Pastoral Resources

Regular exercise toughens the mind as well as the body. After working out three times a week for six months, one group was found to be 20% fitter. Bonus: they also scored 70% better in a test of complex decision making.

Though just written in 1980, this poem is already considered to be a classic.

“What does reincarnation mean?”

A cowpoke asked his friend.

His pal replied, “It happens when

yer life has reached its end.

They comb yer hair, and warsh yer neck,

And clean yer fingernails,

And lay you in a padded box

Away from life’s travails.

“The box and you goes in a hole,

That’s been dug into the ground.

Reincarnation starts in when

Yore planted ‘neath a mound.

Them clods melt down, just like yer box,

and you who is inside.

And then yore just begginin’ on

Yer transformation ride.

“In a while the grass’ll grow

Upon yer rendered mound.

Till some day on yer moldered grave

A lonely flower is found.

And say a hoss should wander by

And graze upon this flower

That once wuz you, but now’s become

Yer vegetative bower.

“The posey that the hoss done ate

Up, with his other feed,

Makes bone, and fat, and muscle

Essential to the steed.

But some is left that he can’t use

And so it passes through,

And finally lays upon the ground.

This thing that once wuz you.

“Then say, by chance, I wonders by

And sees this upon the ground,

And I ponders and I wonders at,

This object that I found.

I thinks of reincarnation,

Of life, and death, and such,

And come away concludin’: Slim,

You ain’t changed, all that much.”

In 1902, the poetry editor of Atlantic Monthly returned a stack of poems with this note, “Our magazine has no room for your vigorous verse.” The poet was Robert Frost.

In 1905, the University of Bern turned down a doctoral dissertation as “irrelevant and fanciful.” The writer of that paper was Albert Einstein.

In 1894 an English teacher noted on a teenager’s report card, “A conspicuous lack of success.” The student was Winston Churchill.

Herman Lange, a German Christian was to be executed by the Nazis during WWII. In his cell on the night before he was to be killed, Lange wrote a note to his parents. He said two feelings occupied his mind: “I am, first, in a joyous mood, and second filled with great anticipation.” Then he made this beautiful affirmation: “In Christ I have put my faith, and precisely today have faith in Him more firmly than ever.” Finally he urged his parents to read the New Testament for comfort: “Look where you will, everywhere you will find jubilation over the grace that makes us children of God. What can befall a child of God? Of what should I be afraid? On the contrary, rejoice!”

A saintly woman who had suffered for weary months from a painful illness said to her pastor, "I have such a lovely robin that sings outside my window. In the early mornings as I lie here, he serenades me."

Then a smile brightened her thin features as she added, "I love him because he sings in the rain."

That is the most beautiful thing about a robin. When a storm has silenced every other songbird, the robin sings on. That is what the Christian who is with Christ may do. Any one can sing in the sunshine. You and I should sing on when the sun has gone down, or when clouds pour out their rain, for Christ is with us.

Forty thousand fans were on hand in the Oakland stadium when Rickey Henderson tied Lou Brock’s career stolen base record. According to USA Today Lou, who had left baseball in 1979, had followed Henderson’s career and was excited about his success. Realizing that Rickey would set a new record, Brock said, “I’ll be there. Do you think I’m going to miss it now? Rickey did in 12 years what took me 19. He’s amazing.”

The real success stories in life are with people who can rejoice in the successes of others. What Lou Brock did in cheering on Rickey Henderson should be a way of life in the family of God. Few circumstances give us a better opportunity to exhibit God’s grace than when someone succeeds and surpasses us in an area of our own strength and reputation.

More sophisticated analysis reveals that men who had purchased pornographic materials in the past year had significantly lower marital, fathering and family-life satisfaction when compared to those who had not purchased pornographic materials in the past year.

The question may arise: “How can I approach someone I know very well, such as a friend, family member, a fellow worker in the marketplace, or someone with whom I have previously shared?”

Some general relational principles need to be regarded:

1. Be genuine in your communication.

2. Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

3. Convey a spirit of love, humility, and courtesy.

4. Avoid an attitude of condescension, judgment, and condemnation.

5. Ask for the person’s permission.

Some possible approaches that may be used:

1. Use the conversation guide FIRM [Family, Interests, Religion, Message]. Although you know the person well, you can still talk about family, interests, religion, and message. The conversation can be even more meaningful since you do already know one another. You may ask such questions as: “How are the children? Where do you plan to go on your vacation? How was your golf game Saturday?”

2. Use bridging statements and secure permission to discuss the person’s religious life and to share about Jesus. Some possibilities I have used are as follows:

“You and I have talked about our relationship with Christ at other times. Have you thought much about it lately? May we talk about it again?

“We know one another very well, but we’ve never discussed our relationship with God. May I ask you a question about that?” (Wait for a response.) “Have you come to know Jesus Christ in a personal way, or would you say that you are still in the process?”

“I feel that I need to apologize to you. We’re friends (or family), but I’ve never shared with you something very important to me—my Savior, Jesus. May I tell what He has done in my life?” (Wait for permission, then share your personal salvation testimony.) Then ask, “Have you come to know Jesus Christ in a personal way, or would you say you are still in the process?”

I’ve been thinking and praying lately about something very important to me—your relationship with Jesus. May I ask you a question about that?”

Relationship building is a process which takes time; when that time is invested, trust and vulnerability grow. We offer these questions as part of this building process, knowing that when used in love and wisdom they will help men open their hearts to each other.

1. Have I been with a woman in the past week that could be viewed as compromising?

2. Have all my financial dealings been filled with integrity?

3. Have I viewed sexually explicit material?

4. Have I spent adequate time in Bible study and prayer?

5. Have I spent quality time and given priority to my family?

6. Have I fulfilled the mandates of my calling?

7. Have I just lied to you?

A recent survey of Discipleship Journal readers ranked areas of greatest spiritual challenge to them:

1. Materialism.

2. Pride.

3. Self-centeredness.

4. Laziness.

5. (Tie) Anger/Bitterness.

6. (Tie) Sexual lust.

7. Envy.

8. Gluttony.

9. Lying.

Survey respondents noted temptations were more potent when they had neglected their time with God (81 percent) and when they were physically tired (57 percent). Resisting temptation was accomplished by prayer (84 percent), avoiding compromising situations (76 percent), Bible study (66 percent), and being accountable to someone (52 percent).

Single men are jailed more often, earn less, have more illnesses and die at a younger age than married men. Married men with cancer live 20% longer than single men with the same cancer. Women, who often have more close friendships than men, survive longer with the same cancers. Married or not, relationships keep us alive.

