Rev. David Tinney tells how Rabbi Marc Gafni recalled “one of the first bar mitzvahs he ever performed. It was for a boy named Louis. Louis was awkward and sad. His insensitive parents did little to encourage his self-esteem. They implied that he was too dumb to learn the traditional Hebrew passages a boy recites for his bar mitzvah.

“Rabbi Gafni was determined to bring out the best in Louis. He spent extra time teaching him the songs and prayers. He discovered that Louis was smart, and had a fantastic singing voice. On the day of his bar mitzvah, Louis performed beautifully. At the end of the ceremony, Rabbi Gafni stood and spoke directly to Louis. He said, ‘Louis, this morning you met your real self. This is who you are. You are good, graceful, talented, and smart. Whatever people told you yesterday, and Louis, whatever happens tomorrow, promise me one thing. Remember … this is you. Remember, and don’t ever lose it.’

“A few years later, Louis wrote to Rabbi Gafni. The boy whose parents predicted that he was too dumb to perform a traditional bar mitzvah was studying for his medical degree at an Ivy League university. He was also engaged to be married. Louis ended his letter by saying, ‘I kept my promise—I always remembered my bar mitzvah morning when you said that this is who I am. For this, I thank you.’”²

Dear Reader, no matter what you have ever been told in the past, or what you have come to believe about yourself, always remember that God loves you totally with an everlasting love. He believes in you absolutely and wants you to come to him and believe in yourself in a healthy and helpful way so that you will, with his help, become all that he has envisioned for you to be, and to achieve all that he has planned for you to do.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, as you told the ancient Israelites that you loved them with an everlasting love thank you that you say the same to your followers today. Help me to experience your love and affirmation at the very core of my being so that I will be a better servant of yours in all that I am and do, and so that my life will bring glory and honor to your name. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV).

2. Marc Gafni, The Mystery of Love (New York: Atria Books, 2003), pp. 120-121. Cited on

“Saintly Sentinels,” Rev. David Tinney.

In his book, Beginning Again, Terry Hershey writes, “God not only says that failure is never the final word, but that your area of weakness will become your area of strength. Where you were weak and learned grace will become a means whereby you can reach out and touch the lives of others who need the same good news.

“God is not only working to heal you, but to heal others through you, to make you what Henri Nouwen called a ‘wounded healer.’

“Such healing doesn’t happen through the man or woman who has all the answers. It happens through the man or woman who understands pain and grace. Nouwen explains, ‘For a deep understanding of his own pain makes it possible for the [wounded healer] to convert his weaknesses into strength and to offer his experience as a source of healing to those who are often lost in the darkness of their own misunderstood suffering.’”

I believe it was Ernest Hemingway who first used the phrase, “Growing strong in the broken places.” The idea behind these words is that where a bone is broken and heals, it becomes the strongest part of the bone.

The same is true of our broken places—where we have been hurt, have fallen or failed. When we bring these to Christ for his healing, his strength is then made perfect in and through our weaknesses. This is certainly true in ministering effectively to other people. They are helped, not through our brilliant logic or persuasive speech, but through the sharing of our struggles, and how, with God’s help, we have overcome. It is a case of one beggar showing other beggars where to find bread. This is why the Apostle Paul could say, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”¹

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please heal me in my many broken places and use me to be a wounded healer to many others who have fallen, been wounded, hurt, or brokenhearted. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Romans 8:28 (NIV).

“When Leonardo da Vinci was still a pupil, his elderly, well-known teacher asked him to finish a painting that he, the teacher, had begun.

“Young da Vinci stood in such awe of his master’s skill that at first he respectfully declined. But his teacher would accept no excuse. He simply said, ‘Do your best.’ Trembling, da Vinci took his brush and began. With each stroke, his hand grew steadier as the genius within him awoke. Soon he was so caught up in his work that he forgot his timidity. When the painting was finished, the frail and weak master was carried into the studio to see it. Embracing his student, he exclaimed, ‘My son, I paint no more!’”²

Not everyone has the kind of talent and genius that Leonardo da Vinci had, but every one of us has God-given talents that he wants us to develop and use for his glory. He never expects from us what he hasn’t gifted us to do. And he has already equipped us to do what he wants us to do. So use what talents you possess. Do your best and leave the rest to God. As Henry van Dyke said, “The woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for the talents you have given to me. Please help me to see what they are, develop them fully, and use them to the best of my ability for your glory. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Ecclesiastes 9:10 (NIV).

