Suddenly, Erik squealed with glee and said, “Hi.” He pounded his fat baby hands on the high chair tray. His eyes were crinkled in laughter and his mouth was bared in a toothless grin, as he wriggled and giggled with merriment.

I looked around and saw the source of his merriment. It was a man whose pants were baggy with a zipper at half-mast and his toes poked out of would-be shoes. His shirt was dirty and his hair was uncombed and unwashed. His whiskers were too short to be called a beard and his nose was so varicose it looked like a road map. We were too far from him to smell, but I was sure he smelled. His hands waved and flapped on loose wrists.

“Hi there, baby; Hi there, big boy. I see ya, buster,” the man said to Erik.

My husband and I exchanged looks as if to say, “What do we do?”

Erik continued to laugh and answer, “Hi.” Everyone in the restaurant noticed and looked at us and then at the man. The old geezer was creating a nuisance with my beautiful baby.

Our meal came and the man began shouting from across the room, “Do ya patty cake? Do you know peek-a-boo? Hey, look, he knows peek-a-boo.”

Nobody thought the old man was cute. He was obviously drunk. My husband and I were embarrassed.

We ate in silence; all except for Erik, who was running through his repertoire for the admiring skid row bum, who in turn, reciprocated with his cute comments. We finally got through the meal and headed for the door.

My husband went to pay the check and told me to meet him in the parking lot. The old man sat poised between me and the door.

“Lord, just let me out of here before he speaks to me or Erik,” I prayed.

As I drew closer to the man, I turned my back trying to sidestep him and avoid any air he might be breathing. As I did, Erik leaned over my arm, reaching with both arms in a baby’s “pick-me-up” position. Before I could stop him, Erik had propelled himself from my arms to the man’s.

Suddenly a very old smelly man and a very young baby consummated their love and kinship. Erik in an act of total trust, love, and submission laid his tiny head upon the man’s ragged shoulder. The man’s eyes closed, and I saw tears hover beneath his lashes. His aged hands full of grime, pain, and hard labor, cradled my baby’s bottom and stroked his back.

No two beings have ever loved so deeply for so short a time. I stood awestruck. The old man rocked and cradled Erik in his arms and his eyes opened and set squarely on mine.

He said in a firm commanding voice, “You take care of this baby.”

Somehow I managed, “I will,” from a throat that contained a stone.

He pried Erik from his chest, lovingly and longingly, as though he were in pain.

I received my baby, and the man said, “God bless you, ma’am, you’ve given me a great gift.”

I said nothing more than a muttered thanks.

With Erik in my arms, I ran for the car. My husband was wondering why I was crying and holding Erik so tightly, and why I was saying, “My God, my God, forgive me.”

I had just witnessed Christ’s love shown through the innocence of a tiny child who saw no sin, who made no judgment; a child who saw a soul, and a mother who saw a suit of clothes. I was a Christian who was blind, holding a child who was not.

I felt it was God asking, “Are you willing to share your son for a moment?” when He shared His for all eternity.

The ragged old man, unwittingly, had reminded me, “To enter the Kingdom of God, we must become as little children.”

–author unknown

Location: Uganda
Comments: Listening in from a mud hut in the middle of nowhere in Northern Uganda, Africa.  Thank you for your faithfulness. We are missionaries from the USA.

Location: Nigeria
Comments: I found your website on one of those days when I was so stressed out at work and since then, it has been a good addiction. I even told my friends about it and they all love this site. Thanks guys! Keep up the good work, God bless you real good!

Location: France
Comments: Thank you for your ministry. I like to listen to music that I can worship and soak in the presence of the LORD while just meditating of His Goodness. There are a lot of music stations for contemporary music (it’s nice and for entertainment), but not much out there for worship. I want to listen to worship songs that are about Jesus and who He is. Thank you for playing worship music. I like the variety too. Blessings to you.

Location: United States
Comments: Really enjoy the Instrumental Music stream. Great job getting it up and on-line. I work at home and have this stream playing anytime I am at my PC. It is less distracting than the other streams but still inspiring.

Location: Unknown
I found Allworship by doing a search online for worship music stations. It took me a few hours to actually find one that was free and then once I heard how awesome the music was I decided to send in a donation.

You may not know me, but I know everything about you.

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. For you were made in My image. I knew you even before you were conceived. I chose you when I planned creation. And I knit you together in your mother’s womb.

You are not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. I determined when you would be born and where you would live.

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love.  And it is my desire to lavish my love on you.  For every good gift that you receive comes from my hand.  I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. Because I am the perfect Father, and I am the provider who meets all your needs, My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. My thoughts toward you are as countless as the sands on the seashore, and I rejoice over you with singing.

I will never stop doing good to you.  For you are my treasured possession.  Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. For it is I who gave you those desires. I am able to do more for you than you could possible imagine. For I am your greatest encourager. I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. One day I will wipe every tear from your eyes, because I love you even as I love my Son, Jesus. For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. He is the exact representation of my being. He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you, and to tell you that I am not counting your sins.

