The Hardest Days — God Uses Them for Good

By Sharon Glasgow

"You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples." Psalm 77:14 (NIV 1984)

Our Christmas festivities came to a halt last year when a speeding car slammed into us at a stoplight. Presents, goodies and Christmas lists crashed to the floor. Thankfully the rescue squad and police arrived quickly and requested we go to the hospital.

However, we were hours from home and had a million things left on our holiday to-do list. With reservation, and minimalizing the bumps and bruises, we agreed we felt fine, and the emergency crew let us leave.

But my husband Dale really didn't feel well. By the next morning that "not right" feeling took center stage. We sensed something was seriously wrong with his heart.

Bumper Stickers

* FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION! It comes bundled with the software.

* I can't dial 911. There's no 11 on my phone.

* What is a free gift? Aren't all gifts free?

* Can you yell "MOVIE!" in a crowded fire station?

* It's hard to make a comeback when you haven't been anywhere.

* If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?

* To vacillate or not to vacillate, that is the question.... ....or is it?

* I didn't fight my way to the top of the food chain to be a vegetarian.

* I haven't spoken to my wife in 18 months. She gets mad if I interrupt her.

* Very funny, Scotty. Now beam down my clothes.

* A closed mouth gathers no foot.

* What happens if you get scared half to death twice?

* Where there's smoke, there's dinner.

FUN THINGS TO DO DURING BORING SERMONS

~ Pass a note to the organist asking whether he/she plays requests.

~ See if a yawn really is contagious.

~ Slap your neighbor. See if they turn the other cheek. If not, raise your hand and tell the preacher.

~ Devise ways of climbing into the balcony without using the stairs.

~ Listen for your preacher to use a word beginning with 'A' then 'B and so on through the alphabet.

Another Divine Helper

John 14:16-18

Have you ever wished you had a 911 number that rang in heaven whenever you had a need? Well, I have good news for believers. We all have divine assistance that’s even closer than a phone call: our Helper dwells within us. But if we are unaware of Him, we’ll miss many opportunities to benefit from the greatest asset in our Christian life—the Holy Spirit’s presence.

Christ knew that when He left the earth, His disciples would be totally inadequate for the task He was giving them—to evangelize the world. Though they’d spent three years with Jesus, all they had seen and learned would still not sufficiently equip them for what lay ahead. They needed supernatural help, and so do we—someone who will come to our aid, empower our service, and transform us from the inside out.