ANGEL ANNABELLE
ANGEL SCRIBE
WINGS OF LOVE
ANGEL OF THE HEART
This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. Even though the son was always on the
bench,
his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a
game. This
young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high
school.
But
his father continued to encourage him but also made it very clear
that he
did
not have to play football if he didn't want to. But the young man
loved
football and decided to hang in there. He was determined to try his
best
at
every practice, and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior.
All
through high school he never missed a practice nor a game, but
remained a
bench warmer all four years. His faithful father was always in the
stands,
always with words of encouragement for him.
When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the
football
team as a 'walk-on.' Everyone was sure he could never make the cut,
but he
did. The coach admitted that he kept him on the roster because he
always
puts
his heart and soul to every practice, and at the same time, provided
the
other
members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed. The news that
he had
survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone
and
called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent
season
tickets for all the college games.
This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four
years
at college, but he never got to play in the game. It was the end of
his
senior
football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big play off game, the coach met him with a telegram. The
young
man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard,
he
mumbled to the coach, 'My father died this morning. Is it all right
if I
miss
practice today?' The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder
and
said, 'Take therest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back
to the
game on Saturday." Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well.
In
the
third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young
man
quietly
slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As
he ran
onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see
their
faithful teammate back so soon. 'Coach, please let me play. I've
just got
to
play today,' said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him.
There
was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game.
But the
young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach
gave
in.
'All right,' he said. 'You can go in.'
Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could
not
believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before
was
doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He
ran, he
passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph.
The
score
was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, this kid
intercepted a
pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown. The fans broke
loose.
His
teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you've
never
heard!
Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and
left
the
locker room, the coach noticed that the young man was sitting quietly
in
the
corner all alone. The coach came to him and said, 'Kid, I can't
believe
it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?'
He
looked
at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, 'Well, you knew my
dad
died,
but did you know that my dad was blind?' The young man swallowed hard
and
forced a smile, 'Dad came to all my games, but today was the first
time he
could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!'
A little boy about 10 years old
was standing before a shoe store
on Broadway, barefooted,
peering through the window and
shivering with cold.
A lady approached the boy
and said, "My little fellow.
why are you looking so
earnestly in this window?"
"I was asking God to give
me a pair of shoes" he said.
The lady took him by the hand
and went into the store.
She asked the clerk to get
half a dozen pairs of socks
for the boy and the best
pair of shoes they had
in his size. Then she asked
for a basin of water and a towel,
and he quickly brought them
to her. She took the little boy
to the back of the store and knelt
down and washed his feet
and dried them with the towel.
Placing a new pair of socks
and the new pair of shoes on his
feet, she paid for them and
when she gave the sack full of
new socks to the little boy,
she patted him on the head and
said "do you feel more
comfortable now?"
The little boy looked up
into her face with tears
in his eyes and asked
"are you God's wife?"
"take care that you do not
neglect one of these
little ones,
for
their angels
always behold the
Face of My Father
Who is in Heaven."
The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost
five. With her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them:
a circle of
glistening white pearls in a pink foil box. 'Oh please,
Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please!'
Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box
and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her
little girl's upturned face. 'A dollar ninety-five. That's
almost $2.00 If you really want them, I'll think of some
extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough
money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday's only a
week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from
Grandma.'
As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and
counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her
share of chores and she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs.
McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her
birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and
at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.
Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and
grown up. She wore them everywhere -- Sunday school,
kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off
was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother
said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.
Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was
ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come
upstairs to read her a story. One night when he
finished the story, he asked Jenny, 'Do you love me?'
'Oh yes, Daddy. You know that I love you.'
'Then give me your pearls.'
'Oh, Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess --
the white horse from my collection. The one with the pink
tail.Remember, Daddy? The one you gave me. She's my
favorite.'
'That's okay, Honey. Daddy loves you. Good night.' And
he brushed her cheek with a kiss. About a week later, after
the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again, 'Do you love
me?' 'Daddy, you know I love you.''Then give me your
pearls.' 'Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my
baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She
is so beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that
matches her sleeper.'
'That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one.
Daddy loves you.' And as always, he brushed her cheek with
a gentle kiss. A few nights later when her daddy came in,
Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed
Indian-style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was
trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek. 'What
is it, Jenny? What's the matter?' Jenny didn't say
anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And
when she opened it, there was her little pearl
necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, 'Here,
Daddy. It's for you.'
