INTRO.- ILL.- Automaker Henry Ford asked electrical genius Charlie Steinmetz to build the generators for his factory. One day the generators ground to a halt, and the repairmen couldn’t find the problem. So Ford called Steinmetz, who tinkered with the machines for a few hours and then threw the switch. The generators whirred to life--but Ford got a bill for $10,000 from Steinmetz. Flabbergasted, the rather tightfisted carmaker inquired why the bill was so high.
Steinmetz’s reply: For tinkering with the generators, $10. For knowing where to tinker, $9,990. Ford paid the bill.
I would say that both Steinmetz and Ford were smart men. Steinmetz for knowing how to bill for his services. And Ford for paying the bill because I’m sure he learned a valuable lesson.
ILL.- Someone said, “You don’t have to be listed in Who’s Who to know what’s what.”
Education is a great tool, but so is experience. I’ve seen a few educated ignoramuses in my time. And I’ve also seen some very wise men who never went to college or never graduated.
We never stop learning in life. If we do, we will die. At least, we will die intellectually, and perhaps morally and spiritually.
ILL.- One Sunday, a cowboy went to church. When he entered, he saw that he and the preacher were the only ones present. The preacher asked the cowboy if he wanted him to go ahead and preach.
The cowboy said, "I’m not too smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I’d feed him." So the minister began his sermon.
One hour passed, then two hours, then two-and-a-half hours. The preacher finally finished and came down to ask the cowboy how he had liked the sermon.
The cowboy answered slowly, "Well, I’m not very smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I sure wouldn’t feed him all the hay." SMART COWBOY.
ILL.- Now here’s a story about a girl who was not very smart. MADISON, Wis. Audrey Ruth Seiler is a college student accused of faking her own kidnapping last month was charged Wednesday, April 14th, with lying to police in what they suggested was a desperate attempt to get her boyfriend’s attention.
Audrey Seiler, a 20-year-old sophomore at the University of Wisconsin, was charged with two misdemeanor counts of obstructing officers. Each charge carries up to nine months in jail and a $10,000 fine.
Seiler disappeared from her off-campus apartment March 27 without her coat or purse. She was discovered in a marsh four days later, and told police that a man had abducted her at knifepoint.
But police concluded Seiler made up the story after obtaining a store videotape that showed her buying the knife, duct tape, rope and cold medicine she claimed her abductor used to restrain her.
According to the criminal complaint, she broke down under questioning from police and said: "It just got so out of hand. I did not mean for it to. ... Everybody did so much for me."
Hundreds of people from Madison and Seiler’s hometown searched for her after she disappeared, and her claim about an armed man touched off a major manhunt that authorities said cost the police about $96,000.
The criminal complaint depicts Seiler as a young woman upset by a fading relationship with her boyfriend, Ryan Fisher.
Friends said the two had been fighting, and Seiler’s roommate, Heather Thue, told officers that Fisher did not pay as much attention to Seiler as she wanted. Seiler’s mother told police her daughter had not been herself lately and was "extremely needy" of Fisher.
I would say that young woman was not too wise in what she did. Now she may pay for it.
Brothers and sisters, there is a place where we can get our “smarts” or wisdom, and that’s the Word of God. And, of course, the book of Proverbs contains great wisdom for today.
PROP.- Let’s consider more proverbial wisdom.
I. KINDNESS
11:16-17 “A kindhearted woman gains respect, but ruthless men gain only wealth. A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.”
ILL.- It’s a crisp winter day in San Francisco. A woman in a red Honda, Christmas presents piled in the back, drives up to the Bay Bridge tollbooth. ’I’m paying for myself, and for the six cars behind me,’ she says with a smile, handing over seven commuter tickets.
One after another, the next six drivers arrive at the tollbooth, dollars in hand, only to be told, ’Some lady up ahead already paid your fare. Have a nice day.’ The woman in the Honda, it turned out, had read something on an index card taped to a friend’s refrigerator: ’Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.’ The phrase seemed to leap out at her, and she copied it down.
I’d say that woman was a wise woman to practice kindness. And she certainly gained the respect of six other drivers.
ILL.- Rodney Dangerfield used to say in jest, “I get no respect.” The way he acted it was no wonder. He acted stupid all the time. That’s no way to gain respect from others. Had he acted from a heart of kindness he would have gained some respect from others. Of course, I realize that what he did, he did to make money. It was his comedy act. And who knows? Maybe in person he really is a nice guy.
