Billy had been misbehaving and was sent to his room. After a while he emerged and informed his mother that he had thought it over and then said a prayer. “Good!” said the pleased mother. “If you ask God to help you not misbehave, He will help you.” “Oh, I didn’t ask Him to help…
The difference between prayer and meditation is that prayer is us talking to God, and meditation is allowing God to “speak” to us. We can talk to God any time and he always hears us. On the other hand, when God talks to us we have to listen and discern His message. There in lies…
“A bend in the road is not the end of the road unless you fail to make the turn.” Helen Keller A story is told about the head of a shoe company who sent his most experienced salesman to a remote island to see if there was a market for shoes there. The salesman reported…
At 8:07 on the Saturday morning of January 13, 2018, over a million Hawaii residents and visitors received an emergency text message alert: “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.” Panic ensued as people realized their lives could end in a matter of minutes. For 38 minutes people huddled in whatever…
A man was late for an important meeting. He was circling the parking lot desperately searching for a parking space. In exasperation he prayed, “Heavenly Father, if you will help me find a place to park, I will start going to church again.” Just then a parking space opened up right in front of him. …
Jesus often used a parable to illustrate a point. These stories were meant to make it easier for the people to whom He was speaking to understand and remember the point he was trying to make. Pastors today sometimes have differing opinions about what some of those stories really mean. In Matthew 13:45-46 we read…
When a reporter asked August Turak what was in his wallet, the well-known entrepreneur and award-winning author replied, “Expired driver’s licenses.” He said, “I keep several in my wallet. Occasionally looking at how I’ve aged in my license photos reminds me to make every day count.” Reader’s Digest, October 2013 Most of us don’t like our…
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” Henry David Thoreau In other words, looking gives the brain an impression of the scene, but seeing requires interpretation. Knowing what we have seen involves bringing our own point of view and experience into play. This is why eyewitnesses often have very different stories…
A little boy was afraid of the dark. His mother asked him to go out to the back porch and bring her the broom. The little boy turned to his mother and said, “Mama, I don’t want to go out there. It’s dark!” The mother smiled and said, “You don’t have to be afraid of…
Not everyone has a bucket list naming the things they most want to do before they die, but maybe we should. In the movie “Bucket List” a band of old friends decided to get together and do all of the stuff they had on their list. Their list was: To witness something truly majestic; Help…