A book of many interests and topics that have value for all readers, and often with great spiritual messages.

1. ILLUSTRATIO S, HUMOR, POETRY A D
QUOTATIO S VOL 11
COMPILED A D EDITED BY GLE PEASE
A
ACCOU TABILITY
Paid in Full - Romans 14:1-12
This activity will help members of your congregation examine their
priorities and discover if their daily activities are bringing honor to
God. During your message, tie in the concept of using an appointment
calendar.
Say: A planning calendar usually becomes a record of events. Each record
is unique and personal. It is usually sketchy and consists of a word or
phrase written down as a reminder. To look at someone else’s calendar is
to get anincomplete picture of what actually happened. The same is true
when we examine someone else’s life. We get only an incomplete picture.
We don’t understand the motives or the circumstances of a given event.
The only person whose calendar we can fully interpret is our own.
Ask participants to think about all the events recorded on their
calendars for the past week and reflect on how those events connect to
their lives as Christians. Did the events honor God? Did they provide an
opportunity to love in Jesus’ name? Were there events they would rather
not bring before God? How do they think God would evaluate their
calendars?
As part of this activity, offer opportunities for both confessing sins
to God and dedicating the weeks ahead to serving God more fully.
AGING
Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years,
People grow old only by deserting their ideals
You are as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear,
As young as your hope, and as old your despair.
In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber

2. So long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer and courage
So long are you young.
When the wires are all down and your heart is covered
With the snows of pessimism, the ice of cynicism,
Then, and only then, are you grown old.
A GELS, ORDER OF
ORDERS OF ANGELS
There are a number of orders in the angelic realm:-
(1) Cherubim - these are the highest order and were originally the
defenders of Divine Holiness. Satan was the covering cherub before he
fell, a servant to Jesus Christ himself. Gabriel and Michael are also
cherubs. - Daniel 8:16, 10:13
(2) Seraphim - are burning ones and have perpetual fire - Isaiah 6:2,
Genesis 3:24
(3) Principalities and Powers - Ninety percent of the time this term
is used in Scripture it is used for angels - Romans 8:38-39. Sometimes
it is used for all angels but it is usually used for fallen angels. They
control certain segments of the human race, they can control the voice
and the mind. - Mark 5:1-20
(4) Ministering Angels
(a) Guardian Angels - Hebrews 1:14
(b) Angels of the Waters - Revelation 16:5
(c) Angels of the Abyss - Revelation 9:1
(d) Angels of Fire - Revelation 14:18
(e) Angels of Judgment - Revelation 8:2
(f) Watcher Angels - Daniel 4:1
APOCRYPHAL STORIES
Lesile Paul wrote, 'There are two aprocryphal stories of the childhood
of Jesus which illustrate the difficulties a young poet might hat to
contend with among hill puritans. In one he squatted childlike over the
mud and modelled sparrows out of the clay. Sparrows! It was the
sabbath. Another child ran telling tales to Joseph who came hurrying
officiously out to his boyd and said, "Why do you do this sort of
thing--profaning the Sabbath>" In the story Jesus would neither answer
his question nor look at him but stared down at his sparrows and said to
them, "Go on, fly away, and remember me for the rest of your life." And
they flew up to the rooftops. In another story Jesus was playing
withother boys on the flat roof of a two=story house. A playmate was
pushed and fell to the ground and was killed. The other boys fled and
Jesus was left standing alone on the roof. The parents of the dead
child ran from their house weeping and when they saw Jesus standing
alone on the roof accused him of the death of the boy. "But Jesus,

3. seeing that, leaped dwon straightaway from theupper storey and stood a
the the head of him that wasd dead, and saith to him, 'Zeno, did I cast
thee down? Arise and tell....' And with the word the boy rose up and
worshpped Jesus and said, "Lord, thou didst not cast me down, but when I
was dead thou didst make alive.'"
APPOLOGIZE
"One of the first lessons I leanred in our marriage was the necessity of
saying, "I'm sorry," My wife, christy, is much better at it than me. In
fact, it seems that wheever we had a disagreement, she would be the
first to apologize. Due to muy delicate male ego, I would let her.
After one of our "discussions," Cristy decided that it was my turn
to say "I'm sorry." Since I wasn't used to apologizing, I thought
nothing of te stony silence that existed between us for the next hour.
However, I caught her nonverbal message after awhile: "Either you
apologize, or face the consequences." As a newlywed, it didn't take me
long to figure out what those consequences might be!
But I was feeling stubborn that evening and thought maybe I could
outwait her. I was wrong. There was no way she was going to apologize
first. She had made up her mind, and the next move was up to me.
I knew I should do my part; Christy was a very forgiving person.
And after all, wasn't I the head of our home? Wasn't I the one who was
supposed to be showing the way? Wasn't I to love Christy as Christ
loved His church?
Fianlly, I dropped to my knees. Not to pray, although I probably
should have. I dropped to my knees so I could crawl across the living
room and beg Christy's forgiveness. It was a well-calculated move, and
it broght the desired reesult; laughter. For all her determination, she
couldn't stay mad when she saw her penitent husband crawling on the
floor.
When I finally reached her, we collapsed in each other's arms,
almost simutaneously saying, "I'm sorry!" The ice had been broken, and
we could return to the joys of our relationship.
Since that time, I've said, "I'm sorry" many times. Sometimes I've
added flowers or a gift. I doubt I'll ever be as quick to forgive as
Christy, but I'll never forget the lesson I learned that night. Love
means you always have to say "I'm sorry."
J.D. Holt
B

4. BAPTISM
Over the centuries Christians have debated what baptism
accomplishes, to whom it should be administered, and how much
water should be used. Christian Theology in Plain Language, p.
158
The story is told about the baptism of King Aengus by St.
Patrick in the middle of the fifth century. Sometime during the
rite, St. Patrick leaned on his sharp-pointed staff and
inadvertently stabbed the king's foot. After the baptism was
over, St. Patrick looked down at all the blood, realized what he
had done, and begged the king's forgiveness. Why did you suffer
this pain in silence, the Saint wanted to know. The king
replied, "I thought it was part of the ritual."
Knowing the Face of God, Tim Stafford, p. 121ff
2. TELL ME ABOUT BAPTISM
by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson
ote to he Reader. Christians disagree about some aspects ofChristian baptism,
while at the same time we agree very strongly thatChrist is our Savior and Lord.
Please don't e-mail me seeking todebate the subject. This is to help and instruct new
believers, not toargue about it. If you disagree, I understand.
---- Line ----
Face of girl
I'm glad you're interested in baptism. I'd like to explain it to you,and answer some
of your questions if I can.
What is baptism?
Baptism is a sacred Christian ceremony in which believers are immersedin water
as a sign their commitment to Jesus as their Lord and Saviorand of the forgiveness
of their sins. Do I need to be baptized in order to become a Christian?
o, baptism isn't what makes you a Christian. Your trust in Jesus andyour
commitment to be His disciple is what makes you a Christian. TheBible teaches, "It
is by grace you have been saved, through faithandthis is not from yourselves, it is
the gift of Godnot by works, sothat no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9) Remember
the thief on thecross next to Jesus? When he called out to Jesus in faith,
Jesuspromised him, "Today you will be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43). He
didn't have time to be baptized, and yet he was forgiven and offered eternal life with
Jesus. Faith makes us a Christian. Then why should I be baptized?the Bible way of
responding to Jesus' call for you tobecome His disciple. Faith saves you; baptism is
your first step ofobedience to your new Master, if you will. otice Jesus' last words
to His followers: "Go into all the world andpreach the good news to all creation.
Whoever believes and is baptizedwill be saved, but whoever does not believe will be
condemned" (Mark16:15). Pretty strong, isn't it? "Therefore go and make disciples
ofall nations," Jesus told His disciples, "baptizing them in the name ofthe Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19).
While faith is what saves you, baptism is pretty closely associated ine Bible. Except

5. for the thief on the cross, there is no record of anunbaptized believer anywhere in
Scripture. So if you want to be afollower of Jesus, then baptism is the first step after
praying togive your life to Him. If you claim to be a follower of Jesus but have
4put off being baptized, how do you know you aren't fooling yourself?Jesus'
disciples put the highest priority on doing what He said to do. What is "believer's
baptism"?
Some churches baptize babies and children who aren't old enough toplace their
own faith in Jesus. We strongly believe that parents needo dedicate their children to
the Lord, and we have a special servicefor this called Dedication of Children.
However, since the Bible nevertalks about baptizing infants, we reserve baptism for
those who areold enough to make their own faith commitment, hence the term
5"believer's baptism."
While children who are very young can begin to trust Jesus and have agrowing
spiritual life, we have found it is best to wait untilchildren are in the third or fourth
grade before they are baptized.This way, when they look back on their baptism in
later years, theycan see it as a genuine act of commitment and faith. What's the
difference between immersion and sprinkling?
Immersion is a translation of the Greek word baptizo which means "todip" or "to
immerse." In Bible days this is how they baptized people,in rivers and pools and
streams. You read about John the Baptist, thathe "was baptizing at Aenon near
Salim, because there was plenty ofwater" (John 3:23).
"Sprinkling" probably came about the Second Century in response to theneed to
baptize elderly and infirm people who might not surviveimmersion in a cold lake or
stream. It spread due to convenience. Butsprinkling as a means of baptism loses the
rich symbolism of washing
6and burial and resurrection (Romans 6:4) which comes with immersion.We baptize
by immersion because it is the Bible way and it brings outthe full meaning of
baptism.
What does baptism mean?
Baptism is an outward sign of an inward grace. In other words, baptismis a symbol
of what God has already done in our lives. These are someof the things that baptism
signifies:
Bath Tub * Cleansing. In the same way we wash away dirt from our bodies, God
cleanses us from our sins. Baptism is a way of saying publicly that we are turning
from our sins and receiving Jesus' forgiveness (see Mark 1:4-5 and Acts 2:38). In
the ew Testament, this is the
7 instruction to a new believer: "And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be
baptized and wash your sins away, calling on His name" (Acts 22:16).* Faith.
Baptism is also the Bible way that people identify
themselves as Christians. When people put their trust in Jesus,immediately they
were baptized. They didn't wait for a month ortwo. If they could, they went right
out and were baptized thatvery day. * Union with Jesus.The Apostle Paul speaks of
"being united with Him" by baptism (Romans 6:5).. "All of you who were
baptized into Christ have put on Christ," the Bible says (Galatians 3:27), muchlike
you might put on a new set of clothing. When we are immersedin water and feel the
water all around us, we experience somethingof this sense of being "united" with
Jesus.By baptism we are also united with all other true Christians as part of

