Some really smart people have said some really smart stuff. Since we will never claim the first, we want to make sure we share the latter. I hope you read into this section and something grabs you, something you need to hear for particular circumstances in your life. If nothing else, I hope one of these quotes can help you through your day or even later on down the road.
The following section 10 quotes are from Paul Angone's book 101 Secrets For Your Twenties (but applies to people of all ages).1 - The possibility for greatness and embarrassment both exist in the same space. If you're not willing to be embarrassed, you're probably not willing to be great.
2 - Life will never 'feel' like it's supposed to, because supposed to is a fairy tale.
3 - Our plans aren't the problem. Our timeline is.
4 - The grass is always greener on the otherside, until you get there and realize it's because of all the manure!
5 - Obsessive Comparison Disorder is the smallpox of this generation.
6 - Frustration can be the best guide to leading you where you want to go.
7 - The biggest risk in life is not taking any risks.
8 - If you don't define success, success will gladly define you.
9 - Truly going after your dream can feel like rappelling into the Grand Canyon - enormous, overwhelming, breathtaking, and a very real feeling that you might fall to your death.
10 - If you feel the world owes you something, you will get exactly what you deserve out of life.
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The Following are a collection of quotes my dad saved and sent to me during my time in the Army and at Walter Reed. Another thing he told me was that you haven't learned anything until you have applied it. Action is key, Hollywood has it figured out, maybe we should too.
Our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but how we react to what happens to us; not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes. It is a catalyst…a spark that creates extraordinary results. Anonymous
You have to embrace the pain in order for it to have the desired effect. God uses the painful things we go through to teach us things we can’t learn any other way. Drew Brees
All God wants is for you to utilize the talents and abilities He has given you Drew Brees
It’s not enough to put my hope in hope. God is the center of my hope. I trust in His plan and believe He’s never going to put anything in front of me that’s too hard to handle with His help. Drew Brees
Every winner has scars. Herbert Casson
There are some remarkable lessons to be learned under duress. Adm. Jeremiah Denton
Anyone can see the adversity in a difficult situation, but it takes a strong person to see the opportunity. Drew Brees
In times of crises, people gravitate to the person with the highest character. Tony Dungy
After a while, people see through the talk when it doesn’t line up with the walk. Tony Dungy
It’s a shallow life that doesn’t have a few scars. Rob FutralQuitting is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Anonymous
The only difference between a good day and a bad day is your attitude. Anonymous
You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one. Max Lucado
In the end, what gets people through a physical or emotional crises is faith – faith that won’t allow you to give up; faith that maintains itself in a ferocious determination to take the next step – the one everyone else says is impossible. Sen. Bob Dole
I do not pray for success. I ask for faithfulness. Mother Teresa
Both heroes and victims get knocked down. The difference is heroes get up while victims give up. Jon Gordon
When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easy. Roy Disney
Destiny is not a matter of chance it is a matter of choice. William Jennings Bryan
It’s easy to make a buck. It’s a lot harder to make a difference. Tom Brokaw
Great people have two types of courage. First, they have the courage to get started, to take the leap of faith. To take action when they have no guarantee of success. Second, once they are on their way, they develop the courage to endure, the courage to persevere. Ruben Gonzalez – The only man to compete in the Olympics in 4 different decades
There are no victories at bargain prices. Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower
God never sends you anywhere He hasn’t already been! Max Lucado
God changes the world with people just like us. Max Lucado
Everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but the happiness and growth occurs while your climbing. Jason Lester
Change is the essence of life. Never be afraid to surrender what you are for what you need to become.
