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Surabaya Corner
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 GIVE GENEROUSLY AND TIMELY
- By Ramon Martillano
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“A poor widow
also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. Calling His
disciples to Himself, He said to them, ‘Amen, I say to you, this poor
widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury.’ For
they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her
poverty, has contributed all she had, her own livelihood.”
Mark 12:42-44
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The real test of one’s generosity is not on how much
one has given but on how much has been left after giving!
Ouch!!! This is a shocking reminder not only to me but maybe to you
as well - to be more generous to others. Bro. Bo Sanchez once said that
one of his objectives in life is “to share 90%
 of
his earnings and leave the other 10% for his own needs.” Quite tough
for most of us! But this is really what the Lord wants us to do. Let me
share with you the following story.
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- Two
hundred years ago, a young man named William Colgate started
Colgate-Palmolive Company. He left home at sixteen years of age to seek
his fortune. As he walked along on his way to the city, he met an old
neighbor. Asked where he was going, he replied, “I don’t know. Father is
too poor and he says I must make a living for myself now.” William went
on to say that he didn’t know how to do anything except make soap and
candles. So the old man decided to pray for William. Then he said,
“Someone will soon be the leading soap maker in New York. Be a good
man; give your heart to Christ; give the Lord all that belongs to Him of
every dollar you earn; make an honest soap and I am certain you will be
a rich man.”
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When William arrived in New York, he had trouble finding
a job, but he followed the old man’s advice. He dedicated himself to
Christ. The first thing he did with the first dollar he earned was to
give 10 percent of it to the Lord’s work. From that point on, he
considered ten cents of every dollar as sacred to the Lord. In fact, he
soon began giving 20 percent of his income to the Lord, then 50
percent. Until late in his life, he had become so successful that he
devoted the whole of his yearly income – 100 percent of it – to the
Lord.
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Here’s another story. A very rich man once moaned to a
friend, “Why is it that everybody is always criticizing me for being
miserly, when everyone knows I have made provisions to leave everything
I possess to charity when I die?” The friend answered, “Well, I guess
it’s like the pig and the cow. One day, the pig was lamenting to a cow
about how unpopular he was. ‘People are always talking about your
gentleness and your kind brown eyes,’ the pig said. ‘They only speak of
me in degrading terms. Sure, you give milk and cream, but I give even
more. I give bacon and ham. I give bristles. Why, they even pickle my
feet! Yet nobody likes me. Why is this?’ The cow responded, ‘Well, maybe
it’s because I give while I’m still living.’”
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- Brothers and
sisters, these two stories remind us to be generous and be generous in a
timely manner. And let us not be like the rich man in the second
story. Think about it.
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- Here’s a prayer
from St. Ignatius of Loyola:
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- Dearest Lord,
teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve Thee as Thou deservest; To
give and not to count the cost; To fight and not to heed the wounds; To
toil and not to seek reward, save that of knowing that I do Thy will, O
God. Amen.
- TELL US LIKE IT IS!
- Has
something wonderful and unique happened in your life lately? Did God
answer your prayer in a very unexpected way? Did you, like Isaiah, meet
God’s whisper?
- Have you felt His
powerful hand working in your life recently?
- Everyday, people
are experiencing God’s mighty Word in their lives and it is a pity that
very few know about it. Do you have a story to tell? Some Good News to
share?
- E-mail us (genesis@catholic.org) or fax us
(021-6627384), and tell us about it. That’s right! You don’t have to be
a great writer to do this. We can help you write it – just tell us like
it is!
- Don’t forget to
write the subject: “Let Me Tell You A Story”
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moment to sign our guestbook.
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Surabaya Corner
By Ramon Martillano
Place of Refuge
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Straight from the Heart
By Carolle Bautista
G* KIDSPACE
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Surabaya Sharing
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