Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 12 – No. 2610 June 26, 2010
Thought for the week: "Laughter is to life what shock absorbers are to automobiles. It won't take the potholes out of the road, but it sure makes the ride smoother." – Barbara Johnson
"Do not wait; the time will never be 'just right.' Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along." – Napoleon Hill
"Four short words sum up what has lifted most successful individuals above the crowd: a little bit more. They did all that was expected of them and a little bit more." – Lou Vickery
"I would rather fail trying than succeed at doing nothing." – Denis Waitley
"Be like a postage stamp. Stick to one thing until you get there." – Josh Billings
"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it." – Helen Keller
"Stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach. It's the end you're after." – Anthony Robbins
"You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage—pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically—to say 'no' to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger 'yes' burning inside." – Dr. Stephen Covey
"You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."
Dr. Adrian Rogers, 1931-2005.
Submitted by Douglas Roman.
When considering a difficult decision, look ahead in your life toward the day when you will die, and consider: which option would you regret most not doing.
In most cases, your answer will be immediately clear.
J. Edgar Hoover ran the FBI, no question about it....
As a result, almost all of his subordinates were on the lookout for ways to impress their powerful boss. A young FBI man was put in charge of the FBI's supply department. In an effort to cut some costs and impress his boss, he reduced the size of the office memo paper. One of the new memo sheets soon ended up on Hoover's desk. Hoover took one look at it, determined he didn't like the size of the margins on the paper, and quickly scribbled on the memo, "Watch the borders!" The memo was passed on through the office. For the next six weeks, it was extremely difficult to enter the United States by road from either Mexico or Canada. The FBI was watching the borders. Why was the FBI watching the borders? They thought they had received a warning from their chief. But they hadn't. They had transformed an innocuous comment into a solemn warning.
"Sticks and stones may break your bones, but names will never hurt you."
Really? Insults, teasing, gossip, and verbal abuse can inflict deeper and more enduring pain than guns and knives.
Ask anyone who, as a kid was fat, skinny, short, tall, flat-chested, big-busted, acne-faced, uncoordinated, slow-witted, or exceptionally smart. In schoolrooms and playgrounds across the country, weight, height, looks, and intelligence are the subject of more taunting and ridicule than race or religion.
And it doesn't get better. Unkind words, tasteless jokes, criticism, and ridicule don't lose their sting when we become adults.
There's nothing new about this. But if we trivialize how damaging words can be, especially to youngsters, the ethical significance of verbal assaults can be lost. When we say words can't hurt anyone, we negate the feelings of those who are genuinely hurt.
Instead of minimizing the importance of words, we should encourage parents and teachers to demand a higher level of respect and greater sensitivity, precisely because words can be so powerful.
Yes, we should try to fortify our children's sense of self-worth so they can bear insults and sarcasm better. And we should urge them not to take what others say too seriously. But it's just as important to teach them that words have the power of grenades and must be used carefully.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
Jesus said, "According to your faith let it be to you."1
Walt Disney—certainly a creator and fulfiller of dreams—said, "Somehow I can't believe that there are any heights that can't be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret—curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable."
Living in Southern California, I still like going to Disneyland, and appreciate it more today than ever, knowing that Disney went broke six times (I believe it was) and had a nervous breakdown before becoming successful. Walt succeeded because he was a man with a dream of what could be and the determination to make it happen.
As George Bernard Shaw said, "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?"
And as Edward Everett Hale said, "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do."
While none of us may be gifted to be a Walt Disney, a Robert Kennedy, or a Martin Luther King, God has gifted and has a purpose for every one of his true followers. Each of us needs to discover what that purpose is, turn it into a dream and, with God's help, work to fulfill it. In so doing, we, too, will make an impact on at least one other life, and for many of us, an impact on many lives. And then, when we come to the end of life's journey, we will hear God's welcoming words, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord."2
When our dream is a God-given one, we don't have to dream the impossible dream. For with God all things are possible. Not that fulfilling the dream will come easily. In all probability it will be a life challenging task. But think of the ancient Israelites to whom God gave the Promised Land. God didn't hand it to them on a silver platter. Only where they planted the soles of their feet did it become theirs—and they had to battle for every inch of the way. However, had not God given it to them, it would have been an impossible dream-and even today it would be impossible for them to survive without God's protection. Let's each claim God's dream he has for us.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please reveal to me my God-given life purpose. Help me to make it a dream that, with your help, I will never stop pursuing until my life's work on earth is done and I stand before you on that grand and glorious day when I meet you face to face. May I so live and work that I will hear your welcoming words, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord.' Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
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