Students reach out to help teacher

Nathan Neidigk is a teacher at Volcano Vista High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His wife recently passed away, and his son was diagnosed with leukemia. During one of his classes, Mr. Neidigk happened to mention that he might not have much money to buy Christmas gifts for his son this year, because of costly hospital bills. Then he took a week off from class, to spend time at the hospital with his son.

While he was away, his 12th grade students each pitched in $20 and bought him a new Nintendo Switch gaming console with two games and a case. He was speechless when he opened the packages on his desk. But that's not all. His friends have set up a GoFundMe campaign with a goal of $30,000, and have already received $13,000. His students like Mr. Neidigk a lot!

As we prepare for Christmas...

Today's crumb comes from a reader in South Bend, Indiana. It is a three-minute video guaranteed to touch your heart. Follow the prompt on the link below, and prepare to be truly inspired. 
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WxjZB5S_g7s?rel=0

The last of the saddle tramps

Mesannie Wilkins was 63 and living a hard life in Minot, Maine. She was ill and her doctor told her she might live two or three more years if she rested. She had no one to care for her, and was about to lose her house. So she asked God what to do. He told her to go to California. To be sure she heard the Lord right, she flipped a coin. Heads she'd go. Tails she'd stay. It came up heads over and over and over, so she bought a tired summer camp horse, saddled up and started for California with her dog on a long leash. She had $32 in cash. "I go forth as a tramp of fate among strangers," she said, but instead of strangers she found friends.

"I figured I could rest in the saddle," she recalled, but parts of the trip were grueling and dangerous. Sixteen months and 7,000 miles later, she reached the Pacific Ocean. Along the way, she was feted by several state governors, sketched by Andrew Wyeth, and even appeared on the Art Linkletter TV show. When her horse died before the end of her journey, Linkletter bought her a new one. She also declined a marriage proposal from a western goat farmer.

Her health improved as she rode, and after reaching California she wrote a book about her journey called Last of the Saddle Tramps. If it's not in your library, it's available online. It will cheer your heart to see how a sick woman finds health while blessing others from coast to coast.

"I will still be with you..."

Bailey Sellers of Maryville, Tennessee, lost her dad Michael five years ago, when she was only 16. But before he died, he pre-paid to have flowers and a personal note sent to her every year on her birthday. She looks forward to her birthday note from her dad, but this year was special. She's now a student at East Tennessee University, and her latest bouquet from dad came with his final note.

                                                                                                              Bailey Sellers/Facebook
Well, it wasn't exactly final. It contained a promise that will last a lifetime. He wrote that he does not want her to be sad for him anymore. He says he is in a better place, and she should live life to the fullest. Then he promises, "I will still be with you through every milestone. Just look around, and I will be there." Bailey shared his note on Twitter and it was re-tweeted 360,000 times and received 1.5 MILLION likes. She's gotten thousands of responses of people supporting her, and says her dad would be proud to know his letter touched so many people.

The perfect Christmas gift?

My book, "God's Fingerprints," is still available from Prayerful Living. On the Prayerful Living Web site you can read eight fascinating pages of the book before deciding if it's an ideal gift for someone you love. Here's the link you need.  http://www.csdirectory.com/shop/BK-horn.html Happy holidays!

He never thought about keeping it

This November, a man in the Bronx, New York, (who wishes to remain nameless) was mugged. He was hit on the head with a baseball bat and spent several days in the hospital. The guy who mugged him did not get his wallet, but while the victim was fleeing his attacker, his wallet fell on the ground. Sadly, it held $1,700 cash for his rent, and now it was gone. His brother paid the rent for him while he was in the hospital. But how could he ever pay his brother back?

Enter Frankie Burns, 8. He lives in upstate New York, but just happened to be in the Bronx getting ready for a Gaelic football playoff match. It's like rugby, but not as rough. As he was unloading his team's equipment, he spotted the wallet on the ground and saw that it contained $1,700, which is like a million dollars to a pre-teen. But Frankie never thought about keeping it, since he had not earned it. Instead, he gave the wallet to his dad, who used the ID to track down the owner. Now the mugging victim had money to repay his brother for his rent, and as a reward, he gave Frankie one of the $100 bills, which the boy is using to buy a new pair of cleats.

Is Truth another name for God?

"Whenever I despair, I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants, and murderers, and for a time they can seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. Think of it -- ALWAYS.

Mahatma Gandhi, 1869-1948