Topic(s): Children, Family, Youth

When the legendary Bear Bryant coached the University of Alabama’s football team, he had a strict rule against drinking.

He also had a star quarterback named Joe Namath. There came a time when Namath admitted that he and some friends had been out drinking. Everyone, including the fans and the alumni, believed Namath was indispensable to the team. There were two games left in the season, against Miami and Mississippi. There was no question that Bryant knew their chances of winning either game without Namath was slim.

However, Bryant told Namath that he had broken the rules and was out for the season, and maybe forever. Bryant received over six thousand letters of protest, but he held firm. Alabama managed to win both games by narrow margins. Namath returned the next year and led Alabama to the National Championship. Years later, he agreed that Bear Bryant was absolutely right to suspend him and to make the suspension stick. You can be assured the other Alabama players followed the rules not only for that season, but for future seasons as well. — Don Martin

It is difficult to discipline our children when they break the rules we have set for them, but what will be the results if we fail to do so?

“Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying” —Proverbs 19:18

Body Worship

Topic(s): Nature of Man, Priorities

Some people worship their bodies. People spend hours at the gym, sculpting their bodies, yet completely neglecting their spiritual lives. . . . Some think nothing of getting up at the crack of dawn and heading to the gym for that hour-and-a-half workout. But they balk at the idea of spending ten minutes reading the Word of God. They think nothing of sweating till their muscles burn, yet they recoil from spending time in prayer. They find time to work out, rain or shine, but if it rains on Sunday, that pouring rain is a really great excuse to skip services. Some people think nothing of working out for hours on a stair-stepper or a treadmill; yet they back down at the thought of building their “spiritual muscles” through the disciplines of prayer and Bible study. They easily accept the pain that comes from completing a 10K run, yet can’t see the value of applying themselves to run the race of life.

—Greg Laurie

“For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things . . . —1 Timothy 4:8

The Pieta

The Story of What Can Be Done With A Rejected Stone

Topic(s): Jesus

Pieta is an Italian word that means “pity". In 1498, when he was still in his early twenties, and relatively unknown to the world as an artist, Michelangelo was commissioned to sculpt the Pieta, a life-size sculpture of Mary holding the body of her son Jesus after it was taken down from the cross. This sculpture was to be unveiled in St. Peter’s Basilica for the Jubilee of 1500.

In less than two years, Michelangelo carved from a single slab of marble, one of the most magnificent sculptures ever created. Michelangelo’s version of the Pieta was far different than ones previously created by other artists. Instead of an older, broken-hearted Mary, he decided to create a youthful, serene and celestial Mary.
When the sculpture was unveiled, Michelangelo stood by proudly and watched as people admired the sculpture. However, his pride quickly turned to anger when he overheard people attributing the work to other artists of his time. In his anger, Michelangelo added one last thing to the sculpture. Going down the sash on Mary, Michelangelo carved his name. The artist later regretted his actions, and vowed to never sign another one of his works again.

The legend behind the stone is as moving as the sculpture itself. Early in his career, Michelangelo was too poor to buy the marble needed for his sculpting. As a result, he was forced to pick his way through the rejected or ruined stones of other sculptors. The Pieta was fashioned from such a stone. Dragging the rejected stone home, Michelangelo freed the figures of Mary and Jesus from the stone. In so doing, he fashioned a masterpiece from a reject.

I think that it is most interesting that Christ Himself was a rejected stone. Peter wrote, “To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious” (1 Peter 2:4). Please note that God selected the stone that men rejected and whose visage they marred (cf. Isaiah 52:13-14; 53:3; John 1:11; Matthew 3:17; 17:5). The stone that was worthless to the world was precious to the Father. In fact, God so valued the stone that He made it “the chief cornerstone” (1 Peter 2:6) or the “head of the corner” (1 Peter 2:7). Today, men everywhere stand in awe of this flawless stone of God (Hebrews 4:15).

In the context, Peter, whose name means stone, and who was fashioned into a masterpiece by the master artist Jesus Christ, spoke of Christians as “lively stones” that are “built up a spiritual house” (1 Peter 2:5). Surely, we should give thanks unto God who counted us precious, even though we were rejected and marred by Satan and sin (Romans 3:23), to build up His spiritual house, the church. If we will let Him, He will fashion your life into something at which the world will marvel (Acts 4:13; Matthew 5:16).
 —Excerpt taken from The Compass, Crossville, Tennessee, April 2, 2006