A minister went to his church office on Monday morning and discovered a dead mule in the church yard. He telephoned the police. Since there did not appear to be any foul play, the police referred the minister to the Health Department. They explained, "Since there was no health threat, you'll need to call the Sanitation Department." When the minister called the Sanitation Department, the Manager of the Sanitation Department said, "I can't pick up that dead mule without authorization from the mayor." The minister was not at all too eager to call the mayor, who possessed a very bad temper and was always extremely unpleasant and hard to deal with, but, eventually, he called the mayor anyway. The mayor did not disappoint the minister. The mayor immediately began to rant and rave. After his continued rant at the minister, the mayor finally said, "Why did you call me any way? Isn't it your job to bury the dead?" The minister paused for a brief prayer, and asked the Lord to direct his response. The Lord led him to the words he was seeking, "WELL Yes, Mayor, it IS my job to bury the dead, BUT I always like to notify the next of kin first!"