Borrowed from a friend (thanks Jon Cook).
As people grow older and the chapters of life begin to accumulate, there are certain things that should never stop. These are the important things in life, the ones that would lessen your life if they were forgotten.
- Never stop making new friends. The world is full of people who have the potential to become your next great friend. It’s ideal, or at least very optimistic, but with the amount of people in the world, it’s definitely not far-fetched.
- Never stop forgiving. I have heard numerous stories of men on their deathbeds regretting those offenses they never forgave. Life’s too short to not spread grace generously.
- Never stop learning. The day you stop learning should be the day that you die. Mark Twain said about a colleague, “He died at 30. They buried him at 60.” Don’t let that be your legacy. Live to learn.
- Never stop reading. You may hate reading. You may think it’s the greatest thing in the world. Whatever your taste may be, reading will be relevant in your world for the rest of your life. Reading is a great equalizer among kings and peasants: both can possess and develop this skill with equal opportunity.
- Never stop thinking. Don’t be a blind consumer of information. Chew on it and think through what you’re hearing and reading. Eat the meat, spit out the bones. Like the good, lose the bad.
- Never stop listening. As my dad says, “God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason.” Listening is an art to be perfected. If you know what you’re going to say before the other person stops talking, you’re not really listening. Guilty as charged.
- Never stop dreaming. If we lose that idea of how to chase an idea, we’ve lost our creative nature that echoes the image and nature of God. These are the bucket lists and the wish lists, the “what-if’s” we dare to ask, and the dream vacations and the faraway places you wish to see.
- Never stop asking questions. Being curious and inquisitive is one of our greatest gifts from God. Some of the most successful people in the world are also some of the most curious. Coincidence?
- Never stop mentoring. The gift of knowledge is meant to be shared. When you’re gone and all that’s left is your legacy, who will be there to remember what you taught them and how you poured into their lives?
- Never stop caring. Apathy is the bane of human existence. If you stop caring, you stop living. To care is to know that some things still hold value, that some things still matter and are worth the next breath we take.
