Our Daily Bread

United States Army and Pentagon officials are developing a sophisticated armor system to protect tanks against enemy fire. According to the Army Times, this new system will protect armored vehicles against the latest kinetic energy rockets, which are long, thin, sharp-pointed projectiles that pierce armor when they hit head-on. The Smart Armor System (SAS) will keep these missiles from penetrating the armor of tanks because special reactive tiles will deflect them.

When my husband and I first went out as missionaries, I recall being concerned about the growth of materialism in our society. It never crossed my mind that I myself could be materialistic. After all, hadn’t we gone overseas with almost nothing? Weren’t we having to live in a shabbily furnished, rundown apartment? I thought materialism couldn’t touch us.

Bible scholar C. I. Scofield once visited a psychiatric hospital in Staunton, Virginia. The superintendent, who was giving him a tour, pointed out a powerfully built young man who seemed to be the picture of health.

Several years ago a group of historians authored a book called If—Or History Rewritten. Some of the ifs those scholars considered were these: What if Robert E. Lee had not lost the battle of Gettysburg? What if the Moors in Spain had won? What if the Dutch had kept New Amsterdam? What if Booth had missed when he shot at Abraham Lincoln? What if Napoleon had escaped to America?

If television commercials are telling the truth, glamorous movie stars and athletes use products that everyone ought to buy. But, as Time magazine reports (and most viewers suspect), many celebrities don’t use the products they endorse.

The fact that some people come into the world with severe disabilities disturbs us. We feel a deep sense of compassion for them, and instinctively wonder why they must suffer in this way.

The day before Christmas became a thanksgiving day for my family. The station wagon was packed with kids and travel stuff for the 400-mile trip to Grandma’s. As is our custom, before leaving we asked God to protect us on the road. He did, but in an unusual way.

An unknown author has penned these thought-provoking words:

Two slick con men boarded a train that runs between New York and Boston and singled out a prosperous-looking man. Sitting down next to him, they invited him to join them in a game of cards. It wasn’t long until the unsuspecting victim owed one of the other players several hundred dollars.

What’s the matter, Mom?” asked the 3-year-old boy earnestly. Kimberly Fast had just received some disappointing news. She was discouraged, and her son sensed it. After a moment of hesitation, her little boy said, “That’s okay, Mom. You’ve still got me!”