Above All -- Kaitlyn Maher

Christ shines in all of us - even 5 year olds!

Jesse

Let me tell you, Jesse hated this job. And you would too, I imagine, if you had to do it.Jesse was a chicken plucker. That's right.

He stood on a line in a chicken factory and spent his days pulling the feathers off dead chickens so the rest of us wouldn't have to.

It wasn't much of a job. But at the time, Jesse didn't think he was much of a person. His father was a brute of a man. His dad was actually thought to be mentally ill and treated Jesse rough all of his life.

Jesse's older brother wasn't much better. He was always picking on Jesse and beating him up. Yes, Jesse grew up in a very rough home in West Virginia. Life was anything but easy. And he thought life didn't hold much hope for him. That's why he was standing in this chicken line, doing a job that darn few people wanted.

In addition to all the rough treatment at home, it seems that Jesse was always sick. Sometimes it was real physical illness, but way too often it was all in his head. He was a small child, skinny and meek. That sure didn't help the situation any.

When he started to school, he was the object of every bully on the playground.

He was a hypochondriac of the first order. For Jesse, tomorrow was not always something to be looked forward to. But, he had dreams. He wanted to be a ventriloquist. He found books on ventriloquism. He practiced with sock puppets and saved his hard earned dollars until he could get a real ventriloquist dummy.

When he got old enough, he joined the military. And even though many of his hypochondriac symptoms persisted, the military did recognize his talents and put him in the entertainment corp. That was when his world changed. He gained confidence. He found that he had a talent for making people laugh, and laugh so hard they often had tears in their eyes. Yes, little Jesse had found himself.

You know, folks, the history books are full of people who overcame a handicap to go on and make a success of themselves, but Jesse is one of the few I know of who didn't overcome it. Instead he used his paranoia to make a million dollars, and become one of the best-loved characters of all time in doing it!

Yes, that little paranoid hypochondriac, who transferred his nervousness into a successful career, still holds the record for the most Emmy's given in a single category.

The wonderful, gifted, talented, and nervous comedian who brought us Barney Fife was Jesse Don Knotts.




NOW YOU KNOW, "THE REST OF THE STORY"

Get Inspired

God's Wings

After a forest fire in Yellowstone National Park, forest rangers began their trek up a mountain to assess the inferno's damage. One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, squatted statuesque on the ground at the base of a tree.


Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he gently rolled the bird over with a stick. When he moved it, three tiny chicks scurried from under their dead mother's wings.


The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and had gathered them under her wings, instinctively knowing that the toxic smoke would rise. She could have flown to safety but had refused to abandon her chicks.


When the blaze arrived, and the heat was scorching her small body to a cinder, the mother had remained steadfast.... because she had been willing to die, so those under the cover of her wings would live.


'He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge.'
Psalm 91:4



I don't know who this artist is, but what beauty!

Patrick Henry Hughes

Not only is Patrick an inspiration, but the completely selfless "sacrifice" his family - especially his father - has made for him throughout his life is a beautiful message of LOVE!

God is Present Everywhere

Make a Difference

6 Easy Ways to Help the Homeless

"Think small," says Jill Rich, 2000 Good Neighbor Awards winner and homeless advocate. "You're not going to individually solve the whole homelessness problem."

But every kind gesture makes a difference. "It’s like the starfish story. A beach was covered with starfish that had washed ashore, and a little boy was bent over picking up one after another and throwing them back into the water. His mother rushed over and said, 'What are you doing? You can’t possibly throw all these starfish back in. It won’t make a difference.' To which the little boy says, 'Well, it made a difference to this one,' says Rich."

Rather than ignoring the homeless or giving a dollar…

1. Give a toothbrush and toothpaste.

2. Carry fast food gift certificates.

3. Carry a list of local shelters and soup kitchens.

4. Say “hello” and smile.

5. Buy someone a sandwich or some fresh fruit.

6. Bring someone a clean blanket in the winter.

source: http://www.realtor.org/toolkits/good12

Volunteer with the following organizations to make a real difference:
Bullitt County - The Shepherd's Shelter Inc

Jefferson County - Wayside Christian Mission
Jefferson County - Dare to Care

Stronger...

Isaiah 41:10 ...fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Golden Voice

Ted Williams, a homeless US man with a deep, refined voice has become an overnight online sensation after being "discovered" by a local reporter on a street corner in Columbus, Ohio. The 53 year-old has now been offered a job by the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers and is being pursued by NFL Films for possible work. Williams said the team had offered him a two-year contract and said they would pay his living expenses. Williams was recently living in a tent and whose past includes a lengthy list of arrests. He has served time in prison for theft and forgery and has been cited with numerous misdemeanours, including drug abuse. In New York, Williams' mother Julia was thrilled her only child was turning his life around.

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