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Date: Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:28:54 +0000
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- -- Thursday, 8/12/10 -- ODD MAN OUT -- Judges 11:1-3 [1 Update]
http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/26e61f0f7be01ae0
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Topic: -- Thursday, 8/12/10 -- ODD MAN OUT -- Judges 11:1-3
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/26e61f0f7be01ae0
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From: "J.R. & Bonnie Ricks" <j-r-and-bonnie@dogwoodministries.org>
Date: Aug 11 05:33PM -0500
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/msg/ac331baf00f9473c
Take a Minute is a daily devotional ministry of
Dogwood Ministries, Inc.
If you need prayer. contact our partners in ministry.
SJ Ministries - Ministry of Prayer <http://sjministries.co.uk/>
Or simply send your request to SJMinistries@aol.com
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for Dogwood Ministries addresses
ODD MAN OUT -- Judges 11:1-3 NIV
Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his
mother was a prostitute. Gilead's wife also bore him sons, and when they
were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. "You are not going to get any
inheritance in our family," they said, "because you are the son of another
woman." So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob,
where a group of adventurers gathered around him and followed him.
Jephthah wasn't like his brothers. His mother was not the same as theirs.
His mother was a prostitute. so his brothers drove him away. Due to
circumstances beyond his control, he was made an outcast. Never mind that
he was a better warrior than they were. Never mind that he was a greater
leader than any of them could ever be. He was different. He didn't fit in.
He had to be driven out.
How many people do you know today that are kept out of the "in" crowd
because they're different? Take a look at your church. How many people do
you have in your congregation that don't fit what most of us would consider
the "norm?" How many are poor - really poverty-stricken? How many are of
different races? How many are physically or mentally impaired? How many
dress differently? How many are ugly - really ugly?
Many times, prejudice is caused by our own fears. It's so much easier to
exclude someone than to face our own discomfort with being near them. I
still remember the first time I met a guy I'll call Mike. Mike is severely
deformed. His mother was given the drug thalidomide when she was pregnant
to help her with morning sickness. As a result, Mike's body from the neck
down bears little resemblance to a human body. To be honest, the first time
I met him, I was extremely uncomfortable. I wanted to get up and run out of
the room and never come back. But I didn't. And I praise God I didn't.
Because in that twisted, ugly body is the spirit of one of the sweetest
Christians I've ever known. There is also a brilliant mind and an
indomitable spirit... a spirit that drives him to keep seeking to make
things better for those who, like himself, must live in a world that rejects
them because they are different. With a twinkle in his eye, he teases
people like you and me, calling us "temporarily able-bodied." And he longs
for a church where he can enter both the choir loft and the baptistery in
his wheel chair without assistance.
Take a look around you today. How many people are you excluding from your
life because they are different? How many blessings are you missing because
you don't know them? How many potential leaders is your church passing up
because of prejudice? Think about it.
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Personal correspondence to Bonnie Ricks: bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Personal correspondence to J.R. Ricks: j-r@dogwoodministries.org
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