6. Jesus' Church (1 Corinthians 12:13), and with allChristians we celebrate "one Lord,
one faith, one baptism" (Ephesians 4:5).
8.
Flame and Dove
ew Life. The Bible also refers to baptism as a symbol of dying tothe old life and
burying it when the believer goes down under thewater. When he or she comes up
out of the water after baptism, theBible likens it to rising from the grave with Christ
to a new life(Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12).
* The Holy Spirit. Immersion in water is also a sign of how we areimmersed by
Jesus in the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist prophesied,"I baptize you with water. But
one more powerful than I will come,the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to
untie. He willbaptize you with the Holy Spirit" (Luke 3:16). Peter alsoinstructed
new converts, "Repent and be baptized, every one ofyou, in the name of Jesus
Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.And you will receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit" (Acts 2:38).
9When we are Christians, the divine Holy Spirit is in us, aroundus, over us, and
throughout our beings. We are immersed orbaptized in the Spirit.
Questions and answers about baptism
Question: I was baptized when I was a baby. Do I need to be baptizedagain?
Answer: Your infant baptism was really your parents dedicating youto the Lord,
and, as that, it was a wonderful expression of theircommitment to God on your
behalf. However, you need to express yourtrust in Jesus and your commitment to
Him by being baptized as abeliever. obody can do that for you.
Question: I'm afraid of the water.
Answer: Don't worry. If you need to, you can hold your nose when the
10pastor baptizes you. The pastor will just dunk you down quickly andthen lift you
out of the water. obody has drowned yet being
, and you're not likely to be the first.
Question: What should I wear? Answer: If the church has a white baptismal robe,
plan to wear that over your underwear. For an outdoor baptism you might wear a
bathingsuit with a white T-shirt over it. Make sure you bring a towel and achange of
clothes, comb, blow dryer, etc. I wonder how people inJesus' day could be baptized
without their blow dryer handy?
Question: I was baptized when I was six or seven and don't reallyremember it.
Should I be baptized again, now that I am a realChristian?
Answer: You're experiencing one of the problems associated withbaptizing children
a little too young. Why don't you talk with your
1about this? The pastor will help you understand what happenedwhen you were a
child, and give you good advice on whether you oughtto be baptized now.illtis mean
I am baptized "Baptist"? o. You are baptized "Christian." Whatever Christian
churchyou may attend in the future will recognize your baptism as agenuine
expression of your faith in Christ.
Question: I want to be baptized. What do I do next? Answer Tell your pastor you
want to be baptized. There is probably a class for you to attend to learn more about
what this commitment means. Then the church will schedule a baptism and
celebrate withyou as you show your faith in Jesus by baptism. And congratulations!

7. This is a very significant step in your spiritual life.
9. A lad in a Baptist family got the notion that he was going to
become a preacher. So he would get up on a stump and preach to
the chickens or whatever came by. He decided one day that he
ought to practice the art of baptism. He looked around for
suitable objects for the ceremony. Their old dog had had pups
which had grown to a pretty good size. He rounded them up and
took them down to the creek and began dunking them under with the
appropriate words. He got down to the last one, which was the
least sociable. When he picked it up, it growled and bit him,
drawing some blood.
"Well," he said, "I'll just sprinkle you and let you go to
hell."
BAPTISM STUDY OF THE WORD
1. TESTIMO Y OF CHURCH LEADERSA D FOU DERSTESTIMO Y OF
CATHOLIC AUTHORITIESCardinalJamesGibbos, Archishop f Baltimore and
Cancellor ofth Cthlic University ofAmerica, on page 266 of his bookentitled
"FAITH OF OUR FATHERS." (82nd edition, John MurphyCompany Publishers,
Baltimore, 1904), makes the followingstatement: "For sevral centuries after the
esablishmentofChristinity, baptismwas conferred by IMMERSIO ;but since
thewlfth centuy the praccebapizing by infusion (sprinkling)
[LI K] 7hspvaild in the Catholic church, as this mnner is attendedwith less
inconvenience than baptism by immersion."The ew American Catholic Edition
Bible ( ew ConfraternityVersion) on page 163, in a footnote under ROMA S 6:3,
states: "St.Paul alludes to the manner in which baptism was ordinarilyconferred in
the primtive church, BY IMMERSIO . The descent intothe water is suggestive of
the descetof the body into thegrave."Both Cardinal Gibbons and the Catholic Bible
reveal the fact thatthe Catholic church departed from the original COVE A T
COMMA Dand practice of Jesus and His apostles.
2. TESTIMO Y OF PROTESTA T DE OMI ATIO AL FOU DERS.Martin
Luther, founder of the Lutheran church: "Baptism isBAPTISMOSGrek and
MERSIO in Latin, and means toplungesomethingcompletly int the water sotha the
water covers it.It would be proper, according to the meaning of the word
thatwhoever is to be baptized, should be put in and sunk completelyinto the water
and then drawn out again." (Luther's Works, Volume35, "Word and Sacrament,"
page 29).
"The term baptism is a Greek word ...when we immerse anything intowater, that it
may be entirely covered with water. That custom hasbeen abolished among the
generality, (for neither do they entirelydip, but only sprinkle with a little water).
evertheless theyought to be wholly IMMERSED, for the etymology of the
wordrequires it. And truly, if you consider what baptism signifies,you shall see the
same thing required." (Opera Omnia, Tom 1., page72).
[LI K] 9John Wesley, founder of the Methodist church: "We are buried
withHim---Alluding to the ancient manner of baptizing by IMMERSIO ."("The
ew Testament, With Explanatory otes," Romans 6:4).Methodist scholars John
McClintock and James Strong: "Sprinklingas a form of baptism took the place of

8. IMMERSIO fer a fewcenturiesth earlychurch. ot fromyestablished rule, butby
commonnsen." (McClintock and Strong's Cyclopedia ofReligious Knowledge, Vol.
IX, page 968, 12 volumes).
John Calvin, founder of the Presbyterian church: "It is evidentthat the term baptize
means to IMMERSE, and that this was the formused by the primitive church."
(Institutes of the ChristianReligion," Vol. III, page 344).
"Wherefre thechurch (Catholic church) did grantliberttoherself sicethe beginnngto
change th rite somewhat."(Institutes of the Christian Religion," Vol IV, page 15).
TESTIMO Y OF THE ORIGI AL LA GUAGE I THE EW
TESTAME TThe ew Testament was written in the Koine Greek language. In
thatoriginal language there are three verbs that are used to conveythree totally
different actions. They were Epicheo, Rhantizo andBaptisma. Each verb had a
different meaning. They were neverinterchangeable. Epicheo was never used to
mean Rhantizo andRhantizo was never used to mean Epicheo. either Epicheo
norhantizo was ever used to mean Baptisma or visa-versa. These verbsare defined as
follows:
EPICHEO, "To pour upon." It is used in Luke 10:34, to describewhat the "Good
Samaritan" did when he "POURED" oil upon the woundsof the man who fell
among robbers.RA TIZO, "To sprinkle," In HEBREWS 9:13, this word describes
theOld Testament practice of SPRI KLI G blood and ashes of a
templesacrifice.BAPTISMA, "To immerse, submersion, to dip." In MATTHEW
21;25;EPHESIA S 4:5; 1 PETER 3:21, this word is used of John's BAPTISMand of
Christian BAPTISM, both of which were immersion in water.
1 ow which of these three verbs did Jesus and His apostles use whenthey
commanded taught believers to be baptized? Did they say,"Repent and be
EPICHEO (poured upon)?" Did they say, "Repent andbe RHA TIZO
(sprinkled)?" The answer to both questions is O! Youcannot obey Christ's
command to be RHA TIZO (sprinkled) because Henever commanded sprinkling.
What He did command was, "Repent andbe BAPTISMA (immersed)." If you were
sprinkled you receivedman-made baptism and not the COVE A T BAPTISM
ordained by God. Ifyou have not been IMMERSED you have not received the
baptism Jesuscommanded in the Bible. Is it possible to receive God's
COVE A TSIG without receiving it in the way God commanded it to be given?
[LI K]
PROTESTA T DE OMI ATIO S A D CATHOLIC ERRORWhy do protestant
denominations and the Catholic church teach andpractice MA -MADE
TRADITIO instead of Biblical COVE A T truth?The answer is found in the
origin and history of both groups.
[LI K] 2MARTI LUTHER was a Catholic priest who studied the Bible
andrealized the doctrinal departures by Catholicism. He left theCatholic church and
started the "reformation." His intent was toreform the Catholic church and return
to the ORIGI AL DOCTRI ES of ew Testament Christianity.
Likewise, JOH CALVI came from a Catholic background. He rejectedthe
departures from ew Testament doctrine by the Catholic church,joined the
reformation and started the Presbyterian church.
KI G HE RY VIII was a member of the Catholic church when he askedPope
Clement VII for a divorce from Kathryn so he could marry AnnBolin. The pope

9. refused and Henry left the Catholic Church tostart his own church. He created the
Church of England (AnglicanChurch) and appointed the office of Archbishop of
Canterbury asit's head. The Archbishop immediately granted Henry a divorce
fromKathryn so he could marry Ann. The, newly begun, Church of
Englandcontinued the baptismal tradition of sprinkling inherited from theCatholic
church.
LUTHERA , PRESBYTERIA and A GLICA churches are all hybrid
3off-shoots of the Catholic church. When they left Catholicism theycarried with
them the CATHOLIC TRADITIO of baptism bysprinkling.with water.
JOH WESLEY was an Anglican preacher who came to America toestablish the
Church of England in the colonies. Wesley, also,ended up with a hybrid off-shoot,
called Methodism. This newdenomination called the Methodist church retained the
Church ofEngland's practice of baptism by sprinkling which had beeninherited
from the Catholic church.The practice of SPRI KLI G as BAPTISM is not a ew
Testamentdoctrine. It was never taught or practiced by Jesus or Hisapostles. It is a
man-made tradition started by the Catholicchurch and perpetuated by the
protestant denominations who brokeoff from the Catholic church.
The following illustrates the historical digression from theoriginal Biblical practice
of baptism by immersion in water topresent day practice of baptism by sprinkling
with water. [I LI E]
4[LI K]
TRA SLATIO OR TRA SLITERATIO ?If sprinkling as baptism is not a ew
Testament doctrine. And ifit was neither taught nor practiced by Christ, the
apostles or the ew Testament Church, where did we get the word BAPTISM?
We know the original Greek word BAPTISMA means to IMMERSE. But,what does
the English word BAPTISM mean?
Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines BAPTISM as: "A sacramentof the
Christian church, signalized by SPRI KLI G with orIMMERSIO in water."
This is the evolved modern-day meaning of the English wordBAPTIZE. But it is not
the meaning of the original Koine Greekword. either is it the meaning of the
modern classical Greekword. In the Greek language, today or in any age, the
wordBAPTISMA still means IMMERSE. The English word and the originalGreek
word sound alike but have different meanings. How can thatbe?
[LI K] 5This is not hard to explain when you understand that our Englishword
BAPTISM is not a "TRA SLATIO " of the Greek word "BAPTISMA."Instead of
being a translation it is a "TRA SLITERATIO " of theGreek word
"BAPTISMA." There is a great difference between atranslation and a
transliteration.
TRA SLATIO : To explain, define, the meaning of a word in onelanguage into the
same meaning of that word in another language.It is to explain the word so it will
mean exactly the same thingin both languages.
TRA SLITERATIO : To write the phoenetic equivalent of anotherlanguage's
alphabet on the page instead of translating the word.Suppose I was translating a
Greek text into the English language.And suppose I come to the Greek word "zoe."
In Greek "zoe," means"life." I would not write in the English text, "...this is theonly
zoe I have." The correct translation would be, "...this isthe only life I have." "Zoe"
is a TRA SLITERATIO of the Greekword. "Life" is the TRA SLATIO , of the

