Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 10 – No. 2708 July 05, 2008
Thought for the week: "When I was a pastor of a country church, a farmer didn't like the sermons I preached on hell. He said, 'Preach about the meek and lowly Jesus.' I said, 'That's where I got my information about hell.'" – Vance Havner
"Behold the turtle: He only makes progress when he sticks his neck out." – James Bryant Conant
"God doesn't always still the storm, but he can calm the sailor." – Anon
"It is not the straining for great things that is most effective; it is the doing of the little things, the common duties, a little better and better." – Elizabeth Stuart Phelps
"Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." – Winston Churchill
"None of us can be free of conflict and woe. Even the greatest men have had to accept disappointments. The 'art of living' lies less in eliminating our troubles than in growing with them." – Bernard Baruch
"You're never as good as everyone tells you when you win, and you're never as bad as they say when you lose." – Lou Holt
"Kierkegaard said that most of us read the Bible the way a mouse tries to remove the cheese from the trap without getting caught. Some of us have mastered that. We read the story as though it were about someone else a long time ago; that way we don't get caught." – Maxie Dunnam
An old, tired-looking dog wandered into the yard. I could tell from his collar and well-fed belly that he had a home.
He followed me into the house, down the hall, and fell asleep in a corner.
An hour later, he went to the door, and I let him out.
The next day he was back, resumed his position in the hall, and slept for an hour.
This continued for several weeks.
Curious, I pinned a note to his collar: "Every afternoon your dog comes to my house for a nap."
The next day he arrived with a different note pinned to his collar: "He lives in a home with ten children—he's trying to catch up on his sleep. Can I come with him tomorrow?"
Linda was on vacation, playing the slot machines. It was her first time in a casino, and she wasn't sure how the machines operated.
"Excuse me," she said to a casino employee. "How does this work?" The worker showed her how to insert a bill, hit the spin button, and operate the release handle.
"And where does the money come out?" she asked.
He smiled and motioned to a far wall before saying, "Usually at the ATM [Automatic Teller Machine]."
That's the trouble with gambling and other "get rich quick" schemes. There's only one person getting rich, and it's not you! The lure is strong, though. The temptation to come away with that big jackpot, to go home with your pockets full without putting forth much effort. It's easy to see that Paul was right when he said, "Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare" (I Tim. 6:9a).
Considering the constant temptation of money, it's not surprising that Jesus had much to say about the subject. It is significant, though, that Jesus didn't talk as much about what to do with our money as he talked about the right kind of attitude we ought to have toward it.
Solomon, in his pearls of wisdom contained in Proverbs, also had much to say about our attitude toward wealth. One of my favorite verses on the subject is this one:
"Give me neither poverty nor riches—Feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny You, and say, "Who is the LORD?" Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God" (Prov. 30:8b-9).
May you be sufficiently blessed. But may your riches (or your desire for them) never diminish your sense of need for God.
Have a great day!
Thought for the Day by Alan Smith, Helen Street Church of Christ, Fayetteville, North Carolina. To subscribe send a blank email to join-thought-for-the-day@hub.xc.org
Some people never seem motivated to participate, but are just content to watch while others do the work. They are called "Speck Taters".
Some people never do anything to help, but are gifted at finding fault with the way others do the work. They are called "Comment Taters".
Some people are very bossy and like to tell others what to do, but don't want to soil their own hands. They are called "Dick Taters".
Some people are always looking to cause problems by asking others to agree with them. It is too hot or too cold, too sour or too sweet. They are called "Agie Taters".
There are those who say they will help, but somehow just never get around to actually doing the promised help. They are called "Hezzie Taters".
Some people can put up a front and pretend to be someone they are not. They are called "Emma Taters".
Then there are those who love others and do what they say they will. They are always prepared to stop whatever they are doing and lend a helping hand. They bring real sunshine into the lives of others. They are called "Sweet Taters".
Jim Rohn said, "For effective communication, use brevity. Jesus said, "Follow me." Now that's brief! He could be brief because of all that he was that he didn't have to say."
