November 8
The purpose of the church, financially, is not to accumulate as much money as possible but to give away as much as possible. -- Jerry Hayner
** If your family doesn't appreciate you, take heart. Jesus faced the same thing in his family. –Max Lucado
MONEY
It can buy you a House, But not a Home.
It can buy you a Bed, But not Sleep.
It can buy you a Clock, But not Time.
It can buy you a Book, But not Knowledge.
It can buy you a Position, But not Respect.
It can buy you Medicine, But not Health.
It can buy you Blood, But not Life.
How much is a billion?
What's the difference between a millionaire and a billionaire?
A million seconds is 13 days.
A billion seconds is 31 years!
A billion minutes ago was just after the time of Christ.
A billion dollars ago was yesterday at the U.S. Treasury.
According to statistics of Christian Churches today. The breakdown of giving looks like this:
20% of members Give 80% of all funds
30% of members Give the other 20%
50% of members Give nothing – ever!
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.
You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves. William J. H. Boetcker, 1942 Presbyterian minister
At the UPS cargo phone center where I worked, a woman called and said, "I need a baseball quote."
I immediately answered with Yogi Berra's famous "It ain't over 'til it's over!"
There was a brief moment of silence before the woman asked, "What was that?"
"You asked me for a baseball quote," I responded, "and that was the first thing that came into my head."
"Oh," she replied. "My husband told me to call and get a baseball quote."
I asked if she wanted to ship something, and she said she did.
Then it dawned on me: "Do you mean you want a ballpark figure?"
The Hokey Pokey -- Shakespearean Style!
O proud left foot, that ventures quick within
Then soon upon a backward journey lithe.
Anon, once more the gesture, then begin:
Command sinistral pedestal to writhe.
Commence thou then the fervid Hokey-Poke.
A mad gyration, hips in wanton swirl.
To spin! A wilde release from heaven's yoke.
Blessed dervish! Surely canst go, girl.
The Hoke, the poke -- banish now thy doubt
Verily, I say, 'tis what it's all about.
C.S. Lewis said it this way...
To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable,
because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.
"The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold of me." Martin Luther
If I make anything out of the fact that I am Thomas Merton, I am dead. And if you make anything out of the fact that you are in charge of the pig pen, you are dead. Quit keeping score altogether and surrender yourself with all your sinfulness to God who sees neither the score or the scorekeeper, but only his child redeemed by Christ. --Thomas Merton
If there is one truth you see on nearly every page of the Scriptures, it is this: God speaks to His people. From Adam in the Garden, to John on the island of Patmos, from Genesis to Revelation, God is speaking where His people can hear Him. Why is that so hard to believe? If you were going somewhere with a friend, would you expect him to walk silently beside you, never saying a word? So if you are walking with God, shouldn't you expect Him to want to share with you what is on His heart? --Henry Blackaby
"For effective communication, use brevity. Jesus said, 'Follow me.' Now that's brief! He could be brief because of all that he was that he didn't have to say." -- Jim Rohn
"If I must choose between righteousness and peace, I choose righteousness." -- Teddy Roosevelt
"There is one thing that we all have in common. That is...at some point in our life, we will face adversity. It's not a matter of if but ... when." -- Mac Anderson
"Just as iron rusts from disuse, even so does inaction spoil the intellect." -- Leonardo da Vinci, Artist
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -- Mahatma Gandhi
"If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain." -- Emily Dickinson
"What lies behind us, and what lies before us, are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
A man was driving when a traffic camera flashed. He thought his picture was taken for exceeding the speed limit, even though he knew he was not speeding. Just to be sure, he went around the block and passed the same spot, driving even more slowly, but again the camera flashed. He thought this was quite funny, so he slowed down even further as he drove past the area, but the traffic camera flashed yet again.
He tried a fourth time with the same result. The fifth time he was laughing when the camera flashed as he rolled past at a snail's pace.
Two weeks later, he got five traffic fine letters in the mail for driving without a seat belt.
A priest once asked one of his parishioners to serve as financial chairman of his parish. The man, manager of a grain elevator, agreed on two conditions: no report would be due for a year, and no one would ask any questions during the year. At the end of the year he made his report. He had paid off the church debt of $200,000. He had redecorated the church. He had sent money to missions. He had $5,000 in the bank. Needless to say, everyone wanted to know how. The man quietly explained, "You people bring your grain to my elevator. As you did business with me, I simply withheld 10 percent and gave it to the church. You never missed it."