2. Richard W. De Haan, Radio Bible Class, www.rbc.org.

When singer John Davidson was learning to drive, he wanted a car of his own. His father, a Baptist minister, told him he could have a car providing he got good grades at school, read his Bible more, and got his hair cut shorter.

“On my next report card,” John said, “I got all B’s and told my dad I had been reading the Bible. He said that was fine, but how about the haircut? ‘Well,’ I told him, ‘in reading the Bible I found that Jesus had long hair.’”

“My father agreed and said, ‘Yes, but he also walked everywhere.’”

There seems to be something about human nature in that many of us want as much as we can get for as little effort as possible. However, we only truly appreciate that which we work for. The reality of life is that there are no free lunches.

I tried to instill in my sons the belief that they can pretty much do what they want with their life and accomplish what they desire providing they are willing to adequately prepare themselves for what they want to do and work hard enough to achieve it. As Solomon put it, “The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.”²

As another has said, “Everybody is self-made. Usually only the successful will admit it!”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to become the person you want me to be and diligently do all that you would have me to do. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 22:29.

2. Proverbs 13:4 (NIV).

“These boys won’t make it. Go back to Liverpool, Mr. Epstein, you have a good business there.” This is what a recording company executive told the Beatles’ manager at their first audition! Can you imagine that?

“That kid can’t play baseball. He can’t pull the ball” is what the manager of the Brave’s Triple-A team said about Hank Aaron in 1952. Aaron went on to hit 755 home runs, the most ever in the history of baseball.

Remember, no matter what the critics say, in God’s economy everybody has a purpose and everybody has something of value to offer. Never give up until you know what your God-given talent is, or talents are, sharpen them, dedicate them to God, and give them all you’ve got. Take courage. Nothing you do for God will ever be in vain.

If what you are choosing to do is in harmony with God’s will for you, then dream big dreams, work hard, trust God and in time you will reap what you sow—and will be richly rewarded. Know your God-given dreams and keep hope alive. In due time you will be rewarded if you “faint not.”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to know my God-given life purpose and dream. Help me to be faithful to this calling and keep hope alive so that I will receive the reward that comes from you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 13:12 (TLB)(NLT).

When she was only nineteen months of age, Helen Keller suffered an illness that left her blind and deaf. Soon she was unable to speak. By the age of seven she was extremely frustrated by her inability to communicate. Fortunately, her parents were able to hire a 20-year-old teacher to come and live with them.

The teacher, Anne Sullivan, was a very capable and loving individual and was able to put courage into Helen by teaching her to communicate with the use of her fingers. Helen was greatly encouraged, learned to read by Braille and then read everything she could lay her hands on.

She desperately wanted to earn a university degree and, passing the entrance exams to Radcliffe, pleaded with officials to allow her to attend and bring Anne Sullivan with her to translate the lectures into her manual code. The following is part of what she wrote to the admissions office:

“I realize that the obstacles in the way of my receiving a college education are very great—to others they may seem insurmountable; but, dear Sir, a true soldier does not acknowledge defeat before the battle.”

Helen was admitted and graduated with high honors. She then spent the rest of her life helping to improve the lot of and put courage into other handicapped people at home and around the world.

Indeed, “A true soldier does not acknowledge defeat before the battle!” A good word for today.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please give me the courage to face any and all battles that may come my way knowing that you are with me and will never leave me or forsake me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Joshua 1:9 (NIV).

Three of life’s greatest abilities are dependability, responsibility, and availability.

First: Dependability, among many things, is keeping one’s word. It’s doing what we say we are going to do. It’s keeping the commitments we make. It is being authentic; for instance, sometimes, instead of saying what we truly feel and want, we say what we think others want to hear to be “nice,” and then we do the opposite, which is far from being nice. It’s being dishonest. Such a person cannot be trusted or depended on.

Second: Responsibility; that is, realizing that I am totally responsible for what I say, for what I want, for what I feel, for what I do or don’t do, for getting my needs met in healthy ways, and for every area of my life.

Unless I am handicapped, no matter what happened to me in the past relationally, if it were negative, I am responsible for what I do about it and for what I become. As another has wisely said, “I may have been a victim in the past, but if I remain a victim, I am now a willing volunteer.” As long as I fail to accept personal responsibility for my life and blame anybody else for the difficulties I have, I will never overcome them. That is, if I keep playing the blame-game, I will B-LAME!

