Tag: self-doubt and hopelessness

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Be a Friend to Someone

We have another excerpt from, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” today. It is chapter seven. It is called, “Be a Friend to Someone.” It talks about being there for someone who is suffering.

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A reminder……we have this book on sale on this site. In the retail stores it costs $19.99, but on this site it is only $15.99. The shipping has been cut in half as well. A total savings of over $6.00.

This book reaches out to those who may be suffering with anxiety, fear, depression, addictions, self-doubt, hopelessness, etc. In this day and age there are many who are there because of the current economy.

There are on about 30 days left until Christmas, and to make sure you get the book in time, you need to order by December 16th.

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Chapter 7

 

Be a Friend to Someone

 

Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights.

No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.

Job2:13(emphasis mine)

 

Job went through every kind of hardship you can imagine, but his worst hardship was the loss of his own children. Just think how devastated you would be if all of your children perished in one day.

The friends of Job knew that saying things like, “We are so sorry this happened to you,” would not help at all. So they just stayed near him to help him feel comfortable, and waited.

Many of us have friends who are heroes to us. This is because they never look down on you. They are always there for you when you need them. They still like you when you’ve made a mistake. The following talks about how you can be a hero to someone at a critical time of their life.

What do you say when you are with a person who has just lost a loved one? Do you try to explain why God took them? Do you say how sorry you are that it happened?

I lost my father onMay 4, 2001, and it was very hard for me, because we had grown so close in the final two weeks of his life. At the service, people kept coming up to me and saying how sorry they were, and that my father was at peace now. “If there anything I can do,” many of them said. None of this helped me at all. I knew they meant well, but I wanted them to go away and leave me alone.

The one person that really helped me through the whole service was my wife, Charlotte. She never said anything to me about how I was going to be OK. She just held my hand the whole time, and silently gave me reassurance. That was what I really needed! I wanted her to stay close to me, because she—not all the well-wishers who kept coming past me in the receiving line—was the one who was really helping me.

Job lost his children and most of his possessions. Some of his friends came to him and mourned with him. They just sat with him and didn’t say a word. He had a tremendous close encounter with God, and his friends were there to share it with him.

When you are with a friend or loved one who has a loss, just be there and be close to them. You don’t have to saying anything. Your presence will be their comfort. Reminds me of the little boy who walked in the door and announced that he had just visited the newly widowed neighbor.

“What did you say?” his surprised mother asked.

“Nothing. I just sat on her lap and cried with her.”

 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and

God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort

those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.

For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives,

so also through Christ our comfort overflows.

2 Corinthians 1:3–5

Further Adventures

Have you been to a funeral where you didn’t know what to say to the mourning family? Try saying nothing. They are glad you came to honor their loved one who has passed away. A hug and a smile will do wonders.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny how friends are like the walls of a house? Sometimes they hold you up. Sometimes you lean on them. But sometimes it’s enough to know they’re just standing by.

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Death, Where is Your Sting?

Today’s excerpt from “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” is Chapter six, called “Death….Where is Your Sting?”

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We would love it if you would sign-up for our RSS feed. This helps us to move up the Google Search Rankings page and therefore have more readers. If you haven’t already signed up, please do it today. The feed is right after the title.

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I hope you are enjoying reading some excerpts from the book. Remember there is a little over 30  days left until Christmas, and we are having a Christmas sale for the book. In the retail stores the book is $19.99, but on this site it is only $15.99. The Shipping is cut in half as well. A total savings of over $6.00

If you are going to order, you need to do it by December 16th to make sure we can get the book to you in time for Christmas.

The book reaches out to those who may be suffering from anxiety, fear, depression, addictions, self-doubt, hopelessness, etc. This book would be a wonderful gift to help someone cope in a not so friendly world.

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Chapter 6

  

Death … Where Is Your Sting?

 

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

1 Corinthians 15:55–56

 

As believers, we have the comfort of knowing we have eternal life. According to Romans 5:12, death comes to all of us. We have to go through the process that all living things must go through. However, we can be reassured that we will have new bodies, and be in heaven with God.

It is also hard to lose loved ones and friends. God doesn’t explain to us why He takes some people earlier than others. It is not for us to decide who should stay. God chooses and we should thank Him for each day we have with our loved ones.

In May of 2001 my father was on his deathbed, dying from a stroke. On this day, I had another close encounter with God. I wanted to make sure that he was right with the Lord. I decided that I was going to talk to him when I was with him at the hospital. I went out into the hall to gather myself and pray.

I looked to my right. Coming down the hall was the pastor from the church I had been attending. He was coming to visit another member of the church. I stopped him and said I needed him to come in and talk to my father. The pastor did come in and talk to my father, and we were sure then that he had the Lord in his heart. I was overjoyed that the Lord had sent the pastor just at the time I was getting up the courage to talk to my father.

