This is the time of the year when a smile or an act of kindness can go a long way in encouraging someone.
Years ago a young man was selling products door-to-door to work his way through medical school. Tired, discouraged & broke, he knocked on the door of a young lady. She immediately went to the kitchen and got him a tall glass of milk. He was so refreshed & encouraged that he never forgot this act of kindness. Even though he was broke, he asked her what he owed her. She said nothing! He said, “I thank you from the bottom of my heart!” The young man, Howard Kelly, went on his way.
Years later this same lady was stricken with a rare disease which baffled the doctors. She was in critical condition, when the local doctors sent her to the city to medical specialists, who were also baffled. Finally, they called in Dr. Howard Kelly. Dr. Kelly immediately recognized this wife & mother as the lady who years earlier had done him such a favor. He applied his expertise, solved her case, treated her successfully and watched her recover.
Dr. Kelly instructed the hospital to send her bill to him. He wrote a message on the bill and sent it to the woman’s room. She opened it with trembling hands, thinking she would spend the rest of her life paying it off. On the bill, the words were written — “PAID IN FULL — with one glass of milk.” (Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly
This is a true story. Dr. Howard Kelly was one of the four founders of America’s first medical research hospital, Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.
Let’s each of us do something kind for someone this Christmas season!
Pastor Jim
