Tomorrow, Lord willing, I will have lived on this earth for 52 years, yes I am that old, doesn’t seem possible, but I am a grandfather after all. It’s been a great life over all and since Scripture tells the old people to teach the younger people, I thought I would give you the benefit of those years of experience.
1. Love people, use stuff and never get that backwards.
2. When it comes to your career, do what you love and you will love what you do.
3. Careers make lousy gods.
4. Get your priorities straight. God first, family second, everything else comes after that.
5. “All children are artists, the problem is to remain one as one grows up.” Picasso said that.
6. You’re going to fail sometimes. Learn from it and try again.
7. The only true failure is the one that makes you quit.
8. Loving your neighbor can be really hard, but it sure beats hating your neighbor.
9. The church is like an airport, everyone comes through the door dragging their baggage.
10. People you can trust are worth their weight in gold.
11. Pray first.
12. Life is made up of moments. Make the moments count.
13. Don’t worry… period!
14. Temptations are called temptations because they’re tempting. Avoid them.
15. The story of your life is the story of the long and brutal assault on your heart by the one who knows what you could be and fears it. (John Eldridge said that)
16. Your life is a story, live a good one.
17. Live to make the world a better place. If you fail, at least people will know you tried.
18. Helping others is a great ointment for depression.
19. I used to think the one who dies with the most toys wins. I now know how incredibly stupid that was. The one who dies knowing Jesus wins.
20. The moments that test our faith also show us how much we need our faith.
21. The worst day of your life is just that, your worst day. From there it gets better.
22. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. (Albert Einstein)
23. People don’t last forever in this world. Make the most of your time with them.
24. Anything Jesus said should be taken seriously.
25. Doing the stuff God wants us to do, is often hard and entirely worth it.
26. When you’re a creative, failure is not an option, it’s a necessity. Fail forward.
27. You’re spouse is a gift from God. Value him/her and be blessed.
28. Ministry is easy except for the people.
29. A lot of Christians think they don’t need to go to church. Those people are wrong.
30. You don’t have to travel thousands of miles to be a missionary. The mission field is all around you.
31. What you feed grows, what you starve dies. Feed what’s most important. Let the negative stuff die.
32. The sermon in church is not for other people. How does it apply to you?
33. Don’t carve your name in stone, leave it there on someone’s heart. (An old Wild Dove song)
34. A dream is just reality waiting for it’s time.
35. Dreams usually become reality as the result of hard work.
36. Scripture never says God won’t put on you more than you can handle. If that were true no one would ever die. It says He won’t let you be tempted beyond what you can bear and when you are tempted, He will give you a way out.
37. Look for the way out of temptation and take it.
38. Temptation is not a test to see how strong you are to resist it. Flee from it. You ain’t that tough.
39. The Bible tells us to speak the truth in love. This is urgent and essential especially in the church. We act as if the biggest threats to the church are external. The biggest threats to the church are internal. They come from people who speak love without truth and truth without love.
40. Danger and anger are almost the same word.
41. Looking at your problems through the bottom of a bottle is a lot like looking at them through a magnifying glass.
42. There’s a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. Trust God’s wisdom over yours.
43. There is a God and I’m not Him. Thank God!
44. A problem will never be solved using the same level of thinking it took to create it. (Einstein)
45. Making art can be really therapeutic.
46. If you are married, having a date night is not optional. It is necessary. Never put your children before your marriage. Mess up the marriage, mess up the children.
47. Before you stress out, ask yourself, “Will this matter in 20 years?” If it won’t, don’t stress about it. If it will, be proactive, do something and don’t stress about it. (My aunt Treva said that.)
48. God claims vengeance for Himself alone. This is because no one else can handle it. When you’re angry enough to want revenge, give it to God instead.
49. Forgiveness is more for you than for the person you’re forgiving. Forgiveness allows you to heal, put it behind you and not relive it over and over again.
50. Your talents are God’s investment in you. Invest them in His Kingdom.
51. Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you as well. (Jesus said that and, as usual, He was right.)
52. God is always good, trust him.
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