Tracts

Short messages of faith, hope, and encouragement to read and share.

15 tracts

A KNOCK ON THE DOOR

My landlord said seriously, “In my house, every tenant must be home by 10 pm. One day, I stayed out later than 10 pm. The gate was locked. No matter how hard I knocked, the landlord refused to open the door. I had to knock at a friend’s window who opened for me to enter; otherwise I would have been locked out all night. Virgins: The Lord Jesus told the story of ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The ten virgins went to meet the bridegroom. By the time the bridegroom arrived late at night,

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A TALE OF TWO GARDENS

My father loved gardens. Everywhere we lived, he kept a garden in addition to his farms. When he retired as a farmer, he often sat in his backyard garden for fresh air. In his old age, he received Jesus as Lord and Saviour. And when he died at the age of 90, we laid him to rest in his garden. Thinking about him always reminds me of two gardens in the Bible: Eden and Gethsemane. God put Adam and Eve in Eden. It was there Satan fought against them. In their disobedience, they fell, and sin spread to all humanity.

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DELAY TACTICS

As part of our church service, our congregation goes to the neighbourhood to invite people to worship God with us. Those who come are encouraged to give their lives to Jesus. Our next door neighbour, a forty-year old man called Kobina who sold provisions, always had a ready excuse why he couldn’t join us today. “Go and come,” was his regular apology. “You will see me next Sunday.” The last time I invited him, he said, “I promise, as for next Sunday, you will see me.” The next Sunday his shop was closed. I thought, Good, today our man will come to church; he has closed his shop.

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PEEPARE AND BE READY! by Lawrence Darmani

A few months to our school certificate examination, we prepared very hard. Day and night we read our notes and joined study groups for discussions. We wrote mock tests using past question papers. We met our teachers for extra classes. When the date for the examination came, we were prepared and ready. We like to prepare: As human beings, we prepare in order to get ready for any event in life. We prepare to travel. We prepare to marry. We prepare for the birth of a baby. We prepare the soil for planting crops. We prepare for the harvest. We prepare for work. We prepare for school and we prepare for exams.

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PENALTY PAID by Lawrence Darmani

What the judge did at the magistrate court was marvellous. At the trial, the judge found the young man guilty as charged. She sentenced him to the maximum fine prescribed by law or be jailed for one year. As the police led the convict out, the judge said, “Wait!” The police and everyone in court looked on. The judge took her hand bag and pulled out an envelope containing some money. Counting the exact amount of the fine, she handed it over to the court clerk.

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RECEIVE IT by Lawrence Darmani

My friend took out some money as a gift to a widow in our neighbourhood. “No, thank you!” the widow refused and walked away. In a community where poverty is high, the woman’s refusal surprised us. And as long as the widow said “No,” she did not benefit from the gift. Examples: Take another situation. It was farming season, and the farmers in our village waited for rain. When it rained, the farmers happily cultivated their farms—except one man who refused to cultivate a farm. So he didn’t benefit from the rain.

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RETURN HOME by Lawrence Darmani

All I asked Albert was, “Why are you crying?” In answer, he cried the more. After a while, he said, “I have wronged my step-parents deeply.” His step-parents cared for him when his own parents died. But, without saying goodbye to them, he ran away from them. He lived in the city for many years. Now he felt sorry for what he did. “Return home to your step-parents,” I told him. “Tell them you are sorry for what you did and ask them to forgive you.”

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RUN FOR YOUR LIFE by Lawrence Darmani

When we heard about the coronavirus, we all ran for our lives. Many were quarantined (separated from other people); others isolated themselves on their own. We applied hand sanitizers dozens of times a day. We washed out hands and wore nose and mouth masks. No crowding; no handshake; no hugging! We tried not to touch our faces. Disease made us run: The coronavirus, an invisible but deadly disease, caused us to run for our lives. We feared the approaching death and stayed at home. When we were told to run for our lives, we did—and we are still running.

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SOUL IN DANGER by Lawrence Darmani

Perfume has three parts: it is liquid, it has fragrance, and it is in a bottle. You can’t separate them unless the perfume is used up or the bottle breaks. Likewise, every person is three parts—body, spirit, and soul. Just as the fragrance is the perfume, so the soul is the person. You are the soul: Therefore, YOU are the soul. That is why we sometimes say, “There wasn’t a single soul in the big hall.” That means there wasn’t a single person in the big hall.” The person is the soul. You have a body, you have a spirit, but you are the soul—the person!

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THE BETTER BREAD by Lawrence Darmani

Whenever we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” what do we have in mind? Is it about food—such as bread with tea or koko? Is it about rice with stew and fufu with light soup? Or my favourite tuo zaafi or banku with okro soup? Yes, it is about all kinds of foods. God our Heavenly Father gives us our daily bread. He is the one who feeds the billions of people on earth. God is our Provider. But the line in the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread” goes beyond physical food. It is also about spiritual food.

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THE ESCAPE ROUTE by Lawrence Darmani

It was Saturday in our forest village. The boys-boys in the village decided to go hunting on the hills. The rats and squirrels dug holes on those hills. When we inspected one good hill, we noticed a “good hole”, which showed that the squirrel was alive in there. Quickly, we surrounded the hill, cut the weeds, and began working on the hole. We pushed a long stick into the hole to force the squirrel out. But we worked and worked until we gave up—the squirrel did not come out.

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