Ideas

Proverbs

Quotations to stir heart and mind.

THE BEST TIME to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today.Chinese proverb

IF YOU are planning for a year, sow rice. If you are planning for a decade, plant trees. If you are planning for a lifetime, educate people.Chinese proverb

IF YOU can talk, you can sing; if you can walk, you can dance.African proverb

TELL ME who’s your friend, and I’ll tell you who you are.Russian proverb

A JOY that’s shared is a joy made double.John Ray, English Proverbs

WORRY often gives a small thing a big shadow.Swedish proverb

MAN plans; God laughs.Yiddish saying

WHEN elephants fight, the grass always is the one that suffers.Swahili saying

AS A NAIL sticketh between a door and a hinge, so sticketh sin between buying and selling.Anabaptist saying

WHEREVER the heart is, the feet don’t hesitate to go.Togo saying

WHEN YOU were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice.Indian proverb

VISITOR’S footfalls are like medicine; they heal the sick.Bantu proverb

NO SNOWFLAKE ever falls in the wrong place.Zen saying

THE DEATH of an old person is like the loss of a library.African proverb

MONEY IS a good servant but a bad master.H. G. Bohn, Handbook of Proverbs

DANGER and delight grow on one stalk.English proverb

WHEN “Do no evil” has been understood, then learn the harder, braver rule, “Do good.”Arthur Guiterman, A Poet’s Proverbs

THE BEGINNING of health is to know the disease.Spanish proverb

IT IS PART of the cure to wish to be cured.Latin proverb

A GOOD LAUGH and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.Irish proverb

Copyright © 2006 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Related Elsewhere:

Past Reflections columns include:

Summer (June 27, 2006)

Philosophers’ Potpourri (June 9, 2006)

Ponder These Things (May 17, 2006)

Holy Week (April 4, 2006)

Evening Prayer (March 10, 2006)

Morning Prayers (Feb. 6, 2006)

Hope (Jan. 16, 2006)

Christmas (Dec. 19, 2005)

Poetry (Dec. 12, 2005)

Grace that Surprises (Oct. 3, 2005)

Friendship (August 31, 2005)

Wisdom That Sticks (August 8, 2005)

His Body, His Blood (June 08, 2005)

On Baptism (April 25, 2005)

Discovering God (April 07, 2005)

Welcoming the Stranger (Feb. 22, 2005)

The Church and Mission (Feb. 02, 2005)

The Church (Jan. 11, 2005)

Word Made Flesh (Dec. 20, 2004)

The Way of Salvation (Nov. 08, 2004)

Sin and Evil (Oct. 18, 2004)

Teaching and Learning (Sept. 15, 2004)

Wisdom for the Road (Aug. 02, 2004)

Discipleship (July 13, 2004

Conversion (June 09, 2004)

The Outpoured Spirit (May 03, 2004)

He Is Risen (April 08, 2004)

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

Cover Story

The Case for Kids

Pharmacists with No Plan B

Trivializing the Transcendent

The Jesus of Africa

'A More Practical Approach'

Peretti in the House

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Gory

Editorial

The AIDS Team

The Moral Imagination

Ka-Ching! You're a Parent

Law or Free Market?

The Noesen Saga

Jesus from East to West

Our Transnational Anthem

Editorial

Leveling the Investment Field

Marriage Matters

Falling Apart

Bad Judgment

News

Passages

News

Big Screen Jesus

News

<em>Christianity Today</em> News Briefs

News

Playing Favorites

News

Go Figure

What (Not All) Women Want

How Then Shall We Politick?

News

Quotation Marks

News

New Life for Nepal

Prevention Wars

A Counter Trend—Sort Of

Love to Love Children

Word Made Brash

<em>Darkness Is My Only Companion</em>

Making Promises

View issue

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