77a – The Sweat of Success
Think a minute…Former prime minister of England Winston Churchill became so famous for his speeches that he was called the Greatest Speaker of the 20th Century. He was also famous for his quick wit. Yet amazingly, he was not a naturally gifted and talented speaker. On the contrary, early in his life Churchill had such a bad speech problem that people mocked him and made fun of the way he talked.
Do you know how Churchill completely changed to become the Greatest Speaker of the 20th Century? He studied and wrote his speeches word-for-word on paper. Then, he practiced them countless hours in front of a mirror. He worked at saying each word just the right way with exactly the right facial expression. He also practiced pausing and pretending to struggle to find the correct word, even though he knew exactly what he was going to say. So, although Winston Churchill was not a naturally good speaker, he disciplined and trained himself to become a great one.
You and I can never succeed in life without discipline and hard work. It takes sweat to succeed in our job and career, in school, in sports, in our marriage, and in our family. Even if you’re born into a rich family, or with an intelligent mind and natural talents, you still have to work hard to truly succeed by making the most of what you were given. Even after we get the best education and training possible, we still must continue to practice and improve our skills throughout our lifetime. If we don’t, we simply will not reach our potential, let alone keep up with our competition.
Most importantly, it takes daily discipline to develop our heart and character to become the very best person we can be. We must keep learning and growing in our way of thinking and living every day. It’s not easy to quickly forgive someone who hurts us. It’s not easy to always put the needs and feelings of our spouse and children first before our own. It’s not easy to always be honest no matter what we can get away with or how much it will cost us. That is why we truly need help.
Today you can start getting all the help you will ever need by asking Jesus to take full charge of your heart and character. Remember: “God will do for you what you cannot do for yourself, but He will not do for you what you can do.” With His power and help, plus your work and sweat, you can start making the changes you need to fully become the human being He created you in His likeness to be. Just think a minute…
77b – Make a Stand
Think a minute…Former American president Harry Truman said that every president has been attacked by the news media and press. President Truman further concluded that a U.S. president who had never disagreed and fought with either Congress or the Supreme Court had not really done his job.
This principle is also true for you and me. No matter what our job is, there will be people who oppose and criticize us. Sooner or later, you will stand for something that others will not like. Never forget, “You can’t please all the people all the time.”
That is why always trying to be popular is a losing battle, wasting both our time and effort. We need to choose the right battles for the right reasons and realize that success is having a good character and clear conscience—even if sometimes it makes us unpopular with some people. However, many of those people who will not like you for your moral stand will still respect you for your character and courage. Remember, “If you know better, then you must live better, which can inspire others to live better.”
The sad fact is that when no one makes a stand for the right, everyone suffers. “All it takes for evil to win is for good men to do nothing.” The famous Watergate scandal in America was an example of this. The men who worked closely with President Nixon knew that morally wrong, illegal things were being done, but they did nothing to stop it. During the trial the prosecutor asked one of Nixon’s men named Porter why he did not even try to stop it. Porter answered: “I was afraid of the group pressure from the other men and that I would not be seen as a team player.” Porter did not understand the truth of this saying: “Sometimes silence is golden, but other times it’s just plain yellow [and cowardly].”
There’s nothing wrong with being a team player…as long as you choose the right team: truth’s team. Remember, “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” A wise man said: “Please God—and you will please the people God wants you to please.” Today, won’t you decide to join God’s team? Jesus declared: “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” If you ask Him, Jesus will give you the power and courage to daily make a stand for what is true and right. Plus, you will inspire others to do the same. Just think a minute…
77c – Is Your Family Climate-Controlled?
Think a minute…What is the perfect climate you want to live in? A warm one or a cold one? A sunny one or a rainy one? Did you know that you can live in the climate you’ve always wanted? I’m not talking about the weather climate, but the far more important emotional climate of your home. The daily mood of your marriage and family. Just like a garden lives and grows best in the right kind of climate, so does your family.
Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? A thermometer only measures the temperature, but a thermostat controls the temperature. Do you let your environment control your family’s emotional temperature? Or do you control the emotional temperature of your family? It is we ourselves who actually set and control the emotional climate in our family by the way we talk and treat each other. We choose to be either hot-headed, impatient and angry, cold-hearted, distant and inexpressive to each other, or to be warm, kind, patient and loving to each other. The way we choose to react to our everyday problems, mistakes, and disagreements will determine the daily mood and feeling in our home.
