Music and the Power of Suggestion - Apples of Gold - October 6, 2009 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for October 6, 2009

“Music and the Power of Suggestion”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

The number one song in the land, according to the Billboard Hot 100, is “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas.

The lyrics say, “I gotta feeling that tonight’s gonna be a good night.”

So far, so good, right?

Okay, according to the song, what’s going to make it a good night?

“Tonight’s the night, let’s live it up,
I got my money, let’s spend it up.”

And that’s exactly what millions of people will do.  No, not because the song said so, but listen – the song is an ingredient in the decision.

I don’t think these are Dave-Ramsey-approved lyrics.  He would have said:

“Tonight’s the night for financial health,
Let’s pay off debt and build up wealth.”

But who would listen to a song like that, right? 

So anyway, the number one song right now is all about going out and partying and blowing all your money and, like one line says, “losing all control.”

A great Friday night song, right?  Nope.  The lyrics spell out everyday of the week.  What’s a good day to spend all your money and lose all control?  Every day!

No, a song can’t make you do that, but it’s an ingredient in the decision.  It’s the power of suggestion, and when your song is number one in the country, you are suggesting it to a huge percentage of the nation.

Don’t believe me?  Well get this, the number three song in the country is all about the power of a song to influence behavior!

It’s called “Party in the U.S.A.” by Miley Cyrus – yes, the girl who plays Hannah Montana. 

In the song she talks about flying into Los Angeles and feeling nervous and homesick.  But then in the taxi cab a song by Jay Z comes on the radio and she starts moving and grooving and feeling all right.

Then little 16 year old Miley sings about going to the club and feeling out of place with all the big city partiers.  She feels out of place and wants to get out of there and go home, until the DJ drops a song by Britney Spears, which helps her decide to stay at the club after all.

Many times she feels like leaving the big city and going back home, but “something stops me every time,” she says.  And what is that something?  A song. 

So at number three is a song about the power of a song to influence behavior.  She would have left the club, but a song kept her in the club.  She would have left the big city, but a song kept her there.

And so what did she do?  She nodded her head and moved her hips and got her hands up.  “Yea, it’s a party in the U.S.A.”

I know, some of you think it’s just silliness, but there’s little Miley promoting Jay Z who has the number four song on the Hot 100 called “Run This Town.”  No, it’s not about the mayor and the city council, and no, I can’t share the lyrics on this radio station.  It has the “n word” and guns and lyrics that are degrading to women and on and on.  And this is exactly the kind of lyrics they are pumping out day and night on the most listened to radio stations in Tallahassee and around the country.

Look down the list of the top songs.  Look at the number one songs in other parts of the world.  I can’t even share with you some of the song titles.  And some of you, if you read the lyrics, you would be stunned, alarmed, even revolted.  And these aren’t the lyrics of some dark basement bar band.  They are the most popular songs on the planet.

I’m talking today about the power of suggestion, and when you throw together a cocktail of lyrics and catchy music, the suggestion can be pretty powerful.

No, your music won’t make you do something, but it is an ingredient in your decisions, so pay attention.  That music you listen to – what is it suggesting that you do?

Romans 12:2 tells us to not be conformed to the pattern of this world.  That is very hard to do if the pattern of this world is pulsing through your iPod.

But there is a big payoff.  When we choose to not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, Romans 12:2 says, “…then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

So would you like to know what God’s will is for your life?  One step toward finding out is to stop conforming to the pattern of this world.

And one way to stop the conformity is to stop listening to worldly music full of worldly suggestions.

No, your music won’t make you do something, but it’s a powerful ingredient in the decision.


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

Our Tendency to Deceive - Apples of Gold - October 5, 2009 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for October 5, 2009

“Our Tendency to Deceive”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Twin boys are always a lot of fun.

A friend of mine is raising twin boys, and they love to ride their bicycles.  They have just a little bit of freedom, and some very clear boundaries.

So the other day they got caught heading down the street, way over the line!

And what was their first reaction?  They lied about it.

Does that surprise you? 

Not if you are an experienced parent.  If you’ve raised a bunch of kids like I have, you know that no one has to teach kids to lie.  It’s not peer pressure.  It’s not the media.  It’s just something they do quite naturally.  I’ve seen it in the tiniest of toddlers. 

You tell them not to do something.  You turn your back for a second, and they do it.  You ask them if they did it, and they lie.  They have cookie crumbs all over their mouth, chocolate chips melted in their hand, and they still have the guts to stand right there and tell you they didn’t do it.

Yes, it’s the sin nature, alive and well in the next generation.

So back to my friend’s twin boys.  They lied about it, but quickly realized they were caught.  So did they come clean?  Not on your life!

Get this.  They suddenly conjured up a story about brake failure!  Yeah, that’s it.  Their brakes went bad!  That’s how they ended up way over on that other street!

