Jun

Not the Lone Ranger

Fri Jun 29th 2012 @ 3:10 am

The most amazing thing about pride is the way it sneaks up on you. I doubt that very many people wake up in the morning and say to themselves, “Oh Boy! Today I’m really gonna’ be pride filled and make a total ass out of myself in front of the world!” No, it sort of creeps up on you and before you know it; you’re up to your eyeballs in it. That’s usually when pride’s two buddies, Stupid and Stubborn, jump in to make sure you don’t realize that you’re acting out of pride and that you won’t back down even if you do. Later, when it blows up in your face, you think; “How could I have been so stupid and stubborn?” Duh!

Don’t feel like the Lone Ranger; we’re ALL subject to attacks of pride. In the church, at the office, in our homes…some of us even become proud of not being proud (I’ll pause here for another “Duh” at my own expense.) I’ve been known to spend an hour or so in prayer, meditation, and scripture reading to start my day; and then, pat myself on the back for my piety. Uh oh: Satan had sneaked up and hit me with a big bagful of pride. I can't believe I let it happen. Working on the theory that if misery loves company, maybe pride does, too,I submit the following:

In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn't a technology problem like radar malfunction--or even the thick fog. The cause was human pride and stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship's presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late.

One of the most successful door-to-door salesmen of all time closed hundreds of sales with this line: "Let me show you something several of your neighbors said you couldn't afford."

In 1717, France’s Louis XIV, who had the most magnificent, extravagant court in all Europe, died. He had called himself the “Sun King,” and “Louie the Great.” He had planned his own funeral to be just as spectacular. The King decreed that upon his death he was to lie in state in a golden coffin at Notre Dame Cathedral. He further instructed that at his funeral service the entire cathedral was to be completely dark, lit dimly by only one candle positioned above the coffin so that all would be awed by the late king's greatness, even in death. At the funeral thousands waited in hushed silence as they peered at the exquisite golden casket. Bishop Massillon rose to speak. Then Massillon slowly reached down, snuffed out the candle, and said: "Only God is Great!"

Glorifying Ourselves One of the guests on a late-night talk show was a bodybuilder. The host asked the weight lifter if he would show off his muscles to the audience. With a big grin on his face, the bodybuilder faced the audience and cameras, flexing his muscles. "Boy,” the host said, “you sure do have the muscles. What do you use all of those muscles for?" The bodybuilder didn't answer, but continued to flex and smile at the audience. Again the host asked, "What do you use those muscles for?" Still grinning, the muscleman remained silent and continued to show off. The answer was obvious. He didn't use his muscles to do any useful work, but only to glorify himself.

My Will Be Done Pride says to itself, "My will be done." Humility says to God, "Thy will be done."

Are you a chicken or a salmon? A chicken lays one egg and cackles about it, while a salmon lays ten thousand eggs and doesn’t say a word. (Kent Crockett)

Super Power Many of us have heard of Muhammad Ali's boast that in the boxing ring he could "float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee". He knew how to brag to psyche out his opponents. But on one particular flight, he says in his book, The Soul of a Butterfly, that the flight attendant asked him to put his seat belt on. He said to her, "Superman don't need no seat belt". She smiled at him and said, 'Superman don't need no plane, either.'"

Heavy Hitter “Did you notice how we shook that bridge?” said a flea to the elephant he was riding after crossing an old bridge.

No, we’re not alone in our pride. Even the Lone Ranger had a faithful companion.

Epilogue

Guests at the Ambassador's dinner party were all seated when a woman complained. "According to protocol, I should be seated over there." The Ambassador smiled politely and rearranged the seating. Afterwards, he was asked, "Doesn't it annoy you when things like that happen?"
"Not really," he replied. "I realized long ago that the ones who mind, don't matter, and the ones who matter, don't mind." And that says it all, doesn’t it?

Thought for the Day

“As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down you cannot see something that is above you.” C.S. Lewis

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Semi-interesting fact

Einstein couldn't speak fluently when he was nine. His parents thought he might be retarded.

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Joke Du Jour

A young child walked up to her mother and stared at her hair. As mother scrubbed on the dishes, the girl cleared her throat and sweetly asked; "Why do you have some grey strands in your hair?"

The mother paused and looked at her daughter. "Every time you disobey, I get one strand of grey hair. If you want me to stay pretty, you better obey."

The mother quickly returned to her task of washing dishes. The little girl stood there thinking. She cleared her throat again. "Mother?" She sweetly asked again.

"Yes?" Her Mother replied.

"Why is Grandma's hair all grey?"

Questions I ask myself

When sign makers go on strike, is anything written on their picket signs?

Really?? Actual News

Gay-reos The Nabisco company, a subsidiary of Kraft Foods, has drawn up a large controversy after posting a picture of a rainbow Oreo on Facebook in support of gay pride. Pride month is usually celebrated by parades and rainbow

banners : Nabisco however, raised controversy when it decided to post a rainbow colored Oreo on Facebook with the word "Pride." Over 200,000 Facebook users shared the photo on their own sites, and more than 34,000 people commented. "In my [judgment] here the problem with what Oreo, and by extension, Kraft has done is enter the political arena. If you are for or against gay marriage is truly a secondary issue," Ali Schweitzer stated in regards to the photo. "While all corporations are run by mere humans with their own personal and political beliefs they are best kept to themselves. That way everyone can continue to be happy with the products they love." Schweitzer suggested that large company endorsement of personal issues was a poor business decision that could have far-reaching consequences on more issues than just gay pride. Some Christians charged that the company was supporting a gay agenda. Eric G Smith believes that "it is a Christian's right to disagree." "But, that is after all the homosexual agenda, to make everyone agree, and if they don't they are a bigot,"

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s… A woman has been found with 'superhuman' sight enabling

her to see 99 million more colors than the rest of us.She can see an unimaginable range and depth of hues and is the first so-called 'tetrachromat' to be discovered in Britain, reports Metro. Gabriele Jordan, a neuroscientist at Newcastle University, says the condition only affects women - and there may be others. "Unfortunately, she cannot describe how her color vision compares with ours any more than we can tell a color-blind person what red looks like to us," she said.Vision is based on eye cells known as cones - but tetrachromats have four types instead of three."Tetrachromats may never need to draw on their full capacity," said Ms Jordan."They may be trapped in a world tailored to creatures with lesser powers."

