Newsletter   I   APRIL 2003

THE HANDS OF CHRIST When our Lord was here on the earth, He frequently ministered to man’s needs with His hands. He broke the loaves and the fishes to feed a hungry multitude. He made clay and rubbed it on the eyes of a blind man to give him sight. He touched an unclean leper in the act of cleansing him. He said to Thomas, “Behold My hands.” One day, we too shall behold them. The story is told of a young girl whose mother was very beautiful-all except her hands, which were shriveled and scarred and hideous. Although the child was long reluctant to speak about them, the time came when she asked her mother how her hands became so marred. The mother told her how their house caught fire when the girl was very little. The mother rushed upstairs to the room where the girl was sleeping in her crib, and with the help of the Lord was able to carry the babe downstairs and outside without being harmed. But in doing so, the mother’s hands were terribly burned. This brought sobs to the child as she said, “O Mother, you know I’ve always loved you-especially your face, your smile, your eyes. But better than all, now I love your hands.” The One who left heaven’s glory and became flesh for us bears in His compassionate hands the scars of His sacrifice on our behalf. His hands will be an eternal reminder of His love.                                                                                                --A Treasury of Bible Illustrations

LETTER FROM THE ISF ASSISTANT Dear International Friend, Greetings to you from International Student Fellowship. When you receive this letter another spring season will have officially begun. Four of our five children celebrate their birthdays in the month of March. Jennifer, the oldest, starts out at the beginning of the month. Tim, the second oldest, is in the middle of March and our twin daughters celebrate theirs at the end of the month. Jean, the youngest, wanted to have a celebration all to herself so she came along in November. Over the years, along with lots of birthdays to celebrate, we also looked forward to the first day of spring which is March 21th this year. Also don’t forget that April 6th (Sunday) we begin Daylight Savings Time. The procedure is to turn your clock ahead 1 hour before you go to bed on Saturday night April 5th so your clock will be at the correct time when you wake up on Sunday morning. Springtime is always a time of anticipation. Maybe you are already planning your summer vacation. Or it could be that you are just anticipating waking up in the morning and realizing that the snows of this past winter are now history. Whatever is on your mind we hope that coming to our next gathering, on Friday April 11th, is something you are thinking about. Joyce Gahagen will be there to once again present a chalk drawing with an emphasis on the Easter Story. This year Easter Sunday is celebrated on April 20th. This gathering is a good time to come and invite a friend to enjoy this special talent that Joyce Gahagen will share with us. We will look forward to seeing you at our April “Easter” ISF gathering at the William Pitt Union. This gathering will be on Friday, April 11th at 7:30 PM in the beautiful Ballroom of the William Pitt Union. The William Pitt Union is located in Oakland on the corner of Bigelow and Fifth Avenue. To get to the Ballroom, use the entrance on Fifth Avenue and then follow the signs. As always there will be a full course meal for you to enjoy and of course there will be children’s activities in the Kurtzman room. So do come to this very special Easter Gathering and invite your friends. It's all free! We hope to see you on April 11th.                                                                                                       --Terry Tiberio, ISF Assistant