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A woman who had made some serious mistakes confided to a friend, “My life feels like an unfinished book. It had a good beginning. But now I wonder how it will all turn out in the end.” Her friend offered this insight: “A life story isn’t told in one chapter. And a book isn’t finished […]
Hope is born of knowing we are not alone, with no one to watch over us. As the Psalmist assured: “He that keepeth thee . . . shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper.”¹ How wonderfully reassuring it is to know that God, the Father of our souls, is in His heaven, […]
On the bookshelf of many a reader and romantic sit the novels of Jane Austen, celebrated British author. She died in 1817 at age 41 after facing months of ill health with remarkable faith and optimism. Her grave lies beneath the worn stone floor of the massive medieval cathedral in Winchester, England. Carved in stone […]
Compassion for others is vital to our well-being. To feel for others, to “walk in their shoes,” and to help when help is needed is the source of true happiness in life. The more we nurture such compassion, the more generosity of spirit we feel. Though we may doubt our own abilities, if we are […]
A parable is told about a merchant who searched the world for precious jewels and finally found the perfect pearl. He hired a craftsman to make a special box for the pearl so he could display it. The craftsman made an exquisite jewelry box with blue velvet lining, but much to the merchant’s dismay, people […]
Have you heard the story about Jason McElwain, the water boy and manager of a high school basketball team in Rochester, New York? It’s so remarkable that one is tempted to begin it with the words, “Once upon a time.” Jason was born with autism and didn’t speak until he was five years old. He […]
Our willingness to experience failure and make mistakes affects our ability to succeed. If we stand on the sidelines without trying, we may escape the heartache of defeat, but we’ll never know the joy of accomplishment. If we’re willing to stumble and sometimes even fall, we’ll learn, grow, and become strong. One hundred and forty […]
Every once in a long while, someone pens a poem that captures the hearts of a generation and then lives forever. John Gillespie Magee Jr. was one such uncommon poet. Early in World War II, 18-year-old John Magee enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He progressed quickly and soon became a pilot officer. One […]
For each of us, life has its share of pleasure and sorrow. Most of us prefer the pleasure, but we also need the wisdom, patience, and understanding that sorrow offers. Robert Browning Hamilton expressed it well in his poem “Along the Road”: I walked a mile with Pleasure;She chattered all the way,But left me none […]
There is a spirit that limits and shrivels the human soul whenever it remains unchallenged and unchecked. For want of better words, perhaps it could be called “the spirit of getting by”—of doing as little as possible, of giving as little as possible, of working as little as possible. With young people in school it […]
A thousand horses were entered in the show, and oh, how they could jump. The open-jumper class was the most anticipated event of the competition, and only the finest horses competed. But as the proud thoroughbreds paraded by, a hush fell over the crowd followed by laughter, for among the high-stepping aristocratic horses was what […]
Life is a journey. Very often, the most difficult journeys bring the greatest growth—and ultimately, the most joy. Today we remember an epic journey that began 150 years ago when several thousand handcart pioneers trudged more than a thousand miles, pushing and pulling wooden handcarts across the plains and over the Rocky Mountains to the […]
The story is told of a man who was busily working to install a new roof on his home. Suddenly he slipped and began to slide down the steep roof toward the edge. In desperation he cried out to heaven, “Save me and I’ll serve Thee all my days!” Just then his pants caught on […]
We all have our share of trials and tribulations, our share of joy and happiness. During the trying times, it’s easy to forget the joyful times. Life can certainly be hard, but it can also be full of hope and possibility if we keep trying, look for the good, and accentuate the positive. Look around […]
In the summer of 1776, a small group of men from all walks of life—lawyers, merchants, farmers, doctors, and ministers—stepped forward one by one to sign their names to the Declaration of Independence. There was no fanfare, no trumpets, but the event was sobering if not ceremonious. Fully aware of the risk—treason against the crown […]
Think of what a better place the world would be if we always asked ourselves, Would I like someone to do to me what I am doing to them? This simple standard, commonly known as the Golden Rule, is endorsed by religious traditions around the world. Each has its own way of saying it, but […]
The story is told of a father who overheard his son praying, “Dear God, make me the kind of man my daddy is.” Later that night, the father prayed, “Dear God, make me the kind of man my son needs me to be.”Good fathering is hard work, the most important kind of work men can […]
Shortly after being named America’s poet laureate, Robert Pinsky launched a campaign to identify the nation’s favorite poem. Thousands of poetry lovers sent in nominations, and Robert Frost’s reflective poem “The Road Not Taken” emerged as the clear favorite. The well-known lines speak of life’s pivotal choices: Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I […]
Long ago, a small group of men were riding out a rough storm on the Sea of Galilee. Fearing for their lives, they awakened their sleeping Master and implored, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” Seeing their fear and hearing their plea, He calmed the tempest with the gentle command, “Peace, be still.”1 Nearly […]
Has it occurred to you that our forebears did not live in the past? Pulitzer-Prize winning historian David McCullough has pointed out that the great men and women of history “lived in the present just as we do. The difference was it was their present, not ours. And just as we don’t know how things […]
“Reverence is more than just quietly sitting.”1 It is “profound respect mingled with love.”2 Reverence is an attitude of awe, honor, appreciation, and deference to the holy. It is reflected in the way we talk and think, the way we treat others, the way we regard sacred things. Reverent people know that such an attitude […]
For more than 300 years, the people of England have celebrated “Mothering Sunday.” Originally a religious holiday, it was also a day when servants were allowed to miss work and spend time with their mothers. In Ethiopia, a Mother’s Day celebration can last for two or three days. When the rainy season ends, sometime in […]
Love is the most powerful force in the universe. Love blesses both giver and receiver and resounds in hearts forever. It’s true that we’re all born with differing interests and capacities, strengths and weaknesses. But one thing we all need is to receive and give love. We need it in order to grow into the […]
Announcer: “The dawning of a brighter day”—these words were sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on July 15, 1929, during the first broadcast of a new program originating from Temple Square in Salt Lake City. It was a program destined to make broadcasting history. Today, nearly 77 years later, we celebrate a remarkable landmark in […]
Nearly every day we see portrayed in the media innocent children suffering the violence of war, the ravages of nature, and the pain of disability. We see little ones wide-eyed with fear or glassy-eyed from hunger, clinging to desperate parents or crying alone. The world can be so cruel to those who deserve kindness the […]
In the early spring of 1912, students crowded into a Harvard classroom for the final lecture of renowned philosopher and poet George Santayana. Near the end of his remarks, the students hanging on his every word, Professor Santayana glanced out the window. His eyes caught sight of a forsythia blossoming in a patch of lingering […]
The good shepherd has long been a symbol of God’s love and watchful care. The shepherd knows his sheep and calls each one by name. The sheep are defenseless against the wolves of the desert. They need constant care. So night and day, the shepherd protects his sheep and guides them to green pastures and […]
When all is well and life is good, we tend to forget those who have made our present comforts possible: the teachers, parents, ancestors, and others who’ve sacrificed in our behalf. We drive on roads we didn’t build, or we eat food we didn’t grow—we all enjoy benefits and blessing that have come from the […]
The life of beloved poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is proof that good can come from sorrow and difficulty. He received great honors for his many successes, but, like all of us, he also knew his share of heartbreak and grief, including the tragic death of his wife. From the losses he suffered, however, Longfellow gained […]
How we choose to spend our time says a lot about us. It’s true that sometimes we don’t have any say over how our minutes, hours, and days are spent. No one really chooses to wait in long grocery lines, catch the flu, or get stuck in traffic. But what we do with the time […]