73 Sermon Illustrations on Youth

According to a tradition current among the natives of Puerto Rico, there was an island of the Bahama group which had upon it a marvellous fountain, whose waters produced perpetual youth. For this marvel of Nature, Juan Ponce de Leon, the Spanish navigator, sought long and earnestly, yet in vain.

If a farmer neglects to plant in the springtime, he can never recover the lost opportunity; no more can you, if you neglect yours. Youth is a seed-time, and if it is allowed to pass without good seed being sown, weeds will spring up and choke the soil. It will take bitter toil to uproot them.

An old man of God said that when a good farmer sees a weed in his field he has it pulled up. If it is taken early enough, the blank is soon filled in, and the crop waves over the whole field. But if allowed, to run too late, the bald patch remains. It would have been better if the weed had never been allowed to get root.

Recently a London pastor preached a sermon on the after-business occupations of young people, in which he said that from 6 to 11 P.M. was the danger zone for young folks who are employed during the day. Speaking of the mesmeric glitter of London, and the fascination of its so-called amusements, he made the assertion that he believed that the theaters and music-halls should be controlled by the churches.

The Sunday-school _Chronicle_ sent an interviewer to ask him why he made this statement. His answer follows:

“First of all,” said the pastor, “I have been so deeply imprest by the sense of awful loneliness which is experienced by young people coming to central London from the provinces. I know for a fact that scores of young men and women go to the bad because of the absolute friendlessness of their lives. Six months ago I spent two days at the Old Bailey Sessions House trying to snatch a girl of nineteen from prison. She came to London motherless and friendless, and was spoken to kindly by a young man in Oxford street. She appreciated the apparent sympathy which this stranger extended to her--well, the rest of the story of her downfall may be imagined. Many of these young people have nowhere to go after business hours but the music-hall or the public-house, and the things they take away from these places and retail in their houses of business are the questionable jokes which they have heard. So for these young people I plead for churches that are homes and amusements that are healthy.”--_The Advance._

Yancey grew up in bigoted fundamentalism. Guilt is ingrained in him, but this is not necessarily bad. A survey he filled out asked him to assess the positive and negative effects of growing up a fundamentalist.

Sunday School is suffering due to "me-first" attitudes of our society.

Attendance is falling. Traces the history of the Sunday School and its

potential for evangelism today.

#1282

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General Douglas MacArthur was right when he said:

“Youth is not a period of time. It is a state of mind. A result of the will. A quality of the imagination. A victory of courage over timidity. A taste of adventure over the love of comfort. A man doesn’t grow old because he’s lived a certain number of years, he grows old because he deserts his ideal. The years may wrinkle his skins, but deserting his ideals wrinkles his soul. Preoccupation, fears, doubts, and despair are dust before death. You will remain young as long as you are open to what is beautiful, good, great and receptive to the messages of other men and women and nature and of God. If one day you should become bitter, pessimistic, and gnawed by despair, may God have mercy on your old man’s soul.”

Joseph Simon III was sentenced to 30 years, with 15 mandatory, for killing his friend Richard Van Ness, Jr. in Roxbury, New Jersey, on November 27, 1992. He pleaded guilty. The crime occurred after a party where there had been much drinking, and rumors say Van Ness ridiculed Simon for being homosexual. After shooting Van Ness through the stomach with a hunting rifle (the bullet passed through the house), he was left to suffer for several hours while those at the party debated what to do. His body was placed in a car and driven off a remote road where it was found the next day. [Ledgewood Baptist Church is in Roxbury, an affluent suburban community.]

"Seize the day" - the potential and tragedy of youth.

Outside of Ipswich, Massachusetts, is a natural park called "The Grass Rides." Broad walkways meander through the woods and converge on a stone monument in the middle of a glen. The monument was retrieved from the demolition of a library at Harvard University and is dedicated to a bright, gifted young man who died in 1912.

The scene recalls the movie with Robin Williams, "Dead Poets Society." In the movie Williams shows students pictures of the school's athletic teams from the previous century. The team members are all young and vibrant - and dead.

Life is short. Seize each day and make it count.