With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's kind daddy
reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace,
and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and
pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine
pearls and gave them to Jenny. He had had them all the
time. He was just waiting for her to give up the
dime-store stuff so he could give her genuine treasure.
There was a man who was asleep one night
in his cabin when suddenly his room was
filled with light and the savior
appeared. The Lord told the man he had
work for him to do, and showed him a
large rock in front of his cabin. The
Lord explained that the man was to push
against the rock with all his might. The
man did, day after day.
For many years he toiled from sun up to
sun down, his shoulders set squarely
against the cold, massive surface of the
unmoving rock pushing with all his
might. Each night the man returned to
his cabin sore and worn out, feeling
that his whole day had been spent in
vain. Seeing that the man was showing
signs of discouragement, Satan decided
to enter the picture placing thoughts
into the man's mind such as;"You have
been pushing against that rock for a
long time and it hasn't budged. Why kill
yo
u
rself over this? You are never going to
move it? etc." Thus, giving the man the
impression that the task was impossible
and that he was a failure. These
thoughts discouraged and disheartend the
man even more. "Why kill myself over
this?" he thought. "I'll just put in my
time, giving just the minimum of effort
and that will be good enough." And that
he planned to do until one day he
decided to make it a matter of prayer
and take his troubled thoughts to the
Lord. "Lord" he said, "I have labored
long and hard in your service, putting
all of my strength to do that which you
have asked. Yet, after all of this time,
I have not even budged that rock a half
a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I
failing?" To this the Lord responded
compassionately, "My friend, when long
ago I asked you to serve me and you
accepted, I told you that your task was
to push against the rock with all of
your strength, which you have done.
Never once did I mention to you that I
expected you to move it. Your task w
a
s to push. And now you come to me, your
strength spent, thinking that you have
failed. But, is that really so? Look at
yourself. Your arms are strong and
muscled, your back sinewes and brown,
your hands are callused from constant
pressure, and your legs have become
massive and hard. Through opposition you
have grown much and your abilities now
surpass that which you used to have. Yet
you haven't moved the rock. But your
calling was to be obedient and to push
and to exercise your faith and trus
t
in my wisdom. This you have done. I, my
friend, will now move the rock."
<:>
He stood among his friends from school,
He joined their childhood games
Laughing as they played kickball
And when they called poor Sarah names.
<:>
Sarah was unlike the rest;
She was slow and not as smart,
And it would seem to all his friends
She was born without a heart
<:>
And so he gladly joined their fun
Of making Sarah cry.
But somewhere deep within his heart,
He never knew just why.
<:>
For he could hear his mother's voice,
Her lessons of right and wrong
Playing over and over inside his head
Just like a favorite song.
<:>
"Treat others with respect, son,
The way you'd want them treating you.
And remember, when you hurt others,
Someday, someone might hurt you."
<:>
He knew his mother wouldn't understand
The purpose of their game
Of teasing Sarah, who made them laugh
As her own tears fell like rain.
<:>
The funny faces that she made
And the way she'd stomp her feet
Whenever they mocked the way she walked
Or the stutter when she'd speak.
<:>
To him she must deserve it
Because she never tried to hide.
And if she truly wanted to be left
alone, Then she should stay inside.
<:>
But every day she'd do the same:
She'd come outside to play,
And stand there, tears upon her face,
Too upset to run away.
<:>
The game would soon be over.
As tears dropped from her eyes,
For the purpose of their fun
Was making Sarah cry.
<:>
It was nearly two whole months
He hadn't seen his friends.
He was certain they all must wonder
What happened and where he'd been.
<:>
So he felt a little nervous
As he limped his way to class.
He hoped no one would notice,
He prayed no one would ask.
<:>
About that awful day:
The day his bike met with a car,
Leaving him with a dreadful limp
And a jagged-looking scar.
<:>
So he held his breath a little
As he hobbled into the room,
Where inside he saw a "Welcome Back"
banner And lots of red balloons.
<:>
He felt a smile cross his face
As his friends all smiled, too
And he couldn't wait to play outside-
His favorite thing to do.
<:>
So the second that he stepped outdoors
And saw his friends all waiting there,
He expected a few pats on the back-
Instead, they all stood back and
stared.