During a recent meeting of college educators at Harvard University, Cornell president Frank Rhodes rose to address the issue of reforms, suggesting that it was time for universities to pay “real and sustained attention to student’s intellectual and moral well-being.” Immediately there were gasps, even catcalls. One indignant student stood to demand of Rhodes, “Who is going to do the instructing? Whose morality are we going to follow?” The audience applauded thunderously, believing that the young man had settled the issue by posing an unanswerable question. Rhodes sat down, unable or unwilling to respond...Basic human nature dictates that when an individual is left to make moral decisions without reference to some standard above self, he or she invariably makes those choices on the basis of self-interest. Relativism results in radical individualism. As sociologist Robert Bellah concluded after an exhaustive survey, Americans have two overriding goals in life: personal success and vivid personal feelings.

Relativism: what is right/wrong, true/false is determined by some group.

Subjectivism: what is right/wrong, true/false is determined by each individual.

Relativism: what is right/wrong, true/false is determined by some group.

Subjectivism: what is right/wrong, true/false is determined by each individual.

Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer, since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power of judgment…Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller, and more of it can be taken in at a glance, and lack of harmony or proportion is more readily seen.” These are the words of Leonardo da Vinci, and no idler he; he excelled as a painter, sculptor, poet, architect, engineer, city planner, scientist, inventor, anatomist, military genius, and philosopher.

Edgar, father of nine, reflected on how he had mellowed over the years: “When the firstborn coughed or sneezed, I called the ambulance. When the last one swallowed a dime, I just told him it was coming out of his allowance.”

There is a certain relief in change, even though it be from bad to worse; as I have found in traveling in a stage-coach, that it is often a comfort to shift one’s position and be bruised in a new place. - Washington Irving

The conduct of God, who disposes all things kindly, is to put religion into the mind by reason, and into the heart by grace. But to will to put it into the mind and heart by force and threats is not to put religion there, but terror.

The 19th-century Danish theologian Soren Kierkegaard identified two kinds of religion—Religion A and Religion B. The first is “faith” in name only (2 Tim. 3:5). It’s the practice of attending church without genuine faith in the living Lord.

Religion B, on the other hand, is a life-transforming, destiny-changing experience. It’s a definite commitment to the crucified and risen Savior, which establishes an ongoing personal relationship between a forgiven sinner and a gracious God.

This difference explains why for many years British author C. S. Lewis had such great difficulty in becoming a Christian. Religion A had blinded him to Religion B. According to his brother Warren, his conversion was “no sudden plunge into a new life, but rather a slow, steady convalescence from a deep-seated spiritual illness—an illness that had its origins in our childhood, in the dry husks of religion offered by the semi-political churchgoing of Ulster, and the similar dull emptiness of compulsory church during our school days.”

People who practice their religious faith regularly may be getting some earthly benefits: They appear to be healthier compared to people who never attend a house of worship. A study conducted by sociologists at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana found that 4 percent of those who regularly went to church or synagogue reported poor health, compared with 9 percent of those who did not attend a house of worship. And 36 percent of weekly worshippers reported they were in excellent health, compared with 26 percent of non-attenders.

Why the difference? Researchers aren’t sure, but they say the reason may be that people attending weekly services may be more likely to see friends who ask about their health and can recommend a doctor.

Rector says, “Religion is a social penicillin, lethal against a wide array of behavioral pathogens.” He cites a study of black inner-city youth by Harvard University’s Richard Freeman: Boys who regularly attend church are 50% less likely to commit crimes. They are 54% less likely to use drugs and 47% less likely to drop out of school. In Rector’s own studies, he finds that churchgoing boys and girls are two-thirds less likely to engage in teen sex. Regular church attendance halves the chances a woman will have a child out of wedlock.

Rector says, “Religion is a social penicillin, lethal against a wide array of behavioral pathogens.” He cites a study of black inner-city youth by Harvard University’s Richard Freeman: Boys who regularly attend church are 50% less likely to commit crimes. They are 54% less likely to use drugs and 47% less likely to drop out of school. In Rector’s own studies, he finds that churchgoing boys and girls are two-thirds less likely to engage in teen sex. Regular church attendance halves the chances a woman will have a child out of wedlock.

Religion is virtually invisible on network television, a recent study concludes. Scholars from three universities who monitored 100 prime-time TV shows aired by ABC, NBC, CBS, and the Fox Network determined that references to religion rarely appear on the screen, and when they do, religious beliefs or practices are seldom presented in a positive light. The survey found that 95% of all speaking characters on TV programs have no identifiable religious affiliation. Thomas Skill, a University of Dayton researcher who helped compile the report commissioned by the American Family Association, said television’s treatment of religion “tends to be best characterized as abuse through neglect.” Skill said ABC showed the greatest respect toward religious behavior, while Fox most often ridiculed religion or linked it to humor.

One thing God detests is the religion of words. It was Robert E. Speer who said: "After thirty years of leadership in Christian work, it is my conclusion and conviction that the greatest missionary problem is just the failure of Christian people to live up to their profession."

The good news is that science now agrees: Religion really is a good thing. Consider the following, reported in Time magazine’s cover story for June 24:

1. Heart-surgery patients who draw comfort from their religious faith have a significantly higher survival rate than those who do not.

2. The blood pressure of people who attend church is 5 mm lower than that of those who do not.

3. People with religious faith who attend church regularly experience less depression than nonreligious people, while suicide is four times higher among nonchurchgoers.

February 24, 1993, in the U.S. Supreme Court. The case: Lamb’s Chapel and John Steigerwald v. Center Moriches Union Free School District. A group of Christians wanted to show a film after hours in a public facility. Apparently, religious hostility has reached the point in this nation where, because the content of that film was deemed “religious” by the State of N.Y., it posed a perceived danger sufficient to warrant spending tax dollars to litigate a case of this nature all the way to the highest court of the land.

Mr. Justice Scalia questioned the attorney for the school board:

Question: you are here representing both respondents [the school board and the state of N.Y.]... in this argument, and the Attorney General of N.Y., in his brief defending the N.Y. rule says that...’Religious advocacy serves the community only in the eyes of its adherent and yields a benefit only to those who already believe.’

Does New York State—I grew up in New York State and in those days they used to have a tax exemption for religious property. Is that still there?

Counsel: Yes, your Honor it still is.

Question: But they’ve changed their view, apparently, that—

Counsel: Well, your Honor—

Question: You see—it used to be thought that religion—it didn’t matter what religion, but it—some code of morality always went with it and was thought that...what was called a God-fearing person might be less likely to mug me and rape my sister. That apparently is not the view of New York anymore.

