><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine - ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Issue Vol 1 # 3 FreEzine@telstra.easymail.com.au September 2000 ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< FreEzine is a free email magazine/newsletter containing articles of interest from a Christian perspective and is published no less than monthly. FreEzine is NOT Spam and is only sent to people who request it. If you ever want to stop (or start) receiving FreEzine you'll find instructions at the end of this newsletter. A special "hello" to all of our new subscribers. We welcome and appreciate feedback on how we can improve this e-zine for you. IF YOU FIND THIS NEWSLETTER USEFUL... ... PLEASE FORWARD IT TO FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES! ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< IN THIS ISSUE: Editorial: Good deeds News Break: Mongolian Bibles What's On? Seminars & Workshops Repeatable Quotable: Change Serial story: The Continuing Saga of Peter Blank Article: The One True Church Focus on Health: High Cholesterol from TV Book Look: Adventures in Scripture Website Review: Christian Resources Cook's Corner: Rosemary's Cold Mould Vegetarian Savoury Take a Hint: Someone is Watching You Agony Aunt Ezine: Identifying the cause of a disagreement Letters to the Editor The Funny Bone (Humour): The Psychiatric Hotline Overheard: A telephone answer-machine message Watch This Space Subscription & other information Last words: In Gods Eye ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine - ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Guest Editorial By Mike Buetelle When I was in junior high, the eighth-grade bully punched me in the stomach. Not only did it hurt and make me angry, but the embarrassment and humiliation were almost intolerable. I wanted desperately to even the score! I planned to meet him by the bike racks the next day and let him have it. For some reason, I told my plan to Nana, my grandmother - big mistake. She gave me one of her hour-long lectures (that woman could really talk). The lecture was a total drag, but among other things, I vaguely remember her telling me that I didn't need to worry about him. She said, "Good deeds beget good results, and evil deeds beget bad results." I told her, in a nice way, of course, that I thought she was full of it. I told her that I did good things all the time, and all I got in return was "baloney!" (I didn't use that word.) She stuck to her guns, though. She said, "Every good deed will come back to you someday, and every bad thing you do will also come back to you." It took me 30 years to understand the wisdom of her words. Nana was living in a board-and-care home in Laguna Hills, California. Each Tuesday, I came by and took her out to dinner. I would always find her neatly dressed and sitting in a chair right by the front door. I vividly remember our very last dinner together before she went into the convalescent hospital. We drove to a nearby simple little family-owned restaurant. I ordered pot roast for Nana and a hamburger for myself. The food arrived and as I dug in, I noticed that Nana wasn't eating. She was just staring at the food on her plate. Moving my plate aside, I took Nana's plate, placed it in front of me, and cut her meat into small pieces. I then placed the plate back in front of her. As she very weakly, and with great difficulty, forked the meat into her mouth, I was struck with a memory that brought instant tears to my eyes. Forty years previously, as a little boy sitting at the table. Nana had always taken the meat on my plate and cut it into small pieces so I could eat it. It had taken 40 years, but the good deed had been repaid. Nana was right. We reap exactly what we sow. "Every good deed you do will someday come back to you." What about the eighth-grade bully? He ran into the ninth-grade bully. --- From A Second Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul, by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, www.soupserver.com ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< News Break: Mongolian Bibles A newly translated Bible is encouraging Christians who lived under Communist persecution. Brittany Jarvis tells how eager Christians recently snatched up 10,000 Mongolian Bibles. The full story is on http://www.christianityonline.com/ct/2000/139/45.0.html ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< What's On? Seminars & Workshops There are many practical seminars currently available for those living in the Gold Coast/Tweed areas of QLD/NSW. Subjects include Building Self Esteem & Confidence * Child Protection (from Abuse & Neglect) * Clinical Debriefing * Communication Skills * Conflict Resolution * Dealing With Anger And Frustration * Managing a Family Budget * Practical Skills for Coping With Grief and Loss * Recovery from Divorce & Dysfunction * Stress & Distress. Cost is only a donation of $2.00 per seminar. Visit http://members.nbci.com/seminars_workshops/ to see What's On. Information also available from your editor. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Repeatable Quotable: Everything is further away now than it used to be. It is twice as far to the corner - and they've added a hill I've noticed. I have given up running for the bus, it leaves faster than it used to. It seems to me they are making steps steeper than in the old days - and have you noticed the smaller print they use in the newspaper and telephone books? There's no sense in asking people to read aloud - everyone speaks in such a low voice, I can hardly hear them. The material in dresses is getting so skimpy - especially around the waist and hips. Even people are changing. They are much younger than they used to be when I was their age. On the other hand people my own age are so much older than I am. I ran into an old friend the other day and she had aged so much she didn't recognise me! I got to thinking about the poor thing while I was combing my hair this morning and, in doing so, I glanced at my reflection - and would you believe it - they don't make mirrors like they used to either! -- Author Unknown (From http://www.witandwisdom.org) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Serial story: "Not Finished Yet" - Episodes in the Continuing Saga of Peter Blank. This serial saga, although novel, is not a novel. It is merely a series of true-life episodes highlighting the extraordinary working of an extraordinary God in a very ordinary life. Each episode contained a lesson for Peter Blank, a lesson we can all learn, from a lesson-book life that is not finished yet. Episode 3: Peter Has A Close Shave Peter (9 years), interested in things mechanical, volunteered his services several days a week (after school) in a local wood joinery shop. Here in a converted brewery, the smell of beer long since replaced by the heady fragrance of freshly-sawn pine, and the noisy clanking of bottles was replaced by the buzz of timber shaping and cutting machines. Here the busy craftsman and his equally talented wife fashioned rough timber into beautiful furniture. Childless, they adopted Peter for an hour or two each afternoon, so hot chocolate and jam scones always preceded his labour. For Peter, no special genius was required. Sometimes he stacked timber or swept up sawdust. Occasionally he helped to hold an item while glue clamps were applied or to help steady an extra large item while it was fed into an hungry planing machine or saw-bench. Always he was allowed to take home an off-cut or two, a few nails or screws, or wooden dowels to fashion some creation of his own. Mostly he just talked with youthful enthusiasm and stood by watching with fervent interest. On one sad occasion he stayed there on his own to answer the telephone or greet customers because, having witnessed the wife loose a finger while using the band-saw, the craftsman and his wife left him "in charge" while they hurried to the hospital. Often they chatted about their God. The couple was Christian, but not religious. Unlike Peter, they attended no church, but they knew their God personally and shared their simple faith enthusiastically, reminding Peter often that God has a personal interest in each of us and that we all have our own Guardian Angel. One particular incident gave them opportunity to remind him of this often. That day, Peter had been helping to hold a large glue-bound tabletop while the craftsman manoeuvred it across the circular saw bench. With such a large item covering the saw-bench, neither of them gave thought to a doweling drill on the same shaft as the saw-blade. This twist drill, revolving in unison with the blade, protruded out from the side of the bench and was protected only by a little metal shelf a few centimetres below it. As the pair slid the tabletop across the saw-bench, the spinning drill bit grabbed the front of Peter's cardigan. Within seconds, his head was being pulled downwards toward the fast rotating blade. Instantly, the machine was stopped by the quick-thinking craftsman, but momentum kept the blade spinning and the relentless drill was gathering up the frightened youth's cardigan and pulling him closer and closer to the deadly whining circle of hungry teeth. Peter's eyeball felt the brush of air from the blade as it loomed closer. Finally the craftsman wedged a piece of wood against the blade, stopping it suddenly just as it was beginning to lick the hair off Peter's forehead. With hearts pounding and breath hard to come by, they both sighed thanks to God. Peter sensed the nearness of a God who had spared him, and often the craftsman and his wife, followers of their Master's trade, reminded the youth that God must have a special work for him, a lesson for Peter that is not finished yet. Watch in the next newsletter for the next episode in the continuing true-life saga of Peter Blank. "Not Finished Yet" is Copyright ((c) 2000, FreEzine) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Article: The One True Church by Desmond Ford When you trust in Christ you become a member of the True Church. The true church is the church invisible that includes all people- from all ages- who believe the gospel. Against this church Satan can never prevail. "Upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). About one in three people around the globe today, claims membership in Christ's church. Yet almost everyone realises that the professing church today is not the glorious reality sketched in the symbolism of the Old Testament Scripture: "Who is this that appears like the dawn, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, majestic as the stars in procession" (Song of Songs 6:10). Nor has the church fulfilled the description of it in the New Testament. "A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head" (Revelation 12:1). The church has had a multi-coloured history. She has flown a variety of flags. Sometimes she has marched against the evils of her age, as in the first century. At other times she has marched against members of her own body, as during the dark ages. In the early days of the United States, only the State of Maryland was safe for Catholics. The church has been the home a many august saints. Paul, Peter and the other apostles as well as a host of Jewish priests obedient to the faith. (Acts 6:7). Many women of the New Testament who grace the honour rolls. See Luke 23:49, Luke 24:1-11, John 19:25-27, John 20:1+2. And many others since then: Francis of Assisi, Francis Xavier, Martin Luther, John Knox, John Calvin, Cardinal Francis Newman, George Muller, John and Charles Wesley, George Whitfield, William Wilberforce, William Carey, David Livingstone, William and Catherine Booth, Charles Spurgeon, Hudson Taylor, Thomas Barnado, Mary Slessor. And in our own day, Billy Graham, Mother Theresa and an army of others. The church has fought in some great battles. The battle against emporer worship, as well as infanticide and ignorance, impurity and intemperance. The battle against all manner of soul and body-destroying practices. The church has displayed great heroism and great cowardice. Remember the millions of martyrs. The church did little to stay the holocaust. Yet there were remarkable exceptions, eg. Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Niemoller. Sometimes the church has been in league with blood-guilty governments. Sometimes the church has proclaimed what the consciences of most of the hearers are forced to acknowledge: love has supremacy over hate; purity over impurity; and truth over lies. At other times the church has warred over shibboleths with little meaning for suffering multitudes. Consider the separate hallmarks of various denominations through the years. How could Christ say that the gates of hell would not prevail against the church? Have they not done so a thousand times? No. They haven't. Where did the idea that truth makes people free come from? It is the basis of education. Where did the idea of obligation to the less fortunate come from? It underlies much of the advanced social legislation of the twentieth century. Where from? The church! Before Jesus came, there were, so to speak, no women and children. It is only since Christ was born in Bethlehem that we see heaven in the eyes of a pure woman or a little child. Before that, they were property to be disposed of by the stronger sex. By far, the majority of philanthropic ventures, hospitals, ministries to slaves, orphans and the downtrodden, have sprung from Christian compassion. They sprang often from hearts cultivated in homes that taught such mercy. The values that make our lives livable today, had their origin in Christian hearts. Yet many of the 'Christian' flowers we see today are 'cut flowers.' They shall perish. People who hold Christian values while denying their true origin, shall live to see an inevitable decline in public and private life. A pervasive sterility and barrenness will steal across our land. Christ once said that the only people who can truly see are those born again. (John 3:3). He warned that the 'flesh counts for nothing' (john 6:33). Jesus was himself the best example of that principle. When people looked at him there was no beauty or majesty to attract them to him. (Isaiah 3:2). The apostle Paul knew the Master's teaching very well. He wrote: "We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen" (2 Corinthians 4:13). This is the only way we can see the church. For the true church is the church invisible. We must not confuse the church invisible (Matthew 16:18) with today's visible churches. Scripture says, concerning the church, "There is one body" (Ephesians 4:4). Compare 1 Corinthians 12:12. The church of Christ must not be confused with denominations. The New Testament knows nothing of denominations. (Except perhaps 1 Corinthians 1:12-17 where Paul decries divisions within the body.) We must distinguish between God-ordained movements and denominations. God was in the Apostolic movement; the reformation; the Methodist revival; the true social gospel of the Salvation Army; the Advent movement of the nineteenth century. But not one of these movements on its own, is to be seen as the church. The church includes all the martyrs from Stephen on. The church includes all the missionaries of every group that has longed to spread the good news. It includes all the philanthropists whose hearts have burned for suffering men and women; the purchase of the blood of Christ. It includes any soul of any denomination, who has ever crowned Jesus as saviour and Lord. All the movements God raised up are part of the church of Christ. They are not on their own, that church. Against the church of Christ invisible, evil can never prevail. But evil has prevailed against many visible churches. Notice Christ's solemn warnings in Revelation 2 + 3. The warnings are to visible churches. Their candlesticks will be removed. This means the eternal loss of most of their members. A. H. Strong writes: The church of Christ, in its larger signification, is the whole company of regenerate persons in all times and ages, in heaven and on earth. . . In this sense the church is. . . that redeemed humanity, in which God in Christ exercises actual spiritual dominion(John 3:3-5). Strong offers another beautiful paragraph worthy of much meditation: In their loftiest moods of inspiration, the Catholic, Thomas a Kempis, the Puritan Milton, the Anglican Keble, rose above their peculiar tenets, and above the limits that divide denominations, into the higher regions of a common Christianity. It was the Baptist Bunyan, who taught the world that there was a common ground of communion which no difference of external rites could efface. It was the Moravian Gambold, who wrote: "The man that could surround the sum of things, And spy, the heart of God and secrets of his empire, Would speak but love. With love, the bright result would change the hue of intermediate things, and make one thing of all theology." Romans 16:3 speaks of the "church that meets at their house." This is how it works. Wherever there is a core of regenerate believers gathered, the church invisible takes local and temporal form. Many Scriptures so signify. Patrick Fairbairn has written well on this topic: "An assembly of the called, or of Christians, viewed in relation to Christ, its heavenly king, present by his Spirit, wherever two or three are gathered in his name (Matthew 18:20); and viewed also in relation to its structure, which