<:>
He felt his face grow hotter
As he limped to join their side
To play a game of kickball
And of making Sarah cry.
<:>
An awkward smile crossed his face
When he heard somebody laugh
And heard the words, "Hey freak,
Where'd you get that ugly mask?"
<:>
He turned expecting Sarah,
But Sarah could not be seen.
It was the scar upon his own face
That caused such words so mean.
<:>
He joined in their growing laughter,
Trying hard to not give in
To the awful urge inside to cry
Or the quivering of his chin.
<:>
They are only teasing
He made himself believe.
They are still my friends;
They'd never think of hurting me.
<:>
But the cruel remarks continued
About the scar and then his limp.
And he knew if he shed a single tear
They'd label him a wimp.
<:>
And so the hurtful words went on,
And in his heart he wondered why.
But he knows without a doubt
The game would never end,
Until they made him cry.
<:>
And just when a tear had formed,
He heard a voice speak out from behind.
"Leave him alone you bullies,
Because he's a friend of mine".
<:>
He turned to see poor Sarah,
Determination on her face,
Sticking up for one of her own
tormentors And willing to take his
place.
<:>
And when his friends did just that,
Trying their best to make poor Sarah
cry, This time he didn't join in,
And at last understood exactly why.
<:>
"Treat others with respect, son,
The way you'd want them treating you.
And remember, when you hurt others,
Someday, someone might hurt you."
<:>
It took a lot of courage
But he knew he must be strong,
For at last he saw the difference
Between what's right and wrong.
<:>
And Sarah didn't seem so weird.
Through his understanding eyes.
Now he knew he'd never play again
The game of making Sarah cry.
<:>
It took several days of teasing
And razzing from his friends,
But when they saw his strength,
They chose to be like him.
<:>
And now out on the playground,
A group of kids meets every day
For a game of kickball and laughter
And teaching their new friend, Sarah,
how to play.
<:>
By the time the Lord made mothers, he
was into the sixth day working
overtime. An Angel appeared and said
"Why are you spending so much time on
this one?" And the Lord answered and
said, "Have you read the spec sheet on
her? She has to be completely
washable, but not plastic; have 200
movable parts, all replaceable; run on
black coffee and leftovers; have a lap
that can hold three children at one
time and that disappears when she
stands up; have a kiss that can cure
anything from a scrape knee
to a broken heart; and have six pairs
of hands." The Angel was astounded at
the requirements for this one. "Six
pairs of hands! No Way!" said the
Angel. The Lord replied, Oh, it's not
the hands that are the problem. It's
the three pairs of eyes that mothers
must have!" "And that's on the
standard model?" the Angel asked. The
Lord nodded in agreement, "Yep, one
pair of eyes are to see through the
closed door as she asks her children
what they are doing even though she
already knows. Another pai
r
in the back of her head, are to see
what she needs to know even though no
one thinks she can. And the third pair
are here in the front of her head.
They are for looking at an errant
child and saying that she understands
and loves him or her without even
saying a single word." The Angel tried
to stop the Lord "This is too much
work for one day. Wait until tomorrow
to finish." "But I can't!" The Lord
protested, "I am so close to finishing
this creation that is so close to my
own heart. She alre
a
dy heals herself when she is sick AND
can feed a family of six on a pound of
hamburger and can get a nine year old
to stand in the shower." The Angel
moved closer and touched the woman,
"But you have made her so soft, Lord."
"She is soft," the Lord agreed, "but I
have also made her tough. You have no
idea what she can endure or
accomplish." "Will she be able to
think?" Asked the angel. The Lord
replied, "Not only will she be able to
think, she will be able to reason, and
negotiate." The Angel
t
hen noticed something and reached out
and touched the woman's cheek. "Oops,
it looks like you have a leak with
this model. I told you that you were
trying to put too much into this one."
"That's not a leak." the Lord
objected. "That's a tear!' "What's the
tear for?" the Angel asked. The Lord
said, "The tear is her way of
expressing her joy, her sorrow, her
disappointment, her pain, her
loneliness, her grief, and her pride."
The Angel was impressed. "You are a
genius, Lord. You thought of every
t
hing for this one. You even created
the tear!" The Lord looked at the
Angel and smiled and said, "I'm afraid
you are wrong again, my friend. I
created the woman, but she created the
tear!"