Counsel: Well I’m not sure that that’s —

Question: Has this new regime worked very well?

Parishioners hard pressed for something to say to the clergy after the service have, according to one minister’s friend said to him,

“You always manage to find something to fill up the time.”

“I don’t care what they say, I like your sermons.”

“If I’d known you were going to be good today I’d have brought a neighbor.”

“Did you know there are 243 panes of glass in the windows?”

“We shouldn’t make you preach so often.”

Percentage of marriages today that are remarriages for one or both partners: 46.

If you were to look at Rembrandt’s painting of The Three Crosses, your attention would be drawn first to the center cross on which Jesus died. Then as you would look at the crowd gathered around the foot of that cross, you’d be impressed by the various facial expressions and actions of the people involved in the awful crime of crucifying the Son of God. Finally, your eyes would drift to the edge of the painting and catch sight of another figure, almost hidden in the shadows. Art critics say this is a representation of Rembrandt himself, for he recognized that by his sins he helped nail Jesus to the cross.

Under a caption in the Detroit Free Press appeared a new prescription for retaining beauty. It continued with the following: "Ladies, do you want to stay young? Then join a church choir. Women who sing stay younger looking. A singer's cheek muscles are so well developed by exercise that her face will not wrinkle nearly so soon as the non-singer."

This is the article we have been waiting for. Now women and men, if you do not want to look like a prune, join the choir!

We are all so vain that we love to have our names remembered by those who have met us but once. We exaggerate the talents and virtues of those who can do this and we are ready to repay their powers with lifelong devotion. The ability to associate in the mind names and faces is a tremendous asset to a politician and it will prolong the pastorate of any clergyman.

A certain unbeliever, a blacksmith, was in the habit when anyone came into his shop of telling some wrong a Christian brother, deacon or minister had done, and saying, "That is one of these fine Christians we hear so much about!" An old gentleman, an eminent Christian, one day went into the shop. The unbeliever soon began talking about what some Christians had done. The old deacon stood a few minutes and listened, and then quietly asked the unbeliever if he had read the story in the Bible about the rich man and Lazarus. "Yes, many a time; and what of it?" "Well, you remember about the dogs; how they came and licked the sores of Lazarus? Now," said the deacon, "do you know, you just remind me of those dogs-content to merely lick the Christian's sores."

And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget. Genesis 41:51

Some things should be forgotten. Joseph could have wasted his life dwelling on the injustices he suffered. As a youth, his brothers sold him into slavery, and he was forced to live in a hostile land. He had to spend his teenage and adult years away from his beloved father. Joseph even spent time in prison. In spite of all he endured, he harbored no resentment. In fact, he named his son Manasseh, which means “forgetting.” He explained, “For God...hath made me forget.”

The result of “forgetting” past hurts is illustrated in the life of Pastor William Sangster. A guest who had come to spend the Christmas holidays with Sangster was watching him address the last of his greeting cards. One of the names on the list startled the friend. “Surely you are not sending a card to him,” he said. “Why not?” the preacher asked. “Don’t you remember what he said about you just 18 months ago?” Sangster replied that he only remembered a resolution he made at that time. He had determined that with God’s help he would forget about the man’s cutting remark. The card was sent as planned.

Yes, some things need to be dropped from the Christian’s memory. He shouldn’t harbor wrongs done to him. He mustn’t let some unkind word keep him from maturing in Christ as he should. And he should never use another’s insensitivity as his excuse for not serving the Lord.

Are there things in your past that you need to forgive and forget? -D.C.E.

Let me forget the hurt and pain

Found along life’s way;

Let me remember kindnesses

Given day by day.

- Berry

It is far better to forgive and forget than to resent and remember.

Just a line to say I'm living,

that I'm not among the dead,

Though I'm getting more forgetful

and mixed up in the head.

I got used to my arthritis,

to my dentures I'm resigned.

I can manage my bifocals,

but God, I miss my mind.

For sometimes I can't remember

when I stand at the foot of the stair,

If I must go up for something

or have I just come down from there.

And before the fridge so often

my poor mind is filled with doubt.

Have I just put the food away or

have I come to take some out?

And there are times when it is dark

with my night cap on my head,

I don't know if I'm retiring, or

just getting out of bed.

So, if it's my turn to write you

there's no need getting sore,

I may think that I have written

and don't want to be a bore.

So, remember that I love you

and wish that you were near,

But now it's nearly mail time

so I must say goodbye, dear.

There I stand beside the mailbox

with a face so very red,

Instead of mailing you my letter,

I have opened it instead.

It was important for Peter to bring known truths to remembrance. Believers are apt to forget them, and then they do not exert the influence that they ought. Amid the cares, the business, the amusements, and the temptations of the world, the ministers of the gospel render us an essential service, even if they do nothing more than remind us of truths which are well understood, and which we have known before. A pastor need not always aim at originality; he renders an essential service to mankind when he reminds them of what they know but are prone to forget. He endeavors to impress plain and familiar truths on the heart and conscience, for these truths are most important for mankind. Though we may be very firm in our belief of the truth, yet it is appropriate that the grounds of our faith should be stated to us frequently, that they may be always in our remembrance.

I’m reminded of E.B. White’s comment: “People have recut their clothes to follow the fashion...People have remodeled their ideas too—taken in their convictions a little at the waist, shortened the sleeves of their resolve, and fitted themselves out in a new intellectual ensemble copied from a smart design out of the very latest page of history.” When slavery to fashion invades the church, our latest ideas are yesterday’s fads. We adopt the world’s agenda—just a few years too late. Many churchmen sport theological bell-bottoms.

“Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers, and our Country.”

The 22 word prayer that was declared to be unconstitutional and which led to the removal of all prayer from public schools in the case Engel v. Vitale. This little prayer acknowledges God only one time. The Declaration of Independence itself acknowledges God four times.

Within 12 months of Engel v. Vitale, in two more cases called Abington v. Schempp and Murray v. Curlett, the court had completely removed Bible reading, religious classes/instruction. This was a radical reversal of law—and all without precedental justification or Constitutional basis.

If portions of the New Testament were read without explanation, they could be, and had been, psychologically harmful to the child. (Abington v. Schempp, June 17, 1963).

The Court’s justification for removing Bible reading from public schools. The Court at this time declared that only 3% of the nation professed no belief in religion, no belief in God. Although this prayer was consistent with 97% of the beliefs of the people of the United States, the Court decided for the 3% against the majority.

What happens when a nation stops basing its judgments on a Biblical basis?

Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle. George Washington

If the posted copies of the Ten Commandments are to have any effect at all it will be to induce the schoolchildren to read, meditate upon and to perhaps to venerate and obey, the Commandments; this is not a permissible objective.

Stone v. Gramm, 1980, challenging the right of students to “see” the 10 Commandments on the wall of a school. The Court even the defined the posting of the document as a “passive” display, meaning someone would have to stop and look on their own volition.

What does it mean when the Court declares something to be unconstitutional? It means that the Founding Fathers would have opposed this, would not have wanted this. We have staked the whole future of American civilization not on the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.

James Madison, the chief architect of the Constitution

Leonardo da Vinci once took a friend of his to see his masterpiece of the "Last Supper." The friend's first comment was, "The most striking thing in the picture is the cup." The artist immediately took his brush and wiped out the cup, saying, "Nothing in my painting shall attract more attention than the face of my Master."

I was speaking to a young lady in the inquiry-room some time ago, and she was in great distress of mind. She seemed really anxious to be saved, and I could not find out what was the trouble between God and her. I saw there was something that was keeping her back. I quoted promise after promise, but she didn't seem to take hold on any of them. Then we got down on our knees, but still there was no light. Finally I said: "Is there anyone against whom you have bitter feelings?" "Yes; there's a young lady on the other side of the room, talking to your wife, whom I can't forgive." "Ah I've got it now; that's why the blessing won't come to you." "Do you mean to tell me," said the young lady, looking up in my face, "that I can't be saved until I forgive her?" "No you can't! and, if there are any others whom you hate, you must forgive them also." She paused a moment, and then she said: "I will go." It seems that my wife and the other young lady had been going over the same ground, and just at that time the other young lady had resolved to come to ask this one's forgiveness. So they met in the middle of the room, both saying at once: "Will you forgive me?" Oh, what a meeting it was! They knelt together, and joy beamed on their souls, and their difficulties vanished. In a little while they went out of the room with their arms around each other, and their faces lit up with a heavenly glow.

Eleven leaders of conservative renewal movements, representing eight groups from within six Protestant denominations, pooled common concerns at a third annual meeting. Conference convener Matthew J. Welde, of Presbyterians United for Biblical Concerns, noted an increase in renewalist groups, and Gordon-Conwell Seminary professor Richard Lovelace told the group that greater unity among evangelicals, across denominational lines, is possible. One concern of the group: prayerlessness. They cited recent studies showing that “the average pastor surveyed prays only three minutes each day.”

It started with Rent-A-Wife, a small Petaluma, California, company created by Karen Donovan to help clients decorate their homes, balance checkbooks, run errands, etc. Donovan, who launched her business through a small ad in the local newspaper, is already thinking big after four months of operation. She wants to hire her father to initiate Rent-A-Husband and her two teens to start Rent-A-Family. “We can do what any family does,” the newfangled entrepreneur joked. “We can come over and eat all the food, turn on all the lights, put handprints on the walls, take showers and leave the towels on the floor. When clients are finished with Rent-A-Family, they’ll have to call Rent-A-Wife.

Some early studies concerned with prejudice show that we’re quite capable of reordering our perceptions of the world around us in order to maintain our conviction that we’re right. A group of white, middle-class New York City residents were presented with a picture of people on a subway. Two men were in the foreground. One was white, one was black. One wore a business suit, one was clothed in workman’s overalls. One was giving his money to the other who was threatening him with a knife. Now as a matter of fact it was the black man who wore the suit, and it was he who was being robbed by the white laborer. But such a picture didn’t square with the prejudices of the viewers. To them, white men were executives, black men were blue collar workers. Blacks were the robbers, whites the victims. And so they reported what their mind told them they saw—that a black laborer was assaulting a white businessman.

As human beings who desperately desire our lives to be consistent and untroubled, we’ll go to great lengths to reject a message that implies we’re wrong.

When we think of reciprocating, too many of us think in terms of repaying our benefactor. Perhaps recalling an occasion in the life of D. L. Moody will give us a different perspective.

Once, when Mr. Moody was in New York, he was helped tremendously by R. K. Remington. As he was leaving on the train, Mr. Moody grasped his friend by the hand and said, "If you ever come to Chicago, call on me and I will try to return your kindness." Mr. Remington replied, "Don't wait for me; do it to the first man that comes along."

Thou the Cross didst bear: What bear I?

Thou the Thorn didst wear: What wear I?

Thou to death didst dare: What dare I?

Thou for me dost care: What care I?

We might miss the strength of these statements (Matt. 7:21-23 and here) unless we realize that repeating a person’s name is a Hebrew expression of intimacy. When God speaks to Abraham at Mount Moriah, as he is about to plunge the knife into the breast of Isaac, He says, “Abraham, Abraham.” Or when God encourages Jacob in his old age to take the trip to Egypt, He says, “Jacob, Jacob” (Genesis 22:11, 46:2). Compare the call of Moses from the burning bush: “Moses, Moses,” or the call of Samuel in the night, “Samuel, Samuel” (Exodus 3:4; 1 Sam. 3:10). Or consider David’s cry of agony, “Absalom, Absalom,” and Jesus’ cry of desolation on the cross, “My God, my God.” (2 Samuel 18:33; Matt. 27:46). When Jesus confronted Martha, when He warned Peter, and when He wept over Jerusalem—in each case we find the word repeated for intimacy’s sake (Luke 10:41; 22:31; Matt. 23:37). Some pretend to have a deep relationship with Christ, but this claim is not borne out in their lives. There are many who say, “Lord, Lord,” while in fact they live in contempt for Christ’s commandments. “If you love me, you will obey what I command,” said Jesus (John 14:15).

A minister found some young people reading the Douay Version of the New Testament. On noticing a passage in the chapter which was translated "do penance," where the English Version rendered the same word as "repent," he asked them if they knew the difference between penance and repentance. A short silence followed; then a girl asked, "Is this right? Judas did penance, and went and hanged himself; Peter repented and wept bitterly." The girl had it right. "Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out" (Act_3:19).

I was weeping in the most bitter contritition of my heart, when I heard the voice of children from a neighboring house chanting, “take up and read; take up and read.” I could not remember ever having heard the like, so checking the torrent of my tears, I arose, interpreting it to be no other than a command from God to open the book and read the first chapter I should find. Eagerly then I returned to the place where I had laid the volume of the apostle. I seized, opened, and in silence read that section on which my eyes first fell: “Not in revelry and drunkenness, not in licentiousness and lewdness, not is strife and envy; but put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” No further would I read, nor did I need to. For instantly at the end of this sentence, it seemed as if a light of serenity infused into my heart and all the darkness of doubt vanished away. - Augustine

Psa_37:1 begins, "Do not fret," and those words are repeated later in the chapter. The dictionary defines "fret" as "to eat way, gnaw, gall, vex, worry, agitate, wear away."

