Conference yukon::christian_v7

         Great illustration Don,
         
         as we start to re-focus our eyes on God, who knows *intimately* 
         every facet of our lives - 
         
                             the good and the difficult
         
         the purer and fresher air that we start breathing at this "higher" 
         altitude - to keep the analogy - starts to put everything into its 
         proper perspective ie. cupped in His hand.
         
         Thanks Don for the reminder
         
         Paul

    Thanks Don!
    
    I hope others contribute in here as I *love* these kinds of things as
    well.
    
    Nancy

ooo ooo ooo!  A reason to repost some of the earlier illustrations... tomorrow!

    
    This is something that was shown me earlier this summer.
    
    While mowing the lawn and doing my yard work, I usually spend it in prayer,
    and thinking about the Word.  I had just finished trimming the branches
    on the trees, and had started mowing the lawn.  We have two lilac trees
    in our back yard, and they had always had branches that hung down so low 
    that I had to bend down and in some spots curve around it then push the
    mower up under as I worked around it.
        After trimming them I was able to walk straight paths, and no
    longer had to go through this tedious ritual.
    
         As I was pushing the lawn mower by this tree, I heard in my heart.
    "See how by trimming the branches it makes your path straight?" "In the
    same way, by getting rid of the distractions in your life it makes your 
    path straight to the Lord."  
    
    
         I hope this will bless you as it has me, 
    
                                               In His Love,
    
                                                           Gil
                                                              

	Gil,

	A blessing indeed!

	Karen

�      <<< Note 272.4 by TOKNOW::METCALFE "Eschew Obfuscatory Monikers" >>>
� ooo ooo ooo!  A reason to repost some of the earlier illustrations... tomorrow!
Pointers will do, to conserve space...

						thanks!
								Andrew

    Try this one for JUSTIFICATION...
    
    It had always bothered me to say that Justification meant "Just as if
    I'd never sinned,"  because the further I go in the Christian life the
    more aware I become of how short I fall.
    
    In the beginning I am aware of sinS.  But later, I become aware of
    BEING A SINNER.  So...
    
    Courtroom scene:
    
    The prisoner, me, is led before God, the judge.
    
    	"John Schell, you are accused of BEING A SINNER in the first
    degree.  How do you plead?"
    
    Experience now has taught me there is only one way I can plead:
    
    	"Guilty, your honor."
    
    	"John Schell, you have been accused of BEING A SINNER.
    	You have been found guilty.
    	You are sentenced to death by crucifixion."
    	
    I shudder...but the judge glances up and sees Jesus Christ, and he
    continues...
    
    	"You have been crucified.  You are dead.  Case dismissed."
    
    There it is.  I am FREE!  I have been crucified.  I am dead.  IN
    CHRIST, and like Christ, "...he that is dead is freed from
    sin.  Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live
    with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more;
    death hath no more dominion over him [or me].  For in that he died, he
    died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise
    reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto
    God through Jesus Christ our Lord." - Rom 6.7-11
    
    Hey, the judgment has already occurred.
    
    Oh, did I make it?
    
    No, you were crucified.
    
    Then how can anything in the world touch me, seeing I am alread dead?
    
    
    John	

>            <<< Note 272.7 by ICTHUS::YUILLE "Thou God seest me" >>>
>    Pointers will do, to conserve space...
    
    Show of hands: how many will go into an archived conference?
    How many would next unseen if disinterested?
    How many would prefer them reposted?
    It's only 290 lines for all of them. 
    I figure I saved that by being too busy to note today!  :-)
    Some of these are too precious to relegate to a pointer.
    Tally ho!
    
    DECwindows warning: next note is 290 line long.
    
    Mark  :-)

                          -< About Loving God... >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A father and his little girl were very loving to each other.  One day
He bought her a plastic beaded necklace.  It was only costume jewelry
but she LOVED it.

Some time passed and the father sat down by the fireplace one evening.
Calling his daughter to his lap he asked, "do you love me?"

She responded, "you know I do!"

He replied, "will you give me your necklace?"

"Oh, you wouldn't want my necklace."  And with that he left it alone.

The next evening the same conversation began.

"Do you love me?"

"Yes, daddy.  You know I love you."

"Will you give me your necklace?"

"But daddy, what do you want with it?  I love it.  Ask me for anything, but
not for the necklace that you gave to me."

So he left it alone.

