Conscience

In Focus on the Family, Rolf Zettersten writes:

A good friend in North Carolina bought a new car with a voice-warning system…At first Edwin was amused to hear the soft female voice gently reminding him that his seat belt wasn’t fastened…Edwin affectionately called this voice the “little woman.”

He soon discovered his little woman was programmed to warn him about his gasoline. “Your fuel level is low,” she said one time in her sweet voice. Edwin nodded his head and thanked her. He figured he still had enough to go another fifty miles, so he kept on driving. But a few minutes later, her voice interrupted again with the same warning. And so it went over and over. Although he knew it was the same recording, Edwin thought her voice sounded harsher each time.

Finally, he stopped his car and crawled under the dashboard. After a quick search, he found the appropriate wires and gave them a good yank. So much for the little woman.

He was still smiling to himself a few miles later when his car began sputtering and coughing. He ran out of gas! Somewhere inside the dashboard, Edwin was sure he could hear the woman laughing.
People like Edwin learn before long that the little voice inside, although ignored or even disconnected, often tells us exactly what they need to know.

From Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching from Leadership Journal - Craig Brian Larson. Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 2000. Page 39.

Forgiveness

There are two ways of covering our sins: man’s way and God’s way. If you seek to hide them, they will have a resurrection sometime; but if you let the Lord cover them, neither the Devil nor man will ever be able to find them again.

From The Speaker’s Quote Book – Roy B. Zuck. 1997 Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI. Page 155.

Twelve Guilty Consciences

Arthur Conan Doyle found great humor in a practical joke he played on twelve famous friends. Doyle sent every one of these virtuous and highly respected men the same telegram: “Fly at once; all is discovered.” Within twenty-four hours, the dozen men of reputation had taken a trip out of the country. (With a creative mind like that it is no wonder Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created Sherlock Holmes.) No matter how noble our reputation is, we all have areas of shame and deeds we hope no one discovers. The only lasting solution to a guilty conscience is the forgiveness of God himself. (See Romans 8:1.)

* This Way to Happiness, Clyde Narramore, p. 13

McHenry’s Quips, Quotes and Other Notes, HeavenWord Stories for Teachers and Preachers, CD-ROM, HeavenWord, Inc., Raleigh NC, 1999.

A Soft Pillow

Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden said, “There is no pillow as soft as a clear conscience.”

McHenry’s Quips, Quotes and Other Notes, HeavenWord Stories for Teachers and Preachers, CD-ROM, HeavenWord, Inc., Raleigh NC, 1999.

Forgiveness Not for Sale

One day a poor girl ventured into the garden of the Queen’s palace, and approached the gardener, telling him that her mother was lying very ill, and that she longed for a flower, such as she had seen in the Queen’s gardens. It was winter time, and the flowers were rare at that season. The child had saved a few pennies and wished to buy a rose for her sick mother. The gardener had no authority to give away the Queen’s flowers, and he said when she offered to pay, “The Queen’s has no flowers for sale,” and would have sent the poor child away. But the Queen herself just happened to be in the greenhouse, and unobserved either by the gardener or his little customer, had overheard the conversation. As the child was turning away sorrowful and disappointed, the Queen stepped from behind her flowery screen and addressed the child, saying: “The gardener was quite right, my child, he has no authority to give you the flowers you want, nor does the Queen cultivate flowers for sale; but the Queen has flowers to give away”; and, suiting the action to the word, she lifted from the basket into which she had been snipping the flowers a handful of rare roses and gave them to the child, saying: “Take these to your mother with my love, and tell her that the Queen sent them. I am the Queen.” So let me say to you, God has no forgiveness for sale; you cannot buy it with your poor penance of tears, prayers, or repentance; God has forgiveness to give, and you may take it by faith, but not barter for it with anything you can do.

From Book Four - Bible Illustrations, Heartwarming Bible Illustrations – Richard A. Steele, Jr. and Evelyn Stoner . AMG Publishers, Chattanooga, TN, 1998, Pages 148-149.