________

For more information on the Grass Rides:

http://www321.pair.com/oaries/localattitude/appleton.htm

http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to-visit/northeast-ma/appleton-farms-grass-rides.html

A view of a similar monument (there are several on the property):

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM6DAH_Pigeon_Hill_Pinnacle_at_Appleton_Farms

What is a millennial?

There are no precise dates when this generation starts and ends; most researchers and commentators use birth years ranging from 1978 to the early 2000s. I was born in 1978, so I just missed the Generation-X group and barely fit into the millennials. In fact, some definitions would keep my age group out of the millennials category, but I am around true millennials all the time by speaking to high school and college students, church planters and young families on a regular basis.

In my experience with this broad and large people group, I find there are extreme differences between 34-year-olds and 17-year-olds. However, there are some common views that come to the surface in most millennials no matter their age.

This is extremely important because, as children of God, we have firsthand experience of the incredible grace of Jesus. So, we should have a never-ending drive within us to love every age group the way that He loves us, and be students of every generation in order to be faithful missionaries with the Gospel to them.

With that in mind, here are 10 common views of millennials that may help us understand this large and diverse generation:

1. Millennials don’t promote ageism. People tend to think that millennials don’t want to have anything to do with the older generation. However, this generation is in desperate need for older generations to invest into them. This is largely a fatherless generation. They often seek out or are more open to discipleship or mentorship than we tend to believe. But they won’t know how to ask for it, so they ask you to “hang out.”

2. Millennials value experience over heritage. For the most part, millennials don’t value “heritage.” For example, a young person is not typically going to be Southern Baptist just because his parents were. If we can’t answer their “why” questions or we get defensive over their questions, we’ll lose them. Be ready to answer their honest questions with love, patience and kindness. Their experience with something or someone will dictate their views more than history will.

3. Millennials are fairly non-committal. Unless it’s an Apple product, millennials aren’t completely committed to anything. Previous generations may have valued commitment over enjoyment by making statements such as, “I’ve hated my job for over 40 years but I’m committed to it.” You’ll probably never hear a millennial say that, however, because they tend to value enjoyment over commitment. So they may say something like, “Why be miserable for 40 years? I may make less money and move around a lot, but I certainly don’t want to be miserable. Life is too short for that!” A great way to keep millennials engaged is by constantly communicating, illustrating and empowering participation in the vision and mission of the church. Remember, the younger generation is not the future of the church -- if they’ve been redeemed with the blood of Jesus, they’re the church right now. Let them have some ownership of the ministry and be patient with them when they mess up, possibly a lot.

4. Millennials mainly think about today. They often seem shortsighted. Think about it -- the defining moment of their lifetime involves the tragic events of 9/11. They saw the twin towers fall over and over again on a video screen while they were still children. It’s burned into their subconscious. Because there is so much focus on today, there will be very little preparation for the future by most millennials. This is also the reason for a lot of debt with this generation. “I need money today, so I’ll take out this loan and worry about how to pay for it tomorrow.” There is a great opportunity for the church to utilize the urgency of each day with this generation while also discipling them in the values of planning.

5. Millennials are more globally minded. Most millennials are up to date on world news and affairs. However, they may seem to be less patriotic to the USA than previous generations. They tend to view things from a global perspective while still valuing their country. It’s very possible that the Lord may accomplish the Great Commission through their interest in the nations.

6. Millennials know public shaming all too well. Public shaming once was a thing of the past but now has been revived with social media. Millennials have grown up afraid. They’ve felt the sting of cyber-bullying and may even have participated in viral trends. Their online persona is often as important to them as their real persona. Where we once said a photo was “A Kodak moment,” we now say, “That picture is Instagram-worthy.” This is an incredible opportunity for the church to teach this generation that a true identity found in Christ is better than a false identity created online.

7. Millennials see brokenness at an earlier age. They are exposed to more violence, graphic images and evil at an earlier age. Internet exposure, media coverage and broken homes are unfortunately the norm for far too many. Mass shootings are mainly a new phenomenon in their generation. This is a pornography-saturated generation -- the average age of first exposure is 11. The fastest-growing consumers of Internet pornography are girls 15–30; 90 percent of guys admit to interaction with Internet pornography and 60 percent of girls. This generation is looking for solutions at a much earlier time in their lives. They know they’re broken. Thank God for the Gospel because it is mighty to save millennials. Share it with them because they’re starving for it, whether they know it or not.

