Six Sentence Story: How Do You Know?

Word reached Emperor Dunklematerie that Evie, a budding graduate student, had vanished many professors, including his nemesis, Professor Weissalles – who routinely humiliated him – along with some of the more obnoxious students at the University of Noital – who weren’t any friendlier – after eating Apple Poof Delight.

Why are they eating the stuff if they know what’s going to happen to them? the emperor asked his chief advisor.

“Ah, your Highness, the vanishing doesn’t happen right away and no one knows for sure if it will ever happen, since if you decide – before it’s too late – to never eat the wicked delicacy again and persist in your righteous resolve for three whole weeks, you won’t vanish because you wouldn’t be foolish enough to ever try it again, but it is so, so very – VEEEERY – tasty.”

How do you know?

With a gesture of sympathy toward the ignorance of those around him, the chief advisor explained to the emperor how it was possible for him to know what he would never, ever – no, not in a million years ever – have even considered trying. After a logically impeccable and scientifically irrefutable explanation, the chief advisor vanished.

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Denise offers the prompt word “gesture” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Double Minded Spiritual Warfare

If you feel like there’s an angel on one shoulder arguing with a devil on the other, that’s double mindedness.

The only reason the devil’s there is because he’s offering you something you want that you shouldn’t want. Command the devil to leave until he no longer wastes his time on you. You are then victorious.

The only reason the angel’s there is because God has not given up on you.

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Six Sentence Story: Poof, The Company

As Evie realized she was getting nowhere at the University of Noital she began mass producing and selling Apple Poof Delight. In no time her business venture was a phenomenal success.

She put a large patch on each package where a warning was written to all those eating the delicacy that, indeed, they could vanish if they ate it – all of which only increased sales. For the worry warts she offered the consolation that if they should stop eating the delicacy for three weeks straight they would no longer be subject to the vanishing which her statistics showed happened mainly to people who should have vanished long ago anyway.

Since people tend to believe what they read, they acknowledged, one and all and passed the info on, that they could always stop eating the stuff, even though they never did, and so it made sense to always continue eating it.

Although this was contended by those logically inclined to nitpick – especially after the third helping of Apple Poof – most everyone got the point that they could always continue since they could always stop, though no one could any longer find a good reason why anyone would ever want to stop, and Evie became a gazillionaire almost overnight.

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Denise offers the prompt word “patch” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

July Limericks

All of these limericks were originally posted to Esther Chilton’s Laughing Along With A Limerick during the month of July. Some I have slightly modified.

I’ve added two photos for those who prefer a picture to a thousand words of nonsense.

There once was an egg on a wall.
As he sat he could see and felt tall.
When he fell one could tell
that he didn’t fall well,
but no matter. There’s breakfast for all.
(Prompt word: “fell” July 7, 2025)

Flowers in a vase

There once was a wonderful sneeze
that came out with a shout and much ease.
Then the sneeze came again
and again and again
till it stopped after just one more sneeze.
Prompt word: “sneeze” July 14, 2025 (modified)

He was rich and once handsome. He bought
far more stuff than enough. He was caught
without room, without space,
but with belly and face
that expanded beyond what it ought.
Prompt word: “rich” July 21, 2025

Are there cells where the mind thinks and dwells
filled with words that no sane person yells?
Is that rack for my hat
by that witch with a cat
which is black laced with polka dot spells?
Prompt word: “cells” July 28, 2025

Another view of the flowers in a vase

Cosmic Photo Challenge: Up, Down and Sideways

Dale offers the prompt “up, down and sideways” for this week’s Cosmic Photo Challenge.

These photos are not recent. At the moment I am closer to the Appalachian Mountains than the Atlantic Ocean.

Up (These birds could see I was eating a sandwich.)
Down
Sideways though not on the same day nor the place where I saw those birds and the shells.

The Praise Cure

In her book, Healing from Heaven1, Lilian B. Yeomans spoke of many cures such as the barefoot cure, the grape cure or the mud cure and some of them even worked to some extent. However, she claimed that the only sure cure is the praise cure.

She also mentioned that some of these cures are very expensive and the praise cure is the most expensive of all, but the full cost of the praise cure was paid by Jesus.

How do you apply the praise cure? Start giving praise in words and song for what Jesus has done for you. And there is no reason to stop even after whatever ails you has disappeared.

One song of praise among many including many of the psalms

Be healed
in Jesus name.
The kingdom of God
has come near
to you.

  1. This book is one of four by Yeomans collected in His Healing Power, Harrison House Publishers, 2003. The original book was published in 1935 by Gospel Publishing House. The 1973 edition can be viewed online from Internet Archive. The chapter, “The Praise Cure” starts on page 53 in that edition. ↩︎