I pray that this little post will just be an encouragement
to all of you beautiful, lovely maidens of the Lord to continue to strive for
the very best.
Have you ever read a choose-your-own story? Well, life is like that. You are
placed on this earth with free moral agency as our prophet told us - the
freedom to make our own choices, good or bad. In the next paragraphs I have
written a fun choose-your-own story. Just read the paragraph, make a decision
and then follow the directions scrolling down to the correlating choice that
you make. Although I trust that each of you wouldn't DREAM of making the wrong
choices, feel free to go back and read what would have happened if you had made
the wrong choices. Enjoy reading :)
INITIAL SCENARIO:
Your mother will be in town all day grocery shopping and
running errands and entrusts you with a list of tasks she needs you to do
around the house:
*Do the
breakfast dishes
*Dust the
living room
*Clean the
fridge
*Clean the
bathrooms
*Keep the
laundry going
*Thoroughly
clean your room
After your eyes pop out at the “mile long” list she gave
you, you reluctantly wave your sweet darling mother off and proceed to conquer
the tasks that lie ahead.
Now you’re alone… just you and the walls and those chores
AND the Lord who is watching to see what you will do. You are faced with a
choice: do the chores or not do them. If you choose to NOT do them, skip ahead
to SCENE 2. If you DO choose to do your chores, skip down to SCENE 3 This is
kind of a choose-your-own story in case you didn’t notice.
SCENE 2
You’re mother would all but take your life if you didn’t do
those chores, so this really wasn’t an option so get yourself in gear to SCENE
3.
SCENE 3
Great choice! Now the next decision comes: do said chores
immediately (considering there’s quite a few) or go do your “own thing” for a
while and THEN do it. If you choose to get started right away go to SCENARIO 4.
If you decide to go have some fun for a while, go to SCENARIO 5
SCENARIO 4
Again, you have made a wise choice! You roll your sleeves
up, don your sturdiest apron, plug in your ipod, and like the honorable
princess you are, you begin by applying your multi-tasking skills: getting the
laundry going, then the dishwasher, spray down the showers and toilets and
declare war on the mess in your room! However, your life is filled with
decisions and you are about to make one very important decision: to stick with
the job you are doing, OR perhaps that book lying in the corner is calling your
name. If you choose stick to it, then go to DECISION A. If you can’t handle it
anymore and you decide to take “five” and see what happens next in that great
story then go to DECISION B.
SCENARIO 5
You decide that you have plenty of time since your mom will
be in town for quite a while. So, you take out your phone and begin to text
your bosom buddy, you sit down to the computer to take your turn on Chess, read
the latest updates on Facebook, answer the phone that just rang while you
were replying to your bosom buddy, and find yourself completely engrossed in
conversation for the next several hours with another friend you haven’t heard
from in a million years!
As you’re merrily talking, and wearing out a path in the
floor from pacing back and forth, you happen to look up at the clock and start
to panic. You have wasted quite a bit of your day and your mom will be home
soon and nothing has gotten done. You quickly get off the chores and as fast as
you can, you fly through the house to get everything done starting in your room
cramming stuff in your drawers. A book falls on the floor. Now, go to ENDING 2.
DECISION A
That book is no temptation for a strong, determined maiden
like you! Nope! You swipe up the book, blow the dust off and return it to it’s
place. However, you are now faced with yet another decision and of even greater
importance as before: done, completely and thoroughly, even if it means your
life, OR cut corners, do the least bit possible just to get it done so you can
get on to more pleasing activities. Here we go again: if you choose to do or
die, go to ENDING 1. If you choose to do slip shod work, go to ENDING 2.
DECISION B
You plop down on the floor and comfortably lean against the
side of your bed and suddenly find yourself in a far away land racing your
beautiful mare against the great black stallion, or, finding Uncle Ned behind a
tree to rescue you just in time before that mysterious person with the black
cape catches you, or….. The next thing you know, you have just turned the last
page. You know, the one that says, “The End”? It is also the END of the day and
possibly the END of your life as you once knew it as you hear the gravel under
the tires as your mom pulls up loaded down with groceries and needing your help
to unload. Your face turns white with fear and there’s a knot in the pit of
your stomach wishing you could rewind the day and do what you were supposed to.
Well you can’t. All you can do, is, face the consequences of your actions – or,
the lack of actions in this case. Besides disappointing your mom who just
straggled in the doorway with an arm load of groceries, her bulging purse and a
hand full of mail and looking like she spent the week fighting giants you are
now faced with being grounded for a month from reading books, your list of
chores just doubled, of the which you will be completing tomorrow canceling
that sleep-over with your bosom friend you were planning. Although you feel
that life really did end for you, you have a brand new day ahead with no
wrinkles in it….yet.
