At midnight November 20, 1988, a 19 year-old woman who’d fallen asleep behind the wheel, plunged her car through a crash barrier. It dangled 60 feet in the air. Some motorists stopped grabbed ropes, tied them to the back of the woman’s car and hung on till emergency units arrived. A ladder was extended from below to help stabilize the car while firemen chained the vehicle to two trucks. Every time her car moved she screamed. It took over two hours for passers-by, the Police Highway Patrol, tow-truck drivers and firemen - about 25 people in all - to pull her to safety. 'It was kinda funny,' Los Angeles Fire Captain, Ross Marshall recalled later. 'She kept shouting, ‘I’ll do it myself!’'

 

Are you like that? Trying to do it all on your own? On his office wall, Alex Haley, the author of Roots, has a picture of a turtle sitting on top of a six-foot fence post. The caption reads, 'You can be sure he had help getting up there!' Haley says, 'Anytime I feel too proud to ask for help, I look at that picture.' Somebody within your reach knows something you need to know; something you’ll never learn on your own. They’re your mentor. Get close to them. Drop your bucket into their well and begin to draw water. Paul recognized his limitations, so he connected his life to others. Listen: '... you Philippians became my partners in giving and receiving...' (Philippians 4:15). Some of us know how to give but not receive. Others know how to receive but not give. Winners know how to do both!  On this New Years Eve – why not start out the New Year a giver and receiver!