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Vol.1 No. 5 | May 3 , 2006
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This week
“The Bible teaches that Christians are totally different from anyone else.” -
Peter Jeffery, Evangelicals Then and Now (Buy Now)
Dear Wisdom Seeker,
If you've ever lost money in the stock market or some other investment, I've got great news for you. No, it's not the next best stock pick. But there is an investment you can spend your money on that will bring a guaranteed return. And not only will it bring a return, but you'll never lose it. Actually, you could lose it if your memory fails you, but we've got a solution for that this week too. I hope you enjoy.
- Steve Kroening
PS. I need your help getting the word out about Wisdom's Edge. If you find benefit from anything in this week's issue, please forward it to all your friends and family. Thanks.
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Finance
The Best Buy-and-Hold Strategy Ever
You may have heard that the best way to invest in the stock market is to buy and hold. While this strategy does have its merit with stocks, it’s not a flawless system. However, I do know of an investment arena where this strategy works every time.
In fact, I guarantee your investment in this area is one that you’ll never want to sell (though I do recommend you give some of it away).
In Proverbs 23:23, we’re told to “Buy truth, and do not sell it. Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.”
This may not seem like an investment strategy. And many will say you can’t actually buy truth. But think about it. Most parents save as much as they can to pay for their children’s college education. Some spend a fortune on private school. And others amass huge libraries in their pursuit of knowledge.
In today’s technological world, there’s an immense library at your disposal right on the Internet. Unfortunately, most people spend their money on entertainment and comfort, rather than on gaining knowledge.
If you think about it, investment is just a fancy word for spending. Only it’s not spending money on things you use up (like food and amusement). Instead, you spend money on a house, or a stock, or a mutual fund. And the hope is that you will be able to sell that investment and get your money back plus something extra. It’s spending on something that will bring a profit.
The only trouble is you have to sell the investment in order to make money. Knowledge and understanding are investments you never have to sell for them to be profitable.
And if you’re looking for a great way to gain knowledge without investing a lot of extra time, buy an mp3 player and listen to it while you drive or exercise. You can download sermons, books, or lectures from the Internet. You can learn a foreign language. Or you can pick up a new skill for a career change or profitable hobby. You’ll have to spend some money on the equipment and instruction. But it’s an investment that will return exponentially.
– Steve Kroening
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Health
How to Stop the Fat That Steals Your Memory
Last week, we looked at a study that showed how to stop Alzheimer’s disease – and general memory loss – in its tracks. All you have to do is lower your triglycerides. I’m sure your doctor has told you that high levels of triglycerides are bad for you. But few people really know what they are or how to lower them without taking drugs.
According to Nan Kathryn Fuchs, PhD, a well-known nutritionist and good friend of mine, “Triglycerides are fats your body stores for future energy. We all need a little extra stored energy. But if you’re carrying excess weight around your tummy, thighs, buttocks, or other areas, you’ve got more triglycerides than you need.”
Well, I definitely fit into that group. So I was very curious about how to lower triglycerides. I certainly don’t want to lose my memory. And Nan was kind enough to tell me. First, get some exercise, lose weight, and eat very little sugar.
The ideal level for triglycerides is under 100 mg/dl. But if your level is over 150, changing your diet and exercising may not be enough. There are several nutrients you can use that are very effective at lowering triglycerides. Nan’s favorites are:
* Chromium: This mineral is frequently low in people with high triglycerides. Study after study shows that just 200 mcg of chromium supplementation has significantly lowered triglycerides. But some people need much more. Talk with your doctor about taking 200 mcg two to three times a day for a few months. It’s safe.
* Fish oil and flax oil: These essential fats can lower your triglycerides up to 65%, so include them in your daily supplements. Take one to two capsules of a contaminant-free fish oil each day. You can find them in any health food store.
* Padma Basic: This herbal remedy contains 22 natural ingredients. It was originally used to increase circulation and improve peripheral artery disease. The result is reduced leg pain and cramps that come from walking. Now we’re finding that Padma does much more. A side effect of this antioxidant-rich formula is that it significantly lowers triglycerides (two tablets taken two times a day). Padma Basic is very hard to find, but you can get it by calling Advanced Bionutritionals (800-728-2288). Give it a three-month trial.
* Garlic: This popular herb is known for its ability to lower cholesterol and triglycerides. However, you should know that it could take three to four months before you see a significant drop. Be patient and try it for six months. Eating raw garlic, and taking one of the many garlic products available may lower your triglycerides. But be aware that garlic supplements vary in their chemical makeup. If you’re going to take a garlic supplement to lower your triglycerides, I suggest you use Kwai – the brand used in most studies. You can find it in all health food stores. The dose most commonly used was one tablet, three times a day.
Nan says a change in diet and the right supplements are usually all you need to lower your triglycerides to a safe level. And it’s one of the best ways to make sure you don’t lose your memory to Alzheimer’s.
– Steve Kroening
(Source: Nan Kathryn Fuchs, PhD, editor of Women’s Health Letter, 1-800-728-2288)
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Family & Relationships
3 Keys to Solving Problems Biblically
Last week, we discussed how to tell if you’re ready for marriage. The key rests in your ability to solve problems biblically. This week let’s discuss three things you need to solve conflict.
The first key to solving problems biblically is pretty obvious – you have to know the Scriptures. While that seems like common sense, it never fails to amaze me how little people know about the Word of God. I heard one friend say the other day, “I know the gist of the story.” Well, he might know “the gist” of what the Bible says, but he’ll never be able to solve problems God’s way with such cursory knowledge.
Proverbs says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Clearly, the Lord is holding up knowledge as a desirable goal here, and He’s also saying that it is built upon a fear of Him. If all you know about the Bible is “the gist” of it, there isn’t much fear of the Lord in your heart. And that means your problem-solving skills are probably geared toward getting your way. That leads us to our second key….
You’ve got to have the desire to solve problems according to God’s Word. Whether they know the Bible well or not, many people simply aren’t interested in applying it to their personal relationships. Some don’t believe the Bible is relevant to personal relationships. Others are just naive. But for most, it’s because of their selfish desires, which leads us to key #3.
You’ve got to be willing to put your ego behind you. Conflict almost always starts because of a selfish motive. It can come from just one person or it can come from everyone involved in the argument. But the core problem in almost every conflict is someone is trying to satisfy a selfish desire.
How can I be so sure? James 4:1 asks us: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?” And then in verse 2, James says: “You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.”
But if you can put your selfish ambition aside, and act in humility, peace will reign in your relationships.
One final tip: Every time you get into an argument, remind yourself that at least one of you (probably both) is being selfish – then always look at yourself long and hard before trying to identify the selfishness in the other person. The quicker you submit your desires to God’s Word, the quicker your conflict will end with a God-pleasing result.
– Steve Kroening
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Success
The Bible’s #1 Principle for Success
When it comes to success, it’s easy to have the wrong perspective. That’s because it’s much easier to evaluate success according to the world’s standards.
For instance, in school, success is thought of in terms of grade point average. If your GPA is high, you’re successful. If it’s low, you’re a failure.
In sports, success is measured by whether you win or lose.
While those are accurate measures of success for those particular arenas, they aren’t the ultimate measuring stick for success. For instance, you can fail in school, even drop out completely, and still find success. Or you might never play sports and still become more successful than any athlete.
But when it comes to the Bible, God determines success not by how we succeed in individual endeavors, but by how well we serve. And the scriptures give us several examples of where the focus of our service should start.
Take Moses for example. He is world renown for leading the people of Israel out of Egypt. But it wasn’t his accomplishments that he’s remembered for in Hebrews 11 – it’s his obedience (his service) to God.
In fact, we see many other examples of success in Scripture where success comes because of service to God. In Babylon, when Nebuchadnezzar ordered everyone who failed to bow down to the golden idol to be burned, three young men refused to bow down. They were placed in a furnace that was heated seven times hotter than usual, and they survived. Their success in the furnace was a direct result of their service to God.
These are just a couple of the examples Scripture gives us of how to succeed. And in every example you find in the Bible, the one common factor is this: The successful ones were those who served God faithfully.
Even Jesus, the greatest success story ever, did not come to be served – but to serve (Matt. 20:28). And His primary focus was to serve His Father. When we have that same focus, God enjoys seeing His children succeed. We tend to view success monetarily. While that is one area of success we see in Scripture, it’s one of many ways to find success.
Next week, Wisdom’s Edge will show you how this principle of service works out practically.
– Ian Hodge
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Wisdom From History
How King Baldwin IV Won Against All the Odds
When David went into battle against Goliath, King Saul offered his armor. But David found the armor too cumbersome and heavy. He decided to fight without armor. This was a move the army of Israel thought was foolhardy. But David showed them the brilliance of that move.
Many hundreds of years later, during the Crusades, King Baldwin IV saw firsthand how troublesome light armor could be for the enemy. Baldwin, who is largely regarded as the greatest Christian king of Jerusalem, saw the heavy armor worn by the Crusaders as a liability thanks to the sweltering heat of the Middle East. The lighter armor of the Muslims was better suited to the climate and provided them a significant advantage.
But instead of giving his troops lighter armor, which would simply level the battlefield with the Muslims, he decided to turn the heavy armor into an advantage.
Baldwin, a brilliant military strategist, knew his army had two things going for it. First, he knew the Muslim’s lighter armor was vulnerable to his cavalry’s lances. And he also knew his knights could beat a much larger army given a solid battle plan.
In 1177, Baldwin used this knowledge to attack the Muslims at Ramleh. He led 200-500 (depending on which account you read) Knights Templar in full armor and armed with lances against a much larger Muslim army. He was able to take the Muslims by surprise and fracture their army into two. Once he had the Muslim army divided, Baldwin was able to conquer easily. Most of the Muslims fled. Those who stayed to fight were annihilated.
Armor is a soldier’s tool. How the soldier uses it determines whether it’s an advantage or a disadvantage.
– Steve Kroening
(Source: Tsuruoka, Doug. “King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem,” Investor’s Business Daily, September 29, 2005.)
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Word for the Wise
The Wisest Decision You’ll Ever Make
The usual biblical word describing the no we say to the world’s lies and the yes we say to God’s truth is ‘repentance.’... Repentance is not an emotion. It is not a feeling sorry for your sins. It is a decision. It is deciding that you have been wrong in supposing that you could manage your own life and be your own god, it is deciding that you were wrong in thinking that you had, or could get, the strength, education and training to make it on your own; it is deciding that you have been told a pack of lies about yourself and your neighbors and your world. And it is deciding that God in Jesus Christ is telling you the truth....
“Whenever we say no to one way of life that we have long been used to, there is pain. But when the way of life is in fact a way of death, a way of war, the quicker we leave it the better.”
– Eugene H. Peterson
(Quoted from “A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, 20th Anniversary Edition,” InterVarsity Press, 2000)
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Resources
"A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, 20th Anniversary Edition," InterVarsity Press, 2000 (Buy Now)
Evangelicals Then and Now, by Peter Jeffery (Buy Now)
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Wisdom’s Edge is a complimentary e-mail service from Quest Media International LLC. It contains general information on finances, health, relationships, and other beneficial areas. Readers are advised to consult their financial advisors, doctors, or counselors before implementing any ideas they read about in these pages.
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