CEASELESS SEARCH

An old man was reclining on an easy-chair. His grandson brought the news paper to him. Eager to read the news, he started to search for his spectacles. After a while the child asked what he was searching for. He replied that it was to find his spectacles. Laughing aloud, the child pointed to his face and said, "Grandpa, it is there-right on your face."

The old man realized that he was searching for his spectacles wearing them on his face.

On a dark night, a man was found to search for some article under the bright light of a street-lamp. Passers-by enquired about it. He replied that he was searching to find a lost needle. They gladly joined him in the search. After sometime they gave up the search as they could not find it. The man told them, "I was sure that you would not find them." They asked, "Why?" He replied, "That is because I lost the needle on the other side of the road." "But why did you search here, instead of searching on the other side?" they asked him. He replied calmly, "Simple. There is no light there. But here we have plenty of light." The people left the place cursing the crazy man.

Man is in continual search for many things- God, peace and joy. But he forgets to find them within him. Jesus taught, "The Kingdom of God is within you" {Luke 17: 21}.

Peace and joy are the results and reflections of a pure and innocent heart. "Happy are the pure in heart, they will see God!" {Matthew 5: 8}. Let us learn to listen to the whisper of our conscience. That is the word of God from within us.

Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India. For more moral stories, parables and anecdotes for students, catechists, teachers and preachers, kindly visit the web-site: http://www.moralstorieschristian.blogspot.com

Read more...

Twenty Dollars

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked. "Who would like this $20 bill?"

Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you - but first, let me do this."

He proceeded to crumple the 20 dollar note up. He then asked. "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air.

"Well," he replied, "what if I do this?" He dropped it on theground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?"

Still the hands went into the air.

"My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. Nomatter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless; but no matter what happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.

Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are stillpriceless to those who love you. The worth of our lives comes, not in what we do or who we know, but by ...WHO WE ARE.

You are special - don't ever forget it."

Read more...

The Mouse Trap

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.

What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered - he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap. Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow and said "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."

So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital, and she returned home with a fever.

Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.

The farmer's wife did not get well; she died. So many people came for her funeral; the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them.

The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.

The next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember - when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage and help one another.

Read more...

LOVE AND LIFE

This is a version of a popular children's story of India that teaches the nature of true love.

A dry leaf fell down from a tree and lay near a lump of clay. The leaf and the lump became good friends. The leaf told the lump that it was afraid of being carried by a storm into the river flowing nearby. There were signs of a severe storm. The lump of clay moved slightly and sat on the leaf and saved it from the storm. The weather became calm and they remained close. One day, they heard the sound of rain. The lump of clay was afraid of getting wet and being washed away in the water. The leaf saved the lump by covering it like an umbrella. The rain stopped and they were happy. Later, one night, a severe storm and a heavy rain arrived together. The dry leaf was flown far away and destroyed. The lump of clay was washed away. Their loving friendship continued till their end.

Our Lord Jesus Christ loves us infinitely. He suffered the Passion and sacrificed His life to save us from sin and lead us to salvation. He taught us, “My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them" {John 15: 12, 13}.

By: Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India.
For more moral stories, parables and anecdotes for students, catechists, teachers and preachers, kindly visit the web-site: http://www.moralstorieschristian.blogspot.com

Read more...