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...of Service to Others
CTC Readers' Poll:
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| "After our church's Easter service, another church family saw us all piling into our rather cramped sedan. My husband is 6'2", my sister-in-law is tall, and I squeezed between our sons' two car seats in the back seat. That family decided that this was a sign that they should give us their older model van as a gift. That week the woman approached me at the boys' school when I was there for pick-up, saying that she and her husband have never believed in selling or trading in cars, that they'd had this van in their garage for the last year, and that they believed that they were meant to give it to our family. They were just waiting for a sign of who was to be the next owner of the vehicle. It is newer than either of our current (very small) cars, and is perfect for our desire to have a larger vehicle for camping. (The gear for 4 people to go camping is hard to fit into a small sedan. And the boys are always asking to bring their bikes, which has been impossible up to now.) So even though it is not the sort of vehicle we would have chosen to buy (had we any money for that!), we decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth and accept their gift. It is now ours, and we are looking for a sign as to whom should be the next owner of our oldest car, which we will give away soon as a continuation of the random gift of kindness. (With no storage room, we won't wait a year!)" ~ Janet |
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"Having only worked for my
current company 13
months, I never 'expect' anything.
I worked in a
large corporation for 5 years and never received any type of
caring treatment by anyone that worked there or the company
itself!
On 3/30/05 I received a phone call first thing in the morning when I arrived at work. The phone call was from my ex-husband's current wife with devastating news The 48-year-old father of my 14-year-old daughter and stepfather to my older two girls, suffered an unexpected massive heart attack in his sleep and did not survive. This would undoubtedly be the most horrible news I would ever have to tell my daughter, who was in the middle of spring break from school. Her dad had never been sick, never complained of any illness or pain, and this was the most unexpected news I had ever gotten. And HOW was I going to get from Tennessee to California within a day? Within one hour of hearing what had happened, and by the time I had composed myself enough to drive home to confront my daughter, my coworkers had: purchased 3 round trip tickets leaving the next morning for my 2 daughters and I; taken up a collection with a lot of cash for any unexpected expenses; programmed a cell phone with my name and handed it to me for the 'just in case I needed it' time; made phone calls that I couldn't make to notify other family members; hugged me and told me they cared; and just generally took care of me (us). They even went so far as to make sure I got my paycheck on time, and they covered my time off through vacation time I hadn't yet earned. The only thing I had left to think about, or be worried about, was the what to say, how to say it and how to handle the reaction of my youngest daughter. The outpouring of love and concern and caring from everyone was heartwarming and heart-wrenching at the same time. How could I ever repay their kindnesses? I will repay by being there when they need someone, taking control of the situation and giving the hugs where they are needed the most. I offered to pay them back as I could afford to, and was met with the 'don't worry about anything' speech. What a wonderful work family I have. I love them all and I would do anything for any of them. It is rare to find a group of people that truly take care of their own, value their co-workers for more than the work they perform or the hours they put in, and give of themselves no matter the status of who they are giving to. I am blessed to have found such a loving environment, and am forever grateful for everything they have done for me. Thank you - Mid South Wire and M S Logistics, Nashville Tennessee." ~ Denise |
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"My
husband passed away in January, and I was having a particularly
bad day at work. Friends at work noticed and had flowers sent to
me anonymously, which made me feel supported and cared about.
