Beautiful
story....
makes you
understand
that things
happen for a
reason
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 the 21st, 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
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, she was
forced to
leave.
Her husband
was going to
follow her the
next week.
He was
captured, sent
to prison and
she 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 in all
the 35 years
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.
T rue story -
submitted by
Pastor Rob
Reid
who says
God does work
in mysterious
ways.
I asked the
Lord to bless
you as I
prayed for
you today,
to guide you
and protect
you as you go
along your
way. His love
is always with
you. His
promises
are true, and
when we give
Him all our
cares we know
He will see us
through.
So when the road
you're
traveling
seems
difficult at
best, just
remember I'm
here
praying and
God will do
the rest. Pass
this on
to those you
want God to
bless and
remember
to send it back to the
one who asked
God to bless
you first.
When there is nothing
left but God,
that is when
you find out
that God is
all you need.
Take 60
seconds and
give this a
shot! All you
do is simply
say the
following
small prayer
for the person
who sent this
to you.
Father, G od, bless all my
friends and
family in what
ever it is
that You know
they may be
needing this
day! May their
lives be full
of Your peace,
prosperity and
power as they
seek to have a
closer
relationship
with You.
Amen.
Then send it on to
five other
people,
including the
one who
sent it to
you. Within
hours five
people have
prayed for you
and you caused
a multitude of
people
to pray for
other people.
Then, sit back
and watch the
power of God
work in your
life.
P. S. Five is good, but more is
better.
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