The Scout Motto - Be Prepared

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The Scout Motto of the Scout movement, in various languages, has been used by millions of Scouts around the world since 1907. Most of the member organizations of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) share this same motto.

In English, the Scout Motto is most commonly Be Prepared. In the first part of Scouting for Boys, Robert Baden-Powell explains the meaning of the phrase:

The scouts' motto is founded on my initials; it is:

BE PREPARED,

which means you are always in a state of readiness in mind and body to do your DUTY;

Be Prepared in Mind by having disciplined yourself to be obedient to every order, and also by having thought out beforehand any accident or situation that might occur so that you know the right thing to do at the right moment and are willing to do it.

Be Prepared in Body by making yourself strong and active and able to do the right thing at the right moment, and do it.

— Lieut. Gen. Baden Powell C.B., Scouting for Boys (1908), "Camp Fire Yarn.—No. 4. Scout Law." (Part I, p. 48)

Be still my soul, the Lord is on thy side.

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John Milton was born in London in 1608 and educated at St Paul’s School, followed by the University of Cambridge. He knew at least ten languages, and was enormously well-read in literature, history, theology, philosophy and natural sciences. Milton’s Commonplace Book, in which he made notes on his extensive reading, is now held at the British Library.

In February of 1652 Milton went completely blind. Many great artists have suffered blindness, but the twist in Milton's case is that he went blind before he wrote his best works, including the immortal epic poem Paradise Lost. Milton had written a few great poems before 1652, but he was not a famous poet by this point.  In fact, Milton was more famous as a servant of the government of Oliver Cromwell, the "Lord Protector" of England during the period between the kings Charles I and Charles II. 

When John Milton went blind, he must have felt like modern athletes feel when they suffer a career-ending injury. You spend your whole life working toward a goal, pour your heart and soul into practising, and then some uncontrollable event or freak accident puts you back in the shoes of a regular person.  John Milton's life plan was to be of service to God. He felt he could best achieve this goal by using his intelligence and especially his writing. In the days when Milton was alive, it was very hard to write when you had no sight. He was entirely dependent on other people to write down his work and read to him. Thankfully, Milton's blindness was not as crippling as he thought it would be, and he eventually adapted to the condition enough to write some of the world's great works of literature.

Give yourself a soul valuation!

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Jesus said - ‘what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose [or forfeit] his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?’.

 

·    The top ten companies in the world have combined revenues of      

     about £2000 billion per year.

·    All the gold above-ground in the world could be worth as much as 

     £1000 billion. 

·    The British government’s annual income is around £600 billion and

·    The ten richest people in the world have about £300 billion between 

     them.

 

These enormous figures are way beyond our understanding. The nearest some of us can get to this in our understanding is that the average wage earner in the UK might earn about £1,000,000 in a working lifetime, and the average UK house price is currently around a quarter of a million pounds. 

Rap up your life in soul music!

The insatiable desire of the soul for God - only God can satisfy the soul

Psalms 63 - A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:

my soul thirsteth for thee,

my flesh longeth for thee

in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;

To see thy power and thy glory,

so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.

Because thy lovingkindness is better than life,

my lips shall praise thee.

Thus will I bless thee while I live:

I will lift up my hands in thy name. 

My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness;

and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:

When I remember thee upon my bed,

and meditate on thee in the night watches.

Because thou hast been my help,

therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

My soul followeth hard after thee:

thy right hand upholdeth me.

But those that seek my soul, to destroy it,

shall go into the lower parts of the earth.

They shall fall by the sword:

they shall be a portion for foxes.

But the king shall rejoice in God;

every one that sweareth by him shall glory:

but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.

Psalms 143:6

I stretch forth my hands unto thee:

my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.

Psalms 33:20

Our soul waiteth for the Lord:

he is our help and our shield.

Psalms 25:1 - A Psalm of David.

Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.

Psalms 103:1-2 - A Psalm of David.

Bless the Lord, O my soul:

and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits:

Psalms 103:22

Bless the Lord, all his works

in all places of his dominion:

bless the Lord, O my soul.

Psalms 63:8-9

My soul followeth hard after thee:

thy right hand upholdeth me.

But those that seek my soul, to destroy it,

shall go into the lower parts of the earth.

Psalms 62:1 - To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalm of David.

Truly my soul waiteth upon God:

from him cometh my salvation.

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