Then Dad said he was going to ride each bike himself and check out the brakes.  He said at that point, “They began looking at each other and knew it was all over.”

And then, Dad concluded, “It got real interesting ‘round here!”

So if you think your child is rotten because they told a lie at two years old, don’t feel bad.  They come by it quite naturally.  It’s the sin nature that we are all born with.

The good news is that, with a nice blend of discipline and love, we can steer our children away from telling lies.

The bad news is, that lying little sin nature is still rattling around down inside all of us.

It’s that little voice that says, “I’m not so bad.”

Galatians 6:3 says, “If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.”

Did you know it’s possible to deceive yourself?  And we usually do it by rationalizing our behavior. 

Romans 12:3 says, “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought…,” but that’s what we are prone to do.

The other day I heard a man say, “What we think of ourselves is often an illusion.” 

He said we see other people more realistically, but we gloss over our own actions and look at what we meant to do or would have done.

So how can we silence that little liar inside us and see ourselves as we really are?

First of all, we need to see ourselves in the true reflection of God’s Word.  Hebrews 4:12 says the Word of God “judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Second, we need to seek the wise counsel of others. 

Have you ever read Robert Burns’s poem entitled, “To a Louse”?  He wrote it in Scotland in the 1700’s, and the full title is, “To a Louse: On Seeing One on a Lady’s Bonnet at Church.”

It’s hard to read with all the Scottish slang, but basically it’s about seeing this pretty lady at church, and then noticing a bug crawling around on her head.  She doesn’t notice, but others do!

And the poem concludes like this:

O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!
It wad frae monie a blunder free us…*

Yes, how enlightening it would be if we could see ourselves as others see us. 

Like my friend’s twin boys.  If they could only have seen themselves the way their dad saw them!

Well that’s where wise counsel comes in.  A wise counselor can penetrate our self deception and help us think of ourselves as we ought.

The tendency to deceive – it’s easy to see in children.

But how can we see our own self-deception?

By looking intently into the Word of God, and by seeking the wise counsel of others.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

*  And now in regular English!.....

O would some Power the gift to give us
To see ourselves as others see us!
It would from many a blunder free us,


© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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

-vi-

This Thing of Transparency - Apples of Gold - October 2, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for October 2, 2009

“This Thing of Transparency”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

We interviewed the group Addison Road this week.

You’ve probably heard them sing “everything rides on hope now.”

Yes, they are known for their song about hope, but it wasn’t always that way.  Go back to when they were still trying to land their first recording contract.

Back then they wanted to be very transparent in their art, they said.  They wrote about their struggles and difficulties. 

Then one day someone asked, “Where is the hope?  As Christians we should be singing about hope.”

Well they took that admonition to heart, and out of that came the song “Hope Now.”

And I’m glad, because you know what?  I don’t want to hear songs about struggles and difficulties.  I don’t want to hear about how weak someone feels. 

I know, some people call that “transparency” and being authentic in their art.  “I’m just being honest,” they say.  “I’m just relating to real life people out there.”

My kids used to listen to a song by dcTalk.  It said, “What if I stumble?  What if I fall?  What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?”

Now I’m glad that dcTalk thought about that, the negative impact if they “fell.”  But I wish they would have addressed the topic, then sang this chorus, “I’m not gonna stumble, I’m not gonna fall.  I won’t lose my step and make fools of us all.”

See the difference?  Lyrics can point your mind in one direction or the other.  The message rambling around your head can say, “What if I stumble?” or “I’m not gonna stumble!”

Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 

I want music to inspire me, to lift me up, to point me to things above.  I want it to challenge me to be the best Christian I can be.  I don’t need songs that wallow in despair and weakness. 

“But Doug, I’m a Christian artist, and I do things like worry.  I want to be transparent, so I’m going to sing about worries.”

What?  I would rather listen a secular song like “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” than listen to Christians sing about their worries.

Why would you want to spread worry?  What if some Christian artist worries about dying?  Are they going to come out with an album called, “We’re All Going to Die”?

Can you see the song titles on that one?  It opens with a fast number called “Car Wreck,” which leads right into a song called “Skydiving Accident,” and then a slower number entitled, “Faulty Wiring in my Trailer.”

I’m just sayin’, there is such a thing as being too transparent.  Honestly, to me that just sounds like artsy nonsense.

Let me use this word, “wallow.”  We don’t wallow in the negative.

Yesterday I heard someone say, “You’ll never move into the palace talking like a pauper.”

“But Doug, I am a pauper.”

Maybe you are, and that’s where you’ll stay if you wallow in it.  You can sing the blues about how poor you are, or you can sing, “I’m a child of the King!”

I’m talking about music today because songs have a powerful influence on us. 

