Man has an ability that separates him from all other physical creatures. If he chooses, he can stand outside of his feelings, emotions and even his own thoughts and examine them. However, instead of examining them, he often reacts to life and allows instinct or past conditioning to override the moment of opportunity he has between an experience and a response. Deference is the key to conquering this moment. Author Steven Covey states what distinguishes us as humans is the ability to examine … [Read more...] about Three Choices: Good & Evil, or Life
Fruits of
Establishing Thoughts
A wonderful aspect of Godās creation is the human mind. Certainly man has a physical brain like animals, but the exceptionalism is in the fact that God has given man an additional spirit that animals do not have. This spiritual component empowers the brain to provide wisdom, knowledge and understanding of the physical environment in which man exists. In other words, an intellect -- the capacity for rational or intelligent thought. While this allows man to achieve unbelievable things, it also … [Read more...] about Establishing Thoughts
Handling Conflict with Discretion and Humility
We all deal with conflict daily, in many forms. Even the church has conflict, internal and external, from time to time. With the Bible as our guide, which biblical examples can teach us about a specific quality that foils conflict? Where does this quality come from? What does it lead to? Letās consider Gideonās example to identify this quality. Chosen by God as a judge of Israel he was assigned to defeat a threat from neighboring Midian (Judges 6:1-8:21). He assembled an army of 32,000, but … [Read more...] about Handling Conflict with Discretion and Humility
Overcoming Anxiety
Frustration is almost always the result of our will not happening. And for us humans, it's universally about our wanting to impose our will into a situation. It's about needing to control things or people. The concept of control is not only the root of our frustrations but also the root of our fears and our anxieties in life, which can be detrimental not only to our lives but also to the lives of all those that we love and those we interact with. The cause of fear and anxiety is often a … [Read more...] about Overcoming Anxiety
Conquering Frustration
An author named Jackson Brown wrote, āYou can tell a lot about a man by the way he handles these four things: a rainy holiday, lost luggage, a busy store, and tangled Christmas lights. I would definitely add traffic to this list of annoyances. But you probably get that feeling, almost like nails across the chalkboard whenever this list of annoyances is mentioned. Have you ever been frustrated? Of course we all have. Our frustrations are usually caused by small annoyances that eat away at us. … [Read more...] about Conquering Frustration
Are You an Unwilling Mustang?
Some of you may remember, I spoke some years ago about a mustang that I adopted. This is the sequel to that story. I adopted a mustang. It came from the high desert wilderness in Nevada. Heās a good boy. He has good strong legs. He likes to run and he is affectionate. I can generally make him do what I want him to do. Weāve had our differences. Weāve both had our spills, but I like him. The problem is this horse doesnāt focus. He has a problem with focus. He doesnāt … [Read more...] about Are You an Unwilling Mustang?
Time and Chance Happens to All
Solomon addresses an issue that causes a great deal of perplexity to people because heās made this statement that the righteous and wise and their works are in the hand of God (Ecclesiastes 9:1). At first that sounds like a great place to be. Then he says: āAll things come alike to all: One event happens to the righteous and the wicked; To the good, the clean, and the unclean; To him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As is the good, so is the sinner; He who takes an oath as he who … [Read more...] about Time and Chance Happens to All