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“The crucible of adversity is a less severe trial to the Christian than the fining-pot of prosperity. Oh, what leanness of soul and neglect of spiritual things have been brought on through the very mercies and bounties of God!
C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK IF:
Your vehicle has a two-tone paint job--primer red and primer gray.
Your kid takes a siphon hose to show-and-tell.
You can tell your age by the number of rings in the bathtub
*****
Easy Road Crowded
The easy roads are crowded,
And the level roads are jammed;
The pleasant little rivers
With the drifting folks are crammed,
But off yonder where it’s rocky
Where you get a better view,
You will find the ranks are thinning
And the travelers are few.
Where the going’s smooth and pleasant
You will always find the throng,
For the many, more’s the pity,
Seem to like to drift along;
But the steps that call for courage,
And that task that’s hard to do.
In the end results in glory
For the never-wavering few.
—Selected
*****
“All that I am I owe to Jesus Christ, revealed to me in His divine Book”
David Livingstone
*****
“It is clear, then, that there is no hope for me out of Christ; for there is no other blood-shedding which is worth a thought as an atonement for sin.”
----C. H Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
“In the glow of love which Christianity inspires I soon resolved to devote my life to the alleviation of human misery.”
David Livingstone
*****
Pressed Out
Pressed out of measure and pressed to all length,
Pressed so intensely it seems beyond strength;
Pressed in the body and pressed in the soul,
Pressed in the mind till the dark surges roll;
Pressure by foes, and pressure by friends,
Pressure on pressure, till life nearly ends,
-----
Pressed into loving the staff and the rod;
Pressed into knowing no helper but God;
Pressed into liberty where nothing clings,
Pressed into faith for impossible things;
Pressed into living a life in the Lord,
Pressed into living a Christ-life outpoured!
—Walter B. Knight
*****
"The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.”
G. K. Chesterton
*****
“The destiny of mankind is not decided by material computation. When great causes are on the move in the world...we learn that we are spirits, not animals....”
Sir Winston Churchill
*****
Why Me—Why Them
Tragedy struck opera singer Beverly Sills when her first child was born almost totally deaf. This little child would never hear the beautiful voice of her mother or the lovely sounds of a soft forest. Shortly after discovering the deafness, Mrs. Sills gave birth to a second child, only to find that this son was mentally retarded.
So great was the sorrow of her life that she took off a full year from her profession to work with her daughter and son, trying to come to terms with the double tragedy.
Later, when asked how she learned to cope, the famed songstress said, “The first question you ask is, Why me? Then it changes to Why them? It makes a complete difference in your attitude.”
—C. R. Hembree
*****
The blood of Jesus hath a mighty tongue, and the import of its prevailing cry is not vengeance but mercy.
C. H. Spurgeon,
from Morning and Evening
*****
“I have always believed in the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, whereby they have become the expression to man of the Word and Will of God.”
Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the United States
*****
A redneck died and left his entire estate in trust for his beloved widow----
However, she can't touch it until she turns 14.
*****
Down home, reruns of Hee Haw are called “documentaries.”
*****
Those Little Hurts
Termites destroy more property than do earthquakes. More fires are caused by matches and cigarettes than by volcanoes.
More heartaches and sorrow are caused by little words and deeds of unkindness than by open acts of dislike and enmity.
*****
Nothing is too hard for God:
Beloved reader, what is thy desperate case? What heavy matter hast thou in hand this evening? Bring it hither. The God of the prophets lives, and lives to help His saints. He will not suffer thee to lack any good thing. Believe thou in the Lord of hosts! Approach Him pleading the name of Jesus, and the iron shall swim; thou too shalt see the finger of God working marvels for His people. According to thy faith be it unto thee, and yet again the iron shall swim.
--C. H. Spurgeon,
from Morning and Evening
*****
"In the beginning of a change, the patriot is a scarce man, brave, hated, and scorned. When his cause succeeds however, the timid join him, For then it costs nothing to be a patriot."
-- Mark Twain
*****
"I shall know but one country. The ends I aim at shall be my country’s, my God’s and Truth’s. I was born an American; I live an American; I shall die an American." --
Daniel Webster
*****
• Conceit is the only disease known to man that makes everyone sick except the one who has it.
• “He is impossible to get along with, because he thinks he’s impossible to get along without.”
• “Be Yourself!” is about the worst advice you can give to some people!
*****
"Serve the Lord with gladness."
