GOLD NUGGETS 5

GOLD NUGGETS 5

By

Tom Franks, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2007 Tommy Franks
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
All rights reserved under International Copyright Law.
International Standard Book Number: 0‑926044‑57‑5

Contents and/or cover may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without the express written consent of the Publisher.
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations
are taken from the KINGS JAMES VERSION of the Bible.

Due to the Author's prerogative, some words are in small letters and some are capitalized for clarity and emphasis and not necessarily in accordance with standard grammatical practice.

Whenever pronouns or gender references appear in this book, they refer to both male and female unless otherwise noted.

Second Printing 2007

DEDICATION

I dedicate this book "GOLD NUGGETS 5" to my family, friends, and all who read this book.

INTRODUCTION

Since I have been blessed so abundantly by Our Maker God, I want to again share some of these joys, pains, agonies, ecstasies, and blissful experiences with you in the next few minutes.

Perhaps, after reading it, you might have a story or two that you want told and placed in print. If that is the case, contact me. Meantime, enjoy the gift of LIFE.

First Words

In brief, you were born with GREATNESS. You are the "APPLE" of God's eye. May you always be blessed with success, good health, and healthy emotions in your every day life. This book "Gold Nuggets #5" will assist you in the areas of virtual reality and quality living.

ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE

Today, try to stay cool. Don't take things too personal. Remember, there will always be difficult people and "want‑a‑be’s" around. But in a way, that's not all bad. Why? Because without them, we would not know how to measure our successes. It's like the difference between sheep and goats. We've been taught that sheep are G O O O O D and goats are sometimes BAAADD!

Well, it is true that sheep give up their wool so that we can keep warm. That's good! And sometimes sheep are used in movies to prove that they still exist...and that ignorance and sleep are bliss. But goats give us their milk! They help a lot of people who have stomach problems and are milk sensitive. Yes, goats do have horns...and if they butt you, that's BAAADD!

What am I saying? Where is this going? Use diplomacy. Sheer the sheep. Use their wool, but don't skin them. If you skin them, they may catch a cold and die on you...and then you get no more wool. Or if you nick them, they may run away and hide and later join someone else's herd. That would be BAAADD...not GOOOOOD. So pet the sheep, talk nice to them, feed them well, and they will joyously and freely give you their wool.

What about goats? Well, for one thing...they stink. And that's BAAADD! But they still have value. Bar‑B‑Q goat is delicious. Goat's milk makes great chocolate candy. When I was a child in Michigan, they used goats to mow their lawns. Goats will eat most everything to include tin cans (just kidding).

Today or in the next few days, take a GOOOOOD look around you. Why, you ask? Well, for one thing, it is true...many goats are now hiding and disguising themselves in public as sheep. They love to be seen and heard. They love to toot (BAAAH) their own horns and tell you how great they are and how many lamb chops they have eaten. The surefire way to distinguish and find out if it a goat...is simple: "You cannot tell a goat anything. They already know it all!"

He/She already knows everything. They know all about life. They have all the answers. They've been just about everywhere and have done it all. Where are these creatures? Well, some may wear wool suits. Some may play musical instruments...No offence to any musicians out there, but goats seem to like horns a lot. One may be in the car next to you at your next traffic light. If he blows his horn, you've nailed him fair and square.

Oh yes, there is one more thing, if he acts like an ass and smells like dove's dung, it's definitely a GOAT! Have a GOOOODD, GOOOOD, DAAAY. BAAAH!

GREAT PEOPLE

Great things are done by great people who think great thoughts and who dream great dreams. These great people then go out into society and activate those great thoughts, dreams, aspirations, visions, goals, hopes, intuitions, and revelations...into accomplishments and memorials.

My lovely daughter (Joanna) is such a person of that caliber. Am I bragging? Yes, indeed. WHY? Because even during her low times and moments of discouragement, she had a goal and dream in mind. She had a "made up" mind to get a college degree...even through adversity. And in just a few short weeks, this will become a reality for her! YES, Betty (her mother) and I are very much impressed and pleased. And we love her dearly...not because she is graduating from college, but because she is our daughter. She is truly a great person to know and an honest individual with a GREAT heart.

Today, join the club of great people. What is the essential prerequisite for greatness? Just be yourself...honest, open, a non-phony, lovable, helpful, serving others, non-critical, comforting others, congenial, sociable, and harmonious. That's all! Have a GREAT day all you GREAT People!

It’s A GREAT TIME TO BE ALIVE!

Tony, my son, once had a teacher that he harassed occasionally; such as:

Teacher: "Tony, how do you spell Mississippi?"
Tony: "Which one? The river or the state?"

