The Story Of The Coal Miner Who Settled Accounts With God

This short story reminds us that it is important to come to God while we are able. Tomorrow may be eternally too late!

Many years ago, an American preacher held a revival-type meeting in a mining town in England. Clyde, a big muscled coal miner, was deeply burdened over his ways of drunkenness, gambling, and brawling. As the meeting closed, he walked up to the preacher. "Reverend, I know I am a sinner and am afraid of God's mighty hand of judgment. How can I find peace with God and peace with myself?"

The preacher opened before him the scriptures and showed him the way of salvation. He patiently explained that Christ came into the world, seeking to save that which is lost. He explained how Christ gave his life as a ransom for us. He explained that Christ's death on the cross paid for the sin of the world; and how all we need to do to be saved is to come to him, believing in Christ's finished work on the cross.

Clyde was so burdened with his sins that he could not see the light. As the hours passed, the preacher urged him to turn from self and, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

Clyde did not find peace.  When the clock struck eleven, the preacher suggested that Clyde go home and return the following evening and then make peace with God.

Clyde replied, "No, I will not leave! It must be settled tonight or never!"

They stayed together, talking and praying as the hours passed. As the clock struck three, the light of the glorious gospel was shown upon the miner. He understood and believed the glorious fact that the work of Christ on the cross took away his sin and brought him peace and joy. Standing, Clyde shouted, "It's all settled now! The Lord Jesus Christ is mine!" With tears in his eyes, he thanked the minister who had been so patient with him.

A few hours later, Clyde went to his work in the mine, happy and rejoicing because he was a saved man. The day's work had barely begun when the rumble of crashing stone was heard.  The roof of the mine had caved in. Many men were buried beneath it.

The alarm blew, and hundreds of townsfolk ceased their work and joined the rescue efforts to save the trapped miners.  They dug out the earth, stone, and debris throughout the day to rescue the buried men.  After a fearful time, they reached Clyde; He was barely alive, and in the torchlight, it was clear he would soon be gone. Clyde's lips moved, and the men leaned close to hear his last words as life ebbed from him.

"Thank God, it was settled last night."

 (c) Adron Dozat 1/22/16

The Story of When Mud Made The Gospel Clear

The Story of When Mud Made The Gospel Clear is a short account of how a friend answered the objection to coming to God.

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Young Louis was considering becoming a Christian, but as he weighed the cost of following Christ he feared that he would have to give up the sinful habits and pleasures he had enjoyed for a lifetime.

"Charlie," he said to his friend. "There are so many things that I enjoy which I know are bad. I know that I will have to turn away from them if I become a Christian. I like to party. I like to gamble. I like to waste my time at the mall and go to the movies. I like to go out and have a good time!"

Charlie said, "But think about it. there are already many things that you can't do now; like you can't eat mud."

"Sure, well no. I could if I wanted to," said Louis. "But I don't want to eat mud. I know it is bad for me."

"That's just it." Said Charlie, "When you become a real Christian, you will love the Lord with all your heart, you will not like sin. You will no longer want the sinful things of the world."

 (c) Adron Dozat

How He Explained That God's Forgiveness is Paid For

Sometimes we make the simplicity of the Gospel too complicated. Here is a story of how one man simply explained God's forgiveness to his old boss.

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Blake had been concerned for his old boss who had retired.  Mr. Crawford was burdened with the guilt of many wrongdoings and was anxious for God's forgiveness; so Blake paid Mr. Crawford a visit and the conversation quickly turned to the subject of the fear of facing God after living a life of regrets.

"Look," Blake said, "Suppose I go to a shop and buy something for you.  I pay for it and tell you to go to the store pick up desk to get it.  Are you going to take money with you to pay for it?"

"No," said the old man, "You already paid for it."

"Well, do you need to make any promise to pay for it later on?"

"No, it would be mine for free."

Then Blake said, "It is the same way with forgiveness of sins. The Lord Jesus already paid the full price for it.  He took all the pain and punishment that sin deserved.  He paid the whole thing. So all you have to do is take the forgiveness he already paid for."

"Oh," said the old man with tears in his eyes. "I see it now.  This is forgiveness that cost nothing from me.  Christ has bought it and he gives it to me!"
Thank you for visiting my blog.  I hope my stories are an encouragement and helpful.  To find more search the list of favorites in the left sidebar.  Please come back again.

