Hope when it seems hopeless!
Dear Friends,
Are you tempted to give up either on yourself or on someone else? Do you
feel like there’s no hope? Today’s attached devotional will show you how
to find that hope again, whether for your own life or for someone you
care about. God bless you.
Because of Calvary,
John Janney
Acts 4:13 (ESV)
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
THE TOUCH OF THE MASTER’S HAND
‘Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
But held it up with a smile.
“What am I bid, good folks,” cried he,
“Who’ll start the bidding for me?
A dollar, a dollar, — now, two, only two?
Two dollars and who’ll make it three?
“Three dollars once, three dollars twice,
Going for three” — but no —
From the back of the room a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then wiping the dust from the old violin,
And tightening up the strings,
He played a melody, pure and sweet,
As sweet as an angel sings.
The music ceased, and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said: “What am I bid for the old violin?”
And he held it up with the bow.
“A thousand dollars — and who’ll make it two?
Two thousand — and who’ll make it three?
Three thousand once and three thousand twice,
And going and gone,” said he.
The people cheered, but some of them cried,
“We do not quite understand —
What changed its worth?” The man replied,
“THE TOUCH OF THE MASTER’S HAND.”
And many a man with a life out of tune,
And battered and worn with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,
Much like the old violin.
A mess of pottage, a glass of wine,
A game and he travels on,
He’s going once, and going twice
He’s going — and almost gone!
But the MASTER comes, and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that’s wrought
By THE TOUCH OF THE MASTER’S HAND.”
[Myra Brooks Welch]