The only opinion that matters is the one God has of you!! Jason Lester
We must trust that God’s plan for us will be revealed in time. Until then we must walk in faith. Nick Vujicic
Find a purpose bigger than yourself, and dedicate yourself to serving that purpose as you go after what you want. With the right motivation, the mind has incredible power to push the body to places it doesn’t really want to go. Jason Lester
I came to understand that in the end, there were really only two beings who had to believe in what I could accomplish: God and me! Jason Lester
Too many people focus on “what if” instead of “why not”! Nick Vujicic
God saved me for a purpose – to live as a witness to His work in my life. Nick Vujicic
Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do. John Wooden
Fear and nerves are different. Fear is the suspicion that you may have what it takes to triumph when faced with a challenge. Nerves come when you’re chomping at the bit to start something but you’re forced to wait. Jason Lester
The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself. Mark Caine
The problem for us isn’t usually a lack of information; the problem is a lack of obedience. Rob Futral
Optimism is empowering. It gives us control over our emotions. Nick Vujicic
The circumstances of our lives have as much power as we choose to give them. David McNally
Encouragement from other Christians is like rocket fuel. Jason Lester
The tougher the climb the sweeter the view from the top. Nick Vujicic
Joy comes from knowing that people are better off because of the value you have added to their lives. Matthew Barnett
Eagles don’t flock. You have to find eagles one at a time. H. Ross Perot
Father make me a “crisis man”. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me. Jim Elliott
Fear cannot own you when a great cause rules your heart. Matthew Barnett
Success is not in what you have, but who you are. Bo Bennett
It's impossible to be of service to others while feeling sorry for yourself. Anonymous
God’s grace may be free but it isn’t cheap. Richard Foster
It’s not about how long you live; it’s about how you live. Rob Futral
Our aim is not to be great in God’s kingdom…it’s to be great in God’s eyes. Chip Ingram
5 minutes after we die, we’ll know exactly how we should have lived. Randy Alcorn
Learn to love the stage you’re in. Maybe bigger and better things will come to you in the future; maybe they won’t. It doesn’t matter. Appreciate the honor and the opportunities God has given you in the moment. Matthew Barnett
It’s a shallow life that doesn’t have a few scars! Rob Futral
Never forget that God loves you more than you can imagine. He is building character in you, which is something far more valuable than a big paycheck or a huge house. The ordeals of this life are in fact part of His strategy for producing iron in your soul. Jim Cymbala
When God seems the most absent, He is the most present. Carol Kent
Tough times in the life of faithful believers are indicators that God is preparing them for something special down the road. Jim Cymbala
Life’s not about flash or big events; it’s about faithful, godly people getting up and putting one foot ahead of the other, fighting through the routines of life, doing the right thing by honoring commitment. Chip Ingram
Most things in life are not nearly as important as we think they are. Richard Foster
Don't ever think too highly of yourself . . . 20 minutes after your funeral everybody will be in the fellowship hall eating potato salad! Chuck Swindoll
Anyone can give up. It is the easiest thing to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that’s true strength. John Maxwell
You can’t lead someone where you’ve never been. John Wooden
God wants you to stay the course. He gave you a mission because He knew you could do it. It’s always too soon to quit. It’s never too late to get started again. Jim CymbalaWe are accepted by Christ and the life we now live is a response of gratitude, not a labor of guilt or a desperate attempt to impress. Chip Ingram
Your real friends will stretch your vision. Those other ones will just choke your dreams. Dad
Our perspective begins to change when we realize we are in a spiritual battle here on earth and God has called us to be warriors. Carol Kent
My life will be shaped by God’s promise and plan, not by my own opinions or rationalizations. What God says, I believe. Now let’s get on with it. Jim Cymbala
God invites ordinary people to dream something so great that it would be impossible if God did not do it. Chip Ingram
God loves you just the way you are, but He loves you too much to leave you that way. David Nasser
God does not respond to our need. He responds to our faith. John Bevere
If you feel like God never gives you a shot, maybe it’s because you are not locked, loaded, and ready to fire. Nick Vujicic
If you find yourself in a fair fight, you didn’t plan your operation properly. Col. David Hackworth
Ignorance is a condition, not an excuse! Rob Futral
If the size of your vision for your life isn’t intimidating to you, there’s a good chance it’s insulting to God. Steven Furtick
The enemy really isn’t concerned about you living a comfortable Christian life. What he fears most is that you will reproduce. John Bevere
Your plan has to always be secondary to His plan. Rob FutralOnly as we rise do we encounter opposition. Fredrick Douglas
God speaks to us in our comfort, but shouts to us in our pain. CS Lews
When you get serious about God, Satan gets serious about you. Steve Farrar
Truth is heavy, so few men carry it. Ancient Jewish Proverb
God help me be willing to be less successful and more significant. Michael Catt
If God is your partner, make you plans big. DL Moody
There’s a huge gap between really hard and impossible. Ed Thomas
Men of valor run to the smell of battle. Stephen Arterburn
