Sunday, July 31, 2016

HIS “TRUMPET”



I think that it was in an African village that a native Christian went to the village merchant to purchase a pair of shoes. He was fitted out with a suitable pair & went away happy.

Some weeks later he brought the shoes back. "Did they not fit? Were they not good?" asked the merchant.

"Yes."

"Then why are you returning them?"

"Because they don't have any squeak."

It appeared that the man wanted a pair of shoes that would squeak as he walked up the aisle of the church. He wanted something that would draw attention to himself.

- Christian Union Herald (moreillustrations.com)

“Some people go to church and shout 'amen' louder than everyone else, thinking it proves how spiritual they are. In reality, it only proves they have a loud mouth and the disposition of an exhibitionist. They make themselves the center of attention instead of Jesus.” - John Hagee.

“Of all the things Christ wants from us, loving Him and focusing our attention on Him are the most important.” - Charles Stanley.

Matt 23:12 (CEV): “If you put yourself above others, you will be put down. But if you humble yourself, you will be honored.”          

Friday, July 29, 2016

THE GREATEST TRADE OF YOUR LIFE



H. L. Hunt made millions as a Texas oilman. He was an aggressive businessman with little regard for time. His chief confidant, John, might be called in the middle of the night as quickly as in the middle of the day.

One night at 2:00 am, Hunt phoned John. He excitedly declared, “John, I just made the greatest trade of my life. I traded the here for the hereafter… I just got saved.”

If you have never trusted Christ as your Savior, you need to trade the here for the hereafter. You need to be saved. It is the wisest decision you will ever make.

Source: Preaching that Pleases God, Tom Farrell (ministry127.com)

Mat 16:26 (KJV): “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

“Is it possible for an unbaptized believer to be saved? Yes, definitely. Should every believer be baptized? Yes, definitely.” -  Max Lucado.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

OUR KING KNOWS




During the first evacuation of children from bomb-torn areas of London, a train was leaving packed with children.

The parents of a small boy & girl had just said good-bye to their precious children & left them standing on the platform. The little girl began to cry & said she was afraid because she did not know where she was going.

Her little brother, brushing his own tears away, put an arm around her in an effort to comfort her & said, "I do not know where we are going either, but the king knows."

Are not many of us like the little girl, fearful because we do not know where we are heading for in this distracted world of ours?  We do not know, but our King knows!

The emergencies & problems of our day will be calmly faced, if we have met God & put our trust in Him.

-‘Day by Day’ (moreillustrations.com)

“If God was faithful to you yesterday, you have reason to trust him for tomorrow.” -  Woodrow Kroll.

Mark 4:40 (GNT): Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Why are you frightened? Do you still have no faith?”

THE LORD WILL NOT FAIL YOU



The late Dr. Jowett said that he was once in a most pitiful perplexity & consulted Dr. Berry of Wolverhampton, England.

"What would you do if you were in my place?" he entreated.

"I don't know, Jowett, I am not there & you are not there yet. When have you to act?"

"On Friday," Dr. Jowett replied.

"Then." answered Berry, "you will find your way perfectly clear on Friday. The Lord will not fail you."

And surely enough, on Friday all was plain.

Give God time, and even when the knife flashes in the air the ram will be seen caught in the thicket.

Give God time, and even when Pharaoh's host is on Israel's heels, a path through the waters will be suddenly open.

Give God time, and when the bed of the brook is dry, Elijah shall hear the guiding voice.

- F. W. Boreham in ‘Alliance Weekly’ (moreillustrations.com)

Ecc 3:11 (CEV):“God makes everything happen at the right time...” 
         

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

ADORNMENT



It is said that one of the early Christian fathers, seeing a woman of loose morals arrayed in rich apparel, was moved to tears & confessed that he had never taken such pains to adorn his soul with faith & godliness as she had taken to adorn her body to please the world.

- (moreillustrations.com)

1 Pet 3:4 (VOICE): “let your adornment be what’s inside—the real you, the lasting beauty of a gracious and quiet spirit, in which God delights.”