Teacher: "Tony, was it you that ran that red light this morning on the way to school?"

Tony: "Teach, well to tell you the truth...Yes. But it is also true that I've stopped at a lot of green lights that I've never been given credit for."

Tony: "Teach, are you going on the special trip to Europe?"

Teacher: "Of course, I am. Why do you ask?"

Tony: "Well, I saw your passport picture and if you feel as bad as you look in that picture, you're too sick to go!"

Of course, you know by now that I am only kidding. It was actually Joanna, the banker, that did these things...Just kidding, just kidding!

Lighten up. Today, find something to laugh about...even if it is yourself. Humor is good for you and for those around you. Try NOT to take yourself too seriously. In another 100 years, those things that you thought were so important today will be long forgotten. Continue to be positive. Be sharp. Be courteous. The following is another true story:

The young man, who we will call "Bert", was always happy. He loved life. He loved people. One day he was robbed, shot, and left for dead. When they placed him on the operating table, he opened his eyes and saw their gloomy faces. The nurse asked, "Son, are you allergic to anything?"

Bert replied, "YES." They looked at him and waited for his next few words. He then totally surprised them. He looked at each of them and said, "Yes, I am allergic to something...I'm allergic to bullets."

They all started laughing and laughing. Bert then said, "Listen, operate on me and take this bullet out and stop thinking that I am going to die. I will to live. So do the best professional job you can do on me and let's move on. I'm not a hopeless case! OK?"

He lived and is still alive today...and is as positive as ever...and funny too!

NEVER LOSE YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR

Laugh, laugh, and laugh some more. If you need something funny to make you laugh, look in the mirror. I do...and I'm always amused. If you're not using your smile, it's like having a million dollars in the bank with no checkbook. SMILE today at someone. Don't take yourself too seriously. A hundred years from now, all of your problems will be gone and no one will care about those problems...not even you.

Say something funny to a friend today. Find something to laugh about. Perhaps you have a humorous story like the following. True story, by the way...The name has not been changed because it's about yours truly:

"It was super nice outside. It was early in the morning. The South Carolina sunshine was warm and no clouds around. It was great to be ALIVE! I was ready for the world.

I walked to the garage and got in my $22,000 car. I started the engine...adjusted the rear view mirror....turned on the cassette player and put in an "easy listening" tape. The music was simply marvelous. I turned on the A/C to just the right temperature. I let back the sun roof...and I was ready to take on the world.

The engine was purring like a kitten...simply marvelous. It was GREAT to be alive. I was getting into it...the music and all. I put the gear shifter in reverse and took off.

All at once, I hear this LOUD crashing NOISE...a BIG BANG. It startled me! And suddenly I realized that I had NOT opened the garage door.

I almost cried. I had wrecked my expensive auto and had caused extensive damage to the garage door...without ever leaving the garage. What a tragedy!"

Today, I can look back and LAUGH and LAUGH at myself for being a human clay vessel that had a case of dumbness that day. It's funny now...but not while it was happening. So, tell this story of humor to a friend and watch him laugh today. Never lose your sense of humor. It will help you to live years beyond what others thought you would live. Good day!

LAUNCH OUT INTO THE DEEP

Someone once said, "Don't be afraid to go out on a limb. That's where the FRUIT is."

We have been classified as branches. The branches bear the fruit.

Several years ago, I found myself in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico in a 28 foot fishing boat. Both my brother‑in‑law and I were pulling in the fish...two at a time. The water was deep...real deep. It took us hours to get out there where the big ones were, but the boring journey out to the deep waters seemed like nothing compared to what we were experiencing catching so many fish...big fish...as fast as we could reel them in. We would re‑bait and bring in two more...time and time again. I had never seen anything like it in all my young life. This was really living. This was something that every fisherman only dreams about...and it was happening to me.

We filled up our ice coolers with fish and started back to shore. Again, it was a long boring journey back, but we had memories for the rest of our lives to share with others. We had launched out into the deep waters and had a boat load of fish. We had left the banks that day without any fish or any knowledge of where the fish would be biting or if they would be biting...and we found them...out in the deep!

Today, take a chance on life. Go out on a limb. Launch out into the deep. Catch the big ones. Have the time of your life! Do not stay in a rut. A rut is a casket with both ends kicked out. Many people are already in their caskets just waiting for someone to kick dirt in on them. Don't be caught dead while still breathing on Planet Earth! You are ALIVE! Good day!

RAIN WILL COME

"And Noah was five hundred years old...Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD..." (Gen.5:32, 6:8).