You may get shipped some bad bricks and weak steel, but you are still the general contractor. Ed Gungor
Be careful who you listen to. Never let anyone who has done nothing tell you how to do anything. Never let a loser attempt to tell you how to win. Michael Catt
It’s endurance that separates the men from the boys. The Christian life isn’t a hundred yard dash. It’s a marathon. It’s a long race, and long races don’t require speed. They require grit, determination, and finishing power. Steve Farrar
God does not exist to make a big deal out of us. We exist to make a big deal out of Him. Max Lucado
You either get better or you get worse. You never stay the same. Ed Thomas
Our greatest fear should not be of failure but rather succeeding at things that don't really matter. Frances Chan
The future is just a long string of right nows. Ed Thomas
God takes strong men and allows them to be tested thru crises. During this time, your life isn’t about to end, it’s about to begin. Steve Farrar
If God doesn’t have to act in order for your dreams to come true, then your dreams are too small. Ben Pilgreen
Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are. Malcolm Forbes
Endurance is not just the ability to bear a hard thing, but to turn it to God’s glory. William Barclay
God doesn’t waste suffering and loss. Steve Farrar
There’s a big difference between standing in hope and walking in faith. Steven Furtick
It isn’t how much of the Bible you know, it’s how much of the Bible you live. Steve Farrar
The blood of Jesus has never cleansed an excuse. Corrie Ten Boom
Every time you face a difficult challenge, remember that the day is coming when you will be a source of inspiration and hope to someone else. Jim Cymbala
You can’t run the race for our future prize when we continue to allow ourselves to be chained to our past. Steve Farrar
Some things really are worth fighting for, even when they are deeply complicated or difficult. Ed Gungor
Every moment, every word, every choice is a deposit either heavenly or earthly. David Nasser
You are a living magnet; you attract into your life people, situations and circumstances that are in harmony with your dominant thoughts. Brian Tracy
I am sure of God’s hand and guidance…You must never doubt that I am thankful and glad to go the way which I am being led. My past life is abundantly full of God’s mercy, and above all sin, stands the forgiving love of the Crucified. Dietrich Bonhoeffer – less than 1 year before he died in a Nazi camp
Difficult things take a long time, impossible things a little longer. André A. Jackson
The circumstances of our life have as much power as we choose to give them. David McNally
God gives people the exact experiences He wants them to have in order to shape the specific destiny He’s designed for them. Steven Furtick
You cannot die until God’s purpose for you on earth is complete. Steve Farrar
Grace is not just God’s favor that cannot be earned. Grace gives us the ability to exceed our own ability. It gives us the ability to live extraordinary. John Bevere
Those who win in life are those who refuse to give in to “easy”. Ed Gungor
God always gives His best to those who leave the choice up to Him. Jim Elliot
Adventure always involves risk. David Nasser
God doesn’t force things on us. He merely shows us the door. It’s our choice whether or not to walk through it. Jason Lester
No assignment from God is unimportant. Every assignment is preparation for the ultimate work that God has for my life. Steve Farrar
You may not give your life for your country, but you can give your life to a cause greater than yourself. You can give yourself selflessly to others and become great in their eyes. Jon Gordon
A humble man is not afraid of failure. In fact he isn’t afraid of anything, even of himself, since perfect humility implies perfect confidence in the power of God before whom no other power has any meaning and for whom there is no such thing as an obstacle. Thomas Merton
Ten of the spies Moses sent to Canaan based their opinion on how big the giants were. Joshua and Caleb saw how big God was and based their opinion on His strength. John Bevere
Before God promotes, He tests. Steve Farrar
The only real measure of our vertical relationship with God is the loving quality of our horizontal relationship with others Jim Cymbala
It’s ok to think about quitting. It’s not ok to quit. Matthew Barnett
Happiness and contentment have little to do with circumstances. Ed Gungor
Great Christians don’t play it safe. Chip Ingram
Here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished. If you're alive, it isn’t. Richard Bach
The darker it gets in your situation, the brighter God in His goodness and grace can shine through you for the world to see. Steven Furtick
Sometimes a closed door reveals the most important clues as to where God wants us to go. Steve Farrar
The difference between good and great is not a matter of knowledge or pedigree but a willingness to take a radical step of faith. Chip Ingram
Patience is essential. You plant the seed. You weather the storms. You wait for the harvest. Nick Vujicic
Honor is a gift a man gives to himself. Leslie Gordon
Maturity doesn't come with age; it comes with acceptance of responsibility. Ed Cole
Sometimes we get to see the miracle and sometimes we get to be the miracle. Other times it’s by what He through us. Steven Furtick
My standing isn’t based on what I’ve done or what I deserve. John Bevere
If you place your bets on temporary pleasures, you will find only temporary satisfaction. Nick Vujicic
Inspiration is contagious; the more we are exposed to it the more we inevitably pass it on. Chris Novak
Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder. Pres. George Washington
In the game of life, many of us in The United States who cross home plate do so
