Six Slits Sink Ship
Scientists now say that a series of slits, not a giant gash, sank the Titanic.
The opulent, 900-foot cruise ship sank in 1912 on its first voyage, from England to New York. Fifteen hundred people died in the worst maritime disaster of the time.
The most widely held theory was that the ship hit an iceberg, which opened a huge gash in the side of the liner. But an international team of divers and scientists recently used sound waves to probe the wreckage, buried in the mud under two-and-a-half miles of water. Their discovery? The damage was surprisingly small. Instead of the huge gash, they found six relatively narrow slits across the six watertight holds.
Small damage, invisible to most, can sink not only a great ship but a great reputation.
—USA Today (4/9/97)
(Integrity, Sin)
Character (Prov. 10:9)
Integrity is like virginity—once you lose it, it’s gone for good. … No officer should ever be in a position where he or she fears the truth.
—Andrew Entwistle Captain, U.S. Army in a letter to the editors of Newsweek (6/17/96), responding to an article on Navy Admiral Jeremy Boorda’s suicide
(Integrity, Truth)
Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved.
—Helen Keller
(Success, Suffering)
Forty-eight percent of American workers admit to taking unethical or illegal actions in the past year. USA Today (4/14/97) listed the five most common types of unethical/illegal behavior that workers say they have engaged in because of pressure:
- Cut corners on quality control
- Covered up incidents
- Abused or lied about sick days
- Lied to or deceived customers
- Put inappropriate pressure on others.
—survey by Ethics Officers Association and the American Society of Chartered Life Underwriters and Chartered Financial Consultants
(Ethics, Integrity)
Christmas
(Matt. 2:11; 25:40)
In 1994, Alex Dovales was drifting toward Miami on a rickety boat with twenty-seven other Cubans. Two years later, Dovales saw fourteen exhausted, penniless Cuban rafters wash ashore on Key Largo and “felt like I had just arrived here myself.”
The 25-year-old dishwasher, who clears $197 per week, walked home and gathered all the presents from under his Christmas tree. He gave the shirts and other clothing to the new arrivals.
“They were wet and cold,” explained Henry Paez, Dovales’s roommate. “Alex took off his shirt and gave it to them.”
—Dubuque Telegraph/Herald (12/20/96)
(Generosity, Mercy)
Friends don’t give friends fruitcakes.
—A bumper sticker
(Friendship, Gifts)
Contentment
(1 Tim. 6:6-10)
In her article, “Baubles are Back,” in Marketing News (4/14/97), Cyndee Miller writes:
After spending the first half of the decade trying to live down the excesses of the eighties, consumers are again willing to splurge on the finer things in life . …
This time around, consumers are opting for “practical” luxury, or at least things that give the appearance of being practical . …
So that $60,000 sport-utility vehicle isn’t considered cool. Rather, it’s viewed as offering superior handling. The $450 black, patent-leather Prada backpack isn’t about having a piece of the designer du jour; it’s considered an investment that will last longer than a bag from Target . …
But unlike the “overt consumerism” of the eighties, this time around, “it’s not about keeping up with the Joneses,” said Wendy Liebmann, president of WSL Strategic Retail. “People are buying for themselves.”
(Indulgence, Materialism)
What some people mistake for the high cost of living is really the cost of high living.”
—Doug Larson
(Covetousness, Greed)
That’s About the Size of It! Evidence of people’s growing expectations was revealed in a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders, comparing amenities featured in homes between 1975 and 1995.
The percentage of new, single-family homes with:
| Central air-conditioning: 2-1/2 or more bathrooms: 4 or more bedrooms: Garage for 2 or more cars: Average size in sq.ft.: | 1975 46 20 21 53 1,645 | 1995 80 48 30 76 2,095 |
—USA Today (3/24/97)
(Dissatisfaction, Materialism)
Forgiveness
(Col. 3:13)
Everyone says forgiveness is a lovely idea, until they have something to forgive, as we had during the war. And then, to mention the subject at all is to be greeted with howls of anger.”
—C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity
(Application, Resentment)
“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the flower leaves on the heel of the one who crushed it.”
—Mark Twain
(Healing, Pardon)
Grace
(Rom. 5:8)
It was 1944, and Bert Frizen was an infantryman on the front lines in Europe. American forces had advanced in the face of intermittent shelling and small-arms fire throughout the morning hours, but now all was quiet. His patrol reached the edge of a wooded area with an open field before them. Unknown to the Americans, a battery of Germans waited in a hedgerow about two hundred yards across the field.
