A missionary returning home after many years of service was asked, "Tell me what you found when you arrived in New Guinea." "Found, I found something that looked more hopeless than if I had been sent into a jungle of tigers." "What do you mean?" "Why, the people seemed utterly devoid of moral sen

When the devil's success rate goes up, the pastor's stock in the eyes of the community goes down. In a Wall Street Journal survey, 1,000 corporate executives were asked to name their most trusted confidant when faced with an ethical problem. Only 1% said that they would consult a pastor. Shockin

In the 12/18/03 issue of Sightings, Andrew Weaver and Christopher G. Ellison report that, "In 1988, only two states had large-scale casino gambling; now 27 states have it. Thirty-seven states operate a lottery, and some form of gambling is legal in 48 states. Advertisements for online gambling sites

Charles Francis Adams was the United States ambassador to Great Britain during the Lincoln administration. He had the habit of keeping a daily diary. He also taught his son, Brooks, the value of journaling his activities in a diary. One memorable day, eight-year-old Brooks recorded, "Went fishing w

Chuck Swindoll writes, "In a recent "Dear Abby" column I read a poignant story. A young man from a wealthy family was about to graduate from high school. It was a custom in their affluent community for parents to give their graduating children a new car, and the boy and his dad had spent weeks visit

Robert Falconer tells the story of his witnessing among destitute people in a certain city and of reading them the story of the woman who wiped Jesus' feet with her tears. While he was reading he heard a loud sob and looked up at a young, thin girl whose face was disfigured by smallpox. After he

Bill Cosby once observed, "If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right."

The age of the computer brings much ease and expertise to the preparation of the worship folders/bulletins. Some churches which use the same basic format each week can simply call up the form on the computer screen, make a few necessary changes, and presto, it's done. But it can be tricky. One chu

Occasionally I hear a so-called liberated parent say, "I don't want to tilt my child toward religion. I want to leave him free to examine the evidence and make up his own mind." Such comments remind me of an old story about Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the great English poet. One day he was talking wit

How different is the broad road of the wicked. Kenneth Cober points out that the worldly man's way of carnal desire terminates in frustration and despair. Lord Byron abandoned himself to the pursuit of pleasure; yet at the age of 35 he wrote: My days are in the yellow leaf, The flowers and the f