God writes the music for our lives. Our role is to follow His lead—humming, harmonising, blending and singing in tune. Serving the Lord, like singing, can be stirring and rewarding. But when we are set aside by illness, or replacement, or retirement, the interludes can be frustrating and unfilling. When God says to “Come ….rest…

In ‘The Complete Disciple’, Paul W. Powell describes a picture of a rugged wagon train painted by a famous artist of the American West. It is night and the wagons have been drawn into a circle for protection. The men are gathered around the campfire, and the wagon-master has a map spread out before him.…

In an article for Youth Ministries magazine, a 14-year veteran of the Navy SEALs describes the colour-code system they use to indicate levels of combat readiness. Each stage has a parallel in spiritual warfare. Condition White: The soldier is relaxed and day-dreaming, unaware of his surroundings. A Christian in this condition is easy prey for…

William Cowper, though a Christian, had sunk to the depths of despair. One foggy night he called for a horse drawn carriage and asked to be taken to London Bridge. He was so overcome by depression that he intended to commit suicide. After two hours of driving through the fog, Cowper’s coachman reluctantly confessed that…

The 2000 US presidential election was finally decided after weeks of recounts, court battles and controversy about punch-card ballots. Political pundits and comedians had a heyday. Even after the Florida recount wrangling was over, a billboard along the Michigan highway reminded travellers of those post-election days. It carried this clever message: “Count your blessings. Recount…

The song of the humpback whale is one of the strangest in nature. It is a combination of high-and low-pitched groanings. Those who have studied the humpback whale say their songs are noteworthy because these giants of the deep are continually changing them. New patterns are added and old ones eliminated so that over a period of…

Paul Wylie was skating in the 1988 Winter Olympics at Calgary. He was nervous as he began his programme before 20,000 people and a TV audience of millions. Then, in his first jump, something went wrong. He writes, “A flash later my hand touches the ice; the blade won’t hold. I start slipping and now…

When he was only 13 years old, the violinist Yehudi Menuhin was invited to perform with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. With distinguished musicians in the audience listening to him, the youthful genius played some of the most difficult compositions by Beethoven, Bach and Brahms. The response was so enthusiastic that the management called in the police…

Our fast-moving world demands immediate service—instant car-phone communication, 20 minute pizza delivery service, fast broadband and so the list goes on. Waiting is grating. As a result we don’t have time for breakdowns, recuperation or repairs. If something goes wrong, we want a quick fix so we can be on our way. If stores can’t give…

About halfway through a rehearsal conducted by Sir Michael Costa, with trumpets blaring, drums rolling, and violins singing their rich melody, the piccolo player muttered to himself, “What good am I doing? I might just as well not be playing. Nobody can hear me anyway.” So he kept his instrument to his mouth, but he made no…