“We must practice the Presence of God. Jesus said, “Lo, I am with you always” [Matthew 28:20]. Remember, Christ is always near us.”

“As we look then at these two powerful tools of the enemy, we see that doubt causes a person to waver between two opinions, whereas unbelief leads to disobedience.

“Josh Billings wrote, “It’s not what a man knows that hurts him; it’s what he knows that isn’t true.”

“There’s a difference between hearing people and listening to them.”

“Do not count a human dead until you’ve seen his body. And even then you can make a mistake.”

“He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it the second time.”

“In my research, I was surprised to discover that some experts believe many people possess an instinct or a natural aptitude for making money, others for healing, creating art, organizing, or negotiating. I’m convinced our instincts emerge out of and alongside our gifting, so it makes sense that our instincts would reflect our talents and abilities.”

“I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music.”

“Only in the darkness can you see the stars.”

“Be secure enough in who you are that you don’t live to please people. As long as you’re doing what God has put in your heart, you don’t need to look to the left or the right. Stay focused on your goals, and God will get you where you’re supposed to be.”

“GROWING UP changes one’s definition of what is fun — maturation does that, thankfully — so I hate to admit now that as a boy I thoroughly enjoyed throwing rocks at cars. It was a thrill to wait in hiding, ambush the car driving by, and then make our escape. Occasionally, a driver would stop their vehicle and get out to yell at us. But if we were really fortunate, they would chase us. We would run just far enough ahead to encourage them, but when they got close, we would turn on the afterburners of youth, leaving them far behind while we laughed hysterically. Once in a while, the police would come by — usually in unmarked cars — and the chase would be much more dramatic until we reached the ten-foot-tall fences at the end of the neighborhood field. To the police, it must have appeared as if they had us trapped. They had no idea, however, how practiced we were at vaulting those fences. We treated it like an Olympic event, running at full speed toward the fence and then leaping high into the air, grabbing the chain links, and allowing the momentum of our feet to swing us over the top and down on the other side. We would laugh at the police as we ran off, knowing there was no way they would follow us. Today I have great admiration for the police, who risk their lives on a daily basis to protect our lives, freedom, and property.”

Those two drops of honey, which more than all else had diverted my eyes from the cruel truth, my love for my family and for my writing, which I called art – I no longer found sweet.

“Your mess can become your ministry if you will have a positive attitude and decide to let everything you go through prepare you for what is ahead.”

“Discover a purpose that gives you passion. Develop a plan that makes you persistent. Design a preparation and motivates you to optimize your potentials. Do it because you love it!”

“I am like a person whose hands were kept numb, without sensation from the first moment of awareness - until one day the ability to feel is forced into them. And I say "Look! I have no hands!" But the people all around me say: "What are hands?”