"For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth...And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him. And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth" (Gen. 7:4-6).

The stage is set for rain, but a different type of rain than Noah experienced; nonetheless, rain will come! As the rain of the Holy Spirit comes down, our flesh will have to die as it did in the days of Noah! No flesh can stand before God. Rain, come on down!

IT'S BEGINNING TO RAIN AGAIN
By Tommy Franks

It's beginning to rain again,
My desert soul is being refreshed again.
No more stains of sin remain,
Because the love of Jesus did constrain.
Now the washing of His Blood has proclaimed
The mighty Power in Jesus' Name.

It's beginning to rain again,
The precious Church is being renewed again.
The Holy Spirit has ordained
The early and the latter rain.
Good bye O famine that once restrained;
You've been replaced by the harvest of gain.

It's beginning to rain again,
Planet Earth is being restored again.
Hurts and pains no longer have domain
Because there's Power in Jesus' Name.
God's garden is blooming again;
This final harvest of fruit will remain.

CHORUS:
It's beginning to rain again,
My soul is blessed again.
Sweet Anointing, I feel You within.
You've touched my heart again.
Through the power of Jesus' Name,
It's beginning to rain again.

DARKNESS WILL COME

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt...They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: BUT ALL THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL HAD LIGHT (ILLUMINATION, HAPPINESS, BRIGHTNESS) in their dwellings" (Ex.10:21-23).

"He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness..." (1 Sam 2:9).

In the next few years, God will plunder hell on earth to populate His Heaven! Every hell hole on earth is going to be shaken by the power of God. Many of the potheads, airheads, buttheads, and crack heads are going to make decisions to come to the only hope in this world...JESUS CHRIST! The next few years are going to be good years for the glory of God to shine forth. Hardheads will come to Jesus Christ!

Darkness will surely come to the world; however, the child of God will be bright with illumination from God...with no darkness at all.

Many Christians will become "addicted...to the ministry of the saints" (1Cor.16:15). Christians will once again become genuinely interested in helping others.

Explosions of God's power will happen in different parts of the world. To those of you who are children of the King, darkness will never touch you. As the Israelites were protected with God's Light, you too, will be protected with His Illumination, Brightness, and Warmth.

HARRIET TUBMAN

THE SLAVE TRADE was fueled in the 17th and 18th centuries by foreign demand, especially from America. The slave trade enveloped Africa like a raging forest fire out of control. Approximately 10 million Africans were forcibly removed from their native country.

Then along came Harriet Tubman in 1821. She eventually became an American abolitionist. Harriet was born into slavery on a plantation in Maryland...received no education...and never learned to read or write.

In 1844, Harriet was forced by her slave owner to marry a fellow slave, John Tubman. However, she escaped in 1849 to the North and thereafter helped lead other slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad. She undertook the most hazardous missions and employed stern measures during her rescues. She carried a loaded hand gun and threatened anyone of death if they attempted to give up the flight and return to bondage.

During her 20 dangerous journeys to the South to free new groups of fugitives, she befriended the Quakers who were free thinkers and sympathizers with her cause. John Brown became one of her closest friends and even sought her counsel for the Harpers Ferry raid in 1859.

Throughout the 1850s she made repeated journeys into slave territory, leading about 300 fugitives (including her parents) to freedom. When the Civil War began, she served as an army cook and nurse and later became a spy for the Union Army.

After the war she managed a home in Auburn, N.Y., for impoverished and elderly blacks until her death in 1913. HARRIET TUBMAN was buried with dignity and full military honors.

In general, Harriet and other northern free blacks played the most important role in the planning, communications, and decision making within the Underground Railroad network of escape. The approximate number of slaves assisted by the Underground Railroad was between 50,000 and 100,000.

A RAGING FOREST FIRE OUT OF CONTROL

During the 17th century, the thirst for blood money became apparent in the lives of so many "entrepreneurial individuals and initiatives" in obtaining slaves. The slave traders would walk the slaves to the marshaling areas on the coast and then feed and fatten them there, before selling them...to ship captains.

Transporting slaves to overseas areas demanded managerial competence that, at best, was highly complex. This type of inhumanity also required a strong stomach and a hard heart on the part of Europeans and Africans alike. Certainly the treatment of slaves in the African ports was degrading. Even more inhumane was the shackling and overcrowding of frightened and terrified Africans into poorly equipped ships that would often cross the ocean during stormy seas. This voyage took anywhere from six to ten weeks to accomplish. Many died along the way. The raging fire had begun.

