DamulogNon Ko!

Stories
Of
Inspiratio
n Collected by Lloyd Jim Odchigue

Proud Member of Damulognon Ko! Community

Visit us at http://damulog.webs.com
Damulog, Bukidnon Philippines

Don't cry because it's over,

Smile because it happened.
 The Son
A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had
everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often
sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict
broke out, the son went to war.
He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another
soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the
door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.
He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son
gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to
safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly.
He often talked about you, and your love for art." The young man held
out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I
think your son would have wanted you to have this."
The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by
the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the
personality of his son in the painting.
The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with
tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.
"Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift".
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to
his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed
them any of the other great works he had collected.
The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his
paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great
paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.
On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his
gavel. We will start the bidding with this picture of the son.
“Who will bid for this picture?" There was silence.
Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the
famous paintings. Skip this one."
But the auctioneer persisted. "Will someone bid for this painting? Who
will start the bidding? $100, $200?" Another voice shouted angrily. “We

2
didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh’s, the
Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"
But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the
son?"
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime
gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a
poor man, it was all he could afford.
"We have $10, who will bid $20?"
"Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters" someone shouted.
"$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"
The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.
They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!"
A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the
collection!"
The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over."
"What about the paintings?"
"I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a
secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation
until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever
bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the
paintings. THE MAN WHO TOOK THE SON GETS EVERY THING!"

Message:
God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross. Much like the
auctioneer, His message today is: "The son, the son, who'll take the
son?" Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the
Son of God does not have life."

1 John 5:12

3
 The Storm
After a few of the usual Sunday evening hymns, the church's Pastor
slowly stood up, walked over to the pulpit and, before he gave his
sermon for the evening, briefly introduced a guest Minister who was in
the service that evening. In the introduction, the Pastor told the
congregation that the guest Minister was one of his dearest childhood
friends and that he wanted him to have a few moments to greet the
church and share whatever he felt would be appropriate for the service.
With that, the elderly gentleman stepped up to the pulpit and began to
speak.
"A father, and his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific
coast," he began. "...when a fast storm blocked any attempt to get back
to the shore. The waves were so high, even though the father was an
experienced sailor, he could not keep the boat upright and the three
were swept into the ocean as the boat capsized."
The old man hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two
teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking
somewhat interested in his story. The aged minister continued with his
story...
"Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating
decision of his life: to which boy would he throw the end of the life line?
He had only seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son
was a Christian and he also knew that his son's friend was not. The
agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves.
As the father yelled out 'I Love You, Son!' he threw out the life line to his
son's friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the
capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into
the black night. His body was never recovered," the old man said sadly.
By this time, the two teenagers were sitting up straight in the pew,
anxiously waiting for the next words to come out of the old Minister's
mouth.
"The father," he continued, "knew his son would step into eternity with
Jesus and he could not bear the thought of his son's friend stepping into
an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save the
son's friend. How great is the love of God that he should do the same for
us? Our Heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son so that we
could be saved. I urge you to accept His offer to rescue you and take
hold of the life line He is throwing out to you in this service."

4
With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair as silence
filled the room. The Pastor again walked slowly to the pulpit and
delivered a brief sermon with an invitation at the end. However, no one
responded to the appeal. But, within moments after the service ended,
the two boys were at the old man's side.
"That was a nice story," politely stated one of the boys, "but, I don't think
it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son's life in hopes that
the other would become a Christian."
"Well, you've got a point there," the old man replied, glancing down at his
worn Bible. As a big smile broadened his narrow face, he looked up
again at the boys and said, "It sure isn't very realistic, is it? But, I'm here
today to tell you this story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been
like for God to give up His only Son for me. You see... I was that father,
and your Pastor is my son's friend."

“Love grows by giving.

The love we give away is the only love we keep.
The only way to retain love is to give it away.”

