Discipline (Heb. 12:4-13)
In Love Is a Spendthrift, Paul Scherer writes:
“On Calvary, men had their fling at saying ‘No’ to God. But ‘very early in the morning, the first day of the week,’ it was God’s turn. He said his ‘No’ to the judgment hall where Pilate had condemned Jesus, to the hill where the soldiers had crucified him, to the grave where Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea had helped to lay him, to the seal that had shut him in, and to the guard that had stood watch.
“How much is there in us to which he must say it still?”
(Lordship, Resurrection)
USA Today reported the top five things people put off until the last minute:
- House chores/yard work: 47
- Holiday gift shopping: 43
- Making doctor/dentist appointments: 35
- Calling relatives: 31
- Changing oil in the car: 29
(Procrastination, Work)
It is action that makes the difference. No matter what the vision, it must come to the point where we simply do our best and get the job done.
—J. Erik Jonsson founder of Texas Instruments (Action, Vision)
EVANGELISM (Luke 15)
Billy and the President
In his autobiography, Just as I Am, Billy Graham tells about a conversation he had with John F. Kennedy shortly after his election:
“On the way back to the Kennedy house, the president-elect stopped the car and turned to me. ‘Do you believe in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ?’ he asked.
” ‘I most certainly do.’
” ‘Well, does my church believe it?’
” ‘They have it in their creeds.’
” ‘They don’t preach it,’ he said. ‘They don’t tell us much about it. I’d like to know what you think.’
“I explained what the Bible said about Christ coming the first time, dying on the Cross, rising from the dead, and then promising that he would come back again. ‘Only then,’ I said, ‘are we going to have permanent world peace.’
” ‘Very interesting,’ he said, looking away. ‘We’ll have to talk more about that someday.’ And he drove on.”
Several years later, the two met again, at the 1963 National Prayer Breakfast.
“I had the flu,” Graham remembers. “After I gave my short talk, and he gave his, we walked out of the hotel to his car together, as was always our custom. At the curb, he turned to me.
” ‘Billy, could you ride back to the White House with me? I’d like to see you for a minute.’
” ‘Mr. President, I’ve got a fever,’ I protested. ‘Not only am I weak, but I don’t want to give you this thing. Couldn’t we wait and talk some other time?’
“It was a cold, snowy day, and I was freezing as I stood there without my overcoat.
” ‘Of course,’ he said graciously.”
But the two would never meet again. Later that year, Kennedy was shot dead. Graham comments, “His hesitation at the car door, and his request, haunt me still. What was on his mind? Should I have gone with him? It was an irrecoverable moment.”
(Opportunity, Regret)
The Los Angeles Times recently printed a sampling of signs from around the world that attempted to communicate in English.
In a hotel elevator in Paris: “Please leave your values at the front desk.”
In a hotel in Zurich: “Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.”
On the door of a Moscow inn: “If this is your first visit to Russia, you are welcome to it.”
In a Soviet newspaper: “There will be a Moscow exhibition of arts by 15,000 Soviet Republic painters and sculptors. These were executed over the past two years.”
In a Bucharest hotel lobby: “The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable.”
What we intend to say and what others hear us saying are not always the same thing. We need to pray that God will help us clearly communicate the gospel (Col. 4:4).
—B. Paul Greene Santa Barbara, California (Misunderstanding, Preaching)
In Kon-Tiki: Across the Pacific by Raft, Thor Heyerdahl tells how he and a crew of five crossed the Pacific Ocean from South America to the South Pacific Islands on a crude raft of balsa logs bound together with hemp rope. During the three-month journey in 1947, they had little control of the direction of the raft and no way to stop its forward progress. They learned early in the voyage that anything dropped overboard was almost impossible to recover once it passed behind the raft.
Two months into the voyage and thousands of miles from land, Herman Watzinger lost his footing and went overboard. The raft, driven by a strong wind in heavy seas, moved ahead faster than he could swim. The five remaining men were horrified for their friend. They tried to throw him a life belt on a rope, but the wind blew it back at them. In seconds, Herman was all but lost to their sight in the tumble of waves.