The following are some of the areas that were well known for their slave trade: Eastern Nigeria, the Gold Coast, Western Angola, and others. These countries flourished economically during the 17th and 18th centuries.

As cruel as enslavement was, the societies of Africa may have suffered less than has often been supposed. For individuals fortunate enough to remain behind, the trade in slaves brought new sources of capital for development, markets for commodities in addition to slaves, the transfer of technology from the West to Africa, and an outlet...REGARDLESS OF HOW PERVERSE...for the talents of certain groups within the coastal and forest states. Many people of the Congo basin and Angola became wealthy and politically important because of their roles in taking advantage of the slave trade. In hind sight, history bears it out...that this type of devastation, destruction, and havoc was in fact...a stench in the nostrils of God!

Eventually, pressure from humanitarians in Europe brought attention to the iniquities of the slave trade in the late 18th century. The merchants of Africa were among the loudest in defending their livelihood. Britain outlawed slavery in 1807 and then persuaded France, Portugal, Spain, Arabia, and Zanzibar in the East, to follow suit.

The Africans involved in the slave market, complained bitterly and sought to interfere with the activities of Britain's anti-slave patrol in the Atlantic. Yet as time went on, many of them realized that their talents could be put to better use by supplying the industrialized Europe with palm oil (used for soap and industrial lubricants) and other raw materials of the day.

The effects of the slave trade and its abolition were felt increasingly in the inland regions as well as in areas nearer the coast. The quest for slaves naturally involved people further and further inland. Virtually no part of Africa was unacquainted with the horrors of this diabolical word "enslavement".

As time went on, so did the rapes, murders, and every type of inhumanity known to man...and some that were unknown...to these natives of Africa. But, as in times past, God raised up some special people to rescue the African-American and be a "Moses" to them.

One such person was: William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (W.E.B. Du Bois). Du Bois was born in Great Barrington, Mass., on Feb. 23, 1868. He lived until Aug. 27, 1963. He was a lifelong advocate of world peace and a leading champion of the liberation of Africans and people of African descent. He was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Fisk and Harvard universities...the first black to be awarded (1895) a Ph.D. from Harvard (1895). Du Bois wrote more than 20 books and more than 100 articles...pioneered both in historical studies of the black experience and in sociological explorations into Afro‑American life. His argued for both social and political equality.

Du Bois founded the Niagara Movement (1905), a forerunner of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE (NAACP) which he helped organize in 1909. His goal and dream was to end racial discrimination. Du Bois' concept was that Africans should help determine the world's destiny.

Some black leaders during the Civil Rights Movement, had some political differences with Du Bois; therefore, he spent his last years in virtual seclusion...but lived to see many advances in racial relations in the United States and the coming of independence, which he had helped make possible, to much of Africa. Du Bois' principal scholarly works include: The Suppression of the African Slave Trade to the United States of America, 1638‑1870 (1896), The Philadelphia Negro (1899), and Black Reconstruction in America (1935). His Autobiography was written in 1957.

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Dr. King was a man of greatness and moral presence who devoted his entire life to the full restoration of citizenship rights of the poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States.

He was born on 15 JAN 1929, in Atlanta, GA...received a bachelor's degree in sociology (1948) from Morehouse College, a B.D. (1951) from Crozer Theological Seminary, and a doctorate in philosophy (1955) from Boston University.

He met a beautiful young lady named Coretta, while studying at Boston University. She later became Coretta Scott King when they were married in June 1953. The next year, King accepted his first pastorate, the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, AL.

After Mrs. Rosa Parks defied the ordinance concerning segregated seating on city buses (Dec. 1, 1955), King successfully organized the year‑long Montgomery bus boycott...with the assistance of the Rev. Ralph ABERNATHY and Edward Nixon. This catapulted him into national prominence as a leader of the CIVIL RIGHTS movement.

King studied the life and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi and further developed the Indian leader's doctrine of "holding to the truth" with nonviolent civil disobedience. In the aftermath of Montgomery he traveled, delivered speeches, and wrote his first book, Stride toward Freedom (1958).

In 1960 he accepted the co-pastorship position with his father of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. He later became president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He also committed himself to voter‑registration campaigns throughout the South.

Some of his major campaigns were in Albany, Ga. (1961‑1962), Birmingham, AL. (1963), Danville, Va. (July 1963), and Selma, AL. (1965). He organized the massive March on Washington (Aug. 28, 1963) where he delivered his brilliant speech, "I Have a Dream." Dr. King successfully "subpoenaed the conscience of the nation before the judgment seat of morality." In January 1964, Time magazine chose Dr. King as Man of the Year, the first black American so honored. Later the same year, he became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.

