What follows is anything BUT a God thing – and not really in keeping with typical Express content – but I can’t pass up the chance to tell you about it.
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A local grocery store chain's latest sales circular trumpets a new “fuel rewards” program, by which we can “Save on Gas!” at their stores' pumps. It will not surprise you that an asterisk rises above the exclamation point. The small print reference at the bottom of the ad produces the following math:
If a customer spends $50 on groceries and then buys at least 10 gallons of fuel (about $40...until tomorrow), he or she will receive...wait for it... $0.50 off the cost of the gas!
Fifty cents. Not ten or twenty – They wouldn’t think of minimizing their customers like that.
And not one of those meager thirty or forty cent discounts – Such reductions are for amateurs.
Fifty – that’s right, fifty – whole, complete cents. You save more than one-half of one percent when you fuel up.
Three bags of groceries: $50.
Ten gallons of gas: $40.
Saving $0.50 on your $90 trip to the grocery store: Cents-less.
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No prayer. This kind of thing doesn’t have one.
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TO HAVE A NAME APPEAR WITH YOUR COMMENT, click the comments link, then type your comment in the "Leave your comment" box. Then click in the circle next to "Name/URL," which is the next to the last item in the list below the comment box. A new window instantly appears in which you may type your name (or an alias, if you want to decorate your anonymity with an alias more creative than "anonymous"). Once your name is in, you may either "preview" your comment, to see how it will look, or "publish" it to complete the process.
TO COMMENT ANONYMOUSLY, click the Comments link, then type your comment as above. Then click in the circle to the left of "Anonymous," located at the bottom of the list. Finally, you may again either "preview" or "publish your comment." [A SMALL NOTE: If you want to post anonymously, make sure you don't add your name to the bottom of your comment!]
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3 comments:
Bill-
That was PRICELESS! I received the same coupon and threw it away after having the exact same thoughts you had. I just wonder how much it costs them to print up those stupid things. Good one, Bill!
the scary part is that i bet there are a bunch of people who think they're getting a deal.
and even scarier, in these parts (the far southwestern part of the quad cities) there is a car dealer offering 1) free gas or 2) a free gun with the purchase of a new car. The gun-totin' car buyers far out number those who want some free gas!
next month, the same dealer says he's gonna offer a bible for each test drive.
my prayers list keeps getting longer and longer!
tmac
What's really amazing is how quickly we humans fall for such gimmicks! They are everywhere around us and they have entered into every aspect of life. I know that I am vulnerable to them as well. I don't know if it's a weakness or is it the "promise" of something better. But what really is the tender spot that these "gimmicks" touch? Perfectionism, lack of self-confidence, fear of poverty, fear of loss of control . . . I think the list can go on and on. Is it possible that we are also finding ourselves "addicted to gimmicks."
I don't know. I just know that in the midst of sharing something that isn't "spiritual" you have caught my attention again Bill. Your prophetic voice is being used by God, and this time it may even be a surprise to you. Thank you again Bill!!!
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