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Did you ever visit the manufactory of splendid porcelain at Sèvres, France? I have done so. If anybody should say to me, “Do you know the manufactory at Sèvres?” I should say, “Yes, I do, and no, I do not. I know it, for I have seen the building. I have seen the rooms in which the articles are exhibited…

Gregory Nazianzen, a foremost father of the Christian Church, rejoiced that he was well versed in the Athenian philosophy. Why do you think he rejoiced in that? Because he had to give it all up when he became a Christian, and, said he, “I thank God that I had a philosophy to throw away.” He counted it…

Do you see that train steaming along the iron way? See, it plunges into a cavern in yonder hill! You have now lost sight of it. Has it perished? As on an angel’s wing, you fly to the top of the hill, and you look down on the other side. There it comes steaming forth again from the tunnel, bearing its…

“From the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born from Hebrews.” Paul shakes out the whole lot for the dogs, and is glad to be rid of it all for Christ’s sake. It reminds me of a ship in a storm. When the captain leaves the harbor he has a cargo on board of which he takes great care,…

In The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes, “Suffering, then, is the badge of true discipleship.” —Jim L. Wilson Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship, 91. Philippians 3:10 (HCSB) My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed…

Researchers at the Mayo Clinic say they have cracked the code to being happy. They have been studying this for decades, working with tens of thousands of patients. Now they think they have found it. They key parts of the code are 1) focus on the right things. 2) Learn to compartmentalize your life and…

In his book, The Insanity of God, Nik Ripken writes, “. . .people flocked to Christ in greater numbers during difficult days of persecution because that’s when they could recognize how God sustains and strengthens His followers through times of trouble.” —Jim L. Wilson Nik Ripken, and Gregg Lewis. Insanity…

“I can understand Job’s victories and Job’s defeats,” Chinese pastor Samuel Lamb explained. He spent 20 years at hard labor in a Chinese coalmine. The pastor truly believed God used his suffering to prepare him for his ministry. Lamb is quoted as saying, “My dear wife died while I was in prison. I was…

Frederick Douglass grew up as a slave in Maryland in the early nineteenth century. He escaped and became one of the century's leading abolitionists, who fought to end slavery forever. He writes in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave about being torn away from his mother's love…

John White tells of this very thing in a story about his son Scott. He says that when his son Scott was just learning to walk, he fell on a cement driveway and split the area below his chin so deeply that the floor of his mouth was exposed. Hospitals and doctors were 250 kilometers away over tortuous…

Many of you have heard of Gordon MacDonald. He’s pretty famous in the Christian world. I know him as the writer of the book, Ordering your Private World. He tells of his own trouble which he didn’t understand. He was approached by a Christian Organization to send in a resume to be its president. He didn’t…

Back in October, James Forlines came and spoke in our Missions Conference. We went out for coffee on Saturday night and he was talking to me about his family. He mentioned that one of his children and their spouse had made an interesting decision. They had moved to Memphis and, instead of moving to the…

I still remember being in college and being married and having to be a janitor. Every morning at 4 am, I had to get up, get ready, and be at work in Nashville at 6:00 a.m. I hated it, and even resented it. Other guys in school had jobs teaching or working in churches and here I had to get up and go clean…

Ever heard of NPD? Probably not. It’s “Narcissistic Personality Disorder.” That’s right! There’s actually a psychological condition describing many American’s fascination with themselves. By the way, it’s a problem which isn’t just growing, it’s exploding! According to Jean Twenge, the psychologist who…

He made free use of Christian vocabulary. He talked about the blessing of the Almighty and theChristian confessions which would become the pillars of the new government. He assumed theearnestness of a man weighed down by historic responsibility. He handed out pious stories to the press, especially to…

You ever heard of the book, Orbiting the Giant Hairball? I had not either until I was working on this message. Now don’t worry, I’m not going to try to “wax eloquent” on the revolutions you can do around feline fur. No, I’m more interested in what the book said than I am in its title. You see it was…

Between my freshman and sophmore years in college, the chairman of the music department changed, and, since I was studying music at the time, I cared! It ended up being good, however. The professor who was there before was one of the godliest men I ever met, but he was also very intimidating. The very…

In February 2001, John Oros spoke to an audience at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary about his experience as a church leader in Romania during the Communist era: During communism, many of us preached?and people came at the end of a service, and they said, "I have decided to become a Christian."…

I’ll never remember my first date with Kathy. We were supposed to go to a ballgame together and she stood me up. I’ll never forget going to the ballfield with such great anticipation and walking back to my dorm room . . . Mad! Praise the Lord, I got some wise counsel from a good friend and I asked her…

Angela Boneva is living in limbo. For years she, and the U.S. government, thought the Bulgarian-born 34-year-old was an American citizen. But, when she went to renew her passport in 2003, the State Department reportedly told her something terribly different. Boneva's father was born in Indiana, and the…

The motto of every Christian, whether preacher, printer, or schoolmaster, ought to be "Devoted for Life." — Adoniram Judson As a young man, film director Robert Flaherty spent many months in the far north looking for iron, ore, and cod. He found none, but he did shoot 70,000 feet of film in his travels.…

Whose characteristics are you displaying? During the Thirty Year's War in Europe (1618-1648), the King of Sweden, Gustavus Adolphus, was slain while his troops were winning the Battle of Lutzen, in what is now Germany. Sweden was thrown into mourning, and government officials met to determine how to…

We are often apathetic about seeking God because we are passionate about seeking other things. The 1992 Summer Olympics featured two tremendously poignant moments. American sprinter Gail Devers, the clear leader in the 100 meter hurdles, tripped over the last barrier. She agonizingly pulled herself to…

We are perplexed to see misfortune falling upon decent, inoffensive, worthy people - on capable, thrifty, little trades-people, on those who have worked so hard, and so honestly, for thier modest stock of happiness and know seem to be entering on the enjoyment of it with the fullest right. . . Let me…