Rules Lord, help me follow established procedures today. In a Myers-Briggs personality type survey, that statement was followed by, “On second thought, make that for a few minutes.” When we respond that way, we are suggesting either that we don’t like the “established...
The Future We forget that we work today not just for the present but for the long-term future. (Carl Trueman, author) Trueman observes: “We want results now” which is exactly the reason we often don’t think enough about the implications of our actions. It’s just that...
Flag Day Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong. (James Bryce, 19th-20th century British academic) Sadly, some people don’t regard the flag as anything special and will go so far as to burn it....
Daring Daring greatly means the courage to be vulnerable (Brené Brown, American research professor) “I dare you.” “I double-dare you.” Do you remember those childhood challenges? They were sometimes a test to see how brave we were. To accept the dare was to make...
Others What do we live for if not to make the world less difficult for each other? (George Eliot, pen name for Mary Ann Evans, 20th century English writer) People today often seem to be so self-centered that we might wonder if Eliot’s observation is really true. From...
Control You can’t change or control the world around you. You can change and control the world within you. (Warren Wiersbe, late American author) After reading the newspaper or watching the evening TV news, do you ever begin to wish you really could “change the...
Talents If you’re an eagle at heart, what are you doing on that perch? (Charles Swindoll, pastor, writer) Swindoll continues: “Do you have any idea how greatly you’re needed to soar and explore?” We all have unique gifts and talents, and they are not given to us...
Too Much A desire for even a good thing becomes a bad thing when that desire becomes a ruling thing. (Paul David Tripp, devotional writer) Can you get too much of a good thing? Many of us have discovered that second helpings of a delicious dish may have unpleasant...
Humility The first product of self-knowledge is humility. (Flannery O'Connor, 20th century novelist) It is perfectly natural to think of ourselves first. If we don’t, who will? But as we grow and become more mature in our reasoning, we begin to realize that we may not...
Humility Humility is the only soil in which true unity can grow. (Michael Reeves) Stardom (and even superstardom) is the goal of many youngsters starting out in sports, entertainment, or the arts; It’s all “me first,” or “I’ll do it my way.” Many stars seem to forget...
Nature One day’s exposure to mountains is better than a cartload of books. (John Muir, 19th-20th century environmental philosopher) Muir was not intending to discredit enjoying and learning from books. Rather, he simply wanted to encourage people to move on from books...
Home There’s no place like home. Ask any prodigal who has come back. It’s a familiar thought, often repeated when returning from an extended vacation. People who may be dissatisfied with their job or circumstances sometimes think it would be really good to move...