Pencil Vs. Rubber Band

Pencil Vs. Rubber Band. Which one do you think is stronger? Obviously, a pencil is much more hardened. So, the pencil is definitely much stronger. Now, let's say that the strongest person in the world is going to bend these. What would happen? You see, although the pencil is much hardened object, it will be broken. But, the rubber band? No problem. It will just bend. It's flexible.

Do you realize when our hearts are hardened, it will be broken? Our hearts get hardened when we become stubborn. When we start saying, "I do not trust God. I will do whatever I want to do," that's when our hearts become stubborn and hardened. And, God says such hearts will be broken.

The heart that God wants us to have is a flexible one. The flexible heart says, "God, I trust you for everything. And, I will do anything you ask me to do."  God says He will bless those flexible hearts. So, how is your heart? Is it hardened? Or, is it flexible?

"God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him..." 
(Matthew 5:3, NLT)

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Pencil: http://www.clker.com/clipart-1972.html
Rubber band: http://www.clker.com/clipart-24184.html

Sharp Edges

Have you ever thought, "What if the car's tires were in triangular shape?" How silly! What would happen if the car's tires were all in triangular shape? You see, cars with triangular tires won't go so far. For triangular tires to be used, their sharp edges must be cut off and rounded!

Do you realize our hearts need to be rounded as well, before God uses us? As long as we have sharp edges in our hearts, God cannot use us! Those sharp edges are our stubbornness that says, "God I don't need you!" God says, we must cut off those sharp edges, so that He can use us. And, we can cut of those sharp edges by saying to God, "God, I trust you for everything!"

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" 

(Proverbs 3:5, NIV).

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http://www.clker.com/clipart-12288.html

Ice

When the weather gets really cold, what happens to the water outside? It freezes that it becomes ice! But, do you realize ice can be quite dangerous? When people slip on it, they can fall. You see, ice can hurt people.

Do you know what happens, when our hearts get cold? You see, sometimes our hearts can get cold with bitterness, anger, hatred, and jealousy. When that happens, our hearts start freezing. And, the frozen heart can be quite dangerous. Because frozen heart can make you say things or do things that will hurt people.

So, how does the ice get melted? It melts when the sun shines upon it. So, how do we make our frozen hearts melt? We can melt it by letting God's love shine upon our hearts. His amazing love will warm up our hearts.

"Get rid of all bitterness, anger, hatred, and jealousy..." (Ephesians 4:31, Paraphrase).

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http://www.clker.com/clipart-15350.html

Dog's Tail

"Wiggle, Wiggle!" Have you seen a dog wiggle its tail? Do you know what that means? Well, that's how a dog talks to you, "I want to be your friend." It's a sign of dog's friendship.

Do you know what the best friendship in the world is? It is the friendship that God showed to us. Even though Jesus Christ was King, and he had everything, he still left his heavenly home and came to the world to be friends with sinners. How do we know this is true? Well, just look at the cross. Cross is a sign of God's friendship to us.

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor..." (2 Corinthians 8:9, ESV).

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http://www.clker.com/clipart-cartoon-dog.html
http://www.clker.com/clipart-cross-green-1.html

Bamboo Tree

Have you ever seen a bamboo tree? It's a very interesting tree. Because when you plant a bamboo tree seed, nothing happens for 5! years. For 5 years, Bamboo tree shows no sign of growth at all! So, these waiting periods can be very frustrating to those who want to see the tree grow!

Did you ever go through frustrating times? Maybe, you've been studying hard for school, but your grade is no good. Maybe, you've been trying to improve your singing skills, but it was no good. These can be very frustrating times.

But, do you know what happens to the bamboo tree in the 6th year? It grows explosively! It grows to almost 90 feet tall! Now, that is really tall! Way taller than the tallest person in the world! So, what was bamboo tree doing for 5 years? Well, it was growing downward to make its roots strong, so it can grow 90 feet tall in  the 6th year.

Sometimes in our lives, we get frustrated that nothing happens, even though we work hard But, do you realize those times are the times that we grow strong? God uses those times to make us strong. So that, you can grow explosively as well, in God's time!

"Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy" (Psalm 126:5).

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Pic from http://www.clker.com/clipart-bamboo-green-1.html

The Star

"It is the most wonderful time of the year~" Do you know what Christmas is about? Is it about Santa Clause, gifts, lights, family, or something else? What is it about?

To know what Christmas is really about, you only need to look at the Christmas tree. Any clue? Well, what's on the very top of the tree? Star! Yes, the Christmas is about that star! What about that star? You may ask?

Well, the star on the very top of the tree means that Jesus is the Star that shines as the light of the world. In other words, Jesus is the shining star, the Savior, that saves us from our sins. So, this is what Christians is ALL about. It's about the Star that saves the world from sins! In a word, it's about Savior Jesus Christ!

"Wise men asked: 'Where is the king of the Jews. We saw his star..." 

(Matthew 2:2, Paraphrase).

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http://www.clker.com/clipart-7176.html

Astronauts

Do you know why  astronauts wear the space clothes, when they go to the space. Because there is no air in the space. And, that means apart from the the earth, human beings cannot live.

And the Bible says we cannot live apart from God. God created us in a way that apart from Him we cannot really live. So, when we are far from God, it becomes hard for us to live. That's why it's important that we stay close to God's heart. There, we are happy forever and ever!

"...for apart from me you can do nothing" 

(John 15:5, ESV).

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