Watching World Trade Centre Collapse!
Mathew Johnstone was living in New York at the time of the September 11 terrorist attacks and was a block away from the World Trade Centre when the first tower collapsed.

"I watched as several people jumped or fell from the large burning holes," he wrote in a diary essay afterwards. "One man fell face down with his arms and legs outstretched, like a cat anticipating a jump, his tie flapping furiously over his shoulder. I remember thinking, 'that man is still alive'. It truly felt like the end of the world." His meteoric career as a creative director in advertising took him from Sydney to San Franscisco and New York, earning his a clutch of awards on his way. He was a man who appeared to have it all - and yet, for many years, he had a dark secret. He was suffering from clinical depression. "I was at the peak of my career, earning more than I had ever before, winning big business, but I wasn't happy..." he confessed. So although he often felt flat and empty, he learnt to hide it well.

Jyothi Basu is gone. The man who held the record for being the longest serving Chief Minister of any Indian State (He was West Bengal Chief Minister for 23 years) is now dead. Dead, at the ripe age of 95. Several accolades are pouring in for him. Yes, he's getting praise even from his political enemies. The accolade that he received that touched me most was this: he said to ‘no’ to the post of being India's Prime Minister in 1996 so that he could continue to remain as the disciplined soldier of his party - his party which did not want him to take up the invitation to form the Central Government! “Wow!” I went when I heard that. “This is rare!” I told myself. "It does not happen that often!" I remarked. Though Jyothi Basu is no patch on Jesus, the God whom I serve, I feel compelled to compare him with Jesus in this regard, at least.

The owner came to the garden with expectations. High hopes. "Surely fruits will dangle down the fig tree I planted! It has been three years! I just can’t wait to taste the fruits!" He was smacking his lips in anticipation. What did he get to see? The Fruit. Hardly. Instead the tree gave him the boot—it was barren. Now he was biting his lips in frustration. The owner became furious. "Chop this fruitless fig tree down," he ordered the gardener. "Why waste fertilizer and water on it for ANOTHER YEAR?" The gardener would not give up on the tree he had tended tenacious for over three years. He pleaded, "Just give it one more year, Master—just one more year! That is all. I will tend it. Take good care it. And I am sure it will give us fruit in this year of extension! You bet!"

Does the Sun find you still in bed, morning after morning, year after year? John Wesley, I read somewhere, complained that in his later years, staying in bed beyond 5am was a sign of laziness creeping in. Wow! He was obvious copying someone. Who else, but Jesus! One of the most remarkable habits of Jesus was that He was an early riser. The Bible records, "Very early in the morning, when it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went to a solitary place where he prayed" (Mark 1:35). Before Jesus met with men and got busy with his interactions with them, He made sure He met with His Father alone. He did this regularly. Shall we strive to ape this habit of His? When I studied the Bible further, I figured that. not only Jesus, but even several others had this godly habit of getting out of their bed early. Who were these guys? Let me introduce them to you. And let's also talk about why they got out of their bed early.

Tiger Woods, the ace golfer, was the pitchman for brands ranging from AT&T to Accenture to Nike. His array of endorsements helped him become the first sports star to earn $1 billion. However, with Tiger admitting to multiple occasions of marital unfaithfulness, Accenture, announced its decision to bench him and cancel multi-million dollars worth contracts with him. Gillette also has done the same. You see, sexual sin, can cost you a lot. It is reported that Tiger's wife is also on the road to divorce him, shortly - a divorce, which could cost Tiger millions and millions of dollars. Yes, sexual sin, may be awesome to start with, but its results can be awful.