Pastoral Resources

I had a little wish wand and waved it to and fro

Whenever thoughts turned heavenward or the other place you go.

I thought it safe to trust it with my whole eternal soul

so I wished the life I’d lived on earth would get me to my goal.

I wished that all would get to heaven whatever they believed

that Buddha sat at God’s right hand that New Age be received.

I wished that Paul would change his mind that Jesus wasn’t right

because He spoke of lostness and a dark eternal night;

about the way to heaven one truth, one narrow gate,

and I was so broadminded that I wished away my fate!

So I waved my little wish wand in the radiant face of Him

who met me at the gate of heaven and wouldn’t let me in.

I wrote to heaven’s congressman, but he courteously replied

that I should have left my wish wand at the feet of Him who died!

For wishes could not wish away a lifetime of rejection,

and wishes could not dress my soul in heaven’s own perfection.

And wishes could not save me now for hell was so obscene,

that wishes there die ghastly deaths, strangled with a scream.

So I took my little wish wand into hell the day I died,

and I waved it at the serpent as he slithered to my side.

It was dark but I could see him and all I knew was fear,

and no matter how I waved my wand he wouldn’t disappear!

Oh I wish that I had wished aright I wished I lived again

I wished I had a body that was whole, not racked with pain.

I wished I could remember something other than the dirt.

I wished I could forget my sin. So every memory hurt.

Oh, I wished and wished and wished that I could have another chance

to cast upon the Crucified a trusting, saving glance.

But the devil took my wish wand and he laughed right in my face

and I went to live eternally in darkness and disgrace,

I never wished a wish again I had no heart to try

for hell is where hope ended, and where all my wishes died!

The Pauline Circle, F. F. Bruce, Eerdmans, 1985, p. 29

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In the first moments of Monday, April 15th, 1912, many men and women sought their own best, sometimes at the expense of others. However, several seldom-celebrated individuals ignored that urge for mere self-preservation and followed a more ancient code. “Greater love has no one than this,” the New Testament tells us, “than he lay down his life for his friends.”

John “Jack” Phillips and Harold Bride had been working feverishly, trying to catch up on a huge backlog of passenger messages to be sent to the mainland via the wireless station at Cape Race, Newfoundland. The in-box was loaded with outgoing messages. It was no wonder they didn’t know the ship was in trouble.

The Titanic’s captain, E. J. Smith, poked his head in the wireless shack just after midnight. “We’ve struck an iceberg...,” the Captain announced. “You better get ready to send out a call for assistance, but don’t send it until I tell you.” The captain returned a few minutes later: “Send the call for assistance.” He handed them a piece of paper with the Titanic’s position.

From that point on, First Operator Phillips and Second Operator Bride remained at their post, communicating via Morse Code with many ships, but the one that made a difference was the Carpathia, some 58 miles to the southeast.

Phillips and Bride stayed at their post literally to the final minutes, as the sea water began to rise toward the radio room. They were able to clmb onto an overturned “collapsible” lifeboat. Though the frostbitten Bride survived, Phillips died sometime during the night from exposure, silently slipping off the lifeboat and into the icy waters.

Arthur H. Rostron commanded the Carpathia, a much smaller passenger ship of the rival Cunard line. Immediately upon receiving word of Titanic’s plight from his ship’s wireless operator, Rostron changed course and fired up the boilers to full steam. Though her top speed was only 14 knots, the Carpathia would soon be steaming through the same ice field that crippled and sank the Titanic.

Within minutes Rostron had summoned all his department heads to the bridge and delivered detailed instruction. They had three-and-a-half hours to prepare for hundreds of ocean refugees. Besides his reputation for quick decisions and high energy, Rostron was also known for another character trait. he was a man of prayer.

After all preparations were well under way and he was briefed as to their progress, he lifted his cap a few inches above his head and in the darkness of the bridge silently moved his lips in prayer. After the survivors were all aboard, and before leaving the scene, Rostron led a brief memorial service in memory of those perished and in thanksgiving for those spared.

“When day broke,” the captain told a friend years later, “I saw the ice I had steamed through during the night, I shuddered, and could only think that some other Hand than mine was on that helm during the night.”

Much earlier that same night, hours before the Titanic’s starboard bow fatally glanced the iceberg, the Reverend John Harper had braved the cold to stand on deck with a few other passengers after dinner. A beautiful sunset colored the western horizon. “It will be beautiful in the morning,” Harper said to his sister-in-law, who along with his 6-year-old daughter, Nina, was traveling with him to Moody Church in Chicago.

After the collision, Harper, a Baptist pastor from Scotland, awakened Nina from her slumber, wrapped her in a blanket and carried her up to a deck. He kissed her good-bye and handed her to a crewman, who gave her to Harper’s sister-in-law in lifeboat #11. That was the last the two saw of him.

Though his later exploits are not certain, it has been reported that Harper gave his lifebelt to another man before he went down with the ship. A brochure in the possession of Harper’s grandson, printed after the disaster, was recently shown to an American writing a book on Harper. In the brochure’s Foreword is written a first-person account by a nameless survivor. In this brochure, whether legend or true, the survivor tells of finding himself, with hundreds of others, “struggling in the cold, dark waters of the Atlantic.”

“I caught hold of something and clung to it for dear life, the wail of the perishing all around was ringing in my ears.” A stranger drifted near him and encouraged him to look to Jesus for his soul’s safety.

The two drifted apart and then together again. The stranger, floating alongside in the 28-degree waters, encouraged him again to call out to Jesus. As they drifted apart, the stranger could be hard making his same plea to others struggling in the moonless night.

“Then and there,” the nameless survivor concludes, “with two miles of water beneath me, in my desperation I cried to Christ to save me.” This same survivor later claimed that to his knowledge the selfless counselor, thinking of the eternal welfare of others in his final minutes, was the Rev. John Harper.

Have you heard the fable of the wolves and the dogs? It seems the wolves were afraid of the dogs for they were many and strong, so they sent out a spy to observe them. On his return the scout said, "It is true the dogs are many, but there are not many who can harm us. There are dogs of so many kinds one can hardly count them, and, as they came marching on, I observed that they were all snapping right and left at one another. I could see clearly, though they all hate us wolves, each dog hates every other dog with all his heart." How we need to take to heart the words of Paul to the Galatians: "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another" (Gal 5:14-15).

The wonder of its formation-the way in which it grew-one of the mysteries of time.

The wonder of its unification-a library of 66 books, yet one Book.

The wonder of its age-the most ancient of all books.

The wonder of its sales-the best-seller of all time, far ahead of any other book.

The wonder of its interest-the only book in the world read by all classes of people.