It happened the next night as well and on for quite a few nights thereafter.
The daughter began to feel afraid and hurt that her father would ask for
something so dear to her to prove her love for him.  She DID love him, but
could he love her asking for the most precious thing in the world to her?

The next evening, he called his daughter to his knew and asked, "Do you love 
me?"

The little girl burst into tears and gave him her necklace, all the while
sobbing into his breast.  To her absolute horror, he took the necklace and 
threw it into the fireplace where they quickly began to melt and catch fire.

But just as quickly he reached into his pocket and pulled out a beautiful
string of pearls and fastened it around the child's neck.  It was the most 
beautiful necklace she had ever seen!
                       
The father kissed her and said, "I love you, too.  And now I know that you
love me more than the gifts I give you because you gave me what was 
dearest to your heart.  Now I can give you these pearls in exchange
for your costume jewelry as a token of my love for you, my daughter.
You have held nothing back from me and I will hold nothing back from 
you."
================================================================================
                          -< Hmm...  works both ways >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let us not be so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good.

      and

Let us not be so earthly minded that we are of no heavenly good.
================================================================================
Satan claimed that he was low on cash flow and so would auction some of his
weapons.  He published the auction viewing and many people showed up.

Out for display were fierce weapons like hatred, and deceit.  And many
of the weapons displayed suggested starting bids.  Most well within reach
of the auction attendants.

However, one tool seemed very worn and ordinary and yet it had three
or four times the suggested price.

Some people inquired why such an ordinary looking, well worn tool would 
fetch such a high price.  Satan smirked and replied "this is one of my
best and most effective tools because it looks so ordinary.  It's
called discouragement."
================================================================================
  -< Grant me the wisdom of a mule, Dear Lord, when I am being dumped on... >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
An old mule was put out to pasture because it served its master, the farmer
well and the farmer wanted it to live out its days as comfortably as possible.

One day the mule fell into a deep pit that the farmer had dug for
a well.  The well had been unsuccessful until then and he was going to
fill in the hole and try his luck another place.

When he discovered his mule had fallen in, and there was no way to get
it out, he reluctantly and sadly decided to bury the poor old thing.
He couldn't bear to look at it but proceeded nonetheless to shovel
dirt over his shoulder into the hole.

The dirt hit the poor old mule on the back with a thud.  But the mule
shook the dirt off his back and trampled it under his hooves.  As time
passed, more and more dirt was being thrown onto the back of the mule,
and yet the mule would continue to shake the dirt off his back and
trample it under his hooves.  Before the farmer knew it, the mule was
able to jump out of the pit because of all the dirt that had been trampled
under hoof.
================================================================================
                           -< On God's perspective? >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Little Jimmy was laying about on a hillock in the middle of a
          meadow on a warm spring day. Puffy white clouds rolled by and he
          pondered their shape. Soon, he began to think about God.

          "God? Are you really there?" Jimmy said out loud.

          To his astonishment a voice came from the clouds. "Yes, Jimmy?
          What can I do for you?"

          Seizing the opportunity, Jimmy asked, "God? What is a million
          years like to you?"

          Knowing that Jimmy could not understand the concept of infin-
          ity, God responded in a manner to which Jimmy could relate. "A
          million years to me, Jimmy, is like a minute."

          "Oh," said Jimmy. "What's a million dollars like to you?"

          "A million dollars to me, Jimmy, is like a penny."

          "Phew!" remarked Jimmy. "Can I have one of your pennies?"

          God replied, "Sure thing, Jimmy! Just a minute." 
================================================================================
             A little four-year-old girl became frightened late one
             night during a thunderstorm. After one particularly loud
             clap of thunder, she jumped up from her bed, ran down the
             hall, and burst into her parents' room. Jumping right in
             the middle of the bed, she sought out her parents' arms
             for comfort and assurance. "Don't worry honey," her father
             said, trying to calm her fears. "The Lord will protect
             you." The little girl snuggled closer to her father and
             said, "I know, Daddy, but right now I need someone with
             skin on!"
================================================================================
                                  -< Hmmm... >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  A troubled woman (who had rejected the invitations of church people and 
  the Holy Spirit) finally did come to church -- to complain.

