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Thomas Edison Did Not Give Up On His First ...
Contributed by Philip Harrelson on Sep 27, 2004 (message contributor)
Thomas Edison did not give up on his first efforts to find an effective filament for the incandescent lamp. He did countless experiments with countless materials. As each failed, he would toss it out the window. The pile reached the second story of his house. Eventually, he sent men into many different countries such as, Japan, South America, Asia, Jamaica, Ceylon, and Burma in search fibers and grasses to be tested in his lab. One weary day, on October 21, 1879, after 13 months of repeated failures, he succeeded in his search for a filament that would stand the stress of electric current. This is how it happened. Casually picking up a bit of lampblack, he mixed it with tar and rolled it into a thin thread. Then the thought occurred to him, “Why not try a carbonized cotton fiber? For five hours he worked, but each time it broke before he could remove the mold. Two spools of thread were used. At last a perfect strand emerged, only to be ruined while being placed in a glass tube. However, Edison refused to be defeated. He worked non-stop for two days and nights without sleep. Finally he managed to slip one of the carbonized threads into the sealed glass bulb. When he turned on the current, he beheld a sight that he had worked so long for, the bulb burned and provided light.
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I Read About A Man Dreaming About The ...
Contributed by Melvin Shelton on Jul 17, 2004
I read about a man dreaming about the crucifixion of Jesus. He was telling in detail how that Jesus was beaten, and the people shouting crucify him. He saw the back of the soldier as he was driving ...read more
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Looking Back, Looking Forward PRO
Contributed by Paul Fritz on Jul 28, 2002
LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD Hudson Taylor founder of China Inland Mission) used to hang in his home a plaque with two Hebrew Words on it: EBENEZER & JEHOVAH JIREH. The first word means ‘Hitherto hath the Lord helped us’ and the second, ‘The Lord will see to it or provide.’ One looked back ...read more
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What God Says PRO
Contributed by Paul Decker on Dec 1, 2002
WHAT GOD SAYS In the Spring of 1924, Jack Sundine was a four-year-old kid, standing in a line with his father inside the White House, waiting to meet President Calvin Coolidge. As they neared him, Jack noticed that he said something to each visitor as they shook hands. Soon, the thrilling ...read more
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Howard Hendricks Tells Of A Mentor Who Changed ... PRO
Contributed by Paul Wallace on Sep 14, 2004
Howard Hendricks tells of a mentor who changed his life in his book Iron sharpens Iron. Howard was from a broken family, and said, "I could have lived, died and gone to hell without anyone bothering to care." However, a man named Walt from a tiny church in his neighborhood cared about reaching nine ...read more
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If God Intended Man To Live On Bread, Why Didn't ... PRO
Contributed by Don Hawks on Jul 31, 2002
‘If God intended man to live on bread, why didn’t he create a bread tree?’ And the answer, in effect, is that God could have created a tree that produced crusty loaves of bread, but he prefers to offer us a grain and invite us to buy a field and plant the seed. He prefers that we till the soil ...read more
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