Whenever H. Norman Wright hears this word, he is reminded of the scene he sees each year when he hikes along the Snake River in the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Colonies of beavers live along the riverbanks, and often he sees trees that are at various stages of being gnawed to the ground by them. Some trees have slight rings around their trunks where the beavers have just started to chew on them. Other trees have several inches of bark eaten away, and some have already fallen to the ground because the beavers have gnawed through the trunks. Worry has the same effect on us. It will gradually eat away at us until it destroys us.

In addition to telling us not to fret, Psalm 37 gives us positive substitutes for worry. First, it says, "Trust [lean on, rely on, and be confident] in the Lord" (Psa_37:3 AMP). Trust is a matter of not attempting to live an independent life or to cope with difficulties alone. It means going to a greater source for strength.

Second, verse four says, "Delight yourself also in the Lord" (AMP). To delight means to rejoice in God and what He has done for us. Let God supply the joy for your life.

Third, verse five says, "Commit your way to the Lord" (AMP). Commitment is a definite act of the will, and it involves releasing your worries and anxieties to the Lord.

And fourth, we are to "rest in the Lord; wait for Him" (Psa_37:7 AMP). This means to submit in silence to what He ordains but to be ready and expectant for what He is going to do in your life.

Stop worrying and start praying (Phi_4:6-9; Psa_34:1-4). The passage in Philippians can be divided into three basic stages. We are given a premise: Stop worrying. We are given a practice: Start praying. And we are given a promise: Peace. The promise is there and available, but we must follow the first two steps in order for the third to occur. We must stop worrying and start praying if we are to begin receiving God's peace.

The results of prayer as a substitute for worry can be vividly seen in a crisis in David's life that prompted him to write Psalm 34. (See 1Sa_21:10; 1Sa_22:2). David had escaped death at the hands of the Philistines by pretending to be insane. He then fled to the cave of Adullam along with four hundred men who were described as distressed, discontented, and in debt. In the midst of all this, David wrote a psalm of praise that begins, "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth" (Psa_34:1 RSV). He did not say he would praise the Lord sometimes, but at all times, even when his enemies were after him.

A replacement hood for hair dryers comes with this printed message (quoted here in its entirety): “Instructions for attaching the hair dryer hood—just clamp, plug, push, squeeze, or turn.”

Title of a New York State legislative document: “Sixteenth Annual Report of the Temporary Commission of Investigation of the State of New York. (The Washington Monthly)

I read about a schoolboy who brought home his report card. It was heavy with poor grades. “What have you to say about this?” asked his father. “One thing for sure,” the boy replied, “Dad, you can be proud. You know I haven’t been cheating!”

What kind of reputation do you have? When people speak of you, are they saying kind things? Jesus honored that unselfish woman who anointed him with perfume by including mention of her good deed in the gospels. She was well thought of by her Lord. She had a good reputation.

How others perceive us is usually established by our consistent behavior. We need to live such honorable lives that even when someone speaks ill of us, others will not believe it of us. We also need to conduct our lives in such a manner that it will be easy for others to say kind words to us.

There are people who make life difficult for others. One such a person lives such a life that it will be hard for the speaker at his funeral to find something about his life worthy of mentioning. Sad.

Even Christians can live such distraught lives that they are looked on as trouble makers, boat rockers and negative knells. Though we study our Bibles, worship our God, and pray fervently, just how do neighbors and friends consider us? Are we known for being faithfully involved and supportive of the church's work, or do we have the reputation of being hard to please and a terror to live with?

If someone were asked to deliver a eulogy for you, what could easily be told "in your memory"? "He (or she) was a warm, gracious, faithful, zealous, dedicated, caring, thoughtful Christian," or "He (or she) was anxious, unhappy, critical, selfish, uninvolved, bitter, unloving, opinionated and socially obnoxious"? One cannot build a noble reputation on what he intends to do some day. One's reputation is affirmed and established daily.

Character is the one thing we make in this world and take with us into the next. The circumstances amid which you live determine your reputation; the truth you believe determines your character.

Reputation is what you are supposed to be; Character is what you are.

Reputation is what you have when you come to a new community; Character is what you have when you go away.

Reputation is made in a moment; Character is built in a lifetime.

Reputation grows like a mushroom; Character grows like an oak.

Your reputation is learned in an hour; Your character is does not come to light for a year.

A single newspaper report gives your reputation; a life of toil gives you your character.

Reputation makes you rich or makes you poor; Character makes you happy or makes you miserable.

Reputation is what men say about you on your tombstone; Character is what angels say about you before the throne of God.

Your character is what God knows you to be. Your reputation is what men think you are.

William Hershey Davis

Spiritual requirements for gaining wisdom:

Reverence (Prov 9:10)

Humility (Prov 11:2, 15:33)

Teachableness (Prov 9:9, 15:31, 19:20)

Diligence (Prov 8:17, 2:4-5)

Uprightness (Prov 2:7)

Faith (James 1:5-8).

Peter Drucker offers insightful guidance to the church when he calls leadership a peak performance by one who is “the trumpet that sounds a clear sound of the organizations’ goals.” His five requirements for this task are amazingly reliable and useful for those who dare to lead churches:

(1) a leader works;

(2) a leader sees his assignment as responsibility rather than rank or privilege;

(3) a leader wants strong, capable, self-assured, independent associates;

(4) a leader creates human energies and vision;

(5) a leader develops followers’ trust by his own consistency and integrity.

The following drama was originally reported by Peter Michelmore in the October, 1987, Reader’s Digest:

Normally the flight from Nassau to Miami took Walter Wyatt, Jr., only sixty-five minutes. But on December 5, 1986, he attempted it after thieves had looted the navigational equipment in his Beechcraft. With only a compass and a hand-held radio, Walter flew into skies blackened by storm clouds. When his compass began to gyrate, Walter concluded he was headed in the wrong direction. He flew his plane below the clouds, hoping to spot something, but soon he knew he was lost. He put out a mayday call, which brought a Coast Guard Falcon search plane to lead him to an emergency landing strip only six miles away. Suddenly Wyatt’s right engine coughed its last and died. The fuel tank had run dry. Around 8 p.m., Wyatt could do little more than glide the plane into the water.

Wyatt survived the crash, but his plane disappeared quickly, leaving him bobbing on the water in a leaky life vest. With blood on his forehead, Wyatt floated on his back. Suddenly he felt a hard bump against his body. A shark had found him. Wyatt kicked the intruder and wondered if he would survive the night. He managed to stay afloat for the next ten hours.

