Bible Readings for January 9, 2020

Today, our passages are Genesis 20:1–22:24; Matthew 7:15-29; Psalm 9:1-12; and Proverbs 2:16-22. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. If you find these readings helpful, please consider sending an offering directly to Cove Presbyterian Church, 3404 Main Street, Weirton, West Virginia or through PayPal by using the link below.

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Genesis 20:1-22:24 (The Message)

Genesis 20

 ^1-2 Abraham traveled from there south to the Negev and settled down between Kadesh and Shur. While he was camping in Gerar, Abraham said of his wife Sarah, "She's my sister." ^2-3 So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her. But God came to Abimelech in a dream that night and told him, "You're as good as dead—that woman you took, she's a married woman."
 ^4-5 Now Abimelech had not yet slept with her, hadn't so much as touched her. He said, "Master, would you kill an innocent man? Didn't he tell me, 'She's my sister'? And didn't she herself say, 'He's my brother'? I had no idea I was doing anything wrong when I did this."
 ^6-7 God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know your intentions were pure, that's why I kept you from sinning against me; I was the one who kept you from going to bed with her. So now give the man's wife back to him. He's a prophet and will pray for you—pray for your life. If you don't give her back, know that it's certain death both for you and everyone in your family."
 ^8-9 Abimelech was up first thing in the morning. He called all his house servants together and told them the whole story. They were shocked. Then Abimelech called in Abraham and said, "What have you done to us? What have I ever done to you that you would bring on me and my kingdom this huge offense? What you've done to me ought never to have been done."
 ¹⁰ Abimelech went on to Abraham, "Whatever were you thinking of when you did this thing?"
 ^11-13 Abraham said, "I just assumed that there was no fear of God in this place and that they'd kill me to get my wife. Besides, the truth is that she is my half sister; she's my father's daughter but not my mother's. When God sent me out as a wanderer from my father's home, I told her, 'Do me a favor; wherever we go, tell people that I'm your brother.'"
 ^14-15 Then Abimelech gave Sarah back to Abraham, and along with her sent sheep and cattle and servants, both male and female. He said, "My land is open to you; live wherever you wish."
 ¹⁶ And to Sarah he said, "I've given your brother a thousand pieces of silver—that clears you of even a shadow of suspicion before the eyes of the world. You're vindicated."
 ^17-18 Then Abraham prayed to God and God healed Abimelech, his wife and his maidservants, and they started having babies again. For God had shut down every womb in Abimelech's household on account of Sarah, Abraham's wife.

Genesis 21

 ^1-4God visited Sarah exactly as he said he would; God did to Sarah what he promised: Sarah became pregnant and gave Abraham a son in his old age, and at the very time God had set. Abraham named him Isaac. When his son was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded. ^5-6 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born.
   Sarah said,

      God has blessed me with laughter
      and all who get the news will laugh with me!
 ⁷ She also said,