Elbert Hubbard
5
 Dreams
The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged
us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look
around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.
I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a
smile that that lit up her entire being.
She said, "Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old.
Can I give you a hug?" I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of
course you may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze.
"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.
She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, have
a couple of children, and then retire and travel."
"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be
taking on this challenge at her age.
"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting
one!" she told me.
After class we walked to the student union building and share a
chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day, for the next
three months, we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was
always mesmerized listening to this "time machine" as she shared her
wisdom and experience with me.
Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily
made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled
in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was
living it up.
At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football
banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and
stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech,
she dropped her three by five cards on the floor. Frustrated and a little
embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry
I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll
never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know."
As we laughed she cleared her throat and began: "We do not stop
playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There
are only four secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving
success. "You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to

6
have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. We have so many
people walking around who are dead and don't even know it!"
"There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you
are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one
productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years
old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-
eight. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The
idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change."
"Have no regrets. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did,
but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are
those with regrets."
She concluded her speech by courageously singing The Rose. She
challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily
lives. At the years end Rose finished the college degree she had begun
all those years ago.
One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep.
Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in tribute to the
wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all
you can possibly be.

The future belongs to those who believe

In the beauty of their dreams

-Eleanor Roosevelt

7
 The Empty Egg
Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind. At the age of 12
he was still in second grade, seemingly unable to learn. His teacher,
Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his
seat, drool, and make grunting noises. At other times, he spoke clearly
and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his
brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy just irritated his teacher.
One day she called his parents and asked them to come in for a
consultation. As the Forresters entered the empty classroom, Doris said
to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to
be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is
a five year gap between his age and that of the other students."
Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue, while her husband spoke. "Miss
Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a
terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We
know he really likes it here." Doris sat for a long time after they had left,
staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into
her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Forresters. After all, their
only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her
class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach, and Jeremy was a
distraction. Furthermore, he would never learn to read and write. Why
waste any more time trying?
As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. Here I am
complaining when my problems are nothing compared to that poor
family, she thought. Lord, please help me to be more patient with Jeremy.
From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's noises and his blank
stares. Then one day, he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind
him.
"I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loud enough for the whole class to
hear. The other students snickered, and Doris' face turned red. She
stammered, "Wh-why that's very nice, Jeremy. N-now please take your
seat."
Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of
Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the
idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large
plastic egg. "Now," she said to them, "I want you to take this home and
bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you
understand?"

8
"Yes, Miss Miller," the children responded enthusiastically - all except for
Jeremy. He listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even
make his usual noises. Had he understood what she had said about
Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment?
Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.
That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and
waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had
to shop for groceries, iron a blouse, and prepare a vocabulary test for the
next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy's parents.
The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as
they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk.
After they completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In
the first egg, Doris found a flower. "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of
new life," she said. "When plants peek through the ground, we know that
spring is here." A small girl in the first row waved her arm. "That's my
egg, Miss Miller," she called out. The next egg contained a plastic
butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a
caterpillar changes and grows into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that's new
life, too." Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is
mine." Next, Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that
moss, too, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom,
"My daddy helped me," he beamed
Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty.
Surely it must be Jeremy's she thought, and of course, he did not
understand her instructions. If only she had not forgotten to phone his
parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the
egg aside and reached for another. Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up. "Miss
Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?" Flustered, Doris replied,
"But Jeremy, your egg is empty." He looked into her eyes and said softly,
"Yes, but Jesus' tomb was empty, too."
Time stopped. When she could speak again, Doris asked him, "Do you
know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh, yes," Jeremy said, "Jesus was
killed and put in there. Then His Father raised Him up."
The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the school
yard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted away completely.
Three months later, Jeremy died. Those who paid their respects at the
mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket, all of them
empty.

9
 God's Hands
Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother
took her boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother
spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.
Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the
little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked
"NO ADMITTANCE."
When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the
mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing.
Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive
Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy was sitting at
the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that
moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the
piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing."
Then, leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and
began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the
other side of the child and he added a running obligato. Together, the old
master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a
wonderfully creative experience. The audience was so mesmerized they
couldn't recall what else the great master played. Only the classic
"Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
That's the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is
hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't exactly graceful
flowing music. But with the hand of the Master, our life's work truly can
be beautiful. Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen
carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear,
"Don't quit. Keep playing."