“I believe the holier a man becomes, the more he mourns over the ungodliness which remains in him.” - Charles Spurgeon.

Monday, July 25, 2016

THE COUNSEL OF GOD



An architect complains that many of his clients come & ask him to design a house for them, only to let him very speedily discover that they have already designed it all for themselves.

What they really want is his sanction of the plan & the satisfactions of seeing him draw on paper what they have fully in mind.

It is in very much the same fashion that we often go to God, the great Architect, with our lives. We ask Him for wisdom & guidance, but we have already planned how we will build our fortunes & shape our course & it is not His way we are seeking, but His approval of our way.

- Mississippi Visitor. (moreillustrations.com)

Pro 3:5-6 (ERV): “Trust the LORD completely, and don’t depend on your own knowledge. With every step you take, think about what he wants, and he will help you go the right way.”

“If honest of heart and uprightness before God were lacking or if I did not patiently wait on God for instruction or if I preferred the counsel of my fellow-men to the declarations of the Word of God, I made great mistakes.” - George Mueller.

WORTHLESS



We read that in a court, presided over by Judge Ivan Lee Holt, Jr., a twenty-seven-year-old woman drew a three year prison sentence for a fatal shooting which followed an argument over ownership of a nickel.

- (moreillustrations.com)

“Remember, your worth is founded in Jesus Christ.” -  Warren Wiersbe.

Ps 119:37 (NET): “Turn my eyes away from what is worthless! Revive me with your word!”

“The measure of a man's worth is the measure in which he no longer lives "to and for himself," but "to and for Jesus Christ." No more and no less!” - Major Ian Thomas.

Friday, July 22, 2016

VISION



In his book ‘The Wilson Era,’ Josephus Daniels, secretary of the navy under President Wilson, relates how he once asked Andrew Carnegie (steel tycoon & one of the wealthiest 19th century U.S. businessmen) what the secret of his remarkable success was.

Carnegie replied, "I owe it all to my flashes."

Mystified, Daniels said, "What do you mean by 'flashes'?"

"All my life," replied Carnegie, "I woke up early in the morning & always there came into my mind with the waking a flash telling me what to do that day & if I followed those flashes, I always succeeded."

"You mean," said Daniels, "that you have heavenly visions & like the man in the Scriptures you were not disobedient to your visions?"

"Call it that if you like," answered Carnegie, "or call it flashes; but it was the following of those silent admonitions & directions which brought me the success you say I have achieved."

Whatever may be said about the flashes in the business world, there is no doubt about flashes of divine impulse in the moral & spiritual world. When they come, happy is the man who, like Paul, is not disobedient to the heavenly vision.

- (moreillustrations.com)

Paul said: “… I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.” (Acts 26:19 NKJV)

“The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.” - Helen Keller.

Thursday, July 21, 2016

FRAGRANCE



Dr. F. W. Boreham tells of a visit to a town in the South of France. A number of women passed him, evidently going to their homes from their factory or place of occupation; and as they passed, he noticed that their garments were fragrant.

The reason, he ascertained, was that they were engaged in preparing scent from flowers & it had distilled on their clothes.

Those enjoying Christ's presence & engaged in presenting Him to others cannot but transmit His fragrance.

2 Cor 2:14-15 (GNT): “…God uses us to make the knowledge about Christ spread everywhere like a sweet fragrance.  For we are like a sweet-smelling incense offered by Christ to God, which spreads among those who are being saved and those who are being lost.”

- (moreillustrations.com)                        

“The true Christian is like sandalwood, which imparts its fragrance to the axe which cuts it, without doing any harm in return.” - Sadhu Sundar Singh.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

GOD GIVES SAFETY



 On August 13, 2004, Hurricane Charley brought fierce destruction to areas of Florida. During the storm, 25-year-old Danny Williams went outside to seek protection under the branches of a 55-year old banyan tree.

Friends & family said that the protective branches of the spreading tree had been a favorite peaceful place for the Fort Meyers man. But on that day, his place of safety became a death trap. The tree fell on Williams & killed him.