The Widow's Mite for $39.95
An advertisement I ran across read: "Now you too can own a Genuine Coin From The Time of Jesus: The Widow's Mite. It's a minor miracle that this coin has survived and now people of faith can study, cherish, and protect it for future generations. It's yet another miracle that they're so affordable."
Then, the ad goes on to quote the Scripture we just heard, "While our limited supplies last, you may order the 2,000 year old Widow's Mite for only $39.95 plus shipping and handling. Remember this is the genuine coin mentioned in the Holy Bible and it makes a perfect gift for your child, grandchild, or favorite clergyman."
The advertisement makes it sound like your buying the actual coin the widow dropped into the receptacle. Of course, you are not. It doesn't exist. Harder still is to purchase the woman's attitude of generosity, which is of greater value in today's market.
"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body." -- Joseph Addison
"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens." -- Lewis L. Dunnington
At age 16 Confucius was a corn inspector.
"If you want to know how to live your life, think about what you want people to say about you after you die--and live backward." -- Author Unknown
"Our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become." -- Unknown
Forty six percent of the world's water is in the Pacific Ocean. The Atlantic has 23.9 percent; the Indian, 20.3; the Arctic, 3.7 percent.
As Gandhi stepped aboard a train one day, one of his shoes slipped off and landed on the track. He was unable to retrieve it as the train was moving. To the amazement of his companions, Gandhi calmly took off his other shoe and threw it back along the track to land close to the first. Asked by a fellow passenger why he did so, Gandhi smiled. "The poor man who finds the shoes lying on the track," he replied, "will now have a pair he can use."
(Paul Harvey, Nov. 1995): The Butterball Turkey company set up a hotline to answer consumer questions about preparing holiday turkeys. One woman called to inquire about cooking a turkey that had been in her freezer for 23 years.
The operator told her it might be safe if the freezer had been kept below 0 degrees the entire time. But the operator warned the woman that, even if it were safe, the flavor had probably deteriorated, and she wouldn’t recommend eating it.
The caller replied, “That’s what we thought. We’ll just give it to the church.”
APPLY: Why does that strike us as funny? She was consecrating that Turkey to God, wasn’t she? What she was offering was still good – wasn’t it??? BUT tho’ it may have been “consecrated”… though it still was “good,” it wasn’t going to taste good or smell good.
Vince Lombardi believed that mental attitude accounted for 75 percent of the ingredients of winning. Everyone wants to win, but most people don't believe they can, and therefore give up before they have tried. The more you believe you can win, the harder you will work. The harder you work, the more you will believe you can win, and the longer you will persist until you succeed.
According to a recent report, charitable giving in America has increased less than one percent over the past few years. During the same time span, however, debt payments have risen 550 percent, while our entertainment spending is up 123 percent. Not surprisingly, the average consumer in this country spends $1.05 to $1.10 for every dollar of income. The figures are startling, even for a society where millions of people live in various degrees of financial debt."
Giving is an attitude. It is a way of life. Some people are givers—others takers—and some are keepers. Whether we give of our money, time, talents, or love, as Jesus reminds us, "Give and it will be given to you." And I think I could safely say, "Take and the most valuable things of life will be taken from you."
Prayer, "Dear God, please help me to be a giver, first to you and then to others—and never just a taker or a keeper. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory. --Mahatma Gandhi
The Paradox of Our Time in History is that
We spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time; more medicine, but less wellness.
We read too little, watch TV too much and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
These are the times of tall men, and short character; steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce; of fancier houses, but broken homes.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life; we've added years to life, not life to years; we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers, wider freeways but narrower viewpoints.
We have more college degrees but less sense, more knowledge but less judgment. We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life. We’ve added years to life, but not life to years. We’ve done larger things, but not better things. We build more computers to hold more information that we print on more paper than every before, but we communicate less. These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, tall people and short character, steep profits but shallow relationships. You get the idea.