8. Millennials are cause-oriented. This generation wants to be a part of “doing” something. They’ll want more out of their church than sitting on a pew, listening to sermons, going to potluck dinners, while waiting on the Rapture Bus to swoop down to pick them all up. They are not scared to die young; however, they are terrified to die at a ripe old age while not having done anything significant with their lives in their own eyes. They are not typically impressed by a church’s size or budget. They’re more interested in being noticed relationally and in what the church is doing outside the walls of the building. Sometimes you’ll find a greater percentage of millennials in smaller churches or church plants because of the assumed accessibility of the leaders to cultivate a relationship.

9. Millennials are an ADHD generation. Surprising to some, they usually don’t mind long sermons. The communicators most popular among millennials commonly preach 45-50-minute sermons. However, millennials have about a 7-10-minute attention span at the most. In communicating, teaching, preaching, it is a must to break up the message several times with a story, illustration or practical application. Also, teaching has to be more than relaying content. This generation is visual. If they can’t see it or envision it, they have difficulty understanding it.

10. Millennials value doctrine. Mature Christ-following millennials deeply value doctrine, verse-by-verse preaching and missions. This generation seems to get weary of gimmicks and sleek presentations very quickly. The seeker-sensitive movement of their parents’ generation has grown to be “old hat” for the millennials who grew up in church. In preaching, the more raw, transparent and vulnerable the communicator is, the more millennials connect. There was a time when preachers were told not to use themselves in personal illustrations; however, this generation wants to hear those personal stories.

Millennials are a hopeful generation, and I personally am encouraged by this. My prophetic prediction about this generation is that God will use them to further the Great Commission more than any previous generation. Even if I’m wrong, millennials nevertheless are people made in the image of God who desperately need the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #1400]

The old believe everything;

the middle aged suspect everything;

the young know everything.

Oscar Wilde (1854 – 1900)

Writer

Cited in BITS & PIECES

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"Esteem age and you will always have life to look forward to. Esteem youth and you proclaim your own obsolescence."

-- unknown; from Chattanooga Resource Foundation

"As I give thought to the matter, I find four causes for the apparent misery of old age; first, it withdraws us from active accomplishments; second, it renders the body less powerful; third, it deprives us of almost all forms of enjoyment; fourth, it stands not far from death."

-- Cicero

"Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative."

-- Maurice Chevalier

"A man is not old as long as he is seeking something."

-- Jean Rostand

"Age ... is a matter of feeling, not of years."

-- George William Curtis

"Age--that period of life in which we compound for the vices that we still cherish by reviling those that we no longer have the enterprise to commit."

-- Ambrose Bierce

"To hold the same views at forty as we held at twenty is to have been stupefied for a score of years, and take rank, not as a prophet, but as an unteachable brat, well birched and none the wiser."

-- Robert Louis Stevenson

"The older I grow the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age brings wisdom."

-- H. L. Mencken

"Only the young die good."

-- Cynic's Calendar

"The woman who tells her age is either too young to have anything to lose or too old to have anything to gain."

-- Chinese Proverb

"At 20 years of age the will reigns; at 30 the wit; at 40 the judgment."

-- Benjamin Franklin

"Age does not depend upon years, but upon temperament and health. Some men are born old, and some never grow so."

-- Tryon Edwards

"If wrinkles must be written upon our brows, let them not be written upon the heart. The spirit should never grow old."

-- James A. Garfield

"As one grows older, one becomes wiser and more foolish."

-- François de la Rochefoucauld

"I refuse to admit I'm more than fifty-two, even if that does make my sons illegitimate."

-- Lady Astor

"Growing old is no more than a bad habit which a busy man has no time to form."

-- André Maurois

"In spite of illness, in spite even of the archenemy sorrow, one can remain alive long past the usual date of disintegration if one is unafraid of change, insatiable in intellectual curiosity, interested in big things, and happy in small ways."

-- Edith Wharton

"A person is not old until regrets take the place of dreams."

