Playing the Whistles!

When John Henry Jowett was pastor at Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, he began a series of children's meetings. At the very first meeting, four boys with penny whistles upset the meeting by playing tunes while Jowett was speaking. An usher rounded up the boys and took them to the vestry where they faced Jowett. “Can't you fellows play tin whistles any better than that?" Jowett asked. “If you can't, I shall have to get Mrs. Jowett to give you some lessons." A few weeks later, the four boys gave a concert with Mrs Jowett accompanying them on the piano.

The Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching & Preachers, W. Wiersbe, p. 189

Discipline

When Polish pianist Ignace Jan Paderewsky played before Queen Victoria, he won her enthusiastic approval. “Mr. Paderewsky," she exclaimed, “you are a genius."
Paderewsky shook his head. “Perhaps, Your Majesty, but before that I was a drudge," he replied, alluding to the number of hours he spent practising every day.

Disciplines

If you aren't practicing, someone else is. In the 1880s a young man who was an earnest Christian found employment in a pawnshop. Although he disliked the work, he did it faithfully “as unto the Lord" until a more desirable opportunity opened for him. To prepare himself for a life of Christian service, he wrote on a scrap of paper the following resolutions: “I do promise God that I will rise early every morning to have a few minutes - not less than five - in private prayer. I will endeavour to conduct myself as a humble, meek, and zealous follower of Jesus, and by serious witness and warning I will try to lead others to think of the needs of their immortal souls. I hereby vow to read no less than four chapters in God's Word every day. I will cultivate a spirit of self-denial and will yield myself a prisoner of love to the Redeemer of the world." That young man was William Booth, who later led thousands to Christ and founded the Salvation Army.

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Vision

In More than You and Me, Kevin and Karen Miller write of the power of a God-given vision:

One couple lived in London 130 years ago. For the first 10 years of their marriage, William Booth, especially, was in a quandary: What was God calling him to do?

Then his wife, Catherine, a skilful Bible teacher, was invited to preach in London. While they were there, William took a late-night walk through the slums of London's East End. Every fifth building was a pub. Most had steps at the counter so little children could climb up and order gin. That night he told Catherine, “I seemed to hear a voice sounding in my ears, 'Where can you go and find such heathen as these, and where is there so great a need for your labours?' Darling, I have found my destiny!"

Later that year, 1865, the couple opened the “Christian Mission" in London's slums. Their life vision: to reach the “down and outers" that other Christians ignored. That simple vision of two people grew into the Salvation Army, which now ministers through 3 million members in 91 countries.

Presumption

The Associated Press ran the story of Andre-Francois Raffray. Thirty years ago, at the age of 47, he worked out a real estate deal with Jeanne Calment, age 90. He would pay her $500 each month until her death, in order to secure ownership of her apartment in Arles, France. This is a common practice in France, benefiting both buyers and seniors on a fixed income.

Unfortunately for Raffray, Jeanne Calment has become the world's oldest living person. Still alive at 120, she outlived Raffray, who died in December 1995, at the age of 77. He paid $184,000 for an apartment he never lived in. According to the contract, Raffray's survivors must continue payment until Mrs. Calment dies.

James 4:13, 15 warns us of presuming to know what the future holds.

Harmony

When Charles V stepped down as the Holy Roman Emperor some 400 years ago, he spent much of his time at his palace in Spain. He had six clocks there, and no matter how he tried, he could never get them to chime together on the hour.
In his memoirs, he wrote, “How is it possible for six different clocks to chime all at the same time? How is it even more impossible for the six nations of the Holy Roman Empire to live in harmony? It can't be done. It's impossible, even if they call themselves Christians."
Today, we know it's possible to have clocks in perfect harmony, when all are powered by the same source and all are calibrated to the same standard - Greenwich Mean Time. Likewise, unity in the church is possible, but only when all are calibrated to one standard - Christ.

