Tag Archives: perseverance

Best Advice: You Play Like You Practice

Posted on June 23, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

The habits we build when we’re young do not usually disappear when life gets more serious. School is preparation for life, and the way we practice now often becomes the way we perform later. Continue reading →

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I’m Inspired By the People Who Take Away My Excuses

Posted on June 22, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Some people inspire us not because their lives are easy, but because they keep showing up when life gives them every reason not to. Their example reminds me how much I have — and how few excuses I really have. Continue reading →

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Unfinished Is Not Failed: One Way I’ve Grown This Year

Posted on June 17, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

I think one way I’ve grown this year is that I’ve become more comfortable with unfinished things. I am learning that delay is not always denial, silence is not always rejection, and unfinished is not the same thing as failed. Continue reading →

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Quick Thought – Thursday, June 11, 2026: Hitting the Ball—Faith, Setbacks and Self-Examination

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Mike Schmidt struck out plenty, but his setbacks were not the whole story. In faith, our failures do not define us when Christ is still at work in us. Continue reading →

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Confidence, Unfortunately, Requires Evidence

Posted on June 8, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Self-confidence is not built by pretending we are fearless. It grows when we stop rehearsing disaster, take one small honest step, and give ourselves new evidence that fear does not get the final word. Continue reading →

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The Sunday Pour: The Warehouse Heat

Posted on May 3, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Warm-climate bourbon ages differently because the heat drives the whiskey deeper into the barrel. Life can work that way, too. Pressure does not always destroy. Sometimes, it accelerates purpose. Continue reading →

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Quick Thought – Tuesday, April 28, 2026: All Doesn’t Mean Some

Posted on April 28, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Psalm 34 calls us to bless the Lord at all times, and James reminds us to count trials as joy. Neither passage ignores hardship — both teach us that faith grows when praise survives difficult days. Continue reading →

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The Sunday Pour: The First Crack of the Barrel

Posted on April 26, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Some cracks sound like failure. Sometimes they are simply the first sign that pressure, heat, and time are shaping something stronger than before. Continue reading →

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Quick Thought – Sunday, April 26, 2026: Caves, Camels and the Impossible

Posted on April 26, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Some situations look impossible until persistence, courage and trust carry people through them. Jesus reminded His disciples that what man cannot do on his own is never beyond the power of God. Continue reading →

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Quick Thought – Saturday, April 25, 2026: When Even Family Doesn’t Understand

Posted on April 25, 2026 by Douglas Blaine

Sometimes the hardest criticism doesn’t come from strangers—it comes from people who know you best. Even Jesus experienced that when His own family thought He had lost His mind. Faithfulness sometimes means continuing to walk with God even when those closest to you do not understand why. Continue reading →

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