Spear Catcher For the first time, South Florida is seeing some stunning images of how a 16-year-old boy was injured when a spear from a spear gun entered his head in a freak accident. Doctors revealed that it was a miracle that

the spear missed all the main blood vessels in Yasser Lopez's brain. That alone may have saved the life of the teen. He was transported with three feet of a spear protruding from his forehead. It took three hours of surgery to remove it. Miami-Dade Police said Lopez and a 15-year-old friend were hanging out by a lake. They said Lopez's friend was loading a spear gun when it accidentally deployed, hitting Lopez in the head. "It was about one inch above the right eye," said Dr. George Garcia at the Army Trauma Training Center. "You could feel the skin and the spear penetrated through the back of his skull." Garcia credited paramedics with preventing further damage to Lopez's brain by keeping him still. "The best thing the paramedics did and that was most important, was to stabilize and not move the patient," said Garcia. "They kept his head still.

Poor ol' Lonesome George Lonesome George, the last surviving Pinta Island giant tortoise, has died at his home in the Galapagos Islands. Scientists believe he was more

than 100 years old. Staff at the Galapagos National Park in Ecuador say George, the only remaining member of his subspecies was found dead by his long-term keeper. He said he was "unhappily surprised" to discover his charge "stretcehed out in the direction of his watering hole with no signs of life." A post-mortem examination will be carried out to ascertain the cause of death. Although he was old by human standards, lonesome George was not considered old for a giant tortoise -- the animals can live to around 200 years of age. George became a symbol of the Galapagos Islands after he was found on Pinta Island in 1971. His plight as the only known member of his subspecies led to a series of ill-fated attempts to provide him with a mate. But despite the presence of two female giant tortoises from a close subspecies sharing his enclosure – Lonesome George remained lonesome.

They messed with the wrong girl! Two teenagers looking for a cheap thrill got a beat down when a jogger who they assaulted turned out to be an expert in martial arts.

Priscilla Dang was jogging in her Vancouver, Wash., neighborhood when she was approached by two teens on their bikes. One pulled in front of her as the other groped her from behind. Little did they know that Dang had studied kung fu for 18 years at a martial arts school owned by her family. "I grabbed him and said, 'You need to apologize, and he did,'" Dang is quoted as saying. Then the second teen started swearing at her. Dang said that something snapped inside her and she punched him twice in the face. "He started coming in for a few, and I was lucky enough to dodge his shots. I came up for another one and I got him good, and I think that upset him," she said. Two people witnessed the confrontation and called 911. Police say an 18-year-old was arrested while the younger suspect was turned over to his parents. "I think they know now that they messed with the wrong girl," Dang said.

That dog is a real dog A Chinese Crested dog from Britain defeated an international group of competitors to win the title of World's Ugliest Dog.

Mugly won the grand prize at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif. "I couldn't speak when they announced Mugly's name," the dog's owner, Bev Nicholson, said. "I didn't know which way to look. I was shaking as much as the dog."The prize carries a number of perks. In addition to a trophy, Mugly and Nicolson get $1,000, a photo shoot and a year's supply of dog biscuits. Mugly is an 8-year old rescue dog from the UK. The organizers of the competition base winners on natural ugliness in both mutt and pedigree classes. Last year’s winner was a mix of a Chihuahua and Chinese Crested dog that went by the name “Yoda” who recently passed away in her sleep at the age of 15 in California. The canine contest is held to raise awareness of the dangers of canine inbreeding.

Random Musing

Every day we live is a priceless gift of God, loaded with possibilities to learn something new, to gain fresh insights.—Dale Evans Rogers

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Are you kidding me???

According to statistics from Wycliffe, Gideons, and the Bible Society, the number of new Bibles that are sold, given away, or otherwise distributed in USA is about 168,000 per day.

Groaner

Why couldn't they play cards on the ark? Noah was sitting on the deck

Point to Ponder

A truly humble man is hard to find, yet God delights to honor such selfless people. Booker T. Washington, the renowned black educator, was an outstanding example of this truth. Shortly after he took over the presidency of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, he was walking in an exclusive section of town when he was stopped by a wealthy white woman. Not knowing the famous Mr. Washington by sight, she asked if he would like to earn a few dollars by chopping wood for her. Because he had no pressing business at the moment, Professor Washington smiled, rolled up his sleeves, and proceeded to do the humble chore she had requested. When he was finished, he carried the logs into the house and stacked them by the fireplace. A little girl recognized him and later revealed his identity to the lady.

The next morning the embarrassed woman went to see Mr. Washington in his office at the Institute and apologized profusely. "It's perfectly all right, Madam," he replied. "Occasionally I enjoy a little manual labor. Besides, it's always a delight to do something for a friend." She shook his hand warmly and assured him that his meek and gracious attitude had endeared him and his work to her heart.

Not long afterward she showed her admiration by persuading many wealthy acquaintances to join her in donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Tuskegee Institute. Our Daily Bread

Remember, Christianity is more about walking than about talking