The Prized Treasures

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  “Will the prized treasures of today always be the cheap trifles of the day before? Will rows of our willow-pattern dinner-plates be ranged above the chimneypieces of the great in the years 2000 and odd? Will the white cups with the gold rim and the beautiful gold flower inside (species unknown), that our Sarah Janes now break in sheer light-heartedness of spirit, be carefully mended, and stood upon a bracket, and dusted only by the lady of the house? . . . .   The “sampler” that the eldest daughter did at school will be spoken of as “tapestry of the Victorian era,” and be almost priceless. The blue-and-white mugs of the present-day roadside inn will be hunted up, all cracked and chipped, and sold for their weight in gold, and rich people will use them for claret cups; and travellers from Japan will buy up all the “Presents from Ramsgate,” and “Souvenirs of Margate,” that may have escaped destruction, and take them back to Jedo as ancient English curios.” Jerome K. Jerome, “T...

Loosen the Bow

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According to a Greek legend in ancient Athens, a man noticed the great storyteller Aesop playing childish games with some little boys. He laughed and jeered at Aesop asking him why he was wasting his time in such frivolous activity.

Aesop responded by picking up a bow, loosening its string, and placing it on the ground. Then he said to the critical Athenian, “Now answer the riddle if you can. Tell us what the unstrung bow implies.” The man looked at it for several moments but had no idea what point Aesop was trying to make.

Aesop explained, “If you keep a bow always bent, it will break eventually; but, if you let it go slack, it will be more fit for use when you want it.”

People are also like that. That’s why we all need to take time to rest. Jesus prescribed time off for His wearied disciples after they had returned from a prolonged period of ministry. God set a pattern in the Old Testament for us when He “rested from all His work.” (Genesis 2:3)

Keep the 4th Commandment by setting aside a time to be renewed spiritually and relax physically one day out of seven. You will be at your best for the Lord if you have taken time to loosen the bow.

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