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Presumption
Pretzel Stand
It seems there was a pretzel stand out front of an office building in New York. One day, a man came out of the building, plunked down a quarter, and then went on his way without taking a pretzel. This happened every day for three weeks. Finally, the old lady running the stand spoke up: “Sir, excuse me. May I have a word with you?
The fellow said: “I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to ask me why I give you a quarter every day and don’t take a pretzel.”
And the woman said, “Not at all. I just want to tell you that the price is now 35 cents.”
From a speech by William Schreyer, chairman of Merrill Lynch, Speaker’s Idea File, p. 13
Civil War
During the Battle of the Wilderness in the Civil War, Union general John Sedgwick was inspecting his troops. At one point he came to a parapet, over which he gazed out in the direction of the enemy. His officers suggested that this was unwise and perhaps he ought to duck while passing the parapet. “Nonsense,” snapped the general. “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this dist—.”
A moment later Sedgwick fell to the ground, fatally wounded.
Today in the Word, August 30, 1993
Resource
- C. Swindoll, Growing Strong, p. 342—two preachers died after drinking poison
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Titanic
In 1912 the “unsinkable” Titanic was launched in Liverpool, England. So haughty was the hoopla surrounding the Titanic’s safety and structural integrity that it caused great anxiety in the heart of one God-fearing woman, whose family was unexpectedly transferred onto the gigantic liner for its maiden voyage. The woman was the mother of seven-year-old Eva Hart, who recalls that her family was saved from tragedy because of Mrs. Hart’s spiritual convictions. Throughout the voyage, Mrs. Hart stayed awake at night waiting for disaster to strike, and thus was able to move her family to an upper deck almost immediately after the ship collided with an unseen iceberg. Because of her vigilance, the family did not join the 1,500 others who died that night.
After reading the shipbuilders’ claims, Mrs. Hart believed—and so stated—”This is flying in the face of God!”
Today in the Word, July, 1989, p. 8
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