We don’t practice kindness to gain respect from others, but that’s something that we’ll get we practice it. We should practice kindness simply because we’re Christians.
It’s the idea that we don’t do good deeds in order to be saved, but because we are saved. WE PRACTICE DOING KIND THINGS FOR PEOPLE BECAUSE WE ARE SAVED!
But kindness will always come back to you! What is that principle? It’s the principle of reaping what you sow.
Gal. 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Kindness is a good habit to get into. And it can be practiced anywhere, any time.
ILL.- For example, one man said, “I was in the left lane in a long line of cars. A car in the right lane was stuck behind a slow truck. His blinkers were on but no one let him in. “I made space for him by slowing down a little, and he went for it. I saw his wave through his rear window. I felt good about it.”
That man felt good about his act of kindness. And kindness is certainly something that should be practiced while driving because we see so little of it these days. HAVE YOU NOTICED?
Maybe it’s just me, but it sure seems like there are many wild and discourteous drivers in Jonesboro. It’s probably everywhere and the heavier the traffic, the more traffic torment there is and the less courtesy there is.
ILL.- Someone said, “You cannot offer kindness to others without it entering your own life. I once heard a quote something like ‘Kindness is like perfume....you cannot splash it on someone else without getting a little on yourself.’”
What kind things can you do for others? We all need to be open for opportunities to demonstrate kindness because it’s great witness for Christ. Opening doors for people, being a courteous driver, expressing thanks to people, noticing things that people do and commending them for their good work, offering to do things for people who can’t do them for themselves (like our guys going over to Tom and Louise Smith’s and doing yard work), going the second mile in your work or doing more than is expected of you, etc.
“A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.” It always pays to be kind.
II. GENEROSITY
11:25 “A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.”
This, again, is one of those probability proverbs. If you practice generosity you will probably prosper. Why is that? Because God blesses those who bless others. But motive is an important part of this and God knows our motives. We don’t give in order to get, but if we give generously without thought of return it will probably come back to us.
ILL.- Colleen Gallagher hasn’t had an easy time of it. She has been struggling to make ends meet as she raises her two sons with no help from their father. She has been working most recently as a waitress in an upscale Chicago bar. What happened to her recently will astound you — perhaps even inspire you.
The CEO of an investment company was in the place where Gallagher works on April 24. It was a fairly slow time. In addition to conversation with some of his business associates, John Boc also talked with the woman serving their table. It became apparent to him that she was, in his words, "feeling blue" and discouraged over the tough situation she was facing with her boys.
When it came time to pay, Boc told Ms. Gallagher to add a $1,000 tip to the tab! Stunned and not sure the offer was something other than a cruel joke, she prepared the credit-card slip. Boc signed it. But that’s only the beginning.
As tears of gratitude started to pour down the woman’s cheeks, Boc pulled some credit cards out of his pocket, fanned them like a hand of playing cards, and told the waitress, "Pick a card." When she reached and took his Platinum Visa in hand, he said, "Take that card and go give yourself $10,000."
A flabbergasted Gallagher remembers him saying, "Life’s too short to be feeling blue." Indeed, her spirits must have brightened considerably that day with a total of $11,000 in tips.
Strange as it sounds, this astonishing story — from the Boston Herald, Reuters, and CNN News — isn’t the first one about John Boc’s generous tips. This one was unusually generous, though, even by his standards.
After researching it to be sure there was nothing fraudulent, the credit card company issued a check for the April deed of generosity last week. Ms. Gallagher reportedly plans to use the money toward the purchase of an apartment.
There was no flirting. No request for a phone number. No strings attached. One rich person showed kindness toward a struggling person in his world.
Can’t give $11,000 to someone today? Me either! Few of us can do something like that and few of us will even if we had the money. Have you ever thought about it? Probably. I think most of us have thought about all the good things we could do if we had a million dollars or like that retired trucker who won $141 million.
But I’ve always heard it said that the reason God doesn’t give us more is because we are not faithful with the small amount He has already given us. What a convicting thought! And I think there is a lot of truth in it. Perhaps we’re not nearly as generous as we think we are!
Preacher Rubel Shelly said, “But I can do something thoughtful for someone sick or homebound. You can thank someone for making your workplace more pleasant. I can double or triple the next tip I give. You can write a note to your Sunday School teacher. You can think of appropriate people and creative things to do for them. And be sure not to forget strangers. Life’s too short — and too hard — for us not to care about one another.” He’s exactly right.