- Wayne Brouwer, Preaching Today

Expectations

A traveller nearing a great city asked an old man seated by the road, “What are the people like in this city?"
The man replied, “What were they like where you came from?"
"A terrible lot," the traveller reported. “Mean, untrustworthy, detestable in all respects."
"Ah," said the old man. “You will find them the same in the city ahead."
Scarcely had the first traveller gone on his way when another stopped to inquire about the people in the city before him. Again the old man asked about the people in the place the traveller had just left.
"They were fine people, honest, industrious, and generous to a fault. I was sorry to leave," declared the second traveller.
Responded the wise one, “So you will find them in the city ahead."

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Generosity

Anne Keegan's article “Blue Christmas" was a collection of Christmas stories told by Chicago police officers. One was the story of George White.
George lived in a rented room at the YMCA. He had one set of clothes, shoes wrapped with rubber bands to keep the soles from flopping, and a threadbare black overcoat. He spent his mornings napping in an old metal chair in the back of the 18th District office.
Two officers, Kitowski and Mitch, took an interest in the old man, occasionally slipping him a few bucks. They found out that Billy the Greek over at the G&W grill gave him a hot breakfast every morning, no charge.
The two policemen and their families decided to have George as their guest for Christmas dinner. They gave him presents, which he unwrapped carefully.
As they drove him back to the Y, George asked, “Are these presents really mine to keep?" They assured him they were. “Then we must stop at the G&W Grill before I go home," he said. With that, George began rewrapping his presents.
When they walked into the G&W, Billy the Greek was there as always. “You've been good to me, Billy," said George. “Now I can be good to you. Merry Christmas." George gave all his presents away on the spot.
Generosity is natural when a grateful attitude prevails.

- Chicago Tribune Magazine (24/12/95)

Faithfulness

Newsweek (11/19/90) ran an article titled “Letters in the Sand," a compilation of letters written by military personnel to family and friends in the States during the Gulf War.
One was written by Marine Corporal Preston Coffer. He told a friend, “We are talking about Marines, not the Boy Scouts. We all joined the service knowing full well what might be expected of us." He signed off with the Marine motto, Semper Fi, Latin for “always faithful."
The Bible says, “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful" (1 Cor. 4:2).

Relationships

In March 1995, The New England Pipe Cleaning Company of Watertown, Connecticut, was digging twenty-five feet beneath the streets of Revere, Massachusetts, in order to clean a clogged 10-inch sewer line. In addition to the usual materials one might expect to find in a clogged sewer line, the three-man team found 61 rings, vintage coins, eyeglasses, and silverware, all of which they were allowed to keep.
Whether it's pipes or people, if you put up with some mess, sometimes you find real treasure.

Our Greatest Legacy

Louis Pasteur, the pioneer of immunology, lived at a time when thousands of people died each year of rabies. Pasteur had worked for years on a vaccine. Just as he was about to begin experimenting on himself, a 9-year-old, Joseph Meister, was bitten by a rabid dog. The boy's mother begged Pasteur to experiment on her son. Pasteur injected Joseph for ten days - and the boy lived.
Decades later, of all the things Pasteur could have had etched on his headstone, he asked for three words: JOSEPH MEISTER LIVED.
Our greatest legacy will be those who live eternally because of our efforts. - R.Wayne Willis, Louisville, Kentucky

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Criticism

Colonel George Washington Goethals, the man responsible for the completion of the Panama Canal, had big problems with the climate and the geography. But his biggest challenge was the growing criticism back home from those who predicted he'd never finish the project.
Finally, a colleague asked him, “Aren't you going to answer these critics?"
"In time," answered Goethals.
"When?" his partner asked.
"When the canal is finished."

