Christ. Is. Always. Checking. In.

JUST CHECKING IN

A minister passing through his church
In the middle of the day,
Decided to pause by the altar
And see who had come to pray.

Just then the back door opened,
A man came down the aisle,
The minister frowned as he saw
The man hadn’t shaved in a while.
His shirt was kinda shabby
And his coat was worn and frayed,
The man knelt, he bowed his head,
Then rose and walked away.

In the days that followed,
Each noon time came this chap,
Each time he knelt just for a moment,
A lunch pail in his lap.

Well, the minister’s suspicions grew,
With robbery a main fear,
He decided to stop the man and ask him,
‘What are you doing here?’

The old man said, he worked down the road.
Lunch was half an hour.
Lunchtime was his prayer time,
For finding strength and power.

‘I stay only moments, see,
Because the factory is so far away;
As I kneel here talking to the Lord,
This is kinda what I say:

‘I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD,
HOW HAPPY I’VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHERS FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. DON’T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY.
SO, JESUS, THIS IS MIKE CHECKING IN TODAY.’

The minister feeling foolish,
Told Mike, that was fine.
He told the man he was welcome
To come and pray just anytime

Time to go, Mike smiled, said ‘Thanks.’
He hurried to the door.
The minister knelt at the altar,
He’d never done it before.

His cold heart melted, warmed with love,
And met with Jesus there.
As the tears flowed, in his heart,
He repeated old Mike’s prayer:

‘I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD,
HOW HAPPY I’VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHERS FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. I DON’T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY.
SO, JESUS, THIS IS ME CHECKING IN TODAY.’

Past noon one day, the minister noticed
That old Mike hadn’t come.
As more days passed without Mike,
He began to worry some..

At the factory, he asked about him,
Learning he was ill.
The hospital staff was worried,
But he’d given them a thrill.

The week that Mike was with them,
Brought changes in the ward.
His smiles, a joy contagious.
Changed people, were his reward.

The head nurse couldn’t understand
Why Mike was so glad,
When no flowers, calls or cards came,
Not a visitor he had.

The minister stayed by his bed,
He voiced the nurse’s concern:
No friends came to show they cared.
He had nowhere to turn.

Looking surprised, old Mike spoke
Up and with a winsome smile;
‘the nurse is wrong, she couldn’t know,
That he’s in here all the while

Everyday at noon He’s here,
A dear friend of mine, you see,
He sits right down, takes my hand,
Leans over and says to me:

‘I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, MIKE,
HOW HAPPY I HAVE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND THIS FRIENDSHIP, AND I TOOK AWAY YOUR SIN.
ALWAYS LOVE TO HEAR YOU PRAY,
I THINK ABOUT YOU EACH DAY, AND SO Mike, THIS IS JESUS CHECKING IN TODAY.’
If this blesses you, pass it on. Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart

May God hold you in the palm of His hand
And Angels watch over you.

So, FRIEND, this is ME … “Just Checking In Today”

Hard Work Pays

This poem is one of the most famous yoruba poems of all times, read and make sense out of it.

