FIND A PENNY    

 You always hear the usual stories of
pennies on the
sidewalk being good luck, gifts from angels, etc.
This is the first time I've
ever heard this twist on the story. Gives you
something to think about.
  
Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband
were invited to
spend the weekend at the husband's employer's home.
My friend, Arlene,
was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very
wealthy, with a fine
home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her
house. 
   The first day and evening went well, and Arlene
was delighted to
have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy
live. The husband's
employer was quite generous as a host, and took them
to the finest
restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the
opportunity to indulge in
this kind of extravagance again, so was enjoying
herself immensely. 

As the three of them were about to enter an
exclusive restaurant that
evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of
Arlene and her
husband. He stopped suddenly, looking down on the
pavement for a long, silent
moment.
Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him.
There was nothing on
the ground except a single darkened penny that
someone had dropped,
and a few cigarette butts Still silent, the man
reached down and picked
up the penny. 
He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket
as if he had
found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did
this man have for a
single penny? Why would he even take the time to stop
and pick it up? 
Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her.
Finally, she could
stand it no longer. She casually mentioned that her
daughter once had
a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had
found had been of some
value. 

 A smile crept across the man's face as he reached
into his pocket for
the penny and held it out for her to see. She had
seen many pennies
before! What was the point of this? 

 "Look at it." He said. "Read what it says." She read
the words "
United States of America "
"No, not that; read further." 
"One cent?" "No, keep reading." 
"In God we Trust?" "Yes!" "And?" 
"And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy,
even on a coin.
Whenever I find a coin I see that inscription. It is
written on every
single United States coin, but we never seem to
notice it! God drops a
message right in front of me telling me to trust Him?
Who am I to pass it
by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my
trust IS in God at
that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God;
that I do trust in
Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if
it were gold. I
think it is God's way of starting a conversation with
me. Lucky for me, God
is patient and pennies are plentiful! 

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on
the sidewalk. I
stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had
been worrying and
fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I
read the words, "In God
We Trust," and had to laugh. Yes, God, I get the
message.

Have a BLESSED day.

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