--Psalm 100:2
Delight in divine service is a token of acceptance. Those who serve God with a sad countenance, because they do what is unpleasant to them, are not serving Him at all; they bring the form of homage, but the life is absent. Our God requires no slaves to grace His throne; He is the Lord of the empire of love, and would have His servants dressed in the livery of joy. The angels of God serve Him with songs, not with groans; a murmur or a sigh would be a mutiny in their ranks. That obedience which is not voluntary is disobedience, for the Lord looketh at the heart, and if He seeth that we serve Him from force, and not because we love Him, He will reject our offering. Service coupled with cheerfulness is heart-service, and therefore true.
----C. H. Spurgeon
From: Morning and Evening
*****
It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel--"HE careth for me." Christian! do not dishonour religion by always wearing a brow of care; come, cast your burden upon your Lord. You are staggering beneath a weight which your Father would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to Him but as the small dust of the balance.
C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."
"All men profess honesty as long as they can. To believe all men honest would be folly. To believe none so is something worse."
Both from: John Quincy Adams
*****
Simple Preaching Of Brainerd
David Brainerd, the famous missionary to the American Indians, proclaimed this truth throughout his ministry. He said, “I never got away from Jesus and Him crucified in my preaching. I found that once these people were gripped by the great evangelical meaning of Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf, I did not have to give them many instructions about changing their behavior.”
*****
When Charles Spurgeon lay on his deathbed, he testified to a friend, “My theology now is found in four little words: “JESUS died for ME.” I don’t say this is all I would preach if I were to be raised up again, but it is more than enough for me to die upon.”
—Our Daily Bread
*****
Stomping On The Violin
It was advertised in one of our large cities that a great violinist would play on a violin worth $1,000. The theater was packed. Many were curious and wanted to hear such an expensive instrument being played. The violinist went on stage and played very beautifully.
Suddenly, he threw the violin on the floor and then began to stomp on it, crushing it to pieces, then walked off the stage. The people were shocked. But then the manager came on stage and said that the violinist did not really use the $1,000 violin but a $20 one. He would now play on the $1,000 one. And so he did. But few people could tell the difference. He simply wanted to show that it was the violinist rather than the violin that makes the music.
In the Master’s hands, even a $20 fiddle would make good music.
*****
Marriage is a covenant, not a contract. A contract says “I will if you will.” A covenant says, “I will, even if you don’t.”
*****
A native of the Congo prayed thus: “Dear Lord, You be the needle and I be the thread. You go first, and I will follow wherever You may lead.”
*****
A black minister once prayed: “Lord, we can’t hold much but we can overflow lots!”
*****
A Christian is a mind through which Christ thinks; a heart through which Christ loves; a voice through which Christ speaks; a hand through which Christ helps.
*****
There has been only one Christmas - the rest are anniversaries.
~W.J. Cameron
*****
Silent Night
The original lyrics for the song in German, Stille Nacht, was written by Joseph Mohr and the melody was composed by Franz X. Gruber. The carol was first performed 192 years ago on 24 December 1818 at the St. Nicholas church in Oberndorf, Austria
*****
Child Jesus
Child Jesus came to earth this day,
To save us sinners dying,
And cradled in the straw and hay
The Holy One is lying.
The star shines down the child to greet,
And lowing oxen kiss His feet,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Child Jesus.
Take courage, Soul so weak and worn,
Thy sorrows have departed,
A Child in David’s town is born,
To heal the broken hearted.
Then let us haste this child to find
And children be in heart and mind,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Child Jesus!
Hans Christian Andersen
*****
” There was no one to take pity on this young wife who was for the first time to give birth to a child; no one to take to heart her condition that she, a stranger, did not have the least thing a mother needs in a birth-night. There she is without any preparation, without either light or fire, alone in the darkness, without any one offering her service as is customary for women to do at such times. Every thing is in commotion in the inn, there is a swarming of guests from all parts of the country, no one thinks of this poor woman.”
----Martin Luther
*****
MY MASTER
My Master was so very poor,
A manger was His cradling place;
So very rich my Master was
Kings came from far to gain His grace.
My Master was so very poor
And with the poor He broke the bread;
So very rich my Master was
That multitudes
By Him were fed.
My Master was so very poor
They nailed Him naked to a cross:
So very rich my Master was
He gave His all
And knew no loss.
Harry Lee, 1874-1942
*****
“My sword I give to him who shall succeed me in my pilgrimage, and my courage and skill to him who can get it. My marks and scars I carry with me, to be a witness for me, that I have fought His battles who will now be my rewarder.