Message:
Feel His loving arms around you. Know that His strong hands are there
helping you turn your feeble attempts into true masterpieces.

God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called. And

He'll always be there to love and guide you on to great
things. Life is more accurately measured by the lives you
touch than the things you acquire.

10
 God's Perfection
-Rabbi Paysach Krohn

In Brooklyn, New York, Chush is a school that caters to learning disabled

children. Some children remain in Chush for their entire school career,
while others can be mainstreamed into conventional schools.
At a Chush fundraising dinner, the father of a Chush child delivered a
speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended.
After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he cried out, "Where is
the perfection in my son, Shay? Everything God does is done with
perfection. But my child cannot understand things as other children do.
My child cannot remember facts and figures as other children do. Where
is God's perfection?"
The audience was shocked by the question, pained by the father's
anguish and stilled by the piercing query.
"I believe," the father answered, "that God brings a child like this into the
world, the perfection that he seeks is in the way people react to this
child."
He then told the following story about his son Shay:
One afternoon, Shay and his father walked past a park where some boys
Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they will let
me play?"
Shay's father knew that his son was not at all athletic and that most boys
would not want him on their team. But Shay's father understood that if his
son was chosen to play it would give him a comfortable sense of
belonging.
Shay's father approached one of the boys in the field and asked if Shay
could play. The boy looked around for guidance from his teammates.
Getting none, he took matters into his own hands and said "We are
losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be
on our team and we'll try to put him up to bat in the ninth inning."
Shay's father was ecstatic as Shay smiled broadly. Shay was told to put
on a glove and go out to play short center field. In the bottom of the
eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by
three. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again and
now with two outs and the bases loaded with the potential winning run on
base.

11
Shay was scheduled to be up. Would the team actually let Shay bat at
this juncture and give away their chance to win the game?
Surprising, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that it was all but
impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
let alone hit with it. However as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher
moved a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay should at least be able
to make contact.
The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. One of
Shay's teammates came up to Shay and together they held the bat and
faced the pitcher waiting for the next pitch. The pitcher again took a few
steps forward to toss the ball softly toward Shay. As the pitch came in,
Shay and his teammate swung at the ball and together they hit a slow
ground ball to the pitcher. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
could easily have thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have
been out and that would have ended the game. Instead, the pitcher took
the ball and threw it on a high arc to right field, far beyond reach of the
first baseman. Everyone started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!"
Never in his life had Shay run to the first base. He scampered down the
baseline wide-eyed and startled. By the time he reached first base, the
right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second
baseman who would tag out Shay, who was still running. But the right
fielder understood what the pitcher's intentions were, so he threw the ball
high and far over the third baseman's head.
Everyone yelled, "Run to second! run to second!" Shay ran towards
second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously circled the bases
towards home.
As Shay reached second base, the opposing short stop ran to him,
turned him in the direction of third base and shouted, "Run to third!" As
Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams ran behind him screaming,
"Shay run home!"
Shay ran home, stepped on home plate and all 18 boys lifted him on their
shoulders and made him the hero, as he had just hit a "grand slam" and
won the game for his team.
"That day," said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
"those 18 boys reached their level of God's perfection."

You can give without loving,

but you cannot love without giving.

