A British historian named Arnold Toynbee spent 30 years (1934-1964) studying the rise and fall of 19 civilizations. He found one constant throughout. The collapse of every civilization never came from outside attacks. They all fell from within. It was when they ceased to create the future that they began to die. R.T. Kendall wrote,…
Longitudinal studies show that as we age, the cognitive center of gravity tends to shift from the right brain (imagination) to the left brain (logic). Thus, with time, we begin to live less out of imagination and more from memory. We stop creating the future and start repeating the past. We stop living by faith…
If you are to enjoy lasting recovery, you must stay thirsty for more, every day. In The Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer wrote, “I thirst to be made more thirsty still.” Jesus said, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink” (John 7:37). There are several ways in which you might stay…
The local pastor could tell something was bothering one of his church members. After the morning service he pulled the man aside and asked him, “What’s wrong, Robert?” Robert: “I need you to pray for my hearing.” The pastor put his hands on Robert’s ears and prayed for healing. Then he asked, “How’s your hearing…
Jack Hayford quit chocolate, and he stuck to that commitment for 40 years. Hayford said, “I made a decision against myself,” meaning it required action he’d rather not take. If you want to get out of debt, you have to make decisions against yourself financially. It’s called budgeting. If you want to lose weight, you…
Quitting your addiction is the easy part. Staying quit is the hard part. Mark Twain said, “Quitting smoking is easy. I’ve done it dozens of times.” Dr. John F. Kelly estimates relapse rates at 75 percent. In order to secure lasting recovery, Kelly suggests five phases to the process. Precontemplation: not yet ready for change…
In 1894, the London Times ran a feature story on a pending crisis that threatened civilization. In a word, manure. London had a poop problem. As their population hit one million, that meant a need for more horses for transportation. London had 50,000 horses, with the average horse producing 30 pounds of manure per day.…
In 1853, America hosted its first World’s Fair in New York City. The man who stole the show was Elisha Otis, who introduced the first elevator brake. Until then, very few buildings in New York had more than five stories, because nobody wanted to climb that many steps. Thanks to Otis, by 1900, New York…
One year ago today, my pastor and spiritual father died. Dr. Cecil Sewell led me to faith in Jesus, baptized me, conducted my wedding, and conducted my dad’s funeral. He was always there when I needed him. His loss leaves a huge void in my life. But in death we can see our God. The…
A recent Psychology Today article describes happiness as “an electrifying and elusive state.” The writer offers research that suggests that happiness is not as much tied to our circumstances as it is to our state of mind. Marcus Aurelius agreed: “The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” Scripture offers several…