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What Might Have Been

John Greenleaf Whittier once wrote, “For all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, ‘It might have been.’” Those words are the sad commentary on many a life. People start with such great promise and have such golden opportunities. But they make the wrong choices and miss their opportunities and so never reach their potential. Their...

Tell Children What God Is...

A little girl came to her mother one day and said, “Mother, what is God like?” The mother was cooking in the kitchen and didn’t have time to talk to her, so she said, “Ask your father.” The girl went to her father, “Father, what is God like?” And he answered gruffly from behind the paper, not wanting to be disturbed, “As...

Going to God with Open Ey...

When Dr. Samuel Johnson was ill with his last illness, he asked if doctors would tell him honestly if he could recover. The doctor said that he could not recover without a miracle. “Then,” said Johnson, “I will take no more [medicine], not even opiates, for I have prayed that I may render up my soul to God unclouded.” When Jesus arrived at Golg...

For People Like This

Golgotha is an Aramaic word that means “the place of the skull.” Today a bus depot stands beneath it. It is almost ironic that the smell of carbon monoxide, the sound of honking horns, and the sight of short tempers should surround the place where Jesus died. It was for people like this and things like this that he died in the first place.

Getting into Heaven

I like the story about the fellow who died and appeared before St. Peter at the gates of heaven. He said, “I’ve come to get in.” And St. Peter said, “You can only get in here by the point system, and it takes a thousand points to get in.” Well, that’s no hill for a stepper, so he said, “I think I can make it. I was active in m...

What Makes Jesus Differen...

Dr. Emil Grubbe was a pioneer in the use of x-ray technology for the treatment of cancer patients. In fact in 1896 he was the first physician ever to use an x-ray beam in the treatment of a cancer patient. Because of Emil Grubbe, even though you may have never heard of him, many of you have found hope for a new life and an extended life because of what x-ray technolog...

Centuries, Cultures, and...

When I read about yet another official in a place of public trust being found guilty of wrongdoing, my first inclination is to despair. I think, “People are worse than ever before.” Then I get it all back in perspective. It’s not that people are worse—the news coverage is just better. One writer said about youth, “Our youth now love luxu...

The Cross

15 And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.  It is doubtful that many, if any of us, understand the true meaning of the cross. To us it is a piece of costume jewelry, an ornament on top of the steeple of a church, or the theme of our mother’s favorite song. Al...

The Rending of the Veil

37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.  39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. Introduction We had a good service this morning. We had four people join...

Today's Devotional

Senseless Tragedies

Once we buried a young lady who was only 21 years old. She was killed in a head-on collision while on her way to church. The night before the funeral, my daughter asked why God allows things like this to happen.

I wish I knew. Things like this have puzzled saints, wise men, and philosophers since the world began.

There is simply no one easy answer as to why tragedies like this happen. The answer may lie in the fact that God made us free. He created us with the ability to make our own choices, and choices always involve consequences. If we are careless or foolish in our choices, or if others are, we may suffer because of them. If God did not allow us freedom, we’d be less than people. We’d be robots.

This may be the only explanation we will ever have for some suffering. However, we do not have to know why things happen in order to be victorious over them. On the cross Jesus cried out “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) But the heavens were as brass. God was silent. He didn’t even answer his own Son. Jesus might have despaired and become bitter against God. But instead he said, “Father, into thy hands I commend [entrust, hand over] my spirit” (Luke 23:46).

This kind of faith is far more important than any answer we might receive. In our lives, as in the life of Jesus, it is faith that makes the difference between victory and defeat.

So keep believing in God no matter what. Commit your life to him and regardless of what happens, God will help you.

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