The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the "Peanuts" comic strip. You don't have to actually answer the questions. Just read the e-mail straight through, and you'll get the point.

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winner for best actor and actress.

6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?
The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.

Psalm 23:1 "The Lord is my shepherd."
A shepherd knows what his sheep need--food, water, protection, guidance and nurturing. He sees the big picture and he cares about his sheep. The sheep know his voice and depend on him.

The key to real joy, peace, and strength today is simple dependence on Him as our shepherd. He wants us to depend on Him, to seek His guidance in our decisions and tasks today, and to believe that He knows what He's doing. He truly cares for us. He completely knows, understands, and accepts us today.

He will show me what really needs to be on my do list today, how to prioritize, and how to most effectively carry out those tasks. Will I depend on my competence and knowledge or will I depend on Him to direct and use those things? Will I try to manipulate and control or will I trust Him and take prudent action?

Lord, please help me truly follow You as my shepherd today. Show me how and make this part of my moment-by-moment living.

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dave@youronedegree.com

1. I can't reach my license unless you hold my beer. (Okay in Texas)

2. Sorry, Officer, I didn't realize my radar detector wasn't plugged in.

3. Aren't you the guy from the Village People?

4. Hey, you must've been doin' about 125 mph to keep up with me. Good job!

5. Are You Andy or Barney?

6. I thought you had to be in relatively good physical condition to be a police officer.

7. You're not gonna check the trunk, are you?

8. I pay your salary!

9. Gee, Officer! That's terrific. The last officer only gave me a warning, too!

10. Do you know why you pulled me over? Okay, just so one of us does.

11. I was trying to keep up with traffic. Yes, I know there are no other cars around. That's how far ahead of me they are.

12. When the Officer says "Gee Son....Your eyes look red, have you been drinking?" You probably shouldn't respond with,"Gee Officer your eyes look glazed, have you been eating doughnuts?"

According to a news report, a certain private school in Washington recently
was faced with a unique problem........

A number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put
it on in the bathroom. That was fine, but after they put on their lipstick
they would press their lips to the mirror leaving dozens of little lip
prints.

Every night, the maintenance man would remove them and the next day, the
girls would put them back.

Finally the principal decided that something had to be done.

She called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the
maintenance man. She explained that all these lip prints were causing a
major problem for the custodian who had to clean the mirrors every night.
To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, she asked
the maintenance man to show the girls how much effort was required.

He took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it in the toilet, and cleaned
the mirror with it.

Since then, there have been no lip prints on the mirror.

THE MORAL OF THIS STORY..
There are teachers, and then there are Educators

Psalm 1:1a “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked ..."

King David had seen many people give and receive counsel and he’d seen the results of following wise counsel and unwise counsel. Here he says that a person will be happy, blessed, when they seek, listen to, and follow through on counsel/advice from wise people.

From whom do we get our counsel about work, relationships, handling conflict, responding to mistreatment, values, decision-making, etc.? Do we listen to wise people with sound values and clear perspective or do we listen to unwise people? Granted, sometimes wise people can give bad advice and unwise people can give good advice. We need to carefully sift through advice to determine if it is wise or unwise.

The scriptures should be our test of the counsel and advice we receive. As we seek and test counsel over the years we learn what counsel to listen to and what advice to ignore. It’s vital to run any advice we receive by the Lord with even a simple prayer like, “Lord, is this from you or does this line up with how you want me to respond?” This simple step can often help us from caving to peer pressure or unwise counsel.

Lord, help me, my family and friends always have an open and discerning heart to listen to and respond to wise counsel, and help me quickly discern and reject that which is unwise.

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dave@youronedegree.com