Excerpts From

“Where Did That Come From?”

(Revised Edition)

Pennies from Heaven

When you owe somebody money, and you don’t pay them back, don’t consider it to be a blessing from the Lord.  If that person wants to give you money or a personal possession, they’ll let you know.  Pay back what you owe others without them having to ask you for it.  If you don’t have it at the time you agreed to repay the debt, let the person know when they may expect it.  Don’t avoid that person like the plague.  Forgetting a debt is one thing.  Manifesting a “blessing” for yourself is another.

What Is A Testimony?

A testimony is something that serves as evidence.  A testimony is edifying or uplifting the name of God.  It is giving a good report of the goodness that God has done for you.  A testimony is a statement given to uplift the other saints after it has uplifted you.

Operator

We should be in communication with God at all times.  What would we do if God had an answering machine? We know He doesn’t, but what if?  What if we say, “GOD I NEED HELP NOW”?  And God says, “I’m unable to speak with you right now, please leave your name, number, and a brief message.”  Would He remember who we are when we left that message?  We may have needed Him that very moment or face the jaws of death.  Would we be able to hear from God?  Or would there be interference on our telephone line?  (“I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting” I Tim 2:8).  I am so glad that God does not use an answering machine and He answers "on time"!

Help!

If you can’t pray for help (God’s grace and mercy), then please, stop praying for hindrances.  Don’t ‘player hate’ (one who is jealous of another person's possessions).

The Cigarette Situation

“I know if I take a puff from just one cigarette, it will be alright because I just want to show them that I can smoke and that I’m cool.  That little bit of smoke won’t hurt me.  I’m around more secondary smoke sometimes, and that hasn’t affected me.  I don’t crave cigarettes.  I’m not an addict.  I won’t get hooked.  It’s not like I’m doing drugs.  I don’t do anything else wrong.  Nobody will know I took just one little drag.  If they ask me again, after this one time, I’ll tell them No!  I smoked before, and I gave it up.  Don’t they remember when I quit for last Lent or the time before that when I gave smoking up as my New Year’s resolution?  I’ll just take one little puff.  It’ll be okay.” NOT!!
Who sees what you’re doing to your body?  Jesus sees and knows.  Are our bodies not temples of the Holy Ghost?  God cannot dwell in an unclean temple.  And if what we do causes our brother to sin, are we not also as guilty as he is?  (Mat. 7:4-5)
One little puff may lead to a pack, a carton, or an addiction to nicotine or a heavier substance.  Secondary smoke is doing more harm than you think it is doing (I have a friend who has never smoked, but she has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD] caused by second-hand smoke because her parents smoked).
Besides the above facts, don’t smokers know that you can smell the odor of nicotine in their clothes, in their hair, and on their breath?  It’s not hidden.  Most of the time, people just don’t say anything but the odor is very offensive.  (Nicotine - A colorless, oily, water-soluble, highly toxic, liquid alkaloid, C1 0H1 4N2, found in tobacco and valued as an insecticide).  *Lookie- you’re inhaling an insecticide, WOW!!!

Creating a Blessing

“Honey, that necklace looks so good on you, I wish I had one.”  Do we tell someone that we like an object that they’re wearing in hopes that their charitable Christ-likeness will have them give us that article which we admire?  Or are we genuine in our compliments?
Sometimes, if they are led to do so, the unction from the Holy Spirit will have a person give us the shirt off their back.  But that usually happens when we don’t have an ulterior motive (hidden agendas).  Let’s not bless others just to receive a blessing in return from them.  God will reward us Himself.

Picture This

Situation: there’s a football lying on the ground with a group of players standing around looking at it, and the conversation heard goes something like this:
“Guess we’re gonna make a touch-down soon.”  “I wonder how far I could run with that ball.”  “I never played football before; I’ll look silly.”  “Someone else will pick up the ball and run with it.  I’ll wait until they do.”  “I’m not running.  I’ll mess up my hair.  Don’t you run either.”  “Oh! I was gonna take it, but I’ll let the quarterback score the goal.”  “I’m too tired, and I did enough already.”  “I’d play, but I don’t have the right uniform (what happened to come as you are?)”  What excuses are these people trying to make?
Now take a look at your position that you hold within your church.  Aren’t we supposed to help the church and others?  Is someone losing the game because they aren’t taking an active part as a team player.
We must seek to ask God where we fit in and where He would have us to serve.  Be encouraged! (I Cor.9: 24-25, II Tim. 4:7, Phil. 3:14 & Mat. 13:12, 25:29).  Did you grab your Bible?  Go get it and read those scriptures.  Please.  Let’s get Busy!