Suddenly Knute Haugland grabbed the life belt and dove into the water. He swam back to Herman and wrapped his arm around him, holding his exhausted friend and the rope while the men on the boat drew them back to the boat.
Effective evangelism requires that someone risks and takes the gospel to the one who is lost.
—David Denny (Action, Compassion)
MARRIAGE
Surprise Prescription for a Healthy Diet
A man went to the doctor after weeks of symptoms. The doctor examined him carefully, then called the patient’s wife into his office. “Your husband is suffering from a rare form of anemia. Without treatment, he’ll be dead in a few weeks. The good news is, it can be treated with proper nutrition.”
“You will need to get up early every morning and fix your husband a hot breakfast—pancakes, bacon and eggs, the works. He’ll need a home-cooked lunch every day, and then an old-fashioned meat-and-potato dinner every evening. It would be especially helpful if you could bake frequently. Cakes, pies, homemade bread—these are the things that will allow your husband to live.
“One more thing. His immune system is weak, so it’s important that your home be kept spotless at all times. Do you have any questions?” The wife had none.
“Do you want to break the news, or shall I?” asked the doctor.
“I will,” the wife replied.
She walked into the exam room. The husband, sensing the seriousness of his illness, asked her, “It’s bad, isn’t it?”
She nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. “What’s going to happen to me?” he asked.
With a sob, the wife blurted out, “The doctor says you’re gonna die!”
(Servanthood, Works Righteousness)
Family (Eph. 6:1-4)
Patrick Morley, in Man in the Mirror, tells about a group of fishermen who landed in a secluded bay in Alaska and had a great day fishing for salmon. But when they returned to their sea plane, it was aground because of the fluctuating tides. They had no option except to wait until the next morning till the tides came in. But when they took off, they only got a few feet off the ground and then crashed down into the sea. Being aground the day before had punctured one of the pontoons, and it had filled up with water.
The sea plane slowly began to sink. The three men and a 12-year-old son of one of them, Mark, prayed and then jumped into the icy waters to swim to shore. The water was cold, and the riptide was strong, and two of the men reached the shore exhausted. They looked back, and their companion, who was also a strong swimmer, did not swim to shore because his 12-year-old son wasn’t strong enough to make it. They saw that father with his arms around his son being swept out to sea. He chose to die with his son rather than to live without him.
There is a fact of life that most kids do not know. We love our children so much that we would die for them.
—Robert Russell, on Preaching Today (Fathers, Love)
GRACE
Reversing an Ancient Pattern
In the movie The Last Emperor, the young child anointed as the last emperor of China lives a magical life of luxury with a thousand eunuch servants at his command. “What happens when you do wrong?” his brother asks. “When I do wrong, someone else is punished,” the boy emperor replies. To demonstrate, he breaks a jar, and one of the servants is beaten.
In Christian theology, Jesus reversed that ancient pattern. When the servants erred, the King was punished. Grace is free only because the giver himself has borne the cost.
—Philip Yancey in What’s So Amazing About Grace? (Atonement, Punishment)
FAMILY
In Sources of Strength, former President Jimmy Carter recalls: “I had just been inaugurated, walked down Pennsylvania Avenue, reviewed the parade with my family, and then begun to walk with my family, for the first time, toward the White House. Eager news reporters with cameras surrounded us, and my press secretary said, ‘Don’t anyone stop to answer questions.’ Typically, Mama ignored him and stopped to talk to the press. The first question was ‘Miss Lillian, aren’t you proud of your son?’
“Mama replied, ‘Which one?’ “
—Terry Fisher (Mothers, Parenthood)
Mystery (1 Cor. 1:18-25)
Here are some results of a contest for “scientific” theories sponsored by Omni magazine.
Honorable Mention
The quantity of consonants in the English language is constant. If omitted in one place, they turn up in another. When a Bostonian “pahks” his “cah,” the lost r’s migrate southwest, causing a Texan to “warsh” his car and invest in “orl wells.”
