Author Archives: John Harrell

Spirituality, Uncategorized

Detractors

There are people among us who love to tear you down. I have never understood this. It must come from an area of their own insecurity embedded in their hearts. Deeply embedded.

The world is hard. Take a moment and notice the faces of the people around you. Wherever you are, in an elevator, walking around The Domain, in restaurants, the effects of isolation are still felt today. These are opportunities to show kindness and compassion to others, even to those who don’t deserve it.

God created us to be in community, not alone. We need solitude but not isolation. Even the CDC has put on their website that human connection is vital for good emotional health and wellbeing. If you haven’t heard from your friends and acquaintances for a while, take a moment to check on them. It will do both of you well.

Don’t fall for the distractions of life, or the detractors. Stay focused on spreading goodness and light, no matter what anyone says…

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Spirituality

Free Radicals

In the science world, free radicals are unstable molecules that are missing an electron, which makes them highly reactive. They are produced naturally in the body, but outside influences such as pollution, smoke and processed foods can cause them, too.

What happened to the Democrats? The party used to represent working people while also standing up for free speech. Today’s party is full of elites who detest the working class. And the crazies shout you down when you disagree with them. This represents a far cry from the party of JFK.

Jesus was a radical. He revolutionized his era, preaching love while hanging around with the people who were outcast by the religious leaders of their time. Jesus gave people hope and he never wavered.

Today’s Democrats are the free radicals in the physical world. Not all of them, of course. Just the far-left wing which are the ones who get most of the attention.

My encouragement to you is to continue standing up for what is true, right and just. Those things transcend politics…

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Spirituality

Uninspired

Do you ever have days where you just can’t find any motivation? Of course you do. It’s natural. But the real question is, how do you respond on those days?

Periods like this are when you must be careful. Be careful to not allow your mind to play tricks on you. Your mind will tell you to coast, that you deserve to slow down or not give your best. Don’t fall for it!

My encouragement to you is to walk away for a moment. Get outside if it’s possible. Breathe deeply. Your waning motivation is merely a feeling, nothing more. Feelings pass. Taking that brief recess will get your mindset right.

Once you’ve reset your mind, get after it! You have a reason for being here…

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Spirituality

Play on Words

Sometimes a play on words is funny. Like when you provide comfort to a grammar freak: “there, their, they’re.” Goofy stuff like this makes me laugh.

Words have meaning. Actions have meaning. When they don’t align then they are hollow. Some of us had parents whose actions didn’t follow what they said. This created confusion in our brains because our parents were our first teachers.

Be careful with what you say. People pay attention and they can see what we do. Never allow your emotions to take over your words. Stay calm in the chaos.

There are good people in this world who say little but accomplish much. Follow their lead. They are solid.

I leave you with this:

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Spirituality

Rising Against

It takes courage to take a stand for what is true and right. There are seen and unseen forces against the one who does.

We are living in a culture that, according to some, believes God made a mistake when he created some people. A biological male believes he is a man trapped in a woman’s body. This is a lie, yet I have some warped people argue with me about this. God doesn’t make mistakes. He’s the only one who doesn’t.

There’s a group of people who pervert Scripture. The same people who support open borders use Bible verses to justify their claim. The law doesn’t matter to them as long as they get their way. I guess they forgot that Jesus told us to obey the law. “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what belongs to him.”

There will be moments in your life where you’re going to be faced with standing up for the truth or going along with the crowd. My encouragement to you is, find the courage to take a stand. Dig as deep as you need to find it…

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Spirituality

Peaceniks

Sometimes you gotta fight. You go into battle when there is no viable alternative. The men and women who make the decision to go to war carry a heavy burden.

I hate war. In fact, you might even call me a peacenik. Peaceniks are opposed to war unless you must fight. Peaceniks are different from pacifists. Pacifists believe there’s never a reason to fight. That’s a nice belief, but it’s not reality. if no country defended its sovereignty and territory, the world would be filled with tyranny.