10. word, into the Englishlanguage. The meaning of the Greek word "zoe"cannot be
translatedinto any language as anything except "LIFE."
6
The word "BAPTISM" is not a translation. It is a TRA SLITERATIO of the
word "baptisma." It is a word made by writing the Englishequivalent of the Greek
alphabet. In the Greek alphabet the wordis spelled: Beta Alpha Pi Tau Iota Sigma
Mu Alfa. The word is"baptisma." But with a transliteration we still do not know
theUE meaning of the word. All we have done is create a new word inthe English
language with no meaning. All we have done is create anew English word
pronounced BAPTISM. What is baptism? How do wedefine baptism? It must be
defined exactly like the word fromwhich it was transliterated.
It MUST have the same meaning as the original language! And in thesame way, if
you transliterate the Greek word "BAPTISMA" into theEnglish language it MUST
have the same meaning in the Englishlanguage as it had in the Greek language.
Therefore, "BAPTISM"must be understood to mean "IMMERSIO ." It cannot be
understood assprinkling and still maintain the original meaning, and intent
ofaction, as the original.
7[LI K]
A IMPORTA T HISTORY LESSO How did we end up with a transliteration
instead of a translation?It happened in England during the reign of King James, the
son ofMary, Queen of Scots. In A.D. 1604, during a conference ofclergy and bishops
of the Church of England, King James orderedScriptures to be translated into the
English language. 47 menof special learning were chosen from churchmen, Puritans
andscholars having no theological bias. In A.D. 16ll, these menproduced what is
called the "King James Version" of the Bible. Inthat version there appeared, for the
first time, a new Englishword---"BAPTISM."
This new word came into being because these 47 scholars faced aproblem. In the
Koine Greek manuscripts was this word BAPTISMAwhich meant "TO
IMMERSE." But King James was a member of theChurch of England and this
Anglican church did not immerse.Because of the Catholic departure, inherited by
the Church ofEngland when they broke with Catholicism in 1534, King
James'baptism had never been IMMERSIO in water, he had only
beenSPRI KLED with a little water.
[LI K] 8
These scholars would not sacrifice their scholastic integrity bysaying the word
"BAPTISMA" meant "SPRI KLE." That would make themthe laughing stock of
the world. So they compromised. Instead ofTRA SLATI G the word, they
TRA SLITERATED the word by putting, inthe text of the King James Bible, the
English equivalentGreek alphabet.
Instead of the text reading, "...arise and be IMMERSED..." theywrote, "...arise and
be BAPTIZED..." And they did that in everylace where the word, or a form of the
word, BAPTIZE appeared ine manuscripts. That is how we got our English word
BAPTIZE andBAPTISM. The English word BAPTIZE is a TRA SLITERATIO
and not aTRA SLATIO of the Greek word BAPTISMA.

11. BAPTIST
1. The first meeting that led to the secession of the Southern States and to the Civil
War.....was held in the First Baptist Church of Columbia. Soon afterwards and
epidemic broke out in Columbia, and the seat of the secessionist agitation moved to
Charleston. However, because it was known in Washington that it all began in
Columbia, when General Sherman and his soldiers went through Columbia on his
famous march to the sea, he had orders to burn the church where the business
began. A lieutenant and a squad of soldiers were sent out to take care of the task.
They found the Baptist church, and asked the egro janitor if that was the right
church, explaining their intentions. The janitor replied that they were mistaken,
and volunteered to take them to the church they sought; they went down the street
and burned the first Methodist Church. The First Baptist Church is still standing.
There is church loyalty for you.
BEAUTY
Jim Holt's
Beauty's Truth:
A Defense of Scientific Elegance
· Hermann Weyl: "My work has always tried to unite the true with the
beautiful and when I had to choose one or the other, I usually chose the
beautiful."
· Buckminster Fuller: "When I am working on a problem, I never think about
beauty. I only think of how to solve the problem. But, when I have finished, if
the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong."
· Werner Heisenberg, writing to Albert Einstein: "You may object that by
speaking of simplicity and beauty I am introducing aesthetic criteria of truth,
and I frankly admit that I am strongly attracted by the simplicity and beauty
of the mathematical schemes which nature presents us. You must have felt
this too: the almost frightening simplicity and wholeness of the relationship,
which nature suddenly spreads out before us."
· Albert Einstein: "The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in
which we are permitted to remain children all our lives."
· Jules Henri Poincare: "The scientist does not study nature because it is
useful; he studies it because he delights in it, and he delights in it because it is
beautiful. If nature were not beautiful, it would not be worth knowing, and if

12. nature were not worth knowing, life would not be worth living. Of course, I
do not here speak of that beauty which strikes the senses, the beauty of
qualities and appearances; not that I undervalue such beauty, far from it,
but it has nothing to do with science; I mean that profounder beauty which
comes from the harmonious order of the parts and which a pure intelligence
can grasp. This it is which gives body, a structure so to speak, to the
iridescent appearances which flatter our senses, and without this support the
beauty of these fugitive dreams would be only imperfect, because it would be
vague and always fleeting."
· H. E. Huntley, The Divine Proportion: "If a poet sees beauty in a rainbow ...
so does the physicist in the laws governing its manifestation. The surface
beauty of the rainbow ... is appreciated by all men: it is given. But the buried
beauty, uncovered by the industrious researches of the physicist, is
understood only by the scientifically literate. It is acquired: education is
essential."
· J. B. Shaw: "The mathematician is fascinated with the marvelous beauty of
the forms he constructs, and in their beauty he finds everlasting truth."
· J. W. A. Young: "Mathematics has beauties of its own -- a symmetry and
proportion in its results, a lack of superfluity, an exact adaptation of means
to ends, which is exceedingly remarkable and to be found only in the works
of the greatest beauty. When this subject is properly ... presented, the mental
emotion should be that of enjoyment of beauty..."
· J.J. Sylvester Presidential Address to British Association, 1869: "The world
of ideas which it [mathematics] discloses or illuminates, the contemplation of
divine beauty and order which it induces, the harmonious connexion of its
parts, the infinite hierarchy and absolute evidence of the truths with which it
is concerned, these, and such like, are the surest grounds of the title of
mathematics to human regard, and would remain unimpeached and
unimpaired were the plan of the universe unrolled like a map at our feet, and
the mind of man qualified to take in the whole scheme of creation at a
glance."
· Bertrand Russell: "Mathematics, rightly viewed, posses not only truth, but
supreme beauty -- a beauty cold and austere, like that of sculpture."
· Eric Temple Bell (1883-1960): "Guided only by their feeling for symmetry,
simplicity, and generality, and an indefinable sense of the fitness of things,
creative mathematicians now, as in the past, are inspired by the art of
mathematics rather than by any prospect of ultimate usefulness."
· Godfrey H. Hardy (1877 - 1947), A Mathematician's Apology: "The
mathematician's patterns, like the painter's or the poet's must be beautiful;
the ideas, like the colors or the words must fit together in a harmonious way.
Beauty is the first test: there is no permanent place in this world for ugly

13. mathematics."
· Albert Einstein: "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not
simpler."
· Albert Einstein: "... in nature is actualized the idea of mathematical
simplicity."
1. The wife of a French dipolmat was kidnapped by bandits. She went to the chief
and asked him if it was true if he meant to ask a ransom of fifty thousand toels. He
said yes and she said, "Look at me. I never was beautiful. ow I am old and
toothless. My husband wouldn't give five toels to get me back, let alone fifty
thousand." He saw the reasonableness of the argument and let me go."
2. Ev'n then, her I'resence had the power
To soothe, to warm,--nay, ev'n to bless--
If ever bliss could graft its flower
On stems so full of bitterness--
Ev'n then her glorious Smile to me
Brought warmth and radiance, if not balm,
Like Moonlight on a troubled sea,
Brightening the storm it cannot calm.
3. Yet graceful Ease, and Sweetness void of Pride,
Might hide her faults, if /Belles had faults to hide:
If to her share some female errors fall,
Look on her Face, and you'll forget 'em all.
4. Move these Eyes?
Or whether riding on the balls of mine,
Seem they in motion? Here are sever'd Lips,
Parted with sugar breath; so sweet a bar
Should sunder such sweet friends: Here in her Hair
The painter plays the spider: and hath woven
A golden mesh to entrap the hearts of men,
Faster than gusts in cobwebs: but her Eyes---
How could he see to do them? having made one,
Methinks it should have power to steal both his,
And leave itself unfinish'd.
5. To make the cunning artless, tame the rude,
Subdue the laughty, shake the' undaunted soul;
Yea, put a bridle in the lion's mouth,
And lead him forth as a domestic cur,
These are the trumphs of all--powerful Beauty!
6. Beauty is but a vain and doubtful Good,
A shining Gloss, that fadeth suddenly;
A Flower that dies, when first it 'gins to bud;
A brittle Glass, that's broken presently;

