Don't Lose Your Fire

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4 KJV) 

A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.  Accepting some level of risk in life is important.  You cannot be both close-minded and wise.  You have to open up to the unknown.  Close-minded people who pretend to be wise to the ways of the world are mostly just cynics.  Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it’s the farthest thing from it.  Because cynics don’t learn anything.  

Cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a rejection of the world that occurs when we’re afraid it will hurt us or let us down.  Cynics always say “no.”  Do the reverse.  Saying “yes” begins things.  Saying “yes” is how things grow.  Saying “yes” leads tofirsthand experience and knowledge.  “Yes” is for strong, open-minded people.  So for as long as you have the strength to, say “yes.” 

Don’t be pushed by your problems.  Be led by your dreams.  Live the life you want to live.  Be the person you want to remember years from now.  Make decisions and act on them.  Make mistakes, fail and try again.  Even if you fail a thousand times, at least you won’t have to wonder what could have been.  At least you will know in your heart that you gave your dreams your best shot.  

Each of us has a fire in our hearts burning for something.  It’s our responsibility in life to find it and keep it lit.  Because it’s far better to fail in originality, our own way, than to succeed in imitation every day of our lives.  

Your Values

"Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle." 

(2 Thessalonians 2:15 KJV)

Never compromise your values.  

Don’t let the fear of being rejected stop you from affirming what’s important to you.  The right people will respect you more and hold you in higher regard if you’re rigorous about your principles, if you’re honest, and if you stay consistent about what you believe in.  This is a powerful way to solidify your relationships and to gain mutual trust. It may not be the case in the beginning, but in the long run. Furthermore, standing up for your values instantly makes you a leader, as it’s the most heroic quality one can aspire to.

-Life is not about maintaining the status quo.

-Life is not about playing it safe.

-Life is not about standing still.

It’s about connecting with your soul, respecting your integrity, and telling yourself that you’re able.  It’s about taking a few steps, regardless of how little they may be, so you can move forward, and evolve.

That’s why you were put here on this earth: to grow.  You can be challenged, scared, and stretched to your limits, but taking action will make you feel gratified beyond belief.

And the best part is: You become more decisive, more playful, and more vigorous.

So don’t be afraid to let go of your inhibitions.  Don’t be afraid to be disappointed.  Don’t be afraid to get hurt.

Ask yourself about the costs and implications of not taking action.  Then think of the new possibilities that could arise if you do dare to act.

Be daring and courageous!

Get moving and live it!

This is your one shot so take it today!

The Golden Rule

"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets." (Matthew 7:12 KJV)

Our setbacks are often mostly about us, wallowing in our own self-pity.  This doesn’t sound great, but we all do it almost every day to a small extent without noticing it.  When you catch yourself doing this, know that the best antidote is to get outside yourself, stop being self-centered, and re-focus on the people around you.  Try to find a way to help someone else.  It will inevitably, infallibly, make you feel better.

When we realize that helping others is the key to realizing our own happiness, it saves us a lot of trouble.

Truth be told, the closest thing to being cared for is to care for others.  We are all in this together and we should treat each other as such.  Use your voice for kindness, your ears for compassion, and your hands for charity, always.  No exercise is better for your heart and mind than reaching down and helping others up.  Happiness and success in life doesn’t come through selfishness, but through selflessness.  The best way to feel alive on down days is to get up and do something positive for the folks around you.

And remember, you don’t need a reason to help someone.  Just do it.  The reason will come to you.

Let Pain Change You

"My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me."(Psalms 55:4 KJV)

There are two kinds of pain: pain that hurts and pain that changes you.  When you roll with life, instead of resisting it, both kinds help you grow.

To move forward in any situation, you must first accept the reality of what it is.  This acceptance provides you with an important starting point from which you can move in any direction you choose.  To deny this reality or to fight against the past will merely waste your time and energy.  To wish that things were different, or to pretend that they are, gets you nowhere.

Acceptance is letting go and allowing things to be the way they truly are.  It doesn’t mean you don’t care about improving the realities of life – it’s just realizing that the only thing you really have control over is yourself in the present moment.  This simple understanding is the foundation of acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be peace and growth in your life.

Forgiveness is a big part of this process.  Forgiveness is the acceptance of the present moment, as it is, without attachment to any other time, place or circumstance.  Almost all negativity is caused by a lack of forgiveness and denial of the present.  Unease, anxiety, guilt, tension, stress, worry, and resentment are caused by too much past or future, and not enough presence. The reality is pain is a part of life. Ask God to help you handle it.

