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<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Humor: Now That I Have Your Undivided Attention</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>A businessman who
needed millions of dollars to clinch an important deal went to the
temple to pray for the money. By chance he sat next to a man who was
praying for $100 to pay an urgent debt. </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The businessman
took out his wallet and pressed $100 into the other man's hand.
Overjoyed, the man got up and left the temple. The businessman then
closed his eyes and prayed: "And now, Lord, that I have your undivided
attention . . ." </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Traditional. Told by Billy Strayhorn</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>____________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The Widow's Mite for $39.95</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>An advertisement I
ran across read: "Now you too can own a Genuine Coin From The Time of
Jesus: The Widow's Mite. It's a minor miracle that this coin has
survived and now people of faith can study, cherish, and protect it for
future generations. It's yet another miracle that they're so
affordable."</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Then, the ad goes
on to quote the Scripture we just heard, "While our limited supplies
last, you may order the 2,000 year old Widow's Mite for only $39.95 plus
shipping and handling. Remember this is the genuine coin mentioned in
the Holy Bible and it makes a perfect gift for your child, grandchild,
or favorite clergyman."</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The advertisement
makes it sound like your buying the actual coin the widow dropped into
the receptacle. Of course, you are not. It doesn't exist. Harder still
is to purchase the woman's attitude of generosity, which is of greater
value in today's market.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Brett Blair, <a shape="rect" target="_blank" __removedlink__1197341827__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001AovHxoSOy2E5s5HF-oRtqHylPxSofcXSevZvERUvICs3sYCZLXXCBGM9X9aSta6F4gR_UcSJhpSXYwsKGZnWPInw_CvAudOEVoIMc4sD8nU="><span>www.Sermons.com</span></a>. Thanks to Lauren J. McFeaters.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>_______________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>It's How You Give</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Abraham Lincoln,
was once hired by a man to sue someone else because they owed him $2.50.
Not a large amount, but in the l860's it was. Lincoln didn't want to
take the case but his client insisted. So Abe asked for a $l0.00
retainer fee up front. His client handed him the $l0. Lincoln then gave
the man who owed $2.50 half of the ten. The man promptly paid his debt
and everyone went home happy. It's not what you give, it is HOW you
give. God wants us to give of ourselves joyfully without expecting
anything in return.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Keith Wagner</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>____________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>I Have a Dollar</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The Junior Sunday
School Teacher asked her eight eager children if they would give
$1,000,000 to the missionaries. "YES!" they all screamed!! "Would you
give $1,000?" Again they shouted, "YES!" "How about $100?" "Oh, YES we
would!" they all agreed!! "Would you give just a dollar to the
missionaries?" she asked. The boys exclaimed "YES!" just as before
except for Johnny. "Johnny," the teacher said as she noticed the boy
clutching his pocket, "why didn't you say 'YES' this time?" "Well," he
stammered, "I HAVE a dollar."</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Traditional</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>_____________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The danger of pride is that it feeds on goodness.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Traditional</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>__________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>A Symbol of Hope</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Ruele Howe tells
about growing up with his parents in the country. When he was 15 years
old, the house caught on fire. They escaped with only the clothes on
their backs. There were no close neighbors to help so he and his father
walked to a distant village to get supplies. As they returned they saw
something that stayed with Ruele Howe all those years after. Beside the
charred remains of what had been their house, his mother had laid out
lunch on a log. She had placed a tin can filled with wildflowers on the
log. It was a symbol of hope in the midst of tragedy. <br>
<br>
This is
the Christian faith, isn't it? She didn't try to cover up the disaster
with flowers, but in the midst of that gloomy scene she had placed a
symbol of hope. <br>
<br>
These two coins that the widow placed in the
temple treasury were her wildflowers. This was her symbol, her way of
saying I know God will provide. <br>
<br>
King Duncan, Collected Sermons, <a shape="rect" target="_blank" __removedlink__1197341827__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001AovHxoSOy2E5s5HF-oRtqHylPxSofcXSevZvERUvICs3sYCZLXXCBGM9X9aSta6F4gR_UcSJhpSXYwsKGZnWPInw_CvAudOEVoIMc4sD8nU="><span>www.Sermons.com</span></a> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>___________________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Who Is Important?</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>It's easy to become
confused about who's important in our society. We are encouraged to
think of celebrities as most important. Television shows are devoted to
their lives, and magazines and newspapers keep us informed of their
every move. The movers and the shakers, too, are touted as important.
Imagine how powerful the chairman of the Federal Reserve is! With a
single sentence in a speech he can send the stock market plummeting.
These are the people we are taught to regard as important. </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>In the meantime
many of our elderly waste away in nursing homes, forgotten even by their
families. They don't make the news, aren't featured in magazines and
newspapers, and are regarded simply as society's "throw-always."
Thankfully widows today do not have the meager social status they had in
Jesus' time. However, it is not hard to find contemporary parallels to
the poor widow of this story. Just consider the homeless people in our
communities.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Robert Kysar</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>__________________ </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>Cordially Yours</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>I'm reminded of the
story of the young soldier who was overseas. He was writing his
girlfriend. He wanted to send her a telegram because he thought that
would make more of an impression. So he gave the telegraph operator a
message to send. The message was this: "I love you. I love you. I love
you. John." <br>
<br>
The telegraph operator said, "Son, for the same
amount of money you can send one more word." So he amended his message
and it read like this: "I love you. I love you. I love you. Cordially,
John." <br>
<br>
Many of us profess our love for God, "I love you, I love
you, I love you," but when push comes to shove our devotion is more like
"cordially" than it is love. <br>
<br>
This widow put her money where her heart was. She gave all she had. And Jesus praised her.</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>King Duncan, Collected Sermons, <a shape="rect" target="_blank" __removedlink__1197341827__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001AovHxoSOy2E5s5HF-oRtqHylPxSofcXSevZvERUvICs3sYCZLXXCBGM9X9aSta6F4gR_UcSJhpSXYwsKGZnWPInw_CvAudOEVoIMc4sD8nU="><span>www.Sermons.com</span></a>. </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>______________________________</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The Widows-On-Fixed-Income Infection</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>I am reminded of
the report of an associate pastor of a large church that hired a church
fund-raiser to direct its ambitious financial campaign. The fund-raiser
proposed his strategy at the first planning session. He wanted the
members to visit every home. He was met with immediate resistance. One
cynic at the stewardship meeting cited that this church had a high
percentage of retired people on fixed incomes. They could not be
expected to pledge, the cynic argued...</span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span>The rest of this illustration, as well as many additional illustrations and sermons for the whole year, can be accessed at <a shape="rect" target="_blank" __removedlink__1197341827__href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001AovHxoSOy2E5s5HF-oRtqHylPxSofcXSevZvERUvICs3sYCZLXXCBGM9X9aSta6F4gR_UcSJhpSXYwsKGZnWPInw_CvAudOEVoIMc4sD8nU="><span>www.Sermons.com</span></a>. </span></div>
<div style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px"><span> </span></div>
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