Speaking

I was asked recently if I could share my experince strength and hope at a treatment facility. I have spoke at this facility a number of times, and it is my favorite place to share. Brand new faces, brand new souls on the road of recovery.
The first few times I shared, I did as I was told. I pre-planned almost nothing, prayed to God to use me as an instrument of hope for somebody, and just shared in an honest way.
A friend came up to thank me one time and said: "Kid, you do a fine job of speaking. Fine job! But you need to work on your close!"
I knew what he was talking about.
While at the podium, I would allow the words to just flow freely. When I felt the inspiration dry up...I would just say "I think Im done now" and go sit down.
Not such a good close.
Since then I have been closing in the same way everytime I speak. I thank everyone for allowing me to share and then I read this.

Our Time Bank

Imagine there is a bank which credits your account each morning
with $86,400, carries over no balance from day to day, allows you to
keep no cash balance, and every evening cancels whatever part of the
amount you had failed to use during the day.

What would you do?

Draw out every cent, of course! Well, everyone has such a bank.
Its name is TIME and the banker is GOD. Every morning, He credits you
with 86,400 seconds. Every night He writes off, as lost, whatever of
this you have failed to invest to good purpose.

It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.

Each day He opens a new account for you. Each night He burns the
records of the day. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is
yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against the "tomorrow".

You must live in the present on today's deposits.
Invest it so as to get from it the utmost profit for His glory!

The clock is running. Make the most of today.


I stole that poem off a bulletin board at work.
Progress not perfection.