House Republicans Sing Amazing Grace
House Republicans opened a debt limit meeting Tuesday morning with a group singing of "Amazing Grace."
"All three verses, without the words written out," Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX) told a New York Times reporter. "Isn't that impressive?"
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) was not impressed. "Isn't that usually sung at funerals?" he told The Huffington Post.
"Amazing Grace" is a celebration of life and vitality, not death and despair. But if we carry about the message grace in a spirit of despair, we shouldn't be surprised when it is received that way.
"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2:4-5).
You Are a Soul
"You don't have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body."
C.S. Lewis
With our materialistic mindset, we tend to give greater emphasis to our physical bodies. But it's our physical frame that is transitory and frail, not our souls. This being so, we must learn to place the greater emphasis on the development and welfare of that part of us which is eternal.
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day." (2 Corinthians 4:16 New International Version).
What Should We Really Fear?
Newsweek magazine recently made a side-by-side comparison of "threats" of which people have an inaccurate perspective.
Murders: 14,180 (2008)—Suicides: 33,289 (2006)
Children abducted by strangers: 115 (1999)—Children who drown in pools: 288 (2006)
Burglaries: 2.2 million (2007)—Identity thefts: 8.3 million (2005)
Shark attacks: 28 (2009)—Dog bites: 4.5 million (estimate)
Americans killed in terrorist attacks worldwide: 33 (2008)—Americans who die from seasonal flu: 36,171 (est.)
Deaths by allergic reaction to peanuts: 50-100 (est.)—Deaths by unintentional poisoning: 27,531 (2006)
Fatalities in airline accidents: 321 (2005)—Fatalities in car crashes: 34,017 (2008)
We spend an inordinate amount of time fretting over the wrong things. The result is needless anxiety. This list illustrates our sometimes unfounded or misplaced fears and worries, and reveals just how far from reality our misconceptions sometimes take us.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" (Philippians 4:6).