Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love. One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all constructed boats and left. Except for Love.

Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to hold out until the last possible moment.

When the island had almost sunk, Love decided to ask for help.

Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, “Richness, can you take me with you?”
Richness answered, “No, I can’t. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you.”

Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel. “Vanity, please help me!”
“I can’t help you, Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat,” Vanity answered.

Sadness was close by so Love asked, “Sadness, let me go with you.”
“Oh . . . Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!”

Happiness passed by Love, too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her.

Suddenly, there was a voice, “Come, Love, I will take you.” It was an elder. So blessed and overjoyed, Love even forgot to ask the elder where they were going. When they arrived at dry land, the elder went her own way.

Realizing how much was owed the elder, Love asked Knowledge, another elder, “Who Helped me?”
“It was Time,” Knowledge answered.
“Time?” asked Love. “But why did Time help me?”

Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, “Because only Time is capable of understanding how valuable Love is.”

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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We often associate roses with love. But the rose is also a reminder that all of us are worthy of live, in spite of the thorns.

A certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and before it blossomed, he examined it.

He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns upon the stem and he thought, “How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns? Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom… it died.

So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The God-like qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects.

We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.

Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reach past the thorns of another, and find the rose within them.

This is one of the characteristic of love… to look at a person, know their true faults and accepting that person into your life… all the while recognizing the nobility in their soul. Help others to realize they can overcome their faults. If we show them the “rose” within themselves, they will conquer their thorns. Only then will they blossom many times over.

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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Last Week I threw out Worrying, it was getting old and in the way. It kept me from being me; I couldn’t do things God’s way.

I threw out those Inhibitions; they were just crowding me out. Made room for my New Growth, got rid of my old dreams and doubts.

I threw out a book on MY PAST (didn’t have time to read it anyway). Replaced it with New Goals, started reading it today.

I threw out hate and bad memories, (remember how I treasured them so)? Got me a NEW PHILOSOPHY too, threw out the one from long ago.

Brought in some new books too, called I CAN, I WILL, and I MUST. Threw out I might, I think and I ought. WOW, You should’ve seen the dust.

I ran across an OLD FRIEND, haven’t seen him in a while. I believe his name is GOD, Yes, I really like His style.

He helped me to do some cleaning and added some things Himself. Like PRAYER, HOPE and FAITH, Yes I placed them right on the shelf.

I picked up this special thing and placed it at the front door. I FOUND IT – its called PEACE. Nothing gets me down anymore.

Yes, I’ve got my house looking nice. Looks good around the place. For things like Worry and Trouble there just isn’t any place.

Its good to do a little house cleaning, get rid of the old things on the shelf. It sure makes things brighter; maybe you should TRY IT YOURSELF. This is a start of my “NEW BEGINNING”

Author Unknown

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand: “TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.”

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him. After he recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone: “TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.”

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, “After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?” The other friend replied: “When someone hurts us we should write it down in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it.”

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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The Parable of the Pencil – Part 1

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box. “There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.

“One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand.

“Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.

“Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.

“Four: The most important part of you will always be what’s inside.

“And Five: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition you must continue to write.”

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in his heart.
The Parable of the Pencil – Part 2

But now the pencil lay on the dark wood table, feeling insignificant and rather sad.
Beside him on the desk was a colourful tin can, filled with every kind of beautiful pen to be had.

There were silver fountain pens and a neon felt tip marker.
There was also a classy ballpoint whom everyone called Parker.

“What a loser,” they said of the pencil, as they observed his wooden frame.
“Don’t bother with him, he’s a nobody,” said Parker, “He doesn’t even have a name.”

Now the world was at war and their owner was a Soldier who was tasked to bring peace to the land.
“What we need is a map,” the Soldier had said, at the desk across from his Officer the other night.

“If someone can fly me over the city unseen, I can draw a map from the sky.
The map will tell you where to go and how to win, and soon we’ll put an end to this fight.”

The Officer had agreed and now the Soldier would fly, but first he discussed with his wife.
“I’ll need something to draw with, something dependable… something that won’t fail me mid-flight.”

The Soldier looked at his dark wood desk, and observed all the pens in the can.
He studied each one, their bodies all shimmering, and he weighed them all in his hand.

“This one won’t work,” he said of a pen, “the ink might blot on the map.
This one needs to be refilled every few hours, and this one will dry out without a cap.”

He looked at each one and always found something wrong, or anticipated problems if he used it in the sky.
“I need something that would work whatever the conditions, and I need it soon my dear wife.”

“Then take this pencil.” his wife finally said, handing him the frail and battered yellow thing.
“It will write no matter what, it will write on a plane – it’s the best writing tool you can bring.”

The Soldier smiled, kept the pencil in his pocket, and took it with him on the plane.
He finished the map and the map helped bring them peace… and the pencil has never been the same.
The Parable of the Pencil – Part 3

The pencil was now nothing more than a stub; what was left of his lead was now broken.
His eraser was gone, his wood frame had split, and some time ago his metal ring had been stolen.