Second Runner-Up
Why yawning is contagious: You yawn to equalize the pressure on your eardrums. This pressure change outside your ear-drums unbalances other people’s ear pressures, so they must yawn to even it out.
First Runner-Up
if an infinite number of rednecks riding in an infinite number of pickup trucks fire an infinite number of shotgun rounds at an infinite number of highway signs, they will eventually produce all the world’s great literary works in Braille.
Grand Prize Winner
When a cat is dropped, it always lands on its feet. And when toast is dropped, it always lands with the buttered side facing down. I propose to strap buttered toast to the back of a cat; the two will hover, spinning inches above the ground. With a giant buttered cat array, a high-speed monorail could easily link New York with Chicago.
Just as few people understand the mysteries of science, few comprehend the greater mystery of God’s grace (1 Cor. 1:18-25).
(Mystery, Understanding)
Grace (Rom. 8:31-39)
In a recent interview with Today’s Christian Woman, author Gwen Shamblin told this story:
The girls at the horse barn next door are sweet, but they kept wanting our collies, Chaucer and Virginia, to come over. I told them, “I don’t know about letting them come across the fence ’cause they might get confused. But as long as you don’t feed them, it’s fine.”
Soon I had no dogs. They were over at the barn every day, living the high life. I’d call them home, but they wouldn’t come. … Eventually I realized the problem was that our dogs no longer knew who their master was. So a silent war was declared that day. I had to lift Chaucer and carry him home from the barn. We put our dogs on leashes. Then I fussed at Chaucer and Virginia when they were over there, and loved them when they were at home. Then we’d unleash them, test them, find them back over at the barn, and have to repeat the process. But finally we got their hearts back home . …
Did I want those dogs because of their work? No! They bark at the wrong people. They bark at cars leaving, not coming. They slobber all over me and my company. They’re completely in the way. They steal the cat food. They’re trouble, but they’re still precious to me, and I adore them.
And that’s how God feels about us. We’re precious in his sight, and he pursues us. He’s faithful even when we’re not.
(God’s Faithfulness, God’s Love)
Hardship (Rom. 5:2-5)
No professional football team that plays its home games in a domed stadium with artificial turf has ever won the Super Bowl. A climate-controlled stadium protects players and fans from the misery of sleet, snow, mud, heat, and wind. Everyone is comfortable.
But athletes who brave the elements are disciplined to handle hardship. Apparently such rigors have something to do with the ability to win the Super Bowl.
Long before there was football, the Christian’s playbook declared the purpose of hardship. It builds Christlike character.
—Greg Asimakoupoulos Naperville, Illinois (Character, Comfort)
In all your journey as a believer, you will have two categories of spiritual experiences. One is tender, delightful, and loving. The other can be quite obscure, dry, dark, and desolate. God gives us the first one to gain us; he gives us the second to purify us.
—Michael Molinos 17th-century spirituality writer (Purification, Trials)
PERSEVERANCE
Determined to Finish
At the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Norwegian Bjorn Dahlie proved once again he was a champion. He won the 10,000-kilometer cross-country skiing event, giving him his sixth lifetime gold medal. When he crossed the finish line, Dahlie didn’t rush away to a victory celebration. He waited there for another competitor, the man struggling last in the 92-man field: Philip Boit of Kenya.
Philip had first laid his eyes on snow only two years before. Trained by a Finnish coach, he had accumulated enough points in competition to be invited to represent his country in the Winter Games—a first for this African nation.
Philip lagged behind the victor by nearly a half-hour. Bjorn waited patiently at the finish line, and finally Philip struggled into view. The few remaining spectators began to cheer him on. As Philip crossed the finish line, Bjorn the champion took him by the shoulders. His tight squeeze conveyed his respect and admiration for this one who was determined to finish.
Christ, the Victor, completed the course long ago, but he waits at the finish line to welcome those who come after him.
—Gene Mumau Grants Pass, Oregon (Perseverance, Rewards)
Humility (Matt. 23:12)
Pastor Michael Hartwig of Valparaiso, Indiana, tells this story:
I started visiting a man in a nursing home who had been instrumental in starting the major industry in town. When he died, I was asked to do the funeral service. I was nervous, because I knew our church would be packed with dignitaries.
