THE WORLD NEEDS MEN (author unknown)

I bought this poster in a Christian bookstore way back June 19, 1992, I want to share this with you all.

...Who cannot be bought;

...Whose word is their bond;

...Who put character above wealth;

...Who possess opinions and will;

...Who are larger than their vocations;

...Who do not hesitate to take chances;

...Who will not lose their individuality in a crowd;

...Who will be as honest in small things as in great things;

...Who will make no compromise with wrong;

...Who will not say they do it: "Because everybody else does it;

...Who are true to their friends in adversity as well as in prosperity;

...Who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning, and hardheadedness are the best qualities for winning success;

...Who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth when it is unpopular, who can say "no" with emphasis, although all the rest of the world says "yes".

...Whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires.

THE BUM (A touching story about needing and giving help)

Everyone respects and helps the millionaire, the famous, the boss, those with beauty and brains.What about the bum on the street?

This is a real story. It happened to the writer of MountainWings.com. Let us read his story:

I was parked in front of the church cleaning out my Jeep. I was waiting on someone. Coming my way from across the street was what society would consider a bum. From the looks of him, he had no car, no home, no clean clothes, and no money.

There are times when you feel generous but there are other times that you just don't want to be bothered. This was one of those "don't want to be bothered times." "I hope he doesn't ask me for any money," I thought. He didn't. He came and sat on the wall in front of the bus stop to wait on the bus.

After a few minutes he spoke. "That's a very pretty Jeep," he said. He was ragged but he had an air of dignity around him. His scraggly blond beard keep more than his face warm. I said, "thanks," and continued cleaning out the Jeep.

He sat there quietly as I worked. The expected plea for money never came. As the silence between us widened something inside said, "ask him if he needs any help." I was sure that he would say "yes" but I held true to the inner voice.

"Do you need any help?" I asked. He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall never forget.

We often look for wisdom in great men and women. We expect it from those of higher learning and accomplishments. I expected nothing but an outstretched grimy hand. He spoke the three words that shook me.

"Don't we all?" he said. I was feeling high and mighty, successful and important, above a bum in the street, until those three words hit me like a twelve gauge shotgun.

Don't we all? I needed help. Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep, but I needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus fare, but enough to take a cab anywhere in the city and get food and shelter for the day.

Those three little words still ring true. No matter how much you have, no matter how much you have accomplished, you need help too. No matter how little you have, no matter how loaded you are with problems, even without money or a place to sleep, you can give help. Even if it's just a compliment, you can give that.

You never know when you may see someone who appears to have it all. They are waiting on you to give them what they don't have. A different perspective on life, a glimpse at something beautiful, a respite from daily chaos, that only you through a torn world can see.

Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the streets.

Maybe he was more than that.

Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and wise, to minister to a soul too comfortable in themselves. Maybe God looked down, called an Angel, dressed him like a bum, then said, "go minister to that man cleaning the Jeep, that man needs help."

Don't we all?

Holy Mass

My first official activity for January 1, was to served in our 7:30 am Mass here at our parish church. For years, this has been my regular activity. For us Catholics January first (1) being the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God is also a holiday of obligation.

It is very good to start our first day of the year with our presence at Holy Mass because this is our highest form of worship to God. Aside from that, nothing can compensate with our presence at Mass. Without us knowing it, we derive a lot of blessings from it. Based on the history of the church a lot has been blessed with their regular attendance at Mass.

Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, said, "If you don't get anything out of Mass, it's because you don't bring the right expectations to it.” The Mass is not entertainment, he said. It is worship of the God who made us and saves us. It is an opportunity to praise God and thank Him for all that He has done for us.

Bishop Sheen further said: “If we have a correct understanding of Mass, it will become more meaningful for us. We will want to go to Mass. We will understand why the Mass is God's precious gift to us, and we wouldn't think of refusing that gift.

My regular attendance at Mass has enormously changed me; why not give it a try?