While organizing a poor people's march on Washington in 1968, King was gunned down by an assassin on 4 APR 1968 in Memphis, TN. Today, it is clear that America has been deprived of a towering symbol of moral and social progress. In 1983, King's birthday was designated a national holiday.

BOOKER T. WASHINGTON

Booker Taliaferro Washington was born in Franklin County, Va., on 5 APR 1856. Young Booker became a tremendous American educator and a black leader. As a child he worked in coal mines nine months a year and attended school for 3 months. He worked his way through Hampton Institute (graduated in 1875).

In 1881, he was appointed the first President of Tuskegee Institute (an Alabama trade school for blacks). Tuskegee opened with one teacher...50 pupils...and $2,000 a year from the state of Alabama. By its 25th anniversary under Washington's leadership, the school had more than 1,500 students being trained in 37 industries.

Although Washington lived during a time when his race was widely discriminated against, he advocated training black people for trades to build up their economic position before fighting for integration and equality. He believed that black people would advance only if they were educated. This strategy was opposed by others, especially W. E. B. DU BOIS.

When Booker T. Washington presented his views in a speech at the Atlanta Exposition in 1895, he rapidly gained the attention of white leaders. He became influential in channeling contributions to black causes and in getting blacks appointed to federal jobs. He advised Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft on racial matters. Booker T. Washington wrote several books, including an autobiography, "Up From Slavery" (1901). He died on 14 NOV 1915.

ROSA PARKS

Rosa Parks is a central figure in the American Civil Rights Movement. Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was born in Tuskegee, AL., FEB. 4, 1913. She was the impetus, catalyst, and stimulus that instigated the Montgomery, AL, bus boycott of 1955‑56. Ms. Parks had refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white passenger as required by city law.

Although she was the secretary of the local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Parks acted alone. Her defiance and successful boycott, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, cost her dearly...her livelihood as an excellent seamstress. The boycott is generally regarded as the beginning of the modern U.S. civil rights movement.

Rosa moved to Detroit in 1957 and inspired later challenges to racial segregation. Her memoirs were published in 1992.

MY LAST WHIPPING

I really don't like to talk about this, but I will give you some insight into my young childhood. Let me now share with you something personal that happened in my life a long, long time ago:

At the age of 16, I had the world by the tail. I was hip. I was cool. I was B A D. I was the dude. I was the man! I knew it all. I had very little common sense or real money, but I was beginning to feel my oats...Until...that memorable day.

One of my younger sisters had decided that it was time to cause me some grief. She hid behind the living room door and stuck her tongue out at me and made a big ole ugly face at the same time. I saw red. I saw anger. My beady brown eyes turned red. I mean, I was ready for a fight with her. I politely asked her to stop (ha, ha), but she persisted with this harassment. I quickly remedied the situation. I slapped her across the face.

Well, you have heard of the wrath of Kuhn. This brought down not only the wrath of Kuhn, but also the wrath of Mom. Mama was only 5 foot 2 inches tall, but she was tough as nails and quick as grease lightning. She immediately summoned me to her court...the living room. She then requested my belt. To this, I said, "Mom, if you are going to whip me, then you need to also whip the person who started this nonsense."

Mom did not cater to this type of response. She took the belt in her hand and said, "Son, you are the one that needs the whipping, not..."

As she attempted to hit me with the brown belt, I snatched it out of her hand, threw it down on the floor, and took off like a bat out of a cave. I was moving! I had speed that I never knew I had! What I did not count on...was Mom running after me as fast as she could go. I ran around the house with her hot on my trail. I had to do something and do it quickly. So, I took a detour. I ran through the back door and into the bathroom...and locked the door...quickly. I now felt safe, at least for the moment ...until...Mom began breaking the door down. I can still remember her loud words, "Son, I'm going to teach you to run from me. I'm your mother. I will find you. You can't hide from me."

Mama kicked a large hole in the bottom of the door...sent my baby sister into the bathroom to unlock it while I stood there petrified. Mom came in. By now, I was in tears. She spoke a few words of exhortation and then finished the belt lashing. This was the last whipping that she ever gave me...and I respect her for it...God rest her soul! She died 6 years later.

THE WORD "ENTERTAIN"

We have all used the word "entertain" rather loosely at times. What does it really mean in the Biblical perspective? Some people get up in church just prior to singing a song and say, "I did not come here tonight to entertain you. I just came to serve the Lord."

The above statement sounds so pious and holy, yet, it is not the whole truth in accordance with the Word. Our prime mission and Divine Assignment in life is to "entertain" people. Let me explain.

