"Sholom Aleichem" in Hebrew means "Peace be with you." It is also the the name of Solomon J. Rabinowitz (1859-1916) a Russian-born Yiddish humorist, whose stories formed the basis for the musical "Fiddler on the Roof." His writings are filled with the pathos of Jeremiah, but also a fine sense of humor....which is one way of handling pathos and tragedy. He says: "....As you know, I'm a great believer. I never have any complaints against the Almighty. Whatever he does is good. As Scripture says,`Trust in the Lord'--put your faith in God and he'll see to it that you lie six feet under, bake bagels and still thank him....I say that we have a great God and a good God but, nevertheless, I say, I would like a blessing for every time God does something the likes of which should happen to our enemies."

One of the most memorable parts of the musical "Fiddler on the Roof" is the dialogue with God carried on by Tevye the Dairyman. Remember the one which begins: "Today I am a horse. Dear God, did you have to make my poor old horse lose his shoe just before the Sabbath? That wasn't nice. It's enough you pick on me Tevye, bless me with five daughters, a life of poverty. What have you got against my horse? Sometimes I think that when things are too quiet up there, You say to Yourself,`Let's see, what kind of mischief can I play on my friend Tevye?'" (Fiddler on the Roof," book by Joseph Stein and music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Pocket Books, 1965, p. 23).

from a sermon by Donald B. Strobe

Since the Portuguese withdrew from Angola over twenty years ago, the country's roads, bridges and transportation systems have fallen into disrepair while the country engaged in civil war. Trucks sit beside the roads lacking the replacement parts that would enable them to run. Bridges have collapsed and the roads are full of potholes.

On a recent trip to Angola, a representative from Samaritan's Purse (an organization that gets money to people in need) was being driven through this impoverished, war-torn country to assess the needs, when he noticed that his driver made no attempt to avoid the deep potholes and ruts characteristic of that nation's highways. In fact, his driver seemed to be avoiding those places where it some repair work had been carried out---those few holes that had been filled in.

Curious, he asked his driver why he avoided those few relatively smooth patches of road. "Because," came his reply, "That's where the land mines are." (This is a story Franklin Graham told after his trip to Angola four years ago. It could be used to illustrate the fact that a Christian life is one of struggle or that the rocky places in life are not to be avoided)