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{HeartTouchers.com} *He Still Speaks to Us*
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Michael's updated book Heart Touchers "Life-Changing Stories of Faith, Love, and Laughter," is finally here! ($13.95)
Visit the link below to preview the book! Personalized autographed copies are available at no extra charge and we pay the shipping for you! An E-book version is also available for just $6.95!
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A Christmas Angel
By Charlotte Richard
It was the usual Christmas rush of people coming and going, with large parcels tucked under their arms. I stood at the living room window and watched them scurry home to their loved ones, as the snow fell softly to the ground.
I turned to my husband who was in the kitchen unpacking the grocery bags. "This is going to be the best Christmas ever," I said, smiling down at our infant son. "It's going to be his very first Christmas!"
Jerry smiled at me, "I can't wait either."
Matthew cooed happily, playing on the living room rug with his teething toys. "Just wait until tomorrow," Jerry poked his head out from around the fridge. "Your auntie Carol is flying out for an entire week. I just know she's going to spoil you rotten."
Matthew perked up at the sound of her name, flailing his toys excitedly on the carpet. I watched our healthy, happy son, surrounded by so much. He was such a fortunate child. I went to the window once again and stared blankly at the snow banks. Christmas was in two more days, yet something didn't feel right.
I suddenly felt an ache in my chest, one I couldn't explain. It was a premonition. I turned and looked over at Jerry, who was now standing in the middle of the kitchen with the same odd expression on his face. He joined me at the living room window, his face pale and worried. The we both turned to one another and muttered at the same time, "We need to pack a Christmas hamper for Kathy and Robert."
Jerry looked into my eyes in surprise. We both started to laugh and praise God. It must be a sign! Our closest and dearest friends must be in dire need. Then I hesitated in wonder.
"Jerry," I said aloud. "Why would they need our help? After all, Robert has a good paying job and is employed full time. This feeling we have must be a mistake."
"Don't you think it's a coincidence that we both felt this at the same time?" Jerry questioned. "Maybe its God's will. I still think we should pack a hamper just in case. And if we're wrong, at least it was a good gesture."
I couldn't help but think of Robert's wife and three young kids. What if they were in need of help and we didn't do anything? I nodded in agreement. "You're right. We'll do it."
Jerry went right to work packing boxes of groceries from our kitchen cupboards, while I quickly rushed out and bought a turkey and all the fixings for their dinner. After buying gifts for the kids and purchasing a one-hundred dollar gift certificate, I hurried home to wrap the hamper in ribbons and bows.
Jerry and I were excited. We couldn't wait to deliver the packages. We bundled Matthew in a snowsuit and headed out the door. The air was crisp and cold as we stepped out into the night. We drove three blocks and turned the corner leading to their driveway. All the lights were on in the house. I unfastened Matthew from the car seat, while Jerry lugged boxes to their front door.
As I passed the dining room window, I couldn't help but notice Kathy and Robert leaning over the table with their heads down in prayer. I hesitated momentarily, before knocking. I could hear the patter of little feet running across the room. Kathy opened the door breathless, with her 7-year old daughter hanging on her skirt. Kathy took one look at us and things we had brought with us and started to cry. She motioned for her husband to come to the door. Robert's mouth dropped open, as tears came to his eyes.
"You're our guardian angels," he whispered. "We were just praying for some miracle to help us this Christmas, and here you are."
All the children gathered around and welcomed us into their home. Tessa the oldest girl grabbed my hand tightly. "Thank you," she smiled. "You see, my dad lost his job two weeks ago and we didn't think we were going to have a Christmas, until now. I guess God really does answer our prayers."
I hugged her tight, my heart overjoyed. I realized at that moment that God does still speak to us in today's day and age. We just need to listen.
Charlotte Richard
jerichar69@hotmail.com
Write Charlotte and let her know your thoughts on her story!
Charlotte Richard lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, with her husband Jerry and two sons. She enjoys writing inspirational stories and children's books. Her recent published works appeared in: The Writer's Hood, Creative Poetry, Soon Magazine, Take The. Net, Dream Passage and Sweet Sixteen.
Charlotte is presently working on a series of picture books for publication through Bab Books in 2005, and is completing a teen novel.
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Thought For The Day:
"Anyone who has never made a mistake, has never tried anything new."
Verse for the Day:
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal." --Philippians 3:13,14
Kid's Thought For The Day:
"If you want to make a friend at the beach, start building a really big sandcastle."
