"Never pay back evil for evil to anyone," God warns.

Never?

Like a man who has to move a water buffalo off the highway, "It ain't all that easy."

Every night for 45 years, he took off his socks and left them on the floor by the bed. And every morning, she picked them up and put them in the hamper. And every day, she resented doing it just a little more. At first, it was just a quick feeling of annoyance. Then she began to think about it off and on during the day. After a few years, it was a real sore point, and finally, full-blown resentment.

Scoffer, Slacker, Seeker, or Saint?

Every ten years in America a survey called a census is taken to determine the current number of U.S. residents. Other information is also obtained and used to paint an up-to-date economic, political, and religious portrait of our society.

What if a census were taken in your church's youth group? You probably already know how many teens are present from week to week, but what would a spiritual portrait of your youth ministry look like?

Try to imagine that you have never walked into the sanctuary of a church building. One Sunday afternoon, as you drive by the brick structure that your neighbors frequent two times Sunday and once Wednesday, you see on the church sign that there is a Sunday evening meeting at 6 p.m. You decide to see what it's all about.

You're running a little bit late, so you walk in a few minutes after the start of the meeting, and something strikes you as very odd: About 25 individuals are present in what looks like a sanctuary that could seat at least 150, but the people are scattered all over the room, predominantly toward the back. Even those in the last few rows are not sitting close to each other. You think, "How strange." You then say to yourself, "This is cold and uninviting."

Also consider...........