God’s Glory in the Heavens – Psalm 19 NASB 2 Minute Devotional

There are scientists that dedicate their entire lives to the study of the stars. The complexity is so vast that we routinely see news articles about new discoveries that baffle scientists. Some of these scientists that are baffled by the wonders of the heavens hold to a belief that all of these wonders are somehow created by random chance.

I was talking to a friend of mine last week who said that after pondering the wonders of the universe over a number of years, he eventually came to faith in God. Psalm 19 tells us that the heavens speak to us. They tell us of the glory of God.

The picture of the stars in this NASA image shows a beauty of the heavens. If we could magnify our telescopes a million times more we would continue to see the beauty and glory of the work of God’s hands in the sky. May it draw us to God, and faith in his son, Jesus!

I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 67 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes NASB iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.

Will Rogers on Holding Back Relief

Who knows what our economic condition is these days – Depression, recession, economic malaise? Whatever it is, a committee has been formed to investigate it. I’m sure their report will tell us what we already know, and will be issued when it is politically convenient.

Are you as amazed as I am that Rogers saw the same problems in 1933 as we face today? Not only is congress holding back relief, as Rogers says, but they caused the financial crisis to begin with!

Perhaps the relief we need is from politicians that care more about themselves than the country.

The picture is from Rogers’ 1921 silent movie, An Unwilling Hero. He plays Whistling Dick, a hobo who loves everything but work. He travels south to New Orleans for the winter and is befriended by Nadine, the daughter of a plantation owner. Dick finds out about a robbery plan and warns Nadine’s father. Out of gratitude he is offered work on the plantation, which inspires him to leave at his earliest convenience.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers on “War and the Federal Reserve”

Folks, you just gotta love Will Rogers! Here’s a classic quote about war and the Federal Reserve from 1929 that still rings true today.

The Federal Reserve (The Fed)  is responsible for conducting the nation’s monetary policy to help maintain employment, keep prices stable, and keep interest rates relatively low. The poor folks running The Fed have their hands full, with the prices of corn, grits and gas going up, unemployment going up, and who knows what’s going to happen with inflation and interest rates.

The Fed has to react to an administrations that is trying to run the economy by stimulatin’, regulatin’, legislatin’, and bloviatin’. Businesses don’t know where the administration will strike next.

They tried to stimulate the economy with “shovel-ready jobs,” but the president just admitted that they weren’t quite as “shovel-ready as we expected.” The EPA is going bonkers with new regulations to eliminate the threat of “global warming” by shutting down the coal and oil industry. Congress passed  unconstitutional health care legislation which threatens to destroy the best health care system in the world. The bloviator-in-chief keeps proclaiming “recovery” while the vice-bloviator famously proclaimed: “Just because the stimulus was a monumental failure, doesn’t mean it’s not working.”

And what about war, or wars? This gets a bit confusing these days. Depending on how you define “hostilities” we might be in two, three or four wars. Our Nobel-Peace-Prize-Winner-in-Chief wants us to refrain from “torturing” captured enemy terrorists with water-boarding, but putting a bullet in the brain of a Osama bin Laden is ok. What’s a business to do? If you manufacture water-boards, you are going out of business, but if you make bullets you will survive.

Will Rogers is right, again! Businesses are on a wild roller coaster ride, just tryin’ to stay on the tracks. They’re watching The Fed closely and hoping we don’t get into yet another war, or even another “hostility.”

In this image, Will Rogers is holding his son and spinning his lasso at the same time.

The image was taken directly from pictures at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers Daily Quotes iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Give the Gift of Will Rogers

Click on Image to Buy from Amazon

This is a great biography by Ben Yagoda. Follow Will Rogers from obscurity, growing up in Oklahoma, to become one of the most loved and admired men in America.

How could one man be gifted with so much talent and energy? Follow Will as he travels across America and the world. He worked and starred with all the performing legends of his day. He was friends with famous aviators, influential politicians, and the most wealthy people in the world. He met with Presidents. Yet through it all, he never forgot his humble Oklahoma roots and people loved him for it.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. The story of his life will inspire you and you’ll weep as you read of his untimely death in 1935.

There will never be another Will Rogers, but his legacy lives on through his quotes and the work of the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore, OK. How many of us would like to say with Will Rogers: “I never met a man I didn’t like?”