In the morning, Wyatt saw no airplanes, but in the water a dorsal fin was headed for him. Twisting, he felt the hide of a shark brush against him. In a moment, two more bull sharks sliced through the water toward him. Again he kicked the sharks, and they veered away, but he was nearing exhaustion. Then he heard the sound of a distant aircraft. When it was within a half mile, he waved his orange vest. The pilot radioed the Cape York, which was twelve minutes away: “Get moving, cutter! There’s a shark targeting this guy!”

As the Cape York pulled alongside Wyatt, a Jacob’s ladder was dropped over the side. Wyatt climbed wearily out of the water and onto the ship, where he fell to his knees and kissed the deck. He’d been saved. He didn’t need encouragement or better techniques. Nothing less than outside intervention could have rescued him from sure death. How much we are like Walter Wyatt.

Wing-walker Lee Oman slipped from his perch underneath a Waco biplane and dangled from a safety line 1500 feet over the Hillsboro, Oregon, airport during an air show. At first, everyone in the crowd of 40,000 thought the fall was part of Oman’s daring midair act. But after the plane had circled the airport for 20 minutes, it was obvious something had gone wrong. Oman had fallen and didn’t have the strength to pull himself back up. When they saw what was happening, several men jumped into a pickup truck and sped onto the runway. The pilot of the biplane saw the truck and realized what the would-be rescuers had in mind. He gently lowered his dangling human cargo over the vehicle until Oman was within reach. While one man grabbed Oman and pulled him into the truck bed, another cut the wing-walker’s nylon safety harness. Oman was free of the plane’s deadly grasp.

One of the most amazing rescue stories I know about occurred in July of 1976 when, in a swift display of military precision, courage, and sheer daring, Israeli commandos rescued 102 Jewish hostages from Uganda, in Central East Africa. Their plane had been hijacked by Palestinian terrorists and flown to that safe haven protected by the monstrous madman, dictator Idi Amin. The hostages were probably good as dead if something could not be done to save them. Something was done.

The dramatic series of events began shortly after noon, Sunday, June 27, when a white Air France Airbus lifted off the runway at the Athens International Airport. It banked west, then began the flight over the brilliant blue gulf of Corinth and on to the Aegean Sea. It was a beautiful day to fly, a sharp contrast to the events to follow.

The serenity of the early moments of the flight was shattered by a scream as a man and a woman jumped to their feet, brandishing hand grenades, quickly training pistols on the flight attendants. The man stepped toward the pilot’s cabin and ordered the plane taken to the airport at Entebbe, the capital of Uganda. The goal—to force Israel and four other nations to release fifty-three Palestinian or pro-Palestinian terrorists from jail. They made it clear that if the jailed terrorists were not freed, the 102 hostages would be slaughtered like diseased cattle.

Two days later, two thousand miles away, the leaders of Israel sat in the wood-paneled Cabinet Room of the Israeli Knesset. Weary and anxious, they had to face still another threat to their people. In addition to the safety of the Jewish people aboard the flight, they had to consider another issue: If the terrorists got away with this, more acts of violence and terrorism would follow. No Israeli would be safe unless the terrorists could be stopped.

Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minister, Lt. Gen. Mordechai Gur, the military chief of staff, and all the cabinet members decided they should explore the possibility of negotiating a release without bloodshed. But at the same time, they would make an all-out effort to come up with a military option. They had no reason to believe the terrorists would negotiate honorably.

Immediately, a strike force was assembled on a military base in the Israeli desert to begin planning the impossible: a raid on Entebbe to save the hostages. Staff members of El Al, the Israeli national airlines, gave information about possible flight routes, refueling opportunities, and communication facilities. Israel slipped secret agents into Uganda to analyze the situation. Information began pouring back.

On June 30 and July 1, the terrorists released all non-Jewish passengers. This was good news, because fewer hostages increased the chances of success. Israeli intelligence learned that the hostages were being kept in the central open area of the small airport terminal building in the capital city, and that the airport was not wired with explosives. It was another good sign that the terrorists and the Ugandans hadn’t considered the possibility of a rescue attempt. The United States gave Israel satellite photographs of the airport, and Kenya gave secret assurances that an Israeli strike force would be allowed to land at Nairobi to refuel and, on the return trip, care for any wounded.

The raiding party was selected and honed to a strike force specially trained in air-assault operations. They were among the finest military men in the world, led by thirty-year-old Col. Jonathan Netanyahu, who had moved to Israel from the United States when he was only two. Deep in the desert at the isolated military base, they practiced the raid again and again, shaving the ground rescue time down to fifty-five minutes.

The airplanes chosen to take the strike team to Entebbe were four U.S.-built Hercules C-130 cargo planes and two Boeing 707 jets. One jet was an airborne command-and-communications center and the other was a hospital plane. The six planes followed El Al’s usual route to South Africa: down the Red Sea and over Ethiopia and Kenya. The hospital plane landed in Nairobi. The five military aircraft left the Nairobi landing pattern and redirected toward Entebbe. No suspicion was aroused anywhere, because it was assumed that the radar reading of the planes, to this point, was the normal El Al flight to South Africa. The planes then dropped very low to escape radar and flew directly to the airport at Entebbe.

As one cargo plane rolled to a stop in the darkness—as yet undetected because the airport was not being used—its huge tail ramp dropped and out came a large, black Mercedes Benz limousine, closely followed by two Land Rovers filled with Israeli commandos dressed in Palestinian uniforms. In the back of the limousine was bulky Israeli officer dressed like dictator Idi Amin. The license plate on the limousine was identical to that of Amin’s official car. As the party drove up to the terminal building, the Ugandan guards snapped to attention, allowing the Israeli commandos to get within a few yards of the building before the first shots were fired.

Bullets were soon raining on the airport like hail in a thunderstorm. Within ten to twenty minutes, the shooting was over. The commandos ordered the hostages to the planes that were waiting in takeoff position, engines still running. As the hostages ran to the planes, great fireballs erupted in the distance as Israeli commandos blew up the eleven parked MIG jets that would have scrambled to intercept the escaping Israeli planes. As the hostages and commandos rushed onto the huge Hercules, the rear hatch slammed shut. Fifty-three minutes after the raid began, the planes began moving into position for takeoff. The hostages were saved!

The rescue was not letter perfect. Three hostages lost their lives. That was deeply saddening, but all of them may have died otherwise. Remarkably, only one Israeli commando lost his life—the assault-force commander, Col. Jonathan Netanyahu. A sniper in the control tower killed him with a bullet in the back. Netanyahu gave his life to save others.