Third: Availability. If I want my life to be fulfilling and meaningful, I need to be available for my family, for having a part in worthwhile causes (without being obsessive), and for being available to participate in God’s work here on earth. As I have shared on a number of occasions, when it comes to being involved in God’s work, every morning I pray the following prayer of commitment: “Dear God, again today I’m available, please make me usable, and use me to be a witness for Jesus, and, Lord, please help me to be ‘as Jesus’ in some way to every life I touch this day.” I encourage you to also pray this prayer at the beginning of every day.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to become the person you want me to be, to always be dependable, responsible, and available for you to use to have a part in what you are doing in the world today—all for your glory. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 2 Corinthians 5:10 (NIV).

“There is a story of a 33-year-old truck driver by the name of Larry Walters who was sitting in his lawn chair in his backyard one day wishing he could fly. For as long as he could remember he had wanted to fly but he had never had the time, money, or the opportunity to be a pilot. Hang gliding was out because there was no good place for gliding near his home. So he spent a lot of summer afternoons sitting in his backyard in his ordinary old aluminum chair—the kind with the webbing and the rivets, the kind most of us have.

“One day Larry hooked 45 helium-filled surplus weather balloons to his chair, put a CB radio in his lap, tied a paper bag full of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to his leg, and slung a BB-gun over his shoulder to pop the balloons when he wanted to come down. He lifted off in his lawn chair expecting to climb a couple of hundred feet over his neighborhood. Instead he shot up 11,000 feet right through the approach corridor to the Los Angeles International Airport. When asked by the press why he did it, Larry answered: ‘Well, you can’t just sit there.’ When asked if he was scared, he answered, ‘Yes … wonderfully so.’”²

Oops! Surprise! Surprise! Admittedly, Larry had no idea what he was getting himself into. Sure, he would have been wise to get some practical advice from the folk who use weather balloons. Crazy? Yes, but at least he had the courage to give what he wanted to do a try. I’m not suggesting that we do anything crazy, but at least let’s do something worthwhile with our lives.

As I’ve said before, just about every Christian I have ever asked the question, “Do you believe God has a purpose for your life?” answer, “Yes, I do.” But when I ask them what it is, most don’t have the vaguest idea what it might be. In a sense they just sit there and do nothing about it. As the old adage puts it, “Better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all.”

God’s instruction to each of us is to give/do/work “each according to his/her ability.” In other words, whatever abilities we have we need to put them to the best possible use doing God’s work here on earth. The way we do this is by helping others according to their need—according to our ability to help.

Suggested prayer; “Dear God, please help me to get with your program—what you are doing in the world today—and not sit around waiting for some kind of a ‘special’ call, but by putting to use my God-given abilities in your work for your Kingdom. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Acts 11:29 (NIV).

2. Robert Fulghum, Everything I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten (New York: Villard Books, 1988), p. 139

Golfer Arnold Palmer has won hundreds of trophies but he never flaunts these. In his office is only one trophy on display. It is a small cup he received at his first professional win at the Canadian Open in 1955.

On his office wall is this lone framed plaque that reads:

If you think you are beaten, you are. / If you think you dare not, you don’t. / If you’d like to win but think you can’t, / it’s almost certain you won’t. Life’s battles don’t always go to the stronger or faster man, / But sooner or later, the man who wins / is the man who thinks he can.

Life’s battles, challenges, successes and/or failures are all fought, won or lost in the mind.

“Keep your heart with all diligence,” said Solomon, “for out of it are the issues of life.”² The heart in the Bible refers to the total mind: the intellect, the will, and the emotions. And that’s the “mind” we need to guard with all diligence, and daily commit and trust to God.

Be assured, too, that “what the mind dwells on the body acts on.” If you don’t agree with this, just think how temptation works.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to guard my heart and mind with all diligence … and keep my thoughts focused on things that are ‘true, pure, and of good report.’ Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 23:7.

2. Proverbs 4:23.

Motivational speaker, Mark Victor Hansen, said, “Setting goals is one of the most important things you can do to guarantee your personal, professional and financial success. Goals are like a road map to your target destination. Each goal accomplished is another mile behind you on the way to where you want to be.”

Years ago I heard another speaker say, “Success is the ability to embrace a worthwhile goal and employ all of your powers for the achievement of that goal.”

A life without goals is like a ship without a rudder drifting where the winds and waves of chance direct. However, even more important than setting goals is to first discover one’s God-given life purpose and then establish goals to fulfill that purpose.

This is exactly what Joshua did. And as long as he and the people of Israel lived by God’s laws and followed God’s plan, God assured them that they would have good success. God will do the same for you and me, too, as we live in harmony with his will and follow God’s plan and purpose for our life.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to discover and clearly define my God-given life purpose and then direct me in the setting of worthwhile and specific goals that, with your help and my commitment, will assure the fulfillment of my life purpose. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Joshua 1:7 (NIV).