(c)Adron Dozat 1/3/16

Awaiting The Final Word. A Story To Help Illustrate The Resurrection

This is a story that illustrates the despair of the tomb and the joy of the good news of the resurrection.  It is taken from the pages of history. Illustrations like this capture the imagination and help bring the point home to the hearers.

AWAITING THE FINAL WORD

A STORY TO HELP ILLUSTRATE THE RESURRECTION

Many years ago the great general Wellington faced Napoleon and his army.  It would be a battle to end the series of wars and bring peace to Europe.

This was before the telegraph, telephone, internet, or nightly news.  The outcome of the battle of Waterloo would take days to reach the capitals of Europe.  London, in particular, was anxious to learn the fate of Europe. The news was brought by sailing vessel to the south coast of England, and then flags would be raised to spell out the message.  The semaphore towers all across the land relayed the news by raising flags.

On top of Westminster Cathedral, the tallest building in London, lookouts watched the distant flag towers spell out the messages.  The first word was "Wellington."  They waited for the next word. "Defeated."

On the horizon, a bank of fog rolled in from the coast covering the last part of the message.  The city was in turmoil and fear.  It was clear that the message was that Wellington was defeated, that Napoleon was unstoppable and England would fall.

After a time the fog lifted and the entire message was visible to all, "Wellington defeated the enemy." The city and all of the land was filled with joyful celebration.

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When Jesus was put in the tomb all his disciples and those who loved him were in despair and sorrow.  It appeared that the enemy had defeated their king that sin and death had conquered, but on the morning of the third day, the darkness was lifted.  The good news that Jesus had risen from the grave spread and filled his disciples with joy and gladness. The message was that Jesus defeated sin and death.

 (c)Adron Dozat 5/16/15

The Zookeeper And The Not So Dead Tiger, An Illustration of Grace

This is a retelling of a true story as related in a newspaper about thirty years ago.  It is a great example of grace and mercy.  I tell it to the kids in my Church Bible Class as part of a lesson on Salvation.

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THE ZOOKEEPER AND THE NOT SO DEAD TIGER

In the city was a famous zoo.  One of the greatest attractions was the Big Cats House where lions, tigers, panthers, and other large "cats" were kept.  Around the building were the big cat's exhibits; these were large enclosures that had a deep wide channel, to separate the animals from the people who wanted to see them.  The channel was too deep for the cats to climb and too wide for them to jump over.  People could enjoy seeing the animals without cage bars and the animals had a lot of room to roam and be happy.

One day a new tiger named Princess Sheba was brought to the zoo.  Everybody hoped the new tiger would get along with the one they already had, named Kahn.  The people watched as the two met for the first time, but were horrified when the two tigers began to fight.  No one ever saw tigers fight before and it was a dreadful thing to see.  The battle was fierce!  The snarling was louder than anyone imagined.  The Tigers thrashed and tumbled over each other in a blur.  They ripped at each other with huge bloody claws and tore into each other with terrible fangs.  Even though it was a horrible fight it ended soon and Kahn was dead. His body fell into the channel.

Randy Wilson was the zookeeper whose job was to take care of the lions and tigers.  His heart broke that the beautiful rare tiger was dead.

After Princess Sheba was chased back into her den Randy went down into the channel enclosure with ropes and tackle to lift out the dead tiger.  It would take a crane since this adult tiger weighed about six hundred pounds.  Randy set the ropes and tackle down next to the tiger that he loved so much.  In sadness, he leaned over and put his hand on Kahn's bloody shoulder.

The moment he touched the tiger it growled and got up on its feet!  Kahn's head was low and threatening, he curled back his lips and showed huge teeth stained with blood.

Randy was facing a wild tiger, one that was injured and angry.  It is said that there is no creature as dangerous as one that is injured.  Randy was sure the tiger would spring on him and kill him.  They were in the channel and there was no place to run or hide.  A single swipe of the tiger's claws would rip him open.

Kahn turned.  Instead of attacking Randy the tiger slowly walked back to his den and lay down.

Kahn gave grace to the Zookeeper.

(c) Adron 5/2/15

The Gospel Of The Old Couple Who Took The Landlord At His Word

This story is a great illustration of faith, it is told in the contrast of doubt, I have used it several times to illustrate faith to my church kids.

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THE GOSPEL OF THE OLD COUPLE WHO WHO TOOK THE LANDLORD AT HIS WORD

Sean Mac Quaid was a rich landlord who had a huge estate.  It could truly be said that as he looked out from his manor house that he was Lord of all he saw.  Across the county meadows to the distant rolling hills were farms that he owned and villages that owed him their living and paid him rent.