-Amy Carmichael
12
 Million Dollar Lesson
Petey Parker

A cab driver taught me a million dollar lesson in customer satisfaction

and expectation. Motivational speakers charge thousands of dollars to
impart his kind of training to corporate executives and staff. It cost me a
$12 taxi ride.
I had flown into Dallas for the sole purpose of calling on a client. Time
was of the essence and my plan included a quick turnaround trip from
and back to the airport. A spotless cab pulled up.
The driver rushed to open the passenger door for me and made sure I
was comfortably seated before he closed the door. As he got in the
driver's seat, he mentioned that the neatly folded Wall Street Journal next
to me for my use. He then showed me several tapes and asked me what
type of music I would enjoy.
Well! I looked around for a "Candid Camera!" Wouldn't you? I could not
believe the service I was receiving! I took the opportunity to say,
"Obviously you take great pride in your work. You must have a story to
tell."
"You bet," he replied, "I used to be in Corporate America. But I got tired
of thinking my best would never be good enough. I decided to find my
niche in life where I could feel proud of being the best I could be.
I knew I would never be a rocket scientist, but I love driving cars, being of
service and feeling like I have done a full day's work and done it well. I
evaluate my personal assets and... wham! I became a cab driver.
One thing I know for sure, to be good in my business I could simply just
meet the expectations of my passengers. But, to be GREAT in my
business, I have to EXCEED the customer's expectations! I like both the
sound and the return of being 'great' better than just getting by on
'average'"
Did I tip him big time? You bet! Corporate America's loss is the traveling
folk's friend!

13
 An Interview with
God
I dreamed I had an INTERVIEW WITH GOD.
"So, you would like to interview me?" GOD asked.
"If you have time," I said.
GOD smiled. "My time is eternity... what questions do you have in
mind for me?"
"What surprises you the most about humankind?"
GOD answered...
"That they get bored with childhood that they rush to grow up, and
then long to be children again."
"That they lose their health to make money... and then lose their
money to restore their health."
"That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the
present, such that they live in neither the present nor the future."
"That they live as if they would never die, and die as though they
had never lived."
GOD's hand took mine... and we were silent for a while.
And then I asked, "As a parent, what are some of life's lessons
you want your children to learn?"
GOD replied, "To learn they cannot make anyone love them. All
they can do is let themselves be loved."
"To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others."
"To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness."
"To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound
wounds in those they love, and it can take many years to heal
them."

14
"To learn that a rich person is not one who has the most, but is
one who needs the least."
"To learn that there are people who love them dearly, but simply
do not yet know how to express or show their feelings."
"To learn that two people can look at the same thing, and see it
differently."
"To learn that it is not enough that they forgive one another, but
they must also forgive themselves."
"Thank you for your time," I said humbly.
"Is there anything else you would like your children to know?"
GOD smiled, and said... "Just know that I am here...ALWAYS."

A Prayer
Gracious God, You have blessed me with many gifts and
talents.
Grant me the wisdom to know how to best use them for the
glory of Your Name. Jesus calls, come follow Me. I want to
follow Him and be faithful to my call. Help me to see in
myself what you see, and give me the courage to follow
wherever You may lead. Bless the Church with generous
hearts, eager to serve Your people and to spread Your Word.
Amen.
15
 Mother’s Love
A little boy came up to his mother in the kitchen one evening while she
was fixing supper, and handed her a piece of paper that he had been
writing on. After his Mom dried her hands on an apron, she read it, and
this is what it said:

For cutting the grass: P5.00

For cleaning up my room this week: P1.00
For going to the store for you: P1.00
Baby-sitting my kid brother while you went shopping: P1.00
Taking out the garbage: P1.00
For getting a good report card: P5.00
For cleaning up and raking the yard: P2.00
Total owed: P16.00

Well, his mother looked at him standing there, and the boy could see the
memories flashing through her mind. She picked up the pen, turned over
the paper he'd written on, and this is what she wrote:

For the nine months I carried you while you were growing
inside me: No Charge

For all the nights that I've sat up with you, doctored and
prayed for you: No Charge

For all the trying times, and all the tears that you've caused
through the years: No Charge

For all the nights that were filled with dread and for the
worries I knew were ahead: No Charge

For the toys, food, clothes, and even wiping your nose:
No Charge

Son, when you add it up, the cost of my love is: No Charge.

When the boy finished reading what his mother had written, there were
big tears in his eyes, and he looked straight at his mother and said,

16
"Mom, I sure do love you." And then he took the pen and in great big
letters he wrote: "PAID IN FULL".

