How My Husband and I Met 42 Years Ago

   I was a teenager, once, a long time ago, and one of the places I used to go to for entertainment was called, 'The Winter Park Youth Center". My mom had checked this place out and decided it was ok for me to attend. What she didn't know...
  At the time I attended this place, I had not come to the place where I had put my trust in Jesus Christ as my Savior yet, and, naturally, I followed the crowd. But, God was dealing heavily with my heart, in spite of my rebellion.
  In October of 1971, I was getting to know a young man who was in the band that played at the Youth Center, but I was not allowed to date him. He introduced me to the man I was going to marry one day. I wasn't paying attention though, for I was trying to get another old boyfriend back who was sitting just a few feet away.
  On October 23rd, I was at the Youth Center again. I had a baby sitting job that either got cancelled or I changed my mind about doing. My mom prayed that I would meet a nice boy that night. Little did she know how God was orchestrating everything that evening.
  He was sitting at a big round, high table, when I had an impression to meet him. I wasn't really shy when it came to meeting guys, but this seemed a little awkward. I went past him a couple of times. He came over and met me, and we talked for a couple of minutes. Then it was time to go, and I gave him my phone number (back then, it was against the rules for a girl to give a guy her phone number. I didn't know the rules).
  To better appreciate this, you have to understand that God was working heavily on my heart. I thought it was just my imagination, but couldn't get away from this awareness. So, this new 'boyfriend' calls and sets up a date. I said 'yes'. But before we went out on this date, he wanted to take me somewhere else. He wouldn't tell me where he wanted to take me, but he said I would like it. It had music. But what if it had to do with something religious? I didn't know if I could handle that back then.
  When we got there, it was a 'Young Life' meeting. Since it had religious overtones, I chose to clog my ears. Needless to say, this was just the beginning of many events that were to come.
  We dated for three and a half years, and then married. Sometime during that time period, I came to know Christ. My whole life was changed and at the age of eighteen, I was a married woman.
   Marriage wasn't easy though, and it didn't help that when we married I was eighteen and my husband was nineteen. But somehow, I knew that God was going to work through all the difficulties that lay before us in the coming years.
   When I was a brand new believer in Christ, there was a church in town where God seemed to be moving. There was nothing more that I would have desired, than to be there, but it was impossible for us to be involved there for a number of reasons. But, in God's mysterious ways, we ended up at the particular church. It was there that our marriage was touched and we were changed forever. The pastor over the young couples taught us about marriage principles. He became our friend, and when it was time for him to pastor his own flock, we joined him.
  Things were a lot different when we met at ages 15 and 16, but in each step of the way, we could see God's sovereignty in each one. We didn't live happily ever after, but we are happy. God's grace has helped/sustained us in very difficult times. God's blessings were evident in the good times. God has used our marriage to change both of us, so we could become more like the image of Christ, and we were able to draw closer to Him.
   I always wondered what life would look like when I was older. Now I can see that God isn't just sitting back watching how life is going to pan out for us, with the choices we make. He has been with us and will continue to be with us.
  We don't know how many more years we will have, but we will have however many God chooses to give us. And we will be grateful for each one.
  I am grateful for October 23rd, 1971, March 17, 1975, and today. I am a most blessed person.

Happy Anniversary to my husband on our
39th Anniversary

Smith Wigglesworth - 1859-1949

I have heard amazing things about this man, so I did a little search on him. I remember reading the story about his wife Polly, who died, and Smith was exceedingly sad. He prayed for her to return to life, and she did. When she came alive again, she let Smith know that she did not want to be here any longer, so Smith Wigglesworth lay her to rest. Smith Wigglesworth - short bio [img align=left]http://www.sermonindex.net/images/wigglesworth1.jpg[/img] [b]Smith Wigglesworth - short bio[/b] Smith Wigglesworth was a remarkably unimpressive man by the worlds standards. He was born to a lowly family in Menston England in 1859, unable to read until his twenties and a plumber by trade, yet when he gave his life to the Lord Jesus at the tender age of eight, no one could possibly have imagined what an impact he would have on the world. Called the 'Apostle of Faith', Smith was married in 1882 to Mary Jane Featherstone, affectionately called Polly. She was the love of his life and when she died in 1913, Smith was devastated. This was one of the most trying moments in his life. He prayed for to come back to life and she did, yet she explained that it was the Lords will for her to go. He agreed and she lay down once again and went to be with the Lord. Smith's ministry was characterised by his unwavering faith in God. He was able to believe for the impossible, and yet his one main concern was that God should always get the glory and not himself. His humility was a genuine concern for not stealing that which belonged to his heavenly father. Among the many stories that are recounted about his life, including people being raised from the dead, deaf ears being opened and captives being set free, there is one story that has captivated the heart and mind of many a Christian. This story is recounted below. Surely one of the most remarkable cases of a miracle was when Smith was staying at the home of a curate of the Church of England. The man with whom he was staying had no legs. Smith suddenly said to the man, " Go and buy a new pair of shoes in the morning." a most astounding thing to say to someone with no legs. No doubt thinking Smith was totally insane the curate retired to bed, and then the Lord spoke to him saying " Do as my servant hath said." The curate rose early the next morning and was waiting at the shoe store when the manage arrived to open up. Upon entering the store he was approached by the assistant who asked if he could help him. The curate replied he would like a pair of shoes. The assistant realising the condition of the man hesitated, before replying that they could not help him, obviously referring to his condition.. The curate seeing his dilemma said: " I would like a pair of black shoes, size eight please." The assistant returned with the shoes and as he put his one stump into the shoe a foot and leg instantly formed. The same thing happened with his other leg. Smith was not surprised and his comment was that with God there is no difference between healing a broken limb and forming a new limb. After many years of faithful service, and a ministry that saw the sick healed, the dead raised and the captives set free, Smith himself passed on in 1949 . Appropriately he died in a church. ------------------- Taken from: [url=http://www.christiannet.co.za/revival/smithw.htm]http://www.christiannet.co.za/revival/smithw.htm[/url] http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=983&forum=34&0 _________________ SermonIndex.net Moderator - brother Greg “The Lord Jesus calls people who realize they cannot function at all apart from His grace and empowerment. God chooses to use those individuals who know Him intimately! This is the primary qualification for service in the kingdom of God.” - Underground Church worker in China

Divine Appointments?

  Recently, a friend of ours was at a restaurant and had an impression to talk to a lady who worked there, and to tell her that God was going to save her boyfriend. I'll admit, this would take a lot of faith to just step out and say that to someone who you don't know anything about! The lady had tears in her eyes and apparently she had a boyfriend who wasn't a Christian yet. I'm sure she was praying for him too. Later on that evening, our friend was out in the parking lot. There was a guy coming out of his car and our friend had an impression to ask him a question. He said, 'Do you want to become a Christian?' to which the young man replied, 'yes, I do.' He had apparently been thinking about this and his answer took our friend by surprise. So, they talked for a while and the guy came to Christ. A little while later, the guy went toward the restaurant and the lady who our friend originally talked to came out. The lady and the young man embraced. So, the young man must have been the boyfriend of the lady who worked at the restaurant who was going to be saved! This is a true story and I heard it with my own ears!