----John Bunyan
*****
My Christmas Wish
I’ve wished a very special wish
For you this Christmas-tide;
It reaches far beyond today,
’Tis high and deep, and wide.
I wish for you the angels’ song
That tells of hope and love;
I wish the radiance of the Star
To guide your thoughts above.
I wish for you the sturdy faith
That led the Wise Men three
Through cold of night, o’er desert drear,
The Holy Child to see.
I wish for you a humble heart,
With purpose strong and true—
The blessing of the Christ, our Lord—
This is my wish for you.
—Edward Bos
*****
“I love little children, and it is not a slight thing when they, who are fresh from God, love us.”
—Charles Dickens
*****
“If you were to destroy in mankind the belief in immortality, not only love but every living force maintaining the life of the world would at once be dried up.” ----Fedor Dostoevski
*****
This "groaning" is a test. You may judge of a man by what he groans after. Some men groan after wealth--they worship Mammon; some groan continually under the troubles of life--they are merely impatient; but the man who sighs after God, who is uneasy till he is made like Christ, that is the blessed man.
----C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
What would he think if he could see it now?
"I believe that if the people of this nation fully understood what Congress has done to them over the last 49 years, they would move on Washington; they would not wait for an election. ... It adds up to a preconceived plan to destroy the economic and social independence of the United States!" --senator George W. Malone (1890-1961)
*****
“I am going to stop procrastinating—one of these days.”
----Thomas Sowell
*****
I’d Rather Have Jesus
When King George VI and the queen visited Washington, D. C., a state dinner was given in their honor. Chief Whitefeather, an Indian, began the program by singing the British anthem. After the applause the chief sang, to the surprise of those present, the hymn whose opening words are, “I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold!”
Later in the evening, the chief sat near the king and queen. Tactfully he asked the queen, “Do you believe in Jesus? “ The queen replied graciously, “He is the Possessor of my heart, and of my husband’s also!” The king, smiling, added, “I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold!”
*****
If you want to cast a big shadow,
Stand in God’s light.
-----Selected
*****
“They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. But maybe the old dog already knows about tricks that only seem new to the young—and doesn’t think much of those tricks.”
----Thomas Sowell
*****
“People don’t usually grow up when there are other people who make excuses for their immaturity.”
—Thomas Sowell
*****
“What our fathers with so much difficulty attained do not basely relinquish.”
Inscribed on the grave of William Bradford, Governor of Plymouth Plantation
*****
“We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount—
The world has achieved brilliance without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.”
---General Omar Bradley
Armistice Day, 1948
*****
Genesis 8:22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.
*****
Some people are like blotters. They soak it all in, but get it backwards.
*****
Remember the end never really justifies the meanness.
—Longview, Wash., News
*****
Bible Characters
Shamgar had an ox-goad,
David had a sling,
Samson had a jawbone,
Rahab had a string,
Mary had some ointment,
Aaron had a rod,
Dorcas had a needle,
All were used for God.
—Harvester Mission
*****
• Character is a victory, not a gift.
• Envy shoots at others and wounds herself.
*****
I Thank Thee
O Thou whose bounty fills my cup,
With every blessing meet!
I give Thee thanks for every drop—
The bitter and the sweet.
I praise Thee for the desert road,
And for the riverside;
For all Thy goodness hath bestowed,
And all Thy grace denied.
I thank Thee for both smile and frown,
And for the gain and loss;
I praise Thee for the future crown
And for the present cross.
I thank Thee for both wings of love
Which stirred my worldly nest;
And for the stormy clouds which drove
Me, trembling, to Thy breast.
I bless Thee for the glad increase,
And for the waning joy;
And for this strange, this settled peace
Which nothing can destroy.
—Christian Victory
*****
“I thank God for my handicaps, for, through them, I have found myself, my work, and my God”
Helen Keller
*****
“The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage of this army......We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.”
----George Washington
*****
Just One Request
“Dear Master for this coming year
Just one request I bring:
I do not pray for happiness,
Or any earthly thing—
I do not ask to understand
The way Thou leadest me,
But this I ask: Teach me to do
The thing that pleaseth Thee.
I want to know Thy guiding voice,
To walk with Thee each day.
Dear Master make me swift to hear
And ready to obey.
And thus the year I now begin
A happy year will be—
If I am seeking just to do
The thing that pleaseth Thee.”