Give the gift of Will Rogers and watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

My Hiding Place – Psalm 119 KJV 2 Minute Devotional

When my children were little, they would come to me for protection and help. “Daddy, he wouldn’t share his crayons, and he hit me!” I would comfort my child by holding them in my arms and try to correct the crayon sharing problem. When all was resolved, they would climb down and go about their business.

Just as my children knew where their “hiding place” was, God provides us with a hiding place where we can go for comfort. Just as the bird in the picture has a safe place among the rocks, God provides us a safe place when we need protection.

As I share these Psalms with you day-by-day, I have noticed that God’s word is always a necessary part of the Psalmist’s message. In this Psalm, in order to enter God’s hiding place, we must hope in his word.

Dear Lord, help us to know your word better, that we may find a hiding place and that we may be upheld according to your word. Amen

I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 119 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes KJV iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.

Will Rogers & “Voters Can’t Remember”

This Will Rogers quote must be true. How else do you explain how legislators get reelected after scandalous behavior or legislating against the will of the people. It’s just astonishing that some of these politicians have any credibility left, but they keep getting elected. It’s as regular and predictable as the milking schedule on a farm.

Strange thing seems to be happening these days however. If the last election is any indication, people do seem to be remembering. People turned out to vote and sent a large number of legislators packing. Several legislators resigned or didn’t run in order to avoid defeat.

I recall that these defeated legislators, along with the current administration passed legislation that was extremely unpopular. Not only that, but people understood that the unpopular legislation was passed through manipulation and trickery, without review and accountability. Anyone remember the Speaker of the House’s famous proclamation that: “We have to pass this bill to find out what is in it.”

Don’t know about you, but I don’t take kindly to being manipulated, tricked or lied to by legislators or the media. I expect something better; something more honest; someone with integrity; someone accountable to the people they serve. People and businesses can’t conduct commerce by lying to each other. We don’t do business with people that lack integrity. So why is politics any different.

There’s a movement underway, where people seem to be remembering more than two months. They are holding politicians accountable. They are looking for some integrity and common sense coming from Washington.

The next election is more than two months away. We’ll see if this Will Rogers quote still holds true.

The image was taken directly from pictures at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers on “Sons of Wild Jackasses”

Will RogersPoliticians calling each other names isn’t anything new, especially during elections. This season the women were hit pretty hard, being called witch and prostitute.

According to Will Rogers, you can sling mud and call names all day long, but you better beware of slandering wild jackasses.

Can you imagine the Senate chamber full of wild jackasses? Braying, kicking, bucking and being stubborn would be the daily routine. Senator Hoof N. Mouth would be hee-hawing for hours about better oats and mule health. Unfortunately, nobody was listening because lobbyists just delivered sweet hay for lunch.

Actually, there’s not much left to imagine – a Congress full of wild jackasses. A lot of them just got sent away, hee-hawing  all the way back to the farm.

Well, perhaps the slandering will stop now, and oat reform will take place. We can only hope.

Image Information: This image is from a Will Rogers’ silent movie called Jubilo, released in 1919. Rogers plays Jubilo, a tramp, who makes himself useful doing odd jobs in a small farming community while he looks for the wife who deserted him while he was off in the war.

The image was taken directly from movie stills at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers

President Reagan, Will Rogers Shared Common Gifts, Careers

President Reagan, Will Rogers Shared Common Gifts, Careers
By Joe Carter

Ronald Reagan was a 24-year-old aspiring actor when Will Rogers was Hollywood’s towering star. While the two icons were never personally acquainted, their lives spiraled similarly.

In 1941, six years following Rogers’ death, an unsigned memorandum at Warner Brother Pictures in California read: “Why not try to test Ronald Reagan for the part of Will Rogers? He is droll homely humorous and an all around good actor.” That memo prefaces the definitive 1993 Ben Yagoda book now sold by the University of Oklahoma Press entitled: “Will Rogers: A Biography.” Yagoda opined: “Ronald Reagan didn’t get to play Will Rogers in the movie biography (Will Rogers Jr., got the part) but who with his “well” ’s and shrugs, his just-folks bonhomie, managed a pretty impressive Rogers impersonation in the White House.”

