They tell me the story that long ago there was a small church, in a small town, in a small county, where a small congregation had tried for years to get the biggest “sinner” in town, Sam, to come to church. Sam the sinner would have nothing to do with the church. He wouldn’t even come on Easter or Christmas. One day the small church building caught fire. Of course this was in the days before fire engines, so the town’s folk all pitched in to for a bucket brigade. From the local stream, all the way to the church, they formed a human chain. Passing along the buckets of water, they desperately tried to extinguish the flames. The pastor of the church was so engrossed in the struggle, that is was several minutes before he noticed that Sam was standing next to him, passing along the buckets. The
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