The Future It is difficult to live in the present, ridiculous to live in the future, and impossible to live in the past. (Jim Bishop, 20th century journalist) He concludes, “Nothing is as far away as one minute ago.” No matter how much we may long for a time past—even...
Friends A hug is worth a thousand words. A friend is worth more. (Jasmine Fitzwilliam, photographer) There was a time (maybe only senior citizens will remember) when hugging was reserved for families and lovers. Today, however, everyone seems to hug—even strangers....
Time God has a time for everything, a perfect schedule. He is never too soon, never too late. The when of His will is as important as the what and the how. (Richard Halverson, late chaplain of the U.S. Senate) Life seems to become more complicated as time moves on. So...
Habits You leave old habits behind by starting out with the thought, “I release the need for this in my life.” (Wayne Dyer, self-help author) As we grow, we develop habits—both good and bad—that often begin to control our thoughts and actions. The longer we continue...
Power No power on earth is greater than a mind and soul reawakened. (Cal Thomas, syndicated columnist) We see demonstrations of all kinds of power in today’s world. There’s the destructive power of hurricanes and tornados. The life-threatening power of nuclear weapons...
Influence Control violates the human will and renders freedom an illusion. (Roy Angle, cross-cultural worker) Angle continues, “The illusion of control is starkly contrasted with the reality of influence. Influence always gives options.” We all know a few people who...
Respect If you want to be respected by others the great thing is to respect yourself. (Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 19th century Russian novelist) Looking at it another way, former general and U.S. secretary of state Colin Powell wrote, “Trying to get everyone to like you is a...
Character Character is the one thing we make in this world and take with us into the next. ( William Hershey Davis, seminary professor) Davis continues, “Reputation is what you have when you come to a new community; Character is what you have when you go away.”...
Relationships Relationships — of all kinds — are like sand held in your hand. (Kahlil Jamison, leadership consultant) She says: “Held loosely, with an open hand the sand remains where it is. The minute you close your hand and squeeze tightly to hold on, the sand...
Obedience Understanding can wait; obedience can’t. (Pastor Rick Warren, author) Sometimes we don’t want to follow the boss’s order or a directive we don’t understand. Warren suggests, not only that we should obey right away whether we understand or not, but that...
Forgive Letting go of grudges is not only good for your soul—it’s good for your health. (Heidi Raschke, attorney) We all know how holding grudges affects both us and the person we’re mad at. If we can learn to forgive, getting rid of bitterness, there can be all kinds...
Satisfied Two things define you: your patience when you have nothing, and your attitude when you have everything. (Iman Ali, actress) No doubt, we’ve all had experience in similar extremes. We can remember those days when there was not enough income to meet the bills....