In a sermon on the Sunday after 9/11, M. Craig Barnes said, "The French Philosopher Paul Ricoeur has written about the creative possibility of limit experiences. A limit experience is an experience th...
What are we able to learn from a pesky insect?...
In October 1971, the Shah of Iran invited 60 kings, queens and heads of state to celebrate the 2,500 years of the Persian Empire. The cost of the celebration was $100 million, but it was not the costl...
Preachers hear a great number of fascinating comments when they stand at the door after the service. One preacher reported the most unusual compliment he ever received: An old, soft-spoken gentleman c...
Knowing Christ as our caregiver, provider and sustainer is all we really need to know....
On Oct. 3, 2004 - for the first time in American history - someone became a U.S. citizen on foreign soil. On that date 34 foreign born American soldiers gained their citizenship in Iraq. Paul says we ...
In her book, Three Kentucky Towns That Never Were, the author, Mariam S. Houchens, names Lystra and Franklinville in Nelson County. They existed only on paper. Elaborate plans showed streets, parks, c...
A businessman needed millions of dollars to clinch an important deal, so he went to the church to pray for the money. By chance he knelt at the altar next to a man who was praying for $100 to pay an u...
At the Korean DMZ, you can see into North Korea far enough to see the largest flag pole in the world. The flag by itself weighs 300 kilograms. In Seoul, South Korea, by contrast, you can see churches ...
A small town barber was having trouble with a new chain operation that came to town. To get the customers to change, the chain advertised a slogan "Home of the $5 Haircut." The old barber had just abo...
How large of an impact does random or targeted kindness have on others?...
Many European royals had the same name, so they often were differentiated by numbers such as Charles I, II or III. Even this became difficult to remember, so people gave their kings nicknames....
A young seminary graduate came up to the lectern, very self confident and immaculately dressed. He began to deliver his first sermon in his first church and the words simply would not come out. Finall...
A high school senior saw an inspirational advertisement on television about becoming a teacher. She called the number shown: 1.800.45TEACH. After a woman answered, the student immediately began talkin...
A mother and a daughter are shopping in the mall when the mother eyes an expensive fur coat. "This year," she says, "I think I will buy my present instead of making you and Dad shop for me."...
Recently Lynn Johnston's "For Better or For Worse" comic strip depicted the father changing all the clocks. When his little daughter asks why, he explains carefully that putting the clocks ahead gives...
Too Late The little boy was making his way to his desk when the teacher stopped him. "You're late," she said. He looked a bit tearful. "I was late when I left home," he said. "But why didn't you start...
"This house," said the real estate salesman, "has both its good points and its bad points. To show you I'm honest, I'm going to tell you about both. The disadvantages are that there is a chemical plan...