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WITandWISDOM(tm) - April 9, 2002 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire - conscience. - George Washington Source: Inspire, http://www.inspirelist.com/ Subjects: Conscience ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Jerry was a member of a support group I was leading. He was cheating on his wife, but he kept saying that he was sorry and that he really didn't want to be an adulterer. He really wanted to obey God; however, as much as he said that, he didn't change. He wanted to believe that he wanted to change without doing the work of change. Tired of hearing how much he wanted to be different, I suggested that he tell God and the group the truth. He really did not want to change, he enjoyed his affairs, and his real wish was that God would take his rules and go somewhere else. Jerry was taken aback, but gradually began to see how true this was. Finally, he told the truth about his lack of love for God and how he really wanted to do his own thing. At first this admission scared him. He was giving up the falsehood of seeing himself as a Christian who cared about holiness. But his honesty felt better to him than all the lies, and something began to happen. In the safety of grace, which was allowing him to see himself as he really was, he began to regret who he was. He began to see the emptiness of his heart. When he owned who he really was from his heart, he did not like himself. He was developing godly sorrow, the kind that leads to repentance, and he began to change. He told his lover that he was not going to see her any more, and he made a new commitment to his wife. This time he meant it. Whereas for years he had been saying yes and acting out no, he finally owned his no to God directly and honestly. Only then was change possible. Until we can own our boundaries with God, we can't ever change them or allow him to work with them. They are hidden and not communicated. They need to be honestly owned, exposed, and made a part of us. Then, we and God can face the problem. Boundaries: When to Say Yes-When to Say No-To Take Control of Your Life, By Cloud, Henry; Townsend, John, Published by Zondervan (Jan 1, 1999), ISBN: 0310224535 http://isbn.nu/0310224535 Subjects: Adultery, Honesty, Boundaries ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: SPRINGTIME IN MONTANA When it's springtime in Montana, And the gentle breezes blow, About seventy miles an hour And it's fifty-two below. You can tell you're in Montana 'cause the snow's up to your butt, And you take a breath of springtime air And your nose holes both freeze shut. The weather here is wonderful, So I guess I'll hang around, I could never leave Montana. My feet are frozen to the ground. Submitted by Dave Parker, from Montana, USA :o) Subjects: Spring, States, Freezing ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: The teacher of a geography class was lecturing on map reading. After explaining about latitude, longitude, degrees and minutes, the teacher asked: "Suppose I asked you to meet me for lunch at 23 degrees, 4 minutes north latitude and 45 degrees, 15 minutes east longitude...?" After a confused silence, little Johnny finally said: "I guess you'd be eating alone!" Source: Weekend Encounter, by Dick Innes, Copyright 2002, http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.htm Subjects: Geography, Maps ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: What language do people speak in India? Although the official language of India is Hindi, there are 14 regional languages that are officially recognized for conducting national affairs. In addition, there are approximately 170 other languages and over 500 dialects. Of the Indian population of over 548 million, only about 134 million understand Hindi. Source: ArcaMax Trivia, http://www.arcamax.com For more information regarding the Hindi language visit: http://www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/hindiint.html Subj ects: Language, India |