Quotes by Charles R Swindoll

“A family is a place where principles are hammered and honed on the anvil of everyday living.”

“A selfless devotion. High-impact people don’t care about who gets the credit, and they never complain about the role they fill.”

“A teardrop on earth summons the King of heaven.”

“Alleged 'impossibilities' are opportunities for our capacities to be stretched.”

“As far back as I can remember, my mother would have me down by the bed at night with her, praying. I can still hear her voice calling my name to God and telling Him that she wanted me to follow Him in whatever He called me to do.”

“Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what people do or say. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill.”

“Because God gave you your makeup and superintended every moment of your past, including all the hardship, pain, and struggles, He wants to use your words in a unique manner. No one else can speak through your vocal cords, and, equally important, no one else has your story.”

“Because of Jesus, we can view life as a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.”

“Boldness in the course of a noble fight is worth the risk... If you stand on truth, you'll only regret your timidity later, but you'll never regret being bold.”

“Consistent, timely encouragement has the staggering magnetic power to draw an immortal soul to the God of Hope. The One whose name is Wonderful Counselor.”

“Deep, contented joy comes from a place of complete security and confidence [in God]—even in the midst of trial.”

“Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.”

“God doesn't work on our timetable. He has a plan that He will execute perfectly and for the highest, greatest good of all, and for His ultimate glory.”

“God never calls His people to accomplish anything without promising to supply their every need.”

“Good intentions and earnest effort are not enough. Only Jesus can make an otherwise futile life productive.”

“I am a preacher. I'm involved in many other things, but mainly, I preach. And I love it!”

“I am often the brunt of my own humor.”

“I believe firmly in God's control in life.”

“I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it—friends make life a lot more fun.”

“I have no interest in returning to yesteryear. I love the conveniences and delights of today's time. I wouldn't go back if I could.”

“I know of nothing more valuable, when it comes to the all-important virtue of authenticity, than simply being who you are.”

“I let people see the cracks in my life. We can't be phony. We've got to keep it real.”

“I think it is important to begin with a statement in your speech that grabs the attention of the audience. I try to make my opening line 15 words or less.”

“I want to preach till the last breath in my lungs runs out.”

“I'm here today to warn you: I want you to watch out for the adversary. Guard yourself from any spirit of entitlement. Restrain any and all subtle temptation to gain attention or to find ways to promote yourself.”

“I'm not against screens, or new songs, or innovation. I just don't like the gimmicks. I want to know when worship is over that that leader's sole purpose was to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“If I ever wrote a book on preaching, it would contain three words: Preach the Word. Get rid of all the other stuff that gets you sidetracked; preach the Word.”

“If you allow it, [suffering] can be the means by which God brings you His greatest blessings.”

“If your life is an example of glorifying God, others won't see your good works and glorify YOU, because they'll know what you are doing is for God's glory.”

“It is easy for Christians to have the false impression that once we have established a relationship with Christ, which we believe sets us right with God, the problems of life will somehow scoot away or they will slowly be removed from our lives.”

“It's the most exciting thing to watch God work when I've asked Him about something, to listen to Him and watch Him work. It's like this friendship, and it just grows and grows.”

“Joy is a deeply felt contentment that transcends difficult circumstances and derives maximum enjoyment from every good experience.”

“Learning more truth is a poor and cheap substitute for stopping and putting into action the truth already learned.”

“Neglecting to ask God's counsel, neglecting to seek God's timing, you step in to handle things. And by and by, you've got a mess on your hands.”

“Noise and crowds have a way of siphoning our energy and distracting our attention, making prayer an added chore rather than a comforting relief.”

“Not every Christian finds it easy to believe.”

“Nothing is more bothersome to me than retiring. Weird things happen when you disengage; first you get negative, then you start telling people about your latest surgeries, and eventually, you lose touch. I want to stay in touch.”

“One of my great goals in life is to live long enough to where I am in the pulpit, preaching my heart out, and I die on the spot, my chin hits the pulpit—boom!—and I'm down and out. What a way to die!”

“One of the worst things you can give to your people is someone you're not.”

“Prejudice is a learned trait. You're not born prejudiced; you're taught it.”

“Sometimes I wake up before dawn, and I love sitting up in the middle of the bed with all the lights off, pitch-black dark, and talking to the Father, with no interruptions and nothing that reminds me that there's anything in life but me and Him.”

“The difference between something good and something great is attention to detail.”

“The matters we or the world might consider trivial, He cares about and wants to remedy. He longs to relieve our worries and has promised to supply our most fundamental needs.”

“The remarkable thing is, we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.”

“The secret of living a life of excellence is merely a matter of thinking thoughts of excellence. Really, it's a matter of programming our minds with the kind of information that will set us free.”

“The swift wind of compromise is a lot more devastating than the sudden jolt of misfortune.”

“The wonderful thing about God is He knows what we need to persuade us.”

“The world has changed and it's going to keep changing, but God never changes; so we are safe when we cling to Him.”

“There is nothing more fearful for the average person in our society than to stand before a group of people and speak.”

“There is plenty of television. There are plenty of talk shows. There are plenty of comedians. But there is not plenty of worship of the true and living God.”

“To require God to prove that He is able and willing to fulfill His promises would be proof positive that one does not trust Him.”

“We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.”

“We need discernment in what we see and what we hear and what we believe.”

“We want a crowd to make us feel important and liked. But why is getting a crowd our focus? Jesus never suggested that crowds were the goal. He never addresses getting your church to grow. Never.”

“When a church is spending more of its budget on media than shepherding, something is out of whack. We have gotten things twisted around.”

“When I have a wrong attitude, I look at life humanly. When I have a right attitude, I look at life divinely.”

“When you have vision, it affects your attitude. Your attitude is optimistic rather than pessimistic.”

“While I wholeheartedly believe in choosing to approach every challenge with a great attitude, I don't mean that we should abandon authenticity and live in fantasyland.”

“Words can never adequately convey the incredible impact of our attitudes toward life. The longer I live, the more convinced I become that life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we respond to it.”