I don't know about you but I tend to find pennies to be annoying. I was looking at one the other day, which is something I don't typically take time to do. I looked at the front side, In God we Trust, and I thought to myself, I need to give this coin another chance. It actually may have a good purpose for my life.
How often do we walk by a penny on the pavement and perhaps not pick it up because its value is minimal? How often do we receive pennies in change and think that they are not worth keeping so we just drop them in some donation jar? So we typically pass by pennies. What if we gave the penny a second chance?
What if we were to instead pick up the penny and give it a second chance as we pause to be reminded...in God we trust. What if we did this with each penny we encounter daily and understand that second chance reminder to us is that no matter what we are worrying about, read that message...In God we Trust. No matter what we are afraid of...the words are there to remind us...In God we Trust...In God I trust...
I am working to give the penny a second chance. It may not have great monetary value but it holds a message which I have the opportunity to hear multiple times each day if I just give the penny a second chance.
Rev. Patti Napier
Archived Posts
The Rest of the Story
I mentioned Russell Conwell in Sunday’s message. He was a famous preacher, educator, and lecturer. His sermon/lecture “Acres of Diamonds” was turned into a book and sold rather well. I used Conwell’s illustrations to talk about sharing the good news of Jesus with those closest to us first—family, friends, coworkers, and church family. The wider world is our ultimate aim, but until you invest in the people God has already put in your life, you are unlikely to have much success.
No One Said It Would be Easy
To love Jesus first is to learn to love all the other people in our lives with greater intensity and less selfishness
What’s Saved Is Often Lost
Here’s the benediction we didn’t have time for yesterday (Sunday, November 3). It’s one of my favorite quotations (portions of a newspaper column). I hope you find it as inspiring as I have
Leftovers Continued…
It’s not just the fact that God is un-impressed by our leftovers, it actually goes deeper than that. In a sense, Jesus is passionately and purposely opposed to anything leftover. To be a follower of Jesus Christ is to work diligently to make sure that in the end nothing at all is left over.
Less Stuff and Fewer Wants
Here’s a point I left off Sunday’s sermon due to time and length. In dealing with an Entitled mindset it is very helpful if you can Reduce Materialism and Consumerism.
Entitlement Can Hit You in Ways You Might Never Suspect
The people of God (Israel) were chosen by God to fulfill a unique calling—to be a light to all the other nations of the nations of the world. God chose them because of their willingness to be used by Him for His purposes. But after a while the Israelites began to think that they were chosen--not because with God they could fulfill a special purpose--but because they were a special people, uniquely favored and loved for who they were.
What Kind of Love Do You Have For God?
In Sunday’s message about Job, I talked about how important relationship is when it comes to getting answers to our questions about God. The question that Job is really being tested on is this: can he love God for who God is—or does he only love God for what God can do for him?