I read an article this week called, “How the iPod Became a Tool of War.”  It talked about how music has been a military motivator for centuries, and now soldiers motivate themselves with the music on their mp3 players. 

And what kind of music do you think they are listening to?  Do you think it’s songs like, “Tomorrow I Get Captured,” or “50 Ways to Leave Your Unit”?

No.  They listen to songs that pump them up.

I like this phrase in Second Timothy 2, “a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”  Verse one says, “be strong.”

That’s how I want my music to motivate me – to be strong, to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Look.  If you are a song writer, and you want to be transparent, fine.  Write about something you struggle with, that maybe we all struggle with.  Stick it in the verses.  But then give us a chorus that turns our mind to God’s truth, that sets our mind on things above.  Give us a chorus that motivates us to be as close to the Lord as possible, a chorus of hope, a chorus of higher things.

And if you aren’t a songwriter, this still applies.  We all give off messages.  We all communicate.  The question is, what are we communicating?

Ephesians 4:29 tells us what we should be communicating, “…only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

That is what we should all be communicating, what is helpful and beneficial.

So let’s learn the lesson from Addison Road.  Being transparent is not an end in itself.  We need to add that extra message that motivates us all to be the best Christians we can be.


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

This Thing of Transparency - Apples of Gold - October 2, 2009 -mm-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for October 2, 2009

“This Thing of Transparency”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

We interviewed the group Addison Road this week.

You’ve probably heard them sing “everything rides on hope now.”

Yes, they are known for their song about hope, but it wasn’t always that way.  Go back to when they were still trying to land their first recording contract.

Back then they wanted to be very transparent in their art, they said.  They wrote about their struggles and difficulties. 

Then one day someone asked, “Where is the hope?  As Christians we should be singing about hope.”

Well they took that admonition to heart, and out of that came the song “Hope Now.”

And I’m glad, because you know what?  I don’t want to hear songs about struggles and difficulties.  I don’t want to hear about how weak someone feels. 

I know, some people call that “transparency” and being authentic in their art.  “I’m just being honest,” they say.  “I’m just relating to real life people out there.”

My kids used to listen to a song by dcTalk.  It said, “What if I stumble?  What if I fall?  What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?”

Now I’m glad that dcTalk thought about that, the negative impact if they “fell.”  But I wish they would have addressed the topic, then sang this chorus, “I’m not gonna stumble, I’m not gonna fall.  I won’t lose my step and make fools of us all.”

See the difference?  Lyrics can point your mind in one direction or the other.  The message rambling around your head can say, “What if I stumble?” or “I’m not gonna stumble!”

Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 

I want music to inspire me, to lift me up, to point me to things above.  I want it to challenge me to be the best Christian I can be.  I don’t need songs that wallow in despair and weakness. 

“But Doug, I’m a Christian artist, and I do things like worry.  I want to be transparent, so I’m going to sing about worries.”

What?  I would rather listen a secular song like “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” than listen to Christians sing about their worries.

Why would you want to spread worry?  What if some Christian artist worries about dying?  Are they going to come out with an album called, “We’re All Going to Die”?

Can you see the song titles on that one?  It opens with a fast number called “Car Wreck,” which leads right into a song called “Skydiving Accident,” and then a slower number entitled, “Faulty Wiring in my Trailer.”

I’m just sayin’, there is such a thing as being too transparent.  Honestly, to me that just sounds like artsy nonsense.

Let me use this word, “wallow.”  We don’t wallow in the negative.

Yesterday I heard someone say, “You’ll never move into the palace talking like a pauper.”

“But Doug, I am a pauper.”

Maybe you are, and that’s where you’ll stay if you wallow in it.  You can sing the blues about how poor you are, or you can sing, “I’m a child of the King!”

I’m talking about music today because songs have a powerful influence on us. 

I read an article this week called, “How the iPod Became a Tool of War.”  It talked about how music has been a military motivator for centuries, and now soldiers motivate themselves with the music on their mp3 players. 

And what kind of music do you think they are listening to?  Do you think it’s songs like, “Tomorrow I Get Captured,” or “50 Ways to Leave Your Unit”?

No.  They listen to songs that pump them up.

I like this phrase in Second Timothy 2, “a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”  Verse one says, “be strong.”

That’s how I want my music to motivate me – to be strong, to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Look.  If you are a song writer, and you want to be transparent, fine.  Write about something you struggle with, that maybe we all struggle with.  Stick it in the verses.  But then give us a chorus that turns our mind to God’s truth, that sets our mind on things above.  Give us a chorus that motivates us to be as close to the Lord as possible, a chorus of hope, a chorus of higher things.

And if you aren’t a songwriter, this still applies.  We all give off messages.  We all communicate.  The question is, what are we communicating?

Ephesians 4:29 tells us what we should be communicating, “…only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

That is what we should all be communicating, what is helpful and beneficial.

