Helping Hearts, Blog of Anne Sanders

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net Today I want to honor a man, a man with a heart after helping others. This man wasn’t trying to be in the spotlight, he just had a heart after God and for showing God’s love to others. He tried to live by Matthew 25:40 and in the twenty years that I knew him, he did. The verse shows us how we should help others as if we were helping Jesus Himself. The man was named Sandy and he was a kind, gentle, patient and compassionate man, always ready with a smile, a handshake and an encouraging word. When having lunch with him one day, I overheard the waitress say something to Sandy and found out that he had paid for the dinner of some military service members he had seen in the restaurant. He didn’t want them to know it was him. He just wanted to brighten their day and thank them for their service. Another memory I have of Sandy is from a few years ago when it was almost Christmas. We wanted to get something special as a pr...

  “If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the lands that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. Rather be openhanded and freely lend him whatever he needs.” Deuteronomy 15:7 I’m reading through the Old Testament of the bible and came across this passage. The Old Testament is rich with miracles, history, and stories, but it is also quite harsh. When the Israelites who were slaves came out of Egypt and were told by God they would be given a new land flowing with milk and honey, they were also told to kill all the people in the cities which they conquered. The Old Testament has lots of wars and killing in it, but right here in the middle of all of it, God reminds us to take care of the poor. Now, usually in this blog, I tell you lots of ways to help others. I’ve even given you data that shows that if you do help others, you will reap benefits of joy and gratefulness yourself, as well as...

Today is Valentine’s Day. Yesterday I had to stop at the store and I saw a guy coming out as I went in with a big box of chocolates under his arm. Then I saw another perusing the red nighties and flowers looking for something his loved one might like. Big pink and red hearts are everywhere and usually filled with chocolate. That’s my kind of heart. Well, not really. My blog and website are called Helping Hearts. If you look under the title on my website, there’s a passage from the bible. Proverb 4:23. “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” It’s packed in a wisdom-giving part of the bible just before admonitions to Keep your mouth free of perversity;       keep corrupt talk far from your lips. 25  Let your eyes look straight ahead;      fix your gaze directly before you. 26  Give careful thought to the [ c ] paths for your feet      and be steadfast...

Next Tuesday we celebrate Valentine’s Day.   My husband will be coming home after being deployed for over six months.   I have already gotten him a card and present and he says he is making something for me.   We can’t wait to see each other after being so long apart. His visit has occupied my and our son’s minds for weeks now. We’re planning all kinds of fun activities and things to show our love for him.   Despite my preoccupation with my husband’s return, there’s something else on my mind about next week.   February 13-19 is also Random Acts of Kindness Week . It’s the season of the heart. We are to show love to our dear ones and to others.   I think the best description of how this is supposed to work was done by Jesus.   Way back in the third book of the bible when Moses was giving out laws, one of them was to “love your neighbor as yourself.” Thousands of years later when Jesus was walking around doing his ministry, he was asked who...