The wonder of its language-written largely by uneducated men, yet the best book from a literary standpoint.

The wonder of its preservation-the most hated of all books, yet it continues to exist!

John Ruskin was walking along the streets of London one rainy day when he noticed the great quantities of mud at his feet. The thought occurred to him that it would be interesting to have the mud analyzed to find out exactly what inorganic elements were in it. This was accordingly done, and it was found that London mud consisted of sand, clay, soot, and water. He was struck by the fact that these are the very substances from which our precious jewels and gems are formed. From the sand come the onyx, agate, beryl, jasper, amethyst; from the clay come the sapphire, ruby, emerald, topaz; and from the soot, the diamond. London mud composed of precious jewels! Man cannot transform the mud into those glittering points of light, but God transforms and recreates the mud-poor, sinful, wayward humanity-into redeemed souls who sing a new song and carry with them glad tidings of great joy!

Swindoll, Quest For Character, p. 17-18

“For all the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen, unto the glory of God by us” (II Corinthians 1:20).

The word “amen” is a most remarkable word. It was transliterated directly from the Hebrew into the Greek of the New Testament, then into Latin and into English and many other languages, so that it is practically a universal word. It has been called the best-known word in human speech. The word is directly related--in fact, almost identical--to the Hebrew word for “believe” (aman), or “faithful.” Thus, it came to mean “sure” or truly,” an expression of absolute trust and confidence. When one believes God, he indicates his faith by an “amen.” When God makes a promise, the believer’s response is “amen”--”so it will be!” In the New Testament, it is often translated “verily” or “truly.” When we pray according to His Word and His will, we know God will answer, so we close with an “amen,” and so also do we conclude a great hymn or anthem of praise and faith.

The word is even a title of Christ Himself. The last of His letters to the seven churches begins with a remarkable salutation by the glorified Lord: “These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God” (Revelation 3:14).

We can be preeminently certain that His Word is always faithful and true, because He is none other than the Creator of all things, and thus He is our eternal “Amen.” As our text reminds us, every promise of God in Christ is “yea and amen,” as strong an affirmation of truth as can be expressed in the Greek language.

It is, therefore, profoundly meaningful that the entire Bible loses with an “amen.” “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen” (Revelation 22:21), assuring everyone who reads these words that the whole Book is absolutely true and trustworthy. Amen! - HMM

It is clear that when we think of the word “wrath” as applicable to God, it must be divested of everything that is like human passion, and especially the passion of revenge. It is one of the most obvious rules of interpretation that we are not to apply to God passions and feelings which, among us, have their origin in evil. [God’s wrath] is the opposition of the divine character against sin; and the determination of the divine mind to express that opposition in a proper way, by excluding the offender from the favors which He bestows on the righteous.

We admire the character of a father who is opposed to disorder, vice, and disobedience in his family, and who expresses his opposition in a proper way. We admire the character of a ruler who is opposed to all crime in the community, and who expresses those feelings in the law. Why shall we not be equally pleased with God, who is opposed to all crime in all parts of the universe, and who determines to express His opposition in the proper way for the sake of preserving order and promoting peace?

A television program preceding the 1988 Winter Olympics featured blind skiers being trained for slalom skiing, impossible as that sounds. Paired with sighted skiers, the blind skiers were taught on the flats how to make right and left turns. When that was mastered, they were taken to the slalom slope, where their sighted partners skied beside them shouting, “Left!” and “Right!” As they obeyed the commands, they were able to negotiate the course and cross the finish line, depending solely on the sighted skiers’ word. It was either complete trust or catastrophe.

What a vivid picture of the Christian life! In this world, we are in reality blind about what course to take. We must rely solely on the Word of the only One who is truly sighted—God Himself. His Word gives us the direction we need to finish the course.

The Word of the Father, by whom all time was created, was made flesh and was born in time for us. He, without whose divine permission no day completes its course, wished to have one day for His human birth. In the bosom of His Father He existed before all the cycles of ages; born of an earthly mother, He entered upon the course of the years on this day.

The Maker of man became man that He, Ruler of the stars, might be nourished at the breast; that He, the Bread, might be hungry; that He, the Fountain, might thirst; that He, the Light, might sleep; that He, the Way, might be wearied by the journey; that He, the Truth, might be accused by false witnesses; that He, the Judge of the living and the dead, might be brought to trial by a mortal judge; that He, Justice, might be condemned by the unjust; that He, Discipline, might be scourged with whips; that He, the Foundation, might be suspended upon a cross; that Courage might be weakened; that Security might be wounded; that Life might die.

To endure these and similar indignities for us, to free us, unworthy creatures, He who existed as the Son of God before all ages, without a beginning, deigned to become the Son of Man in these recent years. He did this although He who submitted to such great evils for our sake had done no evil and although we, who were the recipients of so much good at His hands, had done nothing to merit these benefits.

Mr. Spurgeon once preached what in his judgment was one of his poorest sermons. He stammered and floundered and felt that his message was a complete failure. He was greatly humiliated and when he got home, he fell on his knees and said, "Lord God, Thou canst do something with nothing. Bless that poor sermon." All through the week he uttered that prayer. He woke up in the night and prayed about it. He determined the next Sunday he would redeem himself by preaching a great sermon. Sure enough, his sermon the next Sunday went off beautifully. At the close, the people crowded him and covered him with praise. Spurgeon went home pleased with himself and that night he slept like a baby, but he said to himself, "I'll watch the results of those two sermons." What were they? From the one that had seemed a failure he was able to trace forty-one conversions. From the magnificent sermon he was unable to discover even a single soul that had been saved. Spurgeon's explanation was that the Spirit of God used the one and did not use the other.

1. who cannot be bought;

2. whose word is their promise;

3. who put character above wealth;

4. who possess opinions and a will;

5. who are larger than their vocations;

6. who do not hesitate to take chances;

7. who will not lose their individuality in a crowd;

8. who will be honest in small things as well as in great things;

9. who will make no compromise with wrong;

10. whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires;

11. who will not say they do it “because everybody else does it”;

12. who are true to their friends through good report and

13. evil report, in adversity as well as in prosperity;

14. who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning, and hardheadedness are the best qualities for winning success;

15. who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth when it is unpopular, who can say no with emphasis, although the rest of the world says yes.

