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WITandWISDOM(tm) - December 29, 2005 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven't half the strength you think they have." - Norman Vincent Peale Source: Weekend Encounter, by Dick Innes, Copyright (c) ACTS International, 2004, http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.htm ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Francis of Assisi; he was wealthy and high-born and high-spirited. But he was not happy. He felt that life was incomplete. Then one day he was out riding and met a leper, loathsome and repulsive in the ugliness of his disease. Something moved Francis to dismount and fling his arms around this wretched sufferer; and in his arms the face of the leper appeared to change to the face of Christ. Martin of Tours was a Roman soldier and a Christian. One cold winter day, as he was entering a city, a beggar stopped him and asked for alms. Martin had no money; but the beggar was blue and shivering with cold, and Martin gave what he had. He took off his soldier's coat, worn and frayed as it was; he cut it in two and gave half of it to the beggar man. That night he had a dream. In it he saw the heavenly places and all the angels and Jesus in the midst of them; and Jesus was wearing half of a Roman soldier's cloak. One of the angels said to him, "Master, why are you wearing that battered old cloak? Who gave it to you?" And Jesus answered softly, "My servant Martin gave it to me." When we learn the generosity which without calculation helps men in the simplest things, we too will know the joy of helping Jesus Christ himself. William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Vol. 2, 326 Source: Illustrations, http://www.cybersaltlists.org ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: You Know You're Growing Old When.... You've come to the annoying realization that your parents were right about almost everything. The bag boy volunteers to help load groceries into your car-in the "ten items or less" lane. You've found yourself discussing the weather. You remember your kid's names, just not always the right one. You have nightmares about forgetting to move the garbage cans to the street for the garbage collector. You've realized that all those geeky people in Bermuda shorts walking around Disney World include you. You recognize Led Zeppelin songs that have been turned into elevator Muzak. As a public service, you have agreed to never appear on the beach in a Speedo again. You've had three opportunities to buy every single Disney Animated Classic-"For the last time in a generation" Wal-Mart and Target seem to share your fashion sense. You can pack two suits, Five shirts, five ties, five pairs of underwear, five pairs of socks, a pair of shoes, and half of your bathroom into a carry-on bag-in less than five minutes. Source: Clean Hewmor, mailto:clean-hewmor-subscribe@welovegod.org ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: On a long drive from Virginia, I thought I was traveling at a reasonable speed. But the flashing blue lights in my rearview mirror made me realize that I'd been over the limit. I handed the officer my license and made small talk while my wife dug through the glove compartment for the registration. "I am usually very careful about my speed," I told him as my wife handed me the paperwork. The officer studied it and then gave it back. "Sir," he said gruffly, "this is not your registration." It was a warning ticket I had gotten for speeding in South Carolina. A. Abercrombie, Fountain Inn, S.C. Source: The Reader's Digest, Copyright © April 2002, All rights reserved., http://www.readersdigest.com/ ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: The late entertainer Al Jolson is reputed to have been a hard man to handle. A young director once tried to get him to alter a piece of business, and found himself in trouble at once. Jolson halted the proceedings, stared at the young man scornfully, and said, "Listen kid, I've got a million dollars. What do you have?" And the director said quietly, "Friends!" Submitted by Gerry