Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 12 – No. 5110 December 18, 2010
Thought for the week: "Nothing changes if nothing changes. If you keep doing what you've always done, you will keep getting what you always got, and you'll keep feeling what you always felt." – Unknown
"Humility does not mean you think less of yourself. It means you think of yourself less." – Kenneth Blanchard
"As a Christian, I hope I can lead the kind of life that makes others look at me and say, 'What's missing in my life that she has?' That's a greater testimony than anything I can say." – Marilyn Quayle
"Talent is God-given.
Be humble.
Fame is man-given.
Be grateful.
Conceit is self-given."
Be careful.
– John Wooden, basketball coach (1910-2010)
"Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced." – James Arthur Baldwin
"Train up a child in the way that he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it." – King Solomon, Proverbs 22:6
"Maybe you can't change the whole world, but if you have love in your heart, you can make small differences every day, which really does change the world, one life at a time." – Kristina Koncz
Paul Newman founded the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for children stricken with cancer, AIDS, and blood diseases. One afternoon, he and his wife, Joanne Woodward, stopped by to have lunch with the kids. A counselor at a nearby table, suspecting the young patients wouldn't know Newman was a famous movie star, explained, "That's the man who made this camp possible. Maybe you've seen his picture on his salad dressing bottle?"
Blank stares.
"Well, you've probably seen his face on his lemonade carton."
An eight-year-old girl perked up. "How long was he missing?"
I asked for Strength and God gave me Difficulties to make me strong.
I asked for Wisdom and God gave me Problems to solve.
I asked for Prosperity and God gave me Brain and Brawn to work.
I asked for Courage and God gave me Danger to overcome.
I asked for Love and God gave me Troubled People to help.
I asked for Favor and God gave me Opportunities.
I got nothing I wanted, but I received everything I needed.
The following is reported to have been written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.
My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.
It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry Christmas" to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" (regarding Hurricane Katrina). Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"
In light of recent events ... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc., I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem. We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay. (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide.)
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.
"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.."
Here's a portion of my personal list of beliefs that you may want to pass on:
• I believe I'm a work-in-progress, and there will always be a gap between who I am and who I want to be.
• I believe every day brings opportunities to learn and to do something meaningful.
• I believe the true test of my character is whether I do the right thing even when it might cost more than I want to pay.
• I believe no matter how I behave, some people will be mean-spirited, dishonest, irresponsible, and unkind, but if I fight fire with fire, all I'll end up with will be the ashes of my own integrity.
• I believe life is full of joys and sorrows, and my happiness will depend on how well I handle each.
• I believe pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional, and if I can control my attitudes, I can control my life.
• I believe kindness really matters, and sarcastic comments and badly-timed criticisms can cause lasting hurt.
• I believe there's joy in gratitude and freedom in forgiveness, but both require conscientious effort.
• I believe what's fun and pleasurable isn't always good for me, and what's good for me isn't always fun and pleasurable.
• I believe no one's happy all the time, but in the end, I can be as happy as I'm willing to be.
• I believe the surest road to happiness is good relationships.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
Dr. Alfred Adler, international psychiatrist, based the following conclusions on a careful analysis of thousands of patients: "The most important task imposed by religion has always been, 'Love your neighbor....' It is the individual who is not interested in his fellow man who has the greatest difficulties in life and provides the greatest injury to others. It is from among such individuals that all human failures spring."
True, Jesus did say that we were to love our neighbor as we love our own self, but as somebody else said, "Heaven help your neighbor if you hate yourself." If I happen to hate myself, I will tend to project my feelings of self-hatred onto my neighbor, and while I may not hate him, I will find it difficult, if not impossible, to love him. This is because I can only love and accept others to the degree that I have learned to love and accept myself—in a healthy way, that is.
So, if we are to follow Jesus' example and admonition to love our neighbor (all people), we need to resolve our damaged and negative emotions that block or hinder our loving ourselves so we can be free to love others.
While we are working towards that goal, we can choose to do the loving thing to others even if we don't fully feel that love yet. And what an impact we Christians would make in our homes, places of business, schools, cities, and nation if every one of us would make the commitment every day to love our neighbor, mean it, and practice it. It's still important to do right whether we feel like doing it or not.
Let's pray that we will!
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me to love and accept myself as you love and accept me, and please help me to love my neighbor (every life I touch) and be as Christ to him/her today. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."
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