A large portion of serving the Lord is entertaining people. Read on! The word "ENTERTAIN" means: to love or show love to others (even strangers), to keep pleasantly interested, to please or delight, consider someone, to hold or take into the mind, maintain or keep up, to hold together; to keep the interest of and give pleasure to, to have someone in mind, to have as a guest, hospitality (Heb. 13:2, 1 Pet. 4:9, Acts 28:7); friendly, act of love, the way you act when someone is dear to you.

Our paramount purpose on Planet Earth is to love or show love to others, especially strangers. "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares" (Heb.13:2). We need to keep others interested in what we are saying. No one likes to be bored with another person. We can be exciting and enthusiastic because we have something to be excited about...God's Son and Planet Heaven!

Therefore, whether we like it or not, we are entertainers of one kind or another. One of the above definitions of "entertain" is: to please or delight someone else. We can spread some joy around this planet by being Christ like...by being unselfish... thinking about others. Try it. I believe you'll agree.

YOU WILL NEVER PLEASE EVERYONE ON THIS PLANET

You're going to like this story. It seems as if the farmer and his son were on the way to the market to sell their donkey. As they approached a group of young girls on their way to the market, someone yelled, "Look at those two fools walking when they could be riding on the back of the dumb donkey."

The farmer thought about what was said and decided to let his son ride the donkey and he would continue walking along the side of him. Meantime, they came across some neighbors who said, "You will spoil your son if you let him ride while you walk. You are the father. You should be riding and your son walking."

The farmer followed their advice. He rode the donkey while his son walked. Soon they came across some women and children playing. One of the women exclaimed, "What a selfish old man...making his son walk while he rides. How selfish can you get?" Hence, the farmer made his son get up behind him and they both rode off together toward the market. Everything was going fine until they met some fellow travelers. The travelers asked the old farmer, "Are you taking that donkey to the market?"

The farmer replied, "Yes, we're on our way there now."

"Good heavens," they exclaimed, "by the time you get there, that old donkey will be exhausted and no one will buy him because he will be so weak and tired from carrying you two. Why, you old fool...you'd be better off carrying him!"

"OK...OK...anything to please the people. We will carry the dumb donkey then," said the farmer.

So they tied the donkey's legs together and slung him on a pole...with the farmer at one end of the pole and his son at the other...moving on toward the market. As they approached the market site, they started across a little wooden bridge. However, by this time, there was a huge crowd of people pointing at them and shouting, "You are two stupid fools...carrying a donkey on a pole. Who has ever seen such a sight before?"

The crowd laughed and laughed and unmercifully harassed them and called them names such as lunatics and morons. By now, the donkey was frightened by all the noise. He began to kick and bray and finally broke loose from the rope and pole. He fell into the water and drowned.

The farmer and his son returned home very sad without the donkey or any money. The moral of the story is quite simple: When you try to please everyone, you please no one...and you may lose your ass in the process. This is a true story written 600 years B.C. and is found in "Aesop's Fables".

YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

Have you ever given up on something or somebody? Have you ever quit before obtaining your goal or dream? Consider the following:

1. When Lucille Ball began her acting career, she was told by someone in authority, "Try any other profession...anything, but acting!"

2. In 1959, Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood were told by an executive officer, "You have no talent. And Mr. Eastwood, your teeth need fixing, your Adam's apple sticks out too far, and you talk too slow."

3. In 1944, Norma Jean Baker was told, "You'd better get a secretarial job or get married. You're certainly no model." You probably know Norma by the name of Marilyn Monroe!

4. "You will never make it in writing," the young Princeton student was told. Even though he failed to make the University school newspaper staff, he went on to become the founder and editor of "Forbes Magazine"...his name: Mr. Malcolm Forbes.

5. In 1962, the group of singers were told, "We don't like your sound. Besides, guitars are on their way out. Give it up!" The group: None other than the BEATLES.

6. In 1956, Decca Records fired the young man. They said, "You are the biggest no‑talent dude we have ever seen." His name: Buddy Holley, who today is considered the major influence on rock music.

7. In 1954, the manager of the Grand Ole Opry...fired another young man just after seeing him perform. He told the young man, "You will never go anywhere in music. You need to go back to driving a truck, son." The young man's name: Elvis Presley.

8. President Hayes (1876) told an unknown inventer, "Ok, yes...that's an amazing invention, but who in the world would ever use or buy one?" The unknown: Alexander Graham Bell. The gaget: the telephone.