So, the next day, you get up, and hit those knees to the
floor as you ask the Lord to please help you to be more trustworthy today. You
put your shoulders back, your chin up and determination swells within you as
you begin that new list of chores. Reread SCENARIO A and then choose the RIGHT
decision…the one you should have chosen yesterday.
ENDING 1
As the Lord works through your willing and dutiful hands, He
is pleased to see you complete each job. The dishes are dried, the glasses
spit-shined and gently stored, the living room smells fresh and could be tested
with white gloves. Even the legs of the end tables, and the books on the
bookshelf are free of dust. The fridge is ready for the groceries that will
soon fill it’s sparkling glass shelves. You even go above and beyond your call
of duty by wiping down the top and outside of the fridge. The toilet and sinks,
even the corners are scrubbed and scoured, the tub is perfectly shiny and the
faucets polished. Not only is the laundry clean, but hang-up clothes are ironed
and hung, and the rest folded and put away. And your ROOM!!! Oh, that was a
chore! But as you stand back to enjoy
the fruit of your labor, sweat drips from your brow, loose strands of hair fall
in your face and you smell like you really are in need of a shower!
DESPERATELY!
Suddenly, you hear the gravel under the tires as your mom
pulls up loaded down with groceries and needing your help to unload. your mom straggles
in the doorway with arms loaded with bags of groceries, her bulging purse and a
hand full of mail and looking like she spent the week fighting giants. Although
you’re tired and would like to just plop into bed, you realize that she’s had
just as hard working day as you have and so you quickly relieve her of her
burdens and together you get the groceries in the house, unpacked and put away.
You both plop down onto the couch exhausted and begin to
talk about supper. SUPPER!!! Oh NOOO! But just then, your dad comes walking in.
The grand hero has just brought home some pizza!!!
As you and your family have evening devotions, you give the
Lord a sleepy smile as you thank Him for helping you to overcome today.
THE END
ENDING 2
You swoop the book up and shove it onto the bookshelf tearing
the cover. Oops! It’s a library book, so now you have to repair it and hope
they won’t notice. After hanging up your jacket, you conveniently use your feet
to slide a small pile of clothes under your bed out of sight. What you didn’t
see was, there was a bag of chips in that pile – a tempting treat for the mouse
that your mother has been trying to trap for the past two weeks. How nice of
you to keep it nice and plump. As quickly as you can, you unload the
dishwasher, and pile them into the cabinet some of them still dripping.
Attempting to gather as many glasses as you can, you drop one on your toe and
glass is scattered everywhere! Going for the broom and dustpan, you inevitably
step on a piece of glass and, yep, it’s blood! Go for the Band-Aid, trip over
the laundry basket stuffed full of now wrinkled clothes you had just removed
from the dryer. You twisted your ankle so you sit there for a few minutes
holding on to it as if it would fall off if you didn’t. Feeling better, you
head for that Band-Aid, and now you have to scrub the carpet where the blood
dripped. As your rag swipes around the contents of the fridge, it knocks down a
bowl of week-old salsa which quickly drips down onto the next shelf and down
the sides of the fridge. Can’t get away with nothin’ can you? There’s a reason
for that saying, “haste makes waste”. It’s getting late, so you take a feather
duster and just quickly “dust” the living room. The dust poofs up in the air,
swirls around and settles right back down onto the furniture. Just then, you
remember that you still need to put the rest of the glasses away. So you do all
nice and spotted. A simple spray of vinegar and towel would take care of that,
but, you don’t have time.
As you plop down onto the couch, sweat drips from your brow,
loose strands of hair fall in your face and you smell like you really are in
need of a shower! DESPERATELY! Not to mention you are also needing a new
bandaid.
Suddenly, you hear the gravel under the tires as your mom
pulls up loaded down with groceries and needing your help to unload. Your mom
straggles in the doorway with arms loaded with bags of groceries, her bulging
purse and a hand full of mail and looking like she spent the week fighting
giants. Your mother asks you to help her unload the groceries. Feeling rather
grumpy, you fail to even look into your mother’s tired eyes as you proceed to
open your mouth quite wide to let her know how much work you’ve done today.
Then you give a big sigh, and like a bedraggled martyr using the last bit of strength
left in your body, you sacrifice it all to help your mom unload the groceries.
You both plop down in the living room exhausted and begin to
talk about supper. SUPPER!!! Oh NOOO! But just then, your dad comes walking in.
The grand hero has just brought home some pizza!!!
