Daily Stop & Thinks

Worry

No amount of regretting can change the past, and no amount of worrying can change the future. (Roy T. Bennett, author)

It’s obvious, isn’t it? Yet, we often recall one experience or the other: sorrowing over past mistakes or fretting about tomorrow. Some life-lessons are just hard to learn. We keep repeating our errors even when we know better. It’s important to have really good friends whose positive view of life and compassion for us will help us live in the present with hope for the future.

So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries (Matthew 6:24).

But I am trusting you, O Lord . . .  My future is in your hands (Psalm 31:14, 15).

A Better Way

Love is a better teacher than duty. (Albert Einstein, renowned scientist)

You wouldn’t think it would take a great mind, like Einstein’s, to discover this truth. Most parents and teachers know it, too. The truth became clear, probably, after trying it the other way. Encouraging students because we care has much better success than when we coerce learners to do their homework or complete a difficult assignment just because they have to.

O Lord . . .  teach me your decrees . . . I am your servant . . . teach me your decrees . . . Look upon me with love; teach me your decrees. (Psalm 119:64, 124, 135)

Competition

You should only compete with one person: yourself. (Herbert Lui, author)

Lui continues: “Life is a competition, but it’s not a race against anyone else. Rather, the real journey is only against yourself and unrealized potential.” Most young people who like sports want to win so badly it’s all they can think about. They’re continually planning how to beat the other guy. Youthful competition is temporary, but the real goal is to reach your full potential.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever (1 Corinthians 9:25).

Communication

Superficiality is the curse of our age. (Richard Foster, theologian and author)

“Hi, how are you?” is a common greeting when friends meet. This is just a thoughtless greeting, and you aren’t asking because you really want to know how they are. So, the response is often just as rote: “Fine, how are you?” Both are merely superficial. More intensive communication requires significant questions, looking for a deeper response and meaningful, helpful interaction.

Speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ (Ephesians 4:15).

Excuses

You will get what you want when you stop making excuses about why you don’t have it. (Source unknown)

Excuses come easily, don’t they? We don’t have what we want because we don’t have enough money or time or support, the list is endless. We may claim that others have an unfair advantage of resources or position we don’t have. Rather than recount our excuses, we would do better to evaluate our abilities and opportunities.  They will be the best source for achieving our goals.

Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before (1 Thessalonians 4:11).

Courage

Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others. (Winston Churchill, late British prime minister)

Courage may be demonstrated by a soldier in a dangerous war situation. But it is also a quality that can and should be seen in normal, everyday life. Coming to the aid of someone being bullied. Or speaking up when someone is being wrongly attacked verbally. Are there times when we have lacked the courage to step up to help when all we really needed was a little courage?

This is my command—be strong and courageous! (Joshua 1:9)

Wanting to Be Liked

What happens when you are obsessed with getting people to like you? (David Powlison, late counselor and editor)

That’s a very important question, and Powlison offers a thought-provoking answer: “You become flirtatious or artificial, a coward or a deceiver, a chameleon or a recluse.” Wanting to be liked by people is normal for all of us. No one wants to be disliked. The best way is to live a life of honesty and humility, which will attract genuine friends who like you for who you really are.

Whoever loves a pure heart and gracious speech will have the king as a friend (Proverbs 22:11).

Change

You don’t need a new year to make a change. You only need a new day. (Chris Suitt, minister)

Do you remember your New Year’s Resolutions? If so, you’re probably one in a million. We easily forget our good intentions, most often in just a few days in January each year. But Suitt’s observation is helpful, isn’t it? Every day provides a new opportunity for change. We should evaluate what needs to be changed and begin immediately to work toward improvement.

All must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do (Acts 26:20).

Pride

Pride is the worst viper in the heart. It is the first sin that ever entered into the universe. (Jonathan Edwards, 18th century American revivalist)

What is it that makes us think we have better judgment than someone else? Is it because we’re more informed or better educated? Has our experience prepared us to make better choices than others? Does the title before our name (“Professor,” “Doctor,” “Judge”) give us a sense of mental superiority? It would be better if we honor others and hear them out before we speak.

You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak (James 1:19).

Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor (Proverbs 29:23).

Becoming #1

The most important thing in your life is not what you do; it’s who you become. (Dallas Willard, retired philosophy professor)

When we meet someone new, one of our very first questions often is “And what do you do (for a living)?” It always seems important for us to know his or her occupation, as if that would tell us a lot about the person. But how someone lives and behaves is a far better indication of that person’s character. That will best be determined over time as we learn to know people better.

For we are each responsible for our own conduct (Galatians 6:5).

Even children are known by the way they act, whether their conduct is pure, and whether it is right (Proverbs 20:11).

Moving Ahead

The great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving. (Oliver Wendell Holmes, 19th century physician and poet)

We might think more strongly than Holmes about the importance of where you stand, but we can certainly agree with his observation about the “direction you are moving.” Looking back where you once were won’t advance you very far, but it can give you the perspective you need to be certain your life is headed in the right direction.

I pondered the direction of my life, and I turned to follow your laws (Psalm 119:59).

Creativity

Creativity is piercing the mundane to find the marvelous. (Bill Moyers, American journalist)

It’s fascinating to watch an artist at work. He or she may be chiseling a piece of what looks like ordinary rock or welding a sheet of metal. Yet the artist sees something in that piece that most of us cannot see at all. That’s the genius of art whether it’s in sculpture, oil painting, or music. What the ordinary eye doesn’t see in the everyday things of life, an artist sees as something beautiful.

All who are skilled among you are to come and make everything the Lord has commanded (Exodus 35:10).