14. A doubtful Good, a Gloss, a Glass, a Flower,
Lost, faded, broken, dead within an hour.
And as Good lost, is seld or never found,
As faded Gloss no rubbing will refresh,
As Flowers dead lie wither'd on the ground,
As broken Glass no cement can redress,
So Beauty blemish'd once, for ever's lost,
In spite of physic, painting, pain, and cost.
7. Oh, what a pure and sacred thing
Is Beauty, curtain'd from the sight
Of the gross World, illumining
One only mansion with her light:
Unseen by Man's disturbing eye,--
The Flower, that blooms beneath the Sea
Too deep for sunbeams, doth not lie
HId in more chaste obsenrity!
8. "After Alice Freeman Palmer died, a cultured woman came to her husband,
George Herbert Palmer, and said: "I want you to know that I owe everything I
have in life to your wife." Then she told him this story. She was born in the poorest
tenement in one of our large cities. Mrs. Palmer was her Sunday Scool teacher and
one day came into that home. This small girl was alone with her baby sister. Mrs.
Palmer said to the girl: "How beautiful the sunshine is on your little sister's hair!"
The woman said to Mr. Palmer: "I have never seen any beauty in my home before,
but from that day on I began to look for it. I found it everywhere I went and in the
strongest places. When I grew up I left that tenement, work my way through
college, and finally married a college professor. I feel that I owe it all to a person
who taught me to look for beauty everywhere."
· My wife was grading a science test at home that she had given to her elementary-
school class and was reading some of the results to me. The subject was "The
Human Body," and the first question was: " ame one of the major functions of
the skin."
· One child wrote: "To keep people who look at you from throwing up."
· --Contributed by Sam Jarrett, Reader's Digest
· The renowned Quaker scholar Rufus Jones was speaking of
· the importance of having a radiant countenance. After his
· address, a woman "with an almost unbelievably plain face" came up
· and asked him what he would do if he had a face like hers. He
· replied, "While I have troubles of my own of that kind, I've
· discovered that if you light it up from within, any old face you
· have is good enough." Our Daily Bread, December 7,
· 1992
· Charles William Eliot (1834-1926), former president of
· Harvard University, had a birthmark on his face that bothered him
· greatly. As a young man, he was told that surgeons could do
· nothing to remove it. Someone described that moment as "the dark
· hour of his soul."

15. · Eliot's mother gave him this helpful advice: "My son, it
· is not possible for you to get rid of that hardship...But it is
· possible for you, with God's help, to grow a mind and soul so big
· that people will forget to look at your face." Daily Bread, June
· 15, 1992
· An ad appeared in a newspaper that read: "Farmer wants to marry
· women, 35, with tractor. Send picture of tractor."
· The Lord prefers common-looking people. That is the reason he
· made so many of them. A. Lincoln
· It was absolutely amazing. I was in West Afraca--Timbuktu to be
· exact--and the missionaries were telling me that in that culture
· the larger the women were the more beautiful they were thought to
· be. In fact, a young missionary who had a small, trim wife waid
· that the nationals had told him she was a bad reflection on him--
· he obviously was not providing well enough for her. A proverb in
· that part of Africa says that if your wife is on a camel and the
· camel cannot stand up, your wife is truly beautiful. Fan The
· Flame, J. Stowell, Moody, 1986, p. 119
·
BEAUTY
1. A. Maude Royden wrote, "This assurance of God comes to most of us through
beauty. When those of you who are blessed with a sense of music hear a sonata of
Beethoven, a fugue of Bach, some music that is really great, you are for the moment,
at least, released from the struggle and difficulty of the world; for a moment you
enter the presence of God. When those to whom ature is very dear see the
satisfying beauty of the sea, the eternal glory of the mountains, the stems of the pine-
trees going up into the shade above, they for a moment escape from the terror and
perplexity and struggle of the world. They know that there is an absolute beauty,
and that to that beauty they are akin. The greatest of all services to the world,
perhaps, is the service of the artist, who reveals to us that perfection of beauty. Yes,
sometimes I think it is even more wonderful when it comes to us though Art than
when it comes to us through ature, because when it come to us through Art, God
speaks to us through another human being, and that is, after all, the most moving
and most revealing aspect of /God that we can ever reach. Even the beauty of the
sea and the beauty of God revealed to us by the hand of some artist, the voice of
some singer, the dream of some poet; and so all churches and all services should
have in them that elemnet of beauty.
2. A. Maude Royden wrote, "It is simply that when the truth is put beautifully you
can grasp it with something more than reason: you have a spiritual kinship with the
poet who put those words to you, and you realise that every truth is beautiful and
everthing that is beautiful is true, for there is nothing on earth so ugly as a lie.
Beauty is truth, Truth beauty: that is all we know on earth and all we nned to
know>" A hard saying, yes, but what a great one! It brings us the conviction that
under all the ugly surface of things, under all the broken crooked facts, there is a
great purpose, a purpose that is love, a truth deeper than we, still looking at the
outside of things, have been able to grasp. There is revealed to us the unchanging
law of God.

16. We are taught how, if we chose, we could, even in this world, find the Kingdom of
God within us, by listening to those prophets of the Beautiful who sing to us the
Lord's osng in a strange land.
·
I'm tired of all this nonsense about beauty being only skin-deep.That's deep
enough. What do you want, an adorable pancreas?Jan Kerrhile
Beauty is relative, for thinness is considered ugly in some places, but very beautiful
in others. Some go to the beauty parlor to get their hair straightened and others to
get it curled, for they have different ideas about what is beautiful. Big lips or small
lips? And hundreds of other ideas are debated.
Of Flowers in Matt. 6:29. Mary Howett wrote,
God might have bade the earth bring forth
Enough for great and small,
The oak tree and the cedar tree,
Without a flower at all.
We might have had enough, enough,
For every want of ours,
For luxury, medicine, and toil,
And yet have had no flowers.
Then wherefore, wherefore were they made,
All dyed with rainbow-light,
All fashioned with supremest grace,
Upspringing day and night:-
Springing in valleys green and low,
And on the mountains high,
And in the silent wilderness
Where no man passes by?
Our outward life requires them not-
Then wherefore had they birth?-
To minister delight to man,
To beautify the earth.
The more we appreciate beauty the more we appreciate God who is the creator of all
beauty. If all beauty is gone the you have hell where God is not present. Heaven is
beauty because it is the very presence of God. Creation reveals the beauty of God.
People only give up on life when they have lost all sense of beauty in it. As long as
their is beauty there is hope.
Beauty is not always the most useful, for the tiger and butterfly are more beautiful
than the pig, but it is more useful. There is beauty in the storm and in old age and in
many other things that are not usually seen as beautiful.

17. A beautiful environment is no guarantee of great character. Justice Chase once
traveled on a train through the birth place of Patrick Henry. He got off the train
and witnessed the beauty of the scenery and said it is no wonder with an atmosphere
like this that Henry grew to what he was. An old resident said, “Yes sir, but as far as
I have heard that landscape and those mountains have always been here, but we
haven’t seen any more Patrick Henry’s.”
Aristotle= “Beauty is the gift of God.”
Ovid, “Beauty is heaven’s gift.”
Walter Rauschenbusch, “God is not only the all wise, the all powerful, but the all
beautiful”
Jonathan Edwards said that when God is love aright he is loved for his excellence
and his beauty.
O God of beauty oft revealed
In dreams of human art,
In speech that flows to melody,
In holiness of heart.
Teach us to ban all ugliness
That blinds our eyes to thee,
Till all shall know they loveliness
Of lives made fair and free. Henry H. Tweedy
There is nothing good that is not beautiful. We are moved by beauty toward all that
we love and cherish. Sin is a deformity of beauty. Power is only good when it is
beautiful, and so it is with all values. If they are ugly and cause displeasure they
become evil.
beauty
Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the
sensitive soul to tears. Edgar Allen Poe
Everyone wants to understand art. Why not try to understand the song of a bird?
Why does one love the night, flowers, everything around one, without trying to
understand them? Pablo Picasso
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor
Roosevelt Thank you, Tiffany Ap

18. Is it wholly fantastic to admit the possibility that ature herself strove toward what
we call beauty? Face to face with any one of the elaborate flowers which man's
cultivation has had nothing to do with, it does not seem fantastic to me. We put
survival first. But when we have a margin of safety left over, we expend it in the
search for the beautiful. Who can say that ature does not do the same? Joseph
Wood Krutch
I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I
want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see. The
longer I live the more my mind dwells upon the beauty and wonder of the world. I
hardly know which feeling leads, wonderment or admiration. John Burroughs
Beauty is the only thing that time cannot harm. Philosophies fall away like sand,
and creeds follow one another like the withered leaves of Autumn; but what is
beautiful is a joy for all seasons and a possession for all eternity. Oscar Wilde
What a strange power the perception of beauty is! It seems to ebb and flow like
some secret tide, independent alike of health and disease, of joy or sorrow. There
are times in our lives when we seem to go singing on our way, and when the beauty
of the world sets itself like a quiet harmony to the song we uplift. A.C.
Benson
The beauty that addresses itself to the eyes is only the spell of the moment; the eye
of the body is not always that of the soul. George Sand
Beauty does not lie in the face. It lies in the harmony between man and his industry.
Beauty is expression. When I paint a mother I try to render her beautiful by the
mere look she gives her child. Jean Francois Millet
A thing of beauty is a joy forever: Its loveliness increases; it will never Pass into
nothingness; but still will keep A bower quiet for us, and a sleep Full of sweet
dreams, and health, and quiet breathing. John Keats
When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty. I only think about
how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I
know it is wrong. R. Buckminster Fuller

19. We ascribe beauty to that which is simple; which has no superfluous parts; which
exactly answers its end; which stands related to all things; which is the mean of
many extremes. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Beauty is God's handwriting. Charles Kingsley
There's nothing fair nor beautiful, but takes Something from thee, that makes it
beautiful. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
ever lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful, for beauty is God's
handwriting--a wayside sacrament. Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky,
in every flower, and thank God for it as a cup of blessing. Ralph Waldo Emerson
The useful may be trusted to further itself, for many produce it and no one can do
without it; but the beautiful must be specially encouraged, for few can present it,
while yet all have need of it. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Walk on a rainbow trail; walk on a trail of song, and all about you will be beauty.
There is a way out of every dark mist, over a rainbow trail.
avajo song
God scatters beauty as he scatters flowers O'er the wide earth, and tells us all are
ours. A hundred lights in every temple burn, And at each shrine I bend my knee in
turn. Walter Savage Landor
Jean Shinoda Bolen As I experience it, appreciation of beauty is access to the soul.
With beauty in our lives, we walk and carry ourselves more lightly and with a
different look in our eyes. To look into the eyes of someone beholding beauty is to
look through the windows of the soul. Anytime we catch a glimpse of soul, beauty is
there; anytime we catch our breath and feel "How beautiful!," the soul is present.
The purpose of creation is beauty. ature in all its various aspects develops towards
beauty, and therefore it is plain that the purpose of life is to evolve towards beauty.
Hazrat Inayat Khan