Sean became a believer in Jesus Christ and was devoted to preaching the Gospel in his own personal way. He would speak of the salvation he found in Christ to anyone who he met. He often found creative and practical ways to illustrate the gospel.

One day he placed an advert in the local paper saying that on a particular day he would be in his office from ten o'clock in the morning until the stroke of noon and that during those two hours he would pay off all the debts of anyone who brought him their mortgages and bills of debt.

The entire county was abuzz over the notice, and it was talked about in the pubs, the markets, and on every street. Some declared it was a joke, and others put forth that it was some trick, and that Mr. Mac Quaid was going to turn the misfortune of others to his advantage. A few in the town pub decided that he had gone mad and this offer would come to nothing.

On the appointed day many people took the lane to the landlord's town office carrying their bills of debt and unpaid mortgages in their hands.  They gathered on the cobbled drive in front of the big double doors.  Exactly at ten Mr. Mac Quaid and his assistant arrived chauffeured in the black sedan. They said not a word of greeting to any as they mounted the steps and entered the office.

The crowd began to discuss this strange behavior and what it might mean.  Doubts filled the crowd.  Is the offer valid?  Did Mr. Mac Quaid truly mean what the article said?  No one had the courage to enter the door and find out for fear that they may be made a fool of or find themselves in some bad way with the rich landlord.

"Mike, why don't you go in and have your daughter's doctor's bills paid."

"No. You go in first you have a bigger bill than I do, and if he is good on his word you come and tell us so we will know to go in too."

"No, let someone with more debt be first."

"I don't want to be first.  What if it is some mischief? I can't afford more bad luck."

The time passed as they discussed and argued among themselves.

It was nearly twelve o'clock when an aged couple who lived on the edge of the county slowly hobbled up the lane.  The old man had in his shaking hand a wad of bills and debts. "Is it true? Is Mr. Mac Quaid really paying off the debts of any who come to him?"

"Well, he hasn't paid off any yet."  A grouchy voice from the crowd called.

"We all are sure it is a cruel jest at our expense."  A woman said.

The old couple sniffed and whipped tears.  "Oh, it is all a mistake then.  We hoped he was a good man and that his word was good.  We had hoped to die free of debt."  With slumped shoulders, they turned sadly away from the crowd and the office of the landlord.

"Wait! Don't leave."  Someone called after them.  "No one has tried him yet.  Suppose you go on in and try him.   If he pays off your bills then come out and tell the rest of us so we will know to go in too."

The old couple decided to give it a try. Fearfully they approached the office and climbed the steps. They were barely able to open the massive door. Inside seemed dark after the noonday sun.

"Welcome. Please come on in."  The assistant greeted them warmly.  "Have a seat here at my desk and show me your bills."

With frail hands, he passed the papers across the desk where the landlord was sitting.  "Is this all?" Mr. Mac Quaid asked, "Nothing overlooked or forgotten?"

"Yes sir, that is everything," she whispered.

Without further comment, the assistant opened the drawer of the desk and pulled out the big checkbook.  A moment later the check was written for the entire amount and signed by Mr. Mac Quaid.

The old couple began to get up but the assistant said, "I'm sorry you must remain here until twelve noon."

"But sir, we have to go out and tell the others what a kind thing you have done; so they will know to come in too."

Sean Mac Quaid leaned forward on his desk and folded his hands.  "No, you are not to tell them.  You took me at my word, now your debts are paid.  If the others had believed me, and taken me at my word then their debts would be paid too."

The crowd outside watched and waited, wondering at the delay.  Their eyes were fixed on the closed doors.  The minutes passed slowly by yet they all remained outside.

The clock in the town church began to chime twelve as the door opened.  The old man and his wife came out.  "What happened? Did the landlord keep his word?" They asked.

"Bless him." They said with tears of joy, "Here is the check, our debts are all paid off."

"Why didn't you come out and tell us?"

"He said that you had to come as we did and take him at his word."

As the clock struck the twelfth stroke the door opened.  The landlord came down the steps to his car.  The desperate people crowded around him.  They held out their bills for him to see.  "Wait! Don't go. Won't you pay our debts just like you did for the old couple?"

The landlord said, "It is too late now.  I gave you the opportunity.  I gave the invitation, but you did not believe me.   If you had believed me I would have paid off every debt for you."

Then Mr. Mac Quaid explained to the crowd how God has an offer of payment for all debts of sins for those who will come to him, but that we must take God at His word and come.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16.

(c) Adron 2/3/15