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A woman traveling by plane was confiding in her seat mate that her child had failed to finish high school. Sensing the need for some encouraging words, the companion said, “We live in a world of second chances,” then went on to explain that all was not lost. Though the woman’s child may have chosen […]
Home is a feeling of peace and love that we carry with us. Never did home seem so far away as when a young soldier crouched in a foxhole near the enemy line during World War II. Bullets whizzed overhead. “For days . . . hot, humid, nerve-splitting days, and horrible, long, rainy nights,” the […]
“Oh say, can you see?”1 When author Francis Scott Key saw the American flag still flying over Fort McHenry, Maryland, the morning after a battle with the British in the War of 1812, he knew the Americans had not been defeated. With great enthusiasm he penned “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Nowadays the red, white, and blue […]
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. . . . And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.”1 The world is a wondrous place, full of gifts from a generous hand. Life is teeming with endless varieties on land and sea. From insect to animal to […]
It’s interesting that God has asked us to call Him Father. He could have requested us to call Him many things, such as Majesty, Creator, Excellency, Lord, or King. These titles and others like them are very fitting. However, when we talk with God, He desires us to simply address Him as Father. We learn […]
For most of us, a day full of rain is a dreary day. Rain has come to mean being trapped indoors with bored and restless children, or getting drenched by passing cars, or struggling to open an umbrella. We’re more likely to find being soaked an occasion for griping than rejoicing. In a world ribboned […]
Every person is born with his or her own talents. Few people recognize their talents right off; it usually takes time for discovery. If you follow your heart, it will lead you in your search. A woman who thought she had no talents enjoyed reading poetry. She then began studying poetry styles, which led her […]
Anyone who travels even a few miles from home has encountered the frustrations of road work in progress. Sometimes it appears that the whole world is under construction. The result is often a slowdown of traffic, long delays, and unplanned detours. This pattern affects more than our literal travels. Our very lives are beset with […]
Although the light of God’s love shines into every life, what we do with the divine light is a matter of personal choice. Life’s relationships and experiences offer us almost endless opportunities to recognize our blessings, and reflect the light of God’s goodness and love into the lives of others. The joy that comes from […]
No matter how well prepared a woman may be for a child, motherhood inevitably challenges the far reaches of her soul. On an ordinary day, she may feel as though she’s not up to what’s required of her. She marvels at all that’s entrusted to her care. Not only is her child physically dependent […]
A short story tells of a king who allowed prisoners to choose their own fate—they were placed in an arena and told to select one of two closed doors. Behind one door was a ferocious tiger, and behind the other was a beautiful maiden to marry.1 Very often our own lives mirror this tale, as […]
In a 1964 professional football game against the San Francisco Forty-Niners, Minnesota Viking Jim Marshall picked up a fumble and ran sixty yards for a touchdown. After tossing the ball through the air in triumphant delight, he was congratulated by a member of the opposing team. It was then that he realized he’d made a […]
One of the oldest epics in literature dates back to the ancient kingdom of Sumeria more than 4,000 years ago. Written on clay tablets and preserved in an ancient Assyrian library, it chronicles the adventures of Gilgamesh the King, who determines to learn the secret of immortality. His odyssey takes him over mountains and into […]
If we rate the importance of historical events by how much they impact the world and for how long the impact lasts, we would have to rank the life of Jesus Christ as one of the greatest of all events. Even two thousand years after He lived, scholars still study the words He began to […]
As we pick our way through the maze of life, we find that wrong turns and misread maps cause inevitable delays. We get lost, and we have to ask directions; we take shortcuts, only to find ourselves struggling through jungles of error and heartbreak. And as we near the end of our journey, we look […]
Every great effort is fueled by a compelling vision. Sculptors see potential in a stone; builders begin with an edifice in mind; students see their names on a diploma; and parents nurture greatness in the most ordinary child. For millennia, the art of the possible has built cities, technologies, and people. It’s given hope to […]
One of the world’s best-known fictional characters is Lemuel Gulliver, whose travels were immortalized by Jonathan Swift. Gulliver, a seafaring doctor, first finds himself among a race of people only six inches high, then among giants who can tuck him in a pocket, and finally in a land ruled by wise talking horses. Gulliver is an energetic and clever traveler, but he makes one very serious mistake with each group he encounters: he lets their opinion of him become his own opinion of himself. Among the little people, he soon acts as though he too is but six inches tall; and after living with the disdainful horses, he comes to believe that he and all human beings are worthless.