As you and your family have evening devotions, your mother
thanks the Lord for all the help you gave her today and asks Him to bless you
abundantly. I need not say that way back in the back of your conscience, a
tinge of guilt hangs there because you KNOW you didn’t do a very good job.
THE END
What difference does it make? Why is it so important to do a job well done – exactly the
way it’s supposed to be done? You might think, "What does it matter if it
isn't perfect? What difference does it make just as long as the job gets
done?" It does make a difference.
The Word tells us it does that whatever we are doing, we should always
do our very best!
And whatsoever ye do in word or
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God and the
Father by him.
~ Colossians 3:17
And whatsoever ye do, do it
heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
Knowing that of the Lord ye
shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
~ Colossians 3:23-24
Whatsoever thy hand findeth to
do, do it with thy might;
for there is no work, nor
device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
~ Ecclesiastes 9:10
Think about this: If we practice always doing our best and
never permitting ourselves to do a sloppy, half-way job in whatever task that
is given us, in time, doing a good job will become more automatic with less
effort. For example, when you’re doing your school work, do you take the time
to write with your best handwriting? or do you just try to get the job done? If
you take the time to write neatly, erasing your mistakes completely (not just
writing over the mistakes or “sort of” erasing them) making it your goal to
have beautiful handwriting, although it seems so tedious, in time, you will be
able to write beautifully with ease and without even thinking about it.
So it is with every aspect of our lives. Make it your goal
to do a beautiful job whether you are doing your school work, household chores,
preparing a meal, making a gift for someone, playing an instrument, working at
a job, etc. And if you continue to
strive to do your best, you will be training your eyes, your mind, your whole
being till it just becomes a graceful part of your character enabling you to
easily recognize when something isn’t right.
57-0818
TIME.TESTED.MEMORIALS.OF.GOD
You see, a man's character is made known by his works. Whatever you are, your
works prove what you are. No matter how much you testify, whatever you say, pro
or con, that has nothing to do with it; your works tell what you are, tells
what you are inside. Every job that you do manifests what you are. And you
business men, if you just do a patched up job, see what I mean,
just a halfway job, don't do that. If you can't do it right,
don't do it at all. That's right.
When you come to Christ, if you can't absolutely sell out lock, stock, and
barrel, and come to Christ, don't come at all. But when you really want to be a
Christian, stand out, make it real. That's what God wants you to be. And
that'll--that'll prove... Your works will prove what your character is. Your
character is known by the works that you do.
Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.
~ Proverbs 31:31
Knights in Shining Armor
In history, you've heard of the well respected and noble
knights in shining armor bearing long spears, riding grand powerful horses,
fighting impossible battles, winning the greatest victories over the kingdom's
enemies. But how did they become such victorious knights? They didn't become
knights overnight. It took many years. In
fact, they started as little boys called Pages. At around
the age of six or seven a boy, who was of noble lineage, (family of the king)
would report to the local lord's castle or manor to begin his training as a
knight. He was trained by another knight, baron, or lord. There he started out
learning simple things like table manners, care and maintenance of armor and
weapons, and how to care for a horse. He would also learn how to read and
how to appreciate music or even play the
lute . Then he would start learning how to hunt and how to hawk.
For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept;
line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little
Isaiah 28:10
At around the age of thirteen, if the boy has learned to do
these small tasks well, the Page is then promoted to Squire. He is assigned as
the personal assistant to a knight. Because he's getting bigger and starting to
develop into his manhood, his training would focus much more on weapons,
horsemanship and combat. One thing that
was very seriously focused on was the rules of tactics for horse mounted
combat. This was the most essential aspect of combat for a knight. It was this
mounted combat that made a knight a feared and respected foe. Finally, if the
Squire had learned his lessons well, and done his very best in every task that
was given him whether great or small, he could then become a Knight.
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much:
and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
Luke 16:10
The ceremony of becoming a knight often lasted several days.
He would fast and pray. During the actual knighting ceremony the knight would
swear allegiance to God and to his lord He would receive presents such as a
sword, a pair of spurs, armor, and a cloak.
At the end of the ceremony the king would tap
the squire on the shoulders with the flat of a sword blade
and he would become a knight. Now that he became a knight, do you think that he
could now relax and enjoy his new status? No, the life of a knight was a life
of constant vigilance in combat and constant striving toward improvement in the
eyes of others.
“A little neglect may
breed mischief,...
for want of a nail,
the shoe was lost;
for want of a shoe
the horse was lost;
and for want of a
horse the rider was lost.”
Benjamin Franklin
(1706 - 1790)
Poor Richard's
Almanack, 1758
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