What's In A Number?

When Harlan Sanders turned forty, he realized that he could not point to anything in his life that could be considered a success. No matter what he attempted to accomplish, he never succeeded. One day someone said to him, “Harlan, life begins at forty!” It jolted him so strongly that it awakened his faltering faith, and he determined, with God’s help, to begin again.

After a time of prayer, he decided to open a service station. Shortly after its opening, he added a luncheonette. One meal his customers enjoyed the most was his fried chicken. To make it tastier and more appealing, he came up with a “special” batter and called it the Harlan Sanders’ Kentucky Fried Chicken. People enjoyed it so much that they soon recommended it to their friends. It brought him so much fame and fortune that the Governor of Kentucky made him a “Kentucky Colonel.” Soon people everywhere were buying the “Colonel’s” Kentucky Fried Chicken.

By God’s grace and the Colonel’s faith, what had been a life of failure and frustration became a life with a future and personal fulfillment. His new life, however, did not begin at forty. It began when God became the major ingredient in his life’s “recipe.”

When God becomes the main “ingredient” of our life, everything will change and become new. With God as the centerpiece and His Word as our guide, we can overcome any obstacle or difficulty that stands in the way of our success.

Prayer: Let us realize, Lord, that greater things are possible when we trust in You and use the gifts You have given us to honor You. Take us and bless us for Your sake. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

What's In A Number?

When Harlan Sanders turned forty, he realized that he could not point to anything in his life that could be considered a success. No matter what he attempted to accomplish, he never succeeded. One day someone said to him, “Harlan, life begins at forty!” It jolted him so strongly that it awakened his faltering faith, and he determined, with God’s help, to begin again.

After a time of prayer, he decided to open a service station. Shortly after its opening, he added a luncheonette. One meal his customers enjoyed the most was his fried chicken. To make it tastier and more appealing, he came up with a “special” batter and called it the Harlan Sanders’ Kentucky Fried Chicken. People enjoyed it so much that they soon recommended it to their friends. It brought him so much fame and fortune that the Governor of Kentucky made him a “Kentucky Colonel.” Soon people everywhere were buying the “Colonel’s” Kentucky Fried Chicken.

By God’s grace and the Colonel’s faith, what had been a life of failure and frustration became a life with a future and personal fulfillment. His new life, however, did not begin at forty. It began when God became the major ingredient in his life’s “recipe.”

When God becomes the main “ingredient” of our life, everything will change and become new. With God as the centerpiece and His Word as our guide, we can overcome any obstacle or difficulty that stands in the way of our success.

Prayer: Let us realize, Lord, that greater things are possible when we trust in You and use the gifts You have given us to honor You. Take us and bless us for Your sake. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

He Bowled 300! What A Game!

Tombstones are lasting reminders of what people accomplished in life. One that is very interesting and impressive is in Wisconsin. It reads: “He bowled 300 in 1962.”

Do you wonder, as I do, if that was his greatest achievement in life? Or, how many games did he bowl before he had a perfect game? Or, was it the first game he ever bowled and it surprised him so very much that he never bowled again? We’ll never know.

But one thing we do know is that we will all be remembered by someone for something. Paul made a most interesting observation about life’s accomplishments. He was writing to the Philippians about his achievements. Reading them is like reading the resume of one of the world’s great leaders. They are very impressive. But, after mentioning them, he pulled the rug out from under his own feet. After what sounds like someone bragging about what they had accomplished, he concluded his resume by adding: “But because of Christ, I decided that all of my worldly accomplishments are worth nothing.”

Paul always had the proper perspective. Whatever he achieved in his life before his conversion did not matter to him. However, after he became a follower of Christ, he simply wanted to be remembered for one thing: his relationship with Christ and what he did for Him. Everything else, for him, was “worthless trash.” What will your tombstone read?

Prayer: Help us, Lord, to place serving You first and foremost in our lives. May we be remembered for what we did for You and through You, because of You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today: Philippians 3:4-11 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him.

He Bowled 300! What A Game!

Tombstones are lasting reminders of what people accomplished in life. One that is very interesting and impressive is in Wisconsin. It reads: “He bowled 300 in 1962.”

Do you wonder, as I do, if that was his greatest achievement in life? Or, how many games did he bowl before he had a perfect game? Or, was it the first game he ever bowled and it surprised him so very much that he never bowled again? We’ll never know.

But one thing we do know is that we will all be remembered by someone for something. Paul made a most interesting observation about life’s accomplishments. He was writing to the Philippians about his achievements. Reading them is like reading the resume of one of the world’s great leaders. They are very impressive. But, after mentioning them, he pulled the rug out from under his own feet. After what sounds like someone bragging about what they had accomplished, he concluded his resume by adding: “But because of Christ, I decided that all of my worldly accomplishments are worth nothing.”

Paul always had the proper perspective. Whatever he achieved in his life before his conversion did not matter to him. However, after he became a follower of Christ, he simply wanted to be remembered for one thing: his relationship with Christ and what he did for Him. Everything else, for him, was “worthless trash.” What will your tombstone read?

Prayer: Help us, Lord, to place serving You first and foremost in our lives. May we be remembered for what we did for You and through You, because of You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:Philippians 3:4-11 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him.

Trying To Find Me

A telephone salesman called a home and a small child answered the phone just above a whisper. “Hello,” he said. 

“Is your mother in?” asked the salesman. 

“Yes,” he said in a hushed voice. “But she’s busy.” 

“Well,” the salesman continued, “is your father home?” 

“Yes,” came the quiet reply. “But he’s busy too.” 

 Wondering what was going on the salesman asked, “Well, what are they doing?” 

“Looking for me,” whispered the child. “I broke my mom’s favorite vase and I’m hiding.” 

Hiding is the natural thing to do when we’ve done something we think is wrong. It has a long heritage going back to the Garden of Eden when Adam said to God, “I heard you, so I hid.” Facing the Lord is not pleasant even though we know that He loves us and will willingly forgive us if we ask.  

Often, when we are guilty of being disobedient or knowingly commit a sin, we fear to approach Him. But that is the time we need Him the most. We need to remember that He does not want to hurt us but to heal us. He is anxious to forgive us, restore our relationship with Him, and grant us His pardon and peace. “If we confess, He is faithful and just to forgive.” But, we must ask! 

 Prayer:  We know, Heavenly Father, that we do what is unacceptable to You when we sin. May we be swift to confess and repent and forsake what we know is wrong. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Scripture For Today: 1 John 1:9  But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.