A French painter, musing about the parable about the wealthy farmer was so moved over it he took out a canvas, a pallet and brush and began to paint the scene. He painted a man…
Sermon Illustrations
Struggling in the face of a mid-life crisis, a somewhat foolish couple was walking down the street one day when they heard a voice from above: "You will live to be 100." They looked around…
There's an amusing little story about a formerly wealthy man who was down on his luck. One day, the pastor of his church spotted him sitting on a park bench, shabbily dressed and wearing a…
If you want to know what really makes people tick, perhaps one way is to follow the latest trends -- check out the newest gadgets and gizmos hitting the marketplace. For example, one company recently…
In the New York Times best seller based on the author's convocation address at Syracuse University, George Saunders writes, "here's something I know to be true: What I regret most in my life are failures…
“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.…
A consultant answered an ad to work with a businessman. At the interview, the proprietor explained that his business wasn’t going well. He was losing money. He was worried about it but he didn’t have…
Don’t make tragedies of trifles! Don’t shoot butterflies with rifles! Laugh it off. Anonymous
There is a great little book entitled “Celebrate the Temporary” which deals with the inability to be present to the now because of our anxious worry about this afternoon or tomorrow or next week. Just…
Not long ago, an American businessman — a good, religious man — told of a trip he had just made to India. Like so many others who have travelled from their seats of comfort and…
The telephone rang in the rectory of a large suburban parish. The parish secretary answered the call. A man’s voice demanded to speak to the pastor. “I’m sorry, he isn’t in,” the secretary said. The…
(“Therefore my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” (I Cor 15:58.) Nineteenth Century author Charles Kingsley…
”A word spoken in due season, how good it is... like apples of gold in a silver setting, a word that is aptly spoken” (Proverbs 15:23, 25:11). Two men who hadn’t seen each other in…
“In the beginning was the Word; the Word was with God and the Word was God” (John 1:1). Generations follow generations—yet it lives ... Nations rise and fall — yet it lives. Kings, dictators presidents…
As he lay on his death bed, the renowned Jewish Theologian, Abraham Heschel, was visited by a close friend who found him woefully weak. The friend said that Rabbi Heschel faintly whispered to him ...…
A woman of advanced age began to have hearing problems. Reluctantly she gave in to suggestions from family members that she consult an ear specialist. After the doctor had made a thorough examination of the…
Degas, the great French artist and master of the subtle tones of grey and pink, was once asked, “What do you mix your colors with?” He replied, “With brains.” In blending the colors of life…
"If there is any one of you who needs wisdom, ask God, who gives to all freely and ungrudgingly” (James 1:5). Every night, a father would quiz his son on the boy’s homework assignment. If…
An anonymous writer has given us this story of an American tourist’s visit to the 19th century Polish Rabbi, Hofetz Chaim, who was looked upon by the people of his time as an extremely wise…
Winter is no mere shift of background scenery. It is an elemental force to be reckoned with. When we put storm windows up and snow tires on, lay in firewood, wrap water pipes and stock…