-- John Barrymore (1882 - 1942), actor, cited in BITS & PIECES

"The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes."

-- Frank Lloyd Wright (1867 - 1959), architect, cited in BITS & PIECES

"The goal in life is to die young - as late as possible."

-- Ashley Montagu (1905 - 1999), anthropologist, cited in Even More of...The Best of BITS & PIECES

These are bands that have at least one or more songs devoted to Satan, Satanism, or suicide (Satan inspired music). This is NOT an exhaustive list (because there are more bands out there).

Taken from the Lost Souls Domain Website Absu

Acid Bath

Acrostichon

Alice in Chains

Amorphis

Anathema Ancient

The Ancient

Rebirth

Ancient Rites As I Lie Dying

At the Gates

Autopsy

Babylon

Sad Benediction

The Blood Divine

Bolt Thrower

Brutality

Burzum

Candlemass

Cannibal Corpse

Cathedral Celestial Season

Cradle of Filth

Creepmime

Crematory

Cynic

Danzig

Darkthrone

Dark Tranquillity

Death

Deicide

Demolition Hammer

Diabolos Rising

Dismember

Dissection

Edge of Sanity

Elend

Emperor

Enchantment

Enslaved

Entombed

Faith No More

Fear Factory

The Gathering

Genetic Wisdom

God Dethroned

Godflesh

Godsend

Gorefest

Gwar

Hate Squad

Hybernoid

Hypocrisy

Immortal

Impaled Nazarene

Incubator

In the Woods

Kreator

Korn

Lash Out

Life of Agony

Lord

Belial Machine Head

Marilyn Manson

Mayhem

Messiah Metallica

Ministry

Misery Loves

Co.

Moonspell Morbid Angel

Mordred

Morgoth

Mucky

Pup My Dying Bride

Mystic Charm

Nailbomb

Napalm Death Necromantia

Nine Inch Nails

Nirvana

Nocturnus

Obituary

Old Orphanage

Osdorp

Posse &

Nebrionic Pantera

Paradise Lost

Pearl Jam

Pestilence Phlebotomized

Pro Pain

Pyogenesis

Rotting Christ

Sadness

Samael

Sarcofago

Satyricon

Sear Bliss

Sepultura

Sigh

Six Feet Under

Slayer

Suffocation

Suicidal

Tendencies

Threnody Tiamat

Traumatic Voyage

Type O

Negative

Ugly Kid Joe Unleashed

Visceral Evisceration

It is said that Queen Victoria was fascinated by the brilliance of the scholars who made up the Royal Society. On one occasion she whispered to Prime Minister John Bright, "Where do all these learned men come from?" Bright replied, "From babies, your Majesty, from babies."

DEAR ANN LANDERS: The reader signed "Georgia," who lived through the Depression and

described how hard it was to be a teenager in the 1930's, said kids today have an easy time of it

compared to teens in his day. You said you couldn't argue with him. Well, I can.

Let me ask your generation a few questions: Are your parents divorced? Almost every one of

my friends comes from a broken home. Were you thinking about suicide when you were 12?

Did you have an ulcer when you were 16? Did your best friend lose her virginity to a guy she

went out with twice? You may have had to worry about VD, but did you have to worry about

AIDS? Did your classmates carry guns and knives? How many kids in your class came to

school regularly drunk, stoned, or high on drugs? Did any of your friends have their brains fried

from using PCP? What percentage of your graduating class also graduated from a drug and

alcohol rehabilitation center? Did you school have armed security guards in the halls? Did you

ever live in a neighborhood where the sound of gunfire at night was "normal"?

You talk a lot about being dirt poor and having no money. Since when does money mean

happiness? The kids at school who have the expensive cars and designer clothes are the most

miserable. When I am your age, Georgia, I won't do much looking back, I'll just thank God that I

survived - OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY IN INDIANAPOLIS.

DEAR INDIANAPOLIS: I told Georgia I couldn't argue with him. Well, I can't argue with you,

either. Thanks for telling us how it is from where you stand.

In 10 minutes some very disturbing things will happen to America's youth:

Fact: 10 kids will attempt suicide.

Fact: 105 kids will quit school.