—Selected
*****
Those Little Hurts
Termites destroy more property than do earthquakes. More fires are caused by matches and cigarettes than by volcanoes.
More heartaches and sorrow are caused by little words and deeds of unkindness than by open acts of dislike and enmity.
—E. C. Mckenzie
*****
Jesus loves me—this I know,
For the Bible tells me so.
----Anna Bartlett Warner
*****
“I nightly offer up my prayers to the throne of grace for the health and safety of you all, and that we ought all to rely with confidence on the promises of our dear Redeemer, and give Him our hearts. This is all he requires and all that we can do, and if we sincerely do this, we are sure of salvation through his atonement.”
---Andrew Jackson
*****
Story Of Two Angels
There is a legend about two angels who were sent to earth to gather up the prayers of men. One was to fill his basket with the petitions of mankind. The other was to gather their prayers of thanksgiving. Sometime later they went back to the Father’s house. One had a basket heaped high, and running over, with the innumerable petitions of men. The other returned with a sad and heavy heart, for his basket was almost empty. The thanks of men were heard but rarely on earth, even though the angel had searched diligently. Let us not forget the thanksgiving side of our prayers.
—The Expositor
*****
The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings.
*****
Three-Volume Book
Life is a book of Volumes three
The Past—the Present—and the Yet-to-be:
The First is written and laid away,
The Second we are writing day by day;
The next and the last of the volumes Three—
Is locked from sight—God holds the key.
---Selected
*****
If Jesus undertook to bring me to glory, and if the Father promised that He would give me to the Son to be a part of the infinite reward of the travail of His soul; then, my soul, till God Himself shall be unfaithful, till Jesus shall cease to be the truth, thou art safe.
—C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening.
*****
Blame Me Not
Ye call me Master and obey me not,
Ye call me Light and see me not;
Ye call me Way and walk not;
Ye call me Life and desire me not;
Ye call me Wise and follow me not;
Ye call me Fair and love me not;
Ye call me Rich and ask me not;
Ye call me Eternal and seek me not;
Ye call me Gracious and trust me not;
Ye call me Noble and serve me not;
Ye call me Mighty and honor me not;
Ye call me Just and fear me not;
If I condemn you BLAME ME not!
—Unknown
*****
Sometimes one pays most for the things one gets for nothing.
—Einstein
*****
“Many Christians remain stunted and dwarfed in spiritual things, so as to present the same appearance year after year. No up-springing of advanced and refined feeling is manifest in them. They exist but do not "grow up into Him in all things." But should we rest content with being in the "green blade," when we might advance to "the ear," and eventually ripen into the "full corn in the ear?" Should we be satisfied to believe in Christ, and to say, "I am safe," without wishing to know in our own experience more of the fulness which is to be found in Him? It should not be so; we should, as good traders in heaven's market, covet to be enriched in the knowledge of Jesus.
---C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
The Religious Character of the American Founding
“Finally, let us not forget the religious character of our origin. Our fathers were brought hither by their high veneration for the Christian religion. They journeyed by its light, and labored in its hope. They sought to incorporate its principles with the elements of their society, and to diffuse its influence through all their institutions, civil, political, and literary.”
—Daniel Webster, Congressman, Senator, and Secretary of State for three presidents.
*****
A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd.
*****
If you’re not afraid to face the music, you may some day lead the band.
*****
We too often love things and use people, when we should be using things and loving people.
*****
“God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are always ready to guard and defend it.”
—Daniel Webster
*****
“Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make but slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not thoughtfully meditate on God's Word. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they would have the corn, but they will not go forth into the fields to gather it; the fruit hangs upon the tree, but they will not pluck it; the water flows at their feet, but they will not stoop to drink it. From such folly deliver us, O Lord, and be this our resolve this morning, "I will meditate in Thy precepts."
—C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
Devil’s Viewpoint
A modernistic preacher … announced in defending his liberal theological position, “I’m not afraid of the Devil.”
“That is not what matters so much,” one of his acquaintances replied. “Let me ask you a more important question: Is the Devil afraid of you?”
—The Pilgrim
*****
Fishermen’s Prayer
The fishermen of Brittany utter the simple prayer when they launch their boats upon the deep: “Keep me, my God; my boat is small and the ocean is wide.”