Stories like this cause me to ask what will move one person to risk death in order that another person might live? Why would Col. Netanyahu risk his life to save someone else from death? If someone is going to die, isn’t if “better him than me?”

To me, this willingness to risk on behalf of others is part of the image of God in man. Something placed by God deep in the core of our being allows us to put ourselves in the helpless person’s shoes, imagine what a terror they are experiencing, and say, “If I were him, I would long for someone to rescue me; therefore, I’ll try to rescue him.” God’s image within us gives rise to this nobility, this courage, dignity, and honor.

As great as the mission at Entebbe was, it pales in comparison to the greatest rescue in history—the saving of mankind by God. Mankind found itself lost in life, held hostage by evil, helpless and hopeless. Jesus risked Himself—even gave His life—to rescue mankind. His is the greatest of all acts, marked with nobility, dignity, and honor. “Rescue” resides within the heart of God.

One of the most amazing rescue stories I know about occurred in July of 1976 when, in a swift display of military precision, courage, and sheer daring, Israeli commandos rescued 102 Jewish hostages from Uganda, in Central East Africa. Their plane had been hijacked by Palestinian terrorists and flown to that safe haven protected by the monstrous madman, dictator Idi Amin. The hostages were probably good as dead if something could not be done to save them. Something was done.

The dramatic series of events began shortly after noon, Sunday, June 27, when a white Air France Airbus lifted off the runway at the Athens International Airport. It banked west, then began the flight over the brilliant blue gulf of Corinth and on to the Aegean Sea. It was a beautiful day to fly, a sharp contrast to the events to follow.

The serenity of the early moments of the flight was shattered by a scream as a man and a woman jumped to their feet, brandishing hand grenades, quickly training pistols on the flight attendants. The man stepped toward the pilot’s cabin and ordered the plane taken to the airport at Entebbe, the capital of Uganda. The goal—to force Israel and four other nations to release fifty-three Palestinian or pro-Palestinian terrorists from jail. They made it clear that if the jailed terrorists were not freed, the 102 hostages would be slaughtered like diseased cattle.

Two days later, two thousand miles away, the leaders of Israel sat in the wood-paneled Cabinet Room of the Israeli Knesset. Weary and anxious, they had to face still another threat to their people. In addition to the safety of the Jewish people aboard the flight, they had to consider another issue: If the terrorists got away with this, more acts of violence and terrorism would follow. No Israeli would be safe unless the terrorists could be stopped.

Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minister, Lt. Gen. Mordechai Gur, the military chief of staff, and all the cabinet members decided they should explore the possibility of negotiating a release without bloodshed. But at the same time, they would make an all-out effort to come up with a military option. They had no reason to believe the terrorists would negotiate honorably.

Immediately, a strike force was assembled on a military base in the Israeli desert to begin planning the impossible: a raid on Entebbe to save the hostages. Staff members of El Al, the Israeli national airlines, gave information about possible flight routes, refueling opportunities, and communication facilities. Israel slipped secret agents into Uganda to analyze the situation. Information began pouring back.

On June 30 and July 1, the terrorists released all non-Jewish passengers. This was good news, because fewer hostages increased the chances of success. Israeli intelligence learned that the hostages were being kept in the central open area of the small airport terminal building in the capital city, and that the airport was not wired with explosives. It was another good sign that the terrorists and the Ugandans hadn’t considered the possibility of a rescue attempt. The United States gave Israel satellite photographs of the airport, and Kenya gave secret assurances that an Israeli strike force would be allowed to land at Nairobi to refuel and, on the return trip, care for any wounded.

The raiding party was selected and honed to a strike force specially trained in air-assault operations. They were among the finest military men in the world, led by thirty-year-old Col. Jonathan Netanyahu, who had moved to Israel from the United States when he was only two. Deep in the desert at the isolated military base, they practiced the raid again and again, shaving the ground rescue time down to fifty-five minutes.

The airplanes chosen to take the strike team to Entebbe were four U.S.-built Hercules C-130 cargo planes and two Boeing 707 jets. One jet was an airborne command-and-communications center and the other was a hospital plane. The six planes followed El Al’s usual route to South Africa: down the Red Sea and over Ethiopia and Kenya. The hospital plane landed in Nairobi. The five military aircraft left the Nairobi landing pattern and redirected toward Entebbe. No suspicion was aroused anywhere, because it was assumed that the radar reading of the planes, to this point, was the normal El Al flight to South Africa. The planes then dropped very low to escape radar and flew directly to the airport at Entebbe.

As one cargo plane rolled to a stop in the darkness—as yet undetected because the airport was not being used—its huge tail ramp dropped and out came a large, black Mercedes Benz limousine, closely followed by two Land Rovers filled with Israeli commandos dressed in Palestinian uniforms. In the back of the limousine was bulky Israeli officer dressed like dictator Idi Amin. The license plate on the limousine was identical to that of Amin’s official car. As the party drove up to the terminal building, the Ugandan guards snapped to attention, allowing the Israeli commandos to get within a few yards of the building before the first shots were fired.

Bullets were soon raining on the airport like hail in a thunderstorm. Within ten to twenty minutes, the shooting was over. The commandos ordered the hostages to the planes that were waiting in takeoff position, engines still running. As the hostages ran to the planes, great fireballs erupted in the distance as Israeli commandos blew up the eleven parked MIG jets that would have scrambled to intercept the escaping Israeli planes. As the hostages and commandos rushed onto the huge Hercules, the rear hatch slammed shut. Fifty-three minutes after the raid began, the planes began moving into position for takeoff. The hostages were saved!

The rescue was not letter perfect. Three hostages lost their lives. That was deeply saddening, but all of them may have died otherwise. Remarkably, only one Israeli commando lost his life—the assault-force commander, Col. Jonathan Netanyahu. A sniper in the control tower killed him with a bullet in the back. Netanyahu gave his life to save others.

Stories like this cause me to ask what will move one person to risk death in order that another person might live? Why would Col. Netanyahu risk his life to save someone else from death? If someone is going to die, isn’t it “better him than me?”

To me, this willingness to risk on behalf of others is part of the image of God in man. Something placed by God deep in the core of our being allows us to put ourselves in the helpless person’s shoes, imagine what a terror they are experiencing, and say, “If I were him, I would long for someone to rescue me; therefore, I’ll try to rescue him.” God’s image within us gives rise to this nobility, this courage, dignity, and honor.

