Deck of Cards

Here is a new way to look at a deck of cards!!

Deck of Cards
It was quiet that day, the guns and the mortars, and land mines for some reason hadn't been heard.
The young soldier knew it was Sunday, the holiest day of the week. As he was sitting there, he got out an old deck of cards and laid them out across his bunk. Just then an army sergeant came in and said, 'Why aren't you with the rest of the platoon?' The soldier replied, 'I thought I would stay behind and spend some time with the Lord.' The sergeant said, 'Looks to me like you're going to play cards.' The soldier said, 'No, sir. You see, since we are not allowed to have Bibles or other spiritual books in this country,
I've decided to talk to the Lord by studying this deck of cards.' The sergeant asked in disbelief, 'How will you do that?' 'You see the Ace, Sergeant? It reminds me that there is only one God. The Two represents the two parts of the Bible, Old and New Testaments The Three represents the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. The Four stands for the Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John .The Five is for the five virgins there were ten but only five of them were glorified.
The Six is for the six days it took God to create the Heavens and Earth.
The Seven is for the day God rested after making His Creation.. The Eight is for the family of Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives -- the eight people God spared from the flood that destroyed the Earth. The Nine is for the lepers that Jesus cleansed of leprosy He cleansed ten, but nine never thanked Him.. The Ten represents the Ten Commandments that God handed down to Moses on tablets made of stone. The Jack is a reminder of Satan, one of God's first angels, but he got kicked out of heaven for his sly and wicked ways and is now the joker of eternal hell. The Queen stands for the Virgin Mary.
The King stands for Jesus, for he is the King of all kings.
When I count the dots on all the cards, I come up with 365 total, one for every day of the year.
There are a total of 52 cards in a deck; each is a week - 52 weeks in a year.
The four suits represent the four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.
Each suit has thirteen cards -- there are exactly thirteen weeks in a quarter.
So when I want to talk to God and thank Him, I just pull out this old deck of cards and they remind me of all that I have to be thankful for..'
The sergeant just stood there. After a minute, with tears in his eyes and pain in his heart, he said, 'Soldier, can I borrow that deck of cards?'

Please let this be a reminder and take time to pray for all of our soldiers who are being sent away, putting their lives on the line fighting
Prayer for the Military.
Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them. Bless them and their families
I ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

Amen

When you read this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our servicemen and women all around the world.
Of all the gifts you could give a Soldier, prayer is the very best one.

Search and Rescue

Almost every week we see news about a search and rescue mission. It may involve a child who wandered away from a family picnic and is lost, or a hiker stranded on a mountain, or miners deep in the earth. In every case, the people at risk are unable to help themselves. Those who are found and saved usually have lasting gratitude for those who joined in the search and rescued them.
The account of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10 is a story of search and rescue. At first glance it may seem like a series of chance events--Jesus was passing through Jericho and a rich tax collector climbed a tree to catch a glimpse of the miracle-working teacher. But this encounter wit Jesus was not a coincidence. At the end of the narrative, Luke deliberately included Jesus' words to Zacchaeus, "Today salvation has come to this house..." for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost" (vv.9-10).
Jesus began His search and rescue operation on earth by His life, death, and resurrection. He continues it today through the power of the Holy Spirit, and He graciously invites us to participate with Him by loving those who are lost.

People can't believe in Jesus

If the gospel they don't hear,

So we must proclaim its message

to the world-- both far and near.    -Sper

TGIF

I read two devotionals in the morning before I leave the house. One is for me, with 365, one for each day of year. The other I received when we went on the marriage retreat, March 2009. It is only about 50 pages. It is for my husband. I read and pray for him every morning. I am not that great with math, I don't know how to figure the odds, but it was so amazing when both were from Isaiah 60:1 "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. I believe God is speaking directly to me on this one for sure.
I am a fall person. I love the colors. And when the sun shines on the reds, oranges, yellows and greens, it is so awesome, so beautiful. Can't hardly wait to get in the mountains and see the whole mountain covered like a giant patchwork quilt. God is so wonderful to give us such beauty to brighten our days. PRAISE GOD!!