Know Who You’re Calling

God’s number is not 1-900-PSYCHIC.  We have a direct line to our Father through PRA-YERS.  His line is never busy, and He won’t hang up on you or put you on hold.  He’s always available and the bill was paid for by your brother, Jesus Christ.  God is only a prayer away.  Jesus or God (we’ll get to the Blessed Trinity later) is on the main line.  Call Him collect and He will accept the charges.

A Wife

A wife – hands you your mother’s birthday card and says, “Here Honey, sign this and say something nice to your Mom.”
A wife – juggles each day’s itinerary with a smile when you tell her—the night before—that you forgot to remind her that she has a dentist appointment at 8:00, when she had another place to be at10:00, can’t be late for lunch with you at 11:45, has a school meeting at 5:00, a nail appointment at 6:30; the office party at 8:30 (Yes, we do socialize at work. You never know who may need to hear the Word of God).  Isn’t it a good thing she planned that hair appointment yesterday, told Sue she’d go shopping with her next week, picked up a few groceries yesterday after work, and this just happens to be her day off from work?  Amazing!!
A wife – reminds you that you do have children and will let you know their names and ages when you ask.
A wife – makes cookies the night before for her sons second-grade school party which she is supposed to be attending, walks her preschooler to the bus, comes home and does her daily devotional as she waits for a load of clothes to finish, picks up the mail, takes the clothes to the cleaners, picks up her preschooler from the bus stop, makes dinner, gets ready for a women’s meeting, and listens attentively while her spouse tells her of his busy day.
A wife – has super-sensitive hearing, which lets her know when someone in the house calls out during the middle of the night, and built-in ear plugs to disregard the snores.
A wife – may not be the same size as she was when you met, but she continues to be the attractive beauty you married some years ago.
A wife – tells you she loves you and will stand by your side till earthly death do you part.
When all is said and done, a wife – takes all this in stride, loves every moment, and wouldn’t trade her life with anyone.

Christian Woman!
“Look! Up in the Sky; It’s a Bird!  It’s a Plane!
No, It’s Christian Woman!”

Have you ever met someone who was so friendly at church, and, when you meet them in the streets, or around another setting other than church, they are totally different?  Being associated with the military, I have come in contact with some Christians who have a Chameleon-like attitude.  They change according to whichever setting they’re in: very loving to you around other saints and very distant when around you and other people in the world.
We should be the same in our spirit man at all times and in every setting in which we are physically involved.  We should portray an image of Christ and show His love to people we meet.  So too, as the Word of God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; we should be also.

Paying Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Christ’s dying on the cross for our sins led to a “No charge” debt.  Jesus paid it all.  We are also not charged by the Holy Spirit for any of His blessings.  So why should we be paying a local newspaper any money to print a prayer which guarantees that our every wish will come true if we submit the ad, pray for three days, and get someone else to do likewise.  In recent times, I’ve seen numerous ads in the newspaper entitled, “Prayer to the Holy Spirit.”
God hears our prayers, and He answers them in His time.  There are no bargains that we have to make.  We must do as the Bible says, “Be ye holy; for I am holy,”“Ask, and it shall be given you,”“Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you,” and so on throughout God’s Word.  Nowhere does it say that we have to believe in superstitions and pay a newspaper to run a certain prayer ad.  I don’t think that the Holy Spirit is on anyone’s particular paper route.  We have a direct line to our Father.  Read the Word and get the real story on the “How-to’s.”

Xmas?

If Christmas is the day we celebrate as Christ’s birth (Dec. 25th, according to Webster’s Dictionary), then what is the abbreviation “Xmas” all about?  If “X” is the mathematical symbol for the unknown, then “X”-mas must mean the celebration of the unknown.
Jesus Christ is known by many people to be the Son of God.  He is not an unknown factor.  It is our responsibility to tell everyone about Jesus.  Christians—let’s help everyone put Christ back into Christmas and take the “X” out.

Heard It Through the Grapevine

Watch that the grapevine (a person-to-person method of spreading rumors, gossip, information, etc., by informal or unofficial conversation, letter writing, or the like) doesn’t turn into the gossipvine at your workplace.
The grapevine is an important asset in the workplace.  A lot of times we find out about promotions, opportunities, advancements, gatherings, incentives, and etc. all through the grapevine.  The gossip vine discusses other people, and their private or personal business, and often has the “facts” misconstrued or just plain wrong.  The gossip vine is usually cruel and unfeeling.  The gossip vine tears down; it doesn’t build up.  Don’t be a part of confusion in your workplace.