The Kiss

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  “Ryabovitch pulled the bed-clothes over his head, curled himself up in bed, and tried to gather together the floating images in his mind and to combine them into one whole. But nothing came of it. He soon fell asleep, and his last thought was that someone had caressed him and made him happy—that something extraordinary, foolish, but joyful and delightful, had come into his life. The thought did not leave him even in his sleep. When he woke up the sensations of oil on his neck and the chill of peppermint about his lips had gone, but joy flooded his heart just as the day before.” The Kiss By Anton Chekhov (1860–1904)

The Unencumbered Divine Instrument

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"A missionary was flying over Bombay, India, and saw the massive crowds crawling like ants beneath him. At first he wanted to turn back. 'Look at all those people!' he gasped. 'I won’t even make a dent.' Then he remembered that God had not called him to save India, nor to save anyone in India, but that He had called him to preach the gospel of Christ in India to all who would listen; God would do the saving. That thought, the missionary said, got him through the frustration and depair so he could be an unencumbered divine instrument."

Horton, Michael. Putting Amazing Back Into Grace.

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