20. For beauty being the best of all we know Sums up the unsearchable and secret aims
Of nature. Robert Bridges
Beauty is everlasting And dust is for a time. Marianne Moore
It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness. Leo Tolstoy
C
CO DUCT
When Queen Victoria was a child, she didn't know she was in line
for the throne of England. Her instructors, trying to prepare
her for the future, were frustrated because they couldn't
motivate her. She just didn't take her studies seriously.
Finally, her teachers decided to tell her that one day she would
become the queen of England. Upon hearing this, Victoria quietly
said, "Then I will be good." The realization that she had
inherited this high calling gave her a sense of responsibility
that profoundly affected her conduct from then on.
A man in the Army of Alexander the Great who was also named
Alexander, was accused of cowardly actions. He was brought
before Alexander, who asked what his name was. He replied
softly, "Alexander." "I can't hear you," the ruler stated. The
man again said, a little louder, "Alexander." The process was
repeated one more time, after which Alexander the Great
commented, "Either change your name or change your conduct."
CO FESSIO
1. G. Campbell Morgan, "There can be no pardon save as we confess, and
that in the eternal necessity of the case, for sin unconfessed is sin
retained, sin unacknowledged is sin condoned, sin veiled is sin loved.
There can be freeing from sins and no cleasning of the conscious and the
character while man retains his sin under any guise. But on the other
hand, if there be such confession, then the divine promise is fulfilled
more swiftly than the lightening flases.
1. Harold Kushner wrote, " There are two reasons why we find it hard to
shed the burden of gult when we have done something wrong. The first is
that we make ourselves feel so ulnerable when we admit our
imperfections. Somewhere along the way, we have picked up the idea that

21. in order to be deserving of love and admiration, we have to be perfect.
If we can only manage to be perfect, everyone even God, will have to
love us. Admitting any weakiness, any mistake, we think, will give
people reason to reject us. As a result of this outlook, we have truble
admitting that we are ever wrong. Ever alleged mistake on our part has
to be explained as someone else's fault. (It reminds me of a bumper
sticker I saw: "The man who can smile when things are going badly has
just thought of someone to blame it on.")
The sad part is, we never even notice how unpleasant and unearable
we become when we insist we are always right. And the equally sad
corollary is that the more we suspect we may in fact have been wrong the
more stubbornly we fight to justify ourslevs. So the doctor who feels
he shoul dhave handled a case differently can't admit it to this patient
or to his supervisor. The husband wh did something he is embarrassed
about can't admit it to his wife. The worker who has made a mistakeis
afraid to admit it to the boss. They are all fariad that, if they take
off their protective armor and admit they were wrong, if they make
themselves vulnerable in the name of honest self-disclosure, the other
person will take advantage of them and hurt them. We are all afraid to
admit our weaknesses, for fear that other people will use them against
us. Husbands and wives have hurt each other so often (because they are
so bulnerable to each other), employers have fired or punished workers,
patients have sued doctors, for honestly admitting a mistake, to the
point where we have learned to be afraid of admitting our faults.
In his book Great Themes of the Bible, Louis Albert Banks told of the time D.L.
Moody visited a prison called "The Tombs" to preach to the inmates. After he had
finished speaking, Moody talked with a number of men in their cells. He asked each
prisoner this question, "What brought you here?" Again and again he received
replies like this: "I don't deserve to be here." "I was framed." "I was falsely
accused." "I was given an unfair trial." ot one inmate would admit he was guilty.
Finally, Moody found a man with his face buried in his hands, weeping. "And
what's wrong, my friend?" he inquired. The prisoner responded, "My sins are more
than I can bear." Relieved to find at least one man who would recognize his guilt
and his need of forgiveness, the evangelist exclaimed, "Thank God for that!" Moody
then had the joy of pointing him to a saving knowledge of Christ -- a knowledge that
released him from his shackles of sin.
What an accurate picture of the two contrasting attitudes spoken of in Jesus'
parable of the Pharisee and the publican! As long as the sinner claims innocence
and refuses to acknowledge his transgressions before the Lord, he does not receive
the blessings of redemption. But when he pleads guilty and cries out, "Lord, be
merciful to me a sinner," he is forgiven. God's pardon is available to everyone, but it
is experienced only by those who admit guilt and trust Christ. To be "found," a
person must first recognize that he is "lost."
Our Daily Bread
J.O. Sanders, Enjoying Intimacy with God, Moody, p. 41-48
In the washroom of his London club, British newspaper publisher and politician
William Beverbrook happened to meet Edward Heath, then a young member of
Parliament, about whom Beverbrook had printed an insulting editorial a few days
earlier. "My dear chap," said the publisher, embarrassed by the encounter. "I've
been thinking it over, and I was wrong. Here and now, I wish to apologize."

22. "Very well," grunted Heath. "But the next time, I wish you'd insult me in the
washroom and apologize in your newspaper."
Today in the Word
October 1, 1993
"When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long"
(Psa. 32:3).
There is nothing that so takes the joy out of life like unconfessed sin on the
conscience.
I once heard the late Dr. F.E. Marsh tell that on one occasion he was preaching on
this question and urging upon his hearers the importance of confession of sin and
wherever possible of restitution for wrong done to others.
At the close a young man, a member of the church, came up to him with a troubled
countenance. "Pastor," he explained, "you have put me in a sad fix. I have wronged
another and I am ashamed to confess it or to try to put it right. You see, I am a boat
builder and the man I work for is an infidel. I have talked to him often about his
need of Christ and urged him to come and hear you preach, but he scoffs and
ridicules it all. ow, I have been guilty of something that, if I should acknowledge it
to him, will ruin my testimony forever."
He then went on to say that sometime ago he started to build a boat for himself in
his own yard. In this work copper nails are used because they do not rust in the
water. These nails are quite expensive and the young man had been carrying home
quantities of them to use on the job. He knew it was stealing, but he tried to salve his
conscience be telling himself that the master had so many he would never miss them
and besides he was not being paid all that he thought he deserved. But this sermon
had brought him to face the fact that he was just a common thief, for whose
dishonest actions there was no excuse.
"But," said he, "I cannot go to my boss and tell him what I have done or offer to
pay for those I have used and return the rest. If I do he will think I am just a
hypocrite. And yet those copper mails are digging into my conscience and I know I
shall never have peace until I put this matter right."
For weeks the struggle went on. Then one night he came to Dr. marsh and
exclaimed, "Pastor, I've settled for the copper nails and my conscience is relieved at
last."
"What happened when you confessed to your employer what you had done?" asked
the pastor.
"Oh," he answered, "he looked queerly at me, then exclaimed, 'George, I always did
think you were just a hypocrite, but now I begin to feel there's something in this
Christianity after all. Any religion that would make a dishonest workman come
back and confess that he had been stealing copper nails and offer to settle for them,
must be worth having.'"
Dr. Marsh asked if he might use the story, and was granted permission.
Sometime afterwards, he told it in another city. The next day a lady came up and
said, "Doctor, I have had 'copper nails' on my conscience too." "Why, surely, you
are not a boat builder!" " o, but I am a book-lover and I have stolen a number of
books from a friend of mine who gets far more that I could ever afford. I decided
last night I must get rid of the 'copper nails,' so I took them all back to her today
and confessed my sin. I can't tell you how relieved I am. She forgave me, and God

23. has forgiven me. I am so thankful the 'copper mails' are not digging into my
conscience any more."
I have told this story many times and almost invariably people have come to me
afterwards telling of "copper nails" in one form or another that they had to get rid
of. On one occasion, I told it at a High School chapel service. The next day the
principal saw me and said, "As a result of that 'copper nails' story, ever so many
stolen fountain pens and other things have been returned to their rightful owners."
Reformation and restitution do not save. But where one is truly repentant and has
come to God in sincere confession, he will want to the best of his ability to put things
right with others.
Illustrations of Bible Truth by H.A. Ironside, 1945, Moody Press
Page 104-106
After F.E. Marsh preached on this subject, a young man
came to him and said, "Pastor, you have put me in a bad fix.
I've stolen from my employer, and I'm ashamed to tell him about
it. You see, I'm a boat builder, and the man I work for is an
unbeliever. I have often talked to him about Christ, but he only
laughs at me. In my work, expensive copper nails are used
because they won't rust in water. I've been taking some of them
home for a boat I am building in my backyard. I'm afraid if I
tell my boss what I've done and offer to pay for them, he'll
think I'm a hypocrite, and I'll never be able to reach him for
Christ. Yet, my conscience is bothered."
Later when the man saw the preacher again, he exclaimed,
"Pastor, I've settled that matter and I'm so relieved." "What
happened when you told your boss?" asked the minister. "Oh, he
looked at me intently and said,'George, I've always thought you
were a hypocrite, but now I'm not so sure. Maybe there's
something to your Christianity after all. Any religion that
makes a man admit he's been stealing a few copper nails and offer
to settle for them must be worth having.'" Our Daily Bread
Prussian king Frederick the Great was once touring a
Berlin prison. The prisoners fell on their knees before him to
proclaim their innocence -- except for one man, who remained
silent. Frederick called to him, "Why are you here?"
"Armed robbery, Your Majesty," was the reply.
"And are you guilty?"
"Yes indeed, Your Majesty, I deserve my punishment."
Frederick then summoned the jailer and ordered him,
"Release this guilty wretch at once. I will not have him kept in
this prison where he will corrupt all the fine innocent people
who occupy it." Today in the Word, December 4, 1992
Four preachers met for a friendly gathering. During the
conversation one preacher said, "Our people come to us and pour
out their hears, confess certain sins and needs. Let's do the
same. Confession is good for the soul." In due time all agreed.
One confessed he liked to go to movies and would sneak off when

