Daily Stop & Thinks

In prayer it is better to have a heart without words, than words without a heart. (John Bunyan)

Prayer is a common worldwide practice, whether as a religious rite in a public gathering or in one’s private meditation. For some, their habit is to recite prayers learned as a child or in religious training. Others pray extemporaneously, expressing concerns and desires in everyday language. As Bunyan points out, it’s the heart condition that is most important in prayer.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. (Philippians 4:6)

Don’t be afraid of death so much as an inadequate life. (Bertolt Brecht, 20^th century German dramatist and poet)

Death is fearful to many people who have no hope for a future life. It’s the unknown that so often distresses us, but Brecht helps us consider where our priorities should be focused. Pursuing lives of integrity that honor God and serve our fellowmen gives us purpose and value in living. Live honorably in the present and put your faith in God for the future.

Perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced [God’s] perfect love. (1 John 4:18)

Ideas have consequences and bad ideas have victims. (John Stonestreet, worldview writer)

Have you seen those light bulbs above the cartoon characters’ heads when they get a new idea? It’s kinda like that when a new thought occurs to us, isn’t it. No doubt, most inventions began as mere ideas in someone’s mind. But, not all ideas are good ones. So, when you have a new thought, be sure to think it through and consider its consequences.

I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil. (Psalm 101:4)

Hope, it seems, is not related to our circumstances but rather to our relationships. (Kip Cone, pastor)

The Bible often speaks about hope and faith together. “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is only as good as its object. (Don’t put your faith, for example, in a broken chair.) Hope, on the other hand, is the expectation of something promised by someone with whom you have a trusting relationship.

 I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope. (Romans 15:13)

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day. (Edith Lovejoy Pierce, poet)

Well, here we are! A new year—a new month—a new day. We can’t write the 2018 book in advance; we have to do it one day at a time. As eager as we might be for this New Year to unfold, today is the only page we can write on immediately. So, plan, pray, and practice all the good intentions you have for this year—and start today!

Lord, remind me . . . that my days are numbered— how fleeting my life is. (Psalm 39:4) This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)

A New Year is on the way and the possibilities are endless. (Source unknown)

We wrap up 2017 tonight, and many people will celebrate the coming of the New Year with raucous entertainment and thoughtless behavior. But, tomorrow we will all begin a new calendar with lots of hopes and dreams along with many uncertainties. It’s a good time to open our hearts to the One who knows the future and wants to guide us in it.

Let [God’s] Holy Spirit guide your lives. (Galatians 5:16)

Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us. (Hal Borland, late author and naturalist)

This is the time to review the events and activities of 2017. There were highlights and disappointments—things we want to remember and others we wish we could forget. As we reflect on them, we should be grateful for the accomplishments and evaluate all that wasn’t so successful. The question to consider now is “How does this influence our plans for next year?”

Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity. (Proverbs 21:5)

If you see someone without a smile give them yours. (Dolly Parton, singer, songwriter)

Dolly Parton and many other popular entertainers bring smiles to people’s faces in their light-hearted performances. But, life doesn’t involve only times for amusement and recreation. In fact, life is most often just day-after-day ordinary, sometimes with great disappointments and struggles. Encourage someone with a smile today.

What a relief to see your friendly smile. It is like seeing the face of God! (Genesis 33:10) When they were discouraged, I smiled at them. My look of approval was precious to them. (Job 29:24)

Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. (Warren Buffett, investor and philanthropist)

In a day of lightening speed Internet, we’ve become accustomed to getting what we want when we want it—like right now. The word-picture Buffett uses is a great lesson, not just in patience, but in working for long-term value rather than instant gratification. Maybe we should think beyond the present, looking to the future. What lies ahead that we can plan and work for now?

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts. (Marcus Aurelius, 2^nd century Roman philosopher)

Our thought-life is a very private thing, isn’t it? Sometimes we wish people could know what we’re thinking. At other times we are no doubt glad that they can’t read our minds. We need to understand that what’s in our mind is really the indication of who we are and what we value. Keeping our minds right before God and man is critical to living with happiness and success.

Letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. (Romans 8:6)

Happy Day after Christmas! Merry rest of the year; even when Christmas is over, the Light of the World is still here. (Matthew West, musician)

For some folks, December 26 is the day to return unwanted or wrong-sized gifts. Too often the joy and happiness of the Christmas season have disappeared like a vapor. But West is on target to remind us that the real purpose of Christmas continues today and into the unknown future. We must keep looking to the Light of the World, Jesus, for hope and joy.

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” (John 8:12)

A thousand times in history a baby has become a king, but only once in history has a king become a baby. (Often quoted but source unknown)

The Incarnation is fundamental to the Christian faith. Manger scenes often give people tender thoughts about the Christ child, meek and lowly. The Bible teaches that the baby Jesus was God Himself, taking on human flesh to demonstrate what godly living is and to provide a way for men and women to become a part of the kingdom over which He will ultimately reign.

For God is the King of all the earth. (Psalm 47:7)