It was bitterly cold and nearing evening. A blizzard had set in. A little orphan girl had been offered a dime to sweep the snow. The little girl was so cold and tired that she just wasn't able to move another muscle. She walked up to a policeman and said, "Sir, would you know where a poor girl could find a warm place to sleep tonight? You see, I sleep in a box around the corner and it's awfully cold in there. It sure would be nice to have a warm place to stay."

The policeman looked down at the little girl and said, "You go down the street to that big white house and knock on the door. When they open the door you just say, 'John 3:16', and they'll let you in."

So she did. She walked up the steps to the door and knocked. A lady answered. The little girl looked up and said, "John 3:16." The lady said, "Come on in, dear." She took the little one in and sat her down in a split bottom rocker in front of a great big old fireplace and left the room. The girl sat there for a while and thought to herself," John 3:16.... I don't understand it. But, it sure makes a cold girl warm."

The woman came back in and asked the girl, Are you hungry?"

"Well, just a little. I haven't eaten in a couple days and I guess I could eat a bit of food," was the response.

The woman took her into the kitchen and had her sit down to a table full of wonderful food. She ate and ate until she couldn't eat any more. Then she thought, "John 3:16.... Boy, I sure don't understand it; but it sure makes a hungry girl full."

The woman then took her upstairs to a bathroom with a huge bathtub which was filled with warm water. The girl sat there and soaked for a while. As she soaked, she thought to herself, "John 3:16....I sure don't understand it; but it sure makes a dirty girl clean. I've not had a bath, a real bath, in my whole life. The closest I came to a bath was when I stood in front of that big fire hydrant as they flushed it out."

The lady came in and got her and led her to a room, tucked her into a big old feather bed, pulled the covers up around her neck, kissed her goodnight and turned out the lights. As the little girl lay in the darkness and looked out the window at the snow coming down on that cold night, she thought to herself, "John 3:16....I don't understand it; but it sure makes a tired girl rested."

The next morning, the woman came back and took the girl down again to that same big table full of food. After she ate, the woman then led her back to that same split bottom rocker in front of the fireplace and took an old Bible out. She sat near the girl and asked, "Do you understand John 3:16?"

"No, Ma'am, I don't. The first time I ever heard it was last night when the policeman told me to use it," she answered.

So the woman opened the Bible and began to explain to her about Jesus. Right there in front of that old fireplace she heard for the first time, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." She sat there and thought," John 3:16. I don't understand it; but it sure makes a lost girl feel safe."

Sometimes we don't understand it all either, how God would be willing to send His Son to die for us and how Jesus would agree to do such a thing. We don't always understand it; but it sure makes a person feel loved! And, it sure does make life worth living.

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