GOD OF HOPE

Daily Stop & Thinks

Stop & Think: October 31, 2022

Failure #2

Failure is a part of life. It’s what you do with the failure that matters. (Daniel Marquez, Investment advisor)

We’ve all had our failures—from failing grades to blowing lines in a play; from losing a big contract to letting our friends down—we’ve all been there. We can let failures destroy us or they can be the source of growth and change. A movie script said it this way: “The only measure of success is how we cope with failure.” Don’t let failure define you.

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

Stop & Think: October 30, 2022

Failure #1

Failure isn’t final. It’s necessary. It’s the fuel that allows you to advance, to succeed. (Tim Kennedy, military author)

Kennedy was a success in many arenas, as a soldier, professional fighter, and in heroic rescue attempts in the Middle East. In Stars and Scars he recounts the many times he failed. Each time provided an opportunity to change arenas, start over, and work toward worthy goals. The thought that failure is necessary is a mind-changer. Building on what failure teaches is a key to success.

Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success (Proverbs 15:22).

Stop & Think: October 29, 2022

Investment #2

An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest. (Benjamin Franklin)

The opening bell at the NY Stock Exchange gives the daily indication of how well one’s stocks are doing, what the return on investment is (ROI). Franklin suggests that there is something even more important than your financial gains or losses. You can lose or earn lots of money when you play the market but adding careful learning to your knowledge will always have a good ROI.

Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge (2 Peter 1:5).

Stop & Think: October 28, 2022

Investment #1

Goodness is the only investment that never fails. (Henry David Thoreau, 19th century American philosopher)

Goodness, like kindness and generosity, is a character trait. We’ve not usually thought of them as investments, but the idea is helpful. When we are growing in character development, it just makes a lot of sense to be aware of how we can influence others to practice the same kinds of good behavior. Think of the return on investment if we all shared those qualities.

I am fully convinced, my dear brothers and sisters, that you are full of goodness. You know these things so well you can teach each other all about them (Romans 15:14).

Stop & Think: October 27, 2022

Dreams

All dreams contain a wishbone. But what they really require is a backbone. (Kary Oberbrunner, motivational author and speaker)

Dreams are not just the wishes of children. All of us have hopes and wishes for the future, but most of them end like our dreams while asleep. We wake up, and they’re gone. Oberbrunner makes the challenge very clear. Wishing isn’t enough. Even the best of hopes demand a lot of work. Determination may be the most important ingredient in pursuing dreams of value.

It is pleasant to see dreams come true, but fools refuse to turn from evil to attain them. (Proverbs 13:19).

Stop & Think: October 26, 2022

Difficulties

The winds and the waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators. (Edward Gibbon, 18th century English historian)

Few would want to be sailing on the high seas with equally high winds. It takes skill to manage those elements safely. What would be extremely difficult and dangerous for the amateur is a challenge to experienced sailors. They will know how to use the elements to their advantage. Likewise, learning and experience can train us to handle life’s difficulties with assurance.

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown (Isaiah 43:2).

Stop & Think: October 25, 2022

Teamwork

A player who makes a team great is much more valuable than a great player. (John Wooden, late famed basketball coach)

In the sports world we make a great deal over star athletes.  We have most-valuable-player awards and all-star teams to honor them. Of course, without the support of their teammates, no one would reach stardom. We recognize the stars easily, but the success of the team depends on the other players just as much. Be a team player, and you can enjoy the wins, too.

Now he who plants and he who waters work as one, but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor (1 Corinthians 3:8).

Stop & Think: October 24, 2022

Grief

Grief is the price we pay for love. (Late Queen Elizabeth II)

In the beginning of our relationships of love, we rarely think of when that relationship might end or what our feelings will be at that time. Whether it’s a life-long spouse or a long-reigning monarch, we experience the natural grief over our loss. The greater the love and the longer the relationship, the greater feeling of loss. But we won’t regret the love, only the loss.

And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

Stop & Think: October 23, 2022

Procrastination #3

Don’t wait for things to get better. Tomorrow is not promised. You only have this moment. (Charles Schultz, late cartoonist)

Schultz concluded with this challenge: “Take it.”  He continues, “If something is important enough, one does not stop trying just because the odds are long. Success is never guaranteed. But one thing is clear: If one does not try, failure is guaranteed.” In spite of today’s challenging circumstances, consider the odds, count the cost, but do it now! Carpe diem!

How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone (James 4:14).

Stop & Think: October 22, 2022

Procrastination #2

Procrastination is totally a good thing. You always have something to do tomorrow, plus you have nothing to do today. (Source unknown)

We are often looking for an “escape clause,” some way to rationalize our bad habits. It may be true, of course, that putting off a project or an assignment on one occasion or another turned out to be helpful. A few days’ delay may bring a needed answer or solution to mind. But that’s no way to plan your life. Tomorrow is filled with enough duties that we shouldn’t add another.

I will hurry, without delay, to obey your commands (Psalm 119:60).

Stop & Think: October 21, 2022

Procrastination #1

The longer you wait to do something you should do now, the greater the odds that you will never actually do it. (John C. Maxwell, leadership author and speaker)

The big word for this habit is procrastination, which as Charles Dickens said “. . . is the thief of time.” It seems to be a widespread human trait to want to wait until tomorrow to do something we dislike or are afraid to attempt. But Maxwell reminds us of the greater tragedy in waiting: we probably won’t get around to do it tomorrow or even the next day.

Don’t put it off; do it now! Don’t rest until you do (Proverbs 6:4)

Stop & Think: October 20, 2022

Generosity

You don’t have to be rich to be generous . . . (Original source unknown)

A church in Kentucky, continued the quote: “. . . as generosity is not about the size of the gift but the condition of the heart.” Eastern Kentucky was hit with the “flood of the century” in July, and numerous non-profit groups and individuals began to help to restore devastated communities. Many of the generous donors were not wealthy, but their caring heart prompted generous giving.

Since you excel in so many ways . . . I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving (2 Corinthians 8:7).