  In the Pastor's study she wailed, "Where was God when I needed Him?"  The
  Pastor, with more compassion than may be evident at first glance responded,
  "Perhaps He was out taking care of His regular customers."
================================================================================
                               -< Opportunities >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A loaf of bread fell from a baker's truck as it rounded the corner early one
morning.  When it hit the pavement, a small piece broke off the loaf and lay
beside it.  Three sparrows instantly swooped down for the crumb; when the
contest ended, two birds flew off without a bite, while one carried of a meager
breakfast.  The loaf remained -- untouched, unnoticed.  With just a little
wider range of vision, just a little more faith, each bird would have been
satisfied.

How often have our eyes been blurred to colossal opportunities while we
fight over crumbs?
================================================================================
             A free-lance reporter from the New York Times was in-
             terviewing Marilyn Munroe years ago. She was aware of
             Marilyn's past and the fact that during her early years
             Marilyn had been shuffled from one foster home to another.
             The reporter asked Marilyn, "Did you ever feel loved by
             any of the foster families with whom you lived?"

             "Once," Marilyn replied, "when I was about seven or eight.
             The woman I was living with was putting on makeup, and I
             was watching her. She was in a happy mood, so she reached
             over and patted my cheeks with her rouge puff.... For that
             moment, I felt loved by her."

             Marilyn Munroe had tears in her eyes when she remembered
             this event. Why? The touch lasted only a few seconds, and
             it happened years before. It was even done in a casual,
             playful way, not an attempt to communicate great warmth
             or meaning. But as small as an act it was, it was like
             pouring buckets of love and security on the parched life
             of a little girl starved for affection.
      
================================================================================
                     -< Forgiveness is an act of the will >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was 1947 and Corrie Ten Boom was in West Germany.  She had just finished 
a message on God's forgiveness when she spotted a face in the audience that 
brought back memories.  He had bee one of the cruelest guards at Ravensbruck 
concentration camp where her sister had died.  Now he was coming toward the 
platform. She avoided his outstretched hand as he explained:

"Since Ravensbruck, I have become a Christian.  I know God has forgiven me 
for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your 
lips as well.  Will you forgive me?"

Wrestling with her feelings, she realized that *forgiveness was not an emotion 
but an act of the will*.  She prayed, telling the Lord that she could do was 
extend her hand.  He would have to do the rest.

And He did.  As she put out a lifeless hand, something like an electric
current traveled from her shoulder, down her arm, to her hand and she
exclaimed, "I forgive you brother, with all my heart."  Never had she
experienced God's love in such measure.  She had tried in her own power and
failed, but God provided the resource she needed.
================================================================================
                      -< Sometimes God changes our plans >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A young man who had been accepted as a missionary to Africa reported eagerly 
in New York for passage.  But on further examination, he learned his wife 
could not tolerate the climate.  

[The man] was heartbroken but returned home with a determination to make as
much money as he could to be used in spreading God's Word around the world.  
His father, a dentist by profession, had begun making an unfermented wine for 
the Communion service.  The young man took over this endeavor and developed 
it into a business of vast proportions.  His given name was Welch, whose 
family still makes grape juice.  He has given hundreds of thousands of 
dollars to the work of missions.
================================================================================
                          -< I think I can see it... >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                    Isaiah 60:1-3

          Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the
          Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick
          darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and
          his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and
          kings to the brightness of your dawn.

          Paul Bunyan wrote a book called Pilgrims Progress and Christian,
          the pilgrim in the story, was prompted by the old Evangelist to
          begin his journey to the Celestial City. But even when Christian
          decided that he wanted to go, he didn't know how. Evangelist
          turned the lad around and pointed to the horizon.

          "Do you see that light on the horizon?" said Evangelist.

          "I think can I see it," replied Christian.

          "That's the Celestial City. Head straight for the light."

          Christian had many adventures and a few failures on his journey
          but he made it to the Celestial City because of his first faint
          glimmer of faith. "I think can I see it."

          Jesus said, "I am the Light of the world." Nations will come,
          but the invitation is always personal. Jesus comes to bring
          light to you and to me.

          Can you see Him, rising to drive out the thick darkness? If
          you think you can, head straight for him turning neither to the
          right nor the left.
================================================================================
My father taught me a valuable lesson.  It is better to give than it is
to receive; but if we refuse the gift of another, we rob them of the
blessing of giving.