Exactly what does the Lord mean by "mourning," as we find it in the second Beatitude? (Mat 5:4) It is not just shedding tears or inflicting physical harm on ourselves. Church history tells us of a group of men called the Anchorites who lived in the fourth century. They dwelt in solitude, fasted, and injured their bodies. The nearer they could bring themselves to the level of the animals the better pleased they were. One sect of Anchorites actually grazed with the common herds in the fields of Mesopotamia, and they were hence called boskoi, or "shepherds." They acquired a great reputation for holiness because of their mournful attitude toward life. One of the most famous of these monks was Simeon Stylites (395-451a.d.), so called from his standing for years on the top of a column sixty feet high until his muscles became rigid. Some of these hermits hung weights on their bodies; others kept themselves in cages; all endeavored to make themselves holy through being miserable. The motive of many of these men may have been truly honorable, a desire to escape from the vices of the great cities. But the greater the corruption of society, the more need for holy men and women to live in that society. The world can only become darker by the withdrawing of its lights and more corrupt through the removing of the salt scattered over it.

who cannot be bought;

whose word is their bond;

who put character above wealth;

who possess opinions and a will;

who are larger than their vocations;

who do not hesitate to take chances;

who will not lose their individuality in a crowd;

who will be as honest in small things as in great things;

who will make no compromise with wrong;

whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires;

who will not say they do it” because everybody else does it”;

who are true to their friends through good report and evil report, in adversity as well as in prosperity;

who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning, and hardheadedness are the best qualities for winning success;

who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth when it is unpopular;

who can say “no” with emphasis, although all the rest of the world says “yes.”

Mark Twain, became morose and weary of life. Shortly before his death, he wrote, “A myriad of men are born; they labor and sweat and struggle;...they squabble and scold and fight; they scramble for little mean advantages over each other; age creeps upon them; infirmities follow; ...those they love are taken from them, and the joy of life is turned to aching grief. It (the release) comes at last—the only unpoisoned gift earth ever had for them—and they vanish from a world where they were of no consequence,...a world which will lament them a day and forget them forever.”

A man said to D. L. Moody, "Now that I am converted, have I got to give up the world?" Mr. Moody answered, "No, you do not have to give up the world; if you have a good ringing testimony for the Son of God, the world will give you up pretty quick; they will not want you around."

The richest man in the world, Croesus, once asked the wisest man in the world, Thales, "What is God?" The philosopher requested a day in which to deliberate, and then for another, and then for another, and another-and at length confessed that he was not able to answer. The longer he deliberated, the more difficult it was for him to frame an answer. The fiery Tertullian, the early Church Father, eagerly seized upon this incident and said it was an example of the world's ignorance of God outside of Christ. "There," he exclaimed, "is the wisest man in the world, and he cannot tell you who God is. But the most ignorant mechanic among the Christians knows God and is able to make Him known unto others." If God is to be revealed at all, He has to reveal Himself, and He has done so through Jesus Christ.

The richest man in the world, Croesus, once asked the wisest man in the world, Thales, "What is God?" The philosopher requested a day in which to deliberate, and then for another, and then for another, and another-and at length confessed that he was not able to answer. The longer he deliberated, the more difficult it was for him to frame an answer. The fiery Tertullian, the early Church Father, eagerly seized upon this incident and said it was an example of the world's ignorance of God outside of Christ. "There," he exclaimed, "is the wisest man in the world, and he cannot tell you who God is. But the most ignorant mechanic among the Christians knows God and is able to make Him known unto others." If God is to be revealed at all, He has to reveal Himself, and He has done so through Jesus Christ.

A small boy asked an aged sailor, "What is the wind?" The old man replied, "I don't know, son; I can't tell you what the wind is, but I can tell you how to hoist a sail."

It is not really necessary to know all about the wind if we know how to set our sails. We simply make them ready, and let the wind come.

This is what we are doing in a worship service-setting our sails for whatever gale the tomorrows may bring. Here, as it were, we adjust the wind-catching paraphernalia of our lives. Then we will be ready for life's gentle zephyrs or its howling storms. Here we align ourselves, set ourselves right with reality, and then, whatever winds may blow, we can receive their forward-thrusting force and sail on.

At one point early in Julius Caesar’s political career, feelings ran so high against him that he thought it best to leave Rome. He sailed for the Aegean island of Rhodes, but en route the ship was attacked by pirates and Caesar was captured. The pirates demanded a ransom of 12,000 gold pieces, and Caesar’s staff was sent away to arrange the payment. Caesar spent almost 40 days with his captors, jokingly telling the pirates on several occasions that he would someday capture and crucify them to a man. The kidnappers were greatly amused, but when the ransom was paid and Caesar was freed, the first thing he did was gather a fleet and pursue the pirates. They were captured and crucified…to a man!

Such was the Romans’ attitude toward crucifixion. It was to be reserved for the worst of criminals, a means of showing extreme contempt for the condemned. The suffering and humiliation of a Roman crucifixion were unequaled.

In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their “flying machine” off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: “We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas.”

Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, “How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas.” He totally missed the big news--man had flown!

Someone has written that people use Xmas and it means Xhaustion, Xcuses, Xchanges, Xcesses, Xtravagances, Xasperations, Xhibitions and worldly Xcitement How much better to make the Lord the very center of our Christmas observance Keep Christ in Christmas!

A bank manager saw a new employee eagerly counting hundred-dollar bills. “You look like an industrious young man,” the manager said. “Where did you receive your financial education?”

“Yale,” replied the man.

“Excellent,” responded the manager as he shook the man’s hand and introduced himself. “And what is your name?” he asked.

“Yim Yonson,” the man answered.

This December 24, the Pope will declare the beginning of the Year of Jubilee, and four special “Holy Doors” will be opened in Rome with the most important being in St. Peter’s Basilica. People from all over the world—an expected 30 million or more—will make a pilgrimage to Rome during 2000 seeking forgiveness of all past sins by walking through the doorways, which are opened only during Jubilee years. Many will travel thousands of miles, sacrificing time and money, in an effort to obtain eternal life. For these seekers, Rome is the place to be in 2000.

The Jubilee occurs every 25 years, but the dawn of a new millennium is bringing much more attention to this particular Year of Jubilee and will bring a greater number of pilgrims.

Someone has figured that in the average life span of 70 years, we will spend our time this way:

Eight years in amusements

Six years at the dinner table

Five years in transportation

Four years in conversation

Three years sick or convalescing

Less than one year for God-that is if a person attends a 90-minute service every Sunday and prays every day for 10 minutes.

Remember when farmers used a collar to harness a team of horses or mules to pull a plow or wagon? This collar was made of leather with padding to protect the animal's neck and forequarters so he would not become disabled. The collar was made with a leather strap and buckle at the top, and the bottom was rounded to provide comfort to the animal. When the harness was put on the collar, it was designed to get the most even pull and least pressure on the horse. If the equipment shifted, the horse would develop a sore. Then the animal would become so stiff-necked that you could not turn him at all. He would go one way only.

