Daily Stop & Thinks

Leadership

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. (John Quincy Adams, sixth U.S. president)

Nineteenth century author and orator Robert Ingersoll put it more simply, “We rise by lifting others.” The purpose of leadership is not just to assemble a team that can achieve a certain objective—as important as that is, but also to develop the individual members of that team. Check Adams’ definition of a leader again. The development of others is the real goal.

If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. (Romans 12:8)

Achievement

High achievement always takes place in the framework of high expectation. (Charles Kettering, 20^th century American inventor) 

When we are somewhat careless about our work, the result is almost always disappointing. If we set a high standard with an expectation of doing well, we most likely will. But consider also what businessman Louis Gerstner noted: “People don’t do what you expect but what you inspect.” Be diligent, work hard, plan to succeed, and check your work regularly.

Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked so hard to achieve. Be diligent so that you receive your full reward. (2 John 1:8)

Trust

Build bridges of trust strong enough to hold the truth. (Jan Cone, cross-cultural worker)

To establish strong relationships, as one writer put it, we need to build bridges rather than walls. Bridges need to be built well and, in terms of working with people, they must be trustworthy. Built on anything less, our bridges will collapse quickly and destroy any rapport we may have had with an individual or group. Honesty, sincerity, and reliance will build bridges that last.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)

Courage

It is not the critic who counts… [but the one who] if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. (Theodore Roosevelt)

Roosevelt continues, “…so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” Americans are known to be critics. There are enough “Monday morning quarterbacks” and “sidewalk superintendents” to fill the unemployment lines, no doubt. When the task is essential, though it seems impossible, the brave person accepts the challenge.

Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)

Humility

People in their right minds never take pride in their talents. (Harper Lee, in To Kill a Mockingbird)

We live in a time when gifted stars are exalted. We even have programs that promote idolizing the talented. It is no surprise, then, when some of those stars fall—as some inevitably do. Who’s to blame? Too many gifted children are promoted (and exploited) as stars from childhood to their ultimate detriment. We should be grateful for talent but learn to use it for the benefit of others.

Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor. (Proverbs 11:2; 29:23)

Easter

The great gift of Easter is hope. (Basil Hume, 20^th century churchman) 

“I still believe in Santa, the Easter bunny, the tooth fairy…” is one person’s thought of Easter. Another: “Easter is the time to rejoice and be thankful for the gift of life, love, and joy.” The Christian hope that Hume speaks of gives us confidence in God because of the resurrection of Jesus which we celebrate today. It’s his triumph over sin and death that gives hope. 

We are reborn to experience a living, energetic hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (1 Peter 1:3)

Truth

The most powerful thing you can do to change the world is to change your own beliefs about the nature of life, people, and reality to something more positive. (Shakti Gawain, author)

Gawain concludes: “…and begin to act accordingly.” That raises the question, of course, of what to change your beliefs to. There are as many ideas as there are people—actually, many more. Finding what is really true and holding to that is the most important pursuit of life. It must begin with what is true, trustworthy, and unchanging.

Jesus: “For I will testify to the world of the truths that I have heard from my Father, and the Father who sent me is trustworthy.” (John 8:26)

Good Friday

There is something to be said for the night. The darkness holds a sense of promise, as if anything could happen. (Meg Collett, author)

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote, “Darkness of slumber and death, forever sinking and sinking.” Which of those thoughts do you suppose were going through the minds of the disciples on that fateful Good Friday? Their grief seemed to overcome the promise of his resurrection that Jesus had given them. People of faith learn to trust in God’s promise in spite of the darkness.

God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection. (Psalm 18:30)

Foolish

Before God we are all equally wise and equally foolish. (Albert Einstein, renowned scientist)

The Bible tells us that God is no respecter of persons. That is, he doesn’t consider ethnicity, gender, or IQs as he views us. He has an unending love for all of his created humankind. But when it comes to our efforts to please God, it’s good to remember on this April Fool’s Day what the psalmist wrote: “Only fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 15:1).

When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow (Ecclesiastes 5:4). 

Friends

Friendship that flows from the heart cannot be frozen by adversity, as the water that flows from the spring cannot congeal in winter. (James Fenimore Cooper, 19th century American author)

How many friends do you have? We can probably list dozens of acquaintances that we might consider friends. But deep friendship requires interaction and commitment—usually over some period of time. As Cooper suggests, it’s a friendship that “flows from the heart,” so it isn’t easily disturbed. It’s lasting and mutually beneficial.

A friend is always loyal. . . a real friend sticks closer than a brother. (Proverbs 17:17; 18:24)

Lemons

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes. (Hugh Downs, late TV host)

“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” It’s a popular proverb, thinking that there is always a way to turn sour into sweet. And Downs helps us understand that it’s not the lemons in life that determine our state of mind, it’s our attitude, one of the very few things in life we can control. Determine that no matter what, you will look for solutions rather than becoming sour.

For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast. (Proverbs 15:15)

Thinking

The real problem of thinking [is] thinking you know everything. (James Emery White, pastor and teacher)

White continues: “Unless you spend time with someone long traveled along the road you wish to take, you don’t have any idea what it is you have no idea about… You think you know everything there is to know – but you don’t know what it is you don’t know.” The more we experience life, the more we realize there is more to learn—and that’s a valuable lesson.

There is more hope for fools than for people who think they are wise. (Proverbs 26:12) 

Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. (Colossians 3:2)