Thursday, November 20, 2003

Never does a man portray his character more vividly than his
proclaiming the character of another.

Winston Churchill
(1874-1965, British Prime Minister)
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It is better to deserve an honor and not receive it, than to
receive one, and not deserve it!

Mark Twain
(1835-1910, American Humorist, Writer)
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Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot
today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little,
at least we didnt get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die;
so, let us all be thankful.

Buddha
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He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.

Friedrich Nietzsche
(1844-1900, German Philosopher)

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In three words, I can sum up everything I've learned about life;
it goes on!

Leo Buscaglia
(American Expert on Love, Lecturer, Author)

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We get our moral bearings by looking at God. We must begin
with God. We are right when, and only when, we stand in a
right position relative to God, and we are wrong so far and so
long as we stand in any other position.
... A. W. Tozer (1897-1963), The Pursuit of God [1948]

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You only live once - but if you work it right, once is enough.

Joe E. Lewis
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The Christian clearly understands that Jesus does not
reveal all that is signified by the word "God", but only as
much as could be revealed through a perfect human personality
living in absolute obedience to God's will. The knowledge of
God that men have by virtue of Jesus' revelation is quite
enough for men to live by in this life, and to live gloriously
and thankfully by, Christians maintain -- the knowledge that
God the Creator, the Almighty and Eternal, the Lord of history,
is man's Heavenly Father, and that love might well be, and
indeed is, the ultimate meaning of human existence.
... Frederick Ward Kates (1920- ),
A Moment Between Two Eternities [1965]

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A Christian cannot help being free, because in the pursuit
and attainment of his object, no one can either hinder or
retard him.
... Lyof N. Tolstoy (1828-1910)

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It takes less time to do a thing right, than it does to explain
why you did it wrong.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
(1819-1892, American Poet)

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You have your season, and you have but your season; neither
can you lie down in peace, until you have some persuasion that
your work as well as your life is at an end.
... John Owen (1616-1683)

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My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch
him do it.

Clarence Buddinton Kelland
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The evidence for Christian truth is not exhaustive, but it
is sufficient. Too often, Christianity has not been tried and
found wanting -- it has been found demanding, and not tried.
... John Baillie (1886-1960)

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It is impossible for a man to be cheated by anyone but himself.

Ralph Waldo Emerson
(1803-1882, American Poet, Essayist)

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The purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open
one.

Malcomb S. Forbes
(1919-1990, American Publisher, Businessman)

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In the middle of a difficulty lies opportunity.

Albert Einstein
(1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

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The blessed and inviting truth is that God is the most
winsome of all beings and in our worship of Him we should
find unspeakable pleasure.
... A. W. Tozer (1897-1963), The Pursuit of God [1948]

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There was no point of controversy between Jesus and the
Jews; Jesus brought no new doctrine unto them. Jesus said, What
the masters in Israel teach, what the Pharisees and the Scribes
teach, is perfectly correct. There was no dogma which was the
cause of controversy between Jesus and the nation; there was no
new custom that Jesus introduced: He went into the Temple... He
observed the ordinances and festivals of Israel. What was the
subject of dispute and controversy between Jesus and the Jews?
It was no doctrine, it was no innovation, it was Jesus Himself
whom they rejected. There was an antipathy in them to the
person of Jesus: it was the Lord Himself whom they hated,
because they hated the Father... But Jesus knew... that it was
because He was one with the Father, because He was the express
image of His being, because He was the perfect manifestation of
the character of God, that they hated Him; and therefore Jesus
was pained, not because they hated Him, but because they hated
in Him the Father.
... Adolph Saphir (1831-1891), Christ and Israel [1911]

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That God loves us in spite of our sin is the Gospel truth;
but this truth can only be shared by words, since good deeds
are easily [taken to show] the opposite -- that we love God.
Faith is not understood when [it is] only demonstrated by life.
The more sanctified a life without the verbal witness, the
greater the danger of the Christian's goodness getting in the
way. Should a person by the grace of God become easier to live
with, he doesn't need to call attention to it: it will speak
for itself. He can instead seek to balance the reverse effect
of the good image by occasionally speaking of the unfavorable
realities within, those parts that are still changing. In this
way, his external behavior by contrast can point to the power
of God, rather than to the effort of man. When we decrease, He
can increase, but not until.
... Paul G. Johnson (1931- ), Buried Alive [1968]

