[Wren]

Three Bullets

A man had no food for his family.

He had an old rifle and three bullets. So he decided that he would go out hunting for some wild game for dinner.

As he went he saw a rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it.
The rabbit ran away.

Then he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it.
The squirrel disappeared into a hole in a cottonwood tree.

As he went further, he saw a large wild 'Tom' turkey in the tree, but he had only one bullet remaining.

A voice spoke to him and said, 'Pray first, aim high and stay focused ..'

However at the same time, he saw a deer which was a better kill.

He brought the gun down and aimed at the deer. But then he saw a rattlesnake about to bite him, so he naturally brought the gun down to shoot the rattlesnake.

Still, the voice said again to him, 'I said 'Pray, Aim high and Stay focused.'

So the man decided to listen to God's voice.

He prayed then aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey.

The bullet passed thru the turkey and killed the deer.

The handle fell off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it.


And when the gun had gone off, it knocked him into a pond.

When he stood up to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead
deer and a turkey to eat for his family.

The snake (Satan) was dead simply because the man listened to God.

Moral of the story:

Pray first before you do anything. Aim and shoot high in your goals, and
stay focused on God.

Never let others discourage you concerning your past. The past is
exactly that. 'the past.'

Live every day one day at a time and remember that only God knows our
future and that He will not put you through any more than you can bear.

Do not look to man for your blessings, but look to the doors that only He has prepared in advance for you in your favor.

Wait, be still and patient: keep God first and everything else will follow.

Pass this on in order that someone else might be blessed.

[Lasgo]

Wren,

Awesome story! I love stuff like this.

You also said, "Do not look to man for your blessings..."

and "Wait, be still and patient: keep God first and everything else will follow."

Reminds me of two very important Bible verses:

Psalm 46:10 - "Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth."

and Isaiah 2:22 - " Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?"

Bottom line: Like you said pretty much, God knows and we don't, no matter how sophisticated or knowledgeable any of us may seem.

[Looking4hope]

Originally Posted by Wren

Moral of the story:

Pray first before you do anything. Aim and shoot high in your goals, and
stay focused on God.

Never let others discourage you concerning your past. The past is
exactly that. 'the past.'

Live every day one day at a time and remember that only God knows our
future and that He will not put you through any more than you can bear.

Do not look to man for your blessings, but look to the doors that only He has prepared in advance for you in your favor.

Wait, be still and patient: keep God first and everything else will follow.

I hope no one takes offense about this but I always have problems believing stories like this... If only I have enough faith, if only I pray enough, if only, if only, if only....

If only I did this or didn't do that ENOUGH, everything will be all right. So, if everything isn't all right, it must be my fault... This is what I take from these stories.

Aim High... What if you've never been able to aim high? What if your whole life you just trudge through getting by from day to day? What if built into your memory banks are the thoughts that this is all there is? Surviving.

Forget about the past... A lot easier said than done. Like about eight years of therapy to get me where I am now which in spite of the sound of this post, I am in a lot better place than I was before. Focusing on NOW, is a skill that I have only been able to attain lately. Just trying to recite positive affirmations about myself is a stretch.

My life circumstances right now feel overwhelming at times and I feel like I am in this alone. I would like to believe that if I give it up to God that everything is going to be A-OK ... but it doesn't work that way. Ultimately, I know I am the one that is responsible for making a life for myself but I don't feel like I am capable of it. I don't have enough faith in me but I am supposed to have faith in him and if I don't, I must not be enough. Do I make any sense? It seems like a never-ending circle...

My life is extremely frustrating right now and I thank you for listening to me and letting me vent.

[Lasgo]

Vent on good brother

That's why, after about a month here, I love this place. It's a great place
to let your feelings out, get some feedback, do some reassessment of
your life and thoughts; watch, listen, and learn - and, be yourself.

I don't think anyone will take offense at your honesty. Honestly !!

Ultimately, history tells us that we all doubt ourselves, others, and God -

Mother Teresa had her doubts.

Jesus had his "Father, why have you forsaken me?" moment - yet, he still
trusted.

Every quarterback hopes his reciever will catch his pass but - once he lets go of the ball - he is powerless to complete the other end of this transaction.

I have no guarantee that you'll even read this. But, the interaction in and of itself connects me to a faith which hopes that you will. And, in doing so,
will know that someone else cares, someone else heard you, and someone will pray for you - and believes those prayers are not falling on deaf ears but are picked up by all those who have gone before you and me and are with the Father that I hope and pray, each day, is listening.

If the Father does not and even worse, is not, than I am, as the Apostle Paul said, "the biggest of fools."

I'd rather have the foolishness of hope and be right, smiling forever on the other side; than to have worried myself senseless here - thinking that this is all there is.