Fact: 618 high school seniors will smoke marijuana.

Fact: 20 girls between ages 15-19 will become pregnant.

Fact: 5 of those girls will give birth to illegitimate babies.

Fact: 8 of those girls will have abortions.

These numbers have become, quite literally, a national crime. Children and youths ages 12 to 20 constitute 57 percent of all serious arrests made in America. And the problem is getting worse. (Church Life Magazine, Vol. 2 #2, p. 46)

Adolescence is the age when boys discover girls - and girls discover they've been discovered. (...Quote)

Orlando, Fla.(AP) - Children increasingly are committing crimes ranging from armed robbery to murder, sociologists and criminal justice experts say.

"Ten years ago, it was a shock to see a 7-, 8- or 9-year-old come into the system; now it's not," said Danny Dawson, chief of the Orange-Osceola County state attorney's juvenile division in Orlando. "It's a trend."

Nationally, records show, 1,311 youths under age 19 were charged with murder last year; in Florida during the past two years, children aged 5, 8, and 9 have been charged with killing younger playmates, Mr. Dawson said recently. Kathleen Heide, an associate director of the International Center for the Study of Violence at the University of South Florida in Tampa, recently completed a two-year study of adolescent killers.

She characterized about 10 percent of them as sadistic. Among six other categories were those who regarded crime as a sport and homicide as an unavoidable aspect of robbery, she said.

In another category were abused children, who might kill a parent but who tend more toward suicidal than homicidal behavior, she said.

Prosecutors and judges had long been guided by the "rule of sevens." Children younger than 7 were thought to be incapable of forming criminal intent and therefore not accountable for their actions. By age 14, it is believed that children can comprehend right from wrong.

But the rule is fading.

"You still think of them as children," Mr. Dawson said. "But I don't think (the public has) seen what we've seen. They don't see the 7-year-old who has a criminal mind and has the street savvy of a 16-year-old."

Thirty-three Detroit children under 17 years of age were victims of gun homicides in 1986, while eight others died in suicides or accidents involving firearms, according to figures compiled through Saturday by the newspaper.

By comparison, the Free Press said, 15 children in Chicago were killed with guns or other weapons through Dec. 16.

The newspaper also said that in Detroit, 317 children 16 years old and under were shot and wounded during the year.

Kids spend a lot of money, reports Teenage Research Unlimited. Last year, teenagers spent $71 billion. If you put that money in one-dollar bills and placed them side by side, they would wrap around the Earth's equator 848 times. -- From Homemade, June 1992

"The statistics are little short of staggering: American girls, on average, begin having sex at age 16, boys, at 15 p. By the end of their teens, 70 percent of girls and 80 percent of boys have been sexually active." (U.S. News & World Report, December 22, 1986, p. 8.)

50% of today's sexually active males had their first sexual experience between the ages of 11-13. (Robert Coles and Geoffrey Stokes, Sex and the American Teenager, New York: Harper & Row/Rolling Stone Press, 1985)

1,100,000 teenage girls became pregnant in 1984. 30,000 girls who become pregnant each year are under 14 years of age. 80% of the pregnant teenage girls will drop out of school. 70% of the unwed teenage mothers will go on welfare. (Jay Kesler, Parents of Teenagers, Illinois: Victor Books, 1984)

"If present trends continue....40% of today's 14 year old girls will be pregnant at least once before age 20." (Claudia Wallis, "Children Having Children," TIME December 9th, 1985)

In 1981, teens aged 15-19 had 433,330 abortions, a rate of 43.3 abortions/1000 pregnancies, this is over 1/4 of the abortions performed in the U.S. (Alan Guttmacher Institute, Teenage Pregnancy: The Problem That Hasn't Gone Away, New York: Alan Guttmacher Institute, 1981)

A recent study commissioned buy a major conservative evangelical denomination reported that within two years after graduation, 96 percent of their high school students leave the church. Less than 30 percent eventually return. The average Christian teen spends two hours per week in church. The average American teen spends approximately two minutes each day in direct conversation with his/her parents. One half of the nation's teenagers rent an average of two video tapes every month. That's 576 million tapes rented annually. (From: The Research Ministries Report, November 1987)