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Peace of Mind

Several years ago the Sociology Department of Duke University did a study on “peace of mind". Several factors were found to contribute greatly to emotional and mental stability. They are:
1. The absence of suspicions and resentment. Nursing a grudge was a major factor in unhappiness.
2. Not living in the past. An unwholesome preoccupation with old mistakes and failures leads to depression.
3. Not wasting time and energy fighting conditions you cannot change. Cooperate with life, instead of trying to run away from it.
4. Force yourself to stay involved with the living world. Resist the temptation to withdraw and become reclusive during periods of emotional stress.
5. Refuse to indulge in self-pity when life hands you a raw deal. Accept the fact that nobody gets through life without some sorrow and misfortune.
6. Cultivate the old-fashioned virtues - love, honor, compassion and loyalty.
7. Don't expect too much of yourself. When there is too wide a gap between self-expectation and your ability to meet the goals you have set, feelings of inadequacy are inevitable.
8. Find something bigger than yourself to believe in. Self-centered, egotistical people score lowest in any test for measuring happiness.

This was copied from an Ann Landers column years and years ago.

You Can Keep the Fork

The sound of Martha's voice on the other end of the telephone always brought a smile to Brother Jim's face. This time, however, there seemed to be an unusual tone to her words.
"Preacher, could you stop by this afternoon? I need to talk with you."
"Of course, I'll be there around three. Is that ok?"
It didn't take long for Jim to discover the reason for what he had only sensed in her voice before. Martha shared the news that her doctor had just discovered a previously undetected tumour.
"He says I probably have six months to live". Martha's words were naturally serious, yet there was a definite calm about her. “I'm so sorry to..." but before Jim could finish, Martha interrupted.
"Don't be. The Lord has been good. I have lived a long life. I'm ready to go."
"I know," Jim whispered with a reassuring nod.
"But I do want to talk with you about my funeral. I have been thinking about it, and there are things that I know I want."
The two talked quietly for a long time. When it seemed that they had covered just about everything, Aunt Martie paused, looked up at Jim with a twinkle in her eye, and then added, “One more thing, preacher. When they bury me, I want my old Bible in one hand and a fork in the other".
"A fork?" Jim was sure he had heard everything, but this caught him by surprise. “Why do you want to be buried with a fork?"
"I have been thinking about all of the church dinners and banquets that I attended through the years," she explained, “Sometimes, at the best ones, somebody would lean over my shoulder and whisper, 'You can keep your fork. And do you know what that meant? Dessert was coming! And not a cup of Jell-O or pudding or even a dish of ice cream. You don't need a fork for that. It meant the good stuff, like chocolate cake or cherry pie! When they told me I could keep my fork, I knew the best was yet to come! That's exactly what I want people to talk about at my funeral. Sure, they can talk about all the good times we had together. That would be nice. But when they walk by my casket and look at my pretty blue dress, I want them to turn to one another and say, 'Why the fork'?
That's when I want you to tell them, that I kept my fork because 'the best is yet to come!'"

