Posts by John Staiger (Page 57)

I have always been averse to taking prescription medicines. On this, my husband-and-wife doctor team have been patient with me; to a point! When I have been hesitant to adjust to their better judgement, they have deftly tilted their computer screen towards me and given me a brief history lesson. You see, I can kid myself that I am going to do better (and I have), but the facts remain that my family history paints a solemn picture. So, unless…

When I get to heaven, I am going straight to the fast-food section. Not McDonald’s et el., but the bread and gravy and fried meats and donuts, etc; all the food I am not allowed to eat now. I know that it is the stuff of sugar, salt, fat, and every chemical you don’t want to know about, however its one redeeming quality is that it tastes so good. And since it will be heaven, I will not have to…

Europe has an abundance of empty church buildings for sale. As unbelievable as it may sound, spaces once filled with dark clad, austere worshipers are now filled with nightclubbers and skateboarders. Sadly, this has been coming for a very long time. Even as far back as the mid-1800s, David Livingstone and other missionaries were praying that Africa would one day send missionaries back to revive Europe’s beleaguered Christian spirit. Elijah lived during a spiritual famine. In fact, at one point,…

I remember it well. My brother was driving as we were travelling through the back roads of The King Country around Christmas 1978. Suddenly, the view from my car door window turned black. It was no mystery as to what had happened; an oncoming car had forced us off the road. My brother’s swift reactions put our vehicle up against the bank to avoid a head on collision. What went through my mind in the split second that I was…

There was a lady taking notes as the preacher was waxing eloquent. But as an overwhelming sense of tiredness came over her, she is said to have written this verse: As I sit me down to sleepI know the sermons long and deepBut if it ends before I wakeSomebody give me a little shake. That story comes from a sermon by James Maxwell. However, judging by the number of “Amens” and other affirmations, I doubt that anyone would have wanted…

Travel to a tourist town and you might happen upon The Shell Game. There you will witness a con that goes back as far as ancient Greece. The confidence trickster artfully engages his ‘mark’ in a supposed game of: ‘Which shell is the object under?’ Unbeknownst to the poor victim, the object is removed and restored at the conjurer’s will. The ‘mark’ is speedily set-up by a cheering crowd and several “wins;” then the fraudulent street magician strikes. Only three…

The biographical sketches of Jesus’ disciples are incredibly brief. Peter does stand out beyond the rest, followed by James and John, but not much is said about the others. Judas, of course, is in a class of his own. I’m sure that you too have wondered about Judas’ day-to-day interactions with the other apostles—Why couldn’t they see what Jesus saw? If ever there was a thief and a traitor hidden in plain sight, it was Judas Iscariot. We know that…

Years ago, I knew two gamblers: one rich and the other broke. The rich man was a Christian who regularly wasted money on lottery tickets. He would tell me how generous towards God he was going to be with his winnings. It never happened! The broke man blew his money on horse races. He was addicted to the point where he would gamble away his family’s grocery money. One day, knowing that he had a wife and three small children…

Scenario 1. It should surprise no one when a Christian rushes ahead to make progress in all things good. Daily he endeavours to glorify God in his work for the Lord’s church; to watch him is to be inspired to greater things. Such brethren do not waste their lives. They have no time for mind-numbing distractions, and no money for that which holds them back. They have learned that a vice-free-life is a life open to possibilities. Scenario 2. Most…

The church will never lack “those who don’t fit in.” Jesus swung the door wide open to the penitents who reside beyond the “righteous.” Jesus told the self-righteous, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. (Mt.21:31) It is obvious to all that not everyone in church is from the fringes of society. Our congregations generally have a fair representation of the talented and resourceful. In fact, being…