Brethren sometimes get the same way. Some will not adjust to situations when they know they should but will not because of custom or tradition and become stiff-necked, instead of doing what God wants done.

Pro 19:20 says, "Hear counsel and receive instruction that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end." Let us wear the yoke of God with pleasure and breach not against the harness that guides us in His way. "The discretion of a man deferreth his anger, and it is his glory to pass over a transgression" (Pro 19:11). Think long before you rebel.

"The young Christian is still carnal," says Andrew Murray. "Regeneration is a birth: the center and root of the personality, the spirit, has been renewed and taken possession of by the Spirit of God. But time is needed for its power from that center to extend through all the circumference of his being. The kingdom of God is like unto a seed; the life in Christ is a growth, and it would be against the laws of nature and grace alike if we expected from the babe in Christ the strength that can only be found in the young men, or the rich experience of the fathers."

In London, when I was there in 1867, I was told a story which made a very deep impression upon me. A young French nobleman came there to see a doctor, bringing letters from the French Emperor. The Emperor Napoleon III. had a great regard for this young man, and the doctor wanted to save him. He examined the young man, and saw there was something on his mind. "Have you lost any property? What is troubling you? You have something weighing upon your mind," said the doctor. "Oh, there is nothing particular." "I know better have you lost any relations?" asked the doctor. "No, none within the last three years." "Have you lost any reputation in your country?" "No." The doctor studied for a few minutes, and then said, "I must know what is on your mind I must know what is troubling you." And the young man said, "My father was an infidel my grandfather was an infidel, and I was brought up an infidel, and for the last three years these words have haunted me, 'Eternity, and where shall it find me?'" "Ah," said the doctor, "you have come to the wrong physician." "Is there no hope for me?" cried the young man. "I walk about in the day time I lie down at night, and it comes upon me continually: 'Eternity, and where shall I spend it?' Tell me, is there any hope for me?" The doctor said: "Now just sit down and be quiet. A few years ago I was an infidel. I did not believe in God, and was in the same condition in which you are in." The doctor took down his Bible and turned to the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah and read: "He was wounded for our transgressions He was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed." And he read on through this chapter.

When he had finished, the young man said: "Do you believe this, that He voluntarily left heaven, came down to this earth, and suffered and died that we might be saved?" "Yes, I believe it. That brought me out of infidelity, out of darkness into light." And he preached Christ and His salvation and told him of heaven and then suggested that they get down on their knees and pray. And when I went there in 1867 a letter had been received from that young nobleman, who wrote to Dr. Whinston in London, telling him that the question of "eternity, and where he should spend it" was settled, and troubled him no more. My friends, the question of eternity, and where we are going to spend it, forces itself upon everyone of us. We are staying here for a little day. Our life is but a fibre and it will soon be snapped. I may be preaching my last sermon. To-night may find me in eternity. By the grace of God say that you will spend it in heaven.

Ardent nationalists who awaited an opportunity to revolt against Rome.

Resisted paying taxes to Rome or to the temple.

One particular tax revolt against Rome, led by Judas the Galilean (6 B.C.), secured Galilee’s reputation as a seedbed of revolutionaries.

Blamed by some for the collapse of Judea to Rome in the war of A.D. 66-70. Josephus, a Jewish historian, claimed that they degenerated into mere assassins or sicarii (“dagger-men”).

Sided with the Pharisees in supporting Jewish Law.

Opposed the Herodians and Sadducees, who tried to maintain the political status quo.

Intolerant of the Essenes and later the Christians for their tendencies toward nonviolence.

Two recruited by Jesus were Judas Iscariot and Simon the Cananite.

From a theater review: “The big trouble was that the seats faced the stage.”

Theft in the workplace is commonly estimated to cost between $30 billion and $40 billion a year in the U.S. That is in cash, goods and property. These figures are based on a 1975 report by the American Management Association in New York, which judged the loss as due to these 11 “nonviolent crimes”: employee pilferage, kickbacks or bribery, security theft and fraud, embezzlement, rson, burglary, vandalism, shoplifting, insurance fraud, check fraud, and credit-card fraud. What’s more, there are employee behaviors labeled “intangible crime” by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce or “time theft” by Robert Half International, headquartered in Menlo Park, Calif. Robert Half estimates that time theft costs U.S. businesses $230 billion a year. These crimes cover the fake sick day, getting someone else to punch in your card on the time clock, making personal telephone calls, conducting private business in the workplace. There is tremendous argument over whether unauthorized telephone calls to home or any of these other activities should be toted as part of theft loss.

Rudyard Kipling at one time was so popular that his writings were getting ten shillings per word. A few college students, however, did not appreciate Kipling's writings; they facetiously sent him a letter and enclosed ten shillings. It read, "Please, send us your best word." They got back a letter from Kipling that said, "Thanks."

Theodore Epp, founder of Back to the Bible radio ministry, realized something was wrong when he stopped receiving critical mail. Convicted that he was not challenging the flock enough, he changed his preaching. “I’m afraid that when I’m pleasing everybody, I’m not pleasing the Lord,” he later said, “and pleasing the Lord is what counts.”

This is not to suggest that a pastor is only successful when he is upsetting people! But he must be certain that he is first and foremost faithful to the One he serves. He is fulfilling a divine commission when he preaches. Just as an ambassador is entrusted not with his own message but with his superior’s message, so the minister is entrusted with the Word of God. Before it is delivered, therefore, every message should be laid at the foot of His throne with one questions: “Is it faithful to You, my Lord?” Or as one German pastor would always pray in the pulpit, “Cause my mind to fear whether my heart means what I say.”

Owen Wister, an old college friend of Theodore Roosevelt, was visiting him at the White House. Roosevelt’s daughter Alice kept running in and out of the room until Wister finally asked if there wasn’t something Roosevelt could do to control her.

“Well,” said the President, “I can do one of two things. I can be President of the United States or I can control Alice. I cannot possibly do both.”

The story is told of a group of theologians who were discussing the tension between predestination and free will. Things became so heated that the group broke up into two opposing factions. But one man, not knowing which to join, stood for a moment trying to decide. At last he joined the predestination group. “Who sent you here?” they asked. “No one sent me,” he replied. “I came of my own free will.” “Free will!” they exclaimed. “You can’t join us! You belong with the other group!” So he followed their orders and went to the other clique. There someone asked, “When did you decide to join us?” The young man replied, “Well, I didn’t really decide—I was sent here.” “Sent here!” they shouted. “You can’t join us unless you have decided by your own free will!”

Technicalities (sometimes unavoidable in theology, as in any field of scientific study) will be pursued only for the sake of simplicity. Simplicity of principle, once it is achieved, makes for straightforwardness of practice. The best theological maps are clear and have these seven basic qualities.

