A traveller at Sparta, standing long upon one leg, said to a Lacedaemonian, "I do not believe you can do as much." "True," said he, "but every goose can."
PlutarchRead
The trouble with nearly everybody who prays is that he says 'Amen' and runs away before God has a chance to reply. Listening to God is far more important than giving Him our ideas.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of listening to God rather than just speaking to Him in prayer.
Frank Laubach highlights a common pitfall in prayer: many people speak their thoughts and requests to God but fail to take the time to listen for His responses. The quote suggests that genuine communication with the divine requires patience and the willingness to hear what God might convey rather than solely focusing on our own ideas.
In practice
In a sermon about the importance of prayer, one could use this quote to encourage congregants to take time to listen.
A traveller at Sparta, standing long upon one leg, said to a Lacedaemonian, "I do not believe you can do as much." "True," said he, "but every goose can."
There is more Bible buying, Bible selling, Bible printing and Bible distributing than ever before in our nation. We see Bibles in every bookstore - Bibles of every size, price and style. There are Bibles in almost every house in the land. But all this time I fear we are in danger of forgetting that to HAVE the Bible is one thing, and to READ it quite another.
It is one thing to make a mistake, and quite another thing not to admit it. People will forgive mistakes, because mistakes are usually of the mind, mistakes of judgment. But people will not easily forgive the mistakes of the heart, the ill intention, the bad motives, the prideful justifying cover-up of the first mistake.
A little too much anger, too often or at the wrong time, can destroy more than you would ever imagine.
I learned from my mom and dad, who didn't have a formal education but had doctorates of love. They told me that if you gave 110 percent all the time, a lot of beautiful things will happen. I may not always be right, but no one can ever accuse me of not having a genuine love and passion for whatever I do.
Genius is another word for magic, and the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable.
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