The Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel Youth

['Alfred Nobel (1833–1896) is best known for the Nobel Peace Prize. Less well known is the fact that Alfred Nobel also invented dynamite. As well as a chemist, engineer and innovator, he was a weapons’ manufacturer.\nIn 1888, Alfred’s brother Ludvig died. A French newspaper erroneously published Alfred’s obituary. It condemned him for his invention of dynamite, stating: ‘The merchant of death is dead… Dr Alfred Nobel, who became rich by finding ways to kill more people faster than ever before, died yesterday.’\nAlfred Nobel was devastated by the foretaste of how he would be remembered. His last will and testament set aside the bulk of his estate to establish the Nobel prizes. He gave the equivalent of US $250 million to fund such prizes. Alfred Nobel had the rare opportunity to evaluate his life near its end and live long enough to change that assessment.\nHave you ever wondered what difference your life might make? How can your life bring blessing to other people? How can you change the world for the better? How can your life be of ultimate lasting value? How can we lead fruitful lives?', None]

Alfred Nobel (1833–1896) is best known for the Nobel Peace Prize. Less well known is the fact that Alfred Nobel also invented dynamite. As well as a chemist, engineer and innovator, he was a weapons’ manufacturer.

In 1888, Alfred’s brother Ludvig died. A French newspaper erroneously published Alfred’s obituary. It condemned him for his invention of dynamite, stating: ‘The merchant of death is dead… Dr Alfred Nobel, who became rich by finding ways to kill more people faster than ever before, died yesterday.’

Alfred Nobel was devastated by the foretaste of how he would be remembered. His last will and testament set aside the bulk of his estate to establish the Nobel prizes. He gave the equivalent of US $250 million to fund such prizes. Alfred Nobel had the rare opportunity to evaluate his life near its end and live long enough to change that assessment.

Have you ever wondered what difference your life might make? How can your life bring blessing to other people? How can you change the world for the better? How can your life be of ultimate lasting value? How can we lead fruitful lives?

['The ambassadors I have met have always impressed me enormously. They have clearly been chosen very carefully. They have all been trained in the art of diplomacy. They are skilled at representing their country by both how they act and what they say.\nTo be an ambassador is an immense privilege. An ambassador is ‘a minister of the highest rank sent to a foreign court to represent the… sovereign or country’. A British Ambassador is a minister who represents Queen and country wherever they are sent.\nPaul writes that we are ‘Christ’s ambassadors’ (2 Corinthians 5:20). The Greek word translated as ‘ambassador’ shares the same root as ‘presbyter’, which is one of the words used to describe church leaders. Whether you are in a recognised leadership role in the church or not, you are an ambassador of Christ, with the extraordinary privilege and responsibility of representing Jesus in this world. You are God’s representative on earth.\nThrough you, God makes his appeal for others to be reconciled to God; to receive his forgiveness, love and grace. Appeal to them to become friends of God and ambassadors themselves. As royal ambassadors, act with diplomacy and skill because you are representing Christ on earth.', None]

The ambassadors I have met have always impressed me enormously. They have clearly been chosen very carefully. They have all been trained in the art of diplomacy. They are skilled at representing their country by both how they act and what they say.

To be an ambassador is an immense privilege. An ambassador is ‘a minister of the highest rank sent to a foreign court to represent the… sovereign or country’. A British Ambassador is a minister who represents Queen and country wherever they are sent.

Paul writes that we are ‘Christ’s ambassadors’ (2 Corinthians 5:20). The Greek word translated as ‘ambassador’ shares the same root as ‘presbyter’, which is one of the words used to describe church leaders. Whether you are in a recognised leadership role in the church or not, you are an ambassador of Christ, with the extraordinary privilege and responsibility of representing Jesus in this world. You are God’s representative on earth.

Through you, God makes his appeal for others to be reconciled to God; to receive his forgiveness, love and grace. Appeal to them to become friends of God and ambassadors themselves. As royal ambassadors, act with diplomacy and skill because you are representing Christ on earth.

['‘What a waste!’ said a woman to my friend. This woman was talking about Bishop Sandy Millar, who had practised very successfully as a lawyer for ten years, before leaving it all behind to become an ordained minister in the church.\n‘A waste?’ exclaimed my outraged friend. ‘Yes,’ said the woman, ‘Such a waste! He could have made a fortune and been at the very top of the legal profession. Think of what he could have achieved!’\n‘Think of what he has achieved!’ replied my friend – who was thinking of the impact of Sandy’s ministry on thousands of people around the world whose lives had been changed, marriages enriched and churches renewed; those who found faith, love, hope and peace through encountering Jesus Christ as a result of Sandy’s ministry.\nMany have given up a successful career, a high salary and – in the eyes of the world – all their prospects, in order to serve God in ‘full-time ministry’ with little or no pay. They know that theirs is a high calling and purpose that far exceeds what the world can promise them.\nOf course, those called to serve God in their secular places of work have an equally high purpose and calling, if they are doing what they are doing in order to please God and for the sake of his kingdom. The key is not the job or career – but the goal you pursue.\nSo many people waste their lives. They have no purpose, meaning or goal. Other people do have a goal, but it is the wrong one. They end up chasing something that is ultimately meaningless. Many reach the top of the ladder of success only to find that it is leaning against the wrong wall. Purpose in life is far more important than property or possessions. Having more to live with is no substitute for having more to live for.\nIt has been said that ‘the two greatest days of your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why’. God created you with a purpose in mind (2 Corinthians 5:5).', None]

‘What a waste!’ said a woman to my friend. This woman was talking about Bishop Sandy Millar, who had practised very successfully as a lawyer for ten years, before leaving it all behind to become an ordained minister in the church.

