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DISAPPOINTMENTS Disappointments come to all of us; and the more I see of life, the more convinced I am that one of the most important lessons anyone can learn is how to handle these disappointments. One of the great disappointments in my youth happened during my sophomore year in high school when I was running for class president. The class elected a cute brunette cheerleader. Another popular girl, another of the cheerleaders, came in second. And I trailed the field with only four votes. That was quite a blow to a cocky young boy to be defeated by not...

ATTITUDE Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, and where they had been on vacation. Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit...

WHY DO WE STILL HAVE SCARS? One of the greatest truths we can know in life is that God is always able and willing to forgive us for our shortcomings. All we have to do is ask for His forgiveness. And if God is willing, then we too, should forgive ourselves. Yet one of the greatest ironies concerning forgiveness is that the painful memories, the scars of our past, remain with us. We may wonder, "What's the sense in receiving forgiveness if the scars from the painful memory remain?" Maybe the question should be, "What goes through your mind...

GOD WILL NOT LET YOU FALL My family and I went camping this past summer. We took several hikes down the little river bed as it flowed through the Cuyamaca State Park near our home in San Diego. We stopped for a picnic lunch, and ate with our feet in the cool running water. As I ate my sandwich, I started tracing a trail through the rocks that shot up into the air in front of us. It was an old habit from days gone by of rock scrambling: no ropes, no hardware, no helmet, no brains! As teenagers,...

EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS When in sorrow, call John 14 When men fail you, call Psalm 27 If you want to be fruitful, call John 15 When you have sinned, call Psalm 51 When you worry, call Matthew 6:19-34 When you are in danger, call Psalm 91 When God seems far away, call Psalm 139 When your faith needs stirring, call Hebrews 11 When you are lonely and fearful, call Psalm 23 When you grow bitter and critical, call 1 Corinthians 13 For Paul's secret to happiness, call Colossians 3:12-17 For idea of Christianity, call 1 Corinthians 5:15-19 When you...

U-571 U-571 is truly an "on the edge of your seat" film about a US Navy crew trying to sail a Nazi U-Boat to England in 1942 (won't explain how that happens, see the movie). In one scene, the boat is attacked by depth charges from a German destroyer. The crew turns to the young skipper for guidance and asks what they should do to save the boat and their lives. He says he doesn't know. Somehow they survive this attack. The wise, crusty Chief then has a fatherly chat with the skipper in a quiet moment over coffee....

THE MAN IN THE GLASS I first heard the poem some years ago as a song performed by a former pop musician turned Christian entertainer. Its words had a powerful impact. They were a challenge to self-examination, and a warning about the consequences of life lived without integrity. They were a reminder that each of us must live with his or her self. And that we KNOW what's behind our image, no matter how carefully crafted, or how convincing it may be to others. I wonder if it might also speak to you. It's entitled "The Man in the...

PROMISE YOURSELF Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind; ...to speak of health, happiness, and prosperity to every person that you meet; ...to make all your friends aware of the special qualities within them; ...to look at the sunny side of everything and let your optimism work to make your dreams come true; ...to think, work for, and expect only the best; to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own; ...to forget past mistakes and press on towards a greater future; ...to wear a...

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT Psalm 23 "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want" - the crowd would listen attentively. And then, at the conclusion of the Psalm, they would rise in thunderous applause in appreciation of the actor's incredible ability to bring the verse to life. But one night, just before the actor was to offer his customary recital of Psalm 23, a young man from the audience spoke up. "Sir, do you mind if tonight I recite Psalm 23?" The actor was quite taken back by this unusual request, but he allowed the young man to...

HAVE I EARNED TOMORROW? Is anybody happier because you passed this way? Does anybody remember that you spoke to them today? The day is almost over and its toiling time is through: Is there anyone to utter now a kindly word of you? Can you say tonight in parting with the day that's slipping fast, That you helped a single person of the many that you passed? Is a single heart rejoicing over what you did or said? Does the one whose hopes were fading now with courage look ahead? Did you waste the day or use it? Was...

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW.... I LEARNED FROM NOAH'S ARK 1. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark. 2. Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something REALLY big. 3. Don't listen to critics -- do what has to be done. 4. Build on high ground. 5. For safety's sake, travel in pairs. 6. Two heads are better than one. 7. Speed isn't always an advantage. The cheetahs were on board, but so were the snails. 8. If you can't fight or flee -- float! 9. Take care of...

IN GENTLENESS THERE IS STRENGTH The parents were devastated. Their young adopted daughter had died in an unusual accident. She suffocated when the drawstring on the hood of her jacket became caught in a playground slide. It was later learned their child was not the first to die this way. Design flaws in both the hood and the slide made this an accident waiting to happen. Some people might have viewed this tragedy as an opportunity to sue the two major corporations for a lucrative settlement. The parents, however, refused. In an interview, the mother said she would have...

PALM SUNDAY Matthew 21.1 - 11 1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, 2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. 3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. 4 All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the...

CHOICES An elderly carpenter was about to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was very sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials....

x WHEN DO WE START TO LIVE AND BE HAPPY? We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are. After that we're frustrated we have teenagers with whom to deal. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage! We tell ourselves our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a vacation, when we retire. The truth is,...

ROSE The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being. She said, "Hi handsome. My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?" I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you may!", and she gave me a giant squeeze. "Why are you in college at such...

RESERVATIONS Recently, someone stopped by my office, handed me two sheets of paper, and said something to the effect of, "You're always sharing something with people; here's something for you." Then he was gone. Like so many encounters we have along life's way, this one was brief. But it left a lasting impression...and brightened my whole day. The article is definitely a "keeper". Originally written by Jonathan Lee for the Washington Post, it is entitled "Reservations of an Airline Agent". I've abbreviated it due to limited space, but the point is unchanged. Enjoy! "I work in the central reservation...

IMPORTANT WORDS The SIX most important words: "I ADMIT I MADE A MISTAKE." The FIVE most important words: "YOU DID A GOOD JOB." The FOUR most important words: "WHAT IS YOUR OPINION?" The THREE most important words: "IF YOU PLEASE." The TWO most important words: "THANK YOU." The LEAST important word: "I"

For the last four years at her Christian college, Gracie Turner had been keeping a secret. She had lost her faith. In high school, she watched cancer ravage her great-grandmother. Then she saw her family fall apart. One fight drove her to call the police on a relative. “I just remember thinking, why is this happening? How could this happen? And my first thought, or first person to blame was God,” Turner, a 21-year-old film major, told me. “I would lay in bed sometimes and just pray to God, like, it would be really nice if I didn’t wake up...

A THANKFUL HEART Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. — Philippians 4:6 Years ago I taught a message saying that when you ask God for something, you should thank Him ahead of time that you are going to get it because that will help release your manifestation. I believe that. I took the scripture above to mean just that, that when I prayed for something, I should start thanking God that it was...