The Bumpy Bus Ride

A pastor was riding on a bus down a bumpy road. A young man on his way to college was seated next to him. The minister asked, “Are you ready for the temptations you will face in college?”

"I’m not worried about that,” the young man replied. “I have strong will-power."

The pastor took a pencil from his pocket and said, "I can make this pencil stand up on my Bible even though the bus ride is bumpy." 

The student said, "I don't think you can do it."

"Look, I’m doing it," the minister said.

“Yeah, but you didn't tell me you would hold the pencil up with your hand."

"I didn't have to tell you. Have you ever seen a pencil stand up on its own without someone holding it?"

He let go of the pencil, which immediately fell over. He said, “Son, let this be a lesson to you. The only reason you can stand is because God is holding you up with His hand." 

First Corinthians 10:12 says, “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” We only stand by God’s grace (Romans 5:2). If God were to remove His hand of grace we will fall too.

Humble yourself before the Lord and depend on His grace to hold you up. He is able to bring you through any difficulty. “For my grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com  www.makinglifecount.net

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Read my Author Interview with Hendrickson Publishers about Slaying Your Giants.

Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net 

The House That Doesn't Exist Anymore

This is the house in New Orleans that I grew up in. The picture was taken after Hurricane Katrina wiped out the neighborhood and it was later bulldozed. The house doesn’t exist anymore, but in my mind I can still see every room. Even though the house is gone, it still lives in my memory if I choose to think about it.

Many people are haunted by things they’ve done in their past. Perhaps you've done some things that you are ashamed of. We all have. It’s those haunting memories that become the baggage from the past we are carrying today. But we don’t have to stay chained to our past.

When you accepted Christ into your life, the old house of your past was destroyed and doesn’t exist anymore. He has replaced your old life with a new life and has good plans for your future. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here!”(2 Cor. 5:17).

Now that your past has been dealt with, you don’t need to “go there” in your mind anymore. Rather than thinking about bad memories of the past, “set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2). Jesus has given you a new start and a reason to live. You might not have started well but you can finish your life well. Make a decision to forget the past and press forward to what God has called you to do. (Phil. 3:13-14). www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com  www.makinglifecount.net  

Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net