SOMETHING TO HANG YOUR HAT ON-THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL
by Steve Goodier
A little boy and girl were singing their favorite carol in church the Sunday before Christmas. The boy concluded "Silent Night" with the words, "Sleep in heavenly beans."
"No," his sister corrected, "not beans. Peas."
The story reminds me of the wonderful and hectic holiday season many of us are approaching soon.
Dave Garroway was, for many years, the host of the TODAY show on NBC television. Someone once asked him about his understanding of Christmas. He replied: "I've noticed that when people are asked what they want for Christmas, nine times out of ten, they answer with something material. That used to be amusing to me, but it's not amusing to me any longer. I happen to be one of those people who can afford anything he wants, but I find what I really want, I can't buy at all. I want peace of mind, peace of soul; the kind of peace you have when you don't really want anything."
What do YOU want for Christmas? Or if you don't celebrate Christmas, what do you want for your life. For your world?
For me, what I want cannot be bought or gift wrapped. What I want most can best be summed up in words like "faith" and "hope" and "love."
For myself, I want faith. Faith enough to see light in even the bleakest of situations. Faith enough to believe that goodness will prevail in the end.
For my loved ones I want hope. Abundant hope. Hope in tomorrow. A hope that helps them believe that better times lay ahead so they can take that next step.
For my world I want love. And I believe that the solutions to most of our biggest problems will only be found when we decide that we are indeed one family. The problems of war, health care, crime in city streets, immigration and unemployment take on a different hue when I am talking about my brothers and sisters whom I love dearly. Do you also want things you can't buy? What if we all decided to go after those things this year that truly matter? That could be the greatest gift of all.
"Incentive," "inspiration," "drive," "enthusiasm," "reason," "purpose. " All these words can be found when you look for a definition of motivation. When I Googled "motivation" I got over seven million hits and some great quotes:
"Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value." - Albert Einstein
"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up...>>Read more...
That is a question I (and more often, Debbie) get all the time. How do you work with your spouse? The answer is simple. I love her. And if you're puzzled for a good definition of the "L" word, on this-our 16th anniversary-try this one on for size.
Love is friendship that has caught fire. It is quiet understanding, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving. It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection and makes...>>Read more...
Kevin is a boy who might be described as "slow." He didn't learn his ABCs as fast as other kids. He couldn't compete in schoolyard races. But Kevin had a way with people. His bright smile and big heart won him plenty of friends.
My friend Randy, the pastor at Kevin's church, decided they needed a basketball team for boys. Kevin signed on and soon basketball became a center of his life. He practiced hard. While the other boys worked at...>>Read more...
Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.
Capone had a lawyer nicknamed 'Easy Eddie.' He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.
To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money...>>Read more...
A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat.
A man was walking by.. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the...>>Read more...
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