      Whoever would have suggested to Abraham
      that Sarah would one day nurse a baby!
       Yet here I am! I've given the old man a son!
 ⁸ The baby grew and was weaned. Abraham threw a big party on the day Isaac was weaned.
 ^9-10 One day Sarah saw the son that Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham, poking fun at her son Isaac. She told Abraham, "Get rid of this slave woman and her son. No child of this slave is going to share inheritance with my son Isaac!"
 ^11-13 The matter gave great pain to Abraham—after all, Ishmael was his son. But God spoke to Abraham, "Don't feel badly about the boy and your maid. Do whatever Sarah tells you. Your descendants will come through Isaac. Regarding your maid's son, be assured that I'll also develop a great nation from him—he's your son, too."
 ^14-16 Abraham got up early the next morning, got some food together and a canteen of water for Hagar, put them on her back and sent her away with the child. She wandered off into the desert of Beersheba. When the water was gone, she left the child under a shrub and went off, fifty yards or so. She said, "I can't watch my son die." As she sat, she broke into sobs.
 ^17-18 Meanwhile, God heard the boy crying. The angel of God called from Heaven to Hagar, "What's wrong, Hagar? Don't be afraid. God has heard the boy and knows the fix he's in. Up now; go get the boy. Hold him tight. I'm going to make of him a great nation."
 ¹⁹ Just then God opened her eyes. She looked. She saw a well of water. She went to it and filled her canteen and gave the boy a long, cool drink.
 ^20-21 God was on the boy's side as he grew up. He lived out in the desert and became a skilled archer. He lived in the Paran wilderness. And his mother got him a wife from Egypt.
 ^22-23 At about that same time, Abimelech and the captain of his troops, Phicol, spoke to Abraham: "No matter what you do, God is on your side. So swear to me that you won't do anything underhanded to me or any of my family. For as long as you live here, swear that you'll treat me and my land as well as I've treated you."
 ²⁴ Abraham said, "I swear it."
 ^25-26 At the same time, Abraham confronted Abimelech over the matter of a well of water that Abimelech's servants had taken. Abimelech said, "I have no idea who did this; you never told me about it; this is the first I've heard of it."
 ^27-28 So the two of them made a covenant. Abraham took sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech. Abraham set aside seven sheep from his flock.
 ²⁹ Abimelech said, "What does this mean? These seven sheep you've set aside."
 ³⁰ Abraham said, "It means that when you accept these seven sheep, you take it as proof that I dug this well, that it's my well."
 ^31-32 That's how the place got named Beersheba (the Oath-Well), because the two of them swore a covenant oath there. After they had made the covenant at Beersheba, Abimelech and his commander, Phicol, left and went back to Philistine territory.
 ^33-34 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and worshiped God there, praying to the Eternal God. Abraham lived in Philistine country for a long time.

Genesis 22

 ¹ After all this, God tested Abraham. God said, "Abraham!"
"Yes?" answered Abraham. "I'm listening." ² He said, "Take your dear son Isaac whom you love and go to the land of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I'll point out to you." ^3-5 Abraham got up early in the morning and saddled his donkey. He took two of his young servants and his son Isaac. He had split wood for the burnt offering. He set out for the place God had directed him. On the third day he looked up and saw the place in the distance. Abraham told his two young servants, "Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I are going over there to worship; then we'll come back to you."
 ⁶ Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and gave it to Isaac his son to carry. He carried the flint and the knife. The two of them went off together.
 ⁷ Isaac said to Abraham his father, "Father?"
   "Yes, my son."
   "We have flint and wood, but where's the sheep for the burnt offering?"
 ⁸ Abraham said, "Son, God will see to it that there's a sheep for the burnt offering." And they kept on walking together.
 ^9-10 They arrived at the place to which God had directed him. Abraham built an altar. He laid out the wood. Then he tied up Isaac and laid him on the wood. Abraham reached out and took the knife to kill his son.
 ¹¹ Just then an angel of God called to him out of Heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!"
   "Yes, I'm listening."
 ¹² "Don't lay a hand on that boy! Don't touch him! Now I know how fearlessly you fear God; you didn't hesitate to place your son, your dear son, on the altar for me."
 ¹³ Abraham looked up. He saw a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. Abraham took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
 ¹⁴ Abraham named that place God-Yireh (God-Sees-to-It). That's where we get the saying, "On the mountain of God, he sees to it."
 ^15-18 The angel of God spoke from Heaven a second time to Abraham: "I swear—God's sure word!—because you have gone through with this, and have not refused to give me your son, your dear, dear son, I'll bless you—oh, how I'll bless you! And I'll make sure that your children flourish—like stars in the sky! like sand on the beaches! And your descendants will defeat their enemies. All nations on Earth will find themselves blessed through your descendants because you obeyed me."
 ¹⁹ Then Abraham went back to his young servants. They got things together and returned to Beersheba. Abraham settled down in Beersheba.