First, they are accurate in their presentation of material, both human and biblical. Nothing can compensate for failure here.

Second, they are God-centered, recognizing divine sovereignty at the heart of everything and showing God’s control of problematical events, both actual and imaginable.

Third, they are doxological, giving God glory for his glorious achievements in creation, providence, and grace, and encouraging a spirit of joyous, trustful worship and adoration in all circumstances.

Fourth, they are future-oriented, for Christianity is a religion of hope. Often the only sense theology can make of present trends, conditions, and behavior patterns, as they both mark society and touch individuals, is to diagnose them as fruits of sin and hold forth the promise that God will one day wipe them out and unveil something better in their place.

Fifth, they are Christ-related in two ways. On the one hand, they proclaim the centrality of Jesus, our mediator, prophet, priest, and king, in all God’s present dealings with, and future plans for, the human race. On the other hand, they reformulate our notional perplexities by turning them into practical issues of faithfully following the Savior whom we love along the path of self-denial and cross-bearing, according to his own explicit call (see Luke 9:23). They show us how to walk patiently with him through experiences that defeat our minds and feel like death into the experienced reality of personal internal resurrection. This is the biblical way to live the Christian life, and good theological maps lead us right into it.

Sixth, such maps are church-centered. The New Testament presents the church as central in God’s plan. Christians are meant to journey through life not in isolation but in company with fellow-believers, supporting them and being supported by them.

Seventh, good theological maps are freedom-focused. They are tuned in to the decision-making processes of authentically Christian men and women; that is , people who know themselves to be free from the law as a system of salvation yet desire to live by it, first out of love for the law itself, which now delights them with its vision of righteousness; and third out of self-love, since they know that there is no real happiness for them either here or hereafter without holiness.

Theology constantly calls for deliberate, responsible decisions about how we are going to live, and it never forgets that Christian decisions are commitments to action on principle (not out of mindless conformity), undertaken in freedom (not from external pressure or bullying), and motivated primarily by love of God and of justice (not by fear). Good theology thus molds Christian character, neither demeaning nor diminishing us but rather enhancing our God-given dignity.

Martin Luther said, “The devil takes flight at the sound of music, just as he does at the words of theology, and for this reason the prophets always combined theology and music, the teaching of truth and the chanting of Psalms and hymns.” “After theology, I give the highest place and greatest honor to music.”

Theology is practical: especially now...If you do not listen to Theology, that will not mean that you have no ideas about God. It will mean that you have a lot of wrong ones—bad, muddled, out-of-date ideas.

Some years ago the magazine “Changing Times” published some of the theories of an obscure scientist named Gumperson. This gentleman had come up with a theory about life that he formulated into a basic law: That the contradictory of a welcome probability will assert itself whenever such an eventuality is likely to be most frustrating.

That sounds pretty complicated, but the sense of it can be easily seen in the following “laws” that Dr. Gumperson formulated from his basic premise...

That you can throw a burned match out of the window of your car and start a forest fire, but you can use boxes of matches and the entire edition of the Sunday paper without being able to start a fire under the dry logs in your fireplace.

That after a raise in salary you will have less money at the end of the month than you had before.

That person who buys the most raffle tickets has the least chance of winning.

That good parking places are always on the other side of the street.

That a child can be exposed to the mumps for weeks without catching them but can catch them without exposure the day before the family goes on vacation.

Gumperson, it is said, met an untimely death shortly after WWII. He was walking along a highway, dutifully obeying the rule of walking to the left facing traffic, when hit from behind by an Englishman who was hugging the left side of the road.

Back in 1839 James Espy claimed that rain could easily be produced by heating the air. But his plan to saturate parched farmland by building great log fires across vast stretches of the American West never materialized—for which Espy’s contemporaries were probably grateful! Later in the 19th century a new theory emerged: loud noises would bring rain. This theory was put to the test in Texas, where Robert Dyrenforth piled up enough munitions for a small war. He blasted away at the skies, but as one observer wrote, “[Dyrenforth] attacked from the front and rear, by the right and left flank. But the sky remained clear as the complexion of a Saxon maid.”

If you think your family has problems, consider the marriage mayhem created when 76-year-old Bill Baker of London recently wed Edna Harvey. She happened to be his granddaughter’s husband’s mother. That’s where the confusion began, according to Baker’s granddaughter, Lynn.

“My mother-in-law is now my step-grandmother. My grandfather is now my stepfather-in-law. My mom is my sister-in-law and my brother is my nephew. But even crazier is that I’m now married to my uncle and my own children are my cousins.”

From this experience, Lynn should gain profound insight into the theory of relativity.

It was time to tell my ten-year-old son the facts of life, so I took books out of the library and prepared myself for any questions he might ask. At the end of our lengthy chat, he looked confused. “If you have any questions,” I said, “please ask them. There are no silly questions.”

“Well, suppose I was married,” he said with some embarrassment, “my wife was pregnant and I had to rush her to the hospital. Okay?”

I nodded supportively.

He asked, “Can I go through red lights?”

1. Just once won’t hurt.

2. Now that you have ruined your life, you are beyond God’s use, and might as well enjoy sinning.

There is a relationship which makes life complete. Without that relationship, there is a void, a vacuum in life. Many people, even those who are well-known, can attest to that void.

For example, H. G. Wells, famous historian and philosopher, said at age 61: “I have no peace. All life is at the end of the tether.” The poet Byron said, “My days are in yellow leaf, the flowers and fruits of life are gone, the worm and the canker, and the grief are mine alone.” The literary genius Thoreau said, “Most men live lives of quiet desperation.”

Ralph Barton, one of the top cartoonists of the nations, left this note pinned to his pillow before taking his own life: “I have had few difficulties, many friends, great successes; I have gone from wife to wife, from house to house, visited great countries of the world, but I am fed up with inventing devices to fill up twenty-four hours of the day.”

There is a time, we know not when

A point we know not where

That marks the destiny of men

For glory or despair.

There is a line by us unseen

That crosses every path

The hidden boundary between

God’s patience and His wrath.

- Joseph Addison Alexander

A young man on a visit to Washington went into the National Museum. On one of the cabinets was a label with these words: "The body of a man weighing 154 pounds." "Where is the man?" asked the young man. No one answered him. In the cabinet were two jars of water, along with other jars containing phosphate of lime, carbonate of lime, potassium, sodium, and other chemicals. Another section held a row of clear glass jars filled with gases-hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. The materials in those cabinets were shown in the exact proportions combined in an ordinary man. After looking at the assortment for some time in silence, the young man said, "And that is what I am made of? That is all that goes to make me?" "That is all," said a bystander smiling, and walked on. But the young man did not smile. "If that is all that is needed," said he, "so much lime, so much gas, so much water, we should be exactly alike." There is something more which they cannot put into cabinets. God made us body, soul, and spirit. The soul and spirit cannot be put into bottles.