As great as the mission at Entebbe was, it pales in comparison to the greatest rescue in history—the saving of mankind by God. Mankind found itself lost in life, held hostage by evil, helpless and hopeless. Jesus risked Himself—even gave His life—to rescue mankind. His is the greatest of all acts, marked with nobility, dignity, and honor. “Rescue” resides within the heart of God.

To quote G. Campbell Morgan: "I remember hearing a very dear friend of mine in a conference say that if the Lord leads us into difficulties, He leads us out; but that, if we get into difficulties of our own making, we have to get out ourselves. I thank God that is not true of my life. That is not what I have found out. Yes, it is true, if He leads me into difficulty, He will lead me out; but if I wander off in my own foolishness, He will still follow me, and lead me out."

29% of all adults - and 40% of Baby Buster adults - have never heard of spiritual gifts

69% have heard of spiritual gifts but do not know what their spiritual gift is

1% of adults and 9% of senior pastors claim they have the gift of evangelism

1% of adults and 6% of senior pastors claim they have the gift of leadership

the most common gift claimed by church-goers is the gift of teaching (5%)

the most common items mentioned as spiritual gifts which are not biblical gifts are love, kindness, relationships, singing, and listening

7% say they have spoken in tongues

13% have heard of the gift of tongues but say it is not operative today

Hite of Folly. Sensationalistic sex surveys suffered further damage with the release of new research on the fidelity of American spouses. According to a new study by Tom W. Smith of the National Opinion Research Center, roughly 15 percent of married or previously married Americans have committed adultery.

The results largely agree with the 1987 ABC News/Washington Post poll that found 89 percent of spouses faithful. Pop culture gurus Kinsey (37 percent of men), Joyce Brothers (50 percent of women), and Shire Hite (75 percent of women married 5 years) have stoked reports of rampant infidelity.

Researchers James Patterson and Peter Kim report in The Day America Told the Truth that 70 percent of Americans say they have no living heroes.

Researchers for the World Almanac and Book of Facts asked 2000 American eighth-grade students to name prominent people they admired and wanted to be like. Those most frequently mentioned by the teens as their heroes were celebrities such as Burt Reynolds, Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, and the late John Belushi. Commenting on this, columnist Sidney J. Harris lamented the fact that every one of the 30 prominent personalities who were named was either an entertainer or an athlete. He noted that statesmen, authors, painters, musicians, architects, doctors, and astronauts failed to capture the imagination of those students. He further suggested that the heroes and heroines created by our society are people who have made it big, but not necessarily people who have done big things.

Not everyone is ready to accept the fact that the best is yet to be. This is true for a number of reasons.

Some are content to live in the past. They delight in the "good old days."

Many are content to live mediocre lives. They are content to drift from day to day.

Insecurity hinders many persons from believing that the best is yet to be. They want to hold on to their position or things. They will never know the excitement of launching out by faith, or waiting for the great things of tomorrow.

Negative thinking guides the decisions and attitudes of many people. They choose to accept the premise that the worst is yet to come. They will get what they wish for if they are not careful.

Scores have no goals for their lives. They don't know where they are going today, much less tomorrow.

A few think they don't have any needs. They are pleased with the way things are in their lives (cf. Rev 3:17). There is always room for improvement in everyone's life.

Fear is always a major enemy to progress. It also hinders a person from becoming excited about the future (cf. 2Ti 1:7).

Billy Bray, the Cornish miner, whose rugged piety has been a blessing to many, says that one year his crop of potatoes turned out so poorly that, when he was digging them, Satan, at his elbow, said, "There, Billy, isn't that poor pay for serving your Father the way you have all the year? Just see those small potatoes!" He stopped digging and replied, "Ah, Satan, at it again; talking against my Father, bless His name! Why, when I served you I did not get any potatoes at all. What are you talking about?" And on he went digging and praising the Lord for small potatoes.

Studies in Theology, L. Boettner, Eerdmans, 1947, pp. 9-43

Strengthening Your Grip, C. Swindoll, p. 179

Bibliotheca Sacra, 136:541:3, 136:542:3, 136:543:3 136:544:3

Decision-Making and the Will of God, pp. 323ff

Immortality, the Other Side of Death, G. R. Habermas, J. P. Moreland, Nelson, 1992, pp. 144ff.

Liberating Ministry From The Success Syndrome, K Hughes, Tyndale, 1988, pp. 153ff.

Description of, J. Karl Laney, Marching Orders, p. 53.

Leadership, Vol X, #3, Summer, 1989, p. 65, "Helping the Sexually Abused"

God Came Near, Max Lucado, Multnomah Press, 1987, p. 57

Immortality, the Other Side of Death, G.R. Habermas, J.P. Moreland, Nelson, 1992, pp. 209ff

Bibliotheca Sacra, 139:556:342

The Moral Catastrophe, David Hocking, Harvest House, 1990, p. 29ff

The Rebirth of America, A. S. DeMoss Foundation, 1986, pp. 99ff

The Moral Catastrophe, David Hocking, Harvest House, 1990, pp. 101ff

The Gospel Message, T. Constable, in Walvoord: A Tribute, Donald Campbell, ed., Moody, 1982, p. 201.

“What is the Gospel”, in So Great Salvation, Charles Ryrie, Victor Books, 1989, pp. 37ff

God Came Near, Max Lucado, Multnomah Press, 1987, p. 39ff

A good pilot must have a healthy fear of gravity. This respect is not in the conscious mind of most pilots, but it forms the foundation of everything they do. When a headstrong pilot comes up against gravity, gravity will win-no matter how strongly the pilot opposes it. A pilot who does not respect gravity is not around to tell us about it. In a sense, this healthy respect of gravity is similar to our living in submission to God's sovereign will. Ultimately, whether or not we choose to accept it, God's will wins out.

A gentleman once took exception to a message based upon the Word of God concerning Jew and Gentile, that both are guilty before God. The preacher remarked, "But the Word of God distinctly says, 'There is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God' " (Rom 3:22-23). The preacher's friend then replied, "Do you mean to say that there is no difference between an honest man and a dishonest one, between an intemperate man and a sober man?" "No," the preacher remarked, "I did not affirm that there was no room for comparison between such cases; but my position is, if two men were standing here together, one an intemperate man and the other a sober man, I should say of the one, 'This man is an intemperate sinner; the other is a sober sinner.' " Our friend did not know how to meet the difficulty, but answered, "Well, I don't like such teaching." Very quietly the preacher replied, "Then I will make some concession and meet your difficulty. I will admit that many are 'superior sinners,' and that you are a superior sinner." What consternation was pictured on the face of the respectable sinner. Sometimes it is harder for respectable sinners to be justified because of their self-righteousness than it is for out-and-out sinners.