December 15, 2006

[Rev. Doc]

When Life Hands You Lemons

Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches."
2 Corinthians 11:23-28

Perhaps the most versatile of all crime victims is Mike Maryn, a Passiac, New Jersey, man. Over the course of five years he endured 83 muggings and was hospitalized 20 times. In achieving that record, he was knifed, shot at twice and bludgeoned with a metal pipe, lost several teeth, and was robbed of $2,000 in cash, several bags of groceries and four automobiles. According to newspaper reports, Passiac police offered Maryn a walkie-talkie as a quick way of summoning help, but he turned them down. "It would only be taken from me," he explained.

Prayer: Ask God to help you endure in the midst of great difficulties.

"If I look at myself, I am depressed. If I look at those around me, I am often disappointed. If I look at my circumstances, I am discouraged. But if I look at Jesus, I am constantly, consistently, and eternally fulfilled!"
~Anonymous