Pinewood Derby
My son Gilbert was eight years old and had been in Cub Scouts only a
short time. During one of his meetings he was handed a sheet of paper,
a block of wood and four tires and told to return home and give all to
"dad".
That was not an easy task for Gilbert to do. Dad was not receptive to
doing things with his son. But Gilbert tried. Dad read the paper and
scoffed at the idea of making a pine wood derby car with his young eager
son. The block of wood remained untouched as the weeks passed.
Finally, mom stepped in to see if she could figure this all out. The project
began.
Having no carpentry skills, I decided it would be best if I simply read the
directions and let Gilbert do the work. And he did. I read aloud the
measurements, the rules of what we could do and what we couldn't do.
Within days his block of wood was turning into a pinewood derby car. A
little lopsided, but looking great (at least through the eyes of mom).
Gilbert had not seen any of the other kids' cars and was feeling pretty
proud of his "Blue Lightning", the pride that comes with knowing you did
something on your own.
Then the big night came. With his blue pinewood derby car in his hand
and pride in his heart we headed to the big race. Once there my little
one's pride turned to humility. Gilbert's car was obviously the only car
made entirely on his own. All the other cars were a father-son
partnership, with cool paint jobs and sleek body styles made for speed.
A few of the boys giggled as they looked at Gilbert's lopsided, wobbly,
unattractive vehicle. To add to the humility, Gilbert was the only boy
without a man at his side. A couple of the boys who were from single
parent homes at least had an uncle or grandfather by their side, Gilbert
had "mom".
As the race began it was done in elimination fashion. You kept racing as
long as you were the winner. One by one the cars raced down the finely
sanded ramp. Finally it was between Gilbert and the sleekest, fastest
looking car there. As the last race was about to begin, my wide eyed, shy
eight year old asked if they could stop the race for a minute, because he
wanted to pray. The race stopped.

17
Gilbert went to his knees clutching his funny looking block of wood
between his hands. With a wrinkled brow he set to converse with his
Father. He prayed in earnest for a very long minute and a half. Then he
stood, smile on his face and announced, 'Okay, I am ready."
As the crowd cheered, a boy named Tommy stood with his father as their
car sped down the ramp. Gilbert stood with his Father within his heart
and watched his block of wood wobble down the ramp with surprisingly
great speed and rushed over the finish line a fraction of a second before
Tommy's car. Gilbert leaped into the air with a loud "Thank You" as the
crowd roared in approval.
The Scout Master came up to Gilbert with microphone in hand and asked
the obvious question, "So you prayed to win, huh, Gilbert?" To which my
young son answered, "Oh, no sir. That wouldn't be fair to ask God to help
you beat someone else. I just asked Him to make it so I wouldn't cry
when I lost."

Message:
Children seem to have wisdom far beyond us. Gilbert didn't ask God to
win the race, he didn't ask God to fix the outcome. Gilbert asked God to
give him strength in the outcome. When Gilbert first saw the other cars
he didn't cry out to God, "No fair, they had a father's help!" No, Gilbert
went to his Heavenly Father for strength.
Perhaps we spend too much of our prayer time asking God to rig the
race, to make us number one, or too much time asking God to remove us
from the struggle, when we should be seeking God's strength to get us
through the struggle.
Gilbert's simple prayer spoke volumes to those present that night. He
never doubted that God would indeed answer his request. He didn't pray
to win, thus hurt someone else, he prayed that God supply the grace to
lose with dignity. Gilbert, by his stopping the race to speak to his Father
also showed the crowd that he wasn't there without a "dad", but he also
went away a winner that night, with his Father at his side.
May we all learn to pray this way.

I can do everything through Him who gives me

strength.
18
-Philippians 4:13
 Pick-up in the Rain
One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was
standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a
lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately
needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next
car. A young white man stopped to help her - generally unheard of
in those conflict-filled 1960s. The man took her to safety, helped
her get assistance and put her into a taxi cab. She seemed to be
in a big hurry! She wrote down his address, thanked him and
drove away.

Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his
surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A
special note was attached. It read: "Thank you so much for
assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched
not only my clothes but my spirits. Then you came along. Because
of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just
before he passed away. God bless you for helping me and
unselfishly serving others."

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is
essential is invisible to the eye.