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[God desires] not that He may say to them, "Look how mighty
I am, and go down upon your knees and worship", for power alone
was never yet worthy of prayer; but that He may say thus:
"Look, my children, you will never be strong but with my
strength. I have no other to give you. And that you can get
only by trusting in me. I can not give it you any other way.
There is no other way."
... George Macdonald (1824-1905),
Annals of a Quiet Neighborhood [1866]

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What is Christ's joy in us, but that He deigns to rejoice
on our account? And what is our Joy, which He says shall be
full, but to have fellowship with Him? He had perfect joy on
our account, when He rejoiced in foreknowing and predestinating
us; but that joy was not in us, because we did not then exist;
it began to be in us, when He called us. And this joy we
rightly call our own, this joy wherewith we shall be blessed;
which is begun in the faith of them who are born again, and
shall be fulfilled in the reward of them who rise again.
... St. Augustine (354-430), The City of God [426]

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Where, then, does happiness lie? In forgetfulness, not
indulgence, of the self. In escape from sensual appetites, not
in their satisfaction. We live in a dark, self-enclosed
prison, which is all we see or know if our glance is fixed ever
downward. To lift it upward, becoming aware of the wide,
luminous universe outside -- this alone is happiness. At its
highest level, such happiness is the ecstasy that mystics have
inadequately described. At more humdrum levels, it is human
love; the delights and beauties of our dear earth, its colors
and shapes and sounds; the enchantment of understanding and
laughing, and all other exercise of such faculties as we
possess; the marvel of the meaning of everything, fitfully
glimpsed, inadequately expounded, but ever present.
... Malcolm Muggeridge (1903-1990), Jesus Rediscovered [1969]

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Sunday, November 16, 2003

The only service a friend can really render is to keep up your
courage by holding up to you a mirror in which you can see a noble
image of yourself.

-- George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Irish Playwright
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It is a good thing to be rich, it is a good thing to be strong, but
it is a better thing to be beloved of many friends.

-- Euripides (480-406 BC) Greek Playwright

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There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.

-- Beverly Sills (1929-) American Opera Singer
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The great thing and the hard thing is to stick to things when you
have outlived the first interest, and not yet got the second, which
comes with a sort of mastery.

-- Janet Erskine Stuart

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Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done
without hope and confidence.

-- Helen Keller (1880-1968) American Writer

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The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything.

-- Bishop W.C. Magee (1821-1891)

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The height of your accomplishments will equal the depth of your
convictions.

-- William F. Scolavino

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Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the
success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult
task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will find a joy
in overcoming obstacles.

-- Helen Keller (1880-1968) American Writer

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Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but he whose heart is
firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his
principles unto death.

-- Thomas Paine (1737-1809) British-American Writer
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Failure is only postponed success as long as courage "coaches"
ambition. The habit of persistence is the habit of victory.

-- Herbert Kaufman

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The great man is he who does not lose his child's heart.

-- Mencius (371-291 B.C.)

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There are many ways to measure success; not the least of which is the
way your child describes you when talking to a friend.

-- Unknown

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You see things; and you say, "Why?" But I dream things that never
were; and I say "Why not?"

-- George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Irish Playwright
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Courage to start and willingness to keep everlasting at it are the
requisites for success.

-- Alonzo Newton Benn
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The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person
doing it.

-- Chinese proverb
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Man has never made any material as resilient as the human spirit.

-- Bernard Williams (1929-) English Philosopher
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Pain is temporary, pride is forever.

-- Anonymous
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I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength
from distress, and grow brave by reflection.

-- Thomas Paine (1737-1809) British-American Writer
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If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on
walking.

-- Buddhist Proverb
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It takes less time to do a thing right, than it does to explain why
you did it wrong.

-- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in
the end because they've stayed true to their ideals and beliefs and
commitments.

-- Kevin Costner, Actor
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The best leaders collect information widely, listen to everybody, and
then decide by themselves.

-- Edwin Bearss, Civil War Historian

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My mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. She
said that achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and
worked hard and done the best that is within you. Success is being
praised by others. That is nice but not as important or satisfying.
Always aim for achievement and forget about success.

-- Helen Hayes
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All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty
recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity;
but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their
dream with open eyes, to make it possible.

-- Lawrence of Arabia

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Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows
with the ability to say no to oneself.

-- Abraham Joshua Heschel 1907-1972

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The lover knows much more about absolute good and universal beauty
than any logician or theologian, unless the latter, too, be lovers in
disguise.

-- George Santayana,
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If you want to know what a man is really like, take notice how he
acts when he loses money.