Do you wish your family was more peaceful and happier? That you and your spouse did not argue as much? That your kids were happier and more confident? Remember, no one is forcing you to live in that kind of unhappy atmosphere. It is your choice. You must decide to be the first one to change and control your own heart, moods, anger, impatience, conflict, worry, fear, etc.
We need to remember: “A man is only as big as the things that make him angry.” There are only a few things in life truly worth getting upset about. Most of the little things we get angry about are not nearly as important as our family’s feelings that we hurt. So, take a lesson from rocket science and “Count down before you blast off.”
Studies show that most of the tension in a family comes from using the wrong tone of voice. “More than what you say is how you say it.” It’s the way we talk and treat each other that determines how much peace, joy, and love our family experiences each day. But you cannot have a peaceful, happy marriage and family until you yourself have inner peace, joy, and self-control in your own heart.
Won’t you ask Jesus to forgive you for your past anger, lack of self-control, and impatience with your family? Then ask Him to take control of your heart and character. That is when you can start enjoying the happy and peaceful climate you want in your family every day of the year, regardless of the weather and climate outside. Just think a minute…
77d – Living with Fear
Think a minute….Little Al was a sweet five-year-old boy and quite the little Englishman with his proper clothes and manners. His father, a successful businessman in London, called Al his Little Lamb. Yet, for some reason this dad was setting up little Al for a terrifying shock in his young life.
One day while Al was playing, his father called him and handed him an envelope. He told his small son to take the note down the street to the police station and wait for the police chief to read it.
Little Al felt honored and proud that his dad had given him such an important mission. He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. When he reached the police station, he confidently handed his dad’s note to the police captain and said: “I’m to wait for an answer.”
The police captain read the note and said to the boy: “Come with me.” Little Al followed him down a long hallway and through a door until they were standing in front of an open jail cell. Before Little Al knew what was happening, the policeman pushed him inside and shut the big iron-barred door behind him. As the police captain walked away, he said sternly to the five-year-old: “This is what we do to naughty boys.”
Then everything was silent. No one heard little Al’s frightened cries for hours. Finally, the police chief returned. Without saying a word, he opened the jail cell door and let the boy out. Little Al ran out of there even faster than his little legs had brought him! He never knew why his father did that harsh, frightening thing to him! What bad thing had Little Al done at age five to deserve such a horrible, terrifying punishment?
For the rest of his life, Al lived with fear. But instead of running away from it, he seemed to keep running toward it. He even used his fear creatively to thrill millions of people as they watched the scary, suspenseful movies of…Alfred Hitchcock.
Maybe you had painful things done to you when you were a child or teenager that gave you fears which you still live with today. If you ask Jesus to become Lord of your heart and life today, He can start healing your past hurts and memories and fill you with His power to conquer your fears. Only Jesus can free you to live with total confidence and security in who He made you to be—after you totally surrender and submit your life to Him. From that moment on, you will belong to Him. Just think a minute…
77e – Battling Boredom
Think a minute…Are you bored? It’s a sad life when we “outlive our enthusiasm” for it. That is why “Our big challenge is not to add years to our life, but add life to our years.” That way, “Our spirit will not grow gray before our hair does.”
Did you ever really want something such as a promotion or new job, a good education, or a nice house? But after you got it, it lost its excitement and did not give you the lasting satisfaction you expected. Then you were left still wanting something more. And you wonder: “Is this as good as it gets? Is this basically all I can expect in life?” A successful businessman said: “I climbed all the way to the top and found there’s nothing there!” Even after he achieved everything he wanted, he was still empty and unhappy.
When you are bored and unsatisfied, nothing in life is really worth your full energy and time. You don’t have a real passion and purpose for living. Well, guess what? You’re normal. We humans were made for such a high level of living and productivity that it’s easy for us to get bored. And no one knows it better than our own Maker. That is why He gives us expectations and challenges to push us to reach our full potential. Animals can be satisfied just to eat, sleep, play a little, and call that successful living; but we humans were made for much more than that!
This is why Jesus says the only way we can have a full, satisfying life is when we spend our time and talents loving Him and others. We were created to give and make a difference in the world with our own unique abilities and personality. And it is simply common sense that your Maker is the only One Who can show you what is worth your time and abilities He gave you. He wants to show you how to fill your place in the world. Something that you know is making a difference in the lives of people around you.
Are you fully satisfied with your life? Do you love how you’re living? Won’t you ask Jesus to take charge of your heart and daily way of living so you can start enjoying the full life He created you for? He is the only One Who can give you your true passion, purpose, and power for living—so you will not have to battle boredom in your life again. Just think a minute…