—Selected
*****
“It is impossible to mentally or socially enslave a Bible-reading people. The principles of the Bible are the groundwork of human freedom.” —Horace Greeley
*****
“HE WHO PROVIDES FOR THIS LIFE, BUT TAKES NO CARE FOR ETERNITY, IS WISE FOR A MOMENT, BUT A FOOL FOREVER”
—Tillotson
*****
I Only Know
You asked me how I gave my heart to Christ,
I do not know;
There came a yearning for Him in my soul
So long ago;
I found earth’s flowers would fade and die,
I wept for something that would satisfy
And then, and then, somehow I seemed
To dare
To lift my broken heart to God in prayer.
I do not know, I cannot tell you how;
I only know He is my Saviour now.
—Anonymous
*****
“I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I wish to be, I am not what I hope to be; but, by the grace of God, I am not what I was.”
—John Newton
*****
“Nor should I forget to mention here that the last act of Congress ever signed by him was one requiring that the motto, in which he sincerely believed, “In God We Trust,” should hereafter be inscribed on all our national coins.”
Speaker of the House Schuyler Colfax, speaking of President Abraham Lincoln
*****
Nothing To Lose
Blaise Pascal, one of the acknowledged masters of calculus in the 16th century, was asked why he believed in eternal salvation or eternal life. His remarks were as follows: “Let’s assume that I am wrong and there is no life hereafter—then I have lost nothing. On the other hand, let’s assume that I am right and there is life hereafter, then I have gained everything."
*****
His One Mistake
He wore his rubbers when it rained.
He brushed his teeth TWICE a day … with a nationally- advertised toothpaste.
The doctors examined him twice a year.
He slept with the windows open.
He stuck to a diet with plenty of fresh vegetables.
He relinquished his tonsils and traded in several worn-out glands.
He golfed—but never more than 18 holes at a time.
He got at least eight hours’ sleep every night.
He never smoked, drank or lost his temper.
He did his “daily dozen” daily. He was all set to live to be a hundred.
The funeral will be held Wednesday. He’s survived by eight specialists, three health institutions, two gymnasiums and numerous manufacturers of health foods and antiseptics.
He forgot God.
*****
Read Your Bible When—
You worry: Matthew 6:19-34
You are lonely or fearful: Psalm 23
You are in sorrow: John 14:1-6
You are grateful: Psalm 103
Others fail you: Psalm 27
God seems far away: Psalm 139
You need courage: Joshua 1
You are discouraged: Isaiah 40
You are in danger: Psalm 91
You have sinned: Psalm 51
You have failed: Psalm 38
God has rescued you: Psalm 34
You want to praise God: Psalm 100
You want to be like Jesus: John 15
Responsibility overwhelms you: Matthew 11:28-30
*****
The Worst Bad Bargain
A Sunday school teacher asked if any scholar recollected an instance in Scripture of anyone making a bad bargain.
“I do,” replied a boy, “Esau made a bad bargain when he sold his birthright for a mess of pottage.”
A second said, “Judas made a bad bargain when he sold his Lord for thirty pieces of silver.”
A third replied, “Ananias and Saphira made a bad bargain when they sold their land and then told Peter a falsehood about it.”
A fourth observed. “Our Lord tells us that he makes a bad bargain who, to gain the whole world, loses his own soul.”
—Children’s Friend
*****
Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping the other person will die!
*****
True repentance is never too late; but late repentance is seldom true.
*****
Forgiving the unrepentant is like drawing pictures on water.
—Japanese Proverb
*****
Those Wasted Years
I looked upon a farm one day,
That once I used to own;
The barn had fallen to the ground,
The fields were overgrown.
The house in which my children grew,
Where we had lived for years—
I turned to see it broken down,
And brushed aside the tears.
I looked upon my soul one day,
To find it too had grown
With thorns and nettles everywhere,
The seeds neglect had sown.
The years had passed while I had cared
For things of lesser worth:
The things of Heaven I let go
When minding things of Earth.
To Christ I turned with bitter tears,
And cried, “O Lord, forgive!
I haven’t much time left for Thee,
Not many years to live.”
The wasted years forever gone,
The days I can’t recall;
If I could live those days again,
I’d make Him Lord of all.
—Theodore W. Brennan
*****
A sense of our own folly is a great step towards being wise, when it leads us to rely on the wisdom of the Lord. The blind man leans on his friend's arm and reaches home in safety, and so would we give ourselves up implicitly to divine guidance, nothing doubting; assured that though we cannot see, it is always safe to trust the All-seeing God.