He just happened to be coming to the hospital? He just happened to be on the right floor? He just happened to be in the right wing, and he just happened to be coming down the hall when I went out into the hall? I don’t think so!! God sent my pastor on a mission to talk to my father that morning. My father died two days later.

It is all right to grieve for your loved ones and friends, but if you know they are Christians, you have tremendous comfort. You know you will see them again some day.

If they are not a Christian, take time to share with them the love of God. You could also have the hospital chaplain talk to them, or have your church’s pastor talk to them. You may even go out into the hall and have a pastor coming toward you to talk to them!

I also have had the privilege of having many friends that were very dear to me. They each made an impact in my life. In just the last few years, I’ve had to say good-bye to several of them. Physical death took them from us, but spiritually they live on. I am only sharing this to let you know that I will be able to see each of them when it is my turn to walk the walk.

Arlene Corn was probably the best Detroit Tiger fan in the whole world. She lived in our cul-de-sac. She also was also a wonderful Christian. When she went to be with the Lord we all sang “Take Me out to the Ball Game” at her packed memorial service. There was not a dry eye at the service. She was an instant friend in the neighborhood. You felt you knew her from day one. Cancer took her from us.

My neighbor, who lived across the street, was one of the toughest women I have ever met. She called a spade a spade, and wouldn’t hesitate to let you know if you needed to be corrected. When someone mentioned that a friend had “passed away,” she scolded, “They didn’t pass away; they died!” She did pass away, and she will be greatly missed by all of her neighbors. She loved dogs, and the neighborhood dogs seemed to have known it. They lined up at her home for treats. Cancer took her from us.

A teacher friend of mine was a single parent of two sons that she loved very much. She also loved teaching kindergarten children, and they loved her. My wife and I took her for many of her chemotherapy sessions because her sons needed to be in school. She wanted to look special for everyone, so she wore a wig and made sure she was dressed well for her doctor visits. She remained positive to the very end. She passed away in her sleep. Cancer took her from us.

Another friend of ours was very tough woman. She could bite the head off a pit bull, but she was a person who spread her love as far as she could reach. She loved the “boys” who came to visit her. They were high school kids who needed someone to talk to. She had them over almost every night. They would sit around and talk to her and her husband. It was a place for them to unload.

She unloaded on my wife and her husband one time at a doctor’s appointment they had gone to with her. They started to break down at something the doctor said. “Quit being wimps!” she scolded. She didn’t want anyone feeling sorry for her. At her memorial service no one was allowed to say anything sad about her. Cancer took her from us.

Another teacher friend was a very proud woman. She refused to dwell on her illness. She always felt she was going to beat cancer. She was a woman that fought for the right to have an assisted suicide inOregon, the first state to allow it. She felt that we all should be able to die with dignity. She even spoke before Congress on the issue. She passed away before she was able to have assistance. Cancer took her from us.

Howard Girod and I met several years ago when we moved next door to him and his wife. He was the kind of person you were not sure you would be friends with. He once jokingly called me the village idiot. But as I got to know him, I found out that he was the most loving man I had met in a long time.

I almost fell off a ladder he was holding for me, and he scolded me like I was his son. “Be careful!” he shouted. Another time just before his death, when he was very weak, he whispered to me from his hospital bed, “If I could start over again … I wouldn’t!”

His favorite line at the end was, “God bless you.” That meant so much to me, especially since he had once called me the village idiot. Howard was a strong Christian who said a strong word once in awhile, but his love for you made you know that he was going to have a seat close to God when he passed. Leukemia took him from us.

God took all these people the same way. They all died from some from cancer, except my father who died from a stroke. There is not an answer why they had to leave us so soon, but God has His reasons. I thank Him for sharing these people with me for the time we had together. A father or a friend is a precious person that you should cherish each day you have them. You never know when they will not be with you anymore.

 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil, for you are with me.

Psalm 23:4

 

I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.

John 8:51

 

Further Adventures

You never know when your close encounters will be. I have had many that I know of, but I probably had many more I didn’t know about. Try to keep track of when you have a close encounter and let me know about them by sending your story to me. (See Appendix on how to do that.)

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny that our children can’t read the Bible in school, but they can in prison?

 

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Everything That Can go Wrong, Probably Will

I am inviting you to sign-up for the RSS feed of this site. I have a blog at: www.dailysignsofhope.com, and it is getting over 30 people a day signing up for the RSS feed there. I would like to start that trend here as well.

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I have a brain storm going, and it hurts! I am thinking of giving away a free book to someone who signs-up for the RSS feed through a drawing. I am guessing I will need to have at least 10 people sign-up before I pull out a name.

What do you think?

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Excerpt # 2 is chapter two from the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” This book reaches out to those who may suffer from anxiety, fear, depression, addictions, self-doubt, hopelessness, and the many other usual suspects.

You can order the book right from this site. Just click on the bookstore at the top of this page.