9. The young boy was told not to come back to school because he was simply too dumb to learn. His mother taught him at home. At the age of 10, he set up his first chemistry laboratory. Later he patented more than 1300 inventions. On one of those inventions, he failed more than 2000 times. Did he quit? NO...NO...NO. His name: Thomas Alva Edison.

10. Another young inventor took his idea to 20 major corporations. They all turned him down. Some laughed at him. In 1947 after seven long miserable years, a tiny (no‑name) company in Rochester, NY, purchased the rights to his invention. No one remembers the inventor. His name: Mr. Chester Carlson. But they do remember the tiny company that bought the electrostatic paper‑copying process. The Company: Xerox Corporation.

11. By the age of 46, he was completely deaf. Most people would have quit, but not this man. He went on to write his five greatest symphonies during this time. His name: Beethoven.

12. She was the 20th of 22 children born into this poor family. She was born premature. According to the doctor, her chance of survival was slim to none. At the age of 4, she had double pneumonia and scarlet fever which left her with a paralyzed leg.
Would she ever walk again? By the time she was 13, she was walking almost normal. For the first time in her life, she entered a race and came in last. For the next few years, she entered many more races, but always came in last...until...one bright day, she actually won a race...then another...then another...and another. Eventually, this little girl who was told, "You will never walk again"...went on to win 3 GOLD Olympic Medals. Her name: Wilma Rudolph.

13. They rejected his manuscripts 350 times before he made his first sale. Today he has sold over 200 Million copies of western novels. He was the first American novelist to receive the Congressional Gold Medal. His name: Louis L'Amour.

14. In 1953, she began a cook book. Five years later, the 850 page manuscript was rejected by the publisher. The next year after it was modified, it was rejected again. She never gave up. Finally, in 1961 the book was published. The book: "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". Her name: Julia Childs.

15. He was turned down two times for admission to West Point. Finally, on his third try, he was accepted as a cadet. His name: General Douglas McArthur.

16. Another young soldier entered the war as a captain. By the end of the war, he had been demoted to a private. The war: The Blackhawk War. The man: Abraham Lincoln. YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

DOES RIGHT ALWAYS WIN?

The time was Feb 1972. I was a cop in a little southern town. I arrested a man (Latino) one night on 3 different charges. He went to court. The judge fined him $140.00 for the violations. Seven days later, I arrested a white man (local individual) on the same identical charges. The white man just happened to own the bank next to the police station. He asked me, "Do you know who I am, boy?" He told me that I was stupid for arresting him.

I replied, "I'm not stupid and yes, I know who I am."

He responded, "I'll have your badge for this."

I said, "That may be true, but in the meantime...You're either going to post a bond or you are going to jail."

I thought the man was going to have a heart attack right there in the police station. His face turned red and he began to cough and get angry.

The following Monday afternoon (court time), he never even bothered to show up. I went to the chief. The Police Chief said, "Tommy, I like you. You're a good cop. You're honest. You're kind. But let me say this. I don't run this town. Right now, you've got me into a heap of trouble boy with the mayor of this city. You see, he and this banker that you arrested the other night are good buddies. Tommy, I want you to drop the charges. If you don't, the mayor has asked for your badge."

I replied, "Chief, I'm truly sorry for you. I cannot drop the charges though. You'll have my badge in the morning. You see, about a week ago I arrested a Puerto Rican man on the same identical charges and he got fined $140.00 by the judge. My conscience will not let me discriminate like this. Chief, I will prosecute the banker in Superior court...if he is a “no-show” at City Court.”

The Chief responded, "OK, Tommy. I'll have him to come to city court next Monday."

I turned in my badge the next day. The slick banker showed up in court; however, as it turned out, he was also a real good friend of the judge. They both looked at me and smiled. The judge illegally threw out the charges.

I notified several state agencies, the local newspapers, the State's Attorneys Office, and my state congressman. They investigated for several months and things did get better for a while, but the "good old boys' network" went back into force in a few months later. Why? Because people did not want to make waves or lose their jobs. It was a small town. Everybody knew everybody. If you crossed the mayor, the judge, or the Police Chief, you would find yourself in the unemployment lines.

What happened to me? Well, someone asked me later if I wanted my old job back and I responded, "No, I guess I'll be leaving this little town soon."

I left the next day. I never went back for several years. For years, that town was a depressed area...very little industry, not much new start-up businesses, high crime area, and a lot of people left town. Even today, the wealthy still control about 85% of the property and resources. That's the way it has been for the past 125 years.

Does right always win? I believe so. According to God's Word, justice will prevail...if not in this life, certainly in the next! I can go to bed at night and sleep like a baby with a clear conscience. Hopefully, you can too!

