A MESSAGE FROM PRECIOUS MOMENTS CREATOR, SamButcher
That might sound very unusual to us, but in Corinthians 1:15 the Bible says a woman’s hair is her glory. And if the woman’s hair is her glory, then the woman in the story laid her glory at the feet of Jesus. That is exactly what we should do. It is not important to let everyone know who you are. What we should do, is let the Lord know what kind of people we are so we can come to Him for forgiveness. What Sam learned from reading this – about the broken box and the hair – is that whether it is a show horse or a soldier in an Army, sometimes we have to be broken before we can be transformed into a vessel fit for the Master’s use. Thinking of God as a champion of the outcast and forgotten also reminds Sam of a story his mother told him. Sam’s mother was one of many daughters, and when she was 4 years old, her father passed away. Her mother could not care for them all, so she gave her daughters to different members of the family. God was gracious enough to have Sam’s mother live with her grandparents. Her grandpa was a pastor in a Pentecostal church, and sometimes they would have a foot washing ceremony. It was during one of these ceremonies that a black woman entered the church and wanted to take part. It was a different time back then, a time when racial prejudice was commonplace. Sadly, every one of those church members passed that African-American woman by, not one of them offering to wash her feet. But Sam’s dear great-grandmother knelt before her, and she washed her feet. This is what the Lord wants from each one of us – for us to show Him who we are, what condition we are in, and how much we need Him for forgiveness. Be sure to read your next issue of MOMENTS Magazine to learn the fourth and final thing that God wants you to know!
As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Precious Moments, we remember that it all began with a talented artist named Sam Butcher and his uplifting illustrations. Throughout the decades, his humble demeanor and unassuming ways of communicating his messages have won him the respect and appreciation of fans all over the world. At the Family Reunion Event last summer held at the Precious Moments Chapel, attendees were treated to a rare opportunity – the chance to attend a live talk from Mr. Sam Butcher. He was inspired to share “Four Things God Wants You to Know.” In the last issue of MOMENTS Magazine, we relayed how Sam explained that the Lord is a God of wisdom. And before that, he showed us that He is a God of Mercy. So what is the third thing God wants you to know? Sam thinks that He wants you to know that He is the God of the outcast and forgotten. He shared a beautiful story that tells of the loving kindness of our Lord. It is about a woman who the Bible calls “a sinner.” It doesn’t say if she was a mother or a wife, just a sinner. She heard that Jesus was in the house of Simon in Jerusalem, so she went to Simon’s house and walked inside very quietly. She saw Jesus, walked right toward Him, and knelt down. With her she had an alabaster box that was filled with rare and precious ointment. She broke the box before the Lord and poured the ointment on His feet. She proceeded to wash His feet with the ointment and her tears. She was a sinner, but there was one thing that she wasn’t – she was not in denial. She knew what kind of a person she was. She knew that she had to admit her condition and come to the only one who could not only forgive her,
but someone who could heal her broken heart. After she washed the feet of Jesus, the Bible says that she wiped His feet with her hair.
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