Illustrations Archives

• Acceptance, Compassion  (July 24, 2007)
  A number of years ago, Newsweek magazine carried the story of the memorial service held for Hubert Humphrey, former vice-president of the United States. Hundreds of people came from all over the world to say good-bye to their old friend and colleague.
• A Knock at the Door  (July 24, 2007)
  A pastor visited his church members one Saturday. At one house it was obvious that someone was home, but nobody came to the door, even though the pastor knocked several times.
• Marriage  (July 24, 2007)
  When Barbara Schwartz was about 29-years-old, she visited her parents one weekend. They questioned her about her current boyfriend. Her mother asked, 'Just what kind of man are you interested in?' Barbara pointed to her father and said, 'I want one like him, but with a few minor modifications.'
• Marriage, Forgiveness  (July 24, 2007)
  On her golden wedding anniversary, a grandmother revealed the secret of her long and happy marriage. "On my wedding day, I decided to choose ten of my husband's faults which, for the sake of our marriage, I would overlook," she explained. A guest asked her to name some of the faults.
• Peace  (July 24, 2007)
  He is an active member of a congregation in Queensland, Australia, and his name is Pax Young. We often encounter the surname Young, but his first name is not one you hear every day. How did he get the name Pax? The answer is that he was born on the very day World War I ended.
• Missions, Missionaries, Vision  (July 24, 2007)
  When David Livingstone volunteered as a missionary with the London Missionary Society, they asked him where he wanted to go. He replied, "Anywhere, so long as it is forward." After he had reached Africa he recorded his impressions, saying that he was haunted by the smoke of a thousand villages stretching off into the distance. David Livingstone had the heart of a missionary.
• Patriotism, July 4th  (July 24, 2007)
  Grover Cleveland served two terms as President of the United States - 1885-89 and 1893-97. He had high ideals for America. He called it "the land that lives in us." Among the patriotic speeches he wrote and gave, one addressed that theme. He said, in part:
• Missions, Missionaries, Christian Service  (July 24, 2007)
  Because of her father's drinking problem, 11-year-old Mary Slessor was putting in twelve-hour shifts in the mills, helping her family pay its bills. She found she could prop books on her loom while working.
• Parents, Parenting  (July 24, 2007)
  Erma Bombeck once said that raising children is similar to flying kites. You spend a lifetime trying to get them off the ground. You run with them until you're both breathless. . .they crash. . .you add a longer tail.
• Prodigal Son, Sorrow  (July 24, 2007)
  The Sunday School teacher was reading this story of the Prodigal Son to his class, clearly emphasizing the resentment the older brother expressed at the return of his brother.
• Mind Thoughts  (July 24, 2007)
  "The mind of man is the battleground on which every moral and spiritual battle is fought." (J. Oswald Sanders)
• Priorities, Possessions  (July 24, 2007)
  Charles Lindbergh became an instant hero in 1927 when he became the first flyer to make a Trans-Atlantic solo flight. A reporter asked him just before take-off why he was taking only five sandwiches and a container of water with him. Lindbergh replied,
• Pain, Trouble, Relief  (July 24, 2007)
  A guy walks into a shoe store and asks for a pair of shoes, size 8. The obviously well trained salesman says, "But sir, you take an 11 or eleven-and-a-half." "Just bring me a size eight."
• Messiah  (July 24, 2007)
  The December 16, 1997 issue of the tabloid The Sun carried this headline on the front page: New Messiah to Be Born in Holy Land. Inside the story says that on the eve of Christmas and Hanukkah a strange meteor would appear over Bethlehem. (The two festivals coincided in 1997, an event that occurs about once every ten years!)
• Overcoming Challenges  (July 24, 2007)
• Problems, Struggles  (July 24, 2007)
  A new kind of plane was on its first flight. It was full of reporters and journalists. A little while after takeoff, the captain's voice was heard over the speakers: "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm delighted to be your pilot for this plane's historic first flight. I can tell you the flight is going well.
• Memory, Aging  (July 24, 2007)
  Two elderly ladies had been friends for many decades. Over the years, they had shared all kinds of activities and adventures. Lately, their activities had been limited to meeting a few times a week to play cards.
• Priorities  (July 24, 2007)
  Two teenagers were arrested. After booking them, the police sergeant told them they were entitled to a phone call. Some time later a man entered the station and asked for them by name.
• Pride  (July 24, 2007)
• Order, Creation  (July 24, 2007)
  The late Harvard mathematician and philosopher, Alfred North Whitehead, maintained that the whole scientific enterprise of the western world rested upon the belief that at the bottom of things science would find order rather than chaos.