The book is on sale from right now until Christmas. In the retail stores the price is $19.99, but on this site it is only $15.99, and the shipping has been cut in half as well. A total savings of over $6.00.

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Chapter 2

 

 

Everything that Can Go Wrong Probably Will

 

I sought the Lord, and he answered me;

 he delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 34:4

 

 

Murphy must have been a sad soul. We all live by the laws he created for us. It seems that we blame everything that goes wrong on Murphy’s Law.

You’ve had those days. You get up in the morning and start out happy as a clam. (Not sure how happy that is.) You have some errands to do, and you begin to do them.

You run out of gas, or you have a flat tire. You forgot your grocery list. The item you thought was on sale wasn’t. There is an accident on the freeway, and you are stuck for hours.

Ever had those kinds of days? Let me tell you about mine! I had volunteered to help my son Greg out when he vacationed inDisneylandwith my granddaughter Molly. I told him I would pick up his mail every day, put the garbage cans back on Tuesday, and feed Charlie the cat all week.

Everything went well Sunday through Tuesday. But on Wednesday, the worst thing happened. I lost the door key. I had it in my summer shorts when I went to shower. I took off the shorts, showered, and then put on a clean pair of shorts. I left the house and headed over to my son’s house.

Charlie was waiting for me, and already had started his purring sound to let me know he was glad to see me. I got the mail, walked up to the door and reached into my pocket to get the key. It wasn’t there. Charlie was looking up at me looking like, “Why are you taking so long to open the door?”

“Sorry Charlie,” I muttered, sounding like a tuna commercial. “I have to go back home and get the key.” He wasn’t very happy with me as I walked to my car. I felt badly.

I got home and looked everywhere for the key. It was nowhere in sight. I even dumped out the hamper where the dirty clothes were. Zilch! Notta! Ouch!

I remembered that we had a bunch of extra keys in the desk drawer that had no names on them. I dug all of them out and drove back to my son’s house. You guessed it: None of them worked!

I was desperate by this time. I thought that I might have to call a locksmith, or call my son and have him Fed Ex his keys to me.

I prayed for help from God and immediately thought of calling my wife Charlotte to see if she had any ideas. (This was my close encounter with God.) I probably sounded shook up when she answered the phone—maybe because my only words were, “Now what do I do?”

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I’ve lost the key to the house, and the cat food is on the inside.”

Without hesitating, she suggested, “Go to the grocery store and buy another bag of cat food and feed Charlie outside. He’s an outside cat anyway. Greg can make a new key when he gets home.”

Charlie was really mad at me when I left the second time without feeding him. I returned with a tasty tuna and salmon meal (yum). He gobbled it up and was purring again when I left.

Of course, going to the grocery store was the obvious choice. (You realize, of course, that I actually knew it all along. I was just testingCharlotte.) The important thing was that the answer came after I had prayed for help.Charlottewas the messenger, but God answered the prayer.

God can answer prayers in many ways. It can be directly, or it can be through someone else.Charlottewas my answer to prayer. She knew the easy solution I needed, but I wasn’t able to think of.

Do you call on God to help you when you have a problem, or do you panic like I did? (God has a speed dial you know.) At least, I knew I couldn’t do it on my own and turned to God for help. The calming feeling that came as soon as I finished praying was very reassuring.

It was in God’s hands, and I knew something good would happen. Charlie got fed, and I have a whole bag of cat food for future lockouts.

Don’t let obstacles stop you. Turn your problems over to God. Let Him figure out a solution. It may not come as fast as mine did, but He will work it out the way He knows is best for you.

Since I am on the subject of prayer, please don’t just call on God when there is a problem. Talk to God every day. He loves to hear from you.

I know it is hard to pray when you are at work. It is hard to pray while you are driving. But you know what? When you are driving might be the best time to pray. It is when you are likely to be tense and need a calming spirit. A guy is blowing his horn behind you. Pray seeking patience because you do not know what is going on in this man’s life. He may want to get home because his wife called and is ready to have their first baby. Wouldn’t you be honking?

Prayer should be done without ceasing. Pray each and every day. Use it to praise God. Use it to thank Him for your good health. Use it to pray for peace. Whatever is on your mind, God wants to hear from you. It should be like He is sitting in the room with you. Carry on a conversation with Him.

 

Do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything, by prayer and petition,

with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6–7

 

Further Adventures

Have you gone along in life thinking that everything is fine, only to have a day that makes you realize that the world is not always a rose garden? First of all, remember that we can’t look at everything through rose-colored glasses.

Second, when a bad day comes knocking at your door like it was your long-lost relative, make sure it understands that it can only stay for that day. Then boot it out at the end of the day by giving it over to God in prayer. You should never let your bad days stay longer than they should.

 

Something to Ponder

Isn’t it funny that we always have a direct line to God, but we sometimes think the connection is dead?