Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 10 – No. 1708 April 26, 2008
Thought for the week: "Abortion is advocated only by persons who have themselves been born." – Ronald Reagan
"A child is not likely to find a father in God unless he finds something of God in his father." – Austin Sorensen
"Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires ... courage." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." – Charles Dickens
"If you are burning the candle at both ends, you are not as bright as you think." – Unknown
"Maturity doesn't come with age; it comes with acceptance of responsibility." – Ed Cole
"The safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." – C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
"It is only from the light which streams constantly from heaven that a tree can derive the energy to strike its roots deep into the soil. The tree is in fact rooted in the sky." – Simone Weil
Photographer Ruth Van Bergen specialized in celebrity portraits. One wealthy woman complained that Van Bergen's photo wasn't nearly as good as the first one she had taken.
"You must forgive me." the photographer said diplomatically. "The last time I took your picture, I was ten years younger."
"Research shows that among all the risk factors for heart disease, chronic anger is the most significant predictor—more than smoking, obesity and high blood pressure. Temper tantrums and other fits of anger are rarely useful. In fact, they erode not only people's respect for you, but also your own self-respect." – Pauline Wallin, Ph.D.
Drop a pebble in the water, just a splash,
and it is gone;
But there is half a hundred ripples circling
on and on and on,
Spreading, spreading from the center,
flowing on out to sea.
And there is no way of telling where the
end is going to be.
Drop a pebble in the water; in a minute
you will forget,
But there are little waves a-flowing and
there are ripples circling yet,
And those little waves a-flowing to a great
big wave have grown;
You've disturbed a mighty river just by
dropping in a stone.
Drop an unkind word, or careless: in a
minute it is gone;
But there are half a hundred ripples circling
on and on and on,
They keep spreading, spreading, spreading
from the center as they go,
And there is no way to stop them, once
you've started the flow.
Drop a word of cheer and kindness: just a
flash and it is gone;
But there are half a hundred ripples circling
on and on and on,
Bearing hope and joy and comfort on each
splashing, dashing wave,
Till you wouldn't believe the volume of the
one kind word you gave.
Drop a word of cheer and kindness: in a
minute you will forget;
But there's gladness still a swelling, and
there's joy circling yet.
And you've rolled a wave of comfort whose
sweet music can be heard,
Over miles and miles of water just by
dropping one kind word.
In his May 1, 2002 church newsletter, Pastor Victor Pentz of Peachtree Presbyterian Church, Atlanta, tells about the time that then Vice President George H.W. Bush represented the United States at the funeral of Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev.
"Bush later told how he was deeply moved by a silent protest carried out by Brezhnev's widow. She stood motionless by the coffin until seconds before it was closed. Then, just as the soldiers touched the lid, Brezhenev's wife performed an act of great courage and hope, a gesture that must surely rank as one of the most profound acts of civil disobedience ever committed. In the midst of the funeral for the head of state of the Soviet Union, she reached down and made the sign of the cross on her husband's chest."
"In this citadel of atheistic power, the wife of the man who had run it all hoped her husband was wrong. She hoped there was another life, and that that life was best represented by Jesus who dies on the cross."
"Today Christians around the world continue to bear witness to Christ in hostile environments, sometimes at great cost to themselves and their families... They need our prayer and support."
In 1999, a conference was held in Scottsdale, Arizona that generated the CHARACTER COUNTS! Pursuing Victory With Honor sports program. During the conference, Bob Costas asked Coach John Wooden about his decision to retire. The Coach launched into a description of "the last game I ever taught."
He chose the phrase deliberately, knowing its impact, but this wasn't an artifice. Perhaps the greatest college basketball coach of all time really saw himself as a teacher.
A few years ago I interviewed Coach Wooden for a short video. He told a story about Amos Alonzo Stagg, a famous football coach who was asked, after an unusually successful season, whether his current team was his best ever. Wooden smiled as he related Stagg's reply, "Oh, I won't know that for another twenty years or so."
You see, Coach Wooden explained, Stagg knew that it would take that long to see how the youngsters under his supervision turned out in life. That, after all, is the real test of one's teaching.
Like Alonzo Stagg, John Wooden set out to teach his players not only how to win but how to live honorable and worthy lives. Even now, at 97, the Coach is likely to answer a question by reciting a poem. The last time I was with him he said:
No written word, nor spoken plea Can teach our youth what they should be. Nor all the books on all the shelves. It's what the teachers are themselves.
It is what Coach is himself that creates a legacy of wisdom, dignity, and honor and makes him an example to us all. The historian Henry Adams said, "A teacher affects all eternity. You never know where his influence stops." So it will be for Coach John Wooden.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death."1
On one occasion when Joy and I were visiting in New York City, we wanted to visit Ellis Island where many of the early immigrants were processed before being allowed to enter and welcomed into the U.S. From downtown we were told to go on the Red Line subway train. Not knowing anything about the subway system, we sure felt relieved when we found the right train and boarded it.
Oops ... after quite a while we discovered that while we were on the right train, we were headed in the wrong direction. While we were sincere, we happened to be sincerely wrong.
We've all heard about football players who have done the same type of thing; that is, they were on the right team, but were running with the ball towards the wrong goal. They were sincere too, but sincerely wrong.
Many a person too, may be in the right church but, without knowing it, may be heading in the wrong direction. They, too, may be very sincere but sincerely wrong.
In younger years I figured that if I did more good things to outweigh the bad things that I had done, that would get me into God's heaven. That is, by my good works I could earn my way into heaven. Wrong. God's Word makes it very clear that there is no way we can earn our way into God's heaven. Forgiveness of sins and the way to heaven are totally a gift from God. This is because Jesus Christ, God's Son, died on the cross to pay the penalty for all our sins making God's gift of forgiveness and a home in heaven possible. All we need to do is confess our sinfulness to God, repent from our sinful ways, and ask God for his forgiveness and gift of eternal life in heaven—and accept these by faith.
The word "repent" literally means to do a u-turn and go in the opposite direction. That is, to turn from our sins and from going our own way to go God's way.
When it comes to your eternal destiny, whatever you do make sure you are on the right road heading in the right direction. As Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."2 Being sincere won't make it.
Note: to be absolutely sure you are on the right road to heaven read "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian" online at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me to know and understand your requirements regarding the way into your heaven as explained in your Word, the Bible. And help me to be absolutely certain that I am going the right way with my sins forgiven and have received your gift of eternal life with a home in heaven. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."
1. The Bible (Proverbs 14:12, NIV).
2. Jesus (John 14:6, NIV).
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