Category Archives: Faithfulness

Never underestimate a grandmother’s prayers

Mikhail Gorbachev, the former Soviet leader who brought an end to the Cold War, was born into a family of committed atheists. But his grandmother had him secretly baptized by a Russian Orthodox priest, and she put an icon of … Continue reading

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Our own special message

There’s an old Jewish tradition that God sends each of us into the world with a special message to deliver and a special act of love to bestow, and each of us is uniquely equipped to do it; which is … Continue reading

Posted in Called and Chosen, Choices, Faithfulness, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Fibs

They say that the three most commonly told lies are: ‘Gee, you haven’t changed a bit,’ ‘I never got the message’ and ‘The cheque is in the mail.’ Jerald Jellison said: ‘Each of us fibs at least fifty times a … Continue reading

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‘Let us pray that we are on God’s side.

Prayer, for many people, seems to be a way of trying to get God to support what they want to happen. This, of course, assumes that we, with our very limited understanding of the bigger picture of life, really do … Continue reading

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”Them that honour me, I will honour.”

Back in the days of the American pioneers, a man stood outside his country store and talked to his partner about selling up. He said: ‘I wouldn’t mind if we could just pay our bills and have enough over to … Continue reading

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Bad luck

There was a time when people thought that to get out of bed on the left side was to open oneself to evil spirits. That’s why we talk about somebody in a foul temper having got out of bed on … Continue reading

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It’s easier with the devil

The Red Devil Tool Company of Union, New Jersey has as its slogan, “It’s easy with the devil;” meaning, of course, that their tools make difficult tasks easier. It’s a light-hearted play on a theme that’s as old as humankind: … Continue reading

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Trouble is inevitable, but misery is optional

Abraham Lincoln is credited with the saying that ‘most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.’ Now, that may be an oversimplification, especially when we think of refugees fleeing from unimaginable horrors, or people … Continue reading

Posted in Endurance, Faith, Faithfulness, God with us, God's faithfulness, God's love, Trials and testings, tribulation and trouble | Leave a comment

What tides of grace flowed from that attic bedroom.

William Barclay tells the story of a servant-girl whose personal search for meaning in life resulted in a profound experience of the presence of God. But the demands of serving in a large house gave little freedom to do much … Continue reading

Posted in Faithfulness, God in us, God's pleasure, Joy, Life, Life's journey | Leave a comment

The only sure way out of that hole

A few years ago, the Isleta Casino in New Mexico used a TV commercial showing images of dollar bills floating down to an outstretched hand while an announcer said: ‘So the holidays have passed, and those credit card bills just … Continue reading

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