Two-thirds of all births to teens, about 1 million annually, are to unmarried girls, compared to less than 33% in 1970. American teens are threatened by an increasing out-of-wedlock birth rate. They not only hurt their chances of leading happy lives but start their children off on the wrong route also. -- Encounter

Magnificent pachyderms are trained to serve their human masters. Of course, if elephants knew how strong they were they would never yield to the domination of anything, but they are subjected to stressful forms of "brainwashing:, which takes the fight out of them. The process begins with three days of total isolation from man or beast. Female elephants and their young are remarkably social animals, and they react to loneliness the same way humans do. They grieve and fret and long for their peers. At that precise moment of vulnerability, they are brought to a nighttime ceremony of fire, Then for many hours in the flickering light, they are screamed at, intimidated, stroked and ordered back and forth. By morning, half-crazed, the elephants have yielded. Their wills have been broken. Man is the master. Even thought I understand the economic need for working elephants in India, there is still something sad about their plight. These wonderfully intelligent animals are transformed from freedom to slavery in a single evening. There is a parallel between these elephants and us fragile human beings, especially as teenagers. Like the elephant staked in a distant field, teenagers are subjected by their culture to a period of intense isolation and loneliness. Even those who are moderately successful during these years often feel rejected, ridiculed and ignored. They are at that moment prime targets for brainwashing. Adolescent society will do the rest. - James Dobson - Children at Risk

According to a recent study, young men with high self-esteem shared

some common childhood influences. There were three major

characteristics of their families. (1) The high-esteem group was

clearly more loved and appreciated at home than the low-esteem group.

(2) The high-esteem group came from homes where parents had been

significantly more strict in thier approach to discipline. By

contrast, the parents of the low-esteem group had created insecurity

and dependence through their permissiveness. Their children were more

likely to feel that the rules were not enforced because no one cared

enough to get involved. (3) The homes of the high-esteem group were

also characterized by democracy and openness. Once the boundaries were

established, there was freedom for individual persnalities to grow and

develop. Thus, the overall atmosphere was marked by acceptance and

emotional safety. July 1994, Dr. James Dobson's Focus of the Family Bulletin

A small girl desired to unite with the church. On account of her extreme youth there was decided opposition. She became insistent, and declared her intention to unite that day.

A friend whom she loved and who exercised great influence over her was appealed to to dissuade her if possible. The utmost was done to accomplish this. But one reason was given -- "You are too young."

When the last argument was made, she said with childlike simplicity, "I am not too young to die."

All opposition was withdrawn and she was received. A short time elapsed and the great Shepherd sent a band of angels to remove His lamb from the sterile soil of earth to the richer pasture lands above. Her dust awaits the resurrection in one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the "Blue Grass Region" of Kentucky.

On the cold marble marking her resting place are chiseled these words: "I am not too young to die"

How impressive, eloquent and true. What a lesson! May the multitude of children who gaze upon the silent words on the monument or read them in this brief narrative be influenced by them to do as she did, and be prepared to meet her in heaven. For, like Abel, she "being dead, yet speaketh."

________

William Moses Tidwell, "Effective Illustrations."

Passing through a country graveyard, I was struck by the inscription on a tombstone. The stone was by the side of the path where everyone could see it. It had been placed there in memory of a young man who died at the age of seventeen. It was, “Reader, stop and think; I am in eternity! and you are on the brink.”

In eternity! A young man, only seventeen years of age, in eternity! In a fixed, a changeless state, heaven or hell! And yet many have gone to hell before they were seventeen years of age.

________

William Moses Tidwell, “Pointed Illustrations.”

THE BEASTS of the forest gave a splendid entertainment at which the

Monkey stood up and danced. Having vastly delighted the assembly, he

sat down amidst universal applause. The Camel, envious of the praises

bestowed on the Monkey and desiring to divert to himself the favor of

the guests, proposed to stand up in his turn and dance for their

amusement. He moved about in so utterly ridiculous a manner that the

Beasts, in a fit of indignation, set upon him with clubs and drove him

out of the assembly.

It is absurd to ape our betters. Indeed, it is better to be yourself

than to pretend someone you are not.

