Prior Date

Archive Index

Next Date

WITandWISDOM(tm) - January 31, 2006 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "If all you do is all you're doing, all you'll get is all you're getting." - Brian Tracy Source: Weekend Encounter, by Dick Innes, Copyright (c) ACTS International, 2004, http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.htm ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Sarah Jo Sarchet is a Presbyterian pastor in Chicago. A 10 year-old boy in her congregation named Cameron, walked into her office and said he needed to talk to her. Fresh from soccer practice, and wearing his Cincinnati Reds baseball cap, he had a request for her. "I'd like to be baptized," he said. "We were learning about Jesus' baptism in Sunday School. The teacher asked the class who was baptized, and all the other kids raised their hands. I want to be baptized too." Using her best pastoral care tone of voice, she said, "Cameron, do you really want to be baptized because everyone else is?" His freckles winked up at her and he replied, "No. I want to be baptized because it means I belong to God." She was touched by his understanding. "Well, then," she said, "How about this Sunday?" His smile turned to concern and he asked, "Do I have to be baptized in front of all those people in the church? Can't I just have a friend baptize me in the river?" She asked where he came up with that idea. "Well, Jesus was baptized by his cousin John in a river, wasn't he?" Caught off guard, she conceded, "You have a point. But, if a friend baptized you in the river, how would the church recognize it?" Realizing this was a teachable moment, she climbed up on her foot stool to reach for her Presbyterian Book of Order that was located on the highest shelf. But before she placed her hand on the book, he responded. "I guess by my new way of living" he said. She nearly fell off the foot stool and left the Book of Order on the shelf. Cameron's understanding was neither childish nor simple. It was profound. Baptism calls us to a new way of living. From a sermon by Sarah Jo Sarchet preached at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago Source: Illustrations, http://www.cybersaltlists.org ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: The folks in Washington, PA are what you'd call hard-core football fans. As evidence of their support for their favored team in Super Bowl XL, the mayor and council voted unanimously to change this city's name, according to a Jan. 28 AP story. Welcome to Steeler, Pennsylvania. According to AP, "The name change for the city of about 15,000 people south of Pittsburgh will last through Feb. 5, the day of the football game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Seattle Seahawks in Detroit. "I know the folks in the state of Washington are rooting for the Seahawks, so we wanted to make sure everyone knows the city of Washington is fully in support of the Steelers," Mayor Kenneth J. Westcott told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. If you're sending a letter to anyone in Steeler, however, you'd better continue addressing them to Washington, since the name change is not recognized by the U.S. Postal Service. They must be Seahawks fans. Source: Preaching Now, http://www.preaching.com/newsletter/subscribe.html ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: One of the many things no one tells you about aging is that it is such a nice change from being young. Submitted by Orvie Jensen ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: The story is told about a missionary in Kenya who was given a car a few years ago, to help him in his missionary rounds, going from village to village to preach, teach the Bible, etc. After he had the car a few months, it refused to start. He looked under the hood, but not knowing anything about engines, he presumed the battery was worn out. He found, however, that he could get the car started by getting some boys from a local school to push it 50 feet or so, or he could park it headed down hill, and roll it off, engaging the clutch. He endured two years of this. Then he needed to take his family back to the United States. Before he left Africa, his replacement arrived. The old missionary showed his replacement his old car, and described the ways to push it or roll it off to get it started. The new missionary looked under the hood for a moment, then said, "Dr., I think that the battery cable has come loose from the starter." The new missionary reconnected the loose cable, got in the driver's seat, turned the key, pressed the starter, and the engine roared to life! King Duncan Source: Illustrations, http://www.cybersaltlists.org