–C. H. Spurgeon, from Morning and Evening
*****
Half-Hearted Clearance
Some Christians are like the man who wrote the office of Internal Revenue stating: “I can’t sleep; my conscience is bothering me. Enclosed find a check for $50. If I still can’t sleep, I’ll send you the balance!”
—Myron S. Augsburger
*****
“Conscience,” said an Indian, “is a three-cornered thing in my heart that stands still when I am good, but when I am bad, it turns around and the corners hurt a lot. If I keep on doing wrong, the corners wear off and it does not hurt anymore.”
—Construction Digest
*****
A well-to-do man came to live next door to a tanner’s yard. Unable to endure the foul smell, he kept urging the tanner to move elsewhere; but the tanner always put him off, saying that he would move a little later on. This happened so often that in course of time the man got used to the smell and stopped worrying his neighbor.
—Fable of Aesop
*****
Modesty: A woman would do well to remember that the bait used will determine the fish caught. Want a godly mate? A godly man is seeking after God, not legs..not cleavage..not flirting..not flashiness nor talents. "A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her." Modesty truly is an issue of the heart, not the hemline nor neckline. Fix the heart, and the hemline and neckline will adjust themselves.
-----Copied
*****
THE CROSS
No pain, no palm;
No thorns, no throne;
No gall, no glory;
No cross, no crown.
----William Penn
*****
The Lord has turned all our sunsets into sunrise.
-----Clement of Alexandria
*****
THE SECRET
I met God in the morning
When my day was at its best,
And His presence came like sunrise;
Like a glory in my breast.
All day long the Presence lingered
All day long He stayed with me,
And we sailed in perfect calmness
O’er a very troubled sea----
So, I think I know the secret
Learned from many a troubled way,
You must seek Him in the morning
If you want Him through the day.
----Ralph Spaulding Cushman
*****
The Book
A bit of the Book in the morning,
To order my onward way.
A bit of the Book in the evening,
To hallow the end of the day.
Margaret Sangster
*****
Equilibrium
“Unless we form the habit of going to the Bible in bright moments as well as in trouble, we cannot fully respond to its consolations because we lack equilibrium between light and darkness.”
Helen Keller
*****
A Little Boy In Church
He ruffles through his hymnbook,
He fumbles with his tie,
He laces up his oxfords,
He overworks a sigh.
He goes through all his pockets,
Engrossed in deep research----
There’s no one quite so busy as
A little boy in church.
Thelma Ireland
*****
“There is no great future for a people whose faith has burned out.”
----Rufus M. Jones
*****
Kimberly Vaughn,wife of SEAL Aaron Vaughn, who was among 30 American Patriots and seven Afghan allies killed on Aug. 6, offered these words to CNN: "There was no way -- even if you could tell him that this would have happened he would have done it anyway. All those men are like that. They're selfless. I want to tell the world that he was an amazing man, that he was a wonderful husband and a fabulous father to two wonderful children. He was a warrior for Christ and he was a warrior for our country and he wouldn't want to leave this Earth any other way than how he did." When CNN aired her comments in subsequent stories, however, "He was a warrior for Christ" was, despicably, edited out.From: The Patriot Post
*****
The Wrecking Crew
I stood on the streets of a busy town,
Watching men tearing a building down:
With a “Ho, heave, ho,” and a lusty yell,
They swung a beam and a sidewall fell.
I asked the foreman of the crew,
“Are those men as skilled as those you’d hire if you wanted to build?”
“Ah, no,” he said, “no indeed.
Just common labor is all I need.
I can tear down as much in a day or two,
As would take skilled men a year to do.”
And then I thought as I went on my way,
Just which of these two roles am I trying to play?
Have I walked life’s road with care,
Measuring each deed with rule and square?
Or am I one of those who roam the town,
Content with the labor of tearing down?
—Selected
*****
“I thought, ‘Is this the sign of an upright soul, to desire to serve God when all is taken from him? Is he a godly man who will serve God for nothing, rather than give up? Blessed be God, then I hope I have an upright heart, for I am resolved, God giving me strength, never to deny my profession of faith, though I have nothing at all for my pains.’ “
John Bunyan, from Grace Abounding
*****
• To the discontented man no chair is easy.
—Benjamin Franklin
*****
God Told Me About Peanut
Testifying before the Senate AgricultureCommittee on the value of the peanut, George Washington Carver, who as an infant was traded for a broken-down racehorse, said that he got his knowledge of peanuts from the Bible. Asked what the Bible said about peanuts he replied, “The Bible does not teach anything regarding the peanut. But it told me about God, and God told me about the peanut.”
