Mover of Men and Mountains

I have been reading this book over the past couple of weeks, as my Dad passed it on to me to read. It is the autobiography of R.G. LeTourneau, who helped developed most of the major earth moving machines in the early to mid 20th Century. He was a businessman, who had God as his partner and would end up tithing 90% of his company's common stock and 90% of his income. There were a couple quips that I wanted to share that really stuck out in my mind, mostly dealing with working.

In a story of him wheelbarrowing sand as a young worker an older man told him,

"Pushin' is a rest from shovelin'. Shovelin' is a rest from pushin'. Then there's the trip back with an empty barrow where you don't do nothin' at all. Kid, you got yourself a job that's just one long rest."

What a great way to look at the tasks ahead of each of us.

He also shared the story of being in debt, due to going into business with a bad partner. He wanted to get out of his present business and get started on his own. When the banker asked, "What security have you got for the balance of your debt?" LeTourneau answered by simply raising his two hands and the banker nodded satisfied.

It would be true character to have a legacy that people trusted you to work hard and take care of your commitments.

On another story he told of a boss's statement after hearing LeTourneau make excuses and blaming other people.

" When things haven't gone as well as they probably should have, and you start to blame circumstances and other people instead of yourself, you are never going to improve. It's when you start to improve these matters yourself that you improve the matters and yourself both."

I pray this is the attitude and spirit that I carry with me in my tasks both at work and home.