24. away from his church. The second confessed to liking to smoke
cigars and the third one confessed to liking to play cards. When
it came to the fourth one, he wouldn't confess. The others
pressed him saying, "Come now, we confessed ours. What is your
secret or vice?"
Finally he answered, "It is gossiping and I can hardly wait to
get out of here."
A lady in the north of England said that every time she got down
before God to pray, five bottles of wine came up before her mind.
She had taken them wrongfully one time when she was a
housekeeper, and had not been able to pray since. She was
advised to make restitution.
"But the person is dead," she said.
"Are not some of the heirs living?"
"Yes, a son."
"Then go to that son and pay him back."
"Well," she said, "I want to see the face of God, but I could not
think of doing a thing like that. My reputation is at stake."
She went away, and came back the next day to ask if it would not
do just as well to put that money in the treasury of the Lord.
" o," she was told, "God doesn't want any stolen money. The only
thing is to make restitution."
She carried that burden for several days, but finally went into
the country, saw that son, made a full confession and offered him
a five-pound note. He said he didn't want the money, but she
finally persuaded him to take it, and came back with a joy and
peace that made her face radiant. She became a magnificent
worker for souls, and led many into the light.
My dear friends, get these stumbling stones out of the way. God
does not want a man to shout "Hallelujah" who doesn't pay his
debts. Many of our prayer meetings are killed by men trying to
pray who cannot pray because their lives are not right. Sin
builds up a great wall between us and God. A man may stand high
in the community and may be a member of some church "in good
standing," but the question is, how does he stand in the sight of
God? If there is anything wrong in you life, make it right.
Moody's Anecdotes, Page 49-50
In 1884 Grover Cleveland was running against James G. Blaine for
the presidency of the U.S. Blaine supporters discovered that
Cleveland, who was a bachelor at the time, had fathered a son by
Mrs. Maria Crofts Halpin, an attractive widow who had been on
friendly terms with several politicians. Subsequently,
Republicans tried to pin an immorality tag on Democrat Cleveland
by distributing handbills showing an infant labeled "One more
vote for Cleveland" and by having paraders chant, "Ma, Ma,
where's my pa? Gone to the White House, Ha, Ha, Ha!" The move,
however, backfired badly. Rather than deny the story, Cleveland

25. decided to tell the truth and admit the intimacy. This candor
helped defuse the issue, and Cleveland was elected president.
From the Book of Lists, #2, p. 35
Because the younger children at our parochial school often forgot
their sins when they entered my confessional, I suggested that
teachers have the students make lists. The next week when one
child came to confession, I could hear him unfolding paper. The
youngster began, "I lied to my parents. I disobeyed my mom. I
fought with my brothers and..." There was a long pause. Then a
small angry voice said, "Hey, this isn't my list!" Rev Douglas
F. Fortner in Reader's Digest
Being general director of the ew York opera took a toll on
Beverly Sills; she ballooned into obesity. "It made me sick to
look at myself. I'd reached the point where I didn't want to
have my clothes made anymore. It was too embarrassing. So I
ordered everything from catalogues." Eventually Sills was forced
to face the problem. "I woke up one day and realized I was
really ill." She went to see a specialist. "He put me on the
scales. They read 215 pounds. 'I cannot possibly weigh that
much!' I gasped. And the doctor said, 'Please look down. Are
those two fat feet on the scale yours or mine?'" Beverly smiles.
"Once I accepted the problem, I was on my way." Phyllis Battelle
in Ladies Home Journal, quoted in 6-86 R.D.
CO FIDE CE
Confidence
They are able because they think they are able. Virgil
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that
we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our Darkness, that
most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you NOT to be? You are a child of
God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing
enlightening about shrinking so that other people won't feel unsure
around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is
within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. As we let
our own Light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do
the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence
automatically liberates others. Marianne Williamson (often attributed
to Nelson Mandela, who used it in his 1994 inaugural address)
What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This
rule, equally arduous in actual and intellectual life, may serve for the
whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder,
because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty

26. better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the
world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the
great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect
sweetness the independence of solitude. Ralph Waldo
Emerson
It is only a man's own fundamental thoughts that have truth and life in
them. For it is these that he really and completely understands. To
read the thoughts of others is like taking the remains of someone
else's meal, like putting on the discarded clothes of a stranger.
Arthur Schopenhauer
Confidence . . . thrives on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of
obligations, on faithful protection and on unselfish performance.
Without them it cannot live. Franklin D. Roosevelt
If you doubt you can accomplish something, then you can't accomplish it.
You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to
follow through. Rosalynn Carter
Faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace, so sure and certain
that a man would stake his life on it a thousand times. This confidence
in God's grace and knowledge of it makes men glad and bold and happy in
dealing with God and with all his creatures; and this is the work of the
Holy Ghost in faith. Hence a man is ready and glad, without compulsion,
to do good to everyone, to serve everyone, to suffer everything, in love
and praise of God, who has shown him this grace. Martin
Luther
Kill the snake of doubt in your soul, crush the worms of fear in your
heart and mountains will move out of your way. Kate Seredy
Our belief at the beginning of a doubtful undertaking is the one thing
that insures the successful outcome of our venture. William James
Underlying the whole scheme of civilization is the confidence men have
in each other, confidence in their integrity, confidence in their
honesty, confidence in their future. W. Bourke Cockran
La Rochefoucauld The confidence which we have in ourselves gives birth
to much of that which we have in others.

27. I believe that in our constant search for security we can never gain any
peace of mind until we secure our own soul. And this I do believe above
all, especially in my times of greatest discouragement, that I must
believe--that I must believe in my fellow man--that I must believe in
myself--that I must believe in God--if life is to have any meaning.
Margaret Chase Smith
Whatever you are by nature, keep to it; never desert your own line of
talent. Be what nature intended you for, and you will succeed; be
anything else and you will be ten thousand times worse than nothing.
Sydney Smith
Be like the bird That, pausing in her flight Awhile on boughs too
slight, Feels them give way Beneath her and yet sings, Knowing that she
hath wings.
Victor Hugo
Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have
perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that
we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must
be attained. Madame Curie
If one burdens the future with one's worries, it cannot grow
organically. I am filled with confidence, not that I shall succeed in
worldly things, but that even when things go badly for me I shall still
find life good and worth living. Etty Hillesum
Self-distrust is the cause of most of our failures. . . they are the
weakest, however strong, who have no faith in themselves or their own
powers. Christian Bovee
Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared
believe that something inside them was superior to circumstances. Bruce
Barton
Class is an aura of confidence that is being sure without being cocky.
Class has nothing to do with money. Class never runs scared. It is self-
discipline and self-knowledge. It's the sure-footedness that comes with
having proved you can meet life. Ann Landers
Believe that with your feelings and your work you are taking part in the
greatest; the more strongly you cultivate this belief, the more will
reality and the world go forth from it. Rainer Maria Rilke
obody holds a good opinion of a man who has a low opinion of himself. Anthony Trollope
Be brave. Even if you're not, pretend to be. o one can tell the difference.

28. (Anonymous)
For they conquer who believe they can. (John Dryden)
Have confidence that if you have done a little thing well, you can do a bigger thing
well too. (Storey)
He who believes in nobody knows that he himself is not to be trusted. (Auerbach)
I have great faith in fools--self-confidence my friends call it. (Edgar Allan Poe)
I never make mistakes. I thought I did once, but I was wrong. (Anonymous)
If once you forfeit the confidence of your fellow-citizens, you can never regain their
respect and esteem. (Abraham Lincoln)
Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want
to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy. (Dale
Carnegie)
My opinions may have changed, but not the fact that I am right. (Ashleigh Brilliant)
Only trust thyself, and another shall not betray thee. (William Penn)
The human heart, at whatever age, opens only to the heart that opens in return.
(Marie Edgeworth)
They who lack talent expect things to happen without effort. They ascribe failure to
a lack of inspiration or ability, or to misfortune, rather than to insufficient
application. At the core of every true talent there is an awareness of the difficulties
inherent in any achievement, and the confidence that by persistence and patience
something worthwhile will be realized. Thus talent is a species of vigor. (Eric Hoffer)
True prosperity is the result of well-placed confidence in ourselves and our fellow
man. (Burt)
We can gain no lasting peace if we approach it with suspicion and mistrust or with
fear. We can gain it only if we proceed with the understanding, the confidence, and
the courage which flow from conviction. (Franklin D. Roosevelt, Fourth Inaugural
Address, Jan. 20, 1945)
With confidence, you can reach truly amazing heights; without confidence, even the
simplest accomplishments are beyond your grasp. (Jim Loehr)
You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow
through. (Rosalynn Carter)
Frank Lloyd Wright is among the most innovative
architects this county ever produced. But his fame wasn't
limited to the United States. About 70 years ago, Japan asked
Wright to design a hotel for Tokyo that would be capable of
surviving an earthquake.
When the architect visited Japan to see where the
Imperial Hotel was to be built, he was appalled to find only
about eight feet of earth on the site. Beneath that was 60 feet
of soft mud that slipped and shook like jelly. Every test hole
he dug filled up immediately with water. A lesser man probably
would have given up right there. But not Frank Lloyd Wright.
Since the hotel was going to rest on fluid ground, Wright
decided to build it like a ship. Instead of trying to keep the
structure from moving during a quake, he incorporated features
that would allow the hotel to ride out the shock without damage.

29. Supports were sunk into the soft mud, and sections of the
foundation were cantilevered from the supports. The rooms were
built in sections like a train and hinged together. Water pipes
and electric lines, usually the first to shear off in an
earthquake, were hung in vertical shafts where they could sway
freely if necessary.
Wright knew that the major cause of destruction after an
earthquake was fire, because water lines are apt to be broken in
the ground and there is no way to put the fire out. So he
insisted on a large outdoor pool in the courtyard of his hotel,
"just in case."
On September 1, 1923, Tokyo had the greatest earthquake
in its history. There were fires all over the city, and 140,000
people died. Back in the U.S., news reports were slow coming in.
One newspaper wanted to print the story that the Imperial Hotel
had been destroyed, as rumor had it. But when a reporter called
Frank Lloyd Wright, he said that they could print the story if
they wished, but they would only have to retract it later. He
knew the hotel would not collapse.
Shortly afterward, Wright got a telegram from Japan. The
Imperial Hotel was completely undamaged. ot only that -- it had
provided a home for hundreds of people. And when fires that
raged all around the hotel threatened to spread, bucket brigades
kept the structure wetted down with water from the hotel's pool.
The Imperial Hotel isn't there anymore. It was finally
torn down in the 1960s to be replaced by a more modern structure.
Bits & Pieces, January 7, 1993, Page 11-14
Over confidence, coupled with negligence, can lead to sad
consequences. This is the case when a person is so sure of
himself that he becomes careless about little things that may
pose a threat. I'm thinking, for example, of a stuntman named
Bobby Leach. In July, 1911, he went over iagara Falls in a
specially designed steel drum and lived to tell about it.
Although he suffered minor injuries, he survived because he
recognized the tremendous dangers involved in the feat, and
because he had done everything he could to protect himself from
harm.
Several years after that incident, while skipping down the street
in ew Zealand, Bobby Leach slipped on an orange peeling, fell,
and badly fractured his leg. He was taken to a hospital where he
later died of complications from that fall. He received a
greater injury walking down the street than he sustained in going
over iagara. He was not prepared for danger in what he assumed
to be a safe situation.
The American painter, John Sargent, once painted a panel of roses
that was highly praised by critics. It was a small picture, but
it approached perfection. Although offered a high price for it