*****
Florence Nightingale At 30
Florence Nightingale at thirty wrote in her diary, “I am thirty years of age, the age at which Christ began His mission. Now no more childish things, no more vain things. Now, Lord, let me think only of Thy will.” Years later, near the end of her illustrious, heroic life she was asked for her life’s secret, and she replied, “Well, I can only give one explanation. That is, I have kept nothing back from God.”
—Paul Rees
*****
"Say not my soul, 'From whence can God relieve my care?
Remember that Omnipotence has servants everywhere.
His method is sublime, His heart profoundly kind,
God never is before His time, and never is behind.'
From: Morning and Evening
*****
Eternal Hope:
Upon a life I have not lived,
Upon a death I have not died----
Another’s life, Another’s death,
I stake my whole eternity—
*****
Packing
A young Christian packing his bag for a journey said to a friend, “I have nearly finished packing. All I need to put in are a guide book, a lamp, a mirror, a microscope, a telescope, a volume of fine poetry, a few biographies, a package of old letters, a book of songs, a sword, a hammer, and a set of tools.” “But you cannot put all that in your bag!” objected the friend. “Oh yes,” said the Christian, “Here it is.” And he placed his Bible in the corner of the suitcase and closed the lid.
*****
An Eye That Never Sleeps
There is an eye that never sleeps,
Beneath the wing of night;
There is an ear that never shuts,
When sink the beams of light;
There is an arm that never tires.
When human strength gives way;
There is a love that never fails,
When earthly loves decay.
—Selected
*****
Defining A Lawyer
“What is a lawyer, Pa?”
“A lawyer, my boy, is a man who induces two other men to strip for a fight, and then runs away with their clothes.”
*****
Don’t Judge Too Hard
Pray don’t find fault with a man who limps
Or stumbles along the road,
Unless you have worn the shoes he wears
Or struggled beneath his load.
There may be tacks in his shoes that hurt,
Though hidden away from view,
Or the burden he bears, placed on your back,
Might cause you to stumble, too.
Don’t sneer at the man who is down today,
Unless you have felt the blow
That caused his fall, or felt the shame
That only the fallen know.
You may be strong, but still the blows
That were his, if dealt to you
In the self same way at the self same time,
Might cause you to stagger, too.
Don’t be too harsh with a man who sins,
Or pelt him with words or stones,
Unless you are sure, yea, doubly sure,
That you have not sins of your own.
For you know, perhaps, if the tempter’s voice
Should whisper as soft to you
As it did to him when he went astray
“’Twould cause you to falter, too.”
—Selected
*****
“Now I saw clearly that there was an exceeding difference between the notion of the flesh and the revelation of God in heaven. Also there was a great difference between the faith that is feigned according to man’s wisdom and that which comes by revelation from God to a man’s spirit.”
John Bunyan, from Grace Abounding
*****
The Weaver
My life is but a weaving
Between the Lord and me,
I cannot choose the colors
He worketh steadily.
Ofttimes He weaveth sorrow,
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I, the underside.
Not till the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the Weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned.
--Grant Colfax Tuller
*****
"I remember I could not tell how to contain myself until I got home. I thought I could have spoken of His love and mercy to me, even to the very crows that sat upon the plowed lands before me, had they been capable of understanding me."
John Bunyan, from Grace Abounding
*****
If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom; and the irony of it is that if it is comfort or money that it values more, it will lose that, too.
—Doubleday
*****
The Christian Home
How God must love a friendly home
Which has a warming smile,
To welcome everyone who comes
To bide a little while!
How God must love a happy home
Where song and laughter show,
Hearts full of joyous certainty
That life means ways to grow!
How God must love a loyal home
Serenely sound and sure!
When troubles come to those within,
They still can feel secure.
How God must love a Christian home
Where faith and love attest
That every moment, every hour,
He is the honored Guest!
—The Pentecostal Messenger
*****
Beauty Of A House
The beauty of a house is harmony,
The security of a house is loyalty,
The joy of a house is love,
The plenty of a house is in children,
The rule of a house is service,
The comfort of a house is God Himself.
—Frank Crane
*****
“Breathes there the man, with soul so dead,
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!”
Sir Walter Scott
*****
FOUR THINGS
Four things in any land must dwell,
If it endures and prospers well;
One is manhood true and good;
One is noble womanhood;
One is childlife, clean and bright;
And one is an altar kept alight.