So let’s learn the lesson from Addison Road.  Being transparent is not an end in itself.  We need to add that extra message that motivates us all to be the best Christians we can be.


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-MM-

The Faith of a Little Child - Apples of Gold - October 1, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for October 1, 2009

“The Faith of a Little Child”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Missy Haskins was five years old.

Her daddy, Mr. Guinn Haskins, got a new job over in Dothan, Alabama.

They decided not to move the family until Missy’s siblings were done with school, so for six weeks Missy’s dad stayed in Dothan and came home on the weekends.

He worked for G.F.A. – Georgia Florida Alabama Frozen Foods – which was owned by Mr. James C. Barrentine, and operated by his son Jimmy.

The Barrentines treated their new employee like a member of the family.  He stayed in their guest house during the week, and ate dinner with them each evening.

Then it was decided that little five-year-old Missy would come to Dothan and spend the week with her daddy.  And while he was at work during the day, she would stay with Mrs. Barrentine.

After Missy’s first day at the Barrentine’s, her dad came home from work and was told, “We had a little situation arise.”

“A situation?”

Well you need to know that each day Mr. Barrentine and Jimmy Barrentine would come home for lunch and eat with Mrs. Barrentine.  Missy’s dad, Guinn, did not join them for lunch because his work took him away from the office.

So it was Missy’s first day at the Barrentine’s, and they all sat down and started eating lunch.

Except Missy.

She didn’t even touch her food.

Finally Mr. Barrentine, whom Guinn described as “a kind of gruff man,” said, “Missy, what’s wrong with your food?”

“There’s nothing wrong with it, Mr. Barrentine.”

“Then why aren’t you eating it?”

“Because we haven’t blessed it.”

It kind of set them back a while, Guinn said, and finally Mr. Barrentine looked at his son and said, “Jimmy, you bless it!”

And Jimmy stumbled through some kind of grace, but it was good enough for Missy.

And for the rest of the week, they prayed before they ate. 

“I don’t know if they ever said grace again,” Guinn said, “but they did while Missy was there, because she wouldn’t eat.”

“And I’ve thought about that a lot of times,” Guinn said.  “There I was, a grown man, eating with them for six weeks, and was not a testimony.  I didn’t say nothing about it.  I just sat down and ate.  But here a five-year-old was a good Christian testimony to them.”

When I heard that story I thought, “Wow, the faith of a child.”

In Matthew 18 Jesus’ disciples asked Him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Jesus called over a little child and said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

You know, it is humbling to have a childlike faith.  Skeptical grownups look at you like you’re nuts. 

And sometimes we react by trying to make Christianity seem all logical and reasonable.  And there is some logic and reason to it.  But it’s mostly just faith.

To be the best Christians we can be, it takes humble, childlike faith in the face of a scoffing world.

They may ask us a lot of questions, and we may try to give them answers, but in the end the only real answer we have is our faith.  We just simply believe.

Our faith does not rest on men’s wisdom, as it says in First Corinthians 2:5, but on God’s power.

Second Corinthians 5:7 says we walk by faith, not by sight.

First John 5:4 says that our faith is the victory that overcomes the world.

We simply believe in the Lord and His Word.  We have faith.

But it doesn’t stop there.

James 2 says that faith must be “accompanied by action.”

It’s not just in our head, but it shows up in what we do, for everyone to see.

Yes, sometimes it’s humbling, and that’s the way it must be.

Jesus said we must humble ourselves like children. 

The world may see us as simpletons, but it actually makes us great in the kingdom of heaven.

We are at our best when we have the simple faith of a little child.


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

Declare War on Spiritual Atrophy - Apples of Gold - September 29, 2009 -vi aol-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for September 29, 2009

“Declare War on Spiritual Atrophy”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

My daughter’s headlights were terrible.

The plastic was all clouded over, and she said that even with her brights on it was hard to see.

So I stopped by the auto parts store, and the price to replace both headlights was over $300!

“Wow,” I said.  “That’s a little steep for a vehicle on its last legs.”

“There is another option,” said the clerk.  “It’s a kit that will clean them up like new.”

“Well it’s not that they’re dirty,” I said.  “It’s more like the plastic is just old and going bad.”

“No, no,” she said.  “That’s just on the surface.  Trust me, it works.  My husband just did it on my truck and the headlights look like new.”

So I bought the kit.  It was still 20 bucks, but for a savings of $280 it was worth a shot!

So I sanded with the course sandpaper, and sanded with the fine sandpaper.  Then I used the polish, then I added the clear coat, and … it worked!  It was amazing, the headlights really do look just like new.

Now I look around at all the cars with cloudy headlights and I think, “Why are you putting up with that?”

Well I know why most people put up with it – because they don’t even notice.  It happens so slowly over time.  But day in and day out their headlights get worse and worse until one day they realize, “What on earth?  I can hardly see!”

