Self-Praise

“Self-praise,” says an ancient adage, “smells bad.” In other words, it stinks up the works. Regardless of how we prepare it, garnish it with little extras, slice and serve it up on our finest silver piece, the odor remains. No amount of seasoning can eliminate the offensive smell. Unlike a good wife, age only makes it worse. It is much like the poisoned rat in the wall—if it isn’t removed the stench becomes increasingly unbearable.

Of Parrots and Eagles

EAGLE THINKERS ASK THE HARD QUESTIONS, take strategic risks, search hard for the whole truth, and soar high above mediocrity. Parrot people enjoy the predictable, routine, rehearsed words of others. I’ve discovered that many churches and organizations are overrun with parrots and virtually devoid of eagles. Too harsh? You decide.

The Balance of Life

BOTH ADVERSITY AND PROMINENCE confront our equilibrium, but prominence is perhaps the more challenging test. The classic example is David. [God] chose his servant David, calling him from the sheep pens. He took David from tending the ewes and lambs and made him the shepherd of Jacob’s descendants—God’s own people, Israel. He cared for them with a true heart and led them with skillful hands.

A Haughty Self

THERE’S NOTHING MORE DISTASTEFUL than someone who is set on self-glossing—offering his résumé and list of achievements unsolicited to everyone in the room. I confess, when I’m around a person like that I start to feel my skin crawl. Often, that type of person cannot see beyond his own ego to recognize that he is part of the problem; blame is always shifted to someone else;

A Quiet Place

IT IS ALMOST 10:00, MONDAY NIGHT. The children are snoozing upstairs. Aside from a few outside noises—a passing car . . . a barking dog . . . a few, faint voices in the distance—all’s quiet on the home front. That wonderful, much-needed presence has again come for a visit—quietness. I recall when our children were little, how valuable times of silence were to both Cynthia and me.

What You Gain in Losing

FORMER PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN kept a plaque on his desk in the oval office which read: There’s no limit to what you can accomplish if you don’t care who gets the credit. Little wonder President Reagan achieved so much in his eight years as leader of the free world. Yet that principle was not original with him. It comes from the heart of God. Here’s how the apostle Paul stated it:

Who’s on First?

IN MANY CHURCHES, Christians tend to get so caught up in a success-and-size race that the primary calling of following Jesus gets lost in the journey. We have skidded into a pattern where the “haves”—the most influential or financially successful individuals in life—and not the “have-nots” call the shots. Truth be told, it is difficult to follow when you’re used to being out front leading the pack.

A Servant, Not a Celebrity

Exactly what does our heavenly Father want to develop within us? Well, rather than getting neck-deep in tricky theological waters, I believe the simple answer is found in Christ’s own words.

Sound a Clear Call

“DON’T GARBLE THE MESSAGE!” If I heard that once during Marine boot camp, I must’ve heard it four dozen times. Again and again, our outfit was warned against hearing one thing, then passing on a slightly different version. You know, changing the message by altering the meaning just a tad. It’s so easy to do, isn’t it? Especially when it’s filtered through several minds then pushed through each mouth, it is amazing how the original story, report, or command appears after it has gone through its verbal metamorphosis.

Overcoming Envy

SHAKESPEARE CALLED IT “the green-eyed monster.” Bacon admitted it “keeps no holidays.” Horace declared that “tyrants never invented a greater torment.” Barrie said it “is the most corroding of the vices.” Sheridan referred to it in his play, The Critic, when he wrote, “There is not a passion so strongly rooted in the human heart as [this].” Philip Bailey, the eloquent English poet of yesteryear, vividly described it as “a coal [that] comes hissing hot from hell.”

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