Daily Stop & Thinks

Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it! (Zig Ziglar, late motivational speaker and writer)

We often have very little control over what happens to us. We didn’t choose our birthplace, our parents, or our nationality, but those are factors that we must live with. We can be resentful about those issues and wish they were different, but that’s a waste of time and effort. We must look at such things realistically and determine to make the best of them.

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life (Psalm 23:6).

Don’t let making a living prevent you from making a life. (John Wooden, renowned basketball coach)

Many of the athletes that John Wooden coached were perennial champions in their sport. Some of them went on to play professional sports, earning fame and fortune. However, his life lessons were more important to his players than his sports training. You can make a good living but lose out on the values of a rewarding life. It’s all a matter of priorities.

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33).

The most I can do for my friend is simply to be his friend. (Henry David Thoreau, 19th century American writer, philosopher, and naturalist)

The basis for friendship today is often merely mutual appreciation for similar things—sports teams, political parties, common causes, etc. Thoreau sees friendship as something more simple but significant: “If he knows that I am happy in loving him, he will want no other reward. Is not friendship divine in this?”

[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres (1 Corinthians 13:7).

Failures are only temporary tests to prepare us for permanent triumphs. (Charles Swindoll, author and minister)

No one likes to fail, and some people never seem to recover from a failure, no matter how minor. But, as Swindoll suggests, most failures are not permanent, but they may be great learning experiences that will provide opportunities for recovery and success. He goes on to write, “Start doing something that you’ve put off because of the risk of failure.”

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

God Himself doesn’t propose to judge a man until he is dead. So why should you? (Nubiagroup.blogspot).

Two important lessons spring from this quote. First, we should be very careful about judging others. After all, we rarely know all the circumstances that surround the behavior we criticize. Second, there is to be a final judgment, and the judge is an all-knowing God of righteousness. We should avoid the first and prepare for the second.

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged (Matthew 7:1). Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:7).

A real friend is not someone you feel free to be serious with as much as someone you feel free to be silly with. (Sidney J. Harris, 20th century American journalist)

In times of difficulty and stress, we most often seek out friends who will take us seriously and respond to us with care and concern. Those are very special friends, of course, but, then, there are other friends that don’t always take us too seriously. They are the ones we can have fun with, “let our hair down,” so to speak. Their friendship and confidence are invaluable.
A friend loves at all times (Proverbs 17:17). Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice (Proverbs 27:9).

Leadership is not about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge. (Simon Sinek, inspirational author)
We often think of a leader as a strong, almost overpowering, figure who is clearly in charge of what’s going on. But some people with leadership skills don’t seem to have very good people skills. They may run roughshod over their followers, caring little for their well-being. As Sinek points out, however, a better leader is one who truly cares for his followers.
Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them . . . because you are . . . eager to serve (1 Peter 5:2).

Any time we bury a hurt alive, it will keep rising from the dead to haunt us. (Renee Swope, Christian author)


Sometimes when we’ve been hurt deeply, we intentionally avoid any attempt to resolve the conflict that created the wound. Instead, we bury it, thinking that we can move on without any consequence. Most of us have found, however, that that doesn’t work. As Swope suggests, the hurt keeps popping up its ugly head. We would do well to seek reconciliation.


If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there [at] the altar. First go and be reconciled to them (Matthew 5:23-25).

People tend to forget their duties but remember their rights. (Indira Ghandi, former prime minister of India)

Ghandi’s comment certainly seems to be true in 21st century America. We believe deeply in individual freedoms and guaranteed “inalienable rights,” so, as free citizens, we are often inclined to emphasize our rights and overlook our responsibilities. It’s part of our selfish human nature, no doubt, but for the good of community, we must think of others, too.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others (Philippians 2:3-4).

The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it. (Molière, 17th century playwright and actor)

It’s exciting to win at any contest. But when an “underdog” team defeats a highly favored opponent, it is even more exhilarating. The fans of the winning team will likely flood the court, and the players will be praised and exalted beyond reason. Such prospect of winning is a great motivation for tackling even the most difficult problems.

For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith (1 John 5:4).

One must not tie a ship to a single anchor, nor life to a single hope. (Epictetus, 1st century Stoic philosopher)

Boatmen will understand the philosopher’s reference to the value of multiple anchors. The rest of us might wrestle with applying the metaphor. It surely would be a grave mistake to tie to a single hope, if that hope is misplaced and untrustworthy. But the Bible presents a single hope that holds promise for life and beyond.

The blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:12-14). We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. (Hebrews 6:19).

Nowhere can man find a quieter or more untroubled retreat than in his own soul. (Marcus Aurelius, 2nd century Roman emperor)

In the hectic lifestyle of modern western society it’s often difficult to find a place of solitude. Yet, getting away by oneself, apart from the demands of everyday life, is so important to physical and mental health. But in those quiet times alone, we would do well to disengage from temporal concerns and meditate upon the spiritual values of life.

Blessed is the one . . . whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. (Psalm 1:1-2; 119:97).