AMERICAN CHRISTIAN SOLDIER

The time was November 1964. Viet Nam was beginning to take its toll on the American soldier. Being 18 years old and reared in a typical, small town (Zolfo Springs, Florida) and Christian home, my love for the BEST country on the face of this earth began to swell up within me. The historical heritage of our forefathers and Christian pride for this "one nation under God" began to give me a new sense of patriotism that I had never before experienced. Suddenly, I realized that I must volunteer to go and serve my country and help defend the United States' Constitution, even if it cost me my limbs, eyes, hearing, or life.

The above paragraph could have been written from literally hundreds of thousands of warm‑blooded, God fearing, hard working Americans (male and female). The American soldier is sometimes forgotten, especially after the crisis. A short time ago, I stood on the battlefields of Gettysburg, Antietam, and Fort McHenry. I could not hold back the tears. The blood of the American soldier had been spilled for the causes in which he/she so intently believed. The freedom of the press is one of those causes. The freedom of religion is another. I could go on and on.

In South Coventry, Connecticut, I stood beside the tombstone of Captain Nathan Hale who was executed by the British in 1776. His last infinite words were, "I regret that I have but one life to give for my country."

A few months ago at the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, I viewed the resting place of John Paul Jones who was born in Scotland, but served this Christian nation well as one of its finest and most courageous naval officers.

George Washington was a military man. Andrew Jackson was a military man. Dwight D. Eisenhower was a military man. John F. Kennedy was a military man. David, the king of Israel, was a military man. The centurion of Matthew 8 was a military man in which Jesus responded, "Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."

Cornelius of Acts 10 was a military man who heard Peter speak, received Jesus, and then received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

From the outset of the founding of this great nation, we have had dedicated and holy Christian soldiers who have laid down their lives for this country and the freedoms we so graciously enjoy.

The professionalism of today's Christian soldier sometimes overwhelms me, especially when you consider that just a few months earlier he/she was in high school or college and had never seen a multimillion dollar tank or military aircraft except on television. Our soldiers have such an awesome responsibility and tremendous dedication to the defense of this great nation. Some fellow Christians are concerned and even perhaps afraid of Russia or China, but they will NEVER rule or dominate America. God has indeed shed His grace on this Christian republic. Our professional soldiers, airmen, and sailors are the best qualified, most physically fit, intelligent, and have more stamina than any other military structure in the world. You can be proud of the American soldier who is your son, daughter, father, mother, sister, brother, or relative. God is.

In the military, we have tens of thousands (privates through generals) that are Christians filled with God's love. Not only are we in the American Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps, but we are also in God's Army. We are marching for Jesus across this world every single day propagating the GOOD NEWS of the Commander‑in‑Chief of the Universe, Jesus Christ.

The real enemy (satan) was totally defeated in combat warfare by our Commander and elder Brother. The greatest war of all the ages only lasted three days and three nights. The combat zone was in the enemy's own territory, but he did not stand a chance. The battle raged. Initially, it looked as if satan had won, but the contingency had only just begun. The entire enemy's armor, weapons, communications, command, control, and intelligence did him absolutely no good against the General of all generals. After all the dust, smoke, and brimstone had settled, Commander Jesus Christ came forth the VICTOR. He single handedly defeated the foe and even liberated the prisoners of war in which some had been POWs for almost 4000 years. You talk about a modern day Rambo...

Meanwhile, the performance of the American military soldier on a daily basis is outstanding. Some stand and guard aircraft for eight hours at a time. Some patrol borders of countries night after night to insure our safety. Some fly dangerous missions that could be their last. Others, without complaining are down in the trenches doing menial tasks that no one else wants to do, but are so vital to the organization and mission of peace.

Pride, professionalism, and performance are indeed the life of the American soldier. He is a peacemaker. Jesus said, "Blessed (happy) are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." Today, we have a lot of God's children out there!

LAST WORDS

EDIFY Others: Edify means to “Uplift, inspire, strengthen, exhilarate, invigorate, stimulate, rejuvenate, cheer, encourage, applaud, brighten, gladden, reassure, and optimize.”

ENCOURAGE Others: Encourage means to “Persuade, favor, recommend, promote, influence, advocate, foster, assist, inspire, motivate, kindle, fire up, stimulate, excite, activate, and quicken.”

EMBRACE Others: Embrace means to “Hold, squeeze, hug, encompass, adopt, carry, involve, keep, believe in, clasp, secure, grasp, protect, defend, guard, shield, support, forgive, and fortify.”