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Contributed by Nitin Manjrekar (NY, USA) One day, a very wealthy man was walking on the road. Along the way, he saw a beggar on the sidewalk. The rich man looks kindly on the beggar and asked, "How did you become a beggar? The beggar said, "Sir, I've been applying for a job for a year now but haven't found any. You look like a rich man. Sir, if you'll give me a job, I'll stop begging." The rich man smiled and said, "I want to help you. But I won't give you a job. I'll do something better. I want you to be my business partner. Let's start a business together. The beggar blinked hard. He didn't understand what the older man was saying. "What do you mean, Sir? "I own a rice plantation. You could sell my rice in the market. I'll provide you the sacks of rice. I'll pay the rent for the market stall. All you'll have to do is sell my rice. And at the end of the month, as Business Partners, we'll share in the profits. Tears of joy rolled down his cheeks. "Oh Sir," he said, "you're a gift from Heaven. You're the answer to my prayers. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He then paused and said, Sir, how will we divide the profits? Do I keep 10% and you get the 90%? Do I keep 5% and you get the 95%? I'll be happy with any arrangement. The rich man shook his head and chuckled. "No, I want you to give me the 10%. And you keep the 90%. For a moment, the beggar couldn't speak. When he tried to speak, it was gibberish. Uh, gee, uh, wow, I mean, huh? He couldn't believe his ears. The deal was too preposterous. The rich man laughed more loudly. He explained, I don't need the money, my friend. I'm already wealthy beyond what you can ever imagine. I want you to give me 10% of your profits so you grow in gratitude The beggar knelt down before his benefactor and said, Yes Sir, I will do as you say. Even now, I'm so grateful for what you've done for me! And so that was what happened. He forgets where the blessings came from. Each day, the beggar now dressed a little bit better operated a store selling rice in the market. He worked very hard. He woke up early in the morning and slept late at night. And sales were brisk, also because the rice was of good quality. And after 30 days, the profits were astounding. At the end of the month, as the ex-beggar was counting the money, and liking very much the feeling of money in his hands, an idea grew in his mind. He told himself, Gee, why should I give 10% to my Business Partner? I didn't see him the whole month! I was the one who was working day and night for this business. I did all this work! I deserve the 100% profits! A few minutes later, the rich man was knocking on the door to collect his 10% of the profits. The ex-beggar opened the door and said, "You don't deserve the 10%. I worked hard for this. I deserve all of it!" And he slammed the door. If you were his Business Partner, how would you feel? Friends, this is exactly what happens to us God is Our Business Partner. God gave us life-every single moment, every single breath, every single second. God gave us talents-ability to talk, to create, to earn money God gave us a body-eyes, ears, mouth, hands, feet, heart. God gave us mind, imagination, emotions, reasoning, language. So do we need to give back Our Business Partner something in return? Tell me, Who is a generous partner now? |