The wonderful story of Rev. George Muller's benefaction (see Literary Digest, April 2) is well known in many lands -- his expenditure of over seven million dollars, received without any application by him for aid, except that made in prayer to his Creator. Less well known is the story of Muller's youth, and of the gross immoralities that preceded his conversion. Mr. Stead, in the Review of Reviews (London), tells of Muller's boyhood and of his reformation in the following words:

“If ever there was a youth who seemed predestined to end his days in a convict prison, George Muller was that lad. He seemed to be a born thief. He went astray, if not from the cradle, speaking lies and stealing money, at least from the days when he put off petticoats and wore breeches. He himself tells us, with characteristic frankness, in the very first page of his delightful autobiography, which is far more interesting even than Bunyan's 'Grace Abounding for the Chief of Sinners,' that he was an habitual thief before he was ten years old. And, mark you, this was none of the petty larceny of the orchard or the cupboard; it was deliberate, systematic stealing of money. He began by falsifying the little accounts he had to render to his father as to the way in which he spent his pocket-money; he went on to rob his father of the money he collected as taxes. 'Before I was ten years old, I repeatedly took of the government money which was entrusted to my father, and which he had to make up.’ He was detected at last, being caught with the stolen money under his foot in his shoe; but although he was soundly flogged, the only lesson he learned from his beating was not to be such a fool as to be found out next time.

“John Bunyan, poor soul, in the excessive tenderness of his Puritan conscience, accused himself of being the chief of sinners on account of his love for bell-ringing, the playing at bowls, and a perverse habit of profanity. Compared with the lad George Muller, John Bunyan in his worst estate was a perfect saint. On the day his mother died, George, being then fourteen years old, sat playing at cards till two o'clock on Sunday morning; and while she lay dead in the house, he spent Sunday in the tavern, and scandalized the little village by staggering half-drunk through the streets. He was then only a boy of fourteen. On the next day he began to receive the religious instruction preparatory for confirmation; three or four days before taking his first communion he was 'guilty of gross immorality.’ The very day before he was confirmed, when he went into the vestry to confess his sins to the clergyman, he cheated him out of eleven twelfths of the fee which his father had given him to pay the parson. After his confirmation he continued to lead a dissipated, dishonest life. When he was sixteen his father entrusted him with the collection of a considerable sum of money from persons who were in his debt. “My habits soon led me to spend a considerable part of this money, giving receipts for different sums, yet leading my father to suppose I had not received them.

“No one can be surprised after this on learning that the young scoundrel was landed in jail before he was seventeen years of age. He went off on a spree one fine day, spent six days in Madgeburg 'in much sin,' emptied his purse at Brunswick, where he had a sweetheart, had to sacrifice his best clothes to meet his hotel bill at one place, and then, when trying to talk the landlord at Wolfbuttel, he was arrested and clapped into jail as a rogue and vagabond. There he was kept under lock and key for three weeks, and as usual came out a good deal worse than he went in. After he came out his father flogged him harder than ever, but the lad was incorrigible. But while he lied and cheated and drank, and was 'habitually guilty of great sins,' he did begin seriously to apply himself to his books.

“For this young reprobate was designed by his father for the Christian ministry, chiefly, it would appear, in order that when he retired from the Excise he might find a comfortable retreat in his son's parsonage. Not even a thirteen weeks' illness produced any impression on him, beyond leading him to read Klopstock's works without weariness. When he recovered he went on his swindling way, narrowly escaping a much more serious imprisonment for a barefaced fraud. When he was twenty his debauchery again laid him up on a sick bed. When he recovered he forged his father's name, pawned his books, and set off on a tour in Switzerland with some fellow students as racketty as himself. How utterly lost he was at this time to even the rudimentary sentiments of honor and honesty may be judged from this confession: 'I was in this journey like Judas, for having the common purse I was a thief. I managed so that the journey cost me but two-thirds of what it cost my friends.'

