Thought is the seed of action; but action is as much its second form as thought is its first.

All writing comes by the grace of God.

Thought is the bud, language the blossom and action the fruit behind it.

For flowers that bloom about our feet; For tender grass, so fresh, so sweet; For song of bird, and hum of bee; For all things fair we hear or see, Father in heaven, we thank Thee!

If we realize we're undeserving, suddenly the world comes alive. Instead of whining about everything that goes wrong, we're surprised at God's many kindnesses, and our hearts overflow with thanks.

When we fail to acknowledge God as the Source of all good things, we fail to give Him the recognition and glory He deserves. We separate God from joy, which is like trying to separate heat from fire or wetness from rain.

Perhaps parents' greatest heritage to pass on to their children is the ability to perceive the multitude of God's daily blessings and to respond with continual gratitude. We should be "abounding in thanksgiving" (Colossians 2:7).

Here is life's essential purpose — to worship God in spirit and in truth (see John 4:24). All other purposes are meant to be secondary. When they become primary, they destroy the individual.

G. K. Chesterton once said that to be thankful is the highest form of thought and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder. Thanklessness, then,must be the lowest form of thought, and ingratitude is discontentment, bankrupted of wonder.

It is a self-evident truth that a person who truly prays and seeks God's wisdom in life recognizes the sovereignty of God and is committed to seeking God's wisdom in life's important choices.

If musicians and artists have no absolutes, they end up caring more about the way the thing is told than about the thing itself, and they slide deeper and deeper till it's their means rather than the ends that matter.

Worship that is properly understood and properly given is co-extensive with life… It informs all of life, everything we do and everything we say and think. At its core it is the sense and service of God. Worship brings into confluence all the questions and answers that we have and do not have.