"Push on, friend. You're just one exciting step from the banquet hall of life." -- Zig Ziglar
"If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree." -- Jim Rohn
"Decide today to be a master of change rather than a victim of change." -- Brian Tracy
** If your family doesn't appreciate you, take heart. Jesus faced the same thing in his family. –Max Lucado
MONEY
It can buy you a House, But not a Home.
It can buy you a Bed, But not Sleep.
It can buy you a Clock, But not Time.
It can buy you a Book, But not Knowledge.
It can buy you a Position, But not Respect.
It can buy you Medicine, But not Health.
It can buy you Blood, But not Life.
How much is a billion?
What's the difference between a millionaire and a billionaire?
A million seconds is 13 days.
A billion seconds is 31 years!
A billion minutes ago was just after the time of Christ.
A billion dollars ago was yesterday at the U.S. Treasury.
According to statistics of Christian Churches today. The breakdown of giving looks like this:
20% of members Give 80% of all funds
30% of members Give the other 20%
50% of members Give nothing – ever!
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.
You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves. William J. H. Boetcker, 1942 Presbyterian minister
At the UPS cargo phone center where I worked, a woman called and said, "I need a baseball quote."
I immediately answered with Yogi Berra's famous "It ain't over 'til it's over!"
There was a brief moment of silence before the woman asked, "What was that?"
"You asked me for a baseball quote," I responded, "and that was the first thing that came into my head."
"Oh," she replied. "My husband told me to call and get a baseball quote."
I asked if she wanted to ship something, and she said she did.
Then it dawned on me: "Do you mean you want a ballpark figure?"
The Hokey Pokey -- Shakespearean Style!
O proud left foot, that ventures quick within
Then soon upon a backward journey lithe.
Anon, once more the gesture, then begin:
Command sinistral pedestal to writhe.
Commence thou then the fervid Hokey-Poke.
A mad gyration, hips in wanton swirl.
To spin! A wilde release from heaven's yoke.
Blessed dervish! Surely canst go, girl.
The Hoke, the poke -- banish now thy doubt
Verily, I say, 'tis what it's all about.
C.S. Lewis said it this way...
To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable,
because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.
"The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold of me." Martin Luther
If I make anything out of the fact that I am Thomas Merton, I am dead. And if you make anything out of the fact that you are in charge of the pig pen, you are dead. Quit keeping score altogether and surrender yourself with all your sinfulness to God who sees neither the score or the scorekeeper, but only his child redeemed by Christ. --Thomas Merton
If there is one truth you see on nearly every page of the Scriptures, it is this: God speaks to His people. From Adam in the Garden, to John on the island of Patmos, from Genesis to Revelation, God is speaking where His people can hear Him. Why is that so hard to believe? If you were going somewhere with a friend, would you expect him to walk silently beside you, never saying a word? So if you are walking with God, shouldn't you expect Him to want to share with you what is on His heart? --Henry Blackaby
"For effective communication, use brevity. Jesus said, 'Follow me.' Now that's brief! He could be brief because of all that he was that he didn't have to say." -- Jim Rohn
"If I must choose between righteousness and peace, I choose righteousness." -- Teddy Roosevelt
"There is one thing that we all have in common. That is...at some point in our life, we will face adversity. It's not a matter of if but ... when." -- Mac Anderson
"Just as iron rusts from disuse, even so does inaction spoil the intellect." -- Leonardo da Vinci, Artist
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -- Mahatma Gandhi
"If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain." -- Emily Dickinson
"What lies behind us, and what lies before us, are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
A man was driving when a traffic camera flashed. He thought his picture was taken for exceeding the speed limit, even though he knew he was not speeding. Just to be sure, he went around the block and passed the same spot, driving even more slowly, but again the camera flashed. He thought this was quite funny, so he slowed down even further as he drove past the area, but the traffic camera flashed yet again.
He tried a fourth time with the same result. The fifth time he was laughing when the camera flashed as he rolled past at a snail's pace.
Two weeks later, he got five traffic fine letters in the mail for driving without a seat belt.
A priest once asked one of his parishioners to serve as financial chairman of his parish. The man, manager of a grain elevator, agreed on two conditions: no report would be due for a year, and no one would ask any questions during the year. At the end of the year he made his report. He had paid off the church debt of $200,000. He had redecorated the church. He had sent money to missions. He had $5,000 in the bank. Needless to say, everyone wanted to know how. The man quietly explained, "You people bring your grain to my elevator. As you did business with me, I simply withheld 10 percent and gave it to the church. You never missed it."