It makes me think of the word “atrophy,” which is usually applied to the human body, as in muscular atrophy.  For example, when you break your arm and it’s stuck in a cast for a few weeks, those unused muscles get weak, they shrink, they atrophy.

You don’t even notice until you get the cast off and try to do something.  Then you realize just how weak you’ve become.

And pretty much everything works like this.  If you don’t work hard to keep it strong, it atrophies.

The same thing happens to us spiritually.  If we don’t work hard to keep growing as Christians, then we automatically grow weak.  It’s spiritual atrophy.  Some call it “backsliding.”

Yesterday we aired the testimony of Jhenai Wilkerson, a student at FSU from New Jersey.  She became a Christian in high school, and was very fired up for God.  Then she moved to Tallahassee.

She still went to church every Sunday and Wednesday.  “But I was not in the same place in my relationship with God,” she said.  “I began to backslide, having one foot in the church and one foot out.”

In 2007, at 19 years old, she found herself unmarried and pregnant.  She went to the clinic, she paid her money, and even though it went against everything she believed, she scheduled an abortion. 

Now how do you go from being fired up for God to going against everything you believe?

One step at a time.  That’s how backsliding happens, one step at a time.

Think of Lot in the Bible.  He was Abraham’s nephew, and with Abraham he was right in the middle of God’s blessing.

But then in Genesis 13:12 we have this fateful line, “Lot…pitched his tents near Sodom.”  The next verse says, “Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord.”

So there’s Lot, moving away from Abraham and toward wicked Sodom.

Now jump ahead to Genesis 14:12.  By this time Lot was actually living in Sodom.

Out in the country, Abraham was meeting with God, and God was making promises to Abraham.  But in the city, Lot had surrounded himself with wickedness. 

The city was so wicked that when two angels came to rescue Lot, the men surrounded his house and demanded that the “men” be brought out for their pleasure.

And Lot was so messed up that he offered up his own daughters for their abuse.  Talk about backsliding!

I like this word picture for backsliding:  pitching your tent toward Sodom. 

It’s what Jhenai Wilkerson called having “one foot in the church and one foot out.”

The good news is, Jhenai realized the truth of her situation just in time, jumped off the abortionist’s table and ran out, saving her baby.

With the help of the angels, Lot barely escaped Sodom with his life.

And what about you?  Are you in a backslidden condition today?  Have your spiritual headlights grown dim?  Have your spiritual muscles atrophied?

Then this is your call to get right!  It’s time to get that one foot out of the world.  It’s time to seek the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.  It’s time to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd who is calling out your name.  It’s time to draw near to Him and love Him and obey Him.

It’s time to declare war on spiritual atrophy!


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi aol-

Prioritize Then Organize - Apples of Gold - September 28, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for September 28, 2009

“Prioritize Then Organize”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

“Too many choices can tax the brain.”

That’s the headline of an article in the Los Angeles Times.

For example, Starbucks offers over 80,000 possible drink combinations.  Comcast offers up to 1,000 channels (and there’s still nothing on.)

Or let’s say you just want to grab a Pepsi.  Do you want Pepsi, or Diet Pepsi?  Or Caffeine Free Pepsi?  Or Pepsi Max?  Or Pepsi One?  Or Wild Cherry Pepsi or Diet Pepsi Vanilla or Lime; or how about Diet Pepsi Jazz?

Then there’s my all-time favorite, Pepsi Blue Hawaii, which you’ve probably never seen because, and you’re going to like this, Pepsi Blue Hawaii was only sold in Japan.

Or what about Christmas Pepsi or Holiday Spice Pepsi or even Pepsi Ice Cucumber?

Yes, too many choices can tax the brain.  Popular Science addressed the issue and referred to something called “option paralysis.”

Barry Schwartz has a book out called, “The Paradox of Choice:  Why More Is Less.”  He describes the day he went to The Gap and said, “I want a regular pair of jeans.”  The salesgirl said, “Do you want them slim fit, easy fit, relaxed fit, baggy, or extra baggy?  Do you want them stonewashed, acid-washed or distressed?  Do you want them button-fly or zipper-fly?”

Okay, so we have plenty of products to choose from, big deal.

Well think about this.  Back in the day you went to a school where there were about three dateable people.  If one of them liked you, you married them.

Well now you aren’t limited to your school or your town or your state.  You can choose online between millions of people!

When we have so many choices, how do we choose?

And it’s not just what we buy or who we date.  It’s how we spend our time.  It’s our activities:  how much time at work, at what job?  What do we do with our off time?

For most of history you worked like a dog all day just to survive.  And you were lucky to have any choices.

But in America today we are drowning in choices.  So the question is, with so many options, how do we choose?

Well here is a little phrase for you:  prioritize, then organize.