Now he stood before the Pencil Maker, and waited for him to say those 5 words.
“Well done, my faithful pencil,” the Pencil Maker said, “You have written what you were meant to write in the world.”

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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If you watch each play of a football game, you will see 22 men each doing a specific task to accomplish a goal. If any one man does not perform his task, the whole play can be ruined. If the wide receiver cuts right instead of left, the quarterback’s throw might be intercepted or he might get in the way of one of his teammates. If an offensive lineman doesn’t block his defensive man, the quarterback is likely to be dead meat. Each person.’s task, though it may seem insignificant to him, is important. Each team member is responsible for the play and shares in its success or failure. Each player has certain characteristics that qualify him for his position and enable him to accomplish his task. The center is quick and powerful, which gives him the ability to snap the ball to the quarterback and block his defensive man at the same time. The wide receiver is fast and has “good hands” which enable him to get open and catch passes thrown his direction. The quarterback has good peripheral vision and a strong arm which enables him to spot receivers and get the ball to them, while avoiding the defense. The different capabilities of the players work together as a successful team.

In the same way, in the body of Christ,
1) each Christian has a specific task
2) each Christian has skills that enable him to accomplish his task
3) a successful church results when each person performs his tasks

It takes 3,000 cows to supply the NFL with enough leather for a year’s supply of footballs.

The “huddle” in football was formed due to a deaf football player who used sign language to communicate and his team didn’t want the opposition to see the signals he used and in turn huddled around him.

Bob Richards, the former pole-vault champion, shares a moving story about a skinny young boy who loved football with all his heart.

Practice after practice, he eagerly gave everything he had. But being half the size of the other boys, he got absolutely nowhere.

At all the games, this hopeful athlete sat on the bench and hardly ever played.

This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. Even though the son was always on the bench, his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game. This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high school. But his father continued to encourage him, but also made it very clear that he did not have to play football if he didn’t want to. But the young man loved football, and decided to hang in there.

He was determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he’d get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice nor a game, but remained a bench-warmer all four years.

His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him.

When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a “walk-on.” Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did.

The coach admitted that he kept him on the roster because he always put his heart and soul to every practice, and at the same time, provided the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.

The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games. This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in a game. It was the
end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big playoff game, the coach met him with a telegram.

The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, “My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?” The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, “Take the rest of the week off, son. And don’t even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.”

Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room, put on his football gear, and as he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful teammate back so soon. “Coach, please let me play. I’ve just got to play today,” said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game.

But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in.
“All right,” he said. “You can go in.”

Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed, blocked, and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown. The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you never heard.

Finally, after the stands had emptied, and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that this young man was sitting quietly in the corner, all alone. The coach came to him and said, “Kid, I can’t believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you?

How did you do it?”

He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, “Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?” The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, “Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!”

Like the athlete’s father, God is always there cheering for us. He’s always reminding us to go on. He’s even offering us His hand for He knows what is best, and is willing to give us what we need and not simply what we want.

God has never missed a single game. What a joy to know that life is meaningful if lived for the Highest. Live for HIM, for He’s watching us in the game of life!

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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An ant was seen carrying a piece of straw much larger than he was. Upon seeing this, the man thought, “How interesting that the little ant can carry something so much larger than himself.” So he watched the ant in fascination.

As he watched the ant, the ant came to a crevice in the ground. The crevice was too big for him to go down into and it was to wide to cross.

The ant took the straw. Laid the straw down over the crevice. Walked across the straw and then picked up the straw and went on his way.

The man thought to himself, “The ant turned his burden into a bridge.
That’s what God wants us to do with our burdens!

On the front porch of his little country store in Illinois, Abraham Lincoln and Berry, his partner, stood. Business was all gone, and Berry asked, “How much longer can we keep this going?” Lincoln answered, “It looks as if our business has just about winked out.”

Then he continued, “You know, I wouldn’t mind so much if I could just do what I want to do. I want to study law. I wouldn’t mind so much if we could sell everything we’ve got and pay all our bills and have just enough left over to buy one book–Blackstone’s Commentary on English Law, but I guess I can’t.”

A strange-looking wagon was coming up the road. The driver angled it up close to the store porch, then looked at Lincoln and said, “I’m trying to move my family out west, and I’m out of money. I’ve got a good barrel here that I could sell for fifty cents.”

Abraham Lincoln’s eyes went along the wagon and came to the wife looking at him pleadingly, face thin and emaciated. Lincoln ran his hand into his pocket and took out, according to him, “the last fifty cents I had” and said, “I reckon I could use a good barrel.”

All day long the barrel sat on the porch of that store. Berry kept chiding Lincoln about it. Late in the evening Lincoln walked out and looked down into the barrel. He saw something in the bottom of it, papers that he hadn’t noticed before.

His long arms went down into the barrel and, as he fumbled around, he hit something solid. He pulled out a book and stood petrified: it was Blackstone’s Commentary on English Law. Lincoln later wrote, “I stood there holding the book and looking up toward the heavens.

There came a deep impression on me that God had something for me to do and He was showing he now that I had to get ready for it. Why this miracle otherwise?”

Source Unknown

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

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