Rick was the son of a carpenter. He lived together with his family in suburban Sydney Australia, growing up in the years of the 1960s cultural revolution. As a teenager, he emersed himself in the music of the day. His favourite musicians were the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan. Many of Rick’s friends had left school and were working in fulltime jobs, but he had continued his studies.

That year, Rick’s parents bought a record player and some classical records (which he disliked intensely), but he never had enough money to buy any of the music that he so dearly loved. He longed to have a record collection like his friends, but he was still in high school and didn’t have sufficient money.

At school, Rick began to associate with a group of teenagers with similar tastes in music and outlooks on life. Although he had been raised in a Christian home, he did not have the strength of character to choose to do right when doing wrong was popular; and so he became friends with Jason. Together they longed to have a good collection of records, but they could not afford to buy them. So, they reasoned, there was only one answer to their dilemma … they would steal them!

Together they found a record shop managed by a middle-aged woman and her husband. They planned to enter the shop, choose the records they wanted and escape by running down an adjacent alley. They thought the owners were too old and too slow to catch them.

So, one Wednesday afternoon they arrived in the village, took a deep breath and walked into the record store. The woman owner became suspicious as they each gathered a handful of their favourite records (trying to look as though they intended to purchase them). Then at a given signal they turned and ran out the door, each with about five records in hand.

The woman had been watching them closely. As soon as they made their move, she ran after them but was not able to catch up, so she called to a passer-by, who sprinted after the thieves. He would have caught Rick had he not dropped his records to scale a high wooden fence. Rick and Jason fled in different directions. Rick hid in the incinerator area of the local church and watched from his hiding place as motor-cycle police cruised the streets searching for the two boys.

After a few hours, when they knew the police had given up the search, the boys made their way back to the agreed meeting place. Jason had managed to hold on to his records, but Rick had discarded his to make good his escape.

Time went by, and when Rick was twenty-one he found Jesus as his Lord and Saviour. The police never caught up with him, but God did! Oh, the wonderful joy he felt when he gave his life to the Lord; but God now wanted something from him. Through Rick’s conscience, God told him to go back to the store and pay the owners for the stolen records. Rick resisted, reasoning that Jesus had died for his sins and therefore he was free of any obligations to confess or repay the owners. He managed to quiet his conscience with the thought that Jason got the records; he had sacrificed his to make good his escape.

Many years passed by with Rick resisting what he knew God was asking him to do. He progressed slowly in his Christian life, remaining shallow and uncommitted, though he continued to attend church. Occasionally, he would go door-to-door, witnessing to others, telling of all the wonderful things Jesus had done for him. He even stood in the street and told passers-by about Jesus. But the one thing that God wanted him to do, he would not. Still, his Saviour did not let His disobedient servant go.

At the age of twenty-eight, the Lord began to move on Rick once again. God answered his reasoning saying, “Yes, you are washed clean in the blood of Jesus, but do this because I ask it of you.” Rick could no longer resist the will of his Heavenly Father, so he reluctantly resolved to visit the record store where he had not set foot for nigh on eleven years.

One Thursday night, with his heart again pounding in his chest, he uttered a brief prayer, and stepped over the threshold into the record store. There behind the counter was the same woman, though a little older now, and behind her was her husband. Rick prayed silently as he walked to the counter. Then he said to the woman, “Do you remember the time about eleven years ago, when two boys stole some records and ran out of your shop?”

“Oh, yes,” she said, “I’ll never forget that day.”

“Well, I am one of those boys!” said Rick.

“Hello!” she replied, a little stunned by the encounter.

“I’ve have become a Christian and I’m really sorry for what I did. I have come to pay you for those records that were stolen,” said Rick, as he reached into his bag for his cheque book. The woman took one step backwards, half thinking that he was going to pull out a gun and rob her again! When she saw that Rick was sincere, she called her husband to the counter …

“Darling, remember those two boys who stole those records all those years ago?”

“Yes,” he responded.

“Well, this is one of them!” she said, gesturing towards Rick.

“Hello,” said the husband, not knowing what else to say, as he reached to shake Rick’s hand.

“He has become a Christian and has come to pay for the records.”

Rick could hardly utter a word, feeling so much repentance in his heart for what he had done. He could not tell them about the wonderful things Jesus had done for him; he was too close to tears to say anything at all.

“I too have done some bad things in my life,” said the husband, as tears welled up in his eyes too, and the Spirit of repentance began to settle on him.

Rick paid for the records. The amount the woman asked was exactly what God had told him … thirty-five dollars.

“Come and buy your records here any time,” said the woman. “We will give them to you at cost price.”

“Thank you so much. You have been most gracious,” answered Rick (choking back the tears).

Then he left the store, never to return again. Immediately after stepping outside, God spoke into his heart, saying …

“Today you have done something worth more than all your witnessing in your own strength.”

Rick knew what He meant; he had been obedient to God. His Christian life blossomed from that day forward, for he had learnt a valuable lesson … “To obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22).