ISÉ NI ÒÒGÙN ÌSÉ ……..Work is the antidote for poverty

MÚRA SÍ ISÉ RE ÒRÉÈ MI …….Work hard, my friend
ISÉ NI A FI Í DI ENI GIGA …….work is used to elevate one in respect and importance (Aspiring to higher height is fully dependent on hard work)
BÍ A KÒ BÁ RÉNI FÈYÌN TÌ, BÍ ÒLE LÀ Á RÍ ;……if we do not have anyone to lean on, we appear indolent
BÍ A KO RÉNI GBÉKÈLÉ ,…..if we do not have anyone to trust (we can depend on…)
À A TERA MÓ ISÉ ENI …..we simply work harder
ÌYÁ RE LÈ LÓWÓ LÓWÓ …..your mother may be wealthy
BÀBÁ SÌ LÈ LÉSIN LÉÈKÀN …..your father may have a ranch full of horses
BÍ O BÁ GBÓJÚ LÉ WON ,…….. if you depend on their riches alone
O TÉ TÁN NI MO SO FÚN O ,……you may end up in disgrace, I tell you
OHUN TÍ A KÒ BA JÌYÀ FÚN ,…..whatever gain one does not work hard to earn.
KÌ Í LÈ TÓJÓ …..usually does not last
OHUN TÍ A BÁ FARA SISÉ FÚN ,….whatever gain one works hard to earn
NÍ Í PÉ LÓWÓ ENI …..is the one that lasts in one's hands.(while in ones possession)
APÁ LARÁ, ÌGÙNPÁ NÌYEKAN …… the arm is a relative, the elbow is a sibling
BÍ AYÉ N FÉ O LÓNÌÍ ,….you may be loved by all today
BÍ O BÁ LÓWÓ LÓWÓ ,……it is when you have money
NI WON Á MÁA FÉ O LÓLA ……that they will love you tomorrow
TÀBÍ TÍ O BÁ WÀ NÍ IPÒ ÀTÀTÀ ,…..or when you are in a high position
AYÉ Á YÉ O SÍ TÈRÍN-TÈRÍN ,…..all will honor you with cheers and smiles
JÉ KÍ O DI ENI N RÁÁGÓ ,….wait till you become poor or are struggling to get by
KÍ O RÍ BÁYÉ TI Í SÍMÚ SÍ O ……and you will see how all grimace at you as they pass you by
ÈKÓ SÌ TÚN N SONI Í DÒGÁ ,…..education also elevates one in position
MÚRA KÍ O KÓ O DÁRADÁRA …..work hard to acquire good education
BÍ O SÌ RÍ ÒPÒ ÈNÌYÀN ,…..and if you see a lot of people
TÍ WÓN N FI ÈKÓ SE ÈRÍN RÍN ,….making education a laughing stock
DÁKUN MÁ SE FARA WÉ WON …..please do not emulate or keep their company
ÌYÀ N BÒ FÓMO TÍ KÒ GBÓN ,…..suffering is lying in wait for an unserious kid
EKÚN N BE FÓMO TÓ N SÁ KIRI …….sorrow is in the reserve for a truant kid
MÁ FÒWÚRÒ SERÉ, ÒRÉÈ MI ,…..do not play with your early years, my friend
MÚRA SÍSÉ, OJÓ N LO …..work harder, time and tide wait for no one.

An act of kindness

A man was driving home one evening on a small country road. Work in this small Midwestern community was almost as slow as his beat-up Pontiac, but he never quit looking for a job. Ever since his factory had closed down, he had been unemployed. And with winter coming, he had reached a point of practical desperation.
It was dark, and he almost didn’t see the old lady stranded on the side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac sputtered as he walked up to her, and he noticed that she seemed very worried. No one had stopped to help her for the last hour or so. She was wondering: “is he going to hurt me? He doesn’t look safe; he looks poor and hungry. This does not look good”. He sensed that she was frightened, standing out there alone in the cold, so he offered her some reassurance: “Ma’am, I’m just here to help you. Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm, and I’ll see if I can fix your car? By the way, my name is Joe”.
All she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Joe crawled under the car, looking for a place to put the jack. He cut his hands on the hard rocks underneath the axle but was soon able to change the tire. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down her window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was just passing through. She could not thank him enough for coming to her aid. He just smiled as he closed her trunk and started returning to his car.
“Tell me, how much do I owe you?” she asked. “I’ll be glad to pay anything you ask.”
To her surprise, Joe looked back at her and said, “If you really want to pay me back, the next time you see someone who needs help, you give them the help they need, and then—just think of me”. He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed home in the twilight.
A few miles down the road, this same lady saw a small café. She went in to grab a bite to eat and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy-looking restaurant. One could tell business was not going well. Nevertheless, the waitress came over and brought a towel for her to wipe her wet hair. She wore a sweet smile, and even though the lady could tell the waitress was extremely tired, she was eager to please. She also noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but neither the strain of the pregnancy nor the labor of the work was struggling just to make ends meet. She wondered how someone with so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she thought of Joe.
After the lady finished her meal, the waitress went to get her change from a $100 bill, but the lady slipped out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady had gone. Then she noticed something written on a napkin, in the shape of a poem. It brought tears to her eyes. It said:
You don’t owe me a thing,
I’ve been there too;
Someone once helped me out the way I’m helping you.
If you really want to pay me back,
Here’s what you do;
Don’t let the chain of Kindness
End with you.
The waitress finally made it to the end of the day. Later that night, when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she thought about the money and what the lady had written. How could the woman have known how much she and her husband needed it? With this baby coming next month, it was going to be extremely difficult, especially with her husband out of work. As she lay down in bed, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered, “Everything is going to be all right. I love you, Joe.”
Take every opportunity to be kind. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.”
PLEASE take note that your act of kindness might not end up like this. As a matter of fact it may even be quite far from this BUT “You’ll reap if you faint not” ~Gal 6:9~