(Growing Strong in the Season of Lent, Lent 3)

There is a hilarious story about a farmer who had three sons: Ron, Don and Little John. All had their names on the church roll but none ever attended church or had time for God.  Then one day Don was bitten by a rattlesnake. The doctor was called and he did all he could to help Don, but the outlook for his recovery was very dim indeed. So the pastor was called to evaluate the situation.

The pastor arrived, and began to pray: “O wise and righteous Father, we thank Thee that in Thine wisdom thou didst send this rattlesnake to bite Don. He hasn’t been inside the church in years and has shown little interest in You. We trust that this experience will be a valuable lesson to him and will lead him to genuine repentance. And now, O Father, wilt tho…