Daily Stop & Thinks

If you can dream it, you can do it. Always remember this whole thing was started by a mouse. (Walt Disney, entrepreneur and creator of Disney World)

That’s a very positive outlook on life, isn’t it? It surely would be an encouragement to someone who has a vision and the means to accomplish it. The dreamer must have resources, however, to achieve his vision: money, materials, connections, and much more, no doubt. The challenge to the visionary is to persevere and pursue his dream.

Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything (James 1:4).

Worry is a cycle of inefficient thought, centered on a fear. (Quoted by Corrie ten Boom, Holocaust survivor)

People worry about a lot of different things: money, romance, politics, crime—the list is endless. We all know, of course, that worrying doesn’t solve problems. As ten Boom says, it is a very inefficient method for solving problems. We must learn to face our fears, work out a plan to address the problem, seek counsel, perhaps, and be courageous in facing life.

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? . . . Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. (Matthew 6:27, 34).

It’s not how much we give, it’s how much love we put into our giving. (Mother Teresa)

The reasons for giving are many. Sometimes we give out of a sense of obligation; it’s something we should do, so we give. At other times we are motivated to give because we recognize serious need: giving to victims of a fire or a natural disaster. But the best gifts are those that are motivated by and accompanied with love.

But since you excel in everything [including the] love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving (2 Corinthians 8:7).

To live our lives and miss the great purpose we were designed to accomplish is truly a sin. (William Wilberforce, 19th century British anti-slavery leader)

Have you ever asked yourself, “Why am I here?” “What’s the purpose of my life?” Those are essential life questions that most of us have asked at some time. Wilberforce sees the question as of the greatest importance. Life’s purpose is more than just to “eat, drink, and be merry.” Discovering your personal purpose in life should be a primary pursuit.

I press on to take hold of that for which [God] took hold of me. . . . one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me (Philippians 3:12-14).

There is no kind of ultimate goal to do something twice as good as someone else. It is just to do the job as best you can. (Chuck Yeager, first pilot to break the sound barrier)

It’s good to set goals, but they should be reasonable. What’s the special value in doing something “twice as good as someone else”? Setting goals should be for the purpose of self-improvement, not to be better than another person. Our goal always should be to do the very best we can with the opportunities and abilities God gives us.

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved (2 Timothy 2:15

When I look at my life in its full sweep, what I realize is that the only things that give me sustained joy . . . have to do with the people I’ve helped. (Charles Colson, late founder of Prison Fellowship)

Chuck Colson was a man of intelligence, vision, and compassion. He was the author of best-selling books and winner of prestigious awards, but he took no pride in such things. His passion was to help those most often overlooked by society. We would do well to follow his example and work to help people rather than seek temporal recognition.

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms (1 Peter 4:10).

The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it. (William James, American philosopher and psychologist)

As children, we didn’t understand that there is more to life than the now. We didn’t think beyond what we might be doing at any given time. As we grew, we learned that there are many tomorrows; in fact, they will continue beyond our lifetime. Hopefully, we’ve learned the great value of contributing to those worthy causes that will last long into the future.

For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life (Proverbs 9:11). As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received (Ephesians 4:1).

Be somebody who makes everybody feel like a somebody. (Robby Novak, child actor)

A simple, childlike expression of a valuable concept: encouragement. How do our friends feel after they’ve been with us? Are they let down or uplifted? Have we given them something worthwhile to hope for? We would do well to remember and practice the Golden Rule.

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you (Matthew 7:12).

Don’t survive your life. LIVE IT! (Oliver Edwards, Canadian pastor)

Life may sometimes be very difficult. Sometimes we ask, “Can I ever get through this day?” The ordinary burdens of everyday life are difficult enough at times, and when something else hits us, like illness or job loss, it becomes almost overwhelming. Edwards encourages us not to think merely in terms of survival, but to persevere and live life to its fullest.

Jesus: “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

You don’t stop laughing because you grow old. You grow old because you stop laughing. (Michael Pritchard, actor and youth counselor)

Someone else has said, “If you laugh a lot, when you get older, your wrinkles will be in the right places.” We’ll never be too old to laugh, and to make someone laugh is a pleasure enjoyed by both parties. We too often think of old age as a time of sadness and depression. It ought not to be. Let’s continue to laugh a lot and cause others to laugh with us.

Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh (Luke 6:21).

I am not afraid of failing, I am afraid of being successful at something that doesn’t matter. (Quoted by Morris M. Michalski, coach and basketball specialist)

Coach “Mo,” as he was known, quoted an athlete with a unique perspective on success. It’s an interesting and challenging thought, isn’t it? We can learn a lot from our failures, so when we stumble, it doesn’t have to be a complete loss. But, nothing of real value is gained if we succeed at something that really “doesn’t matter.” Pursue worthy accomplishments!

For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again (Proverbs 24:16).