Jesus died so that we could be reconciled. His death was my ultimate expression of love for you.  I gave up everything that I loved to gain your love. If you receive the gift of my Son, you receive me, and nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen.

I have always been Father, and will always be Father. My question is will you be my Child? I am here if you ever want to talk.

Your Loving Father

It was a chilly evening. The pastor found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his pastor’s visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited.

The pastor made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the pastor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone. Then, he sat back in his chair, still silent.

The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember’s flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead.

Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting. The Pastor glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire.

Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it.

The pastor reached the door to leave. With a tear running down his cheek, the host said, “Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday.”

We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen.

Sometimes the best “sermons” are the ones left unspoken.

Spotting an exceptional cup, they asked, “May we see that? We’ve never seen a cup quite so beautiful.”

As the lady handed it to them, the tea cup spoke.

“You don’t understand,” said the tea cup, “I have not always been a tea cup. There was a time when I was just a lump of red clay. My master took me and rolled me pounded and patted me over and over and I yelled out, ‘Don’t do that. I don’t like it! Let me alone,’ but he only smiled, and gently said, ‘Not yet!’

“Then, I was placed on a spinning wheel and spun around and around. ‘Stop it! I’m getting so dizzy! I’m going to be sick!’, I screamed. But the master only nodded and said, quietly, ‘Not yet.’

“He spun me and poked and prodded and bent me out of shape to suit himself and then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I yelled and pounded at the door. ‘Help! Get me out of here!’ I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips as he shook his head from side to side, ‘Not yet.’

“When I thought I couldn’t bear it another minute, the door opened. He carefully took me out and put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. ‘Oh, that felt so good! Ah, this is much better,’ I thought. But, after I cooled he picked me up and he brushed and painted me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. ‘Oh, please; stop it!’ I cried. He only shook his head and said. ’Not yet!’

“Then suddenly he put me back in to the oven. Only it was not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I just knew I would suffocate. I begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried. I was convinced I would never make it. I was ready to give up.

“Just then the door opened and he took me out and again placed me on the shelf, where I cooled and waited, wondering, What’s he going to do to me next? An hour later he handed me a mirror and said ‘Look at yourself.’ And I did.

“I said, ‘That’s not me; that couldn’t be me. It’s beautiful. I’m beautiful!’

“Quietly he spoke: ‘I know it hurt to be rolled and pounded and patted, but had I just left you alone, you’d have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I know it hurt and it was hot in the oven, but if I hadn’t put you there, you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I painted you, but if I hadn’t done that, you never would have hardened. You would not have had any color in your life. If I hadn’t put you back in that second oven, you wouldn’t have survived for long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. Now you are what I had in mind when I first began with you.’”

God knows what He’s doing in each of us. He is the potter, and we are His clay. He will mold us and make us, and expose us to just enough that we may be made into a flawless piece of work to fulfill His good, pleasing and perfect will.

So when life seems hard, and you are being pounded and pushed almost beyond endurance; when your world seems to be spinning out of control; when you feel like you are in a fiery furnace of trials; when life seems to stink, try this…

Brew a cup of your favorite tea in your prettiest tea cup, sit down, and have a little talk with the Potter.

She could not have been any older than two, in her cute pink coat and beautiful blond hair underneath her white hat, walking hand in hand with what I supposed to be her grandfather.

She was enjoying her wonderful new world, the bugs at the curb, the birds chirping, the feel of the grass and I noticed that every moment, her grandfather was holding her hand. The grandfather, well pleased with anything that the little one was curious about, was content to watch over her carefully.  Looking to see if any car was on its way down the tree-lined street, checking to make sure no one was going to harm this little bundle of joy.

He talked with her, bent down to show her a bug crawling on the street in front of her and then watched her intently as she tried to play with the bug. When the bug adventure was over, the journey continued around the corner and down the next street.

The little girl, so free in her life, started to dance and skip as they made their way to a brighter street that had fewer trees but more sunshine. She was excited to go down the street, but distracted by possibly another bug, started to turn around and go back to where they had just come from. The grandfather, fully aware of every gesture, every move, every smile and every word she made, hung on to her hand securely, making sure she was well protected. Nothing was going to interrupt her walk this morning.

She hung tightly onto the grandfather’s strong hand trusting him to lead her on her little journey, to see more cute little bugs, or pretty flowers to smell, or just to spend time on her walk with her loving grandfather.

As I sat there watching the lives of two people I did not even know, God, in His picture words, very clearly spelled out my walk with Him. He showed me that no matter where I have been, God, in His infinite love, has held on to my hand, watching everything I do.

God does not hover over me to find everything wrong with me but He is always there to enjoy what I enjoy, never letting me out of His sight. Even when I have turned my own way to go back to where I came from He was still there, whispering in my ear the way to go and gently leading me to go with Him. At times, I am sure,  I thought I was going my own way but His hand was always in mine, guiding me.

