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Saturday, October 25, 2008

A Good Reminder

I haven't been that faithful over the last year or so in doing my daily devotional (and obviously, blog posts!). Something happened today, not a bad thing, that reminded me how thankful I am to have Jesus in my life.

For a number of years, I did my daily Bible reading and kept up with "My Utmost for His Highest", by Oswald Chambers. Every once in a while, I will get the urge to go and read the daily devotional online. Well, today was one of those days. It was a great encouragement and reminder to me. Hopefully, it is to you too.

October 25, 2008
Submitting to God’s Purpose
I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some —1 Corinthians 9:22

A Christian worker has to learn how to be God’s man or woman of great worth and excellence in the midst of a multitude of meager and worthless things. Never protest by saying, "If only I were somewhere else!" All of God’s people are ordinary people who have been made extraordinary by the purpose He has given them. Unless we have the right purpose intellectually in our minds and lovingly in our hearts, we will very quickly be diverted from being useful to God. We are not workers for God by choice. Many people deliberately choose to be workers, but they have no purpose of God’s almighty grace or His mighty Word in them. Paul’s whole heart, mind, and soul were consumed with the great purpose of what Jesus Christ came to do, and he never lost sight of that one thing. We must continually confront ourselves with one central fact— ". . . Jesus Christ and Him crucified" ( 1 Corinthians 2:2 ).

"I chose you . . ." ( John 15:16 ). Keep these words as a wonderful reminder in your theology. It is not that you have gotten God, but that He has gotten you. God is at work bending, breaking, molding, and doing exactly as He chooses. And why is He doing it? He is doing it for only one purpose— that He may be able to say, "This is My man, and this is My woman." We have to be in God’s hand so that He can place others on the Rock, Jesus Christ, just as He has placed us.

Never choose to be a worker, but once God has placed His call upon you, woe be to you if you "turn aside . . . to the right or the left . . ." ( Deuteronomy 28:14 ). He will do with you what He never did before His call came to you, and He will do with you what He is not doing with other people. Let Him have His way.

Friday, June 20, 2008

Blog Updates

I'm slowly adding some new features to the blog. Check out the new content and updates to the right. Scroll down for some cool stuff. Eventually, I'll get back to regular content updates too.

Undaunted Leadership

"A leader, once convinced a particular course of action is the right one, must have the determination to stick with it and be undaunted when the going gets rough."

- President Ronald Reagan, December 5, 1990

Friday, May 23, 2008

Wheels of Life

Since I am the guy in the middle, I suppose that means I am at midlife?






















Click on the picture to enlarge.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Motivational Signs?

Don't take offense, it's only a joke!


And one that I can truly relate to:



Enough for today.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Mother Teresa Lived This

Found this on a blog I follow: http://www.sethbarnes.com/

How in the world can anyone truly live up to this? Mother Teresa certainly got closer than most.

ANYWAY

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Be good anyway.

Honesty and frankness will make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People need help but will attack you if you help them.
Help them anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God.
It was never between you and them anyway.

*Kent Keith originated this poem in 1968, and Mother Teresa placed it on her children's home in Calcutta in a slightly different version. As a result, many have attributed it to Mother Teresa.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Friday, April 18, 2008

Runner's Inspiration

"Bid me run, and I will strive with things impossible."

Shakespeare, Julius Caesar

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

I am paying for this microphone, Mr. Breen!

Great story I came across again today. Reminds me why Reagan is one of my heroes.

How declaring “I’m paying for this microphone” helped Ronald Reagan win a key primary

Ronald Reagan was the underdog.

He had been narrowly edged out by George Bush in the Iowa caucuses a few weeks before. Now Bush, a former UN ambassador, CIA director, and Texas congressman, was the clear frontrunner for the 1980 Republican presidential nomination. In fact, Bush had publicly declared that “Big Mo” — momentum — was on his side.

Reagan and his staff knew that if he lost in New Hampshire, it could mean the end of his campaign. They retooled their strategy and redoubled their efforts in the Granite State.

But the key to victory would turn out to be a powerful, emotional moment no one could have scripted.

Thanks to your support of The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, the full meaning of the moment is still being shared today.

“I thought it had been unfair”

Many people remember Reagan’s famous words. But most haven’t heard the full story of what happened that chilly New Hampshire night.

After Iowa, Bush and Reagan had a clear lead on the other Republican candidates, senators Bob Dole and Howard Baker, congressmen John Anderson and Phil Crane, and former Texas governor John Connally. A local newspaper, The Nashua Telegraph, invited the two frontrunners to a debate. The five others were excluded. This unfairly helped the Ronald Reagan and George Bush campaigns, Bob Dole complained. The Federal Election Commission agreed.

Reagan did too. He offered to split the cost of the debate 50-50 with the Bush campaign, but they declined. Reagan’s campaign then paid for the debate itself.

“I thought it had been unfair to exclude the other candidates,” Reagan later wrote in his autobiography, An American Life. “I decided to invite them.”

But when four other GOP candidates showed up at the debate (Connally was campaigning elsewhere), Bush campaign manager James Baker (who later became Chief of Staff to Ronald Reagan) refused to let his man participate.

For an uncomfortable few minutes, Reagan and Bush sat silently on stage with Telegraph editor John Breen. The other candidates stood awkwardly behind them. Soon, the audience grew restless.

Wanting to explain, Reagan began to speak. At that, the moderator called to a sound engineer, “Turn off Mr. Reagan’s microphone!”

Surprised and offended, Ronald Reagan’s seldom-seen temper flashed. “I am paying for this microphone, Mr. Breen!” he snapped.

As Reagan recalled, “For some reason, my words hit the audience, whose emotions were already worked up, like a sledgehammer. The crowd roared and just went wild.

“I may have won the debate, the primary — and the nomination — right there.”

Indeed, Ronald Reagan dominated the primary, winning 49.6 percent of the votes. “Big Mo” had shifted his way. A few months later, Reagan easily won the GOP nomination.

A lesson in leadership

It was a dramatic moment in history, but more interesting is what it says about Reagan himself. After all, what provoked Reagan’s rare flash of frustration was the thought of the other candidates being unfairly excluded, and the moderator’s attempt to keep the audience from hearing Reagan’s concerns.

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

We Got Skills!

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