The briefest, fastest, quickest sermon I ever heard! Two words, "FOLLOW ME". Several did follow Jesus when He first spoke those words 2,000 years ago. Today there are over 2,200,000,000 Christians. The world's largest 'religion' is still growing rapidly in many parts of the globe. I've heard predictions of three billion within ten years. "FOLLOW ME"—two of the most powerful words ever spoken in the history of man.
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men" (Mark 1:17). "Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him" (Mark 1:20). "As he walked along, he saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him" (Mark 2:14).
Source: Faith Thought of the Day by Ray Lammie. To subscribe send a blank email to RIL3@aol.com with Subscribe in the Subject line.
It's [always] a good time to clean out the clutter in our lives. Sure, that means disposing of useless papers and unused stuff, but it also means throwing away old grudges.
The prevalence and durability of grudges proves Maya Angelou's observation that people don't always remember what you said or did, but they do remember how you made them feel.
Grudges are nothing more than toxic memories of how someone made us feel.
But Confucius taught that "To be wronged is nothing unless we continue to remember it." So why do so many of us choose to consciously preserve and revisit toxic feelings that detract from our happiness?
Perhaps we fool ourselves into thinking we can inflict some sort of pain on the person who wronged us. In fact, holding on to a grudge is like holding on to a hot stone. It doesn't hurt the stone or the person who gave it to us; it only hurts the one holding the stone. Carrying a grudge is like being stung to death by one bee.
And it really doesn't matter how justified the bitter feelings are or how right we are. Holding on to a grievance turns pain into suffering. In a peculiar way it empowers the wrongdoer to hurt us again and again.
Muster the good sense and strength to root out and release deep-seated and long-held resentments.
If you can, forgive and forget. But all that's really necessary is a firm decision to let go of your grudges so you can move forward and free yourself of the chains of resentment.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
"The popular actress, Mary Tyler Moore, is admired, not only for her professional accomplishments, but also for the way she has coped with a series of personal tragedies. Her sister died in 1978. A year later she lost her only son, Richard, at age twenty-four. Then her brother succumbed to kidney cancer. This was followed by the death of her mother.
"As if these traumatic experiences were not enough to defeat anyone, Mary Tyler Moore has battled diabetes since she was in her twenties. This courageous survivor says, 'The pain is just as intense as it is for someone who gives up and gives in.'
"Her suffering has made her more sensitive and responsive; more grateful for life. 'I appreciate,' she continues, 'much more now. I don't take tomorrow for granted, because it simply may not be there.'"2
Gutsy lady. Wise woman. It is well known that most people who develop a depth of character and inner strength have gone through oftentimes intense suffering, but I can't help but wonder how few don't (especially in the Western world) take life for granted.
The reality is that none of us has any guarantee of tomorrow. Last year on the I-5 freeway close to our home, the traffic was slowed to a standstill. All the vehicles ahead had stopped when a semi-trailer slammed into the car in front of it instantly killing all four young children who were in the car! A similar thing happened to me a couple of years ago, although nowhere near as drastic. I, along with several other cars, had stopped at a red light when suddenly we were ploughed into from behind by a heavy pickup truck causing a five-car pile up. I thanked God that I wasn't killed or seriously hurt. My vehicle was a mess.
Life is fragile. It is not only important that we don't take life for granted, but also that we prepare today for tomorrow's life after life. Eternity is forever. Whatever you do, make absolutely sure you have your "passport for heaven, " without which you will not be able to gain entry into God's heaven any more than you could gain entry into Australia, England, Germany, the U.S.A or numerous other countries without a valid passport. To obtain your passport to Heaven go to: "Passport for Heaven" at: http://tinyurl.com/dm472.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, help me to realize that this life is fragile and that there are no guarantees for tomorrow, and that I need to be prepared for life after life. Please help me to obtain my 'Passport' for entry into your heaven. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."
1. Amos 4:12 (NIV).
2. G. Curtis Jones and Paul H. Jones, 500 Illustrations Stories from Life for Preaching and Teaching, Abingdon Press. Cited in Encounter magazine (ACTS Int. Australia), April-May, 2007.
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