Suffering's Reward
A young Christian went to an older believer and asked, "Will you pray that I may be more patient?" So they knelt together and the man began to pray, "Lord, send this young man tribulation in the morning; send him tribulation in the afternoon; send him—" Just then the young believer blurted out, "No, not tribulation! I asked for patience." "I know," said the wise Christian, "but it's through tribulation that we learn patience."
"God Makes No Mistakes"
A few days after arriving on the campus of Texas A&M University in 1984, Bruce Goodrich was awakened at 2 a.m. Upperclassmen roused him out of bed to initiate him into the Corps of Cadets, a military-style training program.
A Weeping World
A mother was told that her son had been killed in an accident on the job. In that moment, her life was flooded with tears. In another family, a sudden heart attack snatched away a husband, leaving a wife to face life alone. More tears! We live in a weeping world.
Barren But Not Bitter
Barrenness, whether physical or spiritual, can lead to bitterness in some of God's people. It can develop in the heart of a disappointed couple who cannot have a child. It can also occur when people serve God and see no results.
Someone To Hold On To
In his book The Fisherman and His Friends, Louis Albert Banks tells of two men who were assigned to stand watch on a ship out at sea. During the night the waves from a raging storm washed one of them overboard. The sailor who drowned had been in the most sheltered place, while the one who survived was more exposed to the elements. What made the difference? The man who was lost had nothing to hold on to.
A Wish For The Aged
"As a white candle in a holy place, so is the beauty of an aged face." This line from a poem by Joseph Campbell applies to people who have served the Lord all their lives and are still bearing fruit in old age.
Trouble With People
Was David paranoid? Did he think the whole world was out to get him? You might get that impression as you read through some of his psalms. Look at a few of the statements he made:
Rough Going
There's a lake near our home in the mountains that is known for good fishing. To get there, I had to hike 2 miles up a steep ridge—a hard climb for an old-timer like me. But then I discovered that it's possible to drive within a half-mile of the lake. I spent most of a day driving several mountain roads until I found the one that got me the closest. Then I carefully mapped the road so I could find it again.
Taste And Say!
Do you believe God is good, even when life isn't? Mary did, and I gasped in amazement the day I heard her pastor share her story at her funeral.
