It Depends Whose Hands It's In

This was part of a sermon by Kenneth Ulmer at Promise Keepers in Dallas, Texas. During the introduction to the speech he discusses putting your marriage or whatever is troubling you in God’s hands, and he closes with the following statement:

A basketball in my hands is worth about $19. A basketball in Michael Jordan’s hands is worth about $33 million. It depends whose hands it’s in. A baseball in my hands is worth about $6. A baseball in Mark McGuire’s hands is worth $19 million. It depends whose hands it’s in. A tennis racket is useless in my hands. A tennis racket in Pete Sampras’ hands is a Wimbledon Championship. It depends whose hands it’s in. A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal. A rod in Moses’ hands will part the mighty sea. It depends whose hands it’s in. A sling shot in my hands is a kid’s toy. A sling shot in David’s hand is a mighty weapon. It depends whose hands it’s in. Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches. Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in God’s hands will feed thousands. It depends whose hands it’s in. Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse. Nails in Jesus Christ’s hands will produce Salvation for the entire world. It depends whose hands it’s in.

As you see now, it depends whose hands it’s in. So put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God’s hands because it depends whose hands it’s in.

Jesus Saves

Jesus and Satan were having an ongoing argument about who managed to get the most out of his computer. This had been going on for days and God was tired of hearing all of the bickering. God said, “Cool it. I am going to set up a test that will run two hours and I will judge who does the better job.” So down Jesus and Satan sat at the keyboards and typed away. They moused away. They did spreadsheets. They wrote reports. They sent faxes. They sent e-mail. They sent out e-mail with attachments. They downloaded. They did some genealogy reports. They made cards. They did every known job. But just a few minutes before the two hours were up, a lightening bolt flashed across the sky. The thunder rolled and the rains came down hard. And of course the electricity went off. Satan was furious. He fumed and fussed and he ranted and raved all to no avail. The electricity stayed off. But, after a bit, the rains stopped and the electricity came back on. Satan screamed, “I lost it all when the power went off. What am I going to do? What happened to Jesus’ work?” Jesus just sat and smiled. Again Satan asked about the work that Jesus had done. As Jesus turned his computer back on, the screen glowed and when he pushed “print” it was all there. “How did he do it?” Satan asked. God smiled and said, “Jesus Saves.” ~ Author Unknown ~

Just Checking In

A minister passing through the church in the middle of the day, decided to pause by the altar and see who had come to pray, just then the back door opened, a man came down the aisle, the minister watched as he saw the man hadn’t shaved in a while. His shirt was kind of shabby and his coat was worn and frayed. The man knelt; he bowed his head, then rose and walked away. In the days that followed, each noontime in came this chap, each time he knelt just for a moment, a lunch pail in his lap. The old man said he worked down the road. Lunchtime was half an hour. Lunch time was his prayer time, for finding strength and power. “I stay only moments, see, because the factory is so far away; as I kneel here talking to the Lord, this is kind of what I say: “I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I'VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHER’S FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. DON’T KNOW MUCH OF TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY. SO JESUS, THIS IS JIM, CHECKING IN.” The minister feeling gladness told Jim that was fine. He told the man he was welcome to come and pray just anytime. Time to go, Jim smiled and said, “Thanks.” He hurried to the door. The minister knelt at the altar as he’d done many times before. His glad heart melted, warmed with love, and met with Jesus there. As the tears flowed in his heart, he repeated old Jim’s prayer.

