Becoming a radiant Christian

My friend Dorothy spent several weeks in prayer and special training to lead a Bible discussion group. Finally the big day arrived for the first class. Getting her family of six out the door was more hectic than usual that morning. Breakfast didn't turn out right, and several arguments were going on among the children. Dorothy, quickly getting frazzled, tried to regain her composure. In the midst of the bedlam, her husband entered the kitchen and surveyed the uproar.

"Kids! Settle down!" he admonished. "Your mom has only forty-five minutes until she has to become a radiant Christian."

Roseann Hill

1001 Quotes, Illustrations, and Humorous Stories: For Preachers, Teachers, and Writers.

If it is the Lord's Will

A pastor was outside sitting on his porch one day and thinking about the unpredictability of life. At any moment, one's life could change, and so one should live every moment looking to the Lord. As the preacher sat there, his neighbor passed by leading his horse. The preacher called out to him, "What are you doing with your horse?" The man answered, "I'm going to town to sell it." The pastor said, "You ought to say that you are going to sell it if it is the Lord's will." The man replied, "What does this have to do with the Lord's will? This is a good, healthy horse and it will be sold before you know it." The pastor said, "Have you forgotten that God is watching you? You need to put everything in God's hands in order for it to work out. You should say, 'If it be the Lord's will.'" The neighbor then said, "This is my horse and I have raised it specifically to be sold. I've even gotten a buyer for it. The Lord won't change anything."

Later that day, the neighbor passed by the preacher's house again. He was covered in dirt, his clothes were ripped to shreds, and he was bruised and sore from one end to the other. The astonished pastor asked, "What in the world happened to you?" The man replied, "Well, I talked to you for so long that I was running late for my appointment with my buyer. To get there on time, I took a short cut through a corn field owned by a cranky old buzzard. Well, that farmer saw me trampling through his field and he started shooting at my horse. The horse panicked and fell over on top of me, then it kicked me in the eye. Trying to get out from under the horse, I tore my clothes to pieces. I ran from that old man and his gun and ran smack dab into a barbed wire fence. That's what happened to me!" The pastor asked, "Well, where are you going now?" The man answered, "Well, I'm going home now... if it be the Lord's will."

Mattoon's Treasures - Mattoon's Treasures – Treasures from Exodus, Volume 1.

Caring enough to confront

In his column for REV Magazine, Charles Lowery writes about a friend that loved him enough to tell him the truth. After complaining about some lower back pain, his friend said to him, “your back isn’t your problem, Charles, it’s your stomach. Your stomach is so big it’s pulling on your back.” Charles resisted the temptation to be offended and realized his friend was right. He lost the weight and his “back” problem went away. Charles commented on the incident by saying, “A friend will see through you…and also see you through.”

—REV, May/June 2003

Proverbs 27:6 NLT “Wounds from a friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.”

Fresh Illustrations.

Discouraged?

The devil once had a yard sale. He put out all of his tools with a price sticker on each one. There were a lot of them, including hatred, envy, jealousy, doubt, lying, pride, and lust. Apart from the rest of the tools was an old, harmless-looking tool with a high price.

One of the devil's customers asked about this high-priced tool. The devil said, "Why, that's discouragement."

The customer asked, "Why do you have such a high price on it?"

The devil responded, "That's one of my most useful tools. When other tools won't work, I can pry open and get into a person's heart with discouragement. Once I get inside, I can do whatever I want. It's easy to get into a person's heart with this tool because few people know it belongs to me."

It's said that the devil's price on discouragement is so high that he's never been able to sell it. As a result, he continues to use it.

And he often uses it with his oldest tool: "Did God really say that?" "Are you sure he's called to do that?" "Wow, you sure have made a mess of things, haven't you?" These are very painful times and must be addressed by simply being honest with God. Ask the Lord why he is allowing these periods of stress and pain. Ask him for wisdom to walk through them graciously and humbly. But never allow any root of anger and bitterness to grow in your heart, because God is not finished with you yet.

Holman Old Testament Commentary - Holman Old Testament Commentary – Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers.

Excuses

Zig Ziglar writes:
My brother, the late Judge Ziglar, loved to tell the story of the fellow who went next door to borrow his neighbor’s lawn mower. The neighbor explained that he could not let him use the mower because all the flights had been canceled from New York to Los Angeles.
The borrower asked him what canceled flights from New York to Los Angeles had to do with borrowing his lawn mower. “It doesn’t have anything to do with it, but if I don’t want to let you use my lawn mower, one excuse is as good as another.” – Citation: Zig Ziglar, Something Else to Smile About (Thomas Nelson, 1999); submitted by Bonne Steffen; Wheaton, Illinois
Illustrations for Every Topic and Occasion - – Perfect Illustrations: For Every Topic and Occasion.

What is adultery

A third-grade Sunday school teacher was uneasy about the lesson "Thou shalt not commit adultery." By way of introduction she asked, "Would someone please explain what adultery means?"

A young sage answered matter-of-factly, "Adultery is when a kid lies about his age."

Jonathan R. Mutchler

1001 Quotes, Illustrations, and Humorous Stories: For Preachers, Teachers, and Writers.

How to break bad news

In Be a People Person, John Maxwell tells this story:

Mr. Myrick had to go to Chicago on business and persuaded his brother to take care of his cat during his absence. Though he hated cats, the brother agreed. Upon his return, Myrick called from the airport to check on the cat.

"Your cat died," the brother reported, then hung up.

Myrick was inconsolable. His grief was magnified by his brother's insensitivity, so he called again to express his pain. "There was no need for you to be so blunt," he said.

"What was I supposed to say?" asked the perplexed brother.

"You could have broken the news gradually," explained Myrick. "You could have said, 'The cat was playing on the roof.' Then, later in the conversation, you could have said, 'He fell off.' Then you could have said, 'He broke his leg.' Then when I came to pick him up, you could have said, 'I'm so sorry. Your cat passed away during the night.' You've got to learn to be more tactful.... By the way, how's Mom?"

After a long pause, the brother replied, "She's playing on the roof."

Mike Neifert

1001 Quotes, Illustrations, and Humorous Stories: For Preachers, Teachers, and Writers.