May 6, 2010
Editor Note: Although we receive and appreciate nice notes for the articles and stories in "Christian Voices", we also receive nice comments about the humor. We have compiled what we think is the best of the humor that we've published over the years and have dedicated a separate issue of "Christian Voices" that we send once or twice each year (adding a new one from time to time). We haven't done that for a long time, so look forward on next Monday to some especially good humor and start the week off with a smile.
HUMOR
Change of Climate
Although he was a qualified meteorologist, Hopkins ran up a terrible record of forecasting for the TV news program. He became something of a local joke when a newspaper began keeping a record of his predictions and showed that he'd been wrong almost three hundred times in a single year.
That kind of notoriety was enough to get him fired.
He moved to another part of the country and applied for a similar job. One blank on the job application called for the reason for leaving his previous position.
The weathercaster wrote with great honesty, "The climate didn't agree with me."
.....Keith Todd (ktodd@vci.net) (ajokeaday7@topica.com) by way of "Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)
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THOUGHT PROVOKING – INSPIRATIONAL
GOD'S TIMING
At one time or another, most of us have questions about God's timing. It seems that we wait and wait, and sometimes wait some more and wonder what God has in mind for our lives, if anything at all.
We ask questions like, "When will I find a job?" or "When will my children return to the Lord?" or "Why doesn't my spouse believe like I do?" or "Doesn't God have someone out there for me to marry and if he does, why is he taking so long to bring us together?" Maybe you are just asking, "How can God allow this situation (whatever it may be) to go on?"
We wait and ask questions and wonder when, if ever, God will give an answer. You probably already know that God's timing is never out of timing, however notice what David had to say about it in Psalms 27:14. David wrote, "Wait for the Lord, be strong, and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord!" How does this verse apply to your situation and how long have you have been waiting for an answer? Think about David's background.
In the book of 1 Samuel we see that King Saul was rejected as king over Israel because of his disobedience to God. In chapter 16 Samuel is told to go to Bethlehem, to the home of Jesse and there he will anoint one of Jesse's sons as the new king over Israel. David though "just a youth" is anointed king, but it was more than 20 years before he sat on the throne. For 20 years that promise hung over David's head as he waited for it to be fulfilled. For 20 years it stood between him and relationships with King Saul. For most of that 20 years Saul hunted for David, trying to kill him. For part of that 20 years David actually had to flee the country and live in another country for safety, even though he was anointed King over Israel by God's prophet, at God's command.
So when David wrote, "Wait for the Lord, be strong, and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord!" he knew what it was to wait for the Lord to answer and act in his life. I like the way one modern paraphrase puts this verse, "Stay with GOD! Take heart. Don't quit. I'll say it again: Stay with God!" (MSG)
So, how long have you been waiting, 20 years? Has the king (or president) of your country had his army out hunting you, trying to kill you? Probably not, if you are like most of us, your problems and your questions are more in the nature of what is happening to you in some physical way dealing with family, jobs, houses and health. David councils, "Wait for the Lord". Or "Stay with the Lord, Don't quit". That's my council also.
Notice one final scripture from the Apostle Paul, "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us, they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners." (Romans 5:3-6, NLT)
.....Russ Lawson "Messages From The Heart" (www.mfth.net) by way of The Daily Encourager (dlangerfeld@HarrisburgBaptist.org) and "Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net)
Bottom of Form
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Alive on the Outside
From a distance, it looked like a victim of last year’s hurricane. My friend Sarah, pointed. “Look at that!”, she exclaimed. I followed her finger, and saw the huge tree where half of it had been ripped off. Literally. The jagged place showed just where the wind force lopped off a giant part of the tree.
We walked closer to it and noticed a dark area in the trunk. Upon closer examination, we found, what appeared to be, the heart of the tree all blackened and dead looking. How could the tree be alive if it were dead on the inside?
I thought of Rita. Radiation treatments had claimed her dark, curly hair. On the outside, her body was failing. On the inside, her spirit was more vibrant than ever. While we were visiting, her sunken eyes were closed, breathing shallow. But oh my, the peaceful expression on her face said it all. Talk about shekinah; the glory of the Lord shone from within her. Her spirit was very much alive, even though, on the outside, her body was wracked by disease
Last week I was at the home of a neighbor. Terry looked great on the outside, acted fine too. She welcomed us, chatted animatedly, graciously offered a snack her husband had laid out on the kitchen table. We were there to pray with Terry, whose diagnosis was stage 4 metastasized cancer. She was thin, and her body clearly showed signs of battling a disease. On the inside, though, her spirit was vigorous, as was clearly evident as we prayed together.
Looks are deceiving, and things are not always what they seem. Some people are alive on the outside, yet dead on the inside, in their spirit. Still others look sick on the outside, yet are very much alive in their soul, on the inside.
At Terry’s home, I found this note taped to the bathroom mirror, which her son kindly let me copy:
Cancer is so limited.
It cannot
Cripple love
Shatter hope
Corrode faith
Destroy peace
Kill friendship
Suppress memories
Silence courage
Invade the soul
Steal eternal life
It cannot
Conquer the Spirit.
The Bible tells us we are “more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
(Romans 8:37).
That is very good news.
.....Sally I. Kennedy (sallyikennedy@bellsouth.net) by way of "Christian Voices" (www.ChristianVoicesWorldwide.net) Sally publishes Irish Weekly Devotionals (copyright 2009); Irish Thursdays; Words from the Heart; Poppy the Penguin: and Kwackie the Wonder Duck. You can learn more about Sally at her web site http://www.sallyikennedy.com.
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