Daily Stop & Thinks

Exercising my authority does not increase my status or value anymore than submitting to authority reduces my status or value. (Quoted by Pastor John Smith)

Some people have difficulty dealing with authority. They expect instant compliance with their demands because they feel such conformity makes them superior and of greater importance. On the other hand, there are some who feel demeaned and of less value than others if they too readily yield to authority. In reality, of course, John Smith is right.

There is no authority except that which God has established. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended (Romans 13:1, 3).

God uses pain to show us that something is wrong and to reveal that we aren’t in control. (Source unknown)

Most people try to avoid pain at all costs. Yet pain can be valuable to us. It often alerts us to a problem, perhaps an injury or an illness. Then we can look for a remedy. Another valuable lesson to be learned from pain is that we cannot control things like illness or natural disasters. Then pain drives us to look to others for help.

(A biblical prophecy): Surely [Jesus] took up our pain and bore our suffering (Isaiah 53:4).

Genius is the ability to reduce the complicated to the simple. (C.W. Ceran, pseudonym for German journalist and author Kurt Wilhelm Marek)

Most of us can remember teachers who seemed to have the ability to confuse us by making a simple premise as complicated as possible. No doubt, all they taught was correct, but we had difficulty understanding the complex. We can also recall those teachers who had a wonderful way of making the complex simple. That is the mark of genius!

Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. [He] searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true (Ecclesiastes 12:9-10).

All human beings are alike in seeking happiness. Where they differ is in the objects from which they seek it. (Os Guinness, English author and social critic)

In the U.S. we are guaranteed the right to pursue happiness. And everybody seems to want to be happy, so we try many different ways to achieve some degree of contentment or pleasure. But, as Guinness implies, where we look for it pretty well determines how well we might succeed. Hint: it will most likely not be found in things but in relationships.

To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness (Ecclesiastes 2:26).

Most of us spend more time planning for one week of vacation then planning for our destiny in life.” (Michael Hyatt, author and publisher)

Planning for vacations is fun and time-consuming. Sometimes, the anticipation is actually greater than the experience itself. By contrast, as Hyatt points out, a lot of us don’t do much planning when it comes to life’s most important issues: our families, health, careers, and especially our eternal destiny. Good planning is essential both for life and eternity.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans (Proverbs 16:3).

Nothing …proves a man’s ability to lead others, as what he does from day to day to lead himself. (Thomas J. Watson, 20^th century American businessman)

Some people long to be leaders in some arena—sports, politics, education, business, perhaps. Sometimes the ambitious person will pursue education and special training to equip himself to lead others in some worthy endeavor. But, no matter how well he does in his training, the real proof of his ability is how well he controls and directs his own life.

Now the [leader] is to be above reproach . . .  temperate, self-controlled, respectable (1 Timothy 3:2).

You are free to choose, but you are not free from the consequences of your choices. (Source unknown)

Making choices is one of the few things that we can control. The problem with freedom, however, is the possibility that we may make wrong choices. We may do it intentionally, wanting instant gratification or to pursue some pleasure we want to experience. We too easily forget that at some time we will have to face the consequences of our choice.

The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray (Proverbs 12:26). Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God (James 4:4).

How seldom we weigh our neighbor in the same balance with ourselves. (Thomas A Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ)

It’s a common human tendency, it seems. We are often guilty of judging other people’s actions without knowing all the facts. At the same time, we may be involved in similar activity, but we’re too close to it to see our own mistakes. Before we criticize anyone, we should consider not only their circumstances but our own actions in similar situations.

Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged (Matthew 7).

Wisdom requires a humble spirit of continual learning. (Jesse Deloe, writer, editor)

Someone has said that you’re never too old to learn. Of course, learning is more than the accumulation of facts. And with so much new information becoming available every day, no one can keep up with it all. Learning how to assimilate knowledge and make appropriate application of it—that’s the key to learning and wisdom.

Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance (Proverbs 1:5). Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning (Proverbs 9:9).

Don’t argue for your own weaknesses. When you make a mistake, admit it, correct it, and learn from it immediately. (Stephen R. Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People)

It must be human nature. When we show our weaknesses by making mistakes—and we all do—we make excuses. We blame circumstances, other people, or faulty equipment—anything to put the blame someplace else. Many of us have learned, however, that we get past those difficult times best when we acknowledge our errors and move on purposefully.

I do not have time to tell about [more Old Testament heroes] . . . who through faith conquered kingdoms . . . whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies (Hebrews 11:32-34).

You will not have a meaningful life without work, but you will lose yourself if you say work is the meaning of your life. (Timothy Keller, American pastor and best-selling author)

As Keller looks at both ends of the spectrum, he concludes that neither brings satisfaction. The person who dislikes work will likely lack incentive to be productive and accomplish much of value. On the other hand, the work-a-holic doesn’t have time to enjoy the finer things of life like companionship and aesthetic values. Both need a happier middle ground. 

What do workers gain from their toil? . . . There is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work (Ecclesiastes 3:9, 22)

Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers. (Voltaire, 18^th century French Enlightenment writer)

Good teachers know how to frame good questions—questions that make the student think and not simply give rote responses. So, Voltaire’s instruction is helpful. The questions a person asks shows a lot about how he or she is thinking. Before we voice an inquiry, it would be good for us to prepare it carefully to elicit a really helpful answer.

After three days they found [Jesus] in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions (Luke 2:46).