Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 10 – No. 4408 November 01, 2008
Thought for the week: "Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person's ultimate good as far as it can be obtained." – C. S. Lewis
"True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost." – Charles Caleb Colton
"To all the late bloomers—of which I was certainly one—we have learned that life is a long distance run and not just the short sprint of our high school years." – Ray Lammie
"The best way to succeed in life is to act on the advice we give to others." – Unknown
"Fix your eyes forward on what you can do, not back on what you cannot change." – Tom Clancy
"The man who chases two rabbits catches neither." – Confucius
"Faith goes up the stairs that love has built and looks out the window which hope has opened." – Charles Spurgeon
A real-estate agent was driving around with a new trainee when she spotted a charming little farmhouse with a hand-lettered: "For Sale" sign out front.
After briskly introducing herself and her associate to the startled occupant, the agent cruised from room to room, opening closets and cupboards, testing faucets and pointing out where a "new light fixture here and a little paint there" would help. Pleased with her assertiveness, the woman was hopeful that the owner would offer her the listing.
"Ma'am," the man said, "I appreciate the home-improvement tips and all, but I think you read my sign wrong. It says, "HORSE for sale."
* * * * * * *
Things that make you go Hmmm .... What do you do when you see an endangered animal that is eating an endangered plant?
Too many times women are made to feel they should apologize for being mothers and housewives. In realty, such roles can be noble callings. When I was on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, there were such gatherings from time to time to which faculty members brought their spouses. Inevitably, some woman lawyer or sociologist would confront my wife with the question, "And what is it that you do, my dear?"
My wife, who is one of the most brilliantly articulate individuals I know, had a great response: "I am socializing two homo sapiens in the dominant values of the Judeo-Christian tradition in order that they might be instruments of the transformation of the social order in the teleologically prescribed utopia inherent into the echelon." When she followed with, "And what is it that you do?" the other person's "A lawyer" just wasn't that overpowering.
Tony Compolo, "The Power Delusion." Cited in Encounter magazine (ACTS Australia).
George Washington Truett was a preacher in Dallas for 47 years. He once visited a wealthy West Texas rancher and had dinner in his huge ranch home. After dinner, the rancher took Dr. Truett up to a veranda on top of his house, and lit up a big cigar. The sun was setting, and if you've ever been to West Texas, you know you can see a long way out there.
The man pointed to the south toward some oil rigs and said, "I own everything in that direction as far as you can see." He pointed east toward some cotton fields and said, "And I own everything in that direction, too." He pointed north toward a huge herd of cattle and bragged, "And, preacher, I own everything as far as you can see in that direction." He turned to the west, and said, "And I own everything you can see in that direction, except the sun, of course."
Dr. Truett turned to the man and pointed straight up the sky and said, "And how much do you own in that direction?"
Several years ago, a preacher from out-of-state accepted a call to a church in Houston, Texas. Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride the bus from his home to the downtown area.
When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him a quarter too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, You'd better give the quarter back. It would be wrong to keep it. Then he thought, Oh, forget it, it's only a quarter. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a 'gift from God' and keep quiet.
When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the quarter to the driver and said, "Here, you gave me too much change." The driver, with a smile, replied, "Aren't you the new preacher in town? I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I'll see you at church this Sunday."
When the preacher stepped off of the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, "Oh God, I almost sold your Son for a quarter."
Our lives are the only Bible some people will ever read. This is a really scary example of how much people watch Christians and will put us to the test unknowingly!
Always be on guard—and remember—you carry the name of Christ on your shoulders when you call yourself "Christian."
Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.
The will of God will never take you to where the grace of God will not PROTECT you and comfort you. Stay FAITHFUL and Be GRATEFUL!
After a workshop, Paul (not his real name) told me he still has a 10-year-old scar from the time he quit a good job rather than lie.
When his boss asked him to issue a press release containing patently false statements, he refused, putting his employee badge on the table. His boss calmly handed the badge back, saying, "Think this over. Why throw away a good job and a promising career?"
Paul walked out so frustrated and frightened, he had to find a private place to cry. What's worse, he said his act of moral courage was a meaningless waste.
Someone else issued the press release, and his boss's career flourished. "It took me years to find a job as good as that one, and my family suffered," he added. "So what good did my integrity do for anyone?"
Paul was looking for validation of his principled stance in the wrong place. We exercise integrity not to get what we want, but to be what we want. Integrity isn't about winning. It's about staying whole and being worthy of self-respect and the esteem of loved ones. It's about being honorable, not as a success strategy but a life choice.
Although Paul suffered because of his moral courage, he would have suffered far worse had he betrayed his values. While he didn't appreciate it at the time, he preserved for himself and his family something far more valuable than his job—his honor.
It's no accident that he now has a better job and a better boss with no pressures to cheat or lie.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."1
Charles H. Spurgeon said, "Stars may be seen from the bottom of a deep well when they cannot be seen from the top of the mountain. So many things are learned in adversity which the prosperous man dreams not of."
Ovid wrote, "The road to triumph is built by adversity."
Walt Disney stated: "All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me.... You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
John Adams agreed. He said, "People and nations are forged in the fires of adversity."
Patrick Henry believed that "adversity toughens manhood, and the characteristic of the good or the great man, is not that he has been exempted from the evils of life, but that he has surmounted them."2
I have to personally admit that if there is any depth of quality in the Daily Encounters I write, it has come out of many years of trials and disappointments. It is true, as God's Word teaches: adversity is one of our greatest teachers.
And as Stan Mitchell said, "The child of God cannot attain spiritual completeness without facing trials. The Africans have a saying: 'After the rain, come the flowers.'" And then Mitchell asks, "So how does your garden grow?"
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you for the trials and adversity you have allowed me to experience in order to help me become the person you want me to be. May my trials always help me to become better and never bitter. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus name, amen."
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