Centuries ago, the devil decided to hold a sale of all the tools of his trade. He displayed all his tools, spick and span for everyone to see. And boy, it was quite a sight! There was the powerful dagger of jealousy, and right next to it was the gigantic sledge hammer of anger. In the other aisle he had laid out the arrows of greed and want and beside them the bows of lust and envy. Other interesting weapons worth of mention would be fear, pride and hatred. Each of them had a corresponding price labelled with the product.
But in a section all for its own, was a unimpressive battered wedge of wood labelled discouragement. Suprisingly this was the most expensive tool. Curious, a guy enquired the devil himself.
"The reason i value this tool so highly is because when nothing else works this never fails. I can always rely on it if any other tool fails me" said the devil, caressing the piece of wood lovingly.
"If i can drive the wedge of discouragement into a person's mind," the devil said,"it opens up the door for everthing else.He cackled. " There is nothing quite so deadly as discouragement." END.
Hatred, fear, or jealousy may lead a person to act unwisely, to fight, run or grab, but at least he acts. Discouragement, on the other hand, harms more than any of these — it causes you to sit down, pity yourself, and do nothing. So now, you know what to do when you feeling discouraged.... GET OUT AND DO YOUR THING!
