Risk It!

(Poem quoted in Dear Abby; maybe written by Leo Buscalia)

To laugh... is to risk being a fool.

To weep... is to risk appearing sentimental.

To reach out... to another is to risk involvement.

To express feelings... is to risk exposing your true self.

To place your ideas and your dreams before a crowd... is to risk their loss.

To love... is to risk not being loved in return.

To live... is to risk dying.

To hope... is to risk despair.

To try... is to risk failure.

The person who risks nothing...does nothing, has nothing and is nothing.

They may avoid suffering and sorrow, but they simply cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love or live.

Risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.

Only a person who risks is free...

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"He that findeth his life shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." Matt. 10:39

"For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of man also shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." Mark 8:38

Yes, testifying of the Truth may bring great shame, embarrassment and loss of reputation. Declaring to the church that it has substituted "traditions of men" for the truth has cost many their positions, church friends, and sometimes even their lives. Risk it anyway! He is worth it! (Remember the servant who buried his talent? Matt. 25:14-30)

--Gary Amirault