Morning Briefings

Alabama football coach Mike Shula was a member of Catholic Campus church in Tuscaloosa but had to switch to another Catholic church in town after autograph hounds became too pushy, according to the Greg Larson radio show. The last straw was a guy standing at the end of the communion line with a football for Shula to sign.

– Gary Graf
And God Said, “It’s Good!”: Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Football

The parable of the hidden treasure (Matthew 13:44) is one of many references and illustrations Jesus made using money and possessions. In fact, 15 percent of everything Christ said relates to this topic–more than His teachings on heaven and hell combined.

– Randy Alcorn
The Treasure Principle

The vast majority of business leaders have succeeded not through charisma, but through experience, judgment, boldness, tenacity and hard work.

– Joseph L. Badaracco Jr. and Richard R. Ellsworth
Leadership and the Quest for Integrity

Something happened to me that hellish muggy day as I sat on the curb seven years ago. For a long time I didn’t know how to describe what it was, but now I do. I was saved.

– Joe Eszterhas
Crossbearer

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us; And confirm for us the work of our hands; Yes, confirm the work of our hands.

– Psalm 90:17

Winter is a season of some very real losses. The flowers of springtime are gone; leaves fall. Trees stand bare and revealed. But from these losses are gifts to be had.

– Kathleen Fischer
Winter Grace: Spirituality and Aging

Don’t pray for miracles. Pray for powers equal to your tasks, and you will be the miracle.

– Pastor Robert Fehlman

Instead of taking someone else’s word on what God wants us to do, what possible harm can come from taking God’s hand and simply asking?

– Hugh Prather
Spiritual Notes to Myself: Essential Wisdom for the 21st Century

In 1789, George Washington published a deeply religious–albeit not overly Christian–prayer declaring, ‘We may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions.’

– Steven Waldman, The Wall Street Journal
The Power of Prayer

Let no leader discount the value of personal loyalty or forget the importance of cultivating personal trust and affection, for when needed, it is the most precious thing in the world.

– Richard D. Phillips
The Heart of an Executive: Lessons on Leadership from the Life of King David