Results

Los Angeles Clippers Forward Josh Smith will be taking a pay cut this year. “I do have a family, so it’s going to be a little harder on me this year. But I’m going to push through it.” You would find it difficult too, I am sure, if you had to get by on only $6.9 million this year. It doesn’t matter how…

The entire Thanksgiving weekend used to be a time for families to be together. Then came Black Friday—a day to get good deals for clothing and electronics. Today, many are staying home again, due to the increase of violence. In the Chicago area, in 2013, a police officer shoots a thief at a Kohl’s Department…

The growing popularity of the cell phone self-portrait known as a “selfie,” could be generating business for plastic surgeons. The Oxford dictionary recognized the word in 2013, and a survey of plastic surgeons across the country has found an upsurge in the number of people seeking treatments like Botox,…

Are you addicted to the newest, biggest and best? When Apple released the iPhone 5 in the fall of 2012, iPhone 4 users had to answer the question: upgrade or pass? It appears that the major advancement between the two is a larger screen size and panoramic photographs—not exactly earth-shaking changes.…

The Wall Street Journal calls nagging the marriage killer. In fact, it is much more common than adultery and according to the journal potentially as toxic. Every couple, at some point faces “the interaction in which one person repeatedly makes a request, the other person repeatedly ignores it and both…

After years of pushing economic growth and encouraging their fellow citizens that getting rich is glorious, the Chinese government is changing their tune. Communist Party rulers recently rolled out a new economic slogan, “Be happy.” The Chinese Premiere announced the new measure of progress saying the…

CONTENTMENT The Census Bureau recently reported that nearly 1 in 6 Americans fall below the poverty line, which it establishes at an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four. The actual number is 46.2 million, which the government says would be 69.7 million if not for government programs. A survey…

Some of China’s richest entrepreneurs seem to have everything they could want. One millionaire admitted the economy is booming, his influence is spreading, and his firm is building modern skyscrapers in Beijing. Though things are going well economically, this millionaire says there is only one thing…

How do we share the Biblical teaching of happiness and contentment in the current culture of greed and materialism? One study by Princeton University economists found that while money can buy some happiness, the negative effects, including more responsibility, more pressure to perform, and more stress,…

Ingrid Bergman says, “Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get.” --The Week, February 11, 2011 p. 21 Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell 1 Timothy 6:6-10 (NASB) (6) But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. (7) For we have…

When a commercial product becomes a fad, it seems like every one wants one. It happened this way with the iPad. The tablet computer from Apple was so hot people would do almost anything to get one. A seventeen-year-old Chinese boy wanted one bad enough that he was willing to sell his right kidney in…

Walt Disney’s The Princess and the Frog is a challenge to dig down deep in life and search out what we really need versus our dreams of what we want in life. Tiana grew up in a poor New Orleans neighborhood. Her father instilled in her a dream of one day opening a grand restaurant and jazz club. Tiana…

Benjamin Franklin said, “Who is rich? He that is content. Who is that? Nobody.” --The Week, March 26, 2010 p. 21. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell I suppose Mr. Franklin wasn’t thinking of the Apostle Paul when he wrote that answer to his question. 1 Timothy 6:8-9 (TEV) “So then, if we…

A factory in southern China manufactures iPhones for Apple and PC’s for Dell has experienced a rash of suicides and attempted suicides in the last few months. In searching for an explanation the answer most often given is the poor pay. The company does not pay its workers enough for them to afford the…

A study by Belgian Psychologists have proved, well may have furthered the theory, that money cannot buy happiness. In fact, they say, it may be just the opposite. The study gave evidence that richer people aren’t as capable as poorer ones of savoring small pleasures. The small pleasures were simple things…

Despite uncertainty in the job market, a recent survey found a majority of Americans report they are unhappy with their jobs. Worker dissatisfaction has been on the rise for the last twenty years. The new study, conducted for the Conference Board, found the job satisfaction levels are the lowest they…

CONTENTMENT In the 1940’s the Gallup organization started asking Americans how they approved of the job the President was doing. Since then they have asked about once a week. You would be interested to hear that the approval rating for each President has changed throughout his term or terms. The July…

DISCONTENTMENT In her book, Dancing in the Desert, Marsha Crockett writes, “Sometimes discontentment is a good sign. It acknowledges our incompleteness, our yearning for fulfillment in the emptiness of our souls.” —Dancing in the Desert, Page 22 Illustration by Jim L. Wilson 2 Peter 1:4 NIV “Through…

Survey Results from 12/04/06 Over 500 pastors took last week’s SermonCentral Newsletter survey. Here are the results. Charts wouldn't copy. See My documents, sermons, illustrations