^20-23 After all this, Abraham got the news: "Your brother Nahor is a father! Milcah has given him children: Uz, his firstborn, his brother Buz, Kemuel (he was the father of Aram), Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel." (Bethuel was the father of Rebekah.) Milcah gave these eight sons to Nahor, Abraham's brother.
 ²⁴ His concubine, Reumah, gave him four more children: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.

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Matthew 7:15-29 (The Message)

 ^15-20"Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don't be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.

 ^21-23"Knowing the correct password—saying 'Master, Master,' for instance— isn't going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, 'Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.' And do you know what I am going to say? 'You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don't impress me one bit. You're out of here.'

 ^24-25"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.

 ^26-27"But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards."

 ^28-29When Jesus concluded his address, the crowd burst into applause. They had never heard teaching like this. It was apparent that he was living everything he was saying—quite a contrast to their religion teachers! This was the best teaching they had ever heard.

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Psalm 9:1-12 (The Message)

Psalm 9

A David Psalm

 ^1-2 I'm thanking you, God, from a full heart, I'm writing the book on your wonders.
   I'm whistling, laughing, and jumping for joy;
      I'm singing your song, High God.

 ^3-4 The day my enemies turned tail and ran,
      they stumbled on you and fell on their faces.
   You took over and set everything right;
      when I needed you, you were there, taking charge.

 ^5-6 You blow the whistle on godless nations;
      you throw dirty players out of the game,
      wipe their names right off the roster.
   Enemies disappear from the sidelines,
      their reputation trashed,
      their names erased from the halls of fame.

 ^7-8 God holds the high center,
      he sees and sets the world's mess right.
   He decides what is right for us earthlings,
      gives people their just deserts.

 ^9-10 God's a safe-house for the battered,
      a sanctuary during bad times.
   The moment you arrive, you relax;
      you're never sorry you knocked.

 ^11-12 Sing your songs to Zion-dwelling God,
      tell his stories to everyone you meet:
   How he tracks down killers
      yet keeps his eye on us,
      registers every whimper and moan. 

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Proverbs 2:16-22 (The Message)

 ^16-19 Wise friends will rescue you from the Temptress—
   that smooth-talking Seductress
Who's faithless to the husband she married years ago,
   never gave a second thought to her promises before God.
Her whole way of life is doomed;
   every step she takes brings her closer to hell.
No one who joins her company ever comes back,
   ever sets foot on the path to real living.

 ^20-22 So—join the company of good men and women,
   keep your feet on the tried-and-true paths.
It's the men who walk straight who will settle this land,
   the women with integrity who will last here.
The corrupt will lose their lives;
   the dishonest will be gone for good.

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Verse of  the Day

“[Treasures in Heaven][(Luke 12.33,34)]Don't store up treasures on earth! Moths and rust can destroy them, and thieves can break in and steal them. Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them. Your heart will always be where your treasure is.” - Matthew 6:19-21

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

The 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until 1974, Richard M. Nixon wrote, “Defeat doesn't finish a man, quit does. A man is not finished when he's defeated. He's finished when he quits.”

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A Joke for Today

A man lay sprawled across three entire seats in a theater. When the usher came by and noticed this, he whispered to the man, "Sorry, sir, but you're only allowed one seat." The man groaned but didn't budge. The usher became impatient.

"Sir," the usher said, "if you don't get up from there I'm going to have to call the manager."

Again, the man just groaned, which infuriated the usher who turned and marched briskly back up the aisle in search of his manager. In a few moments, both the usher and the manager returned and stood over the man. Together the two of them tried repeatedly to move him, but with no success. Finally, they summoned the police.

The cop surveyed the situation briefly then asked, "All right buddy, what's your name?" "Sam," the man moaned. "Where ya from, Sam?" the cop asked.

And with pain in his voice, Sam replied, "The balcony."

Bible Readings for December 12, 2013

Today our passages are Amos 7:1–9:15; Revelation 3:7-22; Psalm 131:1-3; and Proverbs 29:23. The readings are the Contemporary English Version.

