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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for May 1, 2009
“Possess Your Vessel in Honor”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
So I’ve taken up the game of tennis.
I’m doing it for the exercise, not the competition, so we don’t keep score. There’s a lot more action when it doesn’t matter who serves or whether a hit was in or not. You just keep playing.
But in spite of all that, there are still times when I want to beat my racket to shreds.
I don’t use foul language, but I certainly make loud exclamations.
See, I just want to do better, and when I don’t, it makes me mad.
The good news is that, so far, I have done no violence to my racket. I haven’t slammed it or hurled it or even called it names. The worst I’ve done is swished it through the air really fast.
But you know what? I don’t even want to do that.
Why not?
Because of these five little words: Possess your vessel in honor.
That’s a motto of mine. For years I had it posted by my desk.
“Possess your vessel in honor.”
It’s my own little paraphrase of First Thessalonians 4:4 which, in the King James, says “…every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour…”
Your “vessel” is your body.
To me, “possess your vessel in honor” means that you control your body to keep it within the boundaries of honor.
You conduct yourself in a dignified manner. When you sit and stand and walk, you do so with honor and dignity.
It’s how I picture George Washington. I read one time that in meetings he was not fidgety. He was perfectly poised and self-possessed. He was calm, collected and confident.
An extreme example is the Queen’s Guard at Buckingham Palace. They just stand there, perfectly still, in their red tunics and bearskin hats.
It makes me think of the phrase “in full control of one’s faculties.”
When you do this, you don’t swish your racket. You don’t throw your golf clubs. You don’t slam your helmet and swear at the umpire.
Now you women might be thinking about all the men in your life who need to hear this. But this is for you, too.
Yes, maybe women are a little less likely to go berserk over a game, but let’s go ahead and bring this home.
Women, what about your appearance? What about how you dress? Do you choose your clothing with “honor” in mind?
What about the words you speak, or even the look on your face?
See, this little phrase hits us all. “Possess your vessel in honor.”
For example, I don’t think you can possess your vessel in honor and have your underwear showing. Or so much skin.
This means you don’t roll your eyes when someone is talking. You don’t sneer.
I know in America we are all about freedom of expression, but just because we have the freedom to do something doesn’t mean we should.
First Thessalonians 5:12 says that we should conduct ourselves in such a way as to “…win the respect of outsiders…”
That means when a non-Christian sees how you behave, they respect you.
How do we respond when someone disagrees with us? How do we act towards certain people? How do we conduct ourselves when the pressure is on? How do we behave when things don’t go the way we want, like when we lose the game?
Does our behavior cause outsiders to respect us?
It should. And it will – as we strive to live up to this powerful little phrase.
Possess your vessel in honor.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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