Spiritual Thoughts

James 1:4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. When you’re sick and you think, What’s the use? And you’re tired, discouraged, afraid; And you keep asking why they don’t remember how hard you try And forget the mistakes that you have made; When you’re chuck full of pain and you’re tired of the game, And you want to get out of it all – That’s the time to begin to stick out your chin And fight with your back to the wall! When you’ve done all you can to carryout your plan But you can’t keep your head up much more; And the end of the bout leaves you all down and out, Bleeding, and reeling and sore; When you’ve prayed all along for the sound of the gong To ring for the fight to stop – Just keep on your feet and smile at defeat; That’s the real way to come up on top! When you’re tired of hard knocks and you’re right on the rocks, And nobody lends you a hand; When none of your schemes, the best of your dreams, Turn out in the ...

There is only one real failure in life that is possible, and that is, not to be true to the best one knows. John Farrar (1945-) Acts 24:15-16 I have a hope in God . . .that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. In view of this, I also do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men.

People who are always making allowances for themselves soon go bankrupt. Mary Pettibone Poole Instead, cast away excuses for ourselves, and let us have patience and tolerance for others instead: Ephesians 4:1-3 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. - Mark Twain 1 Peter 3:8-9 To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted , and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.

It takes strength to be certain, It takes courage to have doubts. It takes strength to fit in, It takes courage to stand out. It takes strength to share a friend's pain, It takes courage to feel your own pain. It takes strength to hide your own pain, It takes courage to show it and deal with it. It takes strength to stand guard, It takes courage to let down your guard. It takes strength to conquer, It takes courage to surrender. It takes strength to endure abuse, It takes courage to stop it. It takes strength to stand alone, It takes courage to lean on a friend. It takes strength to love, It takes courage to be loved. It takes strength to survive, It takes courage to live. Printed in Travel Agents Inspirational Corner Psalm 31:24 Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD.

Psalms 71:14-14 But as for me, I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and of Your salvation all day long; for I do not know the sum of them. David was not content with his worship. He declared that he would praise God "more and more". We should never be content with our worship. We should strive each and every day to do just a little more for our God and Creator. We can never praise Him enough for what He has done for us.

If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten. Anthony Robbins It takes 21 days of doing something to make a habit - start creating a good one today!

Associate yourself with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation. It is better be alone than in bad company. George Washington (1732-1799) 1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."

If you do nothing unexpected, nothing unexpected happens. Fay Weldon Romans 2:6-8 God "will give to each person according to what he has done." To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.

Psalms 22:1-4 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; And by night, but I have no rest. Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel. In You our fathers trusted; They trusted and You delivered them. This psalm is meant to show us that there are many times in our life when we feel that God has completely forgotten us. In the middle of our suffering, we sometimes cannot see the "big picture" of God's plan. We may not understand why we must deal with the pain and distress but He does not forget us. He never turns his back to us. If we love and follow the Creator, all in our life that happens is according to God's plan. The 4th verse of this scripture confirms that "Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them". Romans 8:28 tells us that "all things work together for good to them that love God". Prai...

It is better to wear out one's shoes than one's sheets. -- Genoese Proverb Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!"

Keep God’s word in this way. Let it enter into your very being, let it take possession of your desires and your whole way of life. Feed on goodness, and your soul will delight in its richness. Bernard of Clarivaux Psalms 73:25-26 Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart fails: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

Psalms 30:8-12 To You, O LORD, I called, And to the Lord I made supplication: "What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness? Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me; O LORD, be my helper." You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, that my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever. In David's time of trouble, he cried to God and asked himself these two simple questions in verse 9. What good is done when I am miserable? or even dead? What benefit to God's glory and honor is there when I'm moping around feeling sorry for my situation? Dead to everything? God promises to uplift my life if I only ask him. In this psalm, David had his life transformed from mourning into dancing. God took away his sackcloth and clothed him with gladness. If a situation has you down today, then take t...

Do not grumble or criticize; it takes neither heart nor brains to do that. Dwight L. Moody James 5:9 Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!

Hope is patience with the lamp lit. Tertullian Romans 5:3-5 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts.

"The last of the human freedoms is to choose one's attitudes." -- Victor Frankl Galatians 5:13 You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. Our freedom is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and mind.

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me? . . . In God (I will praise His word), In the LORD (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Psalm 56:3-4, 10-11 Notice that David does not say that he was never afraid, but rather that when he was afraid, he put his trust in God. We can do the same thing!