God did not leave me in the middle of the street unprotected from the unknown but made sure that He watched every move I made, guiding me toward the right way of living.

Hand in hand with my Father.

by Bonnie Belden

The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master. The boy did well, so he could not understand why, after three months of training, the master had taught him only one move.

“Sensei,” the boy finally said, “Shouldn’t I be learning more moves?”

“This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you’ll ever need to know,” the sensei replied.

Not quite understanding, but believing in his teacher, the boy kept training. Several months later, the sensei took the boy to his first tournament.

Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches.

The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match.

Still amazed by his success, the boy was now in the finals. This time, his opponent was bigger, stronger, and more experienced. For a while, the boy appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the boy might get hurt, the referee called a time-out. He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened.

“No,” the sensei insisted, “Let him continue.”

Soon after the match resumed, his opponent made a critical mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly, the boy used his move to pin him. The boy had won the match and the tournament. He was the champion.

On the way home, the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the boy summoned the courage to ask what was really on his mind.

“Sensei, how did I win the tournament with only one move?”

“You won for two reasons,” the sensei answered. “First, you’ve almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. And second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm.”

The boy’s biggest weakness had become his biggest strength.

Sometimes we feel that we have certain weaknesses and we blame God, the circumstances and ourself for it but we never know that our weakness can become our strength one day.

Each of us is special and important, so know that in our weaknesses, God sometimes hides our greatest strengths.

Location: Bangladesh
Comments: We greet you in His precious name from Bangladesh. We all were groping in darkness, but our Lord Jesus Christ has been always with us to save, redeem, protect and lead from within. We appreciate you as you are of great cause of encouragement for all of us. Please continue by His wisdom and power. May God bless you richly for His glory.

Location: Unknown
Comments: Thanks for your great ministry. The music in my home keeps the atmosphere here wonderful. You might say, music every day keeps the devil away!

Location: England
Comments: I have recently gotten off all my anti-depressant medications. Satan knows that I am still a bit weak from the changes to my body. But your words of encouragement have built me up once again. I have printed it out to place on my bulletin board to remind me once again and several times as I reread it to keep my focus upward. I am lifted up. Thank you for sharing.

Location: Uganda
Comments: You People are doing a great job and may God bless you and provide you with all your needs and ministry needs.

Location: Maryland
Comments: I wanted to say thank you for all that you are doing. There are so many days while I am sitting at my desk and I start to meditate on all that the Lord has done for me. It is easier to stay focused on the Lord when there is worship music playing. Thank God for your work!

He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor, which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten.

Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated.  He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn’t know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn’t know how the stove worked!

Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then, he saw Dad standing at the door.

Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon’s eyes.

All he’d wanted to do was something good, but he’d made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking.

But, his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process!

That’s how God deals with us.

We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets sticky, or we insult a friend, or we can’t stand our job, or our health goes sour.

Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can’t think of anything else to do.

That’s when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him.

But just because we might mess up, we can’t stop trying to “make pancakes”, for God or for others. Sooner or later we’ll get it right, and then they’ll be glad we tried.

Never stop “making pancakes”.

–Author Unknown

But God did a strange thing. He directed Moses to take a route that led to the Red Sea, instead of the northern route around the Red Sea. God explained that He didn’t want them fighting the enemies they would have encountered on this route. But still, there was the issue of the Red Sea.

They finally arrived at the Red Sea, and the people were wondering where they would go from there. News hit the camp: Pharaoh had changed his mind. He was coming after them with his army. Panic set in.

God sometimes brings each of us to a “Red Sea” in our life. It may be a work problem that can’t be solved. It may be a marriage that seems to be failing. It may be a debilitating disease. Whatever your Red Sea, God tells us one thing: “Keep moving.” The Red Sea was before them, yet God was angered at Moses and told him to “Keep moving.”

“But Lord, the Red Sea is before me.”

“Keep moving.”

When we live by sight, we act on what we see. God sets this stage in dramatic fashion. God is into the dramatic. There is no way out without God here. That is just the way He wants it. No one will get glory except God.

A friend once admonished me when I was in the midst of an extremely difficult time in my life, “You must not withdraw from being proactive in your faith just because of this trial that you are in. God’s hand is on your life. There are too many who are depending on you to fulfill the purposes God has in your life. Keep moving! Keep investing yourself in others.”

I didn’t feel like it. I was in too much pain. But I did it anyway.

God met me at the point of my greatest need once I decided simply to be obedient. Getting past myself by investing myself in others helped heal the pain.

There is great healing when we look past our own problems and seek to invest ourselves in others for the sake of Christ. This is when our own Red Seas become parted. We begin to walk to freedom.

But we will never experience the miracle of the Red Sea in our lives if we don’t first “Keep moving.”

by Os Hillman