The Widow's Mite for $39.95
An advertisement I ran across read: "Now you too can own a Genuine Coin From The Time of Jesus: The Widow's Mite. It's a minor miracle that this coin has survived and now people of faith can study, cherish, and protect it for future generations. It's yet another miracle that they're so affordable."
Then, the ad goes on to quote the Scripture we just heard, "While our limited supplies last, you may order the 2,000 year old Widow's Mite for only $39.95 plus shipping and handling. Remember this is the genuine coin mentioned in the Holy Bible and it makes a perfect gift for your child, grandchild, or favorite clergyman."
The advertisement makes it sound like your buying the actual coin the widow dropped into the receptacle. Of course, you are not. It doesn't exist. Harder still is to purchase the woman's attitude of generosity, which is of greater value in today's market.
"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body." -- Joseph Addison
"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens." -- Lewis L. Dunnington
At age 16 Confucius was a corn inspector.
"If you want to know how to live your life, think about what you want people to say about you after you die--and live backward." -- Author Unknown
"Our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become." -- Unknown
Forty six percent of the world's water is in the Pacific Ocean. The Atlantic has 23.9 percent; the Indian, 20.3; the Arctic, 3.7 percent.
As Gandhi stepped aboard a train one day, one of his shoes slipped off and landed on the track. He was unable to retrieve it as the train was moving. To the amazement of his companions, Gandhi calmly took off his other shoe and threw it back along the track to land close to the first. Asked by a fellow passenger why he did so, Gandhi smiled. "The poor man who finds the shoes lying on the track," he replied, "will now have a pair he can use."
(Paul Harvey, Nov. 1995): The Butterball Turkey company set up a hotline to answer consumer questions about preparing holiday turkeys. One woman called to inquire about cooking a turkey that had been in her freezer for 23 years.
The operator told her it might be safe if the freezer had been kept below 0 degrees the entire time. But the operator warned the woman that, even if it were safe, the flavor had probably deteriorated, and she wouldn’t recommend eating it.
The caller replied, “That’s what we thought. We’ll just give it to the church.”
APPLY: Why does that strike us as funny? She was consecrating that Turkey to God, wasn’t she? What she was offering was still good – wasn’t it??? BUT tho’ it may have been “consecrated”… though it still was “good,” it wasn’t going to taste good or smell good.
Vince Lombardi believed that mental attitude accounted for 75 percent of the ingredients of winning. Everyone wants to win, but most people don't believe they can, and therefore give up before they have tried. The more you believe you can win, the harder you will work. The harder you work, the more you will believe you can win, and the longer you will persist until you succeed.
According to a recent report, charitable giving in America has increased less than one percent over the past few years. During the same time span, however, debt payments have risen 550 percent, while our entertainment spending is up 123 percent. Not surprisingly, the average consumer in this country spends $1.05 to $1.10 for every dollar of income. The figures are startling, even for a society where millions of people live in various degrees of financial debt."
Giving is an attitude. It is a way of life. Some people are givers—others takers—and some are keepers. Whether we give of our money, time, talents, or love, as Jesus reminds us, "Give and it will be given to you." And I think I could safely say, "Take and the most valuable things of life will be taken from you."
Prayer, "Dear God, please help me to be a giver, first to you and then to others—and never just a taker or a keeper. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory. --Mahatma Gandhi
The Paradox of Our Time in History is that
We spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time; more medicine, but less wellness.
We read too little, watch TV too much and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
These are the times of tall men, and short character; steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce; of fancier houses, but broken homes.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life; we've added years to life, not life to years; we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers, wider freeways but narrower viewpoints.
We have more college degrees but less sense, more knowledge but less judgment. We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life. We’ve added years to life, but not life to years. We’ve done larger things, but not better things. We build more computers to hold more information that we print on more paper than every before, but we communicate less. These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, tall people and short character, steep profits but shallow relationships. You get the idea.
"Push on, friend. You're just one exciting step from the banquet hall of life." -- Zig Ziglar
"If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree." -- Jim Rohn
"Decide today to be a master of change rather than a victim of change." -- Brian Tracy
posted by joypastordon at 3:48 PM
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