“I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I’VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHER’S FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN. DON’T KNOW MUCH OF TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY. SO JESUS, THIS IS ME, CHECKING IN.” Past noon one day, the minister noticed that old Jim hadn’t come. As more days passed without Jim, he began to worry some. At the factory, he asked about him, learning he was ill. The hospital staff was worried, but he’d given them a thrill. The week that Jim was with them brought changes in the ward. His smiles - a joy contagious. Changed people were his reward. The head nurse couldn’t understand why Jim was so glad, when no flowers, calls or cards came, not a visitor he had. The minister stayed by his bed and he voiced the nurse’s concern: No friends came to show they cared. He had nowhere to turn. Looking surprised, old Jim spoke up and with a winsome smile said, “The nurse is wrong, she couldn’t know that in here all the while everyday at noon He’s here, a dear friend of mine, you see. He sits right down, takes my hand, leans over and says to me: “I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, JIM, HOW HAPPY I HAVE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND THIS FRIENDSHIP, AND I TOOK AWAY YOUR SIN. ALWAYS LOVE TO HEAR YOU PRAY, I THINK ABOUT YOU EACH DAY, AND SO JIM, THIS IS JESUS CHECKING IN.” ~ Author Unknown ~

Keep the Fork

The sound of Martha’s voice on the other end of the telephone always brought a smile to Brother Jim’s face. She was not only one of the oldest members of the congregation, but one of the most faithful. Aunt Martie, as all the children called her, just seemed to ooze faith, hope and love wherever she went. This time, however, there seemed to be an unusual tone to her words. “Preacher, could you stop by this afternoon? I need to talk with you.” “Of course I’ll be there around three. Is that okay?” As they sat facing each other in the quiet of her small living room, Jim learned the reason for what he sensed in her voice. Martha shared the news that her doctor had just discovered a previously undetected tumor. “He says I probably have six months to live.” Martha’s words were certainly serious, yet there was a definite calm about her. “I’m so sorry to…” but before Jim could finish, Martha interrupted. “Don’t be. The Lord has been good. I have lived a long life. I’m ready to go. You know that.” “I know,” Jim whispered with a reassuring nod. “But I do want to talk with you about my funeral. I have been thinking about it, and there are things that I know I want.” The two talked quietly for a long time. They talked about Martha’s favorite hymns, the passages of Scripture that had meant so much to her through the years, and the many memories they shared from the five years Jim had been with Central Church.

When it seemed that they had covered just about everything, Aunt Martie paused, looked up at Jim with a twinkle in her eye, and then added, “One more thing, preacher. When they bury me, I want my old Bible in one hand and a fork in the other.” A fork - Jim was sure he had heard everything, but this caught him by surprise. “Why do you want to be buried with a fork?” “I have been thinking about all of the church dinners and banquets that I attended through the years,” she explained. “I couldn’t begin to count them all. But one thing sticks in my mind. At those really nice get-togethers, when the meal was almost finished a server or maybe the hostess would come by to collect the dirty dishes. I can hear the words now. Sometimes, at the best ones, somebody would lean over my shoulder and whisper, ‘You can keep your fork.’ And do you know what that meant? Dessert was coming! It didn’t mean a cup of Jell-O or pudding or even a dish of ice cream. You don’t need a fork for that. It meant the good stuff, like chocolate cake or cherry pie! When they told me I could keep my fork, I knew the best was yet to come! That’s exactly what I want people to talk about at my funeral. Oh, they can talk about all the good times we had together. That would be nice. But, when they walk by my casket and look at my pretty blue dress, I want them to turn to one another and say, ‘Why the fork?’ That’s what I want you to say. I want you to tell them that I kept my fork because the best is yet to come.” ~ Roger William Thomas ~

Lessons from Noah's Ark

Always live a righteous life even if you're the only one; it will be noticed. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark. Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something REALLY big. Don't listen to critics - do what has to be done. Listen to what God tells you - your life depends on it. Put action to your faith. Noah could have believed God, yet still drowned if he hadn't built the ark. Finish what you start. Two heads are better than one. Speed isn't always an advantage. The cheetahs were on board, but so were the snails. Don't forget that we're all in the same boat. Remember that the ark was built by amateurs and the Titanic by professionals. Remember that the woodpeckers INSIDE can be a bigger threat than the storm outside. Don't miss the boat. Have patience! The ark wasn't built in a year. The flood wasn't finished in 40 days & 40 nights. If God is with you no matter how bleak it looks, there's always a rainbow at the end. When God has brought you safely through the storm, don't forget to praise and thank Him. ~ Author Unknown ~

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