Bert was one of two scouts who moved out into the clearing. Once he was halfway across the field, the remainder of his battalion followed. Suddenly the Germans opened fire, and machine gun fire ripped into both of Bert’s legs. The American battalion withdrew into the woods for protection, while a rapid exchange of fire continued.
Bert lay helplessly in a small stream as shots volleyed overhead. There seemed to be no way out. To make matters worse, he now noticed that a German soldier was crawling toward him. Death appeared imminent; he closed his eyes and waited. To his surprise, a considerable period passed without the expected attack, so he ventured opening his eyes again. He was startled to see the German kneeling at his side, smiling. He then noticed that the shooting had stopped. Troops from both sides of the battlefield watched anxiously. Without any verbal exchange, this mysterious German reached down to lift Bert in his arms and proceeded to carry him to the safety of Bert’s comrades.
Having accomplished his self-appointed mission, and still without speaking a word, the German soldier turned and walked back across the field to his own troop. No one dared break the silence of this sacred moment. Moments later the cease-fire ended, but not before all those present had witnessed how one man risked everything for his enemy.
Bert’s life was saved through the compassion of a man whom he considered his enemy. This courageous act pictures what Jesus did for us.
—Lynn McAdam West Germany
(Compassion, Mercy)
The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It’s for you I created the universe. I love you.
But there’s only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you’ll reach out and take it.
Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.
—Frederick Buechner Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC
(God’s Love, Justification)
Lost and Found
An engagement ring that fell into the sea off the west coast of Sweden almost two years ago found its way back to its owner. The ring was consumed by a mussel that was caught by fisherman Peder Carlsson.
Carlsson was able to return the ring to its owner because its owner, Agneta Wingstedt, had her name engraved on the inside.
If we belong to Christ and bear his name, we will be reunited with him one day.
—Parade (12/26/96)
(Heaven, Marriage)
Hurry
(Ps. 46:10; Matt. 11:28-30)
Some time ago, a newspaper in Tacoma, Washington, carried the story of Tattoo, the basset hound. Tattoo didn’t intend to go for an evening run, but when his owner shut his leash in the car door and took off with Tattoo still outside the vehicle, he had no choice.
A motorcycle officer named Terry Filbert noticed a passing vehicle with something that appeared to be dragging behind it. As he passed the vehicle, he saw the object was a basset hound on a leash.
“He was picking them up and putting them down as fast as he could,” said Filbert. He chased the car to a stop, and Tattoo was rescued, but not before the dog reached a speed of twenty to twenty-five miles per hour, and rolled over several times.
(The dog was fine but asked not to go out for an evening walk for a long time.)
There are too many of us whose days are marked by “picking them up and putting them down as fast as we can.” We must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from our lives.
—John Ortberg
(Rest, Stress)
A Newsweek poll (1/27/97) found that 64 percent of those surveyed believe they will have less leisure time in the future than they have now.
(Hopelessness, Workaholism)
The problem with living life in the fast lane—you get to the toll booth quicker.
—Robert Orben Current Comedy
(Death, Life)
Marriage & Sex
(Heb. 13:4)
In the movie The Poseidon Adventure, the ocean liner S.S. Poseidon is on the open sea when it hits a huge storm. A wall of water crashes through the ballroom chandelier. Men in tuxes and women in evening gowns scream and run. Lights go out, smoke pours into rooms and, amid all the confusion, the ship flips over.
Because of the air trapped inside the ocean liner, it floats upside down. But in the confusion, the passengers can’t figure out what’s going on. They scramble to get out, mostly by climbing the steps to the top deck. The problem is, the top deck is now 100 feet under water. In trying to get to the top of the ship, they drown.
The only survivors are the few who do what doesn’t make sense. They do the opposite of what everyone else is doing and descend into the dark belly of the ship until they reach the hull. By going down, they reach the ocean’s surface. Rescuers hear them banging and cut them free.
In marriage, it’s as if God has turned the ship over and the only way for us to find freedom is to choose what doesn’t make sense: lay down our lives by serving, supporting, and sacrificing for our spouses.
—Kevin A. Miller Marriage Partnership (Fall 96)
(Service, Submission)
By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you’ll become happy. If you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.
—Socrates
(Happiness, Philosophy)
Dating doesn’t train young people for marriage; it prepares them for divorce. Dating typically involves a series of short-term relationships. Even those who end up with a solid marriage often have to deal with a lot of painful emotional baggage from previous dating relationships.