is that of an organised body, and not a collection of atoms without mutual dependence-and a common end (1 Corinthians 12), was fitly called KURIAKON (kirche, kirk, church), as a palace or building in which the Lord by his Spirit resides." See Ephesians 2:22-24 Selected from Good News Australia Issue 3, 1999 (www.goodnewsunlimited.org.au to subscribe) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Focus on Health: High Cholesterol from TV In a study at the University of California, Irvine, scientists found that children who watch more than two hours of TV or video games each day have twice the blood cholesterol levels of those watching less than two hours. Why is this true? Three things happen when kids sit in front of the TV: they snack more, they exercise less, and their metabolic rate drops even lower than if they were laying in bed doing nothing. Advertisers know it, too. According to Dr. Thomas Starc of Columbia University, ads for high-fat foods (such as pizza and fast-food burgers) during children's cartoon shows rose from 16% of the total in 1989 to 41% in 1993. Source: Giggles & Grins. Copyright (c) 2000 by Igiggle@aol.com All Rights Reserved, gigglesngrins-subscribe@topica.com ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Book Look: Adventures in Scripture, by Janette Sweeney. A whole year's Bible lessons for the Primary School. Profusely illustrated, available in book or CD-ROM (with clipart). Simple stories from the Bible without the clutter of denominational bias. Recommended. Available from Good News Unlimited, email goodnews@coolgold.com.au Or from your editor, email hartley@telstra.easymail.com.au ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Website Review: A new community site. http://communities.msn.co.uk/ChristianResourceCentre is a site which contains links to numerous other Christian sites, invites your chat and welcomes links to promote your site. A relatively new site, http://communities.msn.co.uk/ChristianResourceCentre invites you to pay a visit & leave your calling card. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Cook's Corner: Rosemary's Cold Mould Vegetarian Savoury 1 Cup macaroni / 2 Tablespoons peanut butter / 1 Cup milk / 2 Well beaten eggs / 1 Cup white breadcrumbs / 1 Grated onion / 1 Tablespoon margarine OR melted butter / Salt, Herbs, Parsley. Cook the macaroni in salted water. Pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and allow to soak for five minutes, then add margarine, peanut butter (which has been thinned with a little hot water), the eggs, and a flavouring of herbs and parsley. Add grated onion and salt to taste, and finally the cooked macaroni. Mix well together. Pour into a greased basin and microwave (Med-High) about 20 minutes (or may be steamed for 1 Hr. 15 Min.) Serve cold, sliced with salad. Submitted by Rosemary H, NSW Editor's comment: Mmmmmmm. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Take a Hint: Someone is Watching You... We are witnesses of what we believe whether we like it or not, as I was reminded when I read the following story recently. A new missionary recruit went to Venezuela for the first time. He was struggling with the language and didn't understand a whole lot of what was going on. On his way to visit one of the local churches, he got lost, but eventually got back on track and found the place. Having arrived late, the church was already packed. The only pew left was the one in the front row. So as not to make a fool of himself, he decided to pick someone out of the crowd to imitate. He chose to follow the man sitting next to him on the front pew. As they sang, the man clapped his hands, so the missionary recruit clapped, too. When the man stood up to pray, the missionary recruit stood up, too. When the man sat down, he sat down. During the preaching, the recruit didn't understand a thing. He just sat there and tried to look just like that man in the front pew. Then the preacher said some words that he didn't understand and he saw the man next to him stand up. So he stood up, too. Suddenly a hush fell over the entire congregation. A few people gasped. He looked around and saw that nobody else was standing. So he sat down. After the service ended, the preacher stood at the door shaking the hands of those who were leaving. When the missionary recruit stretched out his hand to greet the preacher, the preacher said in English: "I take it you don't speak Spanish." The missionary recruit replied: "No, I don't. It's that obvious?" "Well, yes," said the preacher, "I announced that the Acosta family had a new-born baby boy and would the proud father please stand up." Adapted from http://christianhumor.about.com/ ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Agony Aunt Ezine - A service provided by The Listening Post (c)2000 Dear Listening Post, I am an 18 year old New Zealander and I was going steady with my boyfriend in Australia for two years. A few days after we became engaged, he broke it off claiming that we fought too much and he didn't want to continue our relationship. I returned to New Zealand leaving him feeling angry with us. I still love him and want to know if I should write to him. Wendy K, Oamaru, NZ ------------------------------- Dear Wendy, When we are young, our feelings of love change, as aspects (which we once thought attractive) become irritating. There are many young people who are prevented from opting out of an unsatisfactory relationship which is formalised by engagement because of a fear of losing face, of upsetting people or disrupting carefully made plans. Your fiancé showed good sense in acting upon his doubts when he did even though it hurt you both. Time heals the hurt in the wounds of breaking up, whereas time alone cannot heal a bad relationship. It is only natural you will miss him, but if you