A woman came out of her house and saw three old men with long white beards sitting in her front yard. She did not recognize any of them.

She said "I don't think I know you. But, you must be hungry. Please come in and have something to eat.”

“Is the man of the house home?” they asked.

“No,” she replied and added, 'He's at work, but he will be home soon.”

“Then we cannot come in”,  they replied.

In the evening when her husband came home, she told him what had happened.

"Go tell them I am now home and invite them in!"

The woman went out and invited the men to come into their home.

“We do not go into a house together,” they replied.

“Why is that?” she asked.

One of the old men explained. ”His name is Wealth," he said, pointing to one of his friends. He then pointed to the other one. “He is Success, and I am Love."

Then he added, "Go in and discuss with your husband which one of us you want in your home."

The woman went in and told her husband what was said. Her husband was overjoyed. "How nice!” he replied. He said. "Since that is the case, let us invite Wealth. Let him come and fill our home with wealth!"

His wife disagreed. "My dear, why don't we invite Success?”

Their daughter was listening from the another room of the house. She jumped in with her own suggestion, “Wouldn’t it be better to invite Love so that our home could be filled with love?”

"Let us heed our daughter's advice,” said the husband to his wife.

“I’ll go out and invite Love to be our guest”, she agreed.

The woman went out and asked the three old men, “Which one of you is Love? Please come in and be our guest.”

Love got up and started walking toward the house. The other two also got up and followed him.

Surprised, the lady asked Wealth and Success: "I only invited Love. Why are you coming in?'

The old men replied together, "If you had invited Wealth or Success, the other two of us would have stayed out. But since you invited Love…wherever he goes, we go with him. Wherever there is Love, there is also Wealth and Success!”

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We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in His love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.  1 John 4:16 NLT

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV

A friend loves at all times…. Proverbs 17:17a NIV

This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. John 15:12 NLT

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If you liked this story and would like a copy of either of my books,
they are available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle format:

If you have a story or testimony that you think might bless others,
I invite you to send it by email to me (Kenneth Kersey) at godsotherways@me.com.

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