In The Morning

"My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."(Psalms 5:3 KJV)

As human beings we are goal oriented.  We like making progress.  When we accomplish one of our goals, we smile about it.  That’s why the happiest people I know are also some of the most successful people I know.

As your early morning winds down, the key is to funnel your attention directly into the right things, not the urgent things.  Because at some point we all wonder, “Why is it so impossible to get everything done?”  And the answer is stunningly simple: We're doing too many of the wrong things.

Several research studies have shown that people never get more done by blindly working more hours on everything that comes up.  Instead, they get more done when they follow careful plans that measure and track key priorities and milestones.  So if you want to be more successful, less stressed, and a lot happier at the end of each day, don’t ask how to make something more efficient until you’ve first asked, “Do I need to do this at all?”

Simply being able to do something well does not make it the right thing to do.  I think this is one of the most common problems with a lot of time-management advice; too often productivity gurus focus on how to do things quickly, but the vast majority of things people do quickly should not be done at all.

God Gave

God in His infinite wisdom always gave me what I needed and not what I thought I wanted. If I had gotten what I had wished for I would be a far more selfish and far less loving person today. Instead God kept me growing, learning, and becoming the person I was meant to be. Life was my school, troubles were my teachers, and the twists and turns of this world were my courses. The classes continue on as well for me, you, and everyone here. 

These days I try not to think of what I want out of life but think of what I can give to life instead. I strive to be a loving father, a caring friend, and a good neighbor. I seek to do what I can with what I have to make Earth a little more like Heaven and to show others that they can do the same. I try to share all the things I have learned these past 44 years: that God loves us more than we could ever dream, that we can love each other as well, and that when we do so we will have joy no matter what struggles we may face or losses we may endure. 

Take some time today then to think about what you can give to life. You are a beloved Child of God with unique talents, knowledge, and blessings. You can give this world so much love and do so much to help others. You can make this world and your soul a little better each day. And when you do so you will get what we all truly want out of life.

Eternal Life

Have you ever gotten up in the morning and asked yourself the question: "What in the world is life all about? What is worthwhile? I get up and go through the same routine day after day. What for?" 

James 4:14 "Wherefore ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, which appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." 

Let's examine these questions: What IS life all about? What is worthwhile? What is junk? We have only one life to live. We want to make the most of it. But how can we accomplish this, with the energy and resources we have? What in life can we afford to let go of? The answer, if we think about it, is plain: Let go of anything we can't carry with us into eternal life.

1. What about pretense? Are we 'pretenders'? Do we pretend to be something, someone we are not? Do outsiders see a different 'us' than our family sees? "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Matthew 5:16   Eternity is not for pretenders. 
   
   
2. What about worry? "Do we worry about things that MAY happen?" Leave the future to God. We don't know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future. 
   
   
3. Are we discontented? We must make the best of what we have, without complaining. Are we always wanting something better? If we look around, we can always find someone worse off than ourselves. 
   
   
4. Are we self-seeking? Are we like a two-year-old, always looking out for Number One? "In eternal life there is no greed. One hears of neither 'mine' nor 'thine'. All things are for all." 
   
   

Now here are some things we can hang on to, or adopt:

1. Make use of our time. If we waste a minute here and a minute there, before we know it, we have wasted perhaps an hour. A whole hour out of our day! The question in life is not "How much time do I have?" It is "What shall I do with the time I have?" 
   
   
2. Value work. We must ask ourselves: "Is this work vital for strengthening my own character, or inspiring others, or helping the world?" Of course, one must work to earn a living, but it is HOW we do even menial tasks that counts. We must value the work God has given us to do, and do it to please Him and to be a testimony to those with whom we work. 
   
   
3. Seek happiness every day. If we are not happy today, we will never be happy! Or as an old teacher of mine used to say: "If you are not happy anywhere, you will not be happy anywhere." It took me a few years to figure that one out. But she was right. Be happy today, regardless of circumstances. This doesn't mean that we have to go around laughing all the time. What it means is, be happy within ourselves so that our happiness will shine through us to others, radiating Christ. 
   
   
4. Cherish love. "True love never nags. It trusts. Love does not have to be tethered, neither in time or eternity." Jealous love, exclusive love, selfish love: these kinds of love are not true love. "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, nos not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil...." I Corinthians 13:4 & 5 (NKJV) 
   
   
5. Have Faith. This is all-important. "Strong, serene, unquenchable faith in the loving kindness of God will enable us to look fearlessly towards the end of the temporal existence and the beginning of the eternal, and will make it possible for us to live our lives effectively, grandly." 
   
   

Summing it all up: Let go of everything you cannot carry into eternal life.