Antoine De Saint-Exupery (in The Little Prince)

19
 Positive Thinking
Jerry is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood
and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask
him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be
twins!" He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who
had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant.
The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He
was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was
there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the
situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry
and asked him, I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the
time. How do you do it?" Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say
to myself, Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a
good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can
choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn
from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to
accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I
choose the positive side of life.
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested. "Yes, it is," Jerry said. "Life is
all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a
choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people
will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood.
The bottom line: It's your choice how you live life."
I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant
industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought
about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never
supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one
morning and was held up at gun point by three armed robbers. While
trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off
the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was
found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18
hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from
the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.
I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how
he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Wanna see my
20
scars?" I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone
through his mind as the robbery took place. “The first thing that went
through my mind was that I should have locked the back door," Jerry
replied. "Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices:
I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked. Jerry
continued, "...the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was
going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the
expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared.
In their eyes, I read 'he's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action."
“What did you do?" I asked. "Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting
questions at me," said Jerry. "She asked if I was allergic to anything.
’Yes,' I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited
for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Bullets!' Over their
laughter, I told them, 'I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am
alive, not dead.'"
Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his
amazing attitude.

Every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

21
 A Christmas Reunion
Pastor Rob Reid

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry
to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited
about their opportunities. When they saw their church, it was very run
down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done
in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc., and on
December 18th they were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On
December 19th a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and
lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His
heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of
plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary
just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high.

The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else
to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the
way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale
for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful, handmade,
ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a
Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover
up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.

By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the
opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor
invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later.
She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a
ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The
pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the
entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was
like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?"

The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right
corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were.
These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth
35 years before, in Austria.

22
The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just
gotten the Tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and
her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came,
she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next
week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or
her home again. The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she
made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her
home, which was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of
Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning
job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was
almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service,
the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that
they would return.

One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood,
continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered
why he wasn't leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth
on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made
years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there
be two tablecloths so much alike. He told the pastor how the Nazis came,
how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to
follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife
or his home again all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride.
They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had
taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three
flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door and he
saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

23
 A Christmas Story
In September 1960, I woke up one morning with six hungry babies and
just 75 cents in my pocket. Their father was gone. The boys ranged from
three months to seven years; their sister was two. Their Dad had never
been much more than a presence they feared. Whenever they heard his
tires crunch on the gravel driveway they would scramble to hide under
their beds.
He did manage to leave $15 a week to buy groceries. Now that he had
decided to leave, there would be no more beatings, but no food either. If
there was a welfare system in effect in southern Indiana, at that time, I
certainly knew nothing about it.
I scrubbed the kids until they looked brand new and then put on my best
homemade dress. I loaded them into the rusty old 51 Chevy and drove
off to find a job. The seven of us went to every factory, store and
restaurant in our small town. No luck.
The kids stayed, crammed into the car and tried to be quiet while I tried
to convince whomever would listen that I was willing to learn or do
anything. I had to have a job.
Still No Luck.
The last place we went to, just a few miles out of town, was an old Root
Beer Barrel drive-in that had been converted to a truck stop. It was called
the Big Wheel. An old lady named Granny owned the place and she
peeked out of the window from time to time at all those kids.
She needed someone on the graveyard shift, 11 at night until seven in
the morning. She paid 65 cents an hour and I could start that night. I
raced home and called the teenager down the street that baby-sat for
people. I bargained with her to come and sleep on my sofa for a dollar a
night. She could arrive with her pajamas on and the kids would already
be asleep. This seemed like a good arrangement to her, so we made a
deal.
That night, when the little ones and I knelt to say our prayers, we all
thanked God for finding Mommy a job. And so I started at the Big Wheel.
When I got home in the mornings I woke the baby-sitter up and sent her
home with one dollar of my tip money-fully half of what I averaged every
night.
As the weeks went by, heating bills added another strain to my meager
wage.
24
The tires on the old Chevy had the consistency of penny balloons and
began to leak. I had to fill them with air on the way to work and again
every morning before I could go home. One bleak fall morning, I
dragged-wagged myself to the car to go home and found four tires in the
back seat.
New tires!
There was no note, no nothing, just those beautiful brand new tires. Had
angels taken up residence in Indiana? I wondered. I made a deal with the
owner of the local service station. In exchange for his mounting the new
tires, I would clean up his office. I remember it took me a lot longer to
scrub his floor than it did for him to do the tires. I was now working six
nights instead of five and it still wasn't enough.
Christmas was coming and I knew there would be no money for toys for
the kids. I found a can of red paint and started repairing and painting
some old toys. Then I hid them in the basement so there would be
something for Santa to deliver on Christmas morning. Clothes were a
worry too. I was sewing patches on top of patches on the boys pants and
soon they would be too far gone to repair.
On Christmas Eve the usual customers were drinking coffee in the Big
Wheel. These were the truckers, Les, Frank, and Jim, and a state trooper
named Joe. A few musicians were hanging around after a gig at the
Legion and were dropping nickels in the pinball machine. The regulars all
just sat around and talked through the wee hours of the morning and
then left to get home before the sun came up.
When it was time for me to go home at seven o'clock on Christmas
morning I hurried to the car. I was hoping the kids wouldn't wake up
before I managed to get home and get the presents from the basement
and place them under the tree. (We had cut down a small cedar tree by
the side of the road down by the dump.) It was still dark and I couldn't
see much, but there appeared to be some dark shadows in the car-or
was that just a trick of the night?
Something certainly looked different, but it was hard to tell what. When I
reached he car I peered warily into one of the side windows. Then my
jaw dropped in amazement. My old battered Chevy was filled full to the
top with boxes of all shapes and sizes. I quickly opened the driver's side
door, scrambled inside and kneeled in the front facing the back seat.
Reaching back, I pulled off the lid of the top box. Inside was a whole
case of little blue jeans, sizes 2-10! I looked inside another box: It was
full of shirts to go with the jeans. Then I peeked inside some of the other
boxes: There were candy and nuts and bananas and bags of groceries.

