Thought for Today

  1788: Maryland votes to cede 10 square miles for the District of Columbia 1815: "Emma" by Jane Austen published 1823: Clement Moore publishes "A Visit from St. Nicholas" 1888: Vincent Van Gough cuts off his ear 1913: President Wilson signs the Federal Reserve Act 1946: University of Tennessee refuses to play Duquesne in basketball when Duquesne suggests it might play a black athlete 1947: Transistor invented at Bell Labs 1954: First Human kidney transplant 1968: Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders are first men to circle the moon 1972: Immaculate Reception, Bradshaw  to Franco Harris by way of either the Raiders safety, Jack Tatum, or the Steelers receiver, John Fuqua Born: Joseph Smith, Paul Hornung, Susan Lucci, Bill Roidgers [marathon], Jim Harbaugh Died: John Cotton [father of New England Congregationalist], Anthony Fokker, Jack Webb, Victor Borge, Oscar Peterson [jazz], Mikhail Kalashnikov [AK-47] Thought: Reading 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 today. I am alway...

 1872: Phileas Fogg completes his trip in Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days." 1891: First basketball game under the Naismith rules played in Springfield MA 1898: The Curie's discover radium 1929: First group hospital insurance plan offered--Dallas TX 1937: "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" premiers 1959: Tom Landry becomes coach of the Cowboys 1970: Supreme Court lowers voting age in federal elections to 18 1988: Pan Am 103 destroyed over Lockerbie Scotland killing 258 1989: VP Dan Quayle sends Christmas cards with misspelling 1995: Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control Born: Thomas Becket, Roger Williams, Benjamin Disraeli, Walter Hagen, Josh Gibson, Paul Winchell, Joe Paterno, Phil Donohue, Jane Fonda, Frank Zappa, Samuel L Jackson, Chris Evert, Ray Romano, Florence Griffith Joyner, Kiefer Sutherland, Karrie Webb,  Died: John Newton ["Amazing Grace"], James Parkinson, F Scott Fitzgerald, George Patton, Dick Enberg Thou...

 1522: Suleiman the Magnificent accepts the surrender of the Knights of Rhodes who later become the Knights of Malta 1803: Formal transfer of the Louisiana Purchase territory to the U.S. 1812: "Grimm's Fairy Tales" published 1820: Missouri imposes a "bachelor's tax" on unmarried men between 21-50 1860: South Carolina votes to secede 1917: Lenin forms the Checka, forerunner to the KGB 1946: "It's a Wonderful Life" premiers 1957: Elvis receives his draft notice 1960: Viet Cong officially form in South Viet Nam Born: Harvey Firestone, Jonah Hill,  Died: Sacagawea, John Steinbeck, Carl Sagan Thought:  Yesterday we were looking at our role as ambassadors for Christ, carrying a message of reconciliation to the world. The first 10 verses of 2 Corinthians 6 continues this thought. Here is what I am receiving today: I am working with Jesus to carry the message of reconciliation. [6:1] As Blackaby tells us, see where God is working and join Him there. I ...

 1686: Robinson Crusoe leaves his island after 28 years according to the book 1732: Ben Franklin begins publishing "Poor Richard's Almanac" 1776: Thomas Paine publishes "American Crisis" beginning with the line, "These are the times that try men's souls." 1843: Charles Dickens publishes "A Christmas Carol" 1910: Rayon first commercially produced 1942: Robert Stroud transferred to Alcatraz--The Birdman of Alcatraz 1955: Carl Perkins records "Blue Suede Shoes." 1998: House votes to impeach Bill Clinton Born: Leonid Brezhnev, W. A. Criswell, Edith Piaf, Little Jimmy Dickens, Jeanne Kirkpatrick, Cicely Tyson, Al Kaline, Janie Fricke, Reggie White, Warren Sapp, Jake Gyllenhaal Died: Emily Bronte, Desmond Llewelyn [Q on the Bond movies], Hope Lange, Robert Bork, Katharina Luther [wife of Martin Luther] Thought: Reading 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 this morning. As you read chapter 5, notice the number of times Paul says "therefore....

 1719: Thomas Fleet publishes "Mother Goose's Melodies for Children" 1892: "The Nutcracker Suite" premiers 1916: Battle of Verdun ends with 1 million casualties 1956: Israel's flag raised on Mount Sinai 1961: Wilma Rudolph named athlete of the year for the second time 2011: Last US troops leave Iraq 2019: House votes to impeach Donald Trump Born: Joseph Stalin, Ty Cobb, Willy Brandt, Ray Meyer [UT basketball], Betty Grable, Ossie Davis, Jacques Pepin, Keith Richards, Steven Spielberg, Ray Liotta, Brad Pitt, Christina Aguilera Died: Bobby Jones, Mark Goodson, Chris Farley, Joseph Barbera, Zsa Zsa Gabor Thought: Yesterday we read about how our outer man is decaying, but the inner man is being renewed. That we carry the treasure of Christ in earthen vessels that are subject to affliction, persecution, and even death. Today read with me 2 Corinthians 5:1-9. What Paul wrote in chapter 4 may be a little discouraging. Our earthly tent, our earthen vessel is under a...

  1538: Pope Paul II excommunicates Henry VIII 1777: France recognizes the American colonies as independent 1791: First one-way street--NYC 1798: First impeachment trial of a Senator--William Blount of Tennessee 1862: General Grant issues an order expelling Jews from Tennessee 1900: Prize of 100,000 francs offered for communication with extraterrestrials, but communication with Martians excluded as too easy 1903: Wright Brothers first successful flight of motorized plane 1947: Patent for the holograph issued 1989: "The Simpsons" premiers Born: Arthur Fiedler, Erskine Caldwell, William Saffire, George Lindsey, Ernie Hudson, Bill Pullman, Michele Tafoya Died: Simon Bolivar, William Thompson [Kelvin scale], Dana Andrews, Otto Graham, Sammy Baugh, Penny Marshall John Rippon died on this day in 1836. At age 20 and being a Christian for only 4 years, he was called as pastor of Carter Lane Baptist Church in London, later renamed the Metropolitan Tabernacle when Spurgeon was pastor. ...

 1631: Mt. Vesuvius erupts killing about 3000 1773: Boston Tea Party 1811: New Madrid Earthquake 1897: African American delegates gather at Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington DC to organize the Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention--a work that continues today to evangelize Africa for Christ. 1908: First credit union in the US formed 1930: Bobby Jones wins Sullivan Award as the best amateur athlete 1946: Fashion House of Christian Dior founded 1951: "Dragnet" premiers in black and white 1953: First White House press conference 1972: Dolphins complete undefeated regular season--14-0 Born: Catherine of Argon, George Whitfield, Beethoven, Jane Austen, Noel Coward, Margaret Meade, Arthur C Clarke, Frank Deford, Liv Ullmann, Don Meyer [Lipscomb], Yosemite Sam, Refrigerator Perry,  Died: Wilhelm Grimm, Somerset Maugham, Colonel Sanders, Lee Van Cleef, Dan Fogelberg, Ray Price,  Thought: Reading 2 Corinthians 3:2-3 this morning. These verses both encourage and challenge me. Jus...