The United States stayed out of World War II as long as it could. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, they stirred the wrong bear. Since I wasn’t alive in 1941, I am not sure where the pacifists stood. I do know the Military-Industrial (MI) Complex loved it. They still love war.

The MI wanted President Kennedy to send troops into Cuba. Kennedy refused for a good number of reasons, and his refusal eventually cost him his life.

Peace through strength is a powerful motto. You must be able to back it up. The United States has the greatest, most powerful weapons in the world. And under Secretary Hegseth’s leadership, our military is the best trained, most formidable force that exists. We can back it up.

Don’t mess with Texas, as the brilliant saying goes. And don’t awaken the guardians known as The United States military…

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Spirituality

Peace in The Middle East

It’s a great day! The 20 living hostages have been returned and there is peace in the Middle East. At least temporarily.

If I sound hesitant, I am. There are several reasons for my concern. The number one reason is you are dealing with terrorists. Terrorists are zealots on a religious mission. At least it’s religious to them.

The other concern I have is that the hatred goes back thousands of years. It runs deep. So, I am cautiously optimistic.

I don’t think the administration is blind to this. There are many capable people surrounding the president. He listens.

Today I will celebrate the peace of this day. Thanks to God for making this happen.

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Spirituality, Uncategorized

You’ve Got to Want It

Nothing happens without desire. You have to really want what you are pursuing. Being lukewarm won’t cut it. Neither will occasional effort.

The pursuit of your purpose in life will be filled with ups and downs, setbacks and obstacles. This is unavoidable. But consider this: when you are going after your God-given purpose for your life, you will find success if you refuse to give up. God doesn’t plant a dream in your heart to set you up to fail.

People oftentimes think they need to have perfect conditions or more education before they begin pursuing their purpose. Not true! You are already equipped. Just begin.

When frustration comes, instead of dreading it I encourage you to welcome it. The more difficult the path you are on, the more confirmation that you are doing what you’re meant to do. No one said it would be easy.

Start with desire. What do you want to accomplish in this life that benefits others? Once you have answered this question, then it’s time to get after it.

Don’t wait or hesitate. Just begin and keep going, even when the road is dark…

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Spirituality

The World I Knew

As longtime readers know, I grew up in a home filled with anger, violence and fear. I spent a lot of time alone in my room. The only things my family provided me were a roof over my head, food, and a great story to share with others. I learned this last part much later.

Punishment was my world. I blamed God because I figured he had to be behind it. You see, punishment was normal to me. My parents punished me for having accidents like spilling water, so I walked on eggshells when I was home. I hated God for putting me in this horrible home. I didn’t know what I had done to deserve it.

Man, was I ever wrong. Fast forward to today, I now realize that God felt every hurt and pain I felt. He was hurting right along with me. And the more remarkable thing I learned was that God can take a punch. I hit him hard, but he never hit back. This is one of many beautiful things about our Creator. Don’t miss it.

Today I am privileged to share my life story with the least among us. This includes kids and prison inmates. When you grow up like I did, you feel like you’re the only one. There are many.

Never waste your pain…

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Spirituality

Find The Beauty

The critics are everywhere. You know who I’m talking about. These are the people who find a problem in every situation. They might not recognize a solution if it hit them in the backside.

Beauty exists all around us. There is beauty in every person, every scene in nature, and there is beauty in every failure. If you don’t stop and look around, you might miss it.

Political divide has been building for over twenty years. The gap has grown wider and it doesn’t look like it will reverse. People are spending an inordinate amount of time criticizing the other side, yet they have nothing to show for their efforts. Why not take the energy used to criticize and use it for something meaningful? Just think about the impact we can make, the beauty we can bring forth.

God created everything and everyone. He made us all, and he didn’t make a mistake. He didn’t even have any second thoughts. He must love variety because no two people are alike. There’s beauty in the variety.

Change your perspective. Find the beauty in every moment. It’s there…

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