Smile A While

There are certain movies that are “must sees” for me and my family each Christmas season.  One of those for our family is the modern classic “Elf” with Will Ferrell as Buddy the elf.  There are so many memorable lines in that movie.  Lines like, “You did it, you did it, you made the world’s best cup of coffee” or “You’re not Santa, you’re a liar..fake Santa, fake Santa!”  Another favorite line that Buddy delivers is “I love smiling..smiling’s my favorite!” 

Buddy just might be on to something with the “smiling thing.”  Recently, while on a business trip, some co-workers and I found ourselves in a small Asian restaurant near the Virginia countryside.  We ducked in for a fast lunch with plans to quickly be back on the road.  We were greeted by a tiny middle aged Asian lady named Sarah with bright eyes and a smile that lit up the room.  Sarah was not only the hostess, she was also the waitress and chef.   When Sarah served the meals, refilled tea glasses and picked up our plates, she maintained that sweet smile that had greeted us at the door.  It wasn’t a fake smile either.   Sarah was genuinely happy to meet us, took pride in preparing a meal for us, and with a smile on her face, she wished us safe travels as we left. 

When we left the restaurant and we continued on our way, everyone in our group commented on what a great stop that had been.  The food, of course was tasty, but the thing that people kept mentioning was how kind and happy Sarah had been.  A couple of us even said we were in better moods after having that meal with Sarah.  All by itself, Sarah’s smile had lifted the spirits of some tired travelers and left us better for having met her.  

Sarah will probably never read this devotional and will never know the impact she had on us that day.  But, my hope is that through sharing this story with others, we can all learn a lesson from Sarah.  Each of us knows a distinct group of people.  These people have issues in their lives like cancer, death, marital problems, job loss, and others.   Sometimes a simple smile is all that is needed to brighten the day of these people in your life.  You may never know the impact your smile will have, but smile anyway.  Take Sarah’s example and try smiling a little more often during the ordinary interactions you have with others throughout your day.  You might just find that the person’s day you brighten the most will be your very own!     

Christ Over Cancer- Day of Hope Event

On September 21^st at 3pm, the Christ Over Cancer (COC) ministry at Woodlawn Church of Christ will have their annual Day of Hope event for cancer survivors, caregivers and anyone else needing encouragement in dealing with cancer.   This is the 7^th year of the Christ Over Cancer ministry and this past year the ministry has been able to help not only people in the U.S., but inquiries have been received from other countries like Malaysia and South Africa. 

Each year, COC offers a Day of Hope event at Woodlawn Church of Christ in Florence, AL which normally includes survivors sharing their stories of hope.  This year’s format will be different as we will present  a series of videos from survivors sharing their  advice and wisdom that they have gained throughout their journey.  The information that will be shared will be what a survivor would tell themselves if they could write a letter to themselves at each stage of the cancer battle--- Diagnosis—Treatment—and Remission.    In addition to the video series, we will have encouraging songs from several local groups and we will have a balloon release celebrating survivors and honoring the memories of others. 

At the conclusion of the Day of Hope, there will be a reception to allow cancer survivors and their families to meet and offer encouragement to one another.  The Day of Hope begins at 3pm on September 21^st  at Woodlawn Church of Christ located across from Indian Springs Subdivision.  For questions, please call 256.767.3170 or log onto their website at www.christovercancerministry.com

Somebody's Watchin' Me

You’re stopped at a traffic light looking straight ahead and you’re thinking about the long list of  things you have to do when you get to work or home or school.  Out of the left corner of your eye, you sense an intense stare in your direction.  You turn your head to the left quickly  and suddenly you are eye to eye with the stranger in the car next to you.  They quickly turn away, the light turns green, and you both speed away.  But, you immediately scroll through what you were doing to cause this stranger to stare at you.  Were you singing like you were auditioning for American Idol, did you cut them off a few miles back, or the dreaded thought… did you pick your nose and not realize it? Why were they watchin’ you?

The truth is, as a child of God someone is always watchin’ us.   As Christians, we preach patience, kindness, strong faith, love, etc., but do we always practice what we preach?  To illustrate this, let me tell you the story of a young father named Lance.  Lance was a deacon and Bible class teacher and often spoke of his faith in God to his coworkers.  However, Lance received the very un-welcomed news one day that he had a rare cancer.   As a young husband & father of small children, this news shook Lance’s world and threw Lance into a world of worry and despair.  The faith he often declared was all of a sudden non existent.   Several weeks into his cancer diagnosis, a good friend and co-worker who was known for his blunt honesty walked up to Lance and said something that put a dagger in Lance’s heart.  He said, “Lance, it surprises me that a person who has a faith in God as you do would worry so much about this.  I would have thought you would trust God a little more and worry a little less.”    The friend walked away and Lance sat in his office realizing the contradiction he had been living.  He had been saying the right words for years, but He wasn’t practicing what he preached.  He had no idea that someone was watching how he would react to this bad news.  He was disappointed in himself, but he also knew it was NOT too late to make a change and live the life he professed.

You may not realize it, but someone is always watching you.  It may be a co-worker, a spouse, a friend, a child, or someone you don’t even know.  But, how we handle bad situations as Christians has a huge impact on how others view Christianity and God.  The old saying is so true that people would rather see a lesson lived than hear one preached.  No matter the situation you are currently facing, remember that as a Christian, the world is your audience and you are on stage and  somebody’s watchin’ ….. what will they see in you? Matthew 5:16  “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. 

 

 

I Think I Can

I think I can, I think I can... what is the first thing that comes to your mind when you read that phrase?  If you are like most of us, your mind goes back to the children's book titled "The Little Engine That Could."  The story goes that a long train needs to get over a mountain, but all the engines refused to help out.  All, that is, except one small blue engine who was equipped with a positive can- do attitude.  Though the mountain was massive and the train very tremendous, the blue engine believed he could pull the train over the mountain.  He focused his thoughts and repeated that all too familiar phrase , "I think I can, I think I can, over and over until, in fact, he realized his goal, conquered the mountain and proudly shouted.... " I thought I could , I thought I could!!

In Proverbs 23:7 (KJV), we are told .." As he thinketh in his heart, so is he."   This verse and many others in the Bible make it clear that our thought life or how we think, has a direct relation to how we live and feel.   Countless research studies by scientists have confirmed these teachings showing that when we have negative, worrisome thoughts that we dwell on, our lives tend to be negative and lacking hope.  On the contrary, when we focus and think on what is good in our lives and in the lives of others, we tend to see life full of options and experience happy emotions more often.  Philippians 4:8 is another verse that teaches us to think/dwell on whatever is true, honorable, pure, lovely, etc.    Controlling our thoughts is not just scientific feel good jargon, but is a prescription for a more peaceful, hopeful life from our heavenly Father.

So, what is the mountain in your life that you need to conquer?  Is it Mount cancer, Mount job loss, Mount sick child or some other mountain? No matter the mountain you need to scale, focus your thoughts, believe without wavering and have hope.  Before long, you too, like the little blue engine can smile and say, " I thought I could--I thought I could!"