A Fresh Look at Life…   November 8, 1953

Sometimes it would be well if we could step aside and see ourselves as if we had never seen us before—and see not only ourselves, but see also the things around us, free from the tired impressions...

Fear God, and Work Hard   November 15, 1953

There is no one we know of who is free from problems. Most of us at times have difficult situations to solve. But there are some who succumb to adverse circumstances more easily than others...

The Gift of Gratitude   November 22, 1953

One doesn’t have to live very long before he becomes aware of the pleasure of doing things for appreciative people and the disappointment of doing things for people who seem to lack a sincere...

The Making of Memories   November 29, 1953

Some years ago Gustaf Stromberg, eminent Swedish-American scientist, had some significant things to say in one of his scholarly works concerning the memories of men: “A study of the nature of...

The Light "Which Lighteth Every Man"   December 6, 1953

It is recorded in the first book of the Bible that God said: “Let there be light” (Gen.1:3)—and form there on through scripture, the great theme light is over and over emphasized:...

The Light That Leads to Further Light   December 13, 1953

Men seem to have an urgent sense of searching for something that they are not now aware of having seen. They are not content with only what their hands can touch, with only what is immediately...

So Different a Day…   December 20, 1953

There is a question concerning Christmas that keeps recurring: What is it that makes it so different a day? Except for some very real and far-reaching considerations it wouldn’t be so...

Unfinished Business…   December 27, 1953

All of us always have unfinished business. Most of us have unfulfilled obligations. Most of us have things piled far before us that always weigh on us and worry us⎯things we never quite get to,...

Swiftly, Silently, Certainly   January 10, 1954

Beyond the Barrier…   January 17, 1954

We read of speeds that move men beyond the so-called “sonic barrier,” and of the forces and feelings encountered when super-powered planes physically fight their way through the...

On the Fringe   January 24, 1954

In thumbing through some commonplace words we find the word “fringe“and we find it thus in part defined as “an ornamental border…” or “something resembling a...

From Where We Are   January 31, 1954

Winter and another year is with us. But sooner than we suppose it will be spring. More suddenly and sooner than we suppose, it will be summer. And soon again the summer will have passed, and soon...

Sitting This One Out…   February 7, 1954

Sometimes too much of what we do⎯or think we do⎯is in the nature of simply sitting and seeing someone else do something. It is good to watch, to listen, to appreciate as others perform, but it is...

Throwing Away Experience   February 14, 1954

IN THE pungent phrasing of Benjamin Franklin: “Experience is a dear school, but a fool can learn in no other.” These words suggest two ways by which we learn the lessons of life: by our...

If Washington Were Here…   February 21, 1954

On the surface it might seem that we today have few of the problems of Valley Forge, and that they had few, if any, of ours. But the principles and the problems that pertain to people basically are...

The Sound Is Silenced…   February 28, 1954

Sometimes there are sounds which at first we are only vaguely aware of, intrusive, insistent sounds that are all around us, but which don’t quite break through to our full consciousness,...

The Duty of Being Happy   March 7, 1954

“There is no duty,” wrote Robert Louis Stevenson, “we so much underrate as the duty of being happy.” We think of happiness as being deeply desirable but seldom perhaps think...

The Spirit of "Getting By"…   March 14, 1954

There is a spirit that blights and shrivels the human soul whenever it remains unchallenged and unchecked. For want of better words, perhaps it could be called “the spirit of getting by”...

A Favor for Ourselves   April 4, 1954

We often see the familiar picture of parents and teachers pleading with young people to improve themselves, to learn their lessons, to make the most of their lives. And because of this sincere...

The Root and the Tree   April 11, 1954

Frequently we see people come to a place of prominence or pre-eminence in some particular profession. But what we frequently fail to see is the groundwork, the long growth, the prolonged preparation...