Criticism

When Orel Hershiser was in his first season as a pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he had great talent but had not been able to translate that into success on the field. Early in the 1984 season he was struggling with his control. Finally Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda called the young pitcher into his office for a verbal confrontation that Hershiser later referred to as “The Sermon on the Mound.”

“You will find that, as a rule, those who complain about the way the ball bounces are usually the ones who dropped it.”—Unknown

Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker both had churches in London in the 19th century. On one occasion, Parker commented on the poor condition of children admitted to Spurgeon’s orphanage. It was reported to Spurgeon however, that Parker had criticized the orphanage itself. Spurgeon blasted Parker the next week from the pulpit. The attack was printed in the newspapers and became the talk of the town. People flocked to Parker’s church the next Sunday to hear his rebuttal. “I understand Dr.

One day Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of War, Edwin Stanton, came to him with a wrathful letter written to a Major-General who had accused him of favoritism. Stanton read Lincoln the letter which was full of sharp retorts and the President told him it was a good letter that the general deserved.

While Stanton, much gratified, was folding up the letter and putting it into its envelope, the President asked him, “What are you going to do with it now?”

“Why, send it, of course,” replied Stanton, looking blank.

“Don’t do it,” said Lincoln.

George Whitefield was a famed English evangelist in the 1700s. He led many meetings where hundreds of people come to Christ. His ministry had great affect around England and was instrumental in sparking a revival in the land. Yet for all the good he did, he was not without his critics. He very often received letters of criticism, mockery, or hateful correction. Sometimes he would become discouraged by the letters, but he soon learned that the best response to a critic was openness and honesty. After receiving a letter of personal attack he wrote one simple reply to its sender:

A man came up to Moody once and criticized him for the way he went about winning souls. Moody listened courteously and then asked, “How would you do it?” The man, taken aback, mumbled that he didn’t do it. “Well,” said Moody, “I prefer the way I do it to the way you don’t do it.”

Source: Unknown

Submitted by the homiletics class of West Coast Baptist College

During the Civil War someone reported to Abraham Lincoln that Edwin Stanton, one of the President’s cabinet members, had referred to him as a fool. Mr. Lincoln replied, “Well, I must check into that, for I have found that he is usually correct in his judgments.”

Source: My Favorite Illustrations, H. H. Hobbs

Submitted by the homiletics class of West Coast Baptist College

When an army officer asked President Lincoln if he could write an article defending the administration against attacks that were being made by the Committee on the Conduct of the War Lincoln replied: “If I were to try to read, much less answer, all the attacks made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how ­—the very best I can, and I mean to keep doing so until the end.

In a Peanuts cartoon, Linus is curled up in a chair, reading a book, while Lucy stands behind him with a funny look on her face. Lucy then says, “It’s very strange. It happens just by looking at you.”

“What happens?” Linus asks.

Lucy calmly answers, “I can feel a criticism coming on.”

Source: Unknown

Submitted by Dr. Jeff Redlin

Throughout his administration, Abraham Lincoln was a president under fire, especially during the scarring years of the Civil War. And though he knew he would make errors of office, he resolved never to compromise his integrity. So strong was this resolve that he once said, “I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me.”

The average pastor leaves a church over eight critics. When the pastor leaves, the problems stay. When the pastor stays, the problems leave.

Source: Unknown

Thousands of Tasmanian Devils have died from a rare type of cancer Devil Facial Tumor Disease. Scientists discovered that the cancer began in the mouth of a single devil and spread through the bites of that devil. Tasmanian Devils bite each other around the mouth very frequently, and this cancer spread through those bites. Over the course of several years, over forty percent of the Tasmanian Devil population has died because of this cancer.

Colonel George Washington Goethals was responsible for the completion of the Panama Canal. The climate and geography of the region were two large obstacles to completing the canal. But his biggest challenge was the growing criticism back home  by those who said he would never finish the project. At one point a colleague asked him if he was going to reply to his critics.

“In time,” answered Goethals.

“When?”

“When the canal is finished.”

The oyster takes a grain of sand and turns it into a beautiful pearl. Many people are just the opposite—they take pearls and turn them into grains of sand.

Submitted by the homiletics class of West Coast Baptist College

“Murmuring is an outward manifestation of an inward lawlessness and rebellion against a holy God.”—Unknown

“Complaining is like bad breath, you notice it when it comes out of somebody else's mouth, but not your own.”—Will Bowen

Source: The Baptist Standard

It's time to plant our gardens. As you plant, may I suggest the following rules for your garden planting:

Plant three rows of squash: 1. Squash gossip; 2. Squash criticism; 3. Squash indifference

Plant three rows of peas: 1. Purity; 2. Patience; 3. Perseverance

Plant six rows of lettuce: 1. Let us be unselfish and loyal; 2. Let us be faithful to duty; 3. Let us search the scriptures; 4. Let us not be weary in well-doing; 5. Let us be obedient in all things; 6. Let us love one another