There’s no music in a rest, but there is the making of music in it. In our whole life melody the music is broken off here and there by ‘rests,’ and we foolishly think we have come to the end of the tune. Not without design does God write the music of our lives. Be it ours to learn the tune, and not be dismayed at the ‘rests.’ They are not to be slurred over, not to be omitted, not to destroy the melody, not to change the keynote. If we sadly say to ourselves, ‘There is no music in a rest,’ let us not forget that there is the making of music in it.

There is a time, we know not when

A point we know not where

That marks the destiny of men

For glory or despair.

There is a line by us unseen

That crosses every path

The hidden boundary between

God’s patience and His wrath.

Joseph Addison Alexander

The careless soul receives the Father’s gifts as if it were a way things had of dropping into his hand...yet he is ever complaining, as if someone were accountable for the problems which meet him at every turn. For the good that comes to him, he gives no thanks—who is there to thank? At the disappointments that befall him he grumbles—there must be someone to blame!

There was a time when most Americans respected the Bible, and you could quote it with authority. In 1963, according to Gallup, 65% believed the Bible literally; today the number is only 32%. There was a time when most Americans were familiar with biblical doctrine. You could say, “Believe in Jesus,” and at least they knew what you meant. But today most would be mystified. Newsweek tells of a child who saw a crucifix and asked, “Mommy, what’s that man doing?” There was a time when most Americans accepted absolute standards. They might disagree on what those absolutes were, but they knew that some things are really right or wrong. Today 70% reject moral absolutes.

Ron R. was discussing the fragility of many marriages with his girlfriend and posed the following question, “What if you wake up one morning and don’t love me anymore?”

She immediately responded, “There’s always obedience.”

There’s nothing whatever the matter with me;

I’m just as healthy as I can be.

I have arthritis in both of my knees;

And when I talk, I talk with a wheeze.

My pulse is weak, and my blood is thin,

But I’m awfully well for the shape I’m in.

Arch supports I have for my feet,

Or I wouldn’t be able to walk on the street.

Sleep is denied me night after night,

And every morning I look a sight.

My memory is failing; my head’s in a spin.

But I’m awfully well for the shape I’m in.

The moral is, as this tale we unfold,

That for you and me who are growing old,

It is better to say, “I’m fine,” with a grin,

Than to let them know the shape we’re in.

Don't struggle alone, in fear and distress

As if there's no hope, just your ugliness.

Our Lord offers grace, not judgment deserving,

He longs for your love and your soon returning.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

It's tough cutting through the darkness of sin

Striving for answers, His favor to win.

He stands with His arms outstretched and extended

To hold and restore you, just mercy intended.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

Why search other places your answers to find

To fill the vast void and touch the divine.

Lay down your excuses and learn to confess

Your sins and your shame to His holiness.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

There's healing and fellowship waiting for you

The moment you turn, His face to pursue.

You are the temple, His place for abiding,

The only thing missing is your mind deciding.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

Don't wait for a feeling or mystical lark,

Just bow down in quietness, open your heart.

Be honest, and tell Him no secret to keep

From there He restores you to fellowship sweet.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

His promise is certain, "I will forgive,"

Cleansing and freedom, it's yours to live.

From no other source full joy will you find.

He is your victory, your peace so sublime.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

To humble yourself, before Him in prayer,

Is your first step, in unloading your care.

There look Him squarely, straight in the face

And tell Him all of the ways you disgrace.

There's forgiveness.

Refreshment and fullness He will restore

The moment you sincerely open the door.

He is the life you thought you could win,

By going your way and living in sin.

There's forgiveness.

There's no one beyond the reach of His arm

To pick up and pardon, to rescue from harm.

Return to the Master of your faith's beginning.

Give Him your all, and you'll find yourself winning.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

What wonderful love eternity holds,

For those who are willing to be in the fold.

The Savior is waiting, Oh come to Him now,

At His nail-scarred feet, in humility bow.

THERE'S FORGIVENESS.

Have you heard of the terrible family They,

And the dreadful venomous things They say?

Why, half the gossip under the sun,

If you trace it back, you will find begun

In that wretched House of They.

Longing to leave her poor Brazilian neighborhood, Christina wanted to see the world. Discontent with a home having only a pallet on the floor, a washbasin, and a wood-burning stove, she dreamed of a better life in the city. One morning she slipped away, breaking her mother’s heart. Knowing what life on the streets would be like for her young, attractive daughter, Maria hurriedly packed to go find her. On her way to the bus stop she entered a drugstore to get one last thing. Pictures. She sat in the photograph booth, closed the curtain, and spent all she could on pictures of herself. With her purse full of small black-and-white photos, she boarded the next bus to Rio de Janiero.

Maria knew Christina had no way of earning money. She also knew that her daughter was too stubborn to give up. When pride meets hunger, a human will do things that were before unthinkable. Knowing this, Maria began her search. Bars, hotels, nightclubs, any place with the reputation for street walkers or prostitutes. She went to them all. And at each place she left her picture—taped on a bathroom mirror, tacked to a hotel bulletin board, fastened to a corner phone booth. And on the back of each photo she wrote a note.

It wasn’t too long before both the money and the pictures ran out, and Maria had to go home. The weary mother wept as the bus began its long journey back to her small village. It was a few weeks later that young Christina descended the hotel stairs. Her young face was tired. Her brown eyes no longer danced with youth but spoke of pain and fear. Her laughter was broken. Her dream had become a nightmare. A thousand times over she had longed to trade these countless beds for her secure pallet. Yet the little village was, in too many ways, too far away. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, her eyes noticed a familiar face. She looked again, and there on the lobby mirror was a small picture of her mother. Christina’s eyes burned and her throat tightened as she walked across the room and removed the small photo. Written on the back was this compelling invitation. “Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn’t matter. Please come home.” She did.

From some 8000 laymen and ministers with whom we have conferred, five principal problems emerge: a loss of nerve, a loss of direction, erosion from culture, confusion of thought, exhaustion. They have become shaken reeds, smoking lamps, earthen vessels—spent arrows. They have lost heart. But they can be revived!”

Kondraty Ryleyev was sentenced to be hanged for his part in an unsuccessful uprising against the Russian czar Nicholas I in December 1825. But the rope broke and Ryleyev, bruised and battered, fell to the ground, got up, and said, “In Russia they do not know how to do anything properly, not even how to make a rope.” An accident of this sort usually resulted in a pardon, so a messenger was sent to the czar to know his pleasure. Nicholas asked, “What did he say?” “Sire, he said that in Russia they do not even know how to make a rope properly.” “Well, let the contrary be proved,” said the czar.