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Amos 7-9:15 (Contemporary English Version)

Amos 7

A Vision of Locusts

 ¹The LORD God showed me that he is going to send locusts ^[a] to attack your crops. It will happen after the king has already been given his share of the grain and before the rest of the grain has been harvested. ^[b] ²In my vision the locusts ate every crop in the land, and I said to the LORD, "Forgive me for asking, but how can the nation survive? It's so weak." ³Then the LORD felt sorry and answered, "I won't let it be destroyed."    

A Vision of Fire

 ⁴The LORD showed me that he is going to send a ball of fire to burn up everything on earth, including the ocean. ⁵Then I said, "Won't you please stop? How can our weak nation survive?"     ⁶Again the LORD felt sorry and answered, "I won't let it be destroyed."
   

A Vision of a Measuring Line

 ⁷The LORD showed me a vision of himself standing beside a wall and holding a string with a weight tied to the end of it. The string and weight had been used to measure the straightness of the wall. ⁸Then he asked, "Amos, what do you see?"    "A measuring line," I answered.
   The LORD said, "I'm using this measuring line to show that my people Israel don't measure up, and I won't forgive them any more. ⁹Their sacred places will be destroyed, and I will send war against the nation of King Jeroboam." ^[c]

Amos and Amaziah

 ¹⁰Amaziah the priest at Bethel sent this message to King Jeroboam of Israel, "Amos is plotting against you in the very heart of Israel. Our nation cannot put up with his message for very long. ¹¹Here is what he is saying:    `Jeroboam will be put to death,
   and the people will be taken
   to a foreign country.' "
    ¹²Then Amaziah told me, "Amos, take your visions and get out! Go back to Judah and earn your living there as a prophet. ¹³Don't do any more preaching at Bethel. The king worships here at our national temple."
    ¹⁴I answered:
   I'm not a prophet! And I wasn't trained to be a prophet. I am a shepherd, and I take care of fig trees. ¹⁵But the LORD told me to leave my herds and preach to the people of Israel. ¹⁶And here you are, telling me not to preach! ¹⁷Now, listen to what the LORD says about you:
   Your wife will become
   a prostitute in the city,
   your sons and daughters
   will be killed in war,
   and your land will be divided
   among others.
   You will die in a country
   of foreigners,
   and the people of Israel
   will be dragged
   from their homeland.
   

Amos 8

A Basket of Fruit

 ¹The LORD God showed me a basket of ripe fruit ²and asked, "Amos, what do you see?"    "A basket of ripe fruit," I replied.
   Then he said,
   "This is the end ^[d] for my people Israel.
   I won't forgive them again.
    ³Instead of singing
   in the temple,
   they will cry and weep.
   Dead bodies will be everywhere.
   So keep silent!
   I, the LORD, have spoken!"
   
   

Israel Is Doomed

The LORD said:

 ⁴You people crush those in need    and wipe out the poor.
    ⁵You say to yourselves,
   "How much longer before the end
   of the New Moon Festival?
   When will the Sabbath ^[e] be over? Our wheat is ready,
   and we want to sell it now.
   We can't wait to cheat
   and charge high prices
   for the grain we sell.
   We will use dishonest scales
    ⁶and mix dust in the grain.
   Those who are needy and poor
   don't have any money.
   We will make them our slaves
   for the price
   of a pair of sandals."
    ⁷I, the LORD, won't forget
   any of this,
   though you take great pride
   in your ancestor Jacob. ^[f] ⁸Your country will tremble,
   and you will mourn.
   It will be like the Nile River
   that rises and overflows,
   then sinks back down.
    ⁹On that day, I, the LORD God,
   will make the sun
   go down at noon,
   and I will turn daylight
   into darkness.
    ¹⁰Your festivals and joyful singing
   will turn into sorrow.
   You will wear sackcloth ^[g] and shave your heads,
   as you would at the death
   of your only son.
   It will be a horrible day.
    ¹¹I, the LORD, also promise you
   a terrible shortage,
   but not of food and water.
   You will hunger and thirst
   to hear my message.
    ¹²You will search everywhere--
   from north to south,
   from east to west.
   You will go all over the earth,
   seeking a message
   from me, the LORD.
   But you won't find one.
    ¹³Your beautiful young women
   and your young men
   will faint from thirst.
    ¹⁴You made promises
   in the name of Ashimah,
   the goddess of Samaria.
   And you made vows in my name
   at the shrines
   of Dan and Beersheba. ^[h] But you will fall
   and never get up.
   