Sometimes, the places & situations we look to for protection can ultimately be the most harmful.

Source: First Coast News (ministry127.com)

Ps 118:8 (CEV): “It is better to trust the LORD for protection than to trust anyone else.”

“Emmanuel - God with us. He who resided in Heaven, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Spirit, willingly descended into our world. He breathed our air, felt our pain, knew our sorrows and died for our sins. He didn't come to frighten us, but to show us the way to warmth and safety.” -  Chuck Swindoll.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

GOSSIP



A company of ladies met at a minister's house. As he entered the room, he heard them speaking of an absent friend.

"She's very odd!" said one. "She's very singular," said another. "Do you know she often does so and so?" said another, mentioning certain things to her discredit.

The minister asked who it was. When told, he said, "Oh, yes, you are quite right. She is odd. She is singular. Why, would you believe it?" he added. "She was never known to speak ill of an absent friend!"

- Sunday School Times. (moreillustrations.com)

“Whoever gossips to you will gossip of you.” - Author Unknown.

Pro 26:20 (NLT): “Fire goes out without wood, and quarrels disappear when gossip stops.”

“If any speak ill of thee, fly home to thy own conscience and examine thy heart. If thou art guilty, it is a just correction; if not guilty, it is a fair instruction.” - George Herbert.

Monday, July 18, 2016

CRAFTINESS



The price of going to the barber was quite exorbitant in a particular city. Hardly anyone could afford a full treatment but a man came into a barber shop with a little boy & asked for the full treatment - shave, shampoo, manicure, haircut, etc.

After the barber had finished with him, the man placed little Johnny on the chair.

"I'm going to buy a green tie to wear for the parade," he said. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

When little Johnny's haircut was complete & the man still hadn't returned, the barber said, "Looks like your daddy's forgotten all about you."

"That wasn't my daddy," said Little Johnny. "He just walked up, took me by the hand & said, 'Come on, kid, we're going to get a free haircut!'"

- (aksermonillustrations.blogspot.in)

Gal 6:7 (CEV): “You cannot fool God, so don’t make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant.”

“There is nothing more foolish than an act of wickedness; there is no wisdom equal to that of obeying God.” - Albert Barnes.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

How Can Man Keep the GOLDEN RULE?



One evening the chief of the Delaware Indians was sitting by a fireside with a friend. Both were silently looking into the fire.

At last his friend broke the silence by saying: "I have been thinking of a rule delivered by the Author of the Christian religion, which we call the ‘Golden Rule.’"

"Stop," said the chief, "don't praise it; tell me what it is & let me think about it for myself." He was told that the rule is for a man to do to others that which he would want others to do for him.

"That's impossible; it cannot be done," hastily replied the Indian. Silence followed.

In about 15 minutes the Indian said: "Brother, I have been thoughtful of what you told me. If the Great Spirit who made man would give him a new heart, he could do as you say, but not else."

- Book of Bible Stories. (moreillustrations.com)          

Eze 36:26 (TLB): “And I will give you a new heart - I will give you new and right desires - and put a new spirit within you. I will take out your stony hearts of sin and give you new hearts of love.”

Lord Jesus said:  “Do for others what you want them to do for you.” (Luke 6:31 ERV)

Friday, July 15, 2016

HE FELT GOD TUGGING ON HIS HEART


A 12 year old boy was saved at a revival meeting. Later, his friends questioned him about it.

One said, “Did you see a vision?” Another said, “Did you hear God speak?” The boy answered all of these questions with a simple ‘no’.

“Well, how did you know you were saved?” they asked. The boy replied, “It’s like when you catch a fish, you can’t see the fish or hear the fish; you just feel him tugging on your line: I just felt God tugging on my heart.”

Romans 8:16 (NLV): “For the Holy Spirit speaks to us and tells our spirit that we are children of God.”

Source: Illustrations Unlimited (ministry127.com)            

“You could not be saved through any effort of your own, but now that you are saved it is necessary for you to put forward every effort you can to glorify Him.” - Harry Ironside.