30. on many occasions, Sargent refused to sell it. He considered it
his best work and was very proud of it. Whenever he was deeply
discouraged and doubtful of his abilities as an artist, he would
lok at it and remind himself, "I painted that." Then his
confidence and ability would come back to him. Bits and Pieces,
September 19, 1991, p. 9
James Dobson tells of a friend of his during their days in
medical school. One day this man was walking across campus laden
with books and briefcase. He passed by a fast food stand, and
ordered something to eat and a milkshake to wash it down. He
balanced it all on top of his briefcase and began looking for an
empty table at which to sit. While looking, the milkshake got
the better of him, and he bent down without looking in order to
take a sip from the straw. The straw missed his mouth and ended
up in his nose. Embarassed, but not at a loss, he thought that
if he straightened up the straw would stay in the shake. But
when he lifted his head, the straw came out of the shake and
remained in his nose, dripping the milkshake down the front of
his suit. In a moment, all his confidence evaporated.
John McKay, of the FL, tells a story illustrating the supreme
confidence of University of Alabama football coach Bear Bryant:
"We were out shooting ducks, and finally, after about three
hours, here comes one lonely duck. The Bear fires. And that
duck is still flying today. But Bear watched the duck flap away,
looked at me and said, 'John, you are witnessing a genuine
miracle. There flies a dead duck!'" McKay, A Coach's Story
About halfway through (a PBS program on the Library of Congress),
Dr. Daniel Boorstin, the Librarian of Congress, brought out a
little blue box from a small closet that once held the library's
rarities. The label on the box read: CO TE TS OF THE PRESIDE T'S
POCKETS O THE IGHT OF APRIL 14, 1865. Since that was the
fateful night Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, every viewer's
attention was seized. Boorstin then proceeded to remove the
items in the small container and display them on camera. There
were five things in the box:
*A handkerchief, embroidered "A. Lincoln"
*A country boy's pen knife
*A spectacles case repaired with string
*A purse containing a $5 bill--Confederate money(!)
*Some old and worn newspaper clippings
"The clippings," said Boorstin, "were concerned with the great
deeds of Abraham Lincoln. And one of them actually reports a
speech by John Bright which says that Abraham Lincoln is "one of
the greatest men of all times." Today that's common knowledge.
The world now knows that British statesman John Bright was right
in his assessment of Lincoln, but in 1865 millions shared quite a
contrary opinion. The President's critics were fierce and many.

31. His was a lonely agony that reflected the suffering and turmoil
of his country ripped to shreds by hatred and a cruel, costly
war. There is something touchingly pathetic in the mental
picture of this great leader seeking solace and self-assurance
from a few old newspaper clippings as he reads them under the
flickering flame of a candle all alone in the Oval Office.
Remember this: Loneliness stalks where the buck stops. Swindoll,
The Quest For Character, Multnomah, p. 62-3
One problem I remember was a time when our son Bob broke our
trust and lied to his mother and me. He was still young, dating
Linda, his wife-to-be, and was only allowed to see her on certain
nights. Well, one night he wanted to see her without permission
and told us he was at his friend's house. When we found out the
truth, there was a real scene between us. He had violated our
trust; it was like a crack in a fine cup that marred its
appearance. In the confrontation, I smashed a fine English tea
cup on the floor and told Bob that to restore our trust would be
like gluing that cup back together again. He said, "I don't know
if I can do that." And I said, "Well, that's how hard it is to
build confidence and trust again." The outcome was that Bob
spent literally weeks carefully gluing the pieces together until
he finished. He learned a very important lesson. Dr. Rovert H.
Schuller, in Homemade, Jan 1985
CO FIDE TIAL
The Duke of Wellington is best remembered as the general who
defeated apoleon at Waterloo in 1815. During his earlier
service in India, Wellington was in charge of negotiations after
the battle of Assaye. The emissary of an Indian ruler, anxious
to know what territories would be ceded to his master, tried in
various ways to get the information. Finally, he offered
Wellingtron a large sum of money. "Can you keep a secret?" asked
Wellington. "Yes, indeed," the man said eagerly. "So can I,"
replied Wellington. Today in the Word, July, 1990, p. 35
CO FLICT
Gilbert and Sullivan bought a theater and had such a fight over the new carpet that they refused to
talk to each other for years. They worked together by mail and produced masterpieces of music.
Gilbert would write the words and send them to Sullivan. When they had to take a bow they did so
from opposite sides of the stage.
The story is told of D. Bonhoeffer, who while imprisoned in a concentration camp,
saluted a German officer and said "Heil Hitler" as he walked by. Bonhoeffer
noticed that another prisoner next to him was refusing to salute, and whispered to
him, "Salute, you fool. This isn't worth dying for." We need to choose our battles
carefully.

32. Two men who lived in a small village got into a terrible dispute that they could not
resolve. So they decided to talk to the town sage.
The first man went to the sage's home and told his version of what happened. When
he finished, the sage said, "You're absolutely right."
The next night, the second man called on the sage and told his side of the story. The
sage responded, "You're absolutely right."
Afterward, the sage's wife scolded her husband. "Those men told you two different
stories and you told them they were absolutely right. That's impossible -- they can't
both be absolutely right."
The sage turned to his wife and said, "You're absolutely right."- David Moore in
Vital Speeches of the Day
Labour mightily for a healing spirit. Away with all
discriminating names whatever that may hinder the applying of
balm to heal your wounds...Discord and division become no
Christian. For wolves to worry the lambs is no wonder, but for
one lamb to worry another, this is unnatural and monstrous.
--Thomas Brooks, quoted in Credenda Agenda, Volume 5 umber 2,
Page 3, I.D.E. Thomas, A Puritan Golden Treasury, Banner of
Truth, 1989, p. 304
Jerome, who was always remarkable for the virulence with
which he assailed his opponents, never being able to see any good
quality in them, speaks with the utmost contempt of Pelagius and
Coelestius; but Augustine, who was, after his conversion, as
highly exalted above the generality of the fathers of his age in
the personal excellence of his character, as he was in ability
and knowledge of divine truth, speaks very respectfully both of
their talent and of the general character which they had
sustained. --William Cunningham, quoted in Credenda Agenda,
Volume 5 umber 2, Page 3, from Historical Theology, Vol I, Still
Waters Revival Books, 1991, p. 327
But little is gained if opinions are crammed into men;
and this is likely to be the case where they are not permitted to
inquire and to doubt. At the same time it must be remembered
that no spirit is more unfriendly to that indifference of mind so
essential to freedom of inquiry than that which arises in the
conduct of controversy. When we become advocates we lay aside
the garb of philosophers. The desire of victory is often
stronger than the love of truth; and pride, jealousy, ambition
and envy, identifying ourselves with our opinions, will lend
their aid to pervert our judgments and to seduce us from our
candor. A disputatious spirit is always the mark of a little
mind. The cynic may growl, but he can never aspire to the
dignity of character. There are undoubtedly occasions when we
must contend earnestly for the truth; but...we should look well
to our own hearts, that no motives animate us but the love of
truth and zeal for the highest interests of man.
--James Henley Thornwell, quoted in Credenda Agenda, Volume 5

33. umber 2, Page 3, from Collected Writings, Vol II, Banner of
Truth, 1974, pp 511-2
Unfortunately, that is not very often how it works. The
accusatory rhetoric at the United ations is not all that
different in tone from the way Christians argue with each other.
Here is an example from the seventeenth century, when the
Puritans and the Quakers were engaged in angry debates: The
great Puritan preacher Richard Baxter wrote a pamphlet in which
he lumped the Quakers with "drunkards, swearers, whoremongers,
and sensual wretches" and other "miserable creatures." And then
-- just in case he had not yet insulted them enough -- he
insisted that Quakers are no better than "Papists."
The Quaker leader James aylor announced that he was
compelled "by the Spirit of Jesus Christ" to respond to these
harsh accusations. He proceeded to characterize his Puritan
opponent as a "Serpent," a "Liar," and "Child of the Devil," a
"Cursed Hypocrite," and a "Dumb Dog."
This is strong stuff. What makes it especially sad is
that the angry talk often makes it difficult to get to the real
issues. The debate between the Puritans and the Quakers was
actually a rather interesting and helpful one. Both parties
engaged in some serious biblical exposition; if the heavy
rhetoric were removed, the discussion could easily appear to have
been a friendly argument between Christians who had some
important things to talk about. But I doubt that either group
heard the helpful things the other side was saying. Too much
angry rhetoric was in the air. Uncommon Decency, Richard J.
Mouw, Page 52
Years ago, a large statue of Christ was erected high in the
Andes on the border between Argentina and Chile. Called "Christ
of the Andes," the statue symbolizes a pledge between the two
countries that as long as the statue stands, there will be peace
between Chile and Argentina.
Shortly after the statue was erected, the Chileans began to
protest that they had been slighted -- the statue had its back
turned to Chile. Just when tempers were at their highest in
Chile, a Chilean newspaperman saved the day. In an editorial
that not only satisfied the people but made them laugh, he simply
said, "The people of Argentina need more watching over than the
Chileans. Bits & Pieces, June 25, 1992
Sacramento, Calif.--A man who hit his wife with a frozen squirrel
was jailed on suspicion of spousal abuse, police said Monday.
Kao Khae Saephan, 26, had been arguing with his wife early Monday
morning when he walked into the kitchen and took several frozen
squirrels from the freezer, police spokeswoman Betsy Braziel
said. The woman told police that when she walked in the room,
her husband swung the squirrels at her and struck her in the head

