“God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”
Voltaire (1694–1778) French writer, historian, and philosopher
Source: Manuscript Found in Accra
“God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”
Voltaire (1694–1778) French writer, historian, and philosopher
Ben Carson (1951) 17th and current United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; American neurosurgeon
Source: Take The Risk (2008), p. 64
John D. Rockefeller (1839–1937) American business magnate and philanthropist
Interview with William Hoster, quoted in God's Gold (1932) by John T. Flynn
Context: I believe the power to make money is a gift of God … to be developed and used to the best of our ability for the good of mankind. Having been endowed with the gift I possess, I believe it is my duty to make money and still more money and to use the money I make for the good of my fellow man according to the dictates of my conscience.
“Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.”
Garth Brooks (1962) American country music artist
Unanswered Prayers, written by Pat Alger, Larry Bastian, and G. Brooks.
Song lyrics, No Fences (1990)
Context: Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers.
Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs,
That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care.
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.
“Our talents are the gift that God gives to us… What we make of our talents is our gift back to God”
Leo Buscaglia (1924–1998) Motivational speaker, writer
“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.”
Jim Valvano (1946–1993) American basketball player-coach
Barack Obama (1961) 44th President of the United States of America
2015, Eulogy for the Honorable Reverend Clementa Pinckney (June 2015)
Context: As a nation, out of this terrible tragedy, God has visited grace upon us, for he has allowed us to see where we’ve been blind. He has given us the chance, where we’ve been lost, to find our best selves. We may not have earned it, this grace, with our rancor and complacency, and short-sightedness and fear of each other -- but we got it all the same. He gave it to us anyway. He’s once more given us grace. But it is up to us now to make the most of it, to receive it with gratitude, and to prove ourselves worthy of this gift.
“The vision of the gods without the power of the gods. What a terrible gift.A glorious gift.”
Orson Scott Card book Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus
Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus (1996)