Amos 9

Judgment on Israel

 ¹I saw a vision of the LORD    standing by the temple altar, ^[i] and he said,
   "Shake the columns
   until the tops fall loose,
   and the doorposts crumble.
   Then make the pieces fall
   on the people below.
   I will take a sword and kill
   anyone who escapes.
    ²"If they dig deep into the earth
   or climb to the sky,
   I'll reach out and get them.
    ³If they escape to the peaks
   of Mount Carmel,
   I'll search and find them.
   And if they hide from me
   at the bottom of the ocean,
   I'll command a sea monster
   to bite them.
    ⁴I'll send a sword to kill them,
   wherever their enemies
   drag them off as captives.
   I'm determined to hurt them,
   not to help them."
   

His Name Is the LORD

 ⁵When the LORD God All-Powerful    touches the earth,
   it melts,
   and its people mourn.
   God makes the earth rise
   and then fall,
   just like the Nile River.
    ⁶He built his palace in the heavens
   and let its foundations
   rest on the earth. ^[j] He scoops up the ocean
   and empties it on the earth.
   His name is the LORD.
   

The LORD Is God

 ⁷Israel, I am the LORD God,    and the Ethiopians ^[k] are no less important to me
   than you are.
   I brought you out of Egypt,
   but I also brought
   the Philistines from Crete ^[l] and the Arameans from Kir. ^[m] ⁸My eyes have seen
   what a sinful nation you are,
   and I'll wipe you out.
   But I will leave a few
   of Jacob's descendants.
   I, the LORD, have spoken!
    ⁹At my command, all of you
   will be sifted like grain.
   Israelites who remain faithful
   will be scattered
   among the nations.
   And the others will be trapped
   like trash in a sifter.
    ¹⁰Some of you are evil,
   and you deny
   that you will ever get caught.
   But you will be killed.
   

The LORD's Promise to Israel

 ¹¹In the future, I will rebuild    David's fallen kingdom.
   I will build it from its ruins
   and set it up again,
   just as it used to be.
    ¹²Then you will capture Edom
   and the other nations
   that are mine.
   I, the LORD, have spoken,
   and my words will come true.
    ¹³You will have such a harvest
   that you won't be able
   to bring in all of your wheat
   before plowing time.
   You will have grapes left over
   from season to season;
   your fruitful vineyards
   will cover the mountains.
    ¹⁴I'll make Israel prosper again.
   You will rebuild your towns
   and live in them.
   You will drink wine
   from your own vineyards
   and eat the fruit you grow.
    ¹⁵I'll plant your roots deep
   in the land I have given you,
   and you won't ever
   be uprooted again.
   I, the LORD God, have spoken!
   

Footnotes:

1. Amos 7:1 locusts: See the note at 4.9.
2. Amos 7:1 harvested: This would have been an especially bad time for a locust attack. The non-grain crops such as vegetables and onions were just beginning to sprout, and the grain crops were almost ready to be harvested.
3. Amos 7:9 Jeroboam: Jeroboam II, who ruled Israel 783-743 B.C.
4. Amos 8:2 end: In Hebrew "ripe fruit" and "end" sound alike.
5. Amos 8:5 New Moon Festival. . . Sabbath: Selling grain at these times was forbidden by the Law of Moses.
6. Amos 8:7 though. . . Jacob: Or "though I am the God that Jacob proudly worshiped."
7. Amos 8:10 sackcloth: A rough, dark-colored cloth made from goat or camel hair and used to make grain sacks. It was worn in times of trouble or sorrow.
8. Amos 8:14 You made. . . Beersheba: Or "You made promises to the goddess Ashimah at Samaria, and you made vows in the names of other gods at the shrines of Dan and Beersheba."
9. Amos 9:1 the temple altar: The one at Bethel.
10. Amos 9:6 He built. . . earth: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
11. Amos 9:7 Ethiopians: The Hebrew text has "people of Cush," which was a region south of Egypt that included parts of the present countries of Ethiopia and Sudan.
12. Amos 9:7 Crete: Hebrew "Caphtor."
13. Amos 9:7 Philistines. . . Arameans from Kir: The Philistines were Israel's enemies to the west, and the Arameans were enemies to the northeast. For Kir, see the note at 1.5.

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Revelation 3:7-22 (Contemporary English Version)

The Letter to Philadelphia

 ⁷This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia:    I am the one who is holy and true, and I have the keys that belonged to David. ^[a] When I open a door, no one can close it. And when I close a door, no one can open it. Listen to what I say. ⁸I know everything you have done. And I have placed before you an open door that no one can close. You were not very strong, but you obeyed my message and did not deny that you are my followers. ^[b] ⁹Now you will see what I will do with those people who belong to Satan's group. They claim to be Jews, but they are liars. I will make them come and kneel down at your feet. Then they will know that I love you. ¹⁰You obeyed my message and endured. So I will protect you from the time of testing that everyone in all the world must go through. ¹¹I am coming soon. So hold firmly to what you have, and no one will take away the crown that you will be given as your reward.
    ¹²Everyone who wins the victory will be made into a pillar in the temple of my God, and they will stay there forever. I will write on each of them the name of my God and the name of his city. It is the new Jerusalem that my God will send down from heaven. I will also write on them my own new name.
    ¹³If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.
   

The Letter to Laodicea

 ¹⁴This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Laodicea:    I am the one called Amen! ^[c] I am the faithful and true witness and the source ^[d] of God's creation. Listen to what I say. ¹⁵I know everything you have done, and you are not cold or hot. I wish you were either one or the other. ¹⁶But since you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷You claim to be rich and successful and to have everything you need. But you don't know how bad off you are. You are pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.
    ¹⁸Buy your gold from me. It has been refined in a fire, and it will make you rich. Buy white clothes from me. Wear them and you can cover up your shameful nakedness. Buy medicine for your eyes, so that you will be able to see.
    ¹⁹I correct and punish everyone I love. So make up your minds to turn away from your sins. ²⁰Listen! I am standing and knocking at your door. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and we will eat together. ²¹Everyone who wins the victory will sit with me on my throne, just as I won the victory and sat with my Father on his throne.
    ²²If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.
   

Footnotes:

1. Revelation 3:7 the keys that belonged to David: The keys stand for authority over David's kingdom.
2. Revelation 3:8 did not deny that you are my followers: Or "did not say evil things about me."
3. Revelation 3:14 Amen: Meaning "Trustworthy."
4. Revelation 3:14 source: Or "beginning."

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Psalm 131:1-3 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 131

(A song by David for worship.)

Trust the LORD!

 ¹I am not conceited, LORD,    and I don't waste my time
   on impossible schemes.
    ²But I have learned to feel safe
   and satisfied,
   just like a young child
   on its mother's lap.
    ³People of Israel,
   you must trust the LORD
   now and forever.

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Proverbs 29:23 (Contemporary English Version)

²³Too much pride brings disgrace;
   humility leads to honor.

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Verse of the Day

“But when the time was right, God sent his Son, and a woman gave birth to him. His Son obeyed the Law, so he could set us free from the Law, and we could become God's children.” - Galatians 4:4-5

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

The 37th President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon wrote, “The finest steel has to go through the hottest fire.”