Daily Stop & Thinks

STOP AND THINK – The personal life deeply lived always expands into truths beyond itself. (Anais Nin, 20th century American author)

Externals are important. What people see of you has value, but people can’t see what’s inside. So, what’s inside is more important. In other words, internals are essential. What you think is what really determines who you are and how you act. What you bring into your mind and meditate on will enable you to benefit others.

Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable … think about such things. (Philippians 4:8)

STOP AND THINK – Just because you can only do a little does not mean you should do nothing. (Edmund Burke, 18th century Irish philosopher)

When the job seems too difficult and requires much more than we think we can do, we are often tempted to do nothing. After all, our little bit won’t accomplish the desired result, we think. But, if everyone thought that way and did nothing, nothing would be accomplished. We must all do our part, even if it’s only a little.

Therefore, my dear brothers . . . always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:58)

STOP AND THINK – There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. (Soren Kierkegaard, 19th century Danish philosopher)

We are sometimes easily fooled by a brilliant argument or cleverly devised evidence, and maybe we aren’t to blame. But, we are at fault when we won’t accept the truth, perhaps because it brings pain or discomfort. And when it comes to spiritual things, we have to exercise faith, not in the event or the word but in the author of truth.

In him [Jesus] and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence (Ephesians 3:12).

STOP AND THINK – There can only be true despair when there is no hope. (from Batman, the Movie)

The Bible says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick” (Proverbs 13:12). In difficult times the circumstances may be hard to cope with, but the problem is so much worse when there is little hope of relief. When you meet someone who’s having a hard time, encourage them and point them to the source of hope.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

STOP AND THINK – Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions. (Harold S. Geneen, 20th century American businessman)

What kind of leader do you want to follow? The man or woman who is constantly telling you what to do, perhaps berating you when you don’t do it exactly right? Or the leader who lets you do your job while demonstrating an attitude of confidence and appreciation? It’s not hard to follow confident and caring leaders, is it?

If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. (Romans 12:8)

STOP AND THINK – I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse. (Philip Yancey, American Christian author)

How many times have you looked back and realized that an experience you went through had prepared you for the very things you were facing currently? Such insight should lead us to express more faith that things will work out this time.

That’s especially true when our faith is place in God
We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him. (Romans 8:28)

STOP AND THINK – Light tomorrow with today. (Elizabeth Barrett Browning, 19th century English poet)

We must always live today with tomorrow in mind. Today’s actions will affect tomorrow’s activity and thought. If today’s deeds are evil, they will produce unhappy results tomorrow. You can’t know the future, but you can influence it by thought and deed in the present.

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today. (Hebrews 3:13) For the evil man has no future hope. (Proverbs 24:20)

STOP AND THINK – Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil; our great hope lies in developing what is good. (Calvin Coolidge, 30th president of the United States)

Wise words! Of course, it’s important to “repress” evil, to eradicate it as much as possible. But, unless there is an equal or greater effort to “develop” the good, evil will rear its ugly head again and again. So, we must work hard at discovering and promoting the good.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

STOP AND THINK – Resisting temptation is not founded on the reality of your circumstances but on the resolve of your commitment! (Scott Distler, American pastor)

Do you remember the comedian who joked, “The devil made me do it”? We do make excuses for our failures, don’t we? It’s always someone else’s fault, or the circumstances are beyond our control. In reality, however, if we’re honest with ourselves, we most often have to admit that we’ve lacked the commitment to do right and avoid wrong.

God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

STOP AND THINK – What you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing; it also depends on what sort of person you are. (C. S. Lewis, British Christian apologist)

It’s an interesting thought, isn’t it? We don’t just hear things objectively. Our hearing, or at least our understanding, is the result of our worldviews, our prejudices, and preconceived ideas. Even our personalities taint what we hear. Do you listen as a pessimist or an optimist? As open-minded or biased? How’s your hearing, my friend?

Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge. (Proverbs 23:12)

STOP AND THINK – Our limitations and success will be based, most often, on our own expectations for ourselves. What the mind dwells upon, the body acts upon. (Denis Waitley, American motivational speaker and author)

What do you want to achieve in life? What do you expect to get out of life? According to Waitley, the answers to those questions pretty well determine what you will accomplish. We become what we think, so be careful what you put into your mind and how you evaluate your goals and desires.

Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. (Romans 12:3)

STOP AND THINK – We cannot choose how many years we will live, but we can choose how much life those years will have. (John Maxwell, American motivational speaker and author)

No, we can’t determine our life span, but we can choose how we will live the years that are given to us. “Adding life to years” is the advertising jingle for a retirement community. Their goal is to help their residents realize that life is more than just living. We are the ones who determine the degree of “life” that we will enjoy in our later years.

Jesus: I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)