Kondraty Ryleyev was sentenced to be hanged for his part in an unsuccessful uprising against the Russian czar Nicholas I in December 1825. But the rope broke and Ryleyev, bruised and battered, fell to the ground, got up, and said, “In Russia they do not know how to do anything properly, not even how to make a rope.” An accident of this sort usually resulted in a pardon, so a messenger was sent to the czar to know his pleasure. Nicholas asked, “What did he say?” “sire, he said that in Russia they do not even know how to make a rope properly.” “Well, let the contrary be proved,” said the czar.

One spring our family was driving from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa, Florida. As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. When we stopped for breakfast, I ordered orange juice with my eggs. “I’m sorry,” the waitress said. “I can’t bring you orange juice. Our machine is broken.”

At first I was dumbfounded. We were surrounded by millions of oranges, and I knew they had oranges in the kitchen—orange slices garnished our plates. What was the problem? No juice? Hardly. We were surrounded by thousands of gallons of juice. The problem was they had become dependent on a machine to get it.

Christians are sometimes like that. They may be surrounded by Bibles in their homes, but if something should happen to the Sunday morning preaching service, they would have no nourishment for their souls. The problem is not a lack of spiritual food—but that many Christians haven’t grown enough to know how to get it for themselves.

A man who had attended church for 25 years, was respected, and a leader in the church, came to his pastor and said, “Pastor, I’ve got something to tell you. I’ve never told this to a soul, and it is extremely difficult to tell you this now, but my wife and I have had a fight every day for the past 30 years of our marriage.”

The pastor was taken back and didn’t know what to say to the man. Praying for time to gather his thoughts, he said, “Every day?” “Yes, every day.” “Did you today before you came to church?” “Yes.” “Well, how did it end up?” “She came crawling to me on her hands and knees.” “What did she say?” “Come out from under that bed you coward and fight like a man!”

One day in 1909 a group of Alaskan miners, popularly called Sourdoughs, were sitting in a saloon in Fairbanks talking about outsiders such as Dr. Frederick Cook climbing “their” Mount McKinley. Convinced that Cook’s ascent had never been made, some of the miners decided to prove it the only way they knew how—by doing it themselves.

After a long climb, three miners left their base camp and raced for the North Peak, carrying some doughnuts, thermoses of hot chocolate, and a 14-foot wooden flagpole. As simply as they went up, the Sourdoughs returned to camp. But when they returned to Fairbanks, nobody believed them—and nobody could see the flagpole. But in June 1913, when some professional climbers reached the summit, to their surprise they found the flagpole planted by the Sourdoughs.

Massena, one of Napoleon’s generals, suddenly appeared with 18,000 soldiers before an Austrian town which had no means of defending itself. The town council met, certain that capitulation was the only answer. The old dean of the church reminded the council that it was Easter, and begged them to hold services as usual and to leave the trouble in God’s hands. They followed his advice. The dean went to the church and rang the bells to announce the service. The French soldiers heard the church bells ring and concluded that the Austrian army had come to rescue the town. They broke camp, and before the bells had ceased ringing, vanished.

I vividly remember an incident that took place at our Greek Keswick in Macedonia one year. The Lord had just opened the door for a special ministry among the Turks. After I announced it, a devout Christian woman came up to me, placed some Greek currency in my hand, and said, "I want this used to win Turks to Christ. They killed my brother, but I want to be the first to contribute to their cause." There will be a special reward for that woman at the day of judgment for believers.

A close friend of mine was asked back to his forty-year high school reunion. For months he saved to take his wife back to the place and the people he’d left four decades before. The closer the time came for the reunion, the more excited he became, thinking of all the wonderful stories he would hear about the changes and the accomplishments these old friends would tell him.

One night before he left he even pulled out his old yearbooks, read the silly statements and the good wishes for the future that students write to each other. He wondered what ol’ Number 86 from his football team had done. He wondered if any others had encountered this Christ who had changed him so profoundly. He even tried to guess what some of his friends would look like, and what kind of jobs and families some of these special friends had.

The day came to leave and I drove them to the airport. Their energy was almost contagious. “I’ll pick you up on Sunday evening, and you can tell me all about it,” I said. “Have a great time.”

Sunday evening arrived. As I watched them get off the plane, my friend seemed almost despondent. I almost didn’t want to ask, but finally I said, “Well, how was the reunion?”

“Tim,” the man said, “it was one of the saddest experiences of my life.”

“Good grief,” I said, more than a little surprised.

“What happened?”

“It wasn’t what happened but what didn’t happen. It has been forty years, forty years—and they haven’t changed. They had simply gained weight, changed clothes, gotten jobs…but they hadn’t really changed. And what I experienced was maybe one of the most tragic things I could ever imagine about life. For reasons I can’t fully understand, it seems as though some people choose not to change.”

There was a long silence as we walked back to the car. On the drive home, he turned to me and said, “I never, never want that to be said of me, Tim. Life is too precious, too sacred, too important. If you ever see me go stagnant like that, I hope you give me a quick, swift kick where I need it—for Christ’s sake. I hope you’ll love me enough to challenge me to keep growing.”

Why have we not heard of Christmas?

Why have you denied us light;

We who long have groped in darkness

Chained by sorrow, sin, and night?

Why have you refused to tell us

Of this Son born from above?

Why have you withheld such tidings

Of God's condescending love?

When was it you learned of Christmas?

Has this story just been heard?

Can it be that God would send Him

Just for you who hold His Word?

Will you still deny us Christmas?

Will we reach out in vain?

Can it be that we must perish

Never having heard that name?

All our fathers died in torment,

Racked with anguish, fear and pain;

Never knowing of a Savior,

Never breathing Jesus' Name!

Hear the words of hopeless millions,

Dying where no light has been:

"Won't you share this Christ of Christmas,

Let Him save us from our sin?"

They say that God has infinite patience,

And that is a great comfort.

They say God is always there,

And that is a deep satisfaction.

They say that God will always take you back,

And I get lazy in that certitude.

They say that God never gives up,

And I count on that.

They say you can go away for years and years,

And He’ll be there, waiting, when you come back.

They say you can make mistake after mistake,

And God will always forgive and forget.

They say lots of things,

These people who never read the Old Testament.

There comes a time, A definite, for sure time,

When God turns around.

I don’t believe God shed his skin

When Christ brought in the New Testament;

Christ showed us a new side of God,

And it is truly wonderful.

But he didn’t change God.

God remains forever and ever

And that God is no fool.