So by allowing to be served, I better understood giving *in* receiving
and by serving I also receive God's blessing.  Oh, the wonderful paradoxes!
================================================================================
      -< On time management - sometimes it means relaxing and refueling >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          In the 70s, they limited the drivers at the Indianapolis 500 to
          a certain amount of fuel. They had people working out the miles
          per gallon figures, the amount in the gas tank, the speed of the
          car and what lap a driver should make a pit stop for fuel.

          The lap at the Indy 500 is two and a half miles long. One driver
          had one lap to go and a pit stop might cost him too much time.
          His crew flagged him in but he was a lap ahead of everyone else
          and a pit stop might jeopardize that lead.

          He decided to push to the finish line. It was only 1 lap away;
          perhaps his fuel would hold out.

          As it was everyone could detect that the lead car slowed about
          mid lap. He was going nearly 200 miles per hour until then. He
          rounded turn three at about 100 miles an hour and the second and
          third place men passed him (they had a full lap to go still to
          catch up). By the time he reached turn four, he was only coast-
          ing at about 40 miles an hour-seeming to stand still against the
          other cars racing past.

          Heart break of heart breaks, the others passed him to win the
          race and I still don't remember if he was able to coast across
          the finish line or if he coasted to a stop before it.

          He didn't take the necessary time out.          

          When you push, push, push, even when you feel that you can't let
          up for a moment, eventually you'll wind up the loser in the end.
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jesus took time to get away from the crush.  If the Son of God took time out
from doing *good* things, how should we account for our time if we push so
hard as to run out of gas before we cross the finish line?
    

    To be honest, I'd rather have seen them one by one with the appropriate
    titles... it'd be easier to pick and choose those which I wish to pash
    on. :-)

    Re: Note 272.9 by TOKNOW::METCALFE
    
>   DECwindows warning: next note is 290 line long.
    
    New version of DEC Notes fixes this problem.
    
    I would have preferred them in separate notes so as to make reading in
    spare moments easier...  ;-)
    
    James

    Oh, and I pulled out "Little Jimmy", threw it through DECwrite to bring
    it up to 18pt bold and it's hanging on my office wall.  I used a title
    "Time & Money" to grab them as they walk past...

When I have the time, I can polish, reenter, and delete the run-on.

MM

    "Let love be without dissimulation." (Let love be sincere.)
    
    The word 'sincere' comes from two latin words meaning 'without wax'.
    
    Back in Roman times, the less-reputable pottery merchants would sell
    broken pots which had been repaired by using wax to cement the broken
    pieces together.  The unwary customer would purchase the pot and when
    it was used for cooking, it would of course fall apart! The honest
    merchants would advertise their wares: 'Sine Cera', (Without Wax).
    
    So, it's good to be sincere, else when the heat's turned on, you'll
    fall apart!
    
    Don/

RE -.1   Also when held up against the sun, the pottery without wax (sincere)
could be differentiated from that with wax.  

When we are held up against the Son, the sincere folk can be differentiate 
against those that are not.

    Re: cracked pots (or even crackpots, if you wish :-) )
    
    I have heard that Paul is referring to the practice of waxing over the
    cracks in a pot when he said: "But I keep under my body, and bring it
    into subjection:  lest that by any means, when I have preached to
    others, I myself should be a castaway." (1 Cor. 9:27 )  The term
    "castaway" (I think the Greek word is something like 'adokimos') is
    what I heard is in reference to the cracked pots.
    
    Mark L.

The following was told as being a true story (names changed) having occurred
at Atlanta's major airport).

"Delta Flight 207, you are cleared for landing on runway 22."

"Roger, flight control."

Moments pass.

"PanAm Flight 194, you are cleared for landing on runway 22."

"Flight control, this is Delta Flight 207.  I just heard you clear 
PanAm 194 for runway 22 as you did this plane a few moments ago.
Please advise and confirm."

Moments of static pass.

"Y'all be careful out there."

-------------------------------------------------------

This kind of advice should horrify any air passenger or pilot, and yet it
is this same advice we give to people regarding moral situations.


STDs and AIDs = y'all be careful out there
Adultery      = y'all be careful out there
Stealing      = y'all be careful out there

Y'all get the point?

People don't want a fix to a problem of moral decay; they want band-aids
so they can do what they want if they only are careful.

    At the weekend I bought a kennel for my wee dog. Well yesterday's
    weather conditions were rather violent. When I returned home I was
    hoping to see her all smuggled up in her "carpet fitted" kennel. To
    my frustration there she was sitting in the middle of the garden
    soaking wet and cold.
    
