Our Daily Bread

When Satan tempted Eve, he did so by enticing her to doubt God’s character. He told Eve, “God knows that in the day you eat of [the forbidden fruit] your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:5).

While I was reading the 12th chapter of Genesis, the words of the second verse struck me with new meaning. Whenever I studied this particular passage of Scripture before, my mind was so occupied with the promises to Abraham and the nation of Israel that I overlooked a practical application for every Christian.

When my children come to me for advice, I consider it an honor to teach them what they need to know. For example, my daughter Julie had to write a poem for school not long ago. As I thought about the best way to assist her, I decided to compose a few lines to help her see how it’s done.

Tremendous heat is generated on the exterior of the Concorde airplane when it flies at supersonic speeds. The temperature on the outer surface of the plane can get to 127 C (261 F) even though the outside air temperature is -56 C (-69 F).

Lois had just undergone cancer surgery and was alone with her thoughts. She had faced death before, or so she thought, but it had always been the death of people she had loved—not her own.

William James, Harvard University’s famous professor of philosophy and psychology, once stated that after age 30 we become set like plaster and never change. But he was wrong. We can and do change.

Cornelia Dobner was 90 when she died and went to her home in heaven. Her life had been characterized by hard work, self-sacrifice for her family, and loyalty to God and her husband.

A newspaper published the following story from the life of Lyndon B. Johnson, former President of the United States: “In Stonewall, Texas, at a ceremony recognizing highway beautification, the President told his audience he was feeling fine because he had followed the advice of an old woman who once said, ‘When I walks, I walks slowly. When I sits, I sits loosely. And when I feels worry comin’ on, I just goes to sleep.’”

Your dog may be a great companion. You may hunt together, play together, eat together, even sleep on the same bed together. Yet, although you and your dog may share life, you will never share a laugh. As far as we know, humans are the only creatures of God who enjoy humor. Laughter is a distinctive of human beings.

Few thinkers in recent times have exerted so pervasive an influence as Sigmund Freud. Although he claimed to be an atheist, he continually speculated about religious issues as if subconsciously haunted by the God whom he denied.