-- New England Proverb
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I'm not happy, I'm cheerful. There's a difference. A happy woman has
no cares at all. A cheerful woman has cares but has learned how to
deal with them.

-- Beverly Sills
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You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it
will be too late.

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803-1882

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Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize
they were the big things.

-- Robert Brault

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As long as a person doesn't admit he is defeated, he is not defeated
-- he's just a little behind and isn't through fighting.

-- Darrell Royal, Texas football coach

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Those who turn good (organizations) into great (organizations) are
motivated by a deep creative urge and an inner compulsion for sheer
unadulterated excellence for its own sake.

-- Jim Collins, "Good to Great"
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We are fallible. We certainly haven't attained perfection. But we
can strive for it, and the virtue is in the striving.

-- Carlos P. Romulo

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The more virtuous any man is, the less easily does he suspect others
to be vicious.

-- Cicero

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The best portion of a good man's life is the little, nameless,
unremembered acts of kindness and love.

-- William Wordsworth

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Not the owner of many possessions will you be right to call happy: he
more rightly deserves the name of happy who knows how to use the
Gods' gifts wisely and to put up with rough poverty, and who fears
dishonor more than death.

-- Horace (65-8 BC), Roman poet

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It is the nature of man to rise to greatness if greatness is expected
of him.

-- John Steinbeck

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The world stands aside to let anyone pass who knows where he is
going.

-- David Starr Jordan

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The measure of a man is what happens when nothing works and you got
the guts to go on.

-- Tex Cobb, boxer and actor.
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I come to the office each morning and stay for long hours doing what
has to be done to the best of my ability. And when you've done the
best you can you can't do any better.

-- Harry S. Truman
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Virtue means doing the right thing, in relation to the right person,
at the right time, to the right extent, in the right manner, and for
the right purpose. Thus, to give money away is quite a simple task,
but for the act to be virtuous, the donor must give to the right
person, for the right purpose, in the right amount, in the right
manner, and at the right time.

-- Aristotle
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Any person capable of angering you becomes your master; he can anger
you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him.

-- Epictetus
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One must have the adventurous daring to accept oneself as a bundle of
possibilities and undertake the most interesting game in the world --
making the most of one's best.

-- Harry Emerson Fosdick
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Judgement comes from experience, and great judgement comes from bad
experience.

-- Robert Packwood
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Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional
glance towards the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful
scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point.

-- Harold B. Melchart
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The beauty of the soul shines out when a man bears with composure one
heavy mischance after another, not because he does not feel them, but
because he is a man of high and heroic temper.

-- Aristotle
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The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice
what we are for what we could become.

-- Charles Du Bos
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Nothing will ever be attempted, if all possible objections must first
be overcome.

-- Samuel Johnson

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Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can
see.

-- Mark Twain

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A day dawns, quite like other days; in it, a single hour comes, quite
like other hours; but in that day and in that hour the chance of a
lifetime faces us.

-- Maltbie Babcock
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Pa, he always said a man had to look spry for himself, because nobody
else would do it for him; your opportunities didn't come knocking
around, you had to hunt them up and hog-tie them.

-- Louis L'Amour, author
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One day in retrospect the years of struggle will strike you as the
most beautiful.

-- Sigmund Freud
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The most important thing I have learned over the years is the
difference between taking one's work seriously and taking one's self
seriously. The first is imperative, and the second disastrous.

-- Margaret Fontey

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The firmest friendships have been formed in mutual adversity, as iron
is most strongly united by the fiercest flame.

-- Charles Caleb Colton

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To love what you do and feel that it matters -- how could anything be
more fun?

-- Katherine Graham

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Individual commitment to a group effort, that is what makes a team
work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.

-- Vince Lombardi, American Football Coach

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Some people say I have attitude - maybe I do. But I think you have
to. You have to believe in yourself when no one else does - that
makes you a winner right there.

-- Venus Williams US tennis champion
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No matter who says what, you should accept it with a smile and do
your own work.

-- Mother Teresa
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Don't wait for your "ship to come in" and feel angry and cheated when
it doesn't. Get going with something small.

-- Irene Kassorla
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Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the
impossible.

-- Anonymous
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It is better by noble boldness to run the risk of being subject to
half the evils we anticipate than to remain in cowardly listlessness
for fear of what might happen.

-- Herodotus (485 - 425BC) Greek Historian

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The three great essentials to achieving anything worthwhile are;
first, hard work, second, stick-to-it-iveness, and third, common
sense.

-- Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931) American Inventor