    How frustrating it must be for God when he gives us gifts to look down
    and see us sitting in the rain and the wind of life. And sometimes we
    have the bottle to turn round and blame him for our problems. Maybe God
    has prepared a shelter for us if only we would look.
    
    He cares, but sometimes we don't.
    
    Erich

    I heard an interesting illustration this past weekend.  It seems that a
    psychology researcher recruited 1000 college students to take part in
    an experiment.  They were taken into a room in groups of 10, and told
    that they were going to be given a simple test.  A series of three flip
    charts, each with three lines identified as A, B, and C, would be
    presented.  As the presenter pointed in sequence to the lines on the
    chart, the subjects were instructed to raise their hands when the
    longest line on the chart was pointed to.  (Each chart had a
    distinctively longer line).  What wasn't explained is that 9 of the 10
    subjects had been coached ahead of time to raise their hands in unison
    on a line other than the longest.  First chart: longest line pointed
    to, one hand goes up; shorter line pointed to, nine hands go up.  Then
    on to the next chart.  The researcher found that about 75% of the time,
    the "uncoached" subject would end up siding with the majority, even
    though they were clearly wrong according to the directions that were
    given.
    
    As Christians, there are clear directions that we receive from God
    through His word.  The majority of the world around us will not be
    behaving according to this direction.  Will we stand for what God
    clearly wants, or will we bow to peer pressure and compromise what God
    has said.  The pressure to compromise is intense, but we need to
    recognize the importance of living according to the Lord's evaluation
    and not the evaluation of the world.
    
    Mark L.

My Pastor is a historian (and has an affinity for British history).  I'll try
to be accurate; Andrew can check on my facts.

King Edward VII was the king who abdicated his throne for the divorced
Mrs. Simpson.  He was denounced in some pulpits for this act and the
infamy of abdicating the throne haunted them for many years.  Mrs. Simpson,
by then Mrs. Windsor was asked how she puts up with the pressure.  She
contemplated that there were times where she felt like giving it all
up, but when it got to its worst pressure, she reminded herself that
the King of the Empire left his throne for *her*.  And that thought helps
her to endure.

The King of kings left his throne for you and me; as scandalous as it was
for royalty to be in love with a divorced commoner.  How does this thought
strike you?

MM

   Thanks, Mark(s)...excellent illustrations.





 Jim

    Erich,
    
    That was a very insightful analogy... it caused me pause for thought.
    
    Nancy

	Here are a couple inspired by my daughter.

	Lately my daughter, out of a sense of curiousity and adventure, will
	attempt certain things that may prove quite dangerous for her.

	One such item is standing on the seat of her toy car.  The car stands
	about eight inches tall, and she'll climb up onto the seat, stand,
	and survey the world around her.  The other day, she grabbed onto
	the kitchen counter while standing on her car, and tried to roll
	the car back and forth.

	Our conversation went something like this:
	
	Me: Emily, please get down.  That's dangerous.
	Emily: Huh ?
	Me: Please sit down. (Emily knows very well what sit down means)
	Emily: Huh ?

	This repeated about three times, as I moved closer to her, contemplating
	whether or not to remove her physically from the car.  For her safety,
	I wanted to pull her right off, but I also wanted her to learn to 
	listen to me, so I tried letting her do it herself.

	On the last "Huh", the car began to move, and Emily nearly fell.  I
	was right there to catch her, but she gave herself a start.  I gently
	explained that that was my concern - that she'd fall if she didn't sit
	down.

	This morning, I realized that many times when God speaks to us, we may
	hear, but because of our own desires, don't listen.  God could easily
	act for us, but he wants us to try on our own.  He doesn't want to
	see us hurt, but perhaps the greater lesson is learned by Him not
	intervening.  BTW, not intervening (with Emily) was SO hard for me
	to do!

	Somehow, I don't think this is what the Lord meant when he said we
	must become like little children.

	Karen

	Second story, provided by my husband ...

	We were speaking about fear the other night, and Jamie said
	that when he gets most afraid, it's when we somehow feel apart
	from God.  He used this example:

	When introduced to new circumstances, such a stranger entering
	a room, my daughter is ok if she knows Jamie is there (or me, for
	that matter).  However, if that stranger were to come in, and Emily
	doesn't see us, she'll start to cry.  

	Likewise, when we don't feel that God is close by, our fears are
	magnified.  