I have some really good friends who are atheists and do a lot of very good work to get things right here - just because they believe that this is all there is. Even this, though, is an exercise in faith.

And I love them no less.

Keep venting and continue to be yourself is all I can suggest.

[Looking4hope]

Originally Posted by Lasgo

Vent on good brother

That's why, after about a month here, I love this place. It's a great place
to let your feelings out, get some feedback, do some reassessment of
your life and thoughts; watch, listen, and learn - and, be yourself.

I don't think anyone will take offense at your honesty. Honestly !!

Ultimately, history tells us that we all doubt ourselves, others, and God -

Mother Teresa had her doubts.

Jesus had his "Father, why have you forsaken me?" moment - yet, he still
trusted.

Every quarterback hopes his reciever will catch his pass but - once he lets go of the ball - he is powerless to complete the other end of this transaction.

I have no guarantee that you'll even read this. But, the interaction in and of itself connects me to a faith which hopes that you will. And, in doing so,
will know that someone else cares, someone else heard you, and someone will pray for you - and believes those prayers are not falling on deaf ears but are picked up by all those who have gone before you and me and are with the Father that I hope and pray, each day, is listening.

If the Father does not and even worse, is not, than I am, as the Apostle Paul said, "the biggest of fools."

I'd rather have the foolishness of hope and be right, smiling forever on the other side; than to have worried myself senseless here - thinking that this is all there is.

I have some really good friends who are atheists and do a lot of very good work to get things right here - just because they believe that this is all there is. Even this, though, is an exercise in faith.

And I love them no less.

Keep venting and continue to be yourself is all I can suggest.

I did not mean that I was an aethist. When I said that this is all there is, I meant the inability that I have felt throughout my life to hope for more. That my life was always going to take the path of least resistance.

I do believe there is more on the other side... Because any person that has been through a lot of emotional turmoil in their life comes to a point that they have to believe that in order to survive. But I am saying the damage is done internally, where we have a lack of faith in ourselves and trying to trust in a higher power is difficult.

I think I am messing this all up. I don't make any sense.

[Lasgo]

Looking4Hope

You said, "But I am saying the damage is done internally, where we have a lack of faith in ourselves and trying to trust in a higher power is difficult."

I am sorry that you took that you were an atheist. I did not.

And I wholeheartedly agree - after three tours of war, trusting in a higher
power is very difficult.

That is why John 16:33 is my bedrock of faith. Even to His dearest most disciples, who Christ foreknew - would be tortured, killed, and suffer for His cause - he said, "but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

We may all, very well, go up in some Biblically inspired, apocalyptic puffball!
Then again, that may not happen for another millenia or so. Every century there has been some guy saying that the end is near.

But the long war has already been won - the war over our souls, yours and mine.

It's all going to work out - even if it does not, here. As true as it was for the disciples, that their faith would not stop their present despairs -the same is true with us brother. But still, "be of good cheer!"

[AfterMyNap]

"Let go of the pain. Open your heart to love."

Hi, Hope, I found that quote in your signature. The rest of it is, "GOD IS LOVE."

He doesn't promise that life will be easy, nor does He promise that we will always like what life brings. But, He does promise us His good and perfect LOVE no matter what.

Seek His love in your heart, this is where the peace is.

It is HOPE.

[Wren]

I talk too much ..... and I do it so poorly.
(But first I want to thank Lasgo MUCH for pointing out John 16:33 -- WOW. The first time I saw that here I copied it, printed it and put it on the bulletin board above my pc. Now I'm going to put it on all the things I carve. I've always used Phil. 4:13, but I think this is "better" - more satisfactory. May God bless you even more )

Now maybe I can tell a little (even if long) story about how Jesus helped me take steps. Little steps that work toward a big goal.

I was a heavy smoker for 42 years and I loved every cigarette so much I didn't want to quit. I didn't try to quit and I'm a weakling anyhow. Then the brain tumor showed up and I knew I would be spending so very much time in the hospital for testing before the surgery.

I asked Jesus to take over AND HE DID. It wasn't easy but He helped me.

One way that worked was me wanting a "smoke" badly and telling myself I could have one 'in two hours' and then doing something else. Of course, two hours later I wouldn't be thinking of one, or if I did, I would say, "One more hour."
I kept praying, asking for His help, thanking Him for being with me, asking Him to keep me calm, asking Him to kill that tumor.

Everything worked. HE WORKED. That tumor is gone. I've had two brain surgeries. I haven't had a seizure for 9 months. I haven't had a cigarette for two and a half years.

All because Jesus helped me take one small step at a time.

[Lasgo]

Wren,

A very humble your welcome . God Bless all your work!

[Curious]

special hugs for my wren. i love you.