Insight for Today
A Daily Devotional by Pastor Chuck Swindoll

FULFILLMENT MUST BE ONE OF life's choicest gifts. It is a major building block toward authentic happiness. No doubt, Solomon had it in mind when he wrote these timeless words:

A FAMILY IS LIKE MANY THINGS, perhaps most like a garden. It needs time, attention, and cultivation. The sunshine of laughter and affirmation.

SHAKESPEARE CALLED IT "the green-eyed monster." Bacon admitted it "keeps no holidays." Horace declared that "tyrants never invented a greater torment."

THERE IS A STRANGE STATEMENT IN Scripture that flashes like a bright neon sign. Paul made it while he was saying good-bye to a group of friends standing near him. It was a sad moment heavy with emotion.

DISORIENTATION IS THE PITS. When you travel a lot (like airline personnel) you must deal with it.

TUCKED AWAY IN THE FOLDS OF Hebrews 11 is a two-word biography worth a second glance: "He endured" (11:27, NASB). The Living Bible says, "[he] kept right on going."

WEBSTER DEFINES THE WORD "cordial" as of or relating to the heart: vital, tending to revive, cheer, or invigorate, heartfelt, gracious. That's really a mouthful; in fact, that's worth a few minutes of our time together.

PAUL WANTED TO BE IN HEAVEN but needed to be on earth. In a temporal sort of way, this time of year, I share his frustration.

THERE IS ONLY ONE YOU. In our overly-populated, identity-crisis era it is easy to forget this. Individuality is played down. We are asked to conform to the "system."

SHOPPING SEASON HAS ARRIVED! Admit it: you're already on a roll! You've started swiping your credit card all over town hoping to get in on the early bird sales. And Black Friday is coming still!

APPOINTMENTS, ACTIVITIES, ASSIGNMENTS . . . demands, decisions, deadlines . . . schedules, services, seminars . . . plans, people, programs . . . STOP!

YEARS AGO, when I pastored in California, an usher met me as I was leaving the church. He had been involved in counting the morning offering.

ALL OF US HAVE PRACTICED certain areas of wrong from our youth. It is a pattern of life that comes "second nature" to us. As a result, it strongly resists change.

IT HAPPENS TO ALL OF US. Teachers as well as students. Cops as well as criminals. Parents as well as kids. The diligent as well as the lazy.

WHOEVER IS SOFT ON depravity should watch Schindler's List. It's not for the fainthearted, I should warn you.

OURS IS FAST BECOMING a success-saturated society. The telltale signs are everywhere. Check the magazine racks at airports, hotels, and drugstores.

"MY TREAT!" Nice words to hear, huh? They have flowed into my ears from any number of places—yours, too.

IN A WORLD WHERE EVERYONE is out to serve self, it's refreshing to read these ancient words from the pen of one of the most powerful men who ever lived: Solomon.

THERE IS NO TORMENT like the inner torment of an unforgiving spirit. Without question, it is one of the most miserable attitudes to experience in life.

PERSISTENCE IS A COSTLY INVESTMENT, no question about it. But the dividends are so much greater than the original outlay that you'll almost forget the price.