Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 18 – No. 2216 May 28, 2016
Thought for the week: "You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
"If you take care of your character, your reputation will take care of itself." – American Proverb
"Where there's a will there's a way." – Anon
"Women have an incredible ability to pick up on emotional signals. For example, there are some wolves that are so clever they have learned to dress up like sheep. Man says, 'Looks like a sheep. Talks like a sheep.' Woman says, 'Ain't no sheep!'" – Jim Rohn
"If it is to be, It is up to me." – William H. Johnson
"Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world. Same world." – Dr. Wayne Dyer
The following quotes from Andy Chaps Andychaps@aol.com: "To become a great communicator, live what you say."
"If you're gonna talk the talk, you better walk the walk."
"A person's message cannot be easily separated from their own character and credibility."
"Some people's Actions speak so much louder than their words, that their words are never heard."
"In the last analysis, what we ARE communicates far more eloquently than anything we SAY."
To celebrate my birthday, my husband and I dressed up for an evening at the theater. We left our Manhattan apartment to take the bus downtown, but we didn't have exact change, so my husband ducked into a store to break a few dollars.
As I waited, I was approached by a panhandler. He held out his tin cup and said, "Lady, can you spare some change?"
"No," I answered. "I'm actually waiting to get some right now."
Looking as me with surprise, he leaned forward confidentially and said, "You gotta get a cup."
International evangelist Luis Palau recalls the first time he ever asked God to directly answer a prayer. Luis was supporting his mother and siblings by working in an Argentine bank. A bank strike had shut down the local economy, and money was exceedingly tight. Luis prayed and asked God for money to pay for bus fare to his job the next day.
Just to demonstrate that even international evangelists start out as spiritual babies, notice that Luis Palau left home really early the next morning, just in case he had to walk to work. Already he didn't trust that God would answer his prayer. On the way to the bus stop, he searched the ground for loose change. Surely that would be God's method for answering his prayer. Someone would drop the money, Luis would find it, and he would ride to work in comfort. But there was no change to be found on the sidewalks.
On his way to the next bus stop, Luis encountered a man who needed some help getting his car started. He stopped to help, then continued on his way. A few moments later, the man pulled alongside Luis and offered him a ride. This man happened to work at the building across the street from the bank.
– Luis Palau, with Ellen Bascuti. The Peter Promise (Grand
Rapids, Michigan: Discovery House Publishers, 1996),
pp. 43-45. Cited on www.sermons.com
A Daily Encounter reader writes, "I love the title of your new book, You Can't Fly With a Broken Wing, and want to share an experience I had concerning broken wings. This experience came when I needed it the most.
"In June 2003 my husband was in a terrible car wreck. We spent several days in the hospital. I have expressed my gratitude to God many times for saving his life. His body was one solid bruise, a whiplash, and broken ribs. I had to get a strong stance just to help him up (6'3") as he couldn't do that by himself. I did great for two weeks, but utter exhaustion and emotional drain attacked me. I went to bed one night, half-praying, half-crying and half-asleep, sort of in that twilight zone just before falling asleep. Some may call what I experienced was a dream, but to me it was from God in the form of a vision. I saw a beautifully wrapped package with beautiful ribbons and bows. I tore it open immediately and there lay a bird's wing, shimmering in brilliance and outlined in silver and gold. I immediately fell asleep and awakened the next morning feeling totally restored.
"I knew that had to be in the Bible and found it in Psalm 68:13 (NIV): 'Even while you sleep among the campfires, the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver, its feathers with shining gold.' The Comforter had come to me, and by the way, my husband has fully recovered."
The way Jesus befriends us is nicely reflected in one of the world's most
popular hymns, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." Out of Christendom's some 400,000 hymns, it is considered to be one of the top ten. This incredible popularity comes for a hymn that was never intended to be published. Joseph Scriven wrote the hymn in 1855 to send from his home in Ontario, Canada, to his mother in Ireland. His goal was simply to comfort his mother during a difficult time in her life. It wasn't until 30 years later that the hymn was discovered by a friend who was caring for Scriven in his final illness. Once put in circulation the hymn quickly became a favorite.
–From "Hymns" section of Luther Seminary home page, St.
Paul, MN. Cited in "Preaching on the Lessons" by Carol M.
Gregg, The Clergy Journal, Feb. 2000, p. 54. Cited on www.sermons.com
Former president Jimmy Carter was 70 years old when he wrote this poem about his father:
This is a pain I mostly hide,
But ties of blood, or seed endure,
And even now I feel inside
The hunger for his outstretched hand,
A man's embrace to take me in,
The need for just a word of praise.
Isn't it extraordinary that even after a life of monumental achievements, Mr. Carter still feels pain when he thinks of his father, who either could not feel or would not express love and approval. Unfortunately, there are lots of people in Mr. Carter's shoes, left with bitter feelings and enduring wounds inflicted by their parents.
Yet not all bad parents are bad people. Caring parents can unintentionally injure children through excessive harshness or permissiveness or through well-intended criticism and advice that comes out as relentless disapproval or oppressive negativity. Kids not only need to know they're loved, they need to feel worthy of our love. They need to be valued not simply because they're ours, but because of who they are.
It's never too late to try to fix whatever is broken:
Consider expressing caring, pride and approval more lavishly and often.
Be less critical, more helpful, less controlling.
Set aside your need to be right. Be less self-righteous and more respectful toward the people you love.
Be sincerely accountable and genuinely apologize, even if whatever you do may not be enough.
It's not always possible to fix things that are broken, but it's worth a try.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
"King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe." Then Agrippa said to Paul, "You almost persuade me to become a Christian." And Paul said, "I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am."1
In the Peanuts cartoon the team statistician brings Charlie Brown, the manager, his report.
"I've compiled the statistics on our baseball team for last season," Linus says. "In twelve games we almost scored a run and in nine games the other team almost didn't score before the first out. In right field, Lucy almost caught three balls and once almost made the right play.
"We led the league," he concludes, "in almosts."
In Paul's day King Agrippa was also an almost ... he was almost persuaded to become a Christian. We hope that he did while he had the opportunity. However, if he didn't, he is lost forever because there is no indication anywhere in God's Word that anybody is given a second chance after death to receive Jesus as their Savior.
So whatever you do, don't be an almost—an almost persuaded. For help, be sure to pick up your "Passport for Heaven." Click on PASSPORT.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me not to be an 'almost' in anything of significance—including when it comes to fulfilling my God-given life purpose here on earth, and especially when it comes to being prepared for life after death. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
1. Acts 26:27-29 (NKJV).
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Oprah Winfrey: "Books were my pass to personal freedom. I learned to read at age three, and soon discovered there was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi." – Oprah Winfrey
Books:
Books by Dick Innes, Editor of Weekend Encounter You Can't Fly With a Broken Wing How to Mend a Broken Heart I Hate Witnessing—A Handbook for Effective Christian
Communications
Healing, Wholeness & Happiness by Dick Innes
Loving & Understanding People by Dick Innes
I Hate Witnessing by Dick Innes
God's Formula for Success by Dick Innes
Damaged Emotions by David Seamands
Healing of the Memories by David Seamands
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