because we were born on 3rd base. Much of the world isn’t even on the team! Max Lucado
Fireproof doesn’t mean the fire doesn’t come. It means you can withstand the fire when it comes. Kirk Cameron
Outstanding people have one thing in common: an absolute sense of mission. Zig Ziglar
God’s dreams for you are always bigger and better than your dreams for you. Matthew Barnett
There aren’t any undefeated people around. John Gardner
Prayer’s not about changing God’s mind. It’s about changing your heart, activating your faith, and developing your confidence in God’s word. Steven Furtick
Hardships and afflictions are designed to deepen us and strengthen us and give us the endurance we need for the work that lies ahead of us. Anyone who has ever been used by God has gone through this process. There are no shortcuts. Steve Farrar
The church has become a sub-culture when she is supposed to be a counter-culture. John Bevere
We either kill sin or it kills us. John Owen
Good character is not given to us. We have to build it piece by piece…by thought, choice, courage, and determination. Steve Farrar
To know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, that is to have succeeded. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Life is not the way it’s supposed to be. It’s the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference. Virginia Satir
God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are always ready to guard and defend it. Daniel Webster
The greatest opportunities in life are the ones that test us the most. Drew Brees
It's not whether you get knocked down it's whether you get up. Vince Lombardi
Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life. Help us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong. West Point Cadet Prayer
It's not where you are from; it's where you are going. Anonymous
I am His servant, not His advisor Charles Spurgeon
It is in the quiet crucible of your personal private suffering that your noblest dreams are.
Wintley Phelps
What others think about you is really out of your control. What you know about yourself is in your control. Tony Dungy
Others determine your reputation. You determine your integrity. Tony Dungy
Anyone can give up. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that’s true strength. Anonymous
The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men. Samuel Adams
History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. Pres. Dwight Eisenhower
Being an American soldier is hard. Being the enemy of an American soldier is a lot harder. James Murphy
There are no great people in the kingdom, just simply people willing to let God use them greatly for His kingdom. Rob Futral
They call us the greatest generation. I say that every generation of young men and women who dare to face the realities of war – fighting for freedom, defending our country, with a willingness to lay their lives on the line – is the greatest generation. Sen. Bob Dole
My sacrifice is no different from that of today’s young Americans who will wear the scars as well as the medals of their service for as long as they draw breath. Bob Dole
We should stop viewing memorials as tributes to war. They are tributes to the physical and moral courage that makes heroes out of farm and city boys, and inspires Americans in every generation to lay down their lives for people they will never meet, for ideas that make life itself worth living. Sen. Bob Dole
Beautiful light is born of darkness so the faith that springs from suffering is often the strongest and best. R Turnbill
He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. Jim Elliot
A faith that hasn’t been tested can’t be trusted. Carter Lindberg
The dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must pay for success. Vince Lombardi
Any life, no matter how long and complete it may be, is made up of a single moment—the moment in which a person finds out, once and for all, who they are. Jorge Luis Borges
The path to a dream is paved with sacrifices and lined with determination. And although it has many stumbling blocks along the way and may go in more than one direction, it is marked with faith.
What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal. Albert Pike
Your courage is ultimately measured by what it takes to discourage you. David Cottrell
America was born upon the shoulders of men and women who gave their lives for freedom, pioneers who were not afraid of failure, thinkers who were not afraid of progress, and dreamers who had the courage to live their dreams. Anonymous
Many people sit around and wish for things to change in their lives, yet never take the necessary actions to make these dreams a reality. These people simply need to replace their wishbone with a backbone. John Augustine
The truly tough man is the one who stays grounded in his values and focused on his goals when things are challenging. When things in life don’t go according to plan, the tough man will exhibit a determination to reach his goals no matter the obstacle. Tony Dungy
How you start is important, but in the end it is how you finish that counts. BC Forbes
You want to live in such a way that the world will be glad you did. Max Lucado
To each there comes a time in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitting their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour. Winston Churchill
My greatest goal in life is to become a billboard for Heaven rather than a sign of the times.
Kevin Malarkey
It is our choices that show who we truly are far more than our abilities. Anonymous
Greatness is not a function of circumstances. It is a function of leadership and choices.
Choices determines successes. Jim Collins
How things look on the outside to us depends on how things look on the inside. Rob Futral
Winners make goals, losers make excuses. Rob Futral