‘A waste?’ exclaimed my outraged friend. ‘Yes,’ said the woman, ‘Such a waste! He could have made a fortune and been at the very top of the legal profession. Think of what he could have achieved!’

‘Think of what he has achieved!’ replied my friend – who was thinking of the impact of Sandy’s ministry on thousands of people around the world whose lives had been changed, marriages enriched and churches renewed; those who found faith, love, hope and peace through encountering Jesus Christ as a result of Sandy’s ministry.

Many have given up a successful career, a high salary and – in the eyes of the world – all their prospects, in order to serve God in ‘full-time ministry’ with little or no pay. They know that theirs is a high calling and purpose that far exceeds what the world can promise them.

Of course, those called to serve God in their secular places of work have an equally high purpose and calling, if they are doing what they are doing in order to please God and for the sake of his kingdom. The key is not the job or career – but the goal you pursue.

So many people waste their lives. They have no purpose, meaning or goal. Other people do have a goal, but it is the wrong one. They end up chasing something that is ultimately meaningless. Many reach the top of the ladder of success only to find that it is leaning against the wrong wall. Purpose in life is far more important than property or possessions. Having more to live with is no substitute for having more to live for.

It has been said that ‘the two greatest days of your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why’. God created you with a purpose in mind (2 Corinthians 5:5).

['Do you ever get discouraged? Are you ever tempted to ‘lose heart’? If you are, you are not alone. Paul was almost certainly tempted himself to lose heart, and he wrote to other Christians who were also tempted to do so.\nYet Paul wrote, ‘We do not lose heart’ (2 Corinthians 4:1,16). ‘We do not throw up our hands and walk off the job’ (v.1, MSG). Why not? Paul explains that it is because in Jesus we have received a ‘treasure’ (v.7). The treasure is the message of Jesus. It is because the message that Paul has to proclaim is so amazing that he starts and ends by saying, ‘Therefore… we do not lose heart’ (vv.1,16).\nYet the treasure is inward and unseen. Paul describes it as being in ‘jars of clay’ (v.7). Our culture emphasises the outward and the seen. The media is dominated by physical beauty and outward success. The Bible stresses the importance of the inward and unseen: the beliefs, thoughts and attitudes that determine our outward behaviour. ‘For what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal’ (v.18). The invisible is eternal.', None]

Do you ever get discouraged? Are you ever tempted to ‘lose heart’? If you are, you are not alone. Paul was almost certainly tempted himself to lose heart, and he wrote to other Christians who were also tempted to do so.

Yet Paul wrote, ‘We do not lose heart’ (2 Corinthians 4:1,16). ‘We do not throw up our hands and walk off the job’ (v.1, MSG). Why not? Paul explains that it is because in Jesus we have received a ‘treasure’ (v.7). The treasure is the message of Jesus. It is because the message that Paul has to proclaim is so amazing that he starts and ends by saying, ‘Therefore… we do not lose heart’ (vv.1,16).

Yet the treasure is inward and unseen. Paul describes it as being in ‘jars of clay’ (v.7). Our culture emphasises the outward and the seen. The media is dominated by physical beauty and outward success. The Bible stresses the importance of the inward and unseen: the beliefs, thoughts and attitudes that determine our outward behaviour. ‘For what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal’ (v.18). The invisible is eternal.

['Father Raniero Cantalamessa, a Capuchin monk, preacher to the papal household, aged eighty-one, kindly came and spoke at our Leadership Conference at the Royal Albert Hall. Many people comment on how his face and eyes shine with the radiance of God’s presence. He was on a train one time in Italy when a woman, who was a total non-believer, approached him and said, ‘Your face compels me to believe.’\nIt has been said, ‘We cannot control the beauty of our face, but we can control the expression on it.’ As this story illustrates, you can tell a lot by looking at people’s eyes and faces. We say, ‘You should have seen the look on their face.’ As the old Latin proverb says, ‘The face is the index of the mind.’\nIt is also true that ‘The eyes are the windows to the soul.’ When we really want someone to listen to and believe us, we say to that person, ‘Look into my eyes.’\nThe Bible says a lot about faces and eyes.', None]

Father Raniero Cantalamessa, a Capuchin monk, preacher to the papal household, aged eighty-one, kindly came and spoke at our Leadership Conference at the Royal Albert Hall. Many people comment on how his face and eyes shine with the radiance of God’s presence. He was on a train one time in Italy when a woman, who was a total non-believer, approached him and said, ‘Your face compels me to believe.’

It has been said, ‘We cannot control the beauty of our face, but we can control the expression on it.’ As this story illustrates, you can tell a lot by looking at people’s eyes and faces. We say, ‘You should have seen the look on their face.’ As the old Latin proverb says, ‘The face is the index of the mind.’

It is also true that ‘The eyes are the windows to the soul.’ When we really want someone to listen to and believe us, we say to that person, ‘Look into my eyes.’

The Bible says a lot about faces and eyes.