THE POWER OF DOING GOOD
Week 4 of “Living Beyond Myself”
BTCC SUMMIT/EDGE – October 9, 2005
Notes…
Going to describe 2 famous women –
• When guess name – tell person next to you
First woman:
• Born August 26, 1910, in Macedonia.
• Youngest of 2 sisters, had 1 brother.
• Father: wealthy businessman. Raised Catholic. Well schooled.
• 1919 father Nikolai died, possibly murdered.
• In 1925 read about the Jesuit work in India.
• In 1929 she went to India.
• In 1931 took her first vows as a nun and began teaching girls at St. Mary’s school in Calcutta
• In 1937 she became Mother Superior of the school
• In 1946, during murderous riots in India, God called her to help the poor
• In 1948 she left her cloister to work in the slums
• In 1949 she became a citizen of India
• In 1952 she opened “House of the Dying”
• In 1955 she opened a Children’s Home
• In 1957 she began mobile “leprosariums”
• In 1960 her order began serving all of India
• In 1961 she bought land for leper town
• In 1963 she launched the Missionary Brothers of Charity
• In 1965 her order spread to other countries
• In 1969, her work was filmed by Malcolm Muggeridge
• In 1970, Muggeridge published a book about her, titled, “Something Beautiful for God”
• In 1973 she received the Templeton Award
• In 1979 she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace
In February, 1997 – just 7 months before she died – she was the guest of honor at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington
• President and Mrs. Bill Clinton were seated there at the speaker’s dais
o “…the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child – a direct killing of the innocent child – murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? Please don’t kill the child. I want the child. Please give me the child. I am willing to accept any child who would be aborted, and to give that child to a married couple who will love the child, and be loved by the child. From our children’s home in Calcutta alone, we have saved over 3,000 children from abortions. These children have brought such love and joy to their adopting parents, and have grown up so full of love and joy!”
Who IS she?
• Sure – Mother Teresa!
Now, see if you can guess who this next famous woman is:
• She was born in Houston, Texas, November 28, 1967
• She dropped out of school in the 9th grade
• At age 18, she married Billy Smith, the cook at Jim’s Krispy Fried Chicken Shack
• She divorced Billy two years later
• Their marriage produced one child – a son, Daniel Smith
• At age 20, she began modeling
• She met her second husband in 1991, in Houston, while she was working at a place called, “Gigi’s” as an exotic dancer
• He was one of Texas’ wealthiest oil tycoons
• They married three years later, when she was 27…and he was 89
• Her husband died 14 months after their wedding
• During their time together, her husband reportedly gave her gifts worth more than $6 million dollars
• In 1992, she was – shall we say – the featured personage of the month in a men’s magazine
• In 1993, she became that magazine’s featured personage of the year
• Shortly after her first magazine appearance, she became the official model for Guess? jeans
• In 1994, billboards featuring her picture caused several car accidents in major European cities
• In 1999, she went to court in an effort to obtain half of her late husband’s $1.6 billion estate
• In September of 2000, a judge awarded her nearly half a billion dollars
• Later, her award was reduced to $88 million – then thrown out altogether by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
• In August of 2002, her daily life was televised on a new show airing on E! network
• Just days ago, the Supreme Court of the United States agreed to hear her appeal and decide whether or not she should receive the one-half billion dollars she was originally awarded from her former husband’s estate
• She reportedly likes to spend her time lying in bed, watching TV and shopping
Who is this second famous woman?
• Sure – Anna Nicole Smith
IMAG 01 –Anna Nicole Smith-Mother Teresa
Two famous women:
• One of them physically attractive
o The other…not so physically attractive
• The one young and full of life
o The other deceased
• The one may be on the verge of becoming fabulously wealthy
o The other died in abject poverty
• One of them became famous because of her physical attributes
o The other became famous because of her acts of incredibly selfless service
Now comes the question:
• If you had to choose – put aside male/female for moment:
o Which of these 2 people would you prefer to be?
100 years from now, which prefer to be?
• The WISE Answer: I don’t know!
• Who knows what Anna Nicole Smith may choose to do with her one and only life in the years remaining to her?
Same thing true of you:
• Doesn’t matter what you’ve done up to this moment…
WHAT does God want me to do?
• Titus 3:1-14 (p. 844…Zchurch virtual Bible)
WHY?
• Ephesians 2:10 (p. 827)
WHERE?
• Some people think only ONE place to do good..
o Take nasty pill when get to work…
Draw map of Evansville, Indiana
• You are HERE!
WHERE?
• Wherever you are!
Katrina/Bay Vista Baptist in Biloxi, Ms
• 76 semis of food and supplies
• Secular distribution point – 7 semis
• Sent 4 teams and we’ve given $26,000
• 5th team leaving soon to roof pastor’s/associate pastor’s houses – living in trailers, serving 24/7 with no thought for themselves
HOW?
• However Holy Spirit leads you!
o Prayer of David!
Psalms 143:10, “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”
WHEN?
• Now!
o Draw pic of after salvation
WHO?
• You
WHAT?
• Do good!
WHEN?
• Now!
WHERE?
• Wherever you are!
HOW?
• However the Holy Spirit leads you!
WHY?
• Because it’s your destiny!
I’ve never seen anybody DRIFT toward towel-bearing
• Drift is toward self-absorption
• Takes an act of defiance!
Bow heads…
Yellow card Sunday –
• Survey question: Name one thing you really enjoy that you don’t get to do as much as you like