In 1990, Oklahoma’s Will Rogers Memorial Commission awarded its first “Will Rogers Communicator Award” to the former President. The late Jim Rogers, Will Rogers’ son, presented the plaque designed by Paul Lefebvre of Oklahoma City. During the private exchange in Beverly Hills, Reagan told Jim Rogers: “Will Rogers always was my hero.” I was present and heard the warm exchange. Ronald Reagan’s retirement home was near the sprawling Will Rogers Historical Park with its glamorous polo field at Pacific Palisades, California. Before he was stricken ten years ago by Alzheimer ’s disease, the former President often would casually attend polo matches at the park cheering the horsemen.

Like Will Rogers, Ronald Reagan rode. Both were proud to be called a “cowboy.” There was a quarter century difference in their ages. Will Rogers was born on an Oklahoma ranch in 1879 and Reagan was born in Illinois in 1911. At age 55, Will Rogers was killed in a 1935 air crash in Alaska. Ronald Reagan died at 93.

Intensely interested in politics, both boasted careers in radio, movies and public speaking. Will Rogers became a major newspaper columnist, author and stage actor.
Both men scored in cinema. Reagan debuted in “Love in on the Air” in 1937. Will Rogers, beginning in 1918, starred in 71 features. Neither actor won an Oscar.
Both were actively outspoken in collective bargaining for actors’ wages and working conditions. Rogers was more behind the scenes. Reagan in 1947 was elected president of the Screen Actors Guild.

Reagan was a Democrat who switched parties in 1962. Will Rogers said: “I’m not a member of any organized party, I’m a Democrat.” Will Rogers was playfully nominated by Life Magazine in 1928 as a prank candidate for President of the United States and declared “if elected I’ll resign.” “Another big reason I should be nominated is I am not a Democrat,” Will Rogers wrote. “Another bigger reason why I should be nominated is I am not a Republican. I am just progressive enough to suit the dissatisfied. And lazy enough to be a Stand Patter.”

Ronald Reagan was more earnest in politics. After supporting Eisenhower and Nixon for president as a Democrat, he became a Republican who twice won the governorship of California and the American presidency.

(Note: Joe Carter is a Will Rogers biographer and former director of the Will Rogers Memorial Commission of Claremore, Oklahoma.)

Click for original post: President Reagan, Will Rogers Shared Common Gifts, Careers

Will Rogers

Will Rogers on “Crap Shooters at NYSE”

Will RogersIt was 10 degrees F (-12C) this morning and I had to do some work on my car. After a few minutes it was becoming more and more difficult to do even the simplest manipulation with my fingers. Not only that, it was painful.

Can you imagine how difficult it must be for crap shooters when it’s that cold. Will Rogers noticed that in February of 1934. Those poor crap shooters at the NYSE had to wait until they could warm up their hands and fingers before they could roll the dice and place their bets.

Image Information: This picture is from the entrance to Will Rogers’ Dog Iron Ranch in Oologah, OK. It is a working ranch and features Will Roger’ Oklahoma home and historical artifacts. It is maintained by the Will Rogers Memorial Museum which is just a few miles away in Claremore, OK.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers

Spurgeon on “No Place for Pride” ~ 2 Minute Devotional

As we grow older we are constantly adding to our resume. Employers, degrees, accomplishments, publications begin to add line after line.

For many of us, such things are a source of pride, but how did we get to where we are? The truth is that each of us is blessed with talents and skills that are gifts from God. Each step of the way God protected, directed and blessed our efforts whether we realize it or not.

As Spurgeon makes his point, “The more thou hast, the more thou art in debt to God,” all glory should go to God. If we truly understand this, there is no room for pride. If we ruffle our feathers to look more important, like our aquatic friend in the picture, we take glory due to God for ourselves.

One of the great illustrations of humility in the Bible is found in the story of Daniel. He was established as a young man of great learning and integrity as we enter chapter 2. When Daniel appears before King Nebuchadnezzar to interpret the king’s dream, he gives all credit to God. He says: “There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries…” in verse 28.

Humility doesn’t happen all at once for most of us. It’s a process of growth and faith. The first step is thanking God for the talents and gifts he has given us.

