "Yeah, I do."
 
Then Brother Christianson asked, "How many pushups can you do?"
 
Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."
 
"200? That's pretty good, Steve," Brother Christianson said.
 
"Do you think you could do 300?"
 
Steve replied, "I don't know... I've never done 300 at a time."
 
"Do you think you could?" again asked Brother Christianson.
 
"Well, I can try," said Steve.
 
"Can you do 300 in sets of 10?
I need you to do 300 in sets of ten for this to work.
Can you do it?  I need you to tell me you can do it,"
Brother Christianson said.
 
Steve said, "Well... I think I can... yeah, I can do it."
 
Brother Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday."
 
Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front.
 
When class started, Brother Christianson pulled out a big box of
donuts.  Now these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were
the extra fancy BIG kind with cream centers and frosting swirls.
 
Everyone was pretty excited.  It was Friday, the last class of
the day, and they were going to get an early start on the weekend.
 
Bro. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked,
"Cynthia, do you want a donut?" Cynthia said, "Yes."
 
Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would
you do ten pushups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"
 
Steve said, "Sure," and jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten.
Then Steve again sat in his desk.  Bro. Christianson put a donut on
Cynthia's desk.
 
Bro. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked,
"Joe, do you want a donut?"
 
Joe said, "Yes."  Bro. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do
ten pushups so Joe can have a donut?"  Steve did ten pushups,
Joe got a donut.
 
And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten pushups for
every person before they got their donuts and down the second
aisle, until Bro. Christianson came to Scott.  Scott was captain
of the football team and center of the basketball team.  He was
very popular and never lacking for female companionship.
 
When Bro. Christianson asked, "Scott do you want a donut?"
 
Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own pushups?"
 
Bro. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."
 
Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."
 
Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would
you do ten pushups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?"
 
Steve started to do ten pushups.
Scott said, "HEY! I said I didn't want one!"
 
Bro. Christianson said, "Look, this is my classroom, my class,
my desks, and my donuts.  Just leave it on the desk if you don't
want it."  And he put a donut on Scott's desk.
 
Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little.  He
just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much
effort to be getting up and down.
 
You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow.
 
Bro. Christianson started down the third row.  Now the students
were beginning to get a little angry.
 
Bro. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?"
 
Jenny said, "No."
 
Then Bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten
pushups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?"
Steve did ten, Jenny got a donut.
 
By now, the students were beginning to say "No" and there were
all these uneaten donuts on the desks.  Steve was also having to
really put forth a lot of effort to get these pushups done for
each donut.  There began to be a small pool of sweat on the
floor beneath his face; his arms and brow were beginning to get
red because of the physical effort involved.
 
Bro. Christianson asked Robert to watch Steve to make sure he
did ten pushups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all
of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts.
So Robert began to watch Steve closely.
 
Bro. Christianson started down the fourth row.
 
During his class, however, some students had wandered in and sat
along the heaters along the sides of the room.  When Bro.
Christianson realized this; he did a quick count and saw 34
students in the room.  He started to worry if Steve would be
able to make it.
 
Bro. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and
the next.  Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a
rough time.  He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.
 
Steve asked Bro. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch
on each one?"  Bro. Christianson thought for a moment,
"Well, they're your pushups.  You can do them any way that you want."
And Bro. Christianson went on.
 
A few moments later, Jason came to the room and was about to come
in when all the students yelled, "NO! Don't come in!  Stay out!"
 
Jason didn't know what was going on.
 
Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."
 
Bro. Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in
you will have to do ten pushups for him."
 
Steve said, "Yes, let him come in."  Bro. Christianson said,
"Okay, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now.
Jason, do you want a donut?"
 
"Yes."
 
"Steve, will you do ten pushups so that Jason can have a donut?"
Steve did ten pushups very slowly and with great effort.
 
Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.
 
Bro. Christianson finished the fourth row, then started on those
seated on the heaters.  Steve's arms were now shaking with each
pushup in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity.
Sweat was dropping off of his face, and by this time,
there was not a dry eye in the room.
 
The very last two girls in the room were cheerleaders and very
popular.  Bro. Christianson went to Linda, the second to last,
and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?  Linda said, very sadly,
"No, thank you."
 
Bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten pushups
so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?"
 
Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow pushups for Linda.
 
Then Bro. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan.
 
"Susan, do you want a donut?"
 
Susan, with tears flowing down her face, asked, Bro. Christianson,
"Dr. Christianson, why can't I help him?"
 
Dr. Christianson, with tears of his own, said,
"No, Steve has to do it alone.
I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that everyone
has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not.
 
When I decided to have a party this last day of class,
I looked at my grade book.
Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade.
Everyone else failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior work.
 
Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up
he must do push ups.  I told Steve that none of you could come
to my party unless he paid the price by doing your push ups.
 
He and I made a deal for your sakes.
 
Steve, would you do ten pushups so Susan can have a donut?"
 
As Steve very slowly finished his last pushup, with the understanding
that he had accomplished all that was required of him,
having done 350 pushups, his arms buckled beneath him
and he fell to the floor.
 
Brother Christianson turned to the room and said.
 
"And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, plead to the Father,
'Into your hands I commend my spirit.'
 
With the understanding that He had done everything that was
required of Him, He collapsed on the cross and died.  And like
some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk,
 
...uneaten."
 
 
~Art Nelson~

You are not alone.

You are not alone in suffering.
Most of us suffer in one form or another.

So says scripture:
Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
(Job 14:1 KJV)

"Seventy years are given to us! Some may even reach eighty.
But even the best of these years are filled with pain and trouble;
soon they disappear, and we are gone." (Psalms 90:10 NLT)

You are not alone.

"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask
the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you
forever - the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him,
because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for
he lives with you and will be in you." (John 14:15-17 NIV)

You are not alone.

God sees, hears, and forgives you.

Often our problem is not with God forgiving us,
but in us forgiving ourselves.
God has forgiven us long ago, but we still carry the guilt.

Life is not futile, it is full.
It's just that everything in life is not pleasant.

You have considered ending it all.
What you have not considered is that ending it may put you in a
far worse place.

Believe it, there are much worse places and conditions.

You are ready to give up because you think no one cares.
You honestly feel that you are alone.
If only you could see the angels that surround you.
If only you knew the things that you have been kept from.
If only you knew the disasters you have been protected against.

Soldiers in the natural and the spiritual realms are on duty
right now to protect YOU.

When my 13-month-old son is sick, he feels terrible.
He wonders why he is sick.

He is unaware of all of the love that surrounds him because he
can only feel the pain of his sickness. When he is congested
and has trouble breathing; all he knows is that he feels like
he is suffocating.

Each breath that you take is a gift.

Even when it is hard to breathe,
you are still surrounded by love.

You are not alone. Know this.

To the person who submitted a prayer request to MountainWings
in desperation and despair, (you know who you are)
and to all others this applies to

...this is for you.

You are not alone.


~A MountainWings Original~

don't worry=)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, 

what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. 

Is not life more important than food, 

and the body more important than clothes? 

Look at the birds of the air; 

they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, 

and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. 

Are you not much more valuable than they? 

(Matthew 6:25, 26 NIV84)

sleep

Thank you Lord for giving that uncomfortableness to me so that I can finally sleep in peace and even have normal dreams, for listening to my prayers last night about letting me be able to have a good sleep, for providing me Your songs on Youtube that allowed me to sleep in peace listening to them, praise the Lord for His wonderful plans!