Once upon a time there was a family of wayward church members. One day while Jim, John, and Sam were in the woods a large rattlesnake bit Sam and he became violently ill. The doctor was summoned and did what he could, but said they would need divine help, too, if Sam were to recover. So the preacher and the elders of the church were sent for, and they came rushing to Sam's bedside.
The preacher was asked
to pray and did so as follows"
"O wise and righteous Father, we thank Thee that in Thy wisdom Thou
has sent this rattlesnake to bite Sam, in order to bring him to his senses.
He has not been in the church house for years, and it is doubtful that he has
in all these years, until now, felt the need of prayer. It seems, therefore,
that what our combined efforts could not do, this rattlesnake has done. We trust,
O Father, that Thou wilt send another to bite John and Jim, and a big one to
bite their father, for we conclude the only thing that will help this family
is rattlesnakes. So send us, we pray Thee, three bigger and better rattlesnakes."
Note: The humorous tale above makes a powerful point -- many do not turn
to God until calamity strikes. During good times many revel in the prosperity,
feeling a false sense of security. Remember the parable of the rich fool (Luke
12:16-21) in which the rich man boasted of his material wealth while ignoring
his spiritual poverty. In Luke 15:11ff, we have the parable of the lost son.
Note that it wasn't until he hit rock bottom that he "came to himself"
(v.17) and returned to his father.
Have you allowed yourself to become confident in your apparent "good life"
without God? Don't wait for the brethren to start praying for a calamity to
fall upon you to set you straight.
By Carey Scott based upon
an article by Unknown
Return to the General Articles page
Home / Bible studies / Bible Survey / Special Studies / General Articles / Non-Bible Articles / Sermons / Sermon Outlines / Links / Questions and Answers / What Saith The Scriptures /Daily Devotional / Correspondence Courses / What is the Church of Christ / Book: Christian Growth / Website Policy / E-mail / About Me /