Each day is better!" ~ Donna
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| "This is something that several friends and I have done. My best friend's husband had a brain tumor, but no insurance. Thank God the doctor was convinced to do the surgery without insurance paying for most of it. The tumor was successfully removed -- another miracle. We have secretly been sending money to the hospital to cover the bills. My friends are very proud and would not accept the money otherwise, but we are just helping chip away at an astronomical bill." ~ Anggie |
| "Last July, I was rear-ended at a red light. The accident totaled my car. I had to quit my job due to a neck injury and I miscarried a baby. I have two toddlers at home, so I really needed transportation for doctor visits, etc. Well, my mom was the first person to do something nice for me. Every Tuesday, she would come over and take us to run errands. If I had an appointment on a different day, she would come sit with the kids and let me use her car. That meant so much to me that she would do that. Then in March of this year, some friends of ours dropped by one Saturday afternoon to bring us their old car. You see, the Lord gave them a car in January, and they knew immediately that they were to give the older car to us, but they wanted to pray about it and make 100% sure that it was the Lord's will and not their flesh. They are also financially struggling, so it was a great act of trust in the Lord for them to do this instead of selling the car so that they could have money for bills. I praise God for His faithfulness in providing for them and for us and ask His blessings upon the couple and my mom for their sacrifices." ~ Beverly |
| "One Sunday morning when my husband had to work, I took my 2 young (then 3 and 6), active boys to church only to discover that the nursery worker had not shown up yet. I decided to take them to service with me. The early service is the 'traditional' format, and there are not a lot of young families there. I sat in front of several older couples, acutely aware of every noise and movement that the boys made. We made it through the hour somehow. A couple days later, I received a very kind note from one of the ladies who sat behind us. She told me she thought I was doing a great job raising such well-behaved children and she was pleased to see us bringing our young boys to church. The note was only a few lines long, but almost 2 years later I still get choked up thinking about it." ~ Jeanne (Ohio) |
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"I didn't get one but our
family did a biggie this week. An old friend of mine who is not
saved and still walking without God is having huge financial
troubles, so we bought the person groceries and personal hygiene
products. Next payday, I'm buying some towels and sheets and
taking them to a family who is very, very poor in a small town
next to us. I'm loving this. My motto is 'Givers gain.'" ~
Christy
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| "A guy of another race with a big flashy earring and pants that were almost ready to fall off paid the extra seventeen cents I lacked on my groceries--for me, an over-fifty graying woman. I protested. He insisted. I looked at him differently after that. He had a good heart." ~ Diane |
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"In my small village in the
North of the Netherlands, the direct train to Amsterdam leaves
twice hourly. When years ago I walked to the train station, having
lived in Haren for only a month, a car stopped and an unknown man
asked if I'd like to get a lift to the station, which saved me a
ten minutes' walk. It turned out that he always did that if he saw
someone walking with an overnight bag. I copied his habit and
recently I learned from friends who just moved to this part
of the world that they were still astonished by this habit, that
has developed on a large scale. Is not this a perfect example of
grass root movement?" ~ Céline
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"I provide shelter for the
occasional stray cat in my barn. Recently, one of them became
seriously ill and required immediate surgery. The estimates were
way more that I could afford, but before I gave up and had the
kitty euthanized, I made a call to the Merrimack River Feline
Rescue to see if they had any financial aid for stray cats in
need. The idea just popped into my head (divine intervention
perhaps?) This organization reimbursed me almost all of the vet
bill, without ever meeting me or my kitty. It was nothing short of
a miracle and I will forever be grateful to this wonderful
organization." ~ Barbara Lowes and Mamakitty
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"My father died last August.
He and my Mom had been married for 58 years. She is having a very
hard time accepting the fact that she has to be independent and so
things by herself. She recently went out to a late lunch at a
local restaurant. She takes a book or magazine so she won't be
noticeable. When her food came, she couldn't get the top off the
ketchup bottle. A 25-year-old young man came over from another
table and opened the bottle of ketchup. She thanked him and went
on with her lunch. When
she was finished, she went to the ladies room and then up to the
cashier to pay. The cashier said, 'I'm not sure why but that young
man paid for your lunch.' He was already gone so she couldn't even
thank him. I told her to enjoy it and now to do something
unexpected for someone else." ~ Anonymous
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"A shut-in parishioner of
mine called to tell me how much she enjoyed a particular sermon
she had just listened to on tape. Her encouragement was a great
lift after several weeks of stress. All it took was a phone call,
leaving a message, and words of encouragement. She had no idea how
much had been going on in my life. I returned her call and thanked
her sincerely." ~ Pastor Diane
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| "I also have an act of kindness that I'd like to describe. A few days ago as I was driving home from a guitar lesson my Mazda van died as I stopped at a stop sign. A man who had just pulled out of a driveway behind me helped to boost my battery to no avail. Then he checked all the fuses and various other things he could think of, and then phoned his son who is a mechanic and works for Mazda! He then lent me his cell phone so I could phone my husband, and drove me home. As he dropped me off at my house he asked me if there was anything else he could do for me. Wow! He'd already done so much! And then later in the day the tow truck came to pick me up at my house to take me to my van and then towed the van to our mechanic. He then drove me back home. Two Good Samaritans in one day! So even though I was feeling frazzled over the temporary loss of our van, these two men really made my day." ~ Lesley |
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Editor's Note: Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond. |