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Demons at the Door

Once there was this very wealthy young man. He lived in a great, elaborate house with dozens of rooms. Each room was more comfortable and more beautiful than the one before it.
There were paintings and sculptures, crystal chandeliers, and golden ornate railings on the stairs. More beauty than most have ever seen.
One day he decided to invite the Lord to come home and stay with him. When the Lord arrived, this young man offered him the very best room in the house. The room was upstairs and at the end of the hall.
"This room is yours, Jesus! Stay as long as you like, and you can do whatever you want to in this room, remember Jesus, it's all yours. "Thank you," the Lord replied, and with that the man shut the door and went about his daily business.
That evening, after he had retired for the night, there came a loud knocking at the front door. The young man pulled on his robe and made his way downstairs. When he opened the door, he found that the devil had sent three of his demons to attack the man. He quickly tried to close the door, but one of the demons kept sticking his foot in the door.
Sometime later, after a great struggle, he managed to slam the door shut and returned to his room totally exhausted. Can you believe that!
The man thought. Jesus is upstairs in my very best room sleeping while I am down here battling demons. Oh, well, maybe he just didn't hear. He slept fitfully that night.
The next day, things went along as normal and, being tired as he was, the young man retired early that evening. Along about midnight, there came such a terrible ruckus at the front door that the young man was sure that whatever it was would tear the door down. He stumbled down the stairs once again and opened the door to find that there were dozens of demons now trying to get into his beautiful home. For more than three hours, he fought and struggled against the demons from hell and finally overtook them enough to shut the door against their attack. All energy seemed to fail him.
I really don't understand this at all. Why won't the Lord come to my rescue? Why does he allow me to fight all by myself? I feel so alone. Troubled, he found his way to the sofa and fell into a restless sleep.
The next morning he decided to inquire of the Lord about the happenings of the last two evenings. Quietly he made his way to the elegant bedroom where he had left Jesus. “Jesus," he called as he tapped at the door.
"Lord, I don't understand what is happening. For the last two nights, I have had to fight the demons away from my door while you laid up here sleeping. Don't you care about me? Did I not give you the very best room in house? He could see the tears building in Jesus' eyes but continued on, “I just don't understand. I really thought that once I invited you in to live with me that you would take care of me and I gave you the best room in my house and everything. What more can I do?"
"My precious child," Jesus spoke so softly. “I do love and care for you. I protect all that you have released into my care. But when you invited me to come here and stay, you brought me to this lovely room, and you shut the door to the rest of your house. I am Lord of this room, but I am not Master of this house. I have protected this room, and no demon may enter here."
Oh, Lord, please forgive me. Take all of my house - it is yours - I am so sorry that I never offered you all to begin with. I want you to have control of everything." With this he flung open the bedroom door and knelt at Jesus' feet. “Please forgive me, Lord, for being so selfish." Jesus smiled and told him that He had already forgiven him, and that He would take care of things from now on.
That night as the young man prepared for bed, he thought to himself, “I wonder if those demons will return. I am so tired of fighting them each and every night." But he knew that Jesus said that he would take care of things from now on. Along about midnight the banging on the door was frightening.
The young man slipped out of his room in time to see Jesus going down the stairs. He watched in awe as Jesus swung open the door, no need to be afraid. Satan stood at the door this time demanding to be let in. “What do you want, Satan?" the Lord asked.
The devil bowed low in the presence of the Lord, “So sorry, I seem to have gotten the wrong address." And with that, he and the demons all ran away.

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Let There Be Peace - A Modern Parable

A wise old gentleman retired and purchased a modest home near a junior high school. He spent the first few weeks of his retirement in peace and contentment.
Then a new school year began. The very next afternoon three young boys, full of youthful, after-school enthusiasm, came down his street, beating merrily on every trash can they encountered. The crashing percussion continued day after day, until finally the wise old man decided it was time to take some action.
The next afternoon, he walked out to meet the young percussionists as they banged their way down the street. Stopping them, he said, “You kids are a lot of fun. I like to see you express your exuberance like that. Used to do the same thing when I was your age. Will you do me a favor? I'll give you each a dollar if you'll promise to come around every day and do your thing."
The kids were elated and continued to do a bang-up job on the trashcans. After a few days, the old-timer greeted the kids again, but this time he had a sad smile on his face.
"This recession's really putting a big dent in my income," he told them. “From now on, I'll only be able to pay you 50 cents to beat on the cans."
The noisemakers were obviously displeased, but they did accept his offer and continued their afternoon ruckus.
A few days later, the wily retiree approached them again as they drummed their way down the street. “Look," he said, “I haven't received my Social Security check yet, so I'm not going to be able to give you more than 25 cents. Will that be okay?"
"A lousy quarter?" the drum leader exclaimed. “If you think we're going to waste our time, beating these cans around for a quarter, you're nuts! No way, mister. We quit!"
And the old man enjoyed peace and serenity for the rest of his days.

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Prayer in Trouble

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve.
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things.
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy.
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power that I might have the praise of men.
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life.
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for -
but everything I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am, among all people, most richly blessed.

