Calvin Synod Herald, 1972 (72. évfolyam, 8-12. szám)
1972-11-01 / 11. szám
8 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD HOW TO PRAY TEN SIMPLE RULES Pray where you are. God is present everywhere and ready to listen. Pray, when possible, in a quiet spot where you can be alone. It is well to fix your mind deliberately on God, apart from confusing distractions. Pray to God simply and naturally, as to a friend. Tell him what is on your mind. Get help from the prayers of others. Pray, remembering the good things done for you. Reckon upon your blessings from time to time, and give thanks for them. Pray for God’s forgiveness for the unworthy things you may have done. He is near to a humble and contrite heart. Pray for the things that you need, especially those that will make your life finer and more Christlike. Pray for others, remembering the situations they confront and the help they need. Pray for the world in its need, asking God to bring better things, and offering your help to Him. Pray, above everything else, that God’s will may be done in you and in the world. His purposes are deeper and wiser than anything we can imagine. Pray, and then start answering your prayer. —Author unknown WHY WORRY ? I wonder why folks worry. There are only two reasons for worry. Either you are successful or not successful. If you are successful there is nothing to worry about; if you are not successful there are only two things to worry about. Your health is either good or you are sick; if your health is good there is nothing to worry about; if you are sick there are only two things to worry about. You are either going to get well or you are going to die: if you are going to get well, there is nothing to worry about; if you are going to die there are only two things to worry about. You are either going to Heaven or you are not going to Heaven: and if you are going to Heaven there is nothing to worry about; if you are going to the other place you will be so busy shaking hands with old friends, you won’t have time to worry. So why worry? •—Author unknown DROUGHT, RAIN, TIDAL WAVE FLOOD, AND WAR Disaster. There would seem to be no single spot on earth which has been hit by more serious disasters in recent years than the vast subcontinent of India. The people there have been faced with droughts, torrential rains, tidal waves, floods, and war. Thanks to the modern miracle of mass communications, we have seen the results of these disasters in vivid and agonizing terms. And we have given generously, through our United Church Board for World Ministries, to help overcome the effects of these calamities. It is important, however, to realize that we are not the only ones who have cared or who have given. Christians and other people of good will around the world have rallied to provide emergency relief for India. And in India itself the fourteen-million Christians there have shared in rehabilitation efforts. Sometimes we think of Christianity as being something which western missionaries took to India. This is true, but it is only partly true. The church in India traditionally dates back to the days of the apostles. And the major Christian bodies there with which we cooperate, the United Church of South India, the United Church of Ceylon, and the newer United Church of North India are not only the inheritors of the nineteenth century mission movement but of the entire tradition of Christian love and service. It was natural therefore that the Indian government should look to the leaders of the church in India to take the lead in efforts to meet human suffering and overcome the effects of recent disasters. Great natural and man-made disasters may never end, but Christians everywhere will always be ready to help overcome their effects. (Ed. Clipsheet) GLEANINGS FROM NEWSLETTERS It’s a crazy world when a boy gets up at 4:00 a.m. each morning to deliver papers, and people say he is a “go-getter.” If the church asks him to come do some work for his Lord Jesus, many say, “That’s asking too much of a boy!” If a woman spends eight hours a day away from her home working for hours in her garden, she is called an “energetic wife.” If, however, she is willing to do the same for her Savior, many say, “Religion has gone to her head!” If one ties himself down to make payments of $30 each month for an item of personal enjoyment, he pays it willingly. But it the same person placed that much in his offering envelopes each month to help win some soul for eternity, many would say, “He’s crazy! ” This is a crazy world indeed where first things (time and talent for Jesus) come last, and last things (temporal items) come first. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:23) (Ed. Clipsheet) 92 eview Frank Kostyu: “How To Spark A Marriage When The Kids Leave Home.” (A Pilgrim Press Book from United Church Press, Philadelphia, $4.95.) In more than 20 years of pastoral counselling, the United Church of Christ minister found too many marriages falling apart just when they should be at their best. Statistics confirmed that the period 25 to 29 years after the wedding is one of the most dangerous, with a divorce rate as high as 36 per cent. Apparently couples who manage to get along under all the strains of bringing up children and launching them into the world can’t face each other across a table for two. Today, Mr. Kostyu says, the concepts of marriage and family are undergoing a revolution. UCC Office of Communication
