OBLIVIOUS It seems this particular fellow frequently came home drunk and he was so far gone that he would fall into bed fully clothed, pass out and then snore loudly all night long. Finally, his…
Sermon Illustrations
THE TRANSFORMING LOOK A man came back to work in a place where he had been fired several months previously. His work was superior. A fellow worker remembered how inconsistent he had been in the…
WHAT REALLY COUNTS A fable has it that a farmer decided to transplant an old brier bush into a rose garden. The brier protested. "What a foolish man! Don't you know I'm just an old…
FIGURING THE PROFIT A small businessman from the old country kept his accounts payable in a cigar box, his accounts receivable on a spindle, and his cash in the cash register. His son said, "I…
PSEUDO CONCERN A knock at the door brought the lady of the house face to face with a man of sad countenance. He said "I am sorry to disturb you, but I am collecting money…
TOUGH HURDLES I received this delightful story from Calvin Van Kirk Hoyt, Rector of Mount Calvary Episcopal Church in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. A dignified English solicitor-widower with a considerable income had long dreamed of playing…
OUR TASK -- IN THE DARKNESS Matt Ferguson of the Christian Nurture Commission of the Presbyterian Church, Evansville, Indiana, gleaned this one from Lloyd Ogilvie: 47714 At age twelve, Robert Louis Stevenson was looking out…
DISCOVERING GOD During World War II the famous American pilot, Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, was flying on a special mission to the Pacific Islands. The plane crashed and Rickenbacker and his crew were lost at sea…
A MOTHER IS WAITING The following story was sent in by Charles J. Youngkin, of the Morgan Hill Bible Church in Morgan Hill, California. 95037 John Todd was born in Rutledge, Vermont into a family…
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR MOTHER A small boy went to the lingerie department of a store to purchase a gift for his mother. He bashfully told the clerk that he wanted to buy a slip…
FATHER'S ADVICE TO TEEN-AGE SON Maybe you should start shifting for yourself now while you still know everything.
ADOLESCENT WISDOM It never occurs to teenagers that someday they will know as little as their parents. On the Upbeat
THE PRIDE/HUMILITY AMBIGUITY One of my favorite Peanuts cartoons is the one that shows Linus and Charlie Brown talking together and Linus observes: "When I get big I'm going to be a humble little country…
ONE STEP AHEAD I was reminded of one of my favorites the other day about the four high school boys who skipped morning classes. After lunch, when they showed up they reported to the teacher…
GREENER GRASS Two disillusioned college presidents were discussing what they'd do if they had their lives to live over. One said "I'd like to run an orphanage -- no parents to contend with." The other…
FORMIDABLE DILEMMA A man, his wife and mother-in-law went on a safari in Africa. They hired a guide and set out into the jungle. One morning, the married couple awoke to find mother missing. After…
TRENDS/OPPORTUNITIES One of the books I have most enjoyed in recent days is Megatrends by John Naisbitt (Warner Books, $15.50). The subtitle is "Ten New Directions Transforming Our Lives." John Naisbitt is the chairman of…
YOUR FIXIN' LIMITS A book with a number of thoughtful little items in it is Charlie Shedd's Then God Created Grandparents And It Was Very Good. One of our members, Ken Christiansen, loaned me his…
A DISCIPLINED TEAM Several years ago, in England, Sir John Barbirolli was conducting a great symphony orchestra before a "standing room only" audience. The concert hall was unusual in that it was used for cultural…
TAXES Congress is simplifying the return this year - - there are only four lines: 1) What was your income last year? 2) What were your expenses? 3) How much do you have left? 4)…