34. with at least one of them. She fell against a table and received
a one-inch cut above her eye, Braziel said. Saephan was booked
into the county jail. Spokesman-Review, 12-17-1991
French novelist and playwright Alexandre Dumas once had a heated
quarrel with a rising young politician. The argument became so
intense that a duel was inevitable. Since both men were superb
shots they decided to draw lots, the loser agreeing to shoot
himself. Dumas lost. Pistol in hand, he withdrew in silent
dignity to another room, closing the door behind him. The rest
of the company waited in gloomy suspense for the shot that would
end his career. It rang out at last. His friends ran to the
door, opened it, and found Dumas, smoking revolver in hand.
"Gentlemen, a most regrettalbe thing has happened," he announced.
"I missed." Today in the Word, Moody Bible Institute, Jan, 1992,
p.33
Leadership, IV, 3
C. Swindoll, The Grace Awakening, Word, 1990, p. 173ff
Leadership, Vol X, #3 (Summer, 1989), p. 32
How to turn a disagreement into a feud:
1. Be sure to develop and maintain a healthy fear of conflict,
letting your own feelings build up so you are in an explosive
frame of mind.
2. If you must state your concerns, be as vague and general as
possible. Then the other person cannot do anything practical to
change the situation.
3. Assume you know all the facts and you are totally right.
The use of a clinching Bible verse is helpful. Speak
prophetically for truth and justice; do most of the talking.
4. With a touch of defiance, announce your willingness to talk
with anyone who wishes to discuss the problem with you. But do
not take steps to initiate such conversation.
5. Latch tenaciously onto whatever evidence you can find that
shows the other person is merely jealous of you.
6. Judge the motivation of the other party on any previous
experience that showed failure or unkindness. Keep track of any
angry words.
7. If the discussion should, alas, become serious, view the
issue as a win/lose struggle. Avoid possible solutions and go
for total victory and unconditional surrender. Don't get too
many options on the table.
8. Pass the buck! If you are about to get cornered into a
solution, indicate you are without power to settle; you need your
partner, spouse, bank, whatever. Ron Kraybill, quoted in Tell it
to the Church, Lynn Buzzard, David C. Cook, 1982, p. 23
CO FORMITY
1. "We were never intended to act, for example as does the pine
caterpillar. Place a series of pine caterpillars end to end in a circle

35. until the circle is closed, and each will follow the caterpillar in
front of it around the circle indefinitely. Place food in the center of
the circle, and the caterpillars will continue to follow each other
around that food until they die of starvation. The pine caterpillar is
an insect without imagination. It lacks the ability to seek any form of
independent success on its own. It blindly adheres to a herd instinct,
often to its detriment, and even to its demise."
CONFORMITY
1. As my fifteen-year-old son and I drove home from church one night, we
argued
about his unkempt hair and outrageous clothing. We simmered in silence,
then
both burst out laughing after he angrily cried out, "Mom, I just want to
be different like everybody else!"
Athanasius, early bishop of Alexandria, stoutly opposed the
teachings of Arius, who declared that Christ was not the eternal
Son of God, but a subordinate being. Hounded through five
exiles, he was finally summoned before emperor Theodosius, who
demanded he cease his opposition to Arius. The emperor reproved
him and asked, "Do you not realize that all the world is against
you?" Athanasius quickly answered, "Then I am against all the
world."
On a wall near the main entrance to the Alamo in San Antonio,
Texas, is a portrait with the following inscription:
"James Butler Bonham--no picture of him exists. This
portrait is of his nephew, Major James Bonham, deceased, who
greatly resembled his uncle. It is placed here by the family
that people may know the appearance of the man who died for
freedom." o literal portrait of Jesus exists either. But the
likeness of the Son who makes us free can be seen in the lives of
His true followers. Bill Morgan
A few years ago psychologist Ruth W. Berenda and her associates
carried out an interesting experiment with teenagers designed to
show how a person handled group pressure. The plan was simple.
They brought groups of ten adolescents into a room for a test.
Subsequently, each group of ten was instructed to raise their
hands when the teacher pointed to the longest line on three
separate charts. What one person in the group did not know was
that nine of the others in the room had been instructed ahead of
time to vote for the second-longest line. Regardless of the
instructions they heard, once they were all together in the
group, the nine were not to vote for the longest line, but rather
vote for the next to the longest line. The experiment began with
nine teen-agers voting for the wrong line. The stooge would
typically glance around, frown in confusion, and slip his hand up
with the group. The insturctions were repeated and the next card
was raised. Time after time, the self-conscious stooge would sit
there saying a short line is longer than a long line, simply
because he lacked the courage to challenge the group. This

36. remarkable conformity occurred in about 75% of the cases, and was
true of small children and high-school students as well. Berenda
concluded that, "Some people had rather be president than right,"
which is certainly an accurate assessment. C. Swindoll, Living
Above the Level of Mediocrity, p. 225
Em Griffin in his book The Mindchangers describes an experiment
done by Solomon Asch with groups of 12 people. They were brought
into a room where four lines of unequal length were displayed.
They had to decide which two were the same length and publicly
vote for their choice. Person after person after person (11 in
all) voted for the wrong line--because they had all been told to
ahead of time. The one individual who was in the dark couldn't
imagine how in the world all these seemingly normal people could
all choose the wrong line. When it was his turn to vote, he had
to decide, "Do I go with what I know my senses are telling me, or
do I go with the crowd?" 1/3 of those tested caved in to group
pressure and changed their vote to agree with their peers. (Em
Griffin, The Mindchangers, Tyndale House, 1976, p. 193ff)
CO FRO TATIO
Don Shula, coach of the Miami Dolphins, was talking to a reporter
about a player's mistake in practice. He said, "We never let an
error go unchallenged. Uncorrected errors multiply." Then the
reporter said, "Isn't there benefit in overlookking one small
flaw?" Shula said, "What is a small flaw?" I think about that
all day long. What is a small flaw? I see that with my
children. I've let a lot of things slide by because I was too
tired. I didn't want another confrontation. But uncorrected
errors do multiply. You've got to face them some day. You might
as well face them on the spot. If I could do it over again with
my children, I'd face the errors on the spot. It's easier on
them and on you. That works in relationships with anyone. If
there's something under the surface, something you sense, you
might as well just bring it right out. Face it right then.
Success lies in the details. Every job is a self-portrait of the
person who did it. Autograph your work with excellence. Marabel
Morgan in Homemade, Feb 1987
The lesson of Munich was: When it is necessary to confront an
expansionist dictator, sooner is better than later. As Douglas
MacArthur said, in war all tragedy can be summarized in two
words, "too late." Too late perceiving, too late preparing for
danger. George Will, 8-5-90
CO FUSIO
eil Marten, a member of the British Parliament, was once giving a group of his
constituents a guided tour of the Houses of Parliament. During the course of the
visit, the group happened to meet Lord Hailsham, then lord chancellor, wearing all
the regalia of his office. Hailsham recognized Marten among the group and cried,

37. " eil!" ot daring to question or disobey the "command," the entire band of
visitors promptly fell to their knees! Today in the Word, July 30, 1993
In The Mask Behind the Mask, biographer Peter Evans says that actor Peter Sellers
played so many roles he sometimes was not sure of his own identity. Approached
once by a fan who asked him, "Are you Peter Sellers?" Sellers answered briskly,
" ot today," and walked on.
Today in the Word, July 24, 1993
All publishers receive strange letters from readers, but this one
to the Christian Science Monitor is a classic: Dear Sir: When I
subscribed a year ago you stated that if I was not satisfied at
the end of the year I could have my money back. Well, I would
like to have it back. On second thought, to save you the
trouble, you may apply it on my next year's subscription." Bits
and Pieces, September 19, 1991, p. 22
A "so it yourself" catalog firm received the following letter
from one of its customers: "I built a birdhouse according to your
stupid plans, and not only is it much too big, it keeps blowing
out of the tree. Signed, Unhappy. The firm replied: "Dear
Unhappy, We're sorry about the mix-up. We accidentally sent you
a sailboat blueprint. But if you think you are unhappy, you
should read the letter from the guy who came in last in the yacht
club regatta."
When the Washington Territory was ready for statehood in 1889,
there was a proposal to call it Columbia, in honor of the mighty
Columbia River. Legislators rejected the idea in the fear that
our 42nd state would then be confused with the District of
Columbia. So they stuck with their original choice, and named it
Washington.
A university student was seen with a large "K" printed on his T-
shirt. When someone asked him what the"K" stood for, he said,
"Confused." "But," the questioner replied, "you don't spell
"confused" with a "K." The student answered, "You don't know how
confused I am."
If you can't convince them, confuse them. H. Truman
"Get this thing straight once and for all. The policeman isn't
there to create disorder. The policeman is there to preserve
disorder." Mayor Richard J. Daley, defending the actions of
policemen during the Democratic convention in 1968
A teacher was handed the following note by one of her students:
"Dear Teacher, Please excuse Harriet for missing school
yesterday. We forgot to get the Sunday paper off the porch, and
when we found it on Monday, we thought it was Sunday."
C Swindoll, Growing Strong, p. 262
Harry Truman enjoyed telling about the man who was hit on the
head at work. The blow was so severe he was knocked unconscious
for an extended period of time. His family, convinced he was
dead, called the funeral home and asked the local undertaker to

38. pick hum up at the hospital, which he did. Early the following
morning this dear man suddenly awoke and sat straight up in the
casket. Confused, he blinked several times and looked around,
trying to put the whole thing together. He thought, "If I'm
alive, what in the world am I doing in this soft, satin-filled
box? And if I'm dead, why do I have to go to the bathroom?"
CO QUERERS (square miles they conquered)
1. Genghis Khan (1162-1227), 4,860,000
2. Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) 2,180,000
3. Tamerlane (1336-1405), 2,145,000
4. Cyrus the Great (600-529 B.C.), 2,090,000
5. Attila (406-453), 1,450,000
6. Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), 1,370,000, all of which he lost in 3 years
7. apoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) 720,000
8. Mahmud of Ghazni (971-1030) 680,000
9. Francisco Pizarro (1470-1541), 480,000
10. Hernando Cortes (1485-1547), 315,000
CO SCIE CE
1. A Hindu once said to a British administrator: "Our conscience tells
us it is right to burn our widows on the pyre of their husbands."
"Yes," replied the officer, "and our conscience tells us it is right to
hang you if you do."
2. J. Oswald Sanders writes, "Conscience is not something which we
gradually acquire but is part of our essential nature. It is neither
supernatural nor Divine, but a purely human equipment, often described
as the voice of God in the soul. But if this were true, it could never
lead to sinful action. Indeed, conscience may actually be the voice of
the devil. It is not the voice of God but rather the power to hear the
voice of God in the soul. Conscience orginates nothing. It is like a
thermometer, which though detecting and indicating the temperature,
never modifies or creates its own temperature. It the highest and most
mysterious faculty in the moral nature of man and speaks with most
convincing authrority when habitually obeyed."
"An Indian in Northwest Canada picturesquely describes the activity
of his conscience. "It is a little three-cornered thing inside of me.
When I do wrong it turns around and hurts me very much. But if I keep
on doing wrong it will turn so much that the corners become worn off and
it does not hurt anymore."
3. Charles William Stubbs.
I sat alone with my conscience
In a place where time had ceased,
And we talked of my former living
In a land where the years increased.
The ghosts of forgotten actions
Came floating before my sight,
And the things that I thought were dead things
Were alive with a terrible might;
And I know of the future judgment,
How dreadful so'er it be,
To sit alone with my conscience
Will be judgment enough for me.