Who'll  Take  the  Son?

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael.  They  would often sit and admire them.  When the Viet Nam conflict broke out, the son went to war.  He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier.  The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.

About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.  He said,"Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life.  He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly.  He often talked about you, and your love for art.

The young man held out his package.  "I know this isn't much.  I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."  The father opened the package.  It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man.  He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting.  The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears.  He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. 

"Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me.  It's a gift." The father hung the portrait over his mantle.  Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later.  There was to be a great auction of his paintings.  Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.  On the platform sat the painting of the son.  The auctioneer pounded his gavel.

"We will start the bidding with this picture of the son.  Who will bid for this picture?"  There was silence.  Then a voice in the back of the room shouted "We want to see the famous paintings, skip this one."  But the auctioneer persisted.  "Will someone bid for this painting?  Who will start the bidding?  $100, $200?"  Another voice shouted angrily.   "We didn't come to see this painting.. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandts.  Get on with the real bids!"  But still the auctioneer continued.  "The son!  The son!  Who'll take the son?"

Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room.  It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son.  "I'll give $10 for the painting."  Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.  "We have $10, who will bid $20?" "Give it to him for $10.  Let's see the masters."  "$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"  The crowd was becoming angry.  They didn't want the picture of the son.  They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer pounded the gavel.  "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!"

A man sitting on the second row shouted.  "Now let's get on with the collection!"  The auctioneer laid down his gavel.  "I'm sorry, the auction is over."  "What about the paintings?"  "I am sorry.   When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will.  I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time.

Only the painting of the son would be auctioned.   Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.  The man who took the son gets every thing!"

God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross.  Much like the auctioneer, His message today is, "The son, the son, who'll take the son?"

Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

--author unknown

Adam was hanging around the Garden of Eden feeling very lonely. So, God asked him, "What's wrong with you?" Adam said he didn't have anyone to talk to. God said that He was going to make Adam a companion and that it would be a woman He said, "This pretty lady will gather food for you, she will cook for you, and when you discover clothing, she will wash it for you. She will always agree with every decision you make and she will not nag you, and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you've had a disagreement. She will praise you! She will bear your children. and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them. "She will NEVER have a headache and will freely give you love and passion whenever you need it." Adam ask! ed God,
"What will a woman like this cost?" God replied, "An arm and a leg." Then Adam asked, "What can I get for a rib?"

Of course the rest is history......................

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~ DADDY'S EMPTY CHAIR ~

"A man's daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father. When the minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows. An empty chair sat beside his bed. The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit. "I guess you were expecting me, he said. 'No, who are you?" said the father. The minister told him his name and then remarked, "I saw the empty chair and I figured you knew I was going to show up," "Oh yeah, the chair,"
said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?" Puzzled, the minister shut the door.
"I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. "But all of my life I have never known how to pray At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it went right over my head."
I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day four years ago, my best friend said to me, "Johnny, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest." "Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair.
It's not spooky because he promised, 'I will be with you always'. "Then just speak to him in the same way
you're doing with me right now." "So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day I'm careful though If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm." The minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old man to continue on the journey Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil,
and returned to the church. Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her daddy had died that afternoon. Did he die in peace?" he asked. Yes, when I left the house about two o'clock,
he called me over to his bedside, told me he loved me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange about his death. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make of that?" The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, "I wish we could all go like that."

I asked God for water, *He gave me an ocean.

I asked God for a flower, *He gave me a garden.
I asked God for a friend, *He gave me all of YOU.