Life is a Gift
StoryIllustrationHistorical Account★★★★Fyodor Dostoevsky, one of Russia’s greatest writers, was once nearly executed for treason. Arrested as part of a socialist conspiracy at twenty-seven years old, he was taken to a square in St. Petersburg and read the death sentence. He watched as soldiers aimed their rifles at his comrades. Just then, an officer appeared carrying a pardon. Dostoevsky was a new man after this experience. He later wrote to his brother: “Life is a gift: life is happiness... If youth only knew!
Fyodor Dostoevsky.
The point
Dostoevsky's near-execution transformed him; he learned that life itself is a gift to be treasured, a lesson he carried for the rest of his life.
Scripture
Psalm 118:24
Audience
Adults
Tone
Inspiring · Grateful · Profound
To tell aloud
under a minute · 81 words