Dr. Gayle Crowe is a veteran Christian evangelist.  He is also a member of the Board of Directors for World Christian Broadcasting, the ministry that owns and operates station KNLS.  Dr. Crowe serves a church family located in the American State of Indiana.  His messages are heard each week on the New Life Station.  This page is an archive for Dr. Crowe's previous articles in this series.

Ever been in a jam? I mean, a time when you were at the end of your rope . . . there was no way you could solve the thing yourself? What did you do?

The last time for me was a winter weekend. Saturday night I walked into the living room of our house and heard water running. Strange – there’s no plumbing in that part of the house. So I listened and listened, and finally decided the sound was coming from one corner. No, no water coming down the wall. No water on the floor. So I did what seemed perfectly reasonable to me at the time (but you’ll groan at this) – I left there, walked upstairs, and went to bed. After all, most things look better once you’ve had a night to sleep on them.

Next morning I went back to check. Same sound – like a waterfall in my living room. At that point I decided it probably wasn’t going to go away by itself. So I picked up the phone and did what I should have done the night before: I called Greg. "Greg! Help!" Greg is a good friend, but what was very important at that particular moment, Greg is also a plumber. "Greg, could you come over and take a look at this?" Greg is a good, good friend—and I know that because that was Sunday, his only day off, but Greg came over anyway. And he came with a smile. It took him a few minutes to find the source of the problem, but before he left the waterfall had been shut off and I was a happy homeowner again.

Often the best place to turn is to a friend. A friend, if he’s a real friend, will stop whatever he’s doing, simply because you’re in a tight spot and need someone to help.

Of course, that assumes your friend is the dependable, reliable sort—like my friend, Greg. The kind of that shows up when he says he will, stays long enough to help, and gives help that is really help. But you know, and I know, that there aren’t too many like that. When you get into a jam, friends have a way of disappearing. Or they say they’ll be there, but somehow they never show. Some people are friends until you’re in a real bind—then it’s often a different story.

There’s a proverb back in the Bible that goes like this: "Relying on an undependable person in a crisis is like trying to chew with a loose tooth" (Proverbs 25:19). Say, that really captures it, doesn’t it? A loose tooth might look fine—nice and white and straight—until you need it when you put a bite of meat into your mouth. Then it’s a nuisance and an aggravation. The loose tooth goes this way, then that way . . . so every bite is a chore. That’s a perfect description, don’t you think, of an unreliable friend?

Some years ago I found a good, good friend. Whenever I’ve needed him, he’s been right there . . . through the big problems and the small ones. He’s given me insights and perspectives I never would have had otherwise. No, I’m not talking about Greg, the plumber. I’m talking about a friend I’ve known a lot longer than I’ve known Greg. His name is Jesus Christ. How do you get in touch with him? Let’s talk. Write us at KNLS, Anchor Point, Alaska 99556. Or you can e-mail us at KNLS@aol.com.

Ready for a true story? Edith Schaeffer was a remarkable woman. She and her husband operated a lodge in Switzerland. No ordinary lodge it was, however; its purpose was to serve as a kind of retreat for mixed-up young people who wanted to find themselves.

Mrs. Schaeffer one day asked a girl named Jane to blend the ingredients for a sponge cake. I’m not sure if you have sponge cake in your part of the world, but for Americans this is a treat: tasty, light, a great way to end a meal. Jane went to work, but after a time brought in a strange-looking mixture. "Is this what it’s supposed to look like?" "Oh no, it’s not right at all!" Mrs. Schaeffer said. They finally discovered the problem: Jane had forgotten the sugar.

Now what to do. Put it in the garbage pail? The Schaeffers’ incredibly tight budget wouldn’t allow that. So they began to think. Suddenly Mrs. Schaeffer jumped up, took the mixture and began to work with it. She added flour and flour and more flour; then she spread the dough out paper-thin and left it to dry. Hours later she took scissors and cut it into thin, fine strips. Presto! A sponge cake failure had suddenly become fresh, home-made noodles. Everyone that night raved about the chicken noodle soup made from those noodles that started out to be a sponge cake.

A near-disaster turned into a success; we like to hear stories like that. Not all of us are that fortunate, however—especially when it comes to more important things. I know people, for instance, who seemingly started with all the right ingredients for a rich, full, satisfying life: talent, energy, time, opportunity, encouragement from others. But somewhere, somehow, something went wrong.

Now they just don’t seem motivated anymore. They know they have opportunities, but it’s just easier to sit at home. And what a shame! They have such obvious potential! If everything had gone right, life could have been delicious, like sponge cake. But instead it’s just a lumpy, gooey mess.

Have I been describing anybody you know? Is it just possible that I’ve been describing you? If so, I have a question: what are you going to do about it? Jane probably would have just thrown out the sponge cake failure. But a wiser voice said, "No, let’s use what we have and create something different."

A few people through history have taken a deep breath and corrected their own course. But many more have gathered what’s left of their lives and given those pieces to God. God likes it when people do that. He loves to bring about successes out of messes. If you have a story to tell—either a story of success or a story of a gooey mess—write me and let me know. The address is KNLS, Anchor Point, Alaska 99556. Or you can e-mail us at KNLS@aol.com.

