Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 17 – No. 3815 September 19, 2015
Thought for the week: As Robert Schuller used to say, "Inch by inch anything's a cinch," to which an Aussie friend, Ian Turner, added, "but yard by yard it's miles too hard."
Once upon a time there was a shepherd tending his sheep at the edge of a country road. A brand new Cadillac Escalade screeches to a halt next to him. The driver, a young man dressed in a Briani suit, Cerutti shoes, Ray-Ban sunglasses, Jovial Swiss wrist watch, and a BHS tie gets out and asks the shepherd, "If I can guess how many sheep you have, will you give me one of them?"
The shepherd looks at the young man, then looks at the sprawling field of sheep and says, "Okay."
The young man parks the SUV, connects his notebook and wireless modem, enters a NASA site, scans the ground using his GPS, opens a database and 60 Excel tables filled with algorithms, then prints a 150 page report on his high tech mini printer. He then turns to the shepherd and says, "You have exactly 1,586 sheep here."
The shepherd answers, "That's correct! You can have your sheep."
The young man takes one of the animals and puts it in the back of his vehicle. The shepherd looks at him and asks, "Now, if I guess your profession, will you pay me back in kind?"
The young man answers, "Sure."
The shepherd says, "You are a consultant."
"Exactly! How did you know?" asks the young man.
"Very simple," answers the shepherd. "First, you came here without being called. Second, you charged me a fee to tell me something I already knew. Third, you don't understand anything about my business ... and I'd really like to have my dog back."
About Thomas Edison's many attempts in seeking to invent the electric light bulb Susan Hayward in Begin It Now wrote, "Two dejected assistants of Thomas Edison said, 'We've just completed our 700th experiment and we still don't have the answer. We have failed.'
"'No, my friends, you haven't failed,' replied Mr. Edison, 'it's just that we know more about this subject than anyone else alive. And we're closer to finding the answer because now we know 700 things not to do. Don't call it a mistake. Call it an education.'"1
Persistence paid off very well for Edison ... for us too because eventually he succeeded in perfecting the electric light bulb. Persistence in any worthwhile cause always pays rich dividends. And better still--persistence in God's work pays eternal dividends.
The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen."
Here is a good example of a Brain Study: If you can read this OUT LOUD, you have a strong mind. And better than that: Alzheimer's is a long, long way down the road before it ever gets anywhere near you.
If you can read the following, you have a strong mind, too. It has been said that only 55 people out of 100 can.
I cdnuolt blveiee that I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd what I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in what oerdr the ltteres in a word are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is that the frsit and last ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can still raed it whotuit a pboerlm. This is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the word as a wlohe. Azanmig, huh? Yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!
The founder of a company needed to choose his successor. He studied resumes and talked to references, but he decided to ask only one question during the final interview: "How much is 2 + 2?"
Ann, the first candidate, worried that there was a trick but she answered straightforwardly. "There's only one correct answer: it's four."
Terry, who had an engineering background, was more creative. "Depending on whether you're dealing with positive or negative numbers," he said, "the answer could be plus four, zero or minus four."
Chuck, the last candidate, looked the questioner in the eye and whispered, "How much do you want it to be?"
While Ann and Terry took different approaches, they were both looking for an honest answer. Chuck, on the other hand, wanted the questioner to know that he was willing to say or do whatever it takes to succeed. Some employers may find this combination of creativity and moral flexibility highly attractive. I'd show him the door.
You see, Chuck is a manipulator and rationalizer, and they don't make good employees. They search for excuses rather than solutions, and they are more concerned with looking good than doing it right.
People like Chuck, who are adept at inventing justifications that sound good but aren't true, are simply clever liars and, eventually, they will be found out. Remember, an employee that will lie for you will lie to you.
Without conscience there is no credibility, without credibility there is no trust, and without trust there is no future.
"His lord said to him, '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'"1
After serving as a missionary for forty years in Africa, Henry C. Morrison became sick and had to return to America. As the great ocean liner docked in New York Harbor there was a great crowd gathered to welcome home another passenger on that boat. Morrison watched as President Teddy Roosevelt received a grand welcome home party after his African Safari.
Resentment seized Henry Morrsion and he turned to God in anger, "I have come back home after all this time and service to the church and there is no one, not even one person here to welcome me home."
Then a still small voice came to Morrison and said, "You're not home yet."2
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, help me to live life to the fullest and serve You faithfully all the days of my life, and remember that the real rewards await my homecoming when I get home to be with You forever in heaven. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus's name, amen."
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