Parent's Thought For The Day
"If you can't open a child proof bottle, use pliers or ask your child." --Bruce Lansky
Coach's Thought For The Day
"When an archer misses the mark he turns and looks for the fault within himself. Failure to hit the bull's eye is never the fault of the target. To improve your aim, improve yourself." --Gilbert Arland
Writer's Thought For The Day:
"Bad grammar is the leading cause of slow, painful death in North America."
--Dave Barry
Deep Thought For The Day:
"The most irritating thing in the world is when a left-handed person puts the bread tie back on the loaf."
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From the Email Box:
Dear John ,
Thank-you so much for your story "The Sparrow at Starbucks" in HeartTouchers. The Christmas Season usually brings with it melancholy thoughts eventhough I do love the season and what the real reason is that we celebrate Christmas. Your story brought back to mind an incident that happened almost 9 years ago.
Our son Eric at the age of 17 went into his first episode of heart failure. After a couple of very long weeks in Children's Hospital in Boston we were able to return to our home in New Hampshire .Eric was feeling better but I was still reluctant to leave him at home. I work full time as an LPN in a local nursing home on the day shift. I worked only on days when my husband would be home to be with him. That meant I had to work every Sunday. I am the daughter of a Baptist minister and though I scoffed at "religion " and having to go to church every Sunday when I was younger, as I grew older my faith became more and more important to me. I also was raised with hymns and love the traditional hymns and the more contemporary praise songs that we sing today. Anyway, I had come to need to attend church as we were facing ever increasing challenges in our lives. I received a great deal of comfort and guidance from my Christian friends and I loved the music. So week after week I was missing church because I had to work. One Sunday when I was particularly feeling down, while passing out my medications at work, a church youth group came through the halls of our nursing home. They were teens and they were singing songs like "Shine,Jesus,Shine","As the Deer ", Lord, I Lift Your Name on High". Right away I felt that I was not alone and I felt the presence of my Lord. You see these were all songs that we sung as a family attending Family Camp at Ocean Park Maine -a place where Eric worked as an S.I.T.I had camp tapes at home with these songs on it and received much comfort listening to these tapes when I was the most distressed and terrified of what was happening to my son.
I have worked for that nursing home for the past 17 years and never had a group like that come through there before or has since that day. I know without a doubt that God was speaking to me that day and Thank-you for helping me to remember that experience.
God bless and Merry Christmas,
Linda Haskins
bhaskins@metrocast.net
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Have you been to the HeartTouchers.com website lately? If you like what you see and would like to have your own professional looking website, visit the link below. Bizstudio has been a wonderful service for HeartTouchers.com and with 520,000 visitors and over 1,010,000 page views in the past three years, the website has been a tremendous tool in helping us to "Touch Lives, One Email at a Time." Although I had no prior experience building a website, I was able to create and build the HeartTouchers.com site easily utilizing Bizstudio's online editor. It includes an Online Site Editor, Unlimited Updates, Unlimited Pages, Professional Themes, Pre-Programmed Features, E-mail Accounts, and free Search Engine Submission. If I could do it with no prior experience you can too! Check it out at this link:
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Video Imagery --Michael's Video Production Business
Dear Michael,
I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for the beautiful video you made for me! It was so special to see both of my parents in tears as they watched their children grow up in pictures before their eyes! I loved the way you made Estania's part set aside from the rest--that was the part that really got them! The music was beautiful. My mom kept blubbering, "What song is that?" I don't know how you did such a beautiful job with the video in such a short time. I really appreciate your doing it so quickly. You have a wonderful gift, and I thank God that you are using it to create such sentimental memories. I hope that I can find my niche like that in an area that I love. Your video gave us one of our most lasting Christmas memories! I hope yours was filled with moments to be treasured forever!
Love,
Trisha
Silverhill, AL
Let me make you a video from your photos!
Check out my video production business
by visiting: http://www.hearttouchers.com/video_imagery
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Do you feel as if life has no meaning for you?
http://www.greatcom.org/english/four.htm
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Reading Books, Changing Lives!
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You can now order a number of different autographed best-selling inspirational books for the same price you would get them in the store, the shipping to you is paid for, and you are helping change the lives of teenagers and those they come in contact with!
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A number of people have written to us asking what an EBook is, since our book is being offered in both print and EBook versions. An EBook is a book that can be downloaded and read right on your computer. The advantage of ordering the EBook is that is costs less, $6.95 (No other charges), as compared to $13.95 for the print book. Plus your EBook will arrive the same day you order it and you can begin reading the stories right away!
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