It starts by knowing your priorities.  What are the most important things?  If you know, you will have a framework for making choices.

For example, my children are a high priority.  That priority shapes my choices.  Do I spend more time at home or go on long business trips?  I stay at home. 

Why?  Because my priority is to have a close relationship with my kids, and the less I’m around, the less connected I will be. 

This is especially true when you are raising teenagers.  You know, teens just aren’t always in the mood to talk, so when that mood strikes, you need to be around.

So my children are a high priority, and I organize my life according to that priority.

That even affects my choice in exercise.  For example, Saturday I could have headed off to the health club for an hour or two, but instead, I worked out at home. 

Why?  Because that kept me at home with my 16 year old daughter.  I know it’s just a little thing, but counting the time they go from 13-years-old to 19-years-old that adds up to tons of time – time that I am there.

See how that works?  Good health is a priority, so I organize my time to exercise.  My family is a priority, so I organize my time to exercise at home.

When you figure out your priorities, so many choices just become obvious.  Instead of options paralysis you end up with options obvious.

Priorities narrow the field.  Do I go out with the boys Friday night or go out with my wife?  Well my marriage is a top priority.

Do I join the Bible study or the Bridge Club?  Well the Word is a top priority.

So start by knowing your priorities.  For me, it’s the Lord first, then my wife, then my children.  And then I organize my life according to those priorities.

So are you suffering from option paralysis?  Do you find that too many choices tax your brain?

Then here is a little phrase that will help.  It’s a two-step method that should streamline all your decision-making, and it’s simply this:  prioritize then organize.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 


So how would prioritizing help you pick which jeans to buy or which Pepsi to drink?

The priority of modesty will help you choose clothing, as will the priority of your budget.

The priority of health may help you choose your Pepsi (or no Pepsi at all).  Some people will choose the Pepsi they happen to have a coupon for!  Some will never choose Pepsi based on their support for certain immoral causes.

Any choice we make can fit into a structure of priorities.  It’s just a matter of ranking our priorities.

© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

Sipping From the Chalice of Humility - Apples of Gold - September 25, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for September 25, 2009

“Sipping From the Chalice of Humility”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

It was snowing in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

It was Friday night, and I just wanted to get home.

I pulled off the busy road into a filling station, took off the gas cap, laid it on the trunk, and started pumping. 

It was one of those icy snows that really yucks up your windshield, so I grabbed the squeegee and went to work.  It was cold and the wind was biting.  My hands were freezing.  I couldn’t wait to get back in the car, but I wanted to make sure the windshield was as clean as possible. 

The pump stopped when the tank was full, so I quickly replaced the nozzle and went back to the windshield.  Finally I hopped in the car, cranked up the heat and pulled out.

Now there are two things about me you need to know.  First of all, I am very audio oriented, which is probably why I am in radio.  I am very much tuned into the sound of things. 

So I pulled out from the gas station and I heard a little noise.  It was very faint, but it sent my mind on a mission.  What was that sound?

Now here is the second thing you need to know about me.  I tend to be very organized about certain things.  My wife calls it borderline OCD.  I just call it being organized.  For example, when I come home, I put my keys in the same place every day.  I put my phone on the charger every night.  In fact, I put it on the charger the exact same way every night. 

I’m very methodical about these things, and it saves me a lot of trouble.  For example, I never have to go around asking, “Have you seen my keys?”

Now what do you think happens when I see someone else frantically searching for their keys?  Somewhere, deep down in the chasms of my soul, a tiny little voice whispers, “I’m better.”

So anyway, in some things I guess I am borderline OCD.  And I guess that would include how I pump gas.  I pump gas the same way every time, but that day in Cape Girardeau I got out of my rhythm.  The snow messed me up, and I missed a step.

So you can probably guess what that little noise was as I pulled out of the gas station.  It was my gas cap hitting the pavement!

Well I quickly pulled over, got out, looked back and sure enough, there it was, lying on the road.  Thank goodness.  I started to run back to pick it up when all of a sudden here came this big jacked up truck with monster tires. 

All I could do was watch. 

And listen.

Crunch! 

My gas cap was obliterated by a big Missouri pickup.

I kicked myself because I’m not that kind of person.  I always put the gas cap back on.  These things happen to other people, not me.  I am organized! 

And once again I found myself sipping from the chalice of humility. 

I can’t even count how many times this has happened in my life.  I take a subtle pride in something, somehow thinking I’m just a little better, and here it comes.  The big hand of life hands me the chalice and says, “Drink.”

The chalice of humility – we all have to drink from it, and it makes us better people.  It’s just not pleasant.    

When it happens, it’s just you and the cup.  The rest of life fades into the background.  It’s just you and this moment.  You on your knees, looking deep into the cup and realizing, “I’m not better.” 

Fortunately, these moments are actually good for us.