write, keep it on a purely friendship level, expecting nothing more, and from this experience you can learn to identify what caused your disagreements and this will help you in the future. Listening Post (TM) is a trademark of the Listening Post Counselling Service. Address your questions to: listeningpost@telstra.easymail.com.au ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Letters to the Editor (hartley@telstra.easymail.com.au) I received an abusive spam letter the other day from someone calling himself/herself Steve. Censorship prevents me from sharing the contents, but as a question (albeit rude) was asked, I feel it deserves at least a response within this ezine. So here is my politically-correct standard home-grown generic off-the-shelf domestic answer (even if you don't know the question, it probably won't matter, as I don't really answer it anyway): 'Dear Steve, Personally, I absolutely definitely feel categorically that maybe it could possibly be the considered opinion that, taking everything into account, and weighing up all the pro's and con's, there is or could be a general consensus that, as far as can be known, there is or may be no definitive conclusive answer to your question, as yet. Tentatively speaking of course, although I would like to stress that this is only my opinion and I'm not claiming this is the be all and end all of the topic, as it's an interesting question that, at least, should stimulate debate.' --Lionel Hartley, Editor. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< The Funny Bone. If you like recorded telephone messages, try the Psychiatric Hotline, where callers are prompted as follows: Welcome to the psychiatric hotline. If you are obsessive-compulsive, please press 1 repeatedly. If you are co-dependent, please ask someone to press 2. If you have multiple personalities, please press 3, 4, 5, and 6. If you are paranoid, we know who you are and what you want. Just stay on the line so we can trace the call. If you are schizophrenic, listen carefully and a little voice will tell you which number to press. If you are depressed, it doesn't matter which number you press. No one will answer. If you are delusional, please be aware that the thing you are holding on the side of your head is alive and about to bite your ear off. If you are ambivalent, please hang up and call back in a few minutes. If you are comatose, stuporous, or obtunded, press each number from 9 to 1 backwards, and then leave your name and number when you hear the beep. If you would like to speak to a physician, pleased be advised that your plan requires a second opinion and a 30 day waiting period before you can receive this service, which has been designated nonessential. -- From Emergency Nursing World - http://nursing.about.com/msubhumr.htm ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Overheard: A telephone answer-machine message Hi. This is Egbert. If you are the Phone Company, I already sent the money. If you are my parents, please send money. If you are my financial aid institution, you didn't lend me enough money. If you are a friend, you owe me money. If you are a female, don't worry, I have plenty of money. Right now I'm probably at home (I must be, otherwise I couldn't be recording this), but I'm not answering the telephone personally because I am avoiding someone I don't like. If you leave me a message and if I don't call back, then you'll know that it's you I'm avoiding. Please leave a message anyway, however you do have the right to remain silent because everything you say will be recorded and may be used by me to get more money. Anon (adapted by your editor) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Watch This Space: Future issues will include other sections not listed here. Why not write to us suggesting what you would like to see included. (hartley@telstra.easymail.com.au) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Subscription information: FreEzine is a Free ezine magazine/newsletter, published no less than monthly. To subscribe, please send a blank message to FreEzine@telstra.easymail.com.au and type SUBSCRIBE in the subject line. To unsubscribe, please send a message to FreEzine@telstra.easymail.com.au and type UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line (we invite your comments also). Privacy: Protecting your privacy is very important to us. We will not share, rent, sell, or exchange your e-mail address with a third party for any purpose. Unsubscribing permanently removes your name and address. A note on the format: Your editor has considered many possible formats, including a colourfully illustrated E-book, webpage, Portable Document Format (.pdf), etc. Reluctantly, plain text was chosen to make this ezine available to the greatest number of users - DOS, Windows(r), Macintosh, etc. Address all correspondence to the editor: hartley@telstra.easymail.com.au Please do not use "Rely to sender" email option as this magazine may occasionally be sent out by a commercial or other distributor, unrelated to FreEzine. Back issues? Contact the editor for information. Contributions and comments most welcome. E&OE ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< Last words: In Gods Eye A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200 people, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this." He proceeded to crumple the dollar bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air. "Well," he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now all crumpled and dirty. "Now who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air. "My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20." Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value in God's eyes. To Him, dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless. (From http://www.Godswork.org)