Heaven's Asphalt
The story is told about a miner who struck gold and carried his bag of nuggets with him everywhere. One day he died and went to heaven, still carrying his precious nuggets. When he arrived, an angel asked him why he was carrying asphalt. "This isn't asphalt," he explained, "it's gold." To which the angel replied, "On earth it's called gold, but here in heaven we use it to pave our streets."
Touching Bottom
Crowds gathered each week to hear the soul-stirring sermons of Joseph Parker, the famous pastor of London's City Temple in the late 19th century. Then a crisis hit him hard. His wife died after an agonizing illness. Parker later said he would not have allowed a dog to suffer as she did. A heartbroken husband whose prayers had gone unanswered, he confessed publicly that for a week he had even denied that God existed.
What Does God Like?
Some churches have become divided over styles of worship. One group may be insisting on a traditional service, while another is agitating for a more contemporary format.
Our Changing World
Change is one thing we can be sure of in this life. Our relationships change as we move to new places, experience illness, and ultimately face death. Even the cells in our bodies are always in the process of change. When cells wear out, most are replaced by new ones. This is especially noticeable with our skin—we shed and regrow outer skin cells about every 27 days.
Only One Door
Old Testament scholar Sir George Adam Smith says that when he visited the Holy Land he came upon a shepherd and his sheep standing before a stockade. There was no door in that protective enclosure, only an opening the width of a man's body.
Faithful Ambition
In the late 19th century, a former student of Oxford University became the Lord Chancellor of England. One of his classmates became Britain's Foreign Secretary. A third gained an international reputation as an author. A fourth, Temple Gairdner, was perhaps the most gifted of his classmates but did not achieve fame and influence. Why? He accepted Jesus as his Savior and lived as a missionary in obscure and dangerous places.
The Wisdom In God's Word
We treasure Scripture. It's God's inspired Word, and it teaches us the way to abundant life in this world and eternal life in the world to come. Indeed, it is the source of a wisdom that goes beyond that of the wisest philosophers (1 Corinthians 1:20). But this fact is rarely acknowledged in our culture.
Grace To Forgive
It is difficult to understand how the Lord Jesus could pray for His brutal executioners to be forgiven (Luke 23:34). We often try to excuse our unforgiving hearts by arguing that He was God, whereas we are sinful creatures. But Jesus calls us to follow His divine example.
Neighborly Love
The Carnegie Foundation discovered that to be successful on the job, relational skills are far more important than knowledge. Its research found that only 15 percent of a person's success is determined by job knowledge and technical skills. Eighty-five percent is determined by an individual's attitude and ability to relate to other people.
