Confidence

Drowning son was confident in his daddy (illustration)

I heard a story recently which illustrates the idea of a resting heart in the previous chapter. An American missionary couple and their family were home on furlough, and spending their vacation at a cabin near a lake. They had three children, ages twelve, seven and four. One day …

Baseball Stories Told by a 92 Year Old (illustration)

At age 92, Ted “Double Duty” Radcliffe can tell you baseball stories you would love to hear. He says he wore “Thou Shalt Not Steal” on his catcher’s chest-protector the time he threw out Ty Cobb trying to steal second. He recalls catching Satchel Paige when th …

Bear Bryant - “There Flies a Dead Duck” (illustration)

John McKay, of the NFL, tells a story illustrating the supreme confidence of University of Alabama football coach Bear Bryant: “We were out shooting ducks, and finally, after about three hours, here comes one lonely duck. The Bear fires. And that duck is still flying today. …

MacArthur - “You are as young as your faith” (illustration)

General Douglas MacArthur wrote: People grow old by deserting their ideas. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest, wrinkles the soul. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubts; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fears; as young as your hope, …

Bobby Leach over Niagara Falls in a steel drum (illustration)

Over confidence, coupled with negligence, can lead to sad consequences. This is the case when a person is so sure of himself that he becomes careless about little things that may pose a threat. I’m thinking, for example, of a stuntman named Bobby Leach. In July, 1911, he went ove …

The Problem is Where am I Going? (illustration)

When he was 88, the Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes found himself on a train. The conductor called for tickets, but Justice Holmes couldn’t find his and seemed terribly upset. He searched his pockets and fumbled through his wallet without success. The conductor …