Dear Lord, I want to thank you for what you have given to me, especially the gift of life through Jesus Christ. May I surrender to you day by day the things that make me proud, that I may serve you in true humility, that you may receive all the glory. Amen.

I hope you have been blessed by this quote and the accompanying image taken from the Spurgeon Daily Quotes iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.

Will Rogers on National Defense

Will Rogers quote for today summarized why we need a strong military. Most people can’t explain in in 20 minutes what Rogers expresses in just a few words. Additionally, Rogers’ humor drives the point home.

The debate still rages today over military power. Does cutting back our strength bring peace?

I took this picture at the Will Rogers Ranch in Oolagah, OK. They’ve done a great job restoring the house and furnishing it with period pieces as the picture shows. It’s a wonderful place to visit, right on the lake – very peaceful.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers and “Raiders of the Lost TARP, the GE Story”

Will RogersWhere congressmen used to carry suitcases full of money away from Washington in the past, today it’s boxcars full of money! When “old man interest” starts gnawing away at us, the big boys roll the empty freight cars to the capital for help.

Requirements and intent of a Federal program such as TARP, don’t make much difference if you know your way around and through the bureaucracy. It also helps if you know how to schmooze the White House.

Put together a team of lawyers, and you can find loopholes big enough to drive a freight train through. Of course it takes a little cooperation from brilliant government economists and wise bureaucrats, who know what’s best for their party and country, in that order.

Let’s try to follow this. GE can qualify to participate in the banking bailout. It isn’t a banking company, however it does own two small banks in Utah, so it qualifies. Since it isn’t a bank, however, it isn’t subjected to the Fed’s stress test or rules for limiting risk. Also, they aren’t subject to restrictions such as limits on executive compensation.

I don’t think GE is necessarily an evil corporation. I think they are responding to a Federal Government that is threatening their business with overregulation by bureaucrats and partisan  administration officials that don’t have a clue how to manage an economy. GE may be too big to fail, but the current administration has failed in common sense and integrity.

You might be able to pack a couple of hundred grand into a large suitcase, but GE rolled out of the station with boxcars loaded with the lion’s share of the $340 billion program. Meanwhile, old man interest is still gnawing away.

Here’s the referene: General Electric Major Recipient Of TARP Loans

Image Information: This image is from a Will Rogers’ silent movie called An Unwilling Hero, released in 1921. Rogers plays Whistling Dick, a hobo who loves life and classical music. He loves just about everything except work.

The image was taken directly from movie stills at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.

Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Will Rogers

Will Rogers on Weather & Wall Street

Rogers is right on target as usual with this quote. How many times do we read in the papers that the experts are “surprised” by the latest economic news?

This quote comes from the Will Rogers Daily Quotes iPhone app. Each quote is coupled with an image of Will, and the image information is included after the quote.

The image is from Rogers’ movie Ropin’ Fool. Rogers is twirling his lasso as he talks to the young lady. If you look close you see the lasso is circling both of them.

The movie Ropin’ Fool was produced by Rogers to show is expertise with the lasso. It’s fun to watch. Some of his tricks have never been duplicated, and the movie uses slow motion to allow the viewer to catch the motion of the rope.

I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.

Spurgeon on “Be Content” ~ 2 Minute Devotional

What’s hip, what’s hot, what ain’t I got? If it’s a cool electronic gadget or faster computer, I want it! I used to lust after an iPhone 4, until I got one recently. Now I want an iPad. After that who knows. Just give me the latest thing on the market.

Modern marketing is not built on contentment! The reason is that our fallen nature is prone to envy and greed. It can never be satisfied. We always want more, more, MORE!

When I consider what Christ has done for me, however, I realize there is nothing more to be desired. His work is complete. I can rest, contented in his love. As a result, I should be content with God’s purpose for me and where he has placed me, along with what possessions has blessed me with. If I can love my neighbor, as Christ loves me, there will be no envy.

Charles H. Spurgeon (pictured with this quote), 1834-1892, was the foremost preacher of the 19th century. His many sermons, devotions, and books bring a unique, inspiring, and spiritual significance to biblical truth. What is most surprising is that Spurgeon had no formal theological training. Even so, he became widely recognized for his insight and prowess in biblical teaching.

I hope you have been blessed by this quote and the accompanying image taken from the Spurgeon Daily Quotes iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.