TO KNOW GOD IS ULTIMATE WISDOM

! A basketball in my hands is worth about $19.
A basketball in Michael Jordan's hands is worth about $33 million.
It depends whose hands it's in.
A baseball in my hands is worth about $6. 
A baseball in Roger Clemens' hands is worth $475 million.
It depends on whose hands it's in.

A tennis racket is useless in my hands.
A tennis racket in Andre Agassi's hands is worth millions.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A rod in my hands will keep away an angry dog.
A rod in Moses' hands will part the mighty sea.
It depends whose hands it's in.

A slingshot in my hands is a kid's toy.
A slingshot in David's hand is a mighty weapon.
It depends whose hands it's in.
Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches.
Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in Jesus' hands will feed thousands.
It depends whose hands it's in.

Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse.
Nails in Jesus Christ's hands will
Produce salvation for the entire world.
It depends whose hands it's in.
As you see now, it depends whose hands it's in.
So put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God's hands because...
It depends whose hands it's in.

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/

I Am A 'Kept' Woman.

You see, there were a few times when I thought I would lose my mind, but GOD kept me sane. (Isa. 26:3)
There were times when I thought I could go no longer, but the LORD kept me moving. (Gen 28:15)At times, I've wanted to lash out at those whom I felt had done me wrong, but the LORD kept my mouth shut. (Psa. 13)
Sometimes, I think the money just isn't enough, but GOD has helped me to keep the lights on, the water on, the car paid, the house paid, etc.., (Matt. 6:25 -34)When I thought I would fall, HE kept me up. When I thought I was weak, HE kept me strong! (I Pet. 5:7, Matt. 11:28-30)I could go on and on and on, but I'm sure you hear me! I'm blessed to be 'kept.'
Are you...or do you know a 'kept' woman?
If so pass it on to her to let her know she is 'Kept.'

Fr. Tomas Del Valle-Reyes

Discovering 21 Century /Descubriendo el siglo 21

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

212.244-4778

THE TABLECLOTH

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. 
When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work.

They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.
They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc., and on December 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. 
On December 19, a terrible tempest -- a driving rainstorm -- hit the area and lasted for two days.
On December 21, the pastor went over to the church. 
His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. 
The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. 
On the way, he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity, so he stopped in. 
One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. 
It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.
By this time, it had started to snow.
An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. 
She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. 
The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked, and it covered up the entire problem area. 
Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet.
"Pastor," she asked. "Where did you get that tablecloth?" 
The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials EBG were crocheted into it there. 
They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria.  
The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the tablecloth. 
The woman explained that before the war, she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came in, she was forced to leave.
Her husband was going to follow her the next week. 
She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again. The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth, but she made the pastor keep it for the church.
The pastor insisted on driving her home. That was the least he could do. 
She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.
What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. 
The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return.  
One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving. 
The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall, because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war. 
And how could there be two tablecloths so much alike?  
He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.  
The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. 
They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. 
He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door, and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.
- AUTHOR UNKNOWN -

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/

TO REMEMBER ME

The day will come when my body will lie upon a white sheet neatly tucked under four corners of a mattress located in a hospital busily occupied with the living and the dying.
At a certain moment, a doctor will determine that my brain has ceased to function and that, for all intents and purposes, my life has stopped.
When that happens, do not attempt to instill artificial life into my body by the use of a machine.
And don't call this my deathbed.  
Let it be called the Bed of Life, and let my body be taken from it to help others lead fuller lives.
Give my sight to the man who has never seen a sunrise, a baby's face or love in the eyes of a woman.
Give my heart to a person whose own heart has caused nothing but endless days of pain. 
Give my blood to the teenager who was pulled from the wreckage of his car, so that he might live to see his grandchildren play.
Give my kidneys to one who depends on a machine to exist.
Take my bones, every muscle, every fiber and nerve in my body, and find a way to make a crippled child walk.  
Explore every corner of my brain. 
Take my cells, if necessary, and let them grow so that, someday, a speechless boy will shout at the crack of a bat, and a deaf girl will hear the sound of rain against her window.
Burn what is left of me and scatter the ashes to the winds to help the flowers grow.
If you must bury something, let it be my faults, my weaknesses and all prejudice against my fellow man.
If, by chance, you wish to remember me, do it with a kind deed or word to someone who needs you. If you do all I have asked, I will live forever.

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/

Think

Think of all the people
That never got the chance
To say their last good-bye 
Without a backward glance.
Think of all the people That said, "Have a good day" 
As they walked out of the door On their very last day.
Think of all the children
That said, "Mom don't be late.
I'll see you when you get home." 
And now they sit and wait.
Think of all the lovers Running late and short on time
To give that last kiss and hug, If they'd only had a sign.
Think of all the friends That had a silly fight
Never got to say "I'm sorry," 
Now will never see the light.
I mourn for all the people
That died without a clue.
I hurt for all the living That sadly never knew.
It'd be their last great hug.
It'd be their last sweet kiss. 
It'd be their last big smile,
From the ones they'll always miss.
Think of the ones around you,
The ones you loved so strong.
Take time to say, "I'm sorry" To anyone you've wronged.
Don't waste a precious moment
Assuming that they know.
For when these people pass It's too late to tell them so.
Yesterday is already gone
Tomorrow may never be.
Now is all we have To make our loved ones see.
Think.....
~ Author Unknown

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/

Is God Alarmed??