A small party of missionaries were invited to go to Tibet at a time when missionary activity was forbidden there. They were told their task was to help stem the tide of a plague that was raging out of control. When the plague was over, the government asked the missionaries to leave. But these servants of Christ felt a responsibility to minister to the souls of the Tibetans as well as to their bodies. The authorities threatened to kill them, but the fear of death did not deter them from their purpose. They stayed on.

One night the Tibetans encircled their house with flaming torches. They began dancing around in a wide circle, ever diminishing in size seeking to achieve their aim of setting the place ablaze. The missionaries fell to their knees in prayer, and became so intent as the wild chanting came closer that they never realized it had ceased. When they arose, the mob had dispersed, and they were allowed to remain. Years later, one of their converts told them that he had been in the circle, and they had every intention of burning the missionaries to death in their house. However, as they approached the dwelling, there stood before the door a figure in white apparel holding a flaming sword. They fled in fright. And thus the door was opened for the gospel in Tibet, because God honored the faith of those who were willing to die at any time for their Lord.

Elena Bonner, wife of Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, says that as he wrote his memoirs she typed, edited, and nursed the work, doing everything she could to make sure it survived seizure by the government. Sakharov worked on his memoirs in Gorky, rewriting sections because they kept vanishing. Then one day he met Elena at the train station and with trembling lips told her, “They stole it.”

She says he looked like a man who had just learned of the death of a close friend. But after a few days, Sakharov returned to his work. According to his wife, each time he rewrote his memoirs there was something new—something better.

Once during Queen Victoria’s reign, she heard that the wife of a common laborer had lost her baby. Having experienced deep sorrow herself, she felt moved to express her sympathy. So she called on the bereaved woman one day and spent some time with her. After she left, the neighbors asked what the queen had said.

“Nothing,” replied the grieving mother. “She simply put her hands on mine, and we silently wept together.”

The preacher had just concluded a hot and scathing sermon on the sin of swearing. He had stated several times that he knew that one of his hearers was guilty.

The service ended. The worshipers one by one filed out the door. The first to go was a woman never suspected of using foul language. With a red and angry face she exclaimed, "I will never darken this door again." Before the astonished preacher could recover from this blast, another said, "Well, brother, if I had known you were near last week, I would have been more careful of my language." A third said, "I think that you might at least have come to me privately about it, rather than telling it to the whole church." A fourth remarked angrily, "I was never so embarrassed in all of my life."

Then came the real culprit-the one at whom the preacher had aimed all his remarks. With a bland and innocent smile he grasped the hand of the preacher and said, "Brother, that was what I call a real sermon. You certainly did put it on them today!"

Try to imagine how unattractive our church building would be if bricks in the wall were missing. Not only would it be unattractive, but it would also be weakening to the rest of the structure. If our building were missing bricks, we would get busy and correct that situation immediately.

Simon Peter tells us that the Lord's spiritual house (the church) is made up of "lively stones." But often we observe numerous stones missing from the worship assembly. The result is a most unattractive and weakened structure.

Even as every brick in our church building is needed, so every living stone in the spiritual house is needed. How unfortunate when some member has the idea, "I'm only one; I won't be missed!" The Bible teaches that every person must bear his own burden. Our daily prayer should be, "Lord, help me always be in my place carrying my share of the load."

Johnny Fulton was run over by a car at the age of three. He suffered crushed hips, broken ribs, a fractured skull, and compound fractures in his legs. It did not look as if he would live. But he would not give up. In fact, he later ran the half-mile in less than two minutes.

Walt Davis was totally paralyzed by polio when he was nine years old, but he did not give up. He became the Olympic high jump champion in 1952.

Shelly Mann was paralyzed by polio when she was five years old, but she would not give up. She eventually claimed eight different swimming records for the U.S. and won a gold medal at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.

In 1938, Karoly Takacs, a member of Hungary’s world-champion pistol shooting team and sergeant in the army, lost his right hand when a grenade he was holding exploded. But Takacs did not give. up. He learned to shoot left-handed and won gold medals in the 1948 and 1952 Olympics.

Lou Gehrig was such a clumsy ball player that the boys in his neighborhood would not let him play on their team. But he was committed. He did not give up. Eventually, his name was entered into baseball’s Hall of Fame.

Woodrow Wilson could not read until he was ten years old. But he was a committed person. He became the twenty-eighth President of the United States.

At the age of seven, he had to go to work to help support his family. At nine, his mother died. At twenty-two, he lost his job as a store clerk. At twenty-three, he went into debt and became a partner in a small store. At twenty-six, his partner died leaving him a huge debt. By the age of thirty-five, he had been defeated twice when running for a seat in Congress. At the age of thirty-seven, he won the election. At thirty-nine, he lost his reelection bid. At forty-one, his four-year-old son died. At forty-two, he was rejected for a land officer role. At forty-five, he ran for the Senate and lost. At forty-seven, he was defeated for the nomination for Vice President. At forty-nine, he ran for Senate again and lost again. At the age of fifty-one, he was elected President of the United States. During his second term of office, he was assassinated. But his name lives on among the greats in U.S. history—Abraham Lincoln.

One night a thief broke into the single-room apartment of French novelist Honore de Balzac. Trying to avoid waking Balzac, the intruder quietly picked the lock on the writer’s desk.

Suddenly the silence was broken by a sardonic laugh from the bed, where Balzac lay watching the thief.

“Why do you laugh?” asked the thief.

“I am laughing to think what risks you take to try to find money in a desk by night where the legal owner can never find any by day.”

I have a friend who, in mid-career, was called into the ministry. In fact, God ultimately led him overseas. At that point he found it necessary to move all his family and as many of their possessions as possible beyond these shores, all the way to the island of Okinawa. He told me, “We packed everything we could in barrels and shipped them on ahead. And then we put all of our possessions that were a part of our trip into our station wagon. We packed that car all the way to the top of the windows.” While driving to the place where they would meet the ship that would take them to the Orient, they stopped for a rest and a bite to eat. While they were inside the restaurant, a thief broke into their station wagon and took everything except the car. Nice of him to leave the car, wasn’t it?

“The only thing we had,” he said, “were the articles of clothing on our backs. Our hearts sank to the bottom!” When asked about it later, he said, “Well, I had to face the fact that I was holding real tight to the things in that car. And the Lord simply turned my hands over and gave them a slap...and out came everything that was in that car. And it all became a part of the Father’s possession.”

Thieves closely involved with the crucifixion: Judas betrayed Christ (John 12:6), Barabbas benefited temporarily from Christ (Mark 15:7, John 18:40), two thieves crucified with Christ, one who berated him (Luke 23:39), and one who believed in Christ (Luke 23:43).