The Power that Changes Lives

                    Robert Caro writes about a federal study of half a million farm families in the thirties, showing that each person used an average 40 gallons of water every day. A family of 5, the average, used 200 gallons or 4/5 of a ton of water every day. That's 73, 000 gallons of water—300 tons—in a year!

            In the Texas Hill Country, the average well was located 253 feet from the house. In one year, the normal person would be required to walk approximately 1750 miles carrying buckets.

               Pumping 73, 0000 gallons by hand and walking the 1750 miles would require the equivalent of 63, eight-hour, work days.

            Normally, each bucket would carry four gallons of water, which weighed 32 lbs. That's 64 pounds of water a person would have to carry, each trip, from the pump!

            And guessed who carried it? Maybe kids helped, but mostly the farmer’s wife!

            That's why so many developed back trouble and stooped backs.

            Now, imagine how electricity changed life on the farm?

            It operated pumps for water, irons for ironing, washing machines for washing.

            Now, electricity was present all that time of pumping water. Humans had not discovered it or harnessed its power. But Humanity finally discovered the power of electricity and the farm families accessed that power for themselves…. The power of electricity changed lives.

            God has power to change lives even more. You may not see it, but it is there. Go to God.

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen (Eph. 3:20-21).

God and the Spider Web

David R. Helm writes in his commentary on Jude about Frederick Nolan. Nolan was fleeing from his enemies during a time of persecution in North African.

Vigilantly pursued by his foes, Nolan was running out of places to hide. Finally, bone-tired he came upon a small cave. Hiding inside, he expected his enemies to find him.

Certain he was awaiting his death, he saw a spider begin to weave a web. Within minutes, the insect had woven an intricate web across the mouth of the cave.

Shortly thereafter, his hunters arrived. At first, they suspected Nolan had entered the cave. Then, they considered how it would have been impossible for him to have entered without destroying the web. So they left.

Nolan escaped his potential captors. Later, contemplating his fate, he wrote, “Where God is, a spider’s web is like a wall. Where God is not, a wall is like a spider's web.”