The Fear Of Falling
Have you ever dreamed that you were falling out of bed or from some great height, and you awoke in fright? I remember that as a boy I would often be awakened by such a terrifying feeling.
The Best Eraser
What is memory? What is this faculty that enables us to recall past feelings, sights, sounds, and experiences? By what process are events recorded, stored, and preserved in our brain to be brought back again and again? Much is still mystery.
Why? Why? Oh, Why?
Why must I suffer disappointment, sorrow, and tribulation? What have I done that God should send me trials? Is He displeased with me? These questions are constantly asked by God's dear children.
In Conference
The president of a large company wanted to talk to the factory’s manager about an urgent matter. But the manager’s secretary said, "He cannot be disturbed. He’s in conference—as he is every day at this time."
Strange Places
Walking past my barn one day, I heard a frantic chirping inside, and upon investigation I found a bluejay beating its wings against the glass pane of the window. Had it not cried and squawked, I would not have heard it. But its plaintive note prompted me to open the door wide and the jay flew out to liberty.
Two Gardens
Two gardens are mentioned prominently in the Bible: the garden of Eden and the garden of Gethsemane. God placed the first man, Adam, in the garden of Eden; Jesus went into Gethsemane to restore what the first man had lost.
The Glorious Sunset
It is wonderful to be young, with clear sight, acute hearing, elastic step, pulses drumming to the march of exhilarating health. But old age has glories that youth cannot know. It is a blessed old age indeed if it ends brightly at evening time.
Death Cannot Divide Us
Although writers and philosophers have done their best to marshal weighty arguments in favor of life after death, they have not succeeded in bringing comfort to aching, anxious, questioning hearts.
Grumblers
Mrs. Grumpty complained bitterly because her friends seemed to avoid her, and she just couldn't understand why. If only she could have heard a recording of her own voice, she would have known the reason for her unpopularity. She always talked about her complaints, weaknesses, aches and pains, and insisted on relating in wearying detail her stay in the hospital.
Sad Or Glad?
The first Resurrection Day began with gloom and despair for the disciples of our Lord. Three days earlier, their Master had been crucified and buried. We can imagine them huddled together behind closed doors as "they mourned and wept" (Mark 16:10).
The Butterfly
Outside my study window a beautiful monarch butterfly rested on a flower blossom. It fanned its wings slowly with exquisite grace. That stately monarch was once a repulsive green worm, feeding on milkweed leaves. Then it built a coffin for itself and hung from a twig. In time it emerged, transformed into a beautiful creature—that butterfly outside my study window.
Bicycle Riders
I remember the first time I tried to ride a bicycle. I thought I would never learn!
Two Dead Sparrows
I was cruising along on the highway at about 60 miles an hour when up ahead I saw two sparrows in a fierce battle at the side of the road. With feathers flying, they attacked each other with great fury.
Don't Get Stung!
About 25 feet up in the maple tree behind my house hung a gray, cone-shaped object about 10 inches long. I decided to get closer to find out what it was.
Are You A Worrywart?
Worry is sin. It is caused by lack of faith, a failure to believe God's Word. Yet it is a sin that many Christians find hard to overcome.
Living Or Just Alive?
What matters is not how long you live, but how well you live. Some people live for 85 years and do very little. Others live only a relatively few years, but they fill that time with service to God and others, and their influence lives on.
Finger-Pointing
You can't point your finger at someone without pointing at yourself. Try it right now. Extend your index finger and thumb in a pointing position away from you, and then notice in which direction the other three fingers are pointing. They point directly back at you.
Great Preachers
The greatest sermons I have ever heard were not preached from pulpits but from sickbeds. The deepest truths of God's Word have often been taught by those humble souls who have gone through the seminary of affliction.
Who Is To Blame?
Judah was willing to assume the responsibility for bringing his brother Benjamin back from Egypt (Genesis 43:9). If anything happened to him, Judah would take the blame. This is one of the rarest traits in human nature, for we usually seek to put the blame on someone else.
Hypocrites
A hypocrite is a pretender. He is a person who does not act his real self but disguises himself to be another. God hates hypocrisy but loves sinners. In all the records of the Gospels, Jesus spoke to sinners with sympathy, kindness, and forgiveness. But to the hypocritical religious leaders, He used the strongest possible language of condemnation. He called them blind guides, whitewashed tombs, and vipers (Matthew 23:24,27,33).
