Remember, that not he who gives ill language or a blow insults, but the principle which represents these things as insulting. When, therefore, anyone provokes you, be assured that it is your own opinion which provokes you. Try, therefore, in the first place, not to be hurried away with the appearance. For if you once …
A Fresh Perspective
My message today may come as a surprise to you this morning, but my hope is not to confirm your beliefs, rather to encourage you to test your beliefs and square your worldview to truth. The message today is this: you need not fear loss. Consider this timeless gem from Epictetus: Never say of anything, …
It seemed so to him.
No man escapes life without having been judged wrongly by some person, somewhere, at some time. It is wise, therefore, to learn how to handle such situations in advance of their arrival, for as Benjamin Franklin said, "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." As with any challenge in life, the correct handling …
The Proof of Worship
It is often said that "actions speak louder than words." So it is with the matter of worship. Many claim to worship a God of love, for instance. Examine their actions, however, and it quickly becomes clear that: (1) they either do no truly worship that God consistently or (2) they worship Him imperfectly. Ill-tempered …
The Noblest Life
Asked how a man should best grieve his enemy, Epictetus replied, "By setting himself to live the noblest life himself." To set one's mind to vengeance is to bid adieu to that which expands the heart. Noble living grows the heart; there is no substitute.
Virtue: What None Can Hinder
"My brother ought not to have treated me thus." True: but he must see to that. However he may treat me, I must deal rightly by him. This is what lies with me, what none can hinder. - Epictetus Your expression of virtue need not be conditional. It can and must be absolute. Your thoughts, …
A Guide
"A guide, on finding a man who has lost his way, brings him back to the right path ﹣ he does not mock and jeer at him and then take himself off. You also must show the unlearned man the truth, and you will see that he will follow. But so long as you do …
Significance
My seven year old must've been having an existential crisis this morning as he asked me: "What is your full potential, daddy...I mean, what do you want to be when you grow up?" A little bit later on the ride to school he queried: "If you had to die to save all of the animals …
That is my nature
“I was born to join in love, not hate - that is my nature.” - Sophocles It happens every day. You're walking merrily along the path of life and someone bends your ear about how terrible so-and-so is or how dreadful such-and-such is. If you are sympathetic to their plight, you may be inclined to …
The Pivotal Commandment
“If you try to cure evil with evil you will add more pain to your fate.” - Sophocles Many people who claim to be Christians either ignore or rationalize away the most central and simply described doctrine espoused by the man known as Jesus: "resist not evil." Of all the things He said, this is …
Gregory Hake 