Yesterday I received a letter from my friend, Dan. Most of it sounded OK, but in the middle of it he wrote, "I think I’m about burned out with my job. Pretty discouraged about a bunch of things."

"Burned out" is an American idiom that means to be exhausted because of too much work or too many pressures. When I read Dan’s words, a number of things clicked in my mind. Dan seems to be tired all the time. I don’t see him smile much anymore. He doesn’t seem to care about things or people like he used to. He’s been having a lot of trouble sleeping. Going to work is a chore, and when he gets there he doesn’t seem to get much accomplished. He’s begun thinking that all the breaks in life are going to someone else. Other people’s days are filled with sunshine and excitement, but his days are all gray, dull, lifeless.

What’s going on with Dan? Well, I think I have an idea: he’s just depressed. Actually we shouldn’t say "just depressed," because depression can be a serious matter. Depression is the most common emotional problem in America today, and perhaps also in the country where you are. The hospitals are full of people who are severely depressed. But even that number is just a tiny portion of people who are weighed down with depression.

Is this something new? Not really. In the 4^th century Hippocrates coined the term "melancholia." Sometimes we refer to it as being "in a slump" or "feeling gloomy," but it’s all about the same thing. Depression attacks the rich and the poor, people of all races and all cultures. Young people suffer almost as much as adults.

So where does depression come from? Every case is individual, of course, but one of the contributing factors in many cases of depression is anger. Not the kind of anger that makes people throw dishes and bite on nails, but a more subtle kind of anger. Anger people suffer silently inside, anger they can’t talk about or share with anybody because it hurts too much. Something has happened (maybe to the individual, maybe to a family member or somebody close), and this takes a bite out of the spirit and leaves them weak and run down. As their spirit crumbles, they are mentally exhausted and depressed.

Can anything be done? In the Bible we read that Jesus Christ "did not come to be served, but to serve." To look away from our troubles and think about serving the needs of others–is this not a place to begin? It may be tough, it may seem artificial, but for getting a perspective on ourselves and life in general there’s nothing like the uplift that comes from self-sacrifice and careful attention to the needs of others. If you’re down, we’d like to help. Write us at KNLS, Anchor Point, Alaska 99556. Or you can e-mail us at KNLS@aol.com.

Ever felt sorry for a rhinoceros? Now you can. In the South African bush country they were being attacked by juvenile delinquents. Big ones. Really big ones. The size of elephants. In fact, they were elephants, according to a news story that hit the press a while back.

In one season, ten percent of the rhino population was wiped out. These have been protected animals, and the local rangers were hopping mad. But who was killing them? The answer: elephants. But elephants don’t attack rhinos. Never happens. But the evidence was strong. Why would elephants suddenly begin attacking rhinos?

Finally somebody put the puzzle together. Twenty years ago a decision was made (for what seemed like good reasons at the time) to kill adult elephants and move the young ones to other locations. Once the young ones began to grow up to be teenagers, they started doing strange things. Like attacking rhinos and attacking tourist vehicles. Rangers tracked them and saw them in action: they taunted rhinos like 14-year-old schoolyard bullies. They were merciless. Soon they moved from taunting to violence, and finally they killed hapless rhinos. Eventually the offending elephants had to be shot (there are no reform schools for elephants!).

But then the larger question: why this sudden bizarre behavior? The rangers figured it out: these teenage elephants were growing up without male role models. Their fathers, remember, had been killed off by humans who thought they were doing a good thing at the time. What they never thought about was that this left a whole generation of traumatized young elephants without older males to teach them how to behave. Even in the elephant world some things are "done," some things are "not done" – and killing rhinos was one of those things that was "not done."

So how was this case of juvenile delinquency solved? Fairly simply, actually: the rangers went out looking for surrogate daddies. They found a number of older male elephants and paired them with the teenage elephants who had grown up with no male role models. The younger ones watched the big bull elephants, and they learned how to be gentlemen. Since that time no more rhinos have been killed. No more tourist vehicles have been attacked.

Yes, I know, elephants are not people. But I think there’s a lesson here in how God’s creatures develop. If you’re a dad with a son, how will you spend time with him this evening? If you’re a mother with a daughter, what project will you and your daughter work on this weekend? Children need role models. They need somewhere to look to find out how to live, how to make decisions, what to do and what not to do, what’s appropriate and what’s inappropriate. If we’re not there for them, where will they turn?

Last week was a tough one for me. I’m a minister, and part of my work last week was preaching the funeral for Jason, a 21-year-old young man. So many, many people came to pay their respects. Over 200 young people came, as well as many others. Lots of tears and lots of sadness. Jason’s father and mother were there being consoled by many words of comfort. Jason’s older brother spoke during the funeral, reading a poem he had written in memory of his brother.

A DAY TO REMEMBER 

Here in the States we celebrated Thanksgiving a few weeks ago. You probably have something like Thanksgiving in your country. Ours began as sort of an agricultural festival, but now Thanksgiving is a time for our whole nation to pause to thank the Lord for the good things he has done for us.

The New Life Station is pleased to provide transcripts online for a number of KNLS programs.  Please note that all scripts are the property of World Christian Broadcasting and/or SeedSower Productions.  They are provided here for your personal enjoyment only and may not be disseminated in any fashion without prior written permission.

                     KNLS International, © 2001/2002/2003 - Mike Osborne webmaster