Your Morning Cup of Inspiration

Many people have the misguided notion that they need to accomplish their greatest achievements by the time they are 40.  If they don’t, they feel like their life has been a failure.  That is what drives the stereotypical midlife crisis.  “If I haven’t done all I want to do by the time I am 40,…

  We live in a world that is structured to have other people define who we are. You are smart or dumb based on how a teacher grades you on a test.  You are skilled or unskilled based on whether your boss gives you a promotion.  You are beautiful or not based on the reaction…

“If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the powere to revoke at any moment.” – Marcus Aurelius Antonius Marcus Aurelius was a second century Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher. Yet his words remain as true today…

This past weekend, I had a nice Mother’s Day.   My daughter gave me some very thoughtful gifts and made me feel appreciated.  She and I have a very close relationship, and I feel incredibly blessed to be her mother. However, while I like Mother’s Day, and all the niceties that go with it, there is…

We tend to think that pastors are the only people who have ministries. The reality, however, is that we all have ministries.  The verb “to minister” means to attend to the needs of someone.  Pastors happen to tend to the spiritual needs of people.  But ministry is so much broader than that. Every interaction that…

A little over 20 years ago, Charles Barkley famously said in a Nike ad, “I am not a role model.” It was a naïve statement.  The truth is that we are all role models. Each of us is setting an example for someone, every minute of every day.  You can’t walk away from that reality. …

Last fall, I was shopping at a store where they sell everything in bulk. I can never think rationally in those types of stores.  “Why buy one jar of mayonnaise, when I can buy ten?” I ask myself.  The reasonable answer is because our family of three cannot possibly consume ten jars of mayonnaise before…

Each of us has been blessed by God in one way or another. We all have things in our lives that are good.  The challenge is that we tend to squander the good things that God has given us. Let me give you an example. How many people do you know who are unhealthy, not…

Sadly we live in a world in which many people don’t feel loved. Some children don’t have parents who love them.  Some people are caught up in loveless marriages.  And then there are those who are simply alone.  Even people who are blessed with good relationships occasionally can feel lonely and unloved.  As a result,…

If you’ve ever gone hiking in a state or national park, you’ve seen that every so often there are forks in the path. Typically at the fork, there will be a simple map showing what will happen if you go left versus right.  And then you make a choice.  Sometimes your choice will depend on…

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