November 16, 2020 (Tuesday)
Originally published November 9, 2007 – repeated today, just for you. If you have already heard this story, read it anyway. Who knows? You may be reminded of actions in your life that brought blessings.It may suggest a lesson you would like to learn.
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There’s an illustration I used often in sermons I preached over the years. It appears in writings, in many forms. I read a simple version by Leo Hallan earlier this week, and share it with you. It’s called, “Golden Windows:”
“There was a small boy living on a farm which seemed like so far away from every where. He needed to get up before sunrise every morning to start his chores and out again later to do the evening ones.
“During sunrise he would take a break and climb up on the fence so in the distance he could see the house with golden windows. He thought how great it would be to live there and his mind would wander to imagine the modern equipment and appliances that might exist in the house. ‘If they could afford golden windows, then there must have other nice things.’ He then promised himself, ‘Some day I will go there and see this wonderful place.’
“Then one morning his father volunteered to do the chores. Knowing that this was his chance, he packed a sandwich and headed across the field towards the house with the golden windows.
“As the afternoon went on, he began to realize how he misjudged the distance and something else was very wrong. As he approached the house, he saw no golden windows but instead a place in bad need of a painting surrounded by a broken down fence. He went to the tattered screen door and knocked. A small boy very close to his age opened the door.
“He asked him if he had seen the house with the golden windows. The boy said ‘Sure, I know.’ and invited him to sit on the porch. As he sat there, he looked back to his own home, where the sunset turned the windows to gold.”
The lessons of this story are numerous. I’m sure you can think of one that applies to you.