#inspiration

The Salvation Army

In 1865, a forward-thinking minister named William Booth took an unorthodox method to ministry. Booth went to east London to minister to the poor and hungry. He didn’t have a church. No, Booth took to the streets and found people where they were. He invented “street theology.”

Booth’s idea became The Salvation Army, an international organization that takes care of “the least among us” as Jesus said we should do.

Today The Army offers disaster relief, spiritual healing, even LGBTQ support. They minister to everyone because everyone is equal in the eyes of God.

The church of today can learn some lessons from Booth and The Salvation Army. While church attendance has been declining for years. the needs of people have increased. Let’s take the lead and go where the people are. Meet them where they are, as they are. We don’t need another building…

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#inspiration

The Determined People Podcast My Interview With Stephanie Schechter

Stephanie Schechter is a remarkable young woman. She’s a self-aware, creative entrepreneur. Stephanie uses her gift of intuitive intelligence to help others heal from trauma. In Stephanie’s story, you will learn about her hidden trauma from childhood, and how she has fully healed from it. Watch until the end to learn the special code to save 15% off her product, Steph’s Best.

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#inspiration

Users

It hurts when you find out someone has used you. Conflicting emotions flood your mind, from disbelief to anger. People take advantage of nice people to advance their own selfish agendas.

So what do you do to resolve it? You do something that is counterculture: you pray for them. Praying for the offender doesn’t cancel the hurt. It acknowledges that the offender is for God to handle, not me. He is in charge of human hearts.

Over time, you will find it in your heart to forgive them. And remember to learn from the pain. Then what you went through has purpose…

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#inspiration

Walk Away

It takes courage to walk away from people who aren’t good for you. Our neural pathways are strong. They have been formed over years of repetition.

Breaking old bad habits is hard. You feel uncomfortable. Here’s my recommendation: just sit with the discomfort. It’s a feeling, nothing more. It will pass. When the discomfort returns, and it will, sit with it. The uncomfortable feeling will leave, sooner than the last time.

Eventually you will conquer the discomfort, if you don’t give up. Just keep going…

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#inspiration

Patterns

Our brains are wired to look for patterns when we are experiencing something new. Familiarity makes us feel secure. We try to fit the experience into an already-formed neural pathway.

We do this in relationships, too. We invite, usually unknowingly, the same type people into our lives. The person might look different from the rest, but their inner being is the same.

We must do the hard work on ourselves to break unhealthy patterns. If this sounds familiar to you, it is my hope that you find the courage to change…

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#inspiration

Changed

Why do people try to change others into who they want them to be? In the beginning of a relationship, there are things you find attractive about someone, only to feel annoyed by the same things later on. The other person might change into what you want for a while, but eventually they will return to who they are.

Let’s encourage, support and build up others. Work on yourself. I hope you want the best for your significant other, and that best shouldn’t require you changing them. They will evolve and grow on their own…

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#inspiration

Emotions

In the past year, I have noticed a change in my emotions, a good change. For years, I stuffed them down because as a child I wasn’t allowed to express any emotions unless they were positive. My parents would force me to put a smile on my face, even when I was raging inside. This carried over into adulthood.

I’m allowing my emotions to surface, and they are complying! Feeling something is good. It’s still a little uncomfortable for me, but growth comes when we visit the discomfort zone…

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#inspiration

Wounds

In my book, “Killing My Father Then Finding Him” I wrote a chapter titled “Wounds.” In the chapter, I shared some details of my past trauma. I left quite a bit out, but the reader understood my life was hell in my childhood home.

Our minds are incredible. The trauma of the past surfaces, but the brain knows when to allow it to resurface. Pain returns, but only when we are ready to face it and heal from it.

If you have a painful past, pay attention when memories appear. It means you are ready…

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#inspiration

Gifts

On Christmas morