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An immediate reply came from the hotel owner, who said, 'I've been operating this hotel for many years. In all that time, I've never had a dog steal towels, silverware, or pictures off the walls. I've never had to evict a dog in the middle of the night for being drunk and disorderly. And I've never had a dog run out on a hotel bill. Yes, indeed, your dog is welcome at my hotel. And, if your dog will vouch for you, you're welcome to stay here, too.'" (1:13) A mother went to the school open house to speak with her son's teacher. The teacher said, "I'm so very pleased to meet you. Your son Tim is a delight to have in my class! He's helpful, conscientious, courteous..." (1:14) Tim's mother wondered: "My kid? Is she talking about my kid?" Later she told Tim: "Your teacher says you are delightful! Why can't you be that good at home?" Tim replied, "Mom, I've only got so much goodness to go around!" (1:15) Tim had a lot of potential for both good and evil. He selected and gave to each person what he or she expected of him. (1:16) How do we treat gold and garbage? We keep one, and throw the other away. That principle applies to how we perceive ourselves. If we think we are made by God and for God, we glow and glitter like gold, and our self-appreciation ascends as high as the angels. If we think we were made by chance for the grave and grubs, our self-worth descends like an unopened parachute, crashing to the ground. As the Book of Proverbs declares, "As a man thinketh, so is he." (1:17) Once again, we need to restore to our souls the glory and honor of being human, of being made in the Creator's image. These quotations from 'Abdu'l- Baha express our true station: Man is the sum of Creation, and the Perfect Man is the expression of the complete thought of the Creator-- the Word of God.2 Of all the created beings man is the nearest to the nature of God...3 Man is the highest work of creation, the nearest to God of all creatures.4 (1:18) Baha'u'llah showers upon us every honor imaginable. He elevates us to the rank of the angels. He declares that God has put within each of us the very essence of His light,5 that we are the very purpose and fruit of all creation, the reason for which the universe came into being. (1:19) We need to be constantly reminded of our splendid destiny and the infinite riches the Creator has placed within each of us.
(1:20)
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