Proverbs 11:2 says, “…with humility comes wisdom.”

I have been humbled many times in my life, and I count it a blessing.  It’s like a spoonful of nasty-tasting medicine.  It’s hard to swallow, but it makes you better.

So when the humbling moment comes, don’t fight it.  Don’t try to hold on to your lofty position.  It just makes you look silly.

Instead, just take a knee.  Bow to it.  And learn.

Yes, it tastes bitter, but remember:  great wisdom comes as we sip from the chalice of humility.


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 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

Are You In a Valley Today? - Apples of Gold - September 24, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for September 24, 2009

“Are You In a Valley Today?”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

“I despise my life.”

That’s what Job said in Job 7:16.

In the old King James he said, “I loathe it; I would not live alway:  let me alone…”

If you think that’s bad, listen to what he said in verse 15.  “…I prefer strangling and death…”

Yes, you could say that Job was in a serious valley in his life right about then.

But, it’s a good thing he didn’t strangle and die, or he would have missed the great mountain tops to come.

The last chapter of Job says, “…the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before.”  “The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.”

Yes, he went through a deep valley, but after that came many happy years.

It’s a good thing he didn’t quit in the valley, isn’t it?

And the same is true for you.  If you find yourself in a valley today, don’t quit!

And that especially applies to marriage.  Marriages are full of ups and downs, and sometimes in the down periods you feel like giving up, like it will never get any better.

Maybe in your marriage today you feel like Job, like you would prefer “strangling and death” to staying married to that so-and-so.

Well if that’s you, you will relate to the title of an article I read recently by Amy Desai.  It’s called, “Is There Hope For My Marriage?” 

She wrote, “Often we think an unhappy couple has only two options:
Stay together and be miserable, or
Get a divorce.

But there is a third option, she said, and it is simply this.  Stick it out.

You heard right.  Just hang in there.

It kind of falls into the category of “This too shall pass.”

You see, so many of the valleys we go through are just temporary.  Life gets better, so don’t make life altering decisions while you are in the valley.

Amy quotes from a national study of married couples.  They asked them to rate their marriage on a scale of one to seven, with one being very unhappy and seven being very happy.

Then they followed up five years later, and now listen to this.  What do you think happened to those couples who said they were a “one,” that their marriage was “very unhappy”?

Now don’t miss this:  77% of them, just five years later, ranked their marriage as a “seven”!  Most of them went from being “very unhappy” to “very happy.”

Is it because they got marriage counseling or tried some amazing marriage technique? 

Nope.  There really wasn’t much evidence that they did anything out of the ordinary except this one thing.  They stuck it out.

Amy also quoted a study about divorce.  It said that about 60% of divorces happened in marriages that were ranked as “average.”  It wasn’t that their marriage was terrible.  It’s just that it wasn’t that great.  The marriage slipped into a valley, and they decided to call it quits.

Is that you today?  Is your marriage in a valley?  Are you ready to give up?

Don’t do it!  Be encouraged by these statistics!  Even if you don’t really work on it, your marriage will likely climb out of the valley.  And just imagine what could happen if you actually worked on it!

Like Amy said, “Most marriages go through emotional ups and downs – times of great happiness and times of boredom and fatigue.”  To have good marriages, we need to ride out the “lows” and learn from them.

So are you like Job today?  Do you loathe your life?  Would you prefer strangling and death? 

Well don’t quit.  Things will get better! 

“Wait for the Lord,” it says in Psalm 27:14.  “Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”

“We wait in hope for the Lord,” it says in Psalm 31:24.  “He is our help and our shield.”

“Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.”  (Psalm 42:11)

Yes, you may be going through a valley right now, but there is hope! 

Job persevered, and he was twice as blessed on the other side!

So stick it out. 
Bide your time. 
Wait on the Lord and
Everything will be just fine.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

Here is the complete article “Is There Hope for My Marriage?” by Amy Desai, J.D.:
http://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/divorce_and_infidelity/should_i_get_a_divorce/is_there_hope_for_my_marriage.aspx


© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(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
-vi-

Reverend Roosevelt Washington Brown - Apples of Gold - September 23, 2009 -vi-

To listen to the radio version, click here.

 

To search archives, click here.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for September 23, 2009

“Reverend Roosevelt Washington Brown”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Valentine’s Day, 1951.

The Reverend Archibald White arrived home bearing a gift for his lovely wife Susanna:  a West Highland White Terrier. 

The clerk had called it a “westie,” and Reverend White misunderstood that to be the dog’s name, and so it was.  He bought a collar that was just a little big, but big enough for the dog’s full name, “Westie White.”

The next morning Reverend White put Westie out in the back yard to take care of business, then rushed back in to answer the phone.  It was Mayor Joe Rex Tucker, and it was an emergency. 