The service went well, and on our way to the cemetery I began turning in my Bible to the passage I was to read at the graveside. While I was turning to 1 Corinthians 15, the funeral director asked me a question. I could tell he was impressed with the gospel message I had brought. He asked several questions, and I answered each one. I was proud of myself and the job I had done. Here was a man who had listened to hundreds of funeral services, and he singled out mine as being one of the best.
With this on my heart I stood at the head of the casket with the family and friends in front of me. I asked them to listen to the words of Scripture. I read with a sense of dignity 1 Corinthians 5:1: “It is reported commonly that there are fornicators among you!”
(Compliments, Stumbling)
It’s like the beaver told the rabbit as they stared up at the immense wall of Hoover Dam, “No, I didn’t actually build it myself. But it was based on an idea of mine.”
—Charles H. Townes Nobel Prize winner for laser technology (Credit, Ego)
Money (1 Tim. 6:17-19)
Today, just 25 percent of adults say “a lot of money” signifies success and accomplishment, down from 33 percent in 1996. What people most associate with success and accomplishment:
| Satisfied with your life: | 83% |
| In control of your life: | 80% |
| Have a good marriage: | 78% |
| Really good at your job: | 69% |
| Can afford what’s important: | 66% |
| Have successful children: | 63% |
—USA Today (1/19/98) research by Yankelovich Monitor 1997 (Accomplishment, Success)
The percentage of adults who say they would spend money on this first if they suddenly became wealthy:
| House | 31 |
| Education for kids/self | 30 |
| Vacation | 10 |
| Car | 9 |
| Help for kids/family | 3 |
| Charity | 2 |
| Household help | 2 |
| Pay off debt | 2 |
| Boat | 2 |
| Investments | 1 |
| Clothes/jewelry | 1 |
| Others | 7 |
—USA Today (3/13-15/98) research by Yankelovich Partners for Lutheran Brotherhood (Possessions, Wealth)
MONEY
9 Steps to Third World Living
- Take out the furniture: leave a few old blankets, a kitchen table, maybe a wooden chair. You’ve never had a bed, remember?
- Throw out your clothes. Each person in the family may keep the oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. The head of the family has the only pair of shoes.
- All kitchen appliances have vanished. Keep a box of matches, a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt, a handful of onions, a dish of dried beans. Rescue the moldy potatoes from the garbage can: those are tonight’s meal.
- Dismantle the bathroom, shut off the running water, take out the wiring and the lights and everything that runs by electricity.
- Take away the house and move the family into the toolshed.
- No more postman, fireman, government services. The two-classroom school is three miles away, but only two of your seven children attend anyway, and they walk.
- Throw out your bankbooks, stock certificates, pension plans, insurance policies. You now have a cash hoard of $5.
- Get out and start cultivating your three acres. Try hard to raise $300 in cash crops because your landlord wants one third and your moneylender 10 percent.
- Find some way for your children to bring in a little extra money so you have something to eat most days. But it won’t be enough to keep bodies healthy—so lop off 25 to 30 years of life.
Adbusters (winter 1998) (Poverty, Third World)
Morality (1 John 3:7-10)
Huston Smith, senior professor of religion at Syracuse, wrote:
While I was teaching at mit, Aldous Huxley joined us for a semester as distinguished visiting professor in the humanities. Needless to say, he was in demand all over New England, and my regard for him was so great that I volunteered to be his social secretary, driving him to and from his engagements because I wanted nothing so much that semester as to spend as much time in his presence as I could manage.
On the way to one of his engagements, he said, “You know, Huston, it’s rather embarrassing to have spent one’s entire lifetime pondering the human condition and to come toward its close and find that I really don’t have anything more profound to pass on by way of advice than, ‘Try to be a little kinder.’ “
—Chronicle of Higher Education (6/20/97) cited in Context (11/1/97) (Kindness, Relationships)
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