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.238.Winning in the Game of MarriageI've learned that when you have an argument with your spouse, the first one who says, “I'm sorry I hurt your feelings; please forgive me,” is the winner.239.Saving Our MarriageAllyson and I had been married for 4 years and had 2 boys when our marriage began to fall apart.Soon we reached the point where divorce looked the only solution.One April evening as we met in a restaurant to discuss child custody and property settlements, our tempers flared.Allyson wanted the boys to live with her, I wanted them with me.Suddenly, amid the arguing, we both fell silent, I heard myself say, "If we want this marriage to work we will have to give it, and ourselves, to God."The words shocked me, and Allyson as well.We were trying to negotiate a divorce, not save a marriage.Yet right then and there we did just that—we gave our marriage to God.Over the next months, as wounds healed, I wondered how those words had come to me.Then one morning on my job as a plumber, a customer asked, "Is your wife named Allyson?" When I nodded, she told me how a friend of mine had come to her church to request prayers for our troubled marriage.She and the other members had prayed for two hours one evening."What evening was that?" I asked.She thought a moment.Then she answered with conviction, "It was the first Friday night in April." At the very moment that Allyson and I were at the restaurant, people we didn't even know were on their knees at a prayer meeting called just for us.240.Master DesignerIf the earth was as small as the moon, its gravitation couldn't sustain our needs.On the other hand, if it were as large as Jupiter, its extreme gravitation would make human movement almost impossible.If we were as close to the sun as Venus, the heat would be unbearable; if we were as far away as Mars, every region would experience snow and ice nightly.If the oceans were half their size, we'd get only 25% of our present rainfall.If they were one-eighth larger, annual precipitation would increase 400% turning the earth into a vast, uninhabitable swamp.Water solidifies at 32 degrees Fahrenheit.But if the oceans were subject to that! The amount of thawing in the polar regions wouldn't balance out and we'd all end up encased in ice.To prevent this catastrophe, God put salt in the sea to alter its freezing point!241.The Believer's InheritanceAn old prospector had eked out a meagre inheritance living from seemingly, an unproductive silver mine.Late in life he decided to sink a well close to his shack, rather than make the long walk to the stream for fresh water.As he was sinking the well, he struck a huge vein of silver.He had lived for years in poverty when all the time he was a few metres away from fabulous wealth.No Christian should live in poverty when our inheritance in Christ is as near as one step of faith.242.The Great DivideLoveland Pass is found in the majestic Rocky Mountains.This great Continental Divide at 12,000 feet has snow piled high and deep.As the snow melts, some eventually finds its way to the Pacific Ocean; some goes to the Atlantic Ocean via the Gulf of Mexico.At the same location, when it rains, some of the water will go to one ocean while some to the other, continents apart.How similar to us; we all share common origins but life brings different eternal destinies.It is not fate nor mere chance, but our choice to believe and receive Christ.Which road will you choose?243.The Only SaviourA man fell into a deep pit from which he was unable to climb out without assistance.A Confucian priest passed by, looking down into the pit he said, “What a fool you were to fall in there!” A Buddhist monk walked by, “I am sorry for you, if you can climb up half way, I may be able to help you.” A Christian Scientist passed that way, “The pit is not real, it is only exists in the negative thoughts of your mind.” A Jehovah's Witness came along, “You need to obey the Bible, visit more homes and sell more Watch Towers.” Two young Mormon missionaries rode up, “If you accept that Joseph Smith is a prophet, you will feel much better about life.” But none of the passers-by could lift the man from the pit.The Jesus Christ came to where the man was, He went down to the man and with nail scarred hands lifted him up and placed his feet on solid ground.Religion or philosophy or education does not provide salvation.Only the living, compassionate Christ provides the remedy for man's need.244
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