These are quotes which stood out to me, possibly for use in a sermon someday. Their presence here does not mean I agree with them, it merely shows that I might want to reference them later. The default view is five random selections. Use the tag list on the right to view all quotes relevant to that theme.
By the time the average person finishes college he or she will have taken over 2,600 tests, quizzes and exams. The 'right answer' approach becomes deeply ingrained in our thinking. This may be fine for some mathematical problems, where there is in fact only one right answer. The difficulty is that most of life isn't that way. Life is ambiguous; there are many right answers - all depending on what you are looking for. But when we think that there is only one right answer, we'll stop looking as soon as we find one.
How Many Church People does it take to screw in a light bulb? * CHARISMATIC: Only one. Hands already in the air. * ROMAN CATHOLICS: None. They use candles. * PENTECOSTALS: Ten. One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness. * PRESBYTERIANS: None. God has predestined when the lights will be on and off. * EPISCOPALIANS: Eight. One to call the electrician, and seven to say how much they liked the old one better. * UNITARIANS: We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, that is fine. You are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your personal relationship with your light bulb, and present it next month at our annual light bulb Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, three-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence. * METHODISTS: Two. One to change the bulb and one to check the "Manual for Changing Bulbs in the Methodist Church." * BAPTISTS: At least 15. One to change the light bulb, and two or three committees to approve the change. Oh, and also a casserole. * LUTHERANS: None. Lutherans don't believe in change. And John Shearman adds to our misery: How many Anglicans does it take to change a light bulb? 1 Celebrant to bless the new bulb. 3 Acolytes to sit around and make faces. 1 Organist to write a hymn to praise the new bulb. 15 Choir singers (minimum) to sing said hymn. 1 Junior Warden to remove the old bulb and replace it with a new bulb. 1 Assistant clergy to give a eulogy for the old bulb. 100-200 Members of the congregation to answer "We will" when the celebrant asks: "Will you who witness this do all in your power to support this new light?" 5-10 people to form a new congregation using the old bulb.
John Ortberg in his book, If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat, tells about a ceramics teacher who divided his class into 2 groups: One group was to be graded solely on quantity of work: 50 pounds of pottery would be an A, 40 would be a B, and so on. The other group would be graded on quality. Students in this group only had to produce one pot, but it had to be a good one. Amazingly, the highest quality pots were turned in by the quantity group. It seems that while they kept churning out pots, they were continually learning from their disasters and growing as artists. The quality group sat around theorizing about perfection and worrying about it. But they never actually got any better. Apparently, trying, failing, learning from failure, and trying again works a lot better than waiting for perfection.
Government at all levels can be competent, economical and efficient. Yet I would hasten to point out that nowhere in the Constitution of the United States, or the Declaration of Independence, or the Bill of Rights, or the Emancipation Proclamation, or in the Old Testament or the New Testament do you find the words `economy’ or `efficient’. Not that these two words are unimportant. But you discover words like honesty, integrity, fairness, liberty, justice, courage, patriotism, compassion and love - and many others which describe what a human being ought to be. These are also the same words which describe what a government of human beings ought to be. By: Jimmy Carter Source: Why Not The Best?, 1975 page 116
Characters do not change. Opinions alter, but characters are only developed.