- an Unknown Confederate Soldier

The Old Fisherman

Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. We lived downstairs and rented the upstairs rooms to out patients at the clinic. One summer evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see a truly awful looking man. “Why, he's hardly taller than my eight-year-old," I thought as I stared at the stooped, shrivelled body. But the appalling thing was his face - lopsided from swelling, red and raw. Yet his voice was pleasant as he said, “Good evening. I've come to see if you've a room for just one night. I came for a treatment this morning from the eastern shore, and there's no bus till morning." He told me he'd been hunting for a room since noon but with no success, no one seemed to have a room. “I guess it's my face... I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments . . ."
For a moment I hesitated, but his next words convinced me: “I could sleep in this rocking chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the morning." I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch. I went inside and finished getting supper. When we were ready, I asked the old man if he would join us. “No thank you. I have plenty." And he held up a brown paper bag. When I had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with him a few minutes. It didn't take long time to see that this old man had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body. He told me he fished for a living to support his daughter, her five children, and her husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury. He didn't tell it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was prefaced with thanks to God for a blessing. He was grateful that no pain accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer. He thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going. At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children's room for him.
When I got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded and the little man was out on the porch. He refused breakfast, but just before he left for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favour, he said, “Could I please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment? I won't put you out a bit. I can sleep fine in a chair."
He pause a moment and then added, “Your children made me feel at home. Grownups are bothered by my face, but children don't seem to mind."
I told him he was welcome to come again. And on his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning. As a gift, he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I had ever seen. He said he had shucked them that morning before he left so that they'd be nice and fresh I knew his bus left at 4:00 a.m. and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us.
In the years he came to stay overnight with us there was never a time that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden. Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or kale, every leaf carefully washed. Knowing that he must walk three miles to mail these, and knowing how little money he had made the gifts doubly precious. When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a comment our next-door neighbour made after he left that first morning. “Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away! You can lose roomers by putting up such people!"
Maybe we did lose roomers once or twice. But oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their illnesses would have been easier to bear. I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God.
Recently I was visiting a friend who has a greenhouse, As she showed me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a golden chrysanthemum, bursting with blooms. But to my great surprise, it was growing in an old dented, rusty bucket. I thought to myself, “If this were my plant, I'd put it in the loveliest container I had!" My friend changed my mind. “I ran short of pots," she explained, “and knowing how beautiful this one would be, I thought it wouldn't mind starting out in this old pail. It's just for a little while, till I can put it out in the garden."
She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was imagining just such a scene in heaven. “Here's an especially beautiful one," God might have said when he came to the soul of the sweet old fisherman. “He won't mind starting in this small body."
All this happened long ago - and now, in God's garden, how tall this lovely soul must stand.

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Creation: A Sioux Story

"The Creator gathered all of Creation and said, “I want to hide something from the humans until they are ready for it. It is the realisation that they create their own reality." The eagle said, “Give it to me, I will take it to the moon." The Creator said, “No. One day they will go there and find it." The salmon said, “I will bury it on the bottom of the ocean. “No. They will go there too." The buffalo said, “I will bury it on the Great Plains." The Creator said, “They will cut into the skin of the Earth and find it even there." Grandmother Mole, who lives in the breast of Mother Earth, and who has no physical eyes but sees with spiritual eyes, said, “Put it inside of them." And the Creator said, “It is done."

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What If???

What if God couldn't take the time to bless us today because we couldn't take the time to thank Him yesterday?
What if God decided to stop leading us tomorrow because we did not follow Him today?
What if we never saw another flower bloom because we grumbled when God sent the rain?
What if God didn't walk with us today because we failed to recognise it as His day?
What if God took away the Bible tomorrow because we would not read it today?
What if God took away His message because we failed to listen to His messenger?
What if the door of the church was closed because we did not open the door of our heart?
What if God stopped loving and caring for us because we failed to love and care for others?
What if God would not hear us today because we would not listen to Him yesterday?
What if God answered our prayers the way we answer His call for service?
What if God met our needs the way we give Him our lives???