Excerpt from When Angry Hearts Forgive by Robert Warren (available on Amazon)

The caretaker became concerned for the valuable altar furnishings, as every day just at twelve noon the shabby figure would arrive. The caretaker would watch diligently to be sure nothing was taken. Then one day he confronted Old Jim saying, “Look here my friend, what are you up to, coming into the church every day?”

“I have come to pray,” replied the old man politely.

“Really!” the cautious caretaker said, “You don’t stay long enough to pray.”

“True enough. I cannot pray a long prayer, but every day I just come and say, ‘Jesus, it’s Jim’. Then I waits a minute, then I goes out. I guess He hears me though it’s but a little prayer.”

Much to the caretaker’s disgust, Jim kept coming each day. He would make his way to the front of the church and say under his breath,              

“Jesus, it’s Jim.” He would wait a while and shuffle out again.

A few weeks later, Old Jim was knocked down by a car whilst crossing the street and was taken to the nearby hospital to mend.

The ward where Jim quite happily lay was a sore spot to the nurses on duty. They didn’t like going in there as many of the men were miserable and did nothing but complain from morning till night. But slowly the men stopped their grumbling, becoming happy and contented.

As the nurse was walking through the ward she heard the men laughing. “What has happened to all of you? You are such a cheerful lot of patients lately.”

“It’s Old Jim,” they replied. “He’s always cheerful, and never complains, though we know he is uncomfortable and in pain.”

The nurse walked over to Jim’s bed where the silvery haired old gentleman lay with an angelic look on his face.

“Well Jim, these men say you are the cause of all this change in the ward. They say you are always happy.”

“Aye, that I am nurse. I can’t help it. You see nurse, it’s my visitor. He makes me happy.”

“Visitor?” The nurse was puzzled for she had never noticed any visitor by Jim’s bed. The chair was always empty at visiting hours. “When does your visitor come?” she asked.

“Every day,” replied Old Jim, with the light in his eyes growing brighter. “Yup, every day at twelve o’clock he comes and he stands at the foot of my bed. I see him there; he smiles and says, ‘Jim, it’s Jesus.’”

Excerpt from When Angry Hearts Forgive by Robert Warren (available on Amazon)

[Paraphrased from C.E. Cowman, Springs in the Valley, Cowman Publishing Company, LA California USA (1925)]

It seemed he had been a rebellious lad and had constantly been arguing with his mum and dad over just about everything. He wanted his own way all the time, and he had always felt angry towards them when they didn’t agree to his wishes. Finally, in a fit of rage he left home, telling them that he hated them both and vowing never to return.

Two years had passed since that fateful day and Jochen   had come to realise that his parents were right and he was wrong. They had been a difficult two years; moving from one dumpy apartment to another, getting a little money here and there. Oh, he had made friends with those of his own age, but his heart continued to fret for his family. He missed his mum and dad, but he was unable to go home because of his vow and his pride.

Finally, when he could bear it no longer, he decided to write a letter to his parents and this is what he wrote …

“I realise now that you were right and I was wrong. I am sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused. I also realise that I love you both dearly and I want to come home if you will have me? I know you must be angry with me, and maybe you don’t want me anymore? But I have booked a seat on the Dusseldorf train which is scheduled to stop at our village at 10:15 next Thursday morning.

“You know the old tree on the bend near the railway track. If you want me home just tie a white tea towel to one of the branches, and as the train pulls in I will see it and get off. If I do not see the tea towel on the tree, I will know that I’m not welcome and I will stay on the train. I will understand if you don’t ever want to see me again, for I have made your lives difficult. But I ask you to forgive me, if you can find it in your heart?”

And now the train was nearing his village. Did they want him home again or didn’t they? He so wanted to get off the train to see his parents and express his sorrow for continually disobeying them. He wanted to show them, though older now, he could be happily submissive, but would he get the chance? The feeling of expectancy was growing in his heart as the train drew closer to that old tree by the track.

He could not bear to look and see if the tea towel was hanging there, so as the train approached that fateful bend, he asked if the minister could look for him? The kindly minister pulled down the carriage window and peered out! Jochen looked at his face to see any glimmer of expression which would forewarn him of the minister’s response, but there was none.

“Well?” said Jochen, “Well?”

“You’d better look for yourself,” said the old minister.

So, with his heart pounding within his chest, Jochen looked out to see the tree …

Yes, a white tea towel hung from one of the branches. But there were also white sheets … and white pillowcases … and white tablecloths … and white bath towels … and white blankets, covering the tree!

… and a broken and grateful son was welcomed home into the arms of his loving parents.

This is a modern-day parable which ‘paints a picture’ of God’s love for his wayward child. His love is so beautiful. If we overlook Him or neglect Him, we will overlook a wonderful and exciting future. Everything depends upon our relationship with Him – everything. He so desperately longs   for His rebellious children to return home.

Excerpt from When Angry Hearts Forgive by Robert Warren (available on Amazon)