Recent newspaper accounts of the ruler of Iraq are truly fascinating. Though a man of great power and wealth, Saddam Hussein lives in constant fear. He seldom sleeps in the same bed two nights in a row. Sometimes he sleeps in a van on a remote roadside. He has three "doubles." They look like him and they are used to...

Before you make too many excuses based on your having gotten a poor start in life consider the study made by Victor and Mildred Goertzel. They studied the backgrounds of hundreds of highly successful people. Three out of four had a troubled childhood! One fourth of them had some physical handicap. The fact is that...

We are always impressed with the fervor of the apostle Paul. Nothing could keep him from winning souls to the Lord Jesus Christ. When they put him in jail he converted the jailer. What is less well known is that Christians in many lands have that same zeal today. In Vietnam Christians in prison write Bible verse on little...

Life is filled with apparent contradictions. Upon entering a U.S. Airbase one sees a large sign: Peace is our Profession. Well, actually war is their profession, but one could argue that being prepared for war promotes peace. The greatest of these seeming contradictions is the cross. Geoffrey R. King described it well. "Here is a...

Reporters have come up with a new term to describe the lack of reaction to disasters. They call it compassion fatigue. We are constantly inundated with stories of human distress: famine, genocide, and earthquakes. Some say that since we cannot help them all, we sometimes tune out such news. Certainly no one can accuse ...

Both were men of prayer. Both of them prayed when they were dying. Both of them prayed for forgiveness when they were dying. But there is a very significant difference. When Mohammed was dying he prayed for his own forgiveness. When Jesus was dying He prayed for the forgiveness of others. In fact, not once it is it...

Just south of Naples and overlooking its famous bay is the small city of Pozzuoli. It has a claim to fame. It is the most earthquake prone place on planet earth. Every year the people experience 4,000 earth tremors! In no other place is terra firma so unstable. Of course, no place is exempt from earthquakes -- and no person is...

Optimism

The incredibly wealthy Malcolm Forbes, Sr. once said, "By the time that we've made it, we've had it." What a dismal view of life and death. Far better is the view of that unknown man who said, "Any day above ground is a good one." And best of all the viewpoint of one who said, "Death is not extinguishing the light. It is...

Mark Twain compared himself favorably to George Washington. He noted that he had a higher standard than the first President. George Washington could not tell a lie. Twain said that he could tell a lie but he wouldn't!