“Arch,” said the mayor, “Reverend Brown is here with some of his men.  They say they just want to talk to me about the school situation, but I don’t like the smell of it.  Can you come down here and help me?  Maybe you can talk some sense into him, reverend-to-reverend.”

Reverend Roosevelt Washington Brown was not a troublemaker, and he certainly didn’t want to cause the mayor any more stress.  But something had to be done about the school. 

There was a white school in town, and a black school, and while the white school was well maintained, the black school needed some serious repairs.  They did some themselves, but yesterday a piece of the ceiling fell in and injured three of the students.  The need was urgent, so the people turned to the most respected man in their community, Reverend R. W. Brown.

Reverend Brown had a child in that school, his youngest daughter Ethel.  While the reverend and his men were visiting the mayor, Ethel was walking to school.

As she walked along, just the cutest little dog came running up behind her. 

“Hey boy!” she said.  “Why you’re a little darling!”

Ethel kneeled down and gave him a little scratch behind the ears. 

“Oh, you like that, don’t you boy!  What’s your name?”

She looked for a name tag or a collar, but there was none.

“Okay, you better run on home.  I have to go to school.”

But the little dog tagged along, getting tangled up in her feet, and almost making her drop her books.  Finally, at the school door she knelt down and said, “Okay boy.  Thanks for walking me to school, but I’ve got to go in, and you have to go home.  Now go!”

Reverend White arrived at the mayor’s office just as Reverend Brown and his men were walking out. 

“Why, I was just coming down to join the fun,” said Reverend White.  “I guess I missed it.”

Reverend Brown stopped and looked Reverend White in the eye.  “There’s nothing fun about your own child being in danger.”

Reverend White said, “Well if you spent more time working and less time bothering the mayor, maybe your school would be in better shape.”

“We need money to do that,” said Reverend Brown.  “We just want our fair share of the education tax dollars.”

“Oh, so it’s fair to take money from my children’s school.  Well I don’t think so, Reverend.  Now why don’t you gentlemen just run along and leave the mayor alone.”

At 1 p.m., as he always did, Reverend White came home for one of Susanna’s well-prepared lunches.  As he walked in the door he called out, “Westie!  Westie, come here boy!”

“Where’s Westie?”

“Oh, I completely forgot about him,” said Susanna.

They looked all over the house, but no Westie.  They looked in the back yard and the front yard.

Mrs. White went back inside, but Reverend White was worried.  He headed down the street, searching for their little dog.

Meanwhile, the school day came to an end at Abraham Lincoln Elementary.  As Ethel Brown began to walk home, she felt something nudge against her ankles.  It was the little dog again.

“There you are, boy!  Didn’t you go home?  Oh, is that your stomach growling?  You must be starving.  Maybe you don’t even have a home, oh my.  I know, why don’t you come home with me and we’ll fill that belly right up.”

The puppy kept tumbling around her feet so Ethel finally scooped him up into her arms.

Just then, Reverend White appeared around the corner.  Relief flooded him as he spotted Westie. 

But then he felt anger as he ran over to collect his dog.  What was this…this…girl…doing with Westie?  She must have taken him right out of the yard!

“Give me my dog!” he said, snatching the puppy from Ethel.  “Did you think you could get away with this?  I’m going to tell your parents exactly what you have done.”

On the front porch of the Brown home, Reverend White had much to say about Ethel and her crime.

Reverend Brown listened patiently, then said, “Reverend White.  I have much respect for you, but sometimes you are shortsighted.  You don’t step back and see the whole picture.  You have not looked thoroughly at the school situation, and you have not looked thoroughly at this situation.  I don’t think my daughter did what you are accusing her of, but I will look into it.  I will examine all of the evidence, and I suggest you do the same.”

“I have all the evidence I need,” said Reverend White, holding up Westie.  Then he turned his back on Reverend Brown and Ethel Brown and everything in that part of town.

After supper, and after he had settled down, Reverend White took Westie into the back yard.  The puppy began digging a little spot at the bottom of the fence.  The reverend went to shoo him away, then noticed another dug out spot.  He walked over and started kicking the dirt back in, and then he saw it.  Oh boy.  A dog collar, caught on the bottom of the fence.  “Westie White,” it said.

Reverend White apologized to Reverend Brown.  And to Ethel. 

He apologized to the mayor.  And he apologized to the entire congregation.  He told them what Reverend Brown had said.

“He was right.  I have been shortsighted.  I am guilty of not stepping back and seeing the whole picture.  But now, thanks to the godly rebuke of Reverend R. W. Brown, I am going to change.”

Then Reverend White began his sermon, from Psalm 141:5.

“Let a righteous man strike me – it is a kindness…”


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

This is an original short story.  Any similarities to real people or places is purely coincidental.  And according to Google, until now there was no internet record of anyone named Reverend Roosevelt Washington Brown!

© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip 
 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
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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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