As he walked alongside the river he heard a rustling in the bushes
behind him. He turned to look and saw a 7-foot grizzly charging
towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. He looked
over his shoulder and saw that the bear was closing in on him.
He ran even faster, so scared that tears were coming to his eyes.
He looked over his shoulder again and the bear was even closer.
His heart was pumping frantically and he tried to run faster
still. He tripped and fell to the ground. He rolled over to
pick himself up, but saw the bear...right on top
of him...reaching for him with the left paw and raising his right
paw to strike him.
At that instant the atheist cried out "Oh my God!...."
Suddenly, time stopped. The bear froze in motion. The forest was
ever so silent. Even the river ceased to move. As a brilliant ray
of light emerged from the sky and shone upon the man, a powerful
voice spoke to him, "You have denied my existence for all of
these years; you teach others that I do not exist and you credit
creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out
of this predicament? Am I to count you now as a believer?"
The atheist blinked directly into the light. "It would be
hypocritical of me to convert to a Christian after all these
years, but could you instead make the bear a Christian?"
"Very well," said the voice from above. The bright light
disappeared. All of a sudden, life resumed around the man.
The river ran again. The forest became alive once more with
the gentle sounds of nature.
The bear stirred. Slowly, he lowered his right paw, brought
both paws together, bowed his head and graciously spoke:
"Lord, for this food which I am about to receive, I am
truly thankful."
Lighter Side Archive