“A lot is said these days of abstaining from sex before marriage, but there is a great need for emotional abstinence as well. Courtship in the context of the family enables young people to get to know each other and yet still maintain their physical and emotional integrity.”
—former Olympic runner and Kansas Congressional representative, Jim Ryun
(Dating, Relationships)
Girls in our culture are caught in the crossfire of our culture’s mixed sexual messages. Sex is considered both a sacred act between two people united by God and the best way to sell suntan lotion.
—Mary Pipher in Reviving Ophelia
(Culture, Sexuality)
Thanksgiving
(1 Thess. 5:16-18)
In his book Living Life on Purpose, Greg Anderson shares the story of one man’s journey to joy:
… his wife had left him and he was completely depressed. He had lost faith in himself, in other people, in God—he found no joy in living.
One rainy morning this man went to a small neighborhood restaurant for breakfast. Although several people were at the diner, no one was speaking to anyone else. Our miserable friend hunched over the counter, stirring his coffee with a spoon.
In one of the small booths along the window was a young mother with a little girl. They had just been served their food when the little girl broke the sad silence by almost shouting, “Momma, why don’t we say our prayers here?”
The waitress who had just served their breakfast turned around and said, “Sure, honey, we pray here. Will you say the prayer for us?” And she turned and looked at the rest of the people in the restaurant and said, “Bow your heads.”
Surprisingly, one by one, the heads went down. The little girl then bowed her head, folded her hands, and said, “God is great, God is good, and we thank him for our food. Amen.”
That prayer changed the entire atmosphere. People began to talk with one another. The waitress said, “We should do that every morning.”
“All of a sudden,” said our friend, “my whole frame of mind started to improve. From that little girl’s example, I started to thank God for all that I did have and stop majoring in all that I didn’t have. I started to choose happiness.”
(Joy, Prayer)
Trust
(Prov. 3:5-6)
Super Cruise Control
The Department of Transportation has set aside $200 million for research and testing of an Automated Highway System. This system would purportedly relieve traffic woes with “super cruise control” in heavily congested cities.
Special magnets embedded in the asphalt every four feet would transfer signals between vehicle and main computer system. Steering, acceleration, and braking would be controlled by sensors, computers navigation systems, and cameras along the side of the road. Control would be returned to drivers at their specified exit.
Researchers and government officials claim they have the technological capability to address any potential problem. But one challenge they have yet to address.
Says Mike Doble, Buick’s technology manager, “The only thing we can’t do yet is get people to comfortably trust the system. It’s not a technology issue. Would you drive, closely spaced, at high speeds, through San Diego?”
Trust is always the question.
—USA Today (4/9/97)
(Control, Submission)
Don’t worry about the future—worry quenches the work of grace within you. The future belongs to God. He is in charge of all things. Never second-guess him.”
—Francois Fenelon Seventeenth-century French Bishop
(Faith, Worry)
Work
(Col. 3:23-24)
Of more than 1,200 business students in ten nations surveyed by Coopers & Lybrand, 45 percent named “a rewarding life outside work” as their chief goal.
—Wall Street Journal (6/3/97)
(Priorities, Youth)
Making a life is more significant than making a living.
—William Willimon Preaching Today
(Discipleship, Priorities)
I‘m constantly amazed by the number of people who can’t seem to control their own schedules. Over the years, I’ve had many executives come to me and say with pride, ‘Boy, last year I worked so hard that I didn’t take any vacation.’
It’s actually nothing to be proud of. I always feel like responding, “You dummy. You mean to tell me that you can take responsibility for an $80 million project, and you can’t plan two weeks out of the year to go off with your family and have some fun?”
—Lee Iacocca
(Planning, Priorities)
In his book The Dilbert Principle, Scott Adams offers his usual blend of sarcasm and irrefutable wisdom in “Dilbert’s Laws of Work”:
Don’t be irreplaceable. If you can’t be replaced, you can’t be promoted.
When you don’t know what to do, walk fast and look worried.
Everything can be filed under “miscellaneous.”
If you are good, you will be assigned all the work. If you are really good, you will get out of it.
If it wasn’t for the last moment, nothing would get done.
Keep your boss’s boss off your boss’s back.
Eat one live toad the first thing in the morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.
(Business, Relationships)
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1997 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. For reprint information call 630-260-6200 or contact us