*****
Land of Our Birth
Land of our birth, we pledge to thee
Our love and toil in the years to be;
When we are grown and take our place,
As men and women with our race----
Land of our Birth, our faith, our pride,
For whose dear sake our fathers died;
Our Motherland, we pledge to thee,
Head, heart, and hand through the years to be!
Rudyard Kipling, from The Children’s Song
****
Church signs: “People do odd things to get even.”
Practice makes perfect, so be careful what you practice.
*****
Blest Be The Ties That Bind
In 1765 John Fawcett was called to pastor a very small congregation at Wainsgate, England.He labored there diligently for 7 years, but his salary was so meager that he and his wife could scarcely obtain the necessities of life. Though the people were poor, they compensated for this lack by their faithfulness and warm fellowship.
Then Dr. Fawcett received a call from a much larger church in London, and after lengthy consideration decided to accept the invitation. As his few possessions were being placed in a wagon for moving, many of his parishioners came to say good-bye. Once again they pleaded with him to reconsider.
Touched by this great outpouring of love, he and his wife began to weep. Finally Mrs. Fawcett exclaimed, “O John, I just can’t bear this. They need us so badly here.” “God has spoken to my heart, too!” he said. “Tell them to unload the wagon! We cannot break these wonderful ties of fellowship.”
This experience inspired Fawcett to write a hymn. “Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love! The fellowship of kindred mind is like to that above.”
—H. G. Bosch—
*****
Associate yourself with men of good qualityif you esteem your own reputation; for ’tis better tobe alone than in bad company.
—George Washington—
*****
OTHER THINGS: Luke 15:20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
*****
An Old Soldier’s Prayer
“Build me a son, O Lord, who will be strong
enough to know when he is weak, and brave enough
to face himself when he is afraid; one who will be
proud and unbending in honest defeat, and humble
and gentle in victory.
“Build me a son whose wishes will not take the
place of deeds; a son who will know Thee … and
that to know himself is the foundation stone of
knowledge.
“Build me a son whose heart will be clear,
whose goal will be high, a son who will master
himself before he seeks to master other men; one
who will reach into the future, yet never forget the
past.
“And after all these things are his, add, I pray,
enough of a sense of humor, so that he may always
be serious, yet never take himself too seriously.
Give him humility, so that he may always
remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open
mind of true wisdom and the meekness of true
strength.
“Then I, his father, will dare to whisper, “I have
not lived in vain.””
—Gen. Douglas A. MacArthur—
*****
Father’s Day Flower: The official flower on Father’s Day is the dandelion, because the more it is trampled upon, the better it grows.
*****
“No man who merely skims the book of God can
profit thereby; we must dig and mine until we
obtain the hid treasure. The door of the word only
opens to the key of diligence.”
C. H. Spurgeon,
From Morning and Evening
*****
Go On!
One step won’t take you very far;
You’ve got to keep on walking;
One word won’t tell folks who you are;
You’ve got to keep on talking;
One inch won’t make you very tall;
You’ve got to keep on growing;
One deed won’t do it all;
You’ve got to keep on going.
—Arkansas Baptist—
*****
Africa Or English Throne
I had rather be in the heart of Africa in the will
of God than on the throne of England out of the will
of God.
—Livingstone—
*****
It is said that the sweetest side of any fruit or
vegetable is the side which grows toward the sun.
—J. H. Bomberger—
*****
OTHER THINGS:“It is one of the arrangements of Divine providence that day and night shall not cease either in the spiritual or natural creation till we reach the land of which it is written, "there is no night there." What our heavenly Father ordains is wise and good.”
—C. H. Spurgeon—
Morning and Evening
*****
Perhaps Today
Perhaps today our Lord will come
To bear us to our much-loved Home:
Before the evening shadows fall
May sound the longed-for clarion call;
Then out of sorrow, tears and strife,
We’ll rise to realms of joy and life.
Perhaps today will be the last,
And time shall be forever past.
Our light affliction will be o’er.
Then Glory! Glory! evermore!
These days of toil and pain will cease
And faithful workers rest in peace.
Perhaps today mine eyes shall see
The Lamb of God who died for me:
Oh, nothing else will matter then.
If unto Him I’ve faithful been.
Live for that day, O soul of mine,
And joy eternal shall be thine.
—Annie Lind Woodworth—
*****