God isn't alarmed
when we hit rock bottom. ?
He made the rock.

There are times in our lives
when we feel there is no way
up or out.? 
Poverty. Confusion.
Loneliness. Desperation.
They take us to the place
called "rock bottom."

In these times
you may feel weak
and vulnerable,
and it is easy to lose faith
in your ability to go on.
It is exactly in these times
that you must turn
to the infinite power
within yourself.
You must know that
the answer is exactly
where you are.
The strength you need,
the answer you want,
the solution that
will turn the situation around
is you.

If you can put aside
the anger,
fear, weakness,
and desperation
for just a minute
you will remember
the "other times"
you were at the bottom
and how in a moment,
miraculously, you were lifted up.

There is no spot
where God is not.

That's a good thing to remember
when you hit rock bottom!

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/

God Jesus and Me

Sally jumped up as soon as she saw the Surgeon come out of the operating room. She said:
"How is my little boy? 
Is he going to be O.K.? 
When can I see him?"
 The Surgeon said, "I'm sorry, we did all we could."
Sally said, "Why do little children get cancer? 
Doesn't GOD care any more? 
GOD, where were you when my son needed you?"
The Surgeon said, "One of the nurses will be out in a few minutes to let you spend time with your son's remains before it's transported to the university."
Sally asked that the nurse stay with her while she said good-bye to her son.
Sally ran her fingers through his thick red curly hair. 
The nurse said, "Would you like a lock of his hair?" Sally nodded yes. 
The nurse cut a lock of his hair and put it in a plastic bag and handed it to Sally. 
Sally said, "It was Jimmy's idea to give his body to the university for study. 
He said it might help somebody else," and that is what he wanted.
I said no at first, but Jimmy said, "Mom I won't be using it after I die. Maybe it will help some other little boy to be able to spend one more day with his mother." Sally said, "My Jimmy had a heart of gold, always thinking of someone else and always wanting to help others if he could."
Sally walked out of the Children's Hospital for the last time now after spending most of the last 6 months there. She sat the bag with Jimmy's things in it on the seat beside her in the car. The drive home was hard and it was even harder to go into an empty house.
She took the bag to Jimmy's room and started placing the model cars and things back in his room exactly where he always kept them. She laid down across his bed and cried herself to sleep holding his pillow.
Sally woke up about midnight, and laying beside her on the bed was a letter folded up. She opened the letter and it said:
Dear Mom,
I know your going to miss me, but don't think that I will ever forget you or stop loving you because I'm not around to say I LOVE YOU. I'll think of you every day mom, and I'll love you even more each day. 
Some day we will see each other again.
If you want to adopt a little boy so you won't be so lonely, he can have my room and my old stuff to play with. 
If you decide to get a girl instead, she probably wouldn't like the same things as us boys do, so you will have to buy her dolls and stuff girls like.
Don't be sad when you think about me. 
This is really a great place. Grandma and Grandpa met me as soon as I got here and showed me around some, but it will take a long time to see everything here. 
The angels are so friendly and I love to watch them fly.
Jesus doesn't look like any of the pictures I saw of Him, but I knew it was Him as soon as I saw Him. He took me to see GOD! And guess what mom? I got to sit on GOD'S knee and talk to Him like I was somebody important. 
I told GOD that I wanted to write you a letter and tell you good-bye and everything, but I knew that wasn't allowed.
God handed me some paper and His own personal pen to write you this letter with. I think Gabriel is the name of the angel that is going to drop this letter off to you.
God said for me to give you the answer to one of the questions you asked Him about -- where was He when I needed him? God said, "The same place He was when Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children. "
Oh, by the way Mom, nobody else can see what is written on this paper but you. To everyone else, it looks like a blank piece of paper.
I have to give God His pen back now. He has some more names to write in the Book Of Life. Tonight I get to sit at the table with Jesus for Supper. I'm sure the food will be great.
I almost forgot to let you know -- Now I don't hurt anymore and the cancer is all gone. I'm glad because I couldn't stand that pain anymore. And God couldn't stand to see me suffer the pain either, so He sent The Angel of Mercy to get me. The Angel said I was Special Delivery!
Signed with love from:
God, Jesus and Me-
AUTHOR UNKNOWN -

Descubriendo el Siglo 21

Discovering 21century

Fr Tomás Del Valle-Reyes

P. O. BOX 1170

New York, NY 10018

(212) 244 4778

www.descubriendoelsiglo21.com/