25
There was an enormous ham for baking, and canned vegetables and
potatoes. There was pudding and Jell-O and cookies, pie filling and flour.
There was a whole bag of laundry supplies and cleaning items. And there
were five toy trucks and one beautiful little doll.
As I drove back through empty streets as the sun slowly rose on the
most amazing Christmas Day of my life, I was sobbing with gratitude.
And I will never forget the joy on the faces of my little ones that precious
morning.
Yes, there were angels in Indiana that long-ago December. And they all
hung out at the Big Wheel truck stop.

Father, I ask you to bless my friends and family members. Lord,

show them a new revelation of Your love and power. Holy Spirit,
I ask You to minister to their spirit at this very moment.
Where there is pain, give them Your peace & mercy.
Where there is self doubting, release a renewed confidence in
Your ability to work through them.
Where there is tiredness, or exhaustion, I ask You to give them
understanding, patience, & strength as they learn submission to
Your leading.
Where there is spiritual stagnation, I ask You to renew them by
revealing Your nearness, and by drawing them into greater
intimacy with You.
Where there is fear, reveal Your love, and release to them Your
courage.
Where there is a sin blocking them, reveal it, and break its hold
over their lives.
Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and raise up
leaders, and friends to support, and encourage them. Give each
of them discernment to recognize the demonic forces around
them, and reveal to them the power they have in You to defeat
it. I ask You to do these things in Jesus' name.
Amen.
These are tags: Damulog Bukidnon Sampagar Old Damulog Xavier de Damulog High School Old
Damulog National High School San Isidro Poblacion Mayor Romeo P. Tiongco Vice Mayor Tomas
Estudillo Omonay Maican Angga-an Macapari Pocopoco Aludas Kinapat Tangkulan Leonard
Cocong CK Mabalos Migcawayan Damulog Central Elementary School Damulog Theater Teen’s
Club DATTE Club Kimadsil Sarawagon Kibawe Dangcagan Malaybalay Valencia Lloyd Jim
Odchigue Holy Rosary Parish Barangay Captain ABC President Ruben Tero SK Federation
Chairman Gefferd Quia-ot Valencia Maramag Don Carlos Kitaotao Cagayan de Oro City Manolo
Fortich Philippines

26