Great Throughts Treasury

This site is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Alan William Smolowe who gave birth to the creation of this database.

Max Lucado

American Author, Writer and Pulpit Preacher

"I will be grateful for the twenty-four hours that are before me. Time is a precious commodity. I refuse to allow what little time I have to be contaminated by self-pity, anxiety, or boredom. I will face this day with the joy of a child and the courage of a giant. I will drink each minute as though it is my last. When tomorrow comes, today will be gone forever. While it is here, I will use it for loving and giving. Today I will make a difference."

"Today I will make a difference. I will begin by controlling my thoughts. A person is the product of his thoughts. I want to be happy and hopeful. Therefore, I will have thoughts that are happy and hopeful. I refuse to be victimized by my circumstances. I will not let petty inconveniences such as stoplights, long lines, and traffic jams be my masters. I will avoid negativism and gossip. Optimism will be my companion, and victory will be my hallmark. Today I will make a difference."

"I will spend time with those I love. My spouse, my children, my family. A man can own the world but be poor for the lack of love. A man can own nothing and yet be wealthy in relationships. Today I will spend at least five minutes with the significant people in my world. Five quality minutes of talking or hugging or thanking or listening. Five undiluted minutes with my mate, children, and friends."

"I will not let past failures haunt me. Even though my life is scarred with mistakes, I refuse to rummage through my trash heap of failures. I will admit them. I will correct them. I will press on. Victoriously. No failure is fatal. It's OK to stumble...I will get up. It's OK to fail...I will rise again. Today I will make a difference."

"Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. It is the belief that God will do what is right."

"Forgiveness is unlocking the door to set someone free and realising you were the prisoner!"

"Forgive and give as if it were your last opportunity. Love like there's no tomorrow, and if tomorrow comes, love again."

"The past does not have to be your prison. You have a voice in your destiny. You have a say in your life. You have a choice in the path you take."

"It's not about winning or losing, but love and respect."

"The people who make a difference are not the ones with the credentials but the ones with the concern."

"CAN is 100 times more important than IQ."

"No one can do everything, but everyone can do something."

"Can you imagine a life with no fear? What if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats?"

"We see a hearse; we think sorrow. We see a grave; we think despair. We hear of a death; we think of a loss. Not so in heaven. When heaven sees a breathless body, it sees the vacated cocoon & the liberated butterfly."

"Worry divides the mind."

"To lead the orchestra, you have to turn your back on the crowd."

"Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional."

"When you are in the final days of your life, what will you want? Will you hug that college degree in the walnut frame? Will you ask to be carried to the garage so you can sit in your car? Will you find comfort in rereading your financial statement? Of course not. What will matter then will be people. If relationships will matter most then, shouldn’t they matter most now?"

"If today were your last, would you do what you’re doing? Or would you love more, give more, forgive more? Then do so! Forgive and give as if it were your last opportunity. Love like there’s no tomorrow, and if tomorrow comes, love again. "

"No one can pray and worry at the same time."

"Find joy in the ordinary."

"The presence of fear does not mean you have no faith. Fear visits everyone. But make your fear a visitor and not a resident. "

"People are watching the way we act more than they are listening to what we say. "

"God never promises to remove us from our struggles. He does promise, however, to change the way we look at them. "

"Meet your fears with faith. "

"I choose gentleness... Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself. "

"I choose joy... I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical... the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God. "

"I choose love. No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness, I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves."

"You want to make a difference in your world? Live a holy life: Be faithful to your spouse. Be the one at the office who refuses to cheat. Be the neighbor who acts neighborly. Be the employee who does the work and doesn’t complain. Pay your bills. Do your part and enjoy life. Don’t speak one message and live another. People are watching the way we act more than they are listening to what we say. "

"Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek his grace. And then when this day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest. "

"Linger often in worship. In the midst of your daily storms, make it a point to be still and set your sights on him. Let God be God. Let him bathe you in his glory so that both your breath and your troubles are sucked from your soul. Be still. Be quiet. Be open and willing. Then you will know that God is God, and you can't help but confess, "Hallowed by thy name." "

"You change your life by changing your heart."

"God doesn’t want us because of what we have to offer him; he wants us because he has everything to offer us. God doesn’t want you because you have certain gifts to offer. He wants to give you gifts so that you then can offer them to other people."

"Want to snatch a day from the manacles of boredom? Do overgenerous deeds, acts beyond reimbursement. Kindness without compensation. Do a deed for which you cannot be repaid."

"The step between prudence and paranoia is short and steep. Prudence wears a seat belt. Paranoia avoids cars. Prudence washes with soap. Paranoia avoids human contact. Prudence saves for old age. Paranoia hoards even trash. Prudence prepares and plans, paranoia panics. Prudence calculates the risk and takes the plunge. Paranoia never enters the water."

"If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. But since our greatest need was forgiveness, God sent us a Savior."

"To the loved, a word of affection is a morsel; but to the love-starved, a word of affection can be a feast."

"At the beginning of every act of faith, there is often a seed of fear. For great acts of faith are seldom born out of calm calculation."

"Go to the effort. Invest the time. Write the letter. Make the apology. Take the trip. Purchase the gift. Do it. The seized opportunity renders joy. The neglected brings regret."

"Greed is not defined by what something costs; it is measured by what it costs you. If anything costs you your faith or your family, the price is too high. "

"Humility doesn't mean you think less of yourself but that you think of yourself less."

"Anger. It's a peculiar yet predictable emotion. It begins as a drop of water. An irritant. A frustration. Nothing big, just an aggravation. Someone gets your parking place. Someone pulls in front of you on the freeway. A waitress is slow and you are in a hurry. The toast burns. Drops of water. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Yet, enough of these seemingly innocent drops of anger and before long you've got a bucket full of rage. Walking revenge. Blind bitterness. Unharnessed hatred. We trust no one and bare our teeth at anyone who gets near. We become walking time bombs that, given just the right tension and fear, could explode. Now, is that any way to live? What good has hatred ever brought? What hope has anger ever created? What problems have ever been resolved by revenge?"

"You are valuable just because you exist. Not because of what you do, or what you have done, but simply because you are."

"A few songs with Him might change the way you sing. Forever."

"A book should be a garden that fits in the hands. Word-petals of color. Stems of strength. roots of truth. Turn a page and turn the seasons. Read the sentence and enjoy the roses."

"A nation is blessed when it has godly leaders."

"A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd."

"A woman?s heart should be so hidden in God that a man has to seek Him just to find her."

"About four days a week, I do pretty good at having a morning prayer time. But even at that, it's a rambling sort of thing. What I have learned to do better is to try to keep my mind turned toward God and ear inclined toward God throughout the day, and I think I'm doing better at that ,but I've got a long way to go."

"A season of suffering is a small assignment when compared to the reward. Rather than begrudge your problem, explore it. Ponder it. And most of all, use it. Use it to the glory of God."