T

he Wisdom Chronicle is designed to bring nuggets of wisdom from the dozens of books I read every year. I endeavor to share the best of what I have gleaned. The determination of relevance lies with you.  Blessings, Jim Whiddon

311. BOARD DRIFT “Faith-based organizations don’t often suffer from an inexhaustible supply of resources. We need to be opportunists. And it is tempting to add “heavy-hitters” to the board who are comfortable with our mission, even if they do not fully believe or practice core faith in their own lives.

He’s supportive of our mission, we state. She doesn’t believe it all personally, but she’s totally fine that this is who we are, we reason. We aren’t looking for him to be a pastoral influence on the board; he’s simply providing financial expertise we desperately need, we plead. Serving on our board might actually bring him closer to Christ, we hope.

But if board members aren’t bleeding for the mission, drift will always trickle down. They must be the most passionate about the full mission of the organization. If they aren’t, conflict about the Christian distinction of the organization will eventually surface.

If the board isn’t composed of folks who live out the values of the organization they lead, the organization will drift. The organization will secularize. It will only be a matter of time.”

Excerpt From: Peter Greer, Chris Horst & Anna Haggard. “Mission Drift.”

312. CHRISTIAN KILLERS “Orthodox Christians who are tempted to think that those who stoned to death the first martyrs must have been worse men than they themselves are, ought to remember that one of those persecutors was Saint Paul.”

Excerpt From: John Stuart Mill. “On Liberty.”

313. UNTIMELY DEATH “It is God’s prerogative to decide when He wants to give His children the gift of Heaven.”

— C. Seidman

314. OUR RIGHTS “The Bill of Rights is enumerated to eliminate doubt, uncertainty, and confusion. It also puts the amendments in order of importance. And each numbered amendment is tied to a principle. While no amendment of the ten is technically more important than another, the First Amendment—the freedoms of religion, press, speech, assembly, and the right to petition—has been the most fundamental in ensuring Americans’ liberty since the nation was founded. Then, as you work your way down, each amendment becomes slightly further removed from the one before it.”

Excerpt From: Luntz, Frank. “Win.”

315. HELL “Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.” — CS Lewis, “The Screwtape Letters”

316. UNPOPULAR “He was about as popular as Dr. Kevorkian at an AARP convention.” — Unknown

317. VOCATION Psychologist Martin Seligman writes about three vocational orientations: a job, a career, and a calling. A job earns you a paycheck; a career entails a deeper investment in your work.  But a calling is a passionate commitment to a cause for its own sake.  According to Dr. Seligman, finding your “calling” is the key to authentic happiness.

(Denison Forum)

318. WEALTH “An ironic idea struck him: as people got richer they cut themselves off from the richness of life.”

Excerpt From: Zinsser, William. “On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition.”

319. DEATH “Dying is no big deal. Living is the trick.”

— Red Smith, delivering the eulogy at the funeral of a fellow sports-writer.

320. DEATH “Recently, while looking through some pictures from a decade or so ago, I was stunned. My hair was darker then. My face had fewer wrinkles. It dawned on me that this body of mine has death in it.

I am decaying and deteriorating before my very eyes. Oh, I could have plastic surgery or perhaps some liposuction. I can eat vitamin-enriched foods and try to keep my cholesterol down. But none of that can stop the fact that I continue marching toward an appointment with eternity. Do you believe this?”

Excerpt From: O. S. Hawkins. “The Joshua Code.”