Think of the twelve disciples.  Twelve very distinct personalities, from twelve very different backgrounds, and with twelve very different ideologies.  Yet all were chosen by Jesus Himself.  All had quite significant roles to play in God’s plan.  A tax collector, a few fishermen, and even a doctor among them, the twelve lived, ...

Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him. Proverbs 13:24 (ESV) Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. If you strike him with the rod, you will save his soul ...

In Victor Hugo’s novel, Les Miserables, peasant Jean Valjean served 19 years imprisonment due to stealing a loaf of bread for his starving family. Upon release, angry and bitter, he had no home and slept on the streets. A Catholic Bishop gave him shelter one night but Valjean ran off ...