Monthly Archives: September 2010

Character Required for Success

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Having character means that you always try to do what you say you’re going to do, no matter how hard it may be.
— Pat Williams

You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him.
— Leo Aikman

Talent is overrated. You win with character. In a short series, talent might prevail. Over an 82-game basketball season, character prevails.
— Lewis Schaffel

Not being beautiful was the true blessing. It forced me to develop my inner resources. The pretty girl has a handicap to overcome.
— Golda Meir

Nice guys may appear to finish last, but usually they’re running in a different race.
— Kenneth Blanchard and Norman Vincent Peale

The Power of Affection

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The benefits of physical affection between you and your child are not just for your child. Your own emotional attachment to your child will be strengthened by regular physical contact.
— Laurence Steinberg

Touching words are statements of affection, whether written or spoken. Leave notes everywhere. Notes left on pillows and tucked into shoes and suitcases are powerful word “touchings.”
— Robert Wolgemuth

Acceptance and appreciation tells the child that he or she is of tremendous worth. And I can only express my acceptance and appreciation through being affectionate – and available.
— Josh McDowell

Affection – the nonverbal communication of closeness – is among the most important experiences we share with our children.
— Charles Swindoll

We may prepare food for our children, chauffeur them around, take them to the movies, buy them toys and ice cream, but nothing registers as deeply as a simple squeeze, cuddle or pat on the back. There is no greater reassurance of their lovability and worth than to be affectionately touched and held.
— Stephanie Marston

The Treasure in Books

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It is chiefly through books that we learn from superior minds. In the best books, great men talk to us, give us their most precious thoughts and pour their souls into ours.
— William Channing

Books are the compasses and telescopes and sextants and charts which other men have prepared to help us navigate the dangerous seas of human life.
— Jesse Bennett

There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.
— Walt Disney

Through the use of books I had the whole world at my feet: could travel anywhere, meet anyone and do anything.
— Dr. Ben Carson

You can’t put your hand in a pot of glue without some of it sticking. So, too, you can’t put your mind and heart into the works of the masters without some of it sticking. If you read about immortals, you increase the possibility of leaving an immortal effect. The result has been enormous for me.
— Dr. John Demartini

How to Pray

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Prayer is exhaling the spirit of man and inhaling the Spirit of God.
— Edwin Keith

Recognize that prayer brings the best results when you have sufficient faith to see yourself already in possession of the things you are praying for.
— Napoleon Hill

Prayer is not designed for the furnishing of God with the knowledge of what we need, but it is designed as a confession to Him of our sense of need.
— A.W. Pink

You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
— James 4:2-3

Prayer is the chief agency and activity whereby men align themselves with God’s purpose. Prayer does not consist in battering the walls of heaven for personal benefits or the success of our plans. Rather it is the committing of ourselves for the carrying out of His purposes.
— G. Ashton Oldham

Giving

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He who is not liberal with what he has, does but deceive himself when he thinks he would be liberal if he had more.
— William Plumer

I see God in every human being. When I wash the leper’s wounds I feel I am nursing the Lord Himself.
— Mother Teresa

Wealth is the means, and people are the ends. All our material riches will avail us little if we do not use them to expand the opportunities of our people.
— John F. Kennedy

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?
— 1 John 3:17

It will not bother me in the hour of death to reflect that I have been “had for a sucker” by any number of imposters; but it would be a torment to know that I had refused even one person in need.
— C.S. Lewis

Best Effort

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Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better.
— Pat Riley

The harder you work, the luckier you will get. Never be satisfied with less than your very best effort. If you strive for the top and miss, you’ll still beat the pack.
— Gerald Ford

Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they’ve got a second. Give your dreams all you’re got and you’ll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you.
— William James

Some days, doing “the best we can” may still fall short of what we would like to be able to do, but life isn’t perfect – on any front – and doing what we can with what we have is the most we should expect of ourselves or anyone else.
— Fred Rogers

My father always emphasized maximizing my ability in anything I do, whether it is academics, music or sports. “There are a lot of talented people in the unemployment line,” he told me when I was giving less than my best at anything. “Naturally ability can only carry you so far,” he said. “Making the most of your talent is the yardstick for success in this family.”
— Jim Courier

Enjoy Beauty

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Steeping my life in beauty brings color to my days and a song to my heart.
— Thomas Kinkade

Whatever I do, I like to stop and sniff the flowers.
— Evonne Goolagong

Nothing contributes so much to living as a knowledge of beauty and a love of it. Beauty of color, beauty of movement, beauty of line, beauty of sound.
— Grover Orth

Make time in your life for wonder. If at all possible, when something beautiful strikes your eye, stop and gaze at it. If you notice something unusual, let your eyes grow big.
— Thomas Kinkade