Respect Works Too

It is said that there is no “me” in team. I think there is plenty of room for “me’s” on any team, as long as one knows that their particular skill, great or small, ought to be refined to its fullest for the success of the team. In recent years I have simply disregarded most professional sports for several reasons, but have remained faithful to my NASCAR and the “good guys” San Antonio SPURS, where respect for their profession, fans and one-another remains high. Not to jinx them, but I’m glad to see the “boys” are back in town. The Dallas Cowboys are winning, but what I see is respect once again. Dress shirt and ties (bow tie) when being interviewed, America’s Team, proud and working together.

Life before the computer: *An application was for employment *A program was a TV show *A cursor used profanity *A keyboard was a piano! *Memory was something that you lost with age *A CD was a bank account! *And if you had a broken disk; It took surgery to fix it! *Compress was something you did to garbage; Not something you did to a file. *And if you unzipped anything in public, You’d be in jail for awhile! *Log on was adding wood to a fire *Hard drive was a long trip on the road  *A mouse pad was where a mouse lived *And a backup happened to your commode! *Cut, you did with a pocket knife *Paste, you did with glue *A web was a spider’s home *And a virus was the flu!  *I guess I’ll stick to my pad and paper; And the memory in my head. *I hear nobody’s been killed in a computer crash; But when it happens they wish they were dead! I and millions of other baby boomers, and their parents, had to roll up our sleeves at the onset of the computer age with an industrious attitude of changing our lives and moving the country forward. We worked together to learn and be more productive. Respect America, again!

[Ecclesiastes 9:10] Solomon, the teacher, wrote: “Whatever you hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.” An industrious person is attentive and active. An industrious person is committed and conscientious. An industrious person is dedicated and diligent. An industrious person is focused and faithful. An industrious person is hardworking and helpful. An industrious person is studious and steady. A Christian is an industrious person. Paul exhorted, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord” (Romans 12:11). He further exhorted, “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as  we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody” (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12). Being industrious translates down to two things: heart and effort! Paul exhorted, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24). We serve with all our heart because we are serving Christ. We serve with effort because in this life only we have that opportunity. Johannes Sebastian Bach, the great German composer and musician said, “I am obligated to be industrious. Whoever is equally industrious will succeed equally well.” Is that not true of Christians? Are we not obligated to be industrious? Can we as the servants of Christ be less? Solomon wrote, “Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men” (Proverbs 22:29). I want to stand before “the King” respectably.