Water in Paper
This is a great trick. It is easy to do and comes with a newspaper that can be
used again and again. You can pour water into the newspaper, fan through the dry
newspaper and then pour red water out of the newspaper.
(A newspaper is opened and shown
to the audience. Open the pages of the newspaper as you talk as if you were
glancing through the paper.) All you have to do is glance through the headlines to see the
tragedy that is going on all around us. War. Car wrecks. Storms. Murders.
Hurricanes. Floods. It's scary! If you spend very much time reading the paper it
can be terrifying!
But Jesus said, "Don't be afraid.
Matthew 10:31 "Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value
than many sparrows." We don't have to be afraid because God has promised
to take care of us. The New Orleans and Twin Towers disasters are filled
with stories of God's divine protection over people that believed Him to
take care of them. Do we understand why some people were not spared?
Absolutely not, but one thing is certain, the only choice we have is to
put our trust in a God that loves us and cares tenderly for us.
What should a believer do in a world with so much bad news? Believe!
Fill the situation with faith.
(Pour water into the newspaper.)
In troubled times we must believe God's Word. We must pray His Word and
fill our hearts and minds with His Word. We see many examples in
scripture where God acted in response to people that asked and believed
God for the impossible.
Jesus said Luke 4:25 But I tell you of a truth,
many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was
shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all
the land; 26 But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a
city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in
Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was
cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
Both of these were people that believed. You can be
that same kind of person. Fill your heart and prayers with the following
scriptures.
Pr 18:10 - The name of the LORD is a strong tower:
the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.
Pr 29:25 - The fear of man bringeth a snare: but
whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.
Ps 4:8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep:
for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.
Pr 1:33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell
safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.
Pr 3:23 Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and
thy foot shall not stumble.
What should a believer do in a world
filled with bad news?
Pray.
Fill the situation with prayer. (Pour
in more water.) When you read something in the paper or hear something on the
news. Pray for the people involved. Pray for our government. Pray for the
President. Live a godly life so your friends will notice that you are different.
(The newspaper is now unfolded,
shown on both sides and even turned upside down. The water has vanished.) I know
you?ve heard it before, but praying doesn?t seem to be enough. It doesn?t seem
to make a difference. Living a godly life doesn?t seem to change anything.
Believing seems too hard.
But even when you can?t see it, God is working.
(The performer
refolds the newspaper, picks up the glass and pours red liquid out of the
newspaper into the glass.) God will move in your situation, if you believe Him
to do so.
God
promised that His Word would not return to Him without accomplishing what it was
intended. He promised if we would humble ourselves and pray and repent of our
sins that He would hear and that He would heal our nation. He really is the
solution to all the problems that face our society today. So keep praying. Keep
on being a light for Jesus in your home and on your street and in your school.
2 Chronicles 7:14
- If my people, which are called by my name, shall
humble
themselves,
and
pray,
and
seek my face, and
turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven,
and
will forgive their sin,
and
will heal their land.
