OWN IT, THEN GIVE IT "You cannot give away what you do not possess." Howard Hendricks
Sermon Illustrations
ONE RUNS OUR LIVES A man explained how he and his wife learned to resolve their differences: "My wife and I have a perfect understanding. I don't try to run her life, and I don't…
CHILDREN FOLLOW ADULTS Josiah Warren in Equitable Commerce in 1855: "Children are principally the creatures of example. Whatever surrounding adults do, they will do. If we strike them, they will strike each other. If they…
PASTORAL TENURE In The Pastor's Confidential, editor James Swanson cites a recent survey of 758 pastors. The survey concluded that the average pastor serves one church only five years before making a move. Tenure of…
A NEGATIVE VIEW OF SOCIALISM The urge to distribute wealth equally, and still more the belief that it can be brought about by political action, is the most dangerous of all popular emotions. It is…
ATHLETIC CONCENTRATION Tom Landry, former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys: "Most people don't realize that to perform well in whatever you do, especially in an athletic contest which is extremely emotional, concentration is the…
UNHAPPY GIFTEDNESS I am convinced that, except in a few extraordinary cases, one form or another of an unhappy childhood is essential to the formation of exceptional gifts. By Thornton Wilder
CLOTHES HANGER WISDOM Why is it that after twelve children watch TV and munch on a half pound of crackers, the cracker crumbs on the floor weigh one pound? Is there an undiscovered law of…
LEARNING TO SKI I have enjoyed downhill skiing ever since my father took me to Four Seasons Ski Area in Lyle, Illinois. I learned to ski on a gentle slope that was small and well-populated…
GAMBLING GROWTH Gaming is such a pleasant name for gambling. But regardless of what it is called, it's a boon to the economy! And here is yet more proof: A few years ago, prior to…
CHARACTERS NOTICE Characters live to be noticed. People with character notice how they live. -- Nancy Moser
MOMENT OF HOPE This is a moment of hope in history. Why doesn't anybody say so? From All the Trouble in the World, P.J. O'Rourke
KEEPING CIRCUMSTANCES In America nobody says you have to keep the circumstances somebody else gives you. From The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan
GREAT JOY & ANGER In the midst of great joy, do not promise anyone anything. In the midst of great anger, do not answer anyone's letter. A Chinese proverb
ARISTOTLE ON VIRTUES & HABITS Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts. By Aristotle
HUNGER FOR TRUTH Truth isn't always beauty, but the hunger for it is. -- Nadine Gordimer
ALL NIGHT NOT AS LONG A little boy woke up at his grandparent's house after a particularly sound sleep. He jumped out of bed and ran into the kitchen to see his grandparents. As he…
ONE NEEDED IT MORE Two men stood in front of a taxi cab and heatedly argued about who had the right to the cab. While they argued, the wife of one of the men looked…
ERRANT ERASERS To err is human, but when the eraser wears out ahead of the pencil, you're overdoing it.
NEVER OUTSPOKEN There was a man at the party who seemed a self-appointed authority on every subject. One of the guests approached the host of the party and told the host: "He certainly is outspoken,…
