We have heard the phrase, "We are our own worst enemy." Let's rephrase that to, "We are our own best friend." Of course the Christian knows that Jesus is his or her very best Friend, but it might make us feel better, when others disown us for a time, to know that we are friends with ourselves. Abe Lincoln said, "I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I have come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me." If we stay friends to our principles, then we can remain friends with ourselves.

February 18

"Our youths love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders, and have to chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when their elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up their food, and tyrannize their teachers" (Socrates, 400 B.C.). Doesn't this sound familiar? Apparently human behavior is consistent through the centuries. But our God tells us that He wants to give us a new character; He wants to give us a heart of flesh and take away our hard heart (Ezekiel 36:26).

February 19

A lady realized that her fears were running and ruining her life so she made for herself a "worry table" in which she tabulated all her anxieties. She came up with the following figures: 40%--will never happen because fear is the result of a tired mind; 30%--about old decisions which I cannot alter; 12%--others' criticisms about me, most untrue, made by people who feel inferior; 10%--about my health, which gets worse as I worry; 8%--"legitimate," since life does have some real problems to meet. (From Thomas S. Kepler, Jesus' Spiritual Journey and Ours).

February 20