Despite its tasks and trials, each day of life offers us opportunities to find joy in our daily activities. In a world filled with cares and sorrow, our Heavenly Father’s love is constantly displayed in the joy He provides along life’s journey.
Great accomplishments almost always begin as simple ideas that we nourish in daydreams, until they blossom into action and make our visions a reality. Often our hopes and dreams are what keep us going: marching through snow during wartime, punching a time clock in a factory, struggling to overcome injuries. All tasks are made easier by keeping our eye on a glorious goal—freedom, food and clothing for one’s family, physical survival. The prospect of a brighter tomorrow gives us renewed vigor for our tasks and strengthens our commitment.
When we’re young, we think about how much better life will be when we have more money. When we’re older and have more money, we look back and remember the happy times when we had so little. Almost everywhere we turn, money seems to be a focal point. Game shows and lotteries hold out the succulent carrot of being rich. It becomes the dream of many—too often at a very high cost.
It has been said, “Much of the world’s work is done by [people] who do not feel quite well.”1 The responsibilities of daily living are seldom easy. They especially weigh us down if we must perform when we are not at our physical best. If everyone waited until they felt perfectly well before doing any good, not much would get done.
Every child receives a surname at birth to identify it with its family. Often its given name comes from a friend or relative, the hope being that the child may take on the character traits or talents of that person.
“Once upon a time” is a phrase that starts many of our beloved fairy tales. Scholars tell us that storytellers used the words to alert their listeners to the fact that the story wasn’t factual. It was to be enjoyed and learned from, but it really didn’t happen. Have you ever thought about the meaning of “once upon a time”?
Small children rarely walk anywhere. They leap, they dash, they run; the very words we use to describe their movement are as full of energy as are children. For a child, even the most commonplace sights and sounds are full of wonder. Above all, children live exuberant lives. The sight of a fire truck is greeted with excited shouts, while the play of a squirrel can be utterly engrossing. Children celebrate life with every romping game they play.
Probably every parent who tucked a child into bed has heard the plea, “Please don’t turn off the light.” Most parents find a way for at least a little light to illuminate their child’s room and chase away the fears. The German poet Johann von Schiller said: “. . . light is a noble gift of heaven! All beings live from light; each fair created thing, the very plants, turn with a joyful transport to the light.”1 Light warms us, comforts us, and guides us safely to our destinations. The dawning of each new day, with its welcoming rays of sunlight, gives hope to all.
Many believe that happiness just happens to us, like the weather. But some have learned that they create their own “inner climate.” A woman who had endured serious problems in her marriage, her financial security, and her health explained: “I felt like an absolute failure. I had to make a conscious decision to be happy.”1 Her experience supports the wisdom of the saying, “Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” We observe people who are discontented despite great good fortune, and others who, in the face of problems and hard times, still enjoy life each day.
Whether we sing, play instruments, or listen to what others create and perform, beautiful music offers each of us the opportunity to glorify God and draw closer to Him.
Not many years ago, we looked to a new millennium as a distant, almost surreal event. It loomed like science fiction—like a horizon we couldn’t reach. While the world didn’t turn out to be as different as some had predicted, we were nevertheless caught off-guard, unsure of our lives.
Every time the sun sets, it rises in the morning and sheds new light on yesterday’s shadows. Whether a new century or a new day, life presents countless opportunities to begin anew. No matter our age or circumstance, today is a new day, and so is tomorrow. Think how wonderful that is!
As he arose a changed man on Christmas morning, a repentant Ebenezer Scrooge exclaimed, “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”1 Like Dickens’s fictional character, we each learn that life’s most important moments are only transitory if they don’t become part of our everyday lives. Life’s celebrations are not left behind us if we let them live on in our hearts, embracing the present and shaping the future. By letting life’s special moments live on in our hearts, we can make a “holy day” out of each holiday, can experience a rebirth on each birthday and a new beginning with each new year.