Morning Briefings

If you can see the road ahead, it is not worth the trip,’ the great Italian poet, Dante, wrote. Surprises can be painful, but they are not boring. The great voyages of history were adventures.

– Reverend James O’Leary
I Think I Am Happier Than I Think I Am

Vengeance is a passion to get even. It is a hot desire to give back as much pain as someone gave you. The problem with vengeance is that it never gets what it wants; it never evens the score.

– Philip Yancey
What’s So Amazing About Grace?

I realized that none of us are meant to be Therese of Lisieux or Pope John XXIII or Thomas More. We’re meant to be ourselves, and meant to allow God to work in and through our individuality, our own humanity. As St. Thomas Aquinas said, ‘Grace builds on nature.’

– James Martin
My Life with the Saints

While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

– Luke 2: 6-7

In this tender season, rich with memories, let us remember all of those who have been lights along our way; the loved ones that we hold forever, in our hearts.

– Deborah Gordon Cooper from
Christmas Blessings

The later years take us into the heart of the central Christian paradox of death/resurrection. It is in living the pattern of that mystery that people discover the graces of life’s winter season and share them with us all.

– Kathleen R. Fischer
Winter Grace: Spirituality and Aging

The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid.’

– Matthew 1:20

First and foremost I’d like to thank God. I am so blessed and without Him I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish this. I’d like to thank my family. My mother and my grandparents are sitting right there. My father has had a great influence on my life and I love him to death.

– Mark Ingram
2009 Heisman Trophy Winner

For America’s Santas, It’s Hard to be Jolly with the Tales They’re Hearing: In Hard Times, Kids Ask for Bare Essential: Shoes, Eyeglasses and a Job for Dad

– Stu Woo
The Wall Street Journal

Leaders who have had great impact on society have called people to be part of the history of their times.

– from
Reflections on Leadership: How Robert K. Greenleaf’s Theory of Servant-Leadership Influenced Today’s Top Management Thinkers