The best principles we learn in life, apart from revelation in God’s Word, comes from life experience. Experience is a great teacher.
Here are some of my favorites. Granted, these are random.
Let me be clear, I’m not saying I live by these always, just that I’ve lived long enough to know they are true.
Here are 15 lessons I have learned from life:
1. Above all else guard your heart, for it is the well spring of life ... Proverbs 4:23, Eventually it all boils down to the heart of the matter. If you lose your heart in a situation, it becomes very difficult to regain momentum. Consider a sports team – at the moment they give up – as soon as they think they’re beaten – they have lost the game. Protect your soul.
2. God cares more about our character development than He does many of the individual decisions we make.
God cares more where you are going than where you are at or where you have been. If we are not careful we spend more of our prayer time focusing on current problems than future opportunities.
This principle works the other way also. If you spend too much of your energies on getting the next best thing you may sacrifice the best God has for you today. Being a good father is more important than buying the best house in town.
3. You’ve got to know when to fold them; know when to walk away; and know when to run.
Kenny Rogers was right. There are times to fight and times you know you can’t win and times when you shouldn’t be fighting anyway. Learning the difference is huge.
4. If you can’t say nothin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.
Thumper knew a truth that Scripture plays out too. There are times when we need to “shut up” and say, email – or post – nothing. Don’t add fuel to a fire you know shouldn’t be flaming. Unless you’re responding to a calling to strike a match, be an agent of peace.
5. Humility is an attractive quality.
Pride turns people away from us. When the applause is solicited it is seldom genuine.
6. It takes time to mend a broken heart.
As believers we don’t grieve like a world without hope, but we still hurt. Healing wounds take time, prayer, and truth. Words and actions of others do hurt. We shouldn’t pretend otherwise. (Some marriages need to know this principle.)
7. Letting people get credit for something I did is okay if the organization is moving forward.
In the end, if I’m leading, I’ll get all the credit I deserve and more. Great leaders understand this.
8. We don’t always know the good we are doing.
It just sort of works this way. It would be encouraging, and probably build more momentum for us to know more, if people would tell us how wonderful we are, but they simply don’t We have to live in the security of knowing we are doing good things. Plus, the reality is if we do a good job at anything for long, we eventually quit hearing as many applauds.
9. More of the same will not produce change.
You can’t keep doing the same things and expect to get different results. Didn’t someone (Einstein) say this was the definition of insanity?
10. Sometimes the greatest fear we have is the greatest opportunity God has to use us for His glory.
God seems to always call us to that which seems bigger than we are. This causes us to rely on Him more, gives Him glory, and builds our character more than if it was something easy to do.
11. God is faithful – you can trust Him.
This one comes with test after test, but He has proven Himself to be a God of His word in my life – every time.
12. We tend to end in the direction we are headed.
We shouldn’t be surprised if we end up in a bad situation, if this was the direction we were aiming our life.
13. You get more bees with honey than vinegar.
Being nice to people usually gets better results than beating them into submission. (Bible truth: It’s the kindness of God which leads to repentance.
14. People are different from me.
I tend to want people to respond to life and me as I respond to life and others. They don’t. And, they shouldn’t. I’m not always right.
15. Every life experience can be used of God for something which gives God glory.
Everything! Maybe even reading this post!