“Such was George Muller when, in the year 1825, he was studying at the University of Halle, one among nine hundred young men, who as divinity students were all permitted to preach, although, as he remarked afterward, 'I have reason to believe not nine of them feared the Lord.’ If they, the other eight hundred and ninety, were like George Muller this judgment is probably not uncharitable. He says that although, according to custom, he took the Lord's Supper twice a year, he had no Bible and had not read for years. 'I had never heard the Gospel preached up to the beginning of November, 1825. I had never met with a person who told me that he meant by the help of God to live according to the holy scriptures.’ Nevertheless he was ill at ease, and when, in November, 1825, a comrade told him of a Saturday evening meeting at a friend's house where they read the Bible, sang, prayed, and read a printed sermon, 'it was to me as if I had found something after which I had been seeking all my life' -- which is peculiar, to say the least of it.

“Nevertheless, most things are peculiar in this odd world, and we must take things as they are. George Muller went to this Saturday evening prayer-meeting. At that time in Prussia 'no regular meetings for expounding the scriptures were allowed unless an ordained clergyman was present,' so they only read a chapter and a printed sermon. But that night's meeting changed the whole of George Muller's life. How, he frankly confesses he does not exactly know. He had never seen anyone on their knees before in prayer. The prayers made a deep impression on him. 'I was happy, though if I had been asked why I was happy I could not have clearly explained it.’ When he returned home he does not remember whether he so much as knelt in prayer. 'This I know, that I lay peaceful and happy in my bed.’ He seems to have had very little sorrow for sin. He certainly had none of John Bunyan's agony of remorse. He says: 'I obtained joy without any deep sorrow of heart and with scarcely any knowledge. That evening was the turning point of my life.'

Would you rather be a tumbleweed or an oak in your influence on

others? That's the question posed by Galen Anderson, who wrote, "A

man's life is like either the tumbleweed or the oak tree. Some people

just grow like the weed. They are of no value in their youth, and as

the years of life come they break loose and become a blotch on

society. They have no useful purpose in life -- just drifters. Their

loved ones will mourn their loss, but society will not miss them. Then

there are those whose lives are like the oak. They have turned from

the frivolity of this life and have invested in things that have

genuine worth. Their influence for good will live on in the lives of

others after they are gone. Their death is noticed because their

lives were spent bettering the nation and the community. They will be

missed.

I never had to give up playing with tops and marbles. I never had

to come to the place where I said, "Oh I am a big boy now, and big

boys shouldn't play marbles. So I will make a great effort to give up

playing marbles." It did not happen that way.

One day I was playing marbles with a group of small boys and some

older boys came by. They looked at me and said, "Hey, kid, can you

field a ball?" "Sure I can," I replied with more vigor than

accuracy. "Well," they said, "we are short a fielder. Get out there

and see what you can do." I went out and was ready to play my head

off to keep up with the older fellows. When it was my turn to bat I

was ready to swing till I burst, and to run till I dropped, and do all

that I could to keep up with the bigger company I was in. And when

the game was over and we older boys, as I then classed myself, walked

down the street past the little fellows who were playing marbles, I

did not go back to marbles. I had graduated. I did not give up

marbles, marbles gave me up. --Donald Grey Barnhouse

It is certainly true that the more "grown up" and mature one is

spiritually, the less trouble he, or she, will have in letting loose

of the "marbles" and "bobbles" of spiritual infancy. --D.V.M.

Dr. M. R. De Haan told the story of how his uncle taught him to

plow years ago. He said, "I watched him start preparing the ground.

First he would make a 'back furrow' in the middle of the field. If

this row was straight, all the others would fall in line. Finally the

time came for me to try my hand at the task. I had often seen him go

across the field as straight as an arrow. So I asked him the secret of

his success. He replied, 'Never let your gaze wander from a fixed

goal. Just look straight ahead.' Then, giving me the reins, he said,

'I'll stand at the other end and you keep your eye on me at all

times.'" That is also the secret of the victorious Christian life:

Keep looking to Jesus.

Follow the Lord no matter what it costs, Christian. Never waver,

but by His grace go on "plowing a straight furrow."

Youth Related

'Having lost their purity in the sixties and their identity in the seventies, teenagers lost their hope in the eighties. What will they lose in the nineties?'

Josh McDowell, Foreword to 'Back to the Heart of Youth' Ministry by Dewey Bertolini, Victor Books, 1986