	In such circumstances, Emily will immediately seek out her father
	or myself.  Would that we all would immediately seek the Father
	when we get into circumstances where fear my creep in.

	(Scripture sums this up beautifully - Perfect Love casts out fear)
	

    
    
     While in church a few weeks back (yes, I do go every sunday) the
    pastor was emotional about his message.  My son turned to me and asked 
    "is he pretending to cry?"

    Your note reminded me of when Matthew was about 3 years old and began
    to scream GOD over and over again.  I walked over and said, "Son what
    are saying this for?"
    
    "Mom, do you think God doesn't answer us because he can't hear us from
    way up there?"
    
    

  One of the things I love about my pastor is he frequently will get choked
 up..there's no question as to the genuineness of the tears...it can come in
 the midst of a sermon, talking about someone recently saved, hearing a 
 song being sung during special music, or leading prayer.  Another reason
 I love the man.




Jim

    .28
    
    Ditto... my Pastor too.  And you can tell it's not insincere...
    although I have heard preachers that do put a great facade up in order
    to stir up the crowd.  We all know the best offering can be taken
    after an emotional plea.  :-(
    
    

 Seriously, us ushers hang around behind the platform cutting up 
 onions :-)



 Jim

    SHHH!  Jim!  You're not supposed to tell!

    
    >Seriously, us ushers hang around behind the platform cutting up
     onions :-)
      
    
    I always wondered what it was that you'all are doing, cause we all know
    your not paying attention to the sermon!!!!!!!

    
.    I always wondered what it was that you'all are doing, cause we all know
.    your not paying attention to the sermon!!!!!!!

     That's cuz we can't sit in the pews like everybody else, cuz Praise God
     we're getting too crowded :-)

   This past Wed night we had an interesting problem..the head usher came
 to me and said "Its kinda warm in here, lets turn the heat down a notch or
 2"..so I do..then we go to the front of the auditorium for the offering
 and the preacher says to us ushers "Its kinda cool in here" :-|


 Jim

    
    >That's cuz we can't sit in the pews like everybody else...
    
     That should read: That's cuz we can't sit still in the pews like
    everybody else...                          -----

 :-)



 I usually wind up in a folding chair in the back of the auditorium...there's
 an old guy that sits in the back pew and he usually needs some help getting
 up and out during the service...fortunately we don't have to go roaming around
 in the pews looking for mom's with screaming babies in the nursery..we went
 to a pager sorta system that eliminates that (and gives the preacher one less
 thing to pick on us ushers about :-)

    "Where, O death, is your victory?
	Where, O death, is your sting?"

    Last night, a friend and I went to dinner, and to hear an Australian
    speaker. His text was actually from Romans 6:23, but this illustration
    probably fits more with the above passage, from I Corinthians 15:55.
    btw this was told as a 'true story'.

    A youngster in a Sydney suburb, his name is Darren, is (like many
    children in Australia) an asthmatic. Like many asthmatics, Darren is
    also allergic to many things, such as animal furs, and food additives,
    et cetera.

    One fine Spring day, while his parents were in the garden, and Darren
    was playing, he was stung by a bee. Unfortunately, Darren discovered he
    was allergic to bee stings. He started to go into severe shock, his
    bronchial passages constricting, and all in all, he became very sick.
    His parents rushed him to hospital, where he was injected with
    antihistemines and put on oxygen.

    He survived.

    Not too many months later, he and his dad were driving out west, near
    Coonabarabran in their 4 wheel drive, when a bee flew in the open
    window.

    When Darren saw this, he went white with fear. He knew that they were
    too far away from any medical treatment, and that one sting would prove
    fatal to him.

    He was ducking and diving, trying to stay away from that fatal bee sting.

    After a while, the buzzing stopped, and he asked his dad in a fearful
    voice "where is it?"

    His father lifted his hand from the dashboard, and showed his son the
    bee, in the final throws, after having stung him (the father) in the
    palm of his hand.

    The pain in his hand was so intense that he had to pull over and try to
    remove the stinger. But he took that sting, so that his son might live.

    "The sting of death is sin." 

    .36
    
    He took the sting of death so that his son might live.  His son took
    the sting of death so that I may live.  

    Amen - beautiful - thanks loads
    
    Our names are engraved on His palms
    

    
    Thanks for sharing that Harry.  My pastor has shared that same story
    on several occasions, but I never grow weary of it.
    
    Jilla