ILL.- We had a lady in our church in Iberia, MO, who said, “I believe in giving flowers to the living.” In other words, if you want give to someone, do it while they are still alive. Don’t wait to send flowers to the funeral home. There is nothing wrong with sending flowers to the funeral home, but we should do whatever we can for people while they are still with us.
Maggie Keeth was her name. She had some money and she shared it with others in various ways. I know of several things she did for people. Bless her sweet heart! God rest her soul.
ILL.- I remember a young couple in our church in Iberia, MO. Their first little boy Billy was born completely retarded. He lived to be two-and-a-half years old and had to be fed with a tube in his nose. Many people in the church tried to do things for them to help with little Billy, but they refused.
However, when he died the funeral director who attended our church practically did his funeral for nothing and the rest of the cost was picked up by the church board. Little Billy’s mom and dad didn’t have to pay a thing for his funeral. That’s generosity!
All I know is this: if you have it, give it. Share it with those in need and you’ll never be sorry for it. He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
III. ANXIETY
12:25 “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.”
ILL.- For several years a woman had been having trouble getting to sleep at night because she feared burglars. One night her husband heard a noise in the house, so he went downstairs to investigate. When he got there, he did find a burglar. "Good evening," said the man of the house. "I am pleased to see you. Come upstairs and meet my wife. She has been waiting 10 years to meet you."
Anxiety in any form weighs a person down. What causes you anxiety in life? Your work? Your children? Money? Paying bills? Paying taxes?
Jokingly, I’ve always said that I wished the Lord would come back before April 15th because I’ve always hated to pay taxes.
ILL.- It’s like the guy who said, “I have nothing against the income tax. It’s just that every time my ship comes in, the government unloads it.” Financial problems cause anxiety.
ILL.- A fellow made the following New Year’s resolution. “I have made up my mind to live within my means, and I’m going to keep that promise if I have to borrow money to do it.”
What weighs you down?
ILL.- After my daughter Holly married Chris they made several trips to Virginia Beach, VA, to visit his family. They drove that 1000 miles straight through, without stopping anywhere overnight. I always did a lot of praying and asked them to call me when they got there.
ILL.- My son Shane worked on the Mississippi River for several year as a deck hand for a barge company. He would work 28 days on and 28 days off. It was hard work and at times, it could be dangerous work. The line boat that Shane worked on had two large 4000 horsepower motors with very large propellers, which they called screws. And if a person ever fell into the river and was sucked under the boat those two props could kill a person very quickly.
Another time Shane said that he was on the head of the barge (generally 35 barges, five wide and 7 deep) with a two-way radio helping the captain or pilot to guide the barges into a lock. He said that one time the head barge hit the cement wall and steel cables started popping. That’s dangerous!
ILL.- My mother had Parkinson’s disease for 12 years. She contracted it at the age of 70. In the later stages she would often freeze and couldn’t move for several hours. She described it like her legs weighed a hundred pounds each. When she was still living at home I would call her several times a day. When I couldn’t get her on the phone it often worried me. I would call a neighbor and they would go check on her and generally, she had gone into the kitchen or bedroom without her cordless phone and sure enough, she froze and couldn’t move. I was always afraid that she would fall and lie there for hours.
Many things cause us anxiety in life. Think of the parents of those who have children serving in Iraq. You know that has to cause some anxiety!
12:25 “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.”
What sort of kind words? Someone may come along and say, “Oh, cheer up, things could be worse!” That’s not the words that cheer people. It’s more like, “Hey, I understand something of what you are going through. I am here for you. I will be praying for you.” And then what is even better is when some thoughtful person actually comes and does something for you that cheers your anxious heart.
ILL.- After I rolled my Plymouth Horizon. I collected money from the insurance company and sold the wrecked car to an auto body repairman in my church. But I suddenly found myself without a car. I was driving a borrowed car.
One day the local funeral director pulled into my driveway and said, “Come on, I’m taking you to Jefferson City, MO, and we’re going to find you a good used car.” How kind of him! He didn’t try to cheer me up with a kind word. HE DID IT WITH A KIND DEED! He knew cars and he helped me to find a decent, used Oldsmobile, which I purchased.
Brothers and sisters, we all need to think how we can cheer up people when it is obvious they are down.
12:25 “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.”
CONCLUSION--------------------------------------------
Kindness is good. Generosity is good. Anxiety is not good, but perhaps through our kindness and generosity we can relieve someone’s anxiety. IT’S JUST LIKE WHAT JESUS WOULD DO!
