A REAL LIFE FAIRY TALE

...and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. (Mark 10-44)

Marion Mill was born in a fairy tale royal palace in Hungary. Her first spoon was solid gold. They sent her to school in Vienna where she became an actress and there she met and fell in love with a young medical student named Otto.

Otto and Marion married and went to live in Hollywood, California. There, as they "set up house," he began to dabble in movies. He became so interested in movies and in directing movies that he gave up his medical practice and went on to become the internationally famous movie director Otto Preminger. Marion's beauty, wit, and irresistible charm brought her everything a woman desires. In Europe, New York and Hollywood, she became a famous international hostess. But Otto's princess could not handle the fast life of Hollywood. She dove into alcohol, drugs and numerous affairs. Her life and life-style became so sordid, even for Hollywood, that Otto Preminger divorced Marion. She tried to take her own life three times, unsuccessfully, and finally moved back to Vienna.

There at a party, she met another doctor ― Albert Schweitzer, the well-known medical doctor, musician, philosopher, theologian  and missionary Schweitzer was home on leave from his hospital in Lamberene, Africa. She was so fascinated by Schweitzer that she asked him if she could talk to him alone. For almost six months she met with Dr. Albert Schweitzer every week. At the end of that time he was going to go back to Africa and she begged him to let her go with him. Schweitzer surprised everyone by agreeing. Marion, the young princess, who was born in a palace, went to a little village in Lambarene, Africa, and spent the rest of her life emptying bed pans and tearing up sheets to make bandages for putrid sores on the poverty stricken nationals.

She wrote her autobiography. I love the title of it - All I Want is Everything. When she died, Time Magazine quoted from her autobiography these words: "Albert Schweitzer says there are two kinds of people. There are the helpers and the non-helpers. I thank God He allowed me to become a helper, and in helping, I found everything." 

This story was shared by Jim Borror of Scottsdale Bible Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, in a devotional book the church had printed as part of the 50th Anniversary celebration of the church. I'm happy to be a member of that great church. It was started 50 years ago when 13 people met in a home. It has grown to about 7000 members now and is active in missions around the world as well as locally. 

Of course I'm sharing this for Spiritual Sundays. 

You may click HERE to go to that blog for many links to inspirational posts others have shared.

Show & Tell

I John 4:11

"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."

A Salvation Army worker found a derelict woman alone on the street and invited her to come into the chapel for help, but the woman refused to move. The female worker assured her: "We love you and want to help you. God loves you. Jesus died for you." But the woman did not budge.

As if on divine impulse, the worker leaned over and kissed the woman on the cheek, taking her into her arms. The woman began to sob and, like a child, was led into the chapel, where she ultimately trusted Christ.

"You told me that God loved me" she said later, "but it wasn't until you showed me that God loved me that I wanted to be saved."

Jesus did not simply preach the love of God; He proved it by giving His life on the cross. He expects His followers to do likewise. If we abide in Christ, we will abide in His love. If we abide in His love, we must share this love with others. In other words, as Christians there is no separation between our inner life and our outer life.

This devotional was taken from Warren Wiersbe's book Pause for Power.


There are many ways we can show Christ's love for others. As I was typing this message, one of our Spiritual Sundays people came to my mind. That person calls herself micey. Her name is Michelle. She has linked with us on Spiritual Sundays almost every week since we first started this blog. Right now micey is making preparation to go to Africa on another mission trip. If you are not acquainted with her I hope you will visit her blog and learn all about this trip that is coming up very soon. You can click HERE to go to her blog.

And you can click HERE to go to the Spiritual Sundays blog to find links to lots of inspiring posts. You may want to participate by sharing something of an inspirational nature on your own blog. There are instructions there on how to do it.

LIGHTEN UP

There are so many good devotionals in Warren Wiersbe's little book called Pause for Power. Today I want to share with you the one called "Lighten Up." It's short but the message is good.

Read I John 2:9-11
Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.

A man who was walking down a dark street one night saw a pinpoint of light coming toward him in a faltering way. He thought perhaps the person carrying the light was ill or drunk, but as he drew nearer he could see a man carrying a flashlight and a white cane.

Why would a blind man be carrying a light? the man wondered, and then he decided to ask. 

The blind man smiled. "I carry my light not so I can see, but so that others can see me. I cannot help being blind," he said, "but I can help being a stumbling block."

The best way to help other Christians not to stumble is to love them. Love makes us stepping-stones; hatred (or any of its "cousins," such as envy or malice) makes us stumbling blocks. It is important that we Christians exercise love in a local church or else there will be problems and disunity. If we are falling over each other, instead of lifting each other higher, we will never become a happy spiritual family.

As I was thinking about this devotional, I thought about how so many of you who share on Spiritual Sundays "lift us up" by sharing your hearts with us each week. You can click HERE to go to that blog and click on the different links. You will find a big variety of interesting and inspirational thoughts.

LOST

It happened again last night. I had that dream again. I was so glad when I woke up to realize it was just a dream. Several times I have dreamed that I lost my purse. I was still thinking about the dream when I woke up and the word "lost" kept coming to my mind.

People lose things all the time. Many even lose purses. I actually did lose mine a couple of times, but each time I got it back after panic and much prayer. I'm much more careful now. As bad as losing something in this life can be, how much worse it would be to lose our souls. The Bible says "What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul."

1. Matthew 16:26
   For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
   Matthew 16:25-27 (in Context) Matthew 16 (Whole Chapter)
2. Mark 8:36
   For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?
   Mark 8:35-37 (in Context) Mark 8 (Whole Chapter)
3. Luke 9:25
   For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?
   Luke 9:24-26 (in Context) Luke 9 (Whole Chapter)

I think lost is one of the saddest words in the English language. We all know people who are lost. We need to help them find their way if we can. 
"The way" in the Bible: John 14:6 
There is exactly one way to God, according to the Bible: Jesus Christ. He is the "way, the truth, and the life." No one will come to the Father except through Jesus.

I hope you will take the time to visit as many links in the Spiritual Sundays blog as you can. There are so many inspiring posts that are shared each week.