Often we Christians are urged not just to “talk the talk” but to “walk the talk.” The same advice may be expressed in these words: Don’t let your behavior contradict your professed belief. At other times we are admonished to be sure that life and lip agree. If our conduct doesn’t harmonize with our confession of faith, however, that discrepancy nullifies the testimony of the gospel which we proclaim.
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Everyone worries occasionally, but I was once a “professional worrier.” My daily preoccupation was mulling over my worries, one by one.
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My 6-year-old neighbor Michael and I were talking in my front yard when two new neighbor kids stopped by. After I asked them their names, Michael’s first question to them was: “Do you love God?” Sugar, a 5-year-old boy, quickly responded, “No!” Michael gave him a look of disapproval and concern. When 4-year-old Nana noticed he wasn’t pleased with that answer, she said, “Yes!”
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The bitter conflict had finally ended between the North and the South. The soldiers of the US Civil War were free to return to their families. But a number of them remained hidden in the woods, living on berries. They either didn’t hear or didn’t believe that the war was over, so they continued enduring miserable conditions when they could have been back home.
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When a man learned that an elderly woman could no longer buy her medicine and pay her rent, he came to her rescue. He took her into his home and treated her as if she were his mother. He gave her a bedroom, prepared the food for her meals, bought her medicine, and transported her whenever she needed medical attention. He continued to care for her when she could no longer do much for herself. I was amazed when I learned that this good man was a zealous atheist!
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Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans. Our lives are subject to detours and corrections that we never expected or imagined.
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What do regular coffee, acoustic guitars, and black-and-white television have in common? All are what journalist Frank Mankiewicz calls “retronyms”—words or phrases created because a familiar word needs to be distinguished from a term that refers to a new development or invention.
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Jesus promised Peter something every repentant believer craves—another chance (Luke 22:31-34). After telling him Satan would sift him as wheat, Jesus reassured Peter that He had prayed that his faith would not fail. Although Peter had insisted he would never forsake Him, Jesus said he would deny Him three times before dawn. In expectation of Peter’s restoration, Jesus recommissioned him for future ministry: “When you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren” (v.32).
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When the results of today’s presidential election are known, US citizens will either be glad or sad, depending on their political persuasion. Those who voted for the winner are likely to accept the authority of the government he establishes. Most others will submit, though grudgingly.
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In the summer of 1992, a fire blackened 4,500 acres of forest about 35 miles north of Atlantic City. One homeowner saw a fireball with 60-foot flames come roaring up across the street from his house, before veering away. The Associated Press quoted him as saying, “I’ve worked 25 years of my life here. The thought of having it gone in 10 minutes makes you want to stay for the last possible minute.”
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