The word Halloween comes from All Hallows Eve, which was the evening before a religious holiday in Medieval England that became known as All Saints’ Day. It was a time set aside by the church to commemorate its saints.
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A group of students at Renaissance High School in Detroit decided to cut classes to attend a rock concert in Hart Plaza. They felt they had gotten away with it, but the next day when The Detroit News appeared on the newsstand, it carried a color photo of the concert—right there on the front page. And who was in that picture? That’s right—the delinquent students of Renaissance High, easily recognizable by anyone.
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While D. L. Moody was attending a convention in Indianapolis on mass evangelism, he did more than just talk about it. He asked a friend, who was a gifted musician, to meet him on a street corner at 6 o’clock one evening. The man stood on a box and sang a song. When a crowd gathered, Moody spoke briefly and then invited the people to follow him to the nearby convention hall.
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As a young boy, one of my favorite pastimes was hunting frogs along the banks of a pond near our home. I was unaware of their unique visual powers that enabled them to elude me so easily. Later I learned that the frog’s optical field is like a blackboard wiped clean, and that the only images it receives are objects that directly concern him. These little amphibians are never distracted by unimportant things, but are aware only of essentials and whatever may be dangerous to them.
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Every year thousands of letters addressed to God find their way to a post office in Jerusalem. One letter, addressed to “God of Israel,” requested assistance in getting a job as a bulldozer driver. Another said: “Please help me to be happy, to find a nice job and a good wife—soon.” One man asked forgiveness for stealing money from a grocery store when he was a child.
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Don takes walks on the city’s railroad tracks and searches under freeway overpasses. He’s not looking for lost treasure; he’s looking for homeless people. Don met Jake, who lives in a makeshift underground shack and is mentally ill. He stops by to see Jake occasionally, making sure he’s warm and has food. He tells Jake about Jesus because he wants him to find “treasure in heaven.”
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Many people living in their twilight years suddenly realize how empty and pointless their lives have been. They’ve made some successful business deals and had some fun, but in terms of satisfying friendships or lasting accomplishments, their lives have been zero. They have climbed the ladder of success, only to discover that all the while it had been leaning against the wrong wall.
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Studies conducted by the National Geographic Society provide some fascinating insights into the behavior of chimpanzees. Observers noted how the leadership of a chimp community changed because of a dramatic bluff used by one of the lowliest members of the group.
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We know little about Epaphras except that he was so concerned about the spiritual welfare of the people in Colosse that he is described as “laboring fervently . . . in prayers” for them (Colossians 4:12). When I was a pastor, I saw this kind of enthusiasm in the way new converts prayed and witnessed. But all too often, many of them gradually lost their zeal.
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People who have given up on love probably agree with the words to the song “Lemon Tree” by the folk group Peter, Paul, and Mary:
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