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Volume 30, # 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . March 2015 |
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![inspiration, motivation, Apple Seeds, [Apple]](AppleSeeds-1c.jpg)
![inspiration, motivation, Apple Seeds, [Apple]](AppleSeeds-2c.jpg)
Plant these "seeds" well and water often. Enjoy!
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How to Endure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jean-Jacques Rousseau
"The first thing a child should learn is how to endure.
It is what one will have most need to know."
Words are a Gift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward
"Our words can harm or they can bless;
They can be warm or can cause stress.
Our words can lift or can destroy;
Words are a gift that should cause joy."
Gift of Finding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled, p. 257-8
"Webster’s Dictionary defines serendipity as ‘the gift of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for.
…[O]ne of the reasons we fail to take full advantage of grace is that we are not fully aware of its presence – that is, we don’t find valuable things not sought for, because we fail to appreciate the value of the gift when it is given us.…[W]e consider such events quite unremarkable, and consequently we fail to take full advantage of them."
A Heroic Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. George A . Sheehan
Dr. Sheehan writes that every person is called to be a hero, to live a heroic life. "The heroic life is no more than authentic life. One in which I take possession of myself and live by my own decisions and choices. Heroism begins with accepting the person I am and can be."
Great Ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Adolph A Berle, Jr.
"Great ideas need landing gear
as well as wings."
The Courageous Man . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gen. George S. Patton, Jr.
"All men are frightened. The more intelligent they are, the more they are frightened. The courageous man is the man who forces himself, in spite of his fear, to carry on."
Winners vs. Losers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LEADERSHIP, Jan. 21, ‘92
"One of the chief differences between winners and losers in athletic competition is that the winners see themselves as winning and the losers generally give themselves a reason or an excuse to lose."
Key to Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SOUNDINGS, May 1990, p. 6
"The starting point of all achievement is desire. Weak desires bring weak results…A strong desire brings better results but…it has to be an intense, eager, craving, insistent, demanding, ravenous desire that is akin to the desire of a drowning person for a breath of air. A strong desire is the key to success in any endeavor."
Make Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Lubbock
"People can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really time but the will that is lacking."
An Irish Blessing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rev. Andrew Greeley, The Irish, p. 26
"May your faith be strong as a mountain wall,
And subtle as the early morning mists.
May you believe that God’s power conquers all,
And his love through trouble and pain persists.
May your faith soar like a multi-colored bird,
And shine brighter than the blinding desert sun.
Because you know your prayers are ever heard
And Jesus waits when the final day is done.
And may God bless you,
The Father who rules the starry skies,
The Son who rose from the dead,
And the Spirit who comes in hope."
Not Live in Vain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Emily Dickinson
"If I can stop one heart from breaking
I shall not live in vain,
If I can ease one life the aching
or cool one pain or help one fainting robin unto its nest again,
I shall not live in vain."
Spanish Proverb
"By always taking out and never putting in, the bottom is soon reached."
Progress Begins With . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Norman Cousins
"Humanity’s greatest problem has never been the absence of answers to complex situations. Its greatest problem has been the absence of will to attack problems. Progress begins with the belief that what is necessary is possible. Hope is practical reality because it supplies the energy for converting intangibles into tangibles."
Life to Visions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kouses & Pozner, The Leadership Challenge, p. 118
"To give life to visions, leaders use a variety of modes of expression. Leaders make full use of all the available media to communicate to others their shared identity. Language is among the most powerful methods for expressing a vision. Successful leaders use metaphors and figures of speech; they give examples, tell stories, and relate anecdotes; they draw word pictures; and they offer quotations and recite slogans."
Temple of Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Charles Caleb Colton
"Doubt is the vestibule through which all must pass before they can enter into the temple of wisdom."
On Character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Zig Ziglar’s Little Book of Quotes
"Character gets you out of bed; commitment moves you to action. Faith, hope and discipline enable you to follow through to completion."
Get Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shraga Silverstein, Candle By Day, #611
"To get started on the right foot is not enough. The foot must be pointed in the right direction."
Combating Evil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paul J. Wharton, Stories & Parables, p. 30
The students of a rabbi approached their teacher with a deep concern about the prevalence of evil in the world. Intent upon driving out the forces of darkness, they requested the rabbi to counsel them. The rabbi suggested that they take brooms and attempt to sweep the darkness from a cellar.
The bewildered disciples applied themselves to sweeping out darkness, but to no avail. The rabbi then advised his followers to take sticks and to beat vigorously at the darkness to drive out evil.
When this likewise failed, he counseled them to go down to the cellar again and to protest against the darkness by shouting at it. When this, too, failed, the rabbi said. "My children, let each of you meet the challenge of darkness by lighting a candle."
The disciples descended again to the cellar and kindled their lights. They looked, and behold! the darkness had been driven out.
Who’s Your Best Friend? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LEADERSHIP, Oct. 26, 1993, p. 13
Norman Vincent Peale was a young news reporter who happened to meet Henry Ford at a Detroit train station. Peale realized this was a chance of a lifetime and asked Ford if he had any advice for a young man starting out in life.
"Who’s your best friend, son?" Ford asked. Then before Peale could answer, Ford went on to say, "I’ll tell you who it is – it’s the person who brings out the best in you. Always associate with the best people – that’s where you will find such a person."
In his later years, Peale reflected, "I’m convinced that Henry Ford really knew what he was talking about. A best friend is one who tells you, "Yes, you can make your dreams come true. Yes, you have something valuable to offer to the world. Yes, your life can make a difference!"
"And there’s an opposite side to Henry Ford’s question, too," continued Dr. Peale. "It’s ‘whose best friend are you?’ Try asking yourself that question from time to time. Then when you answer it, make sure that you deserve that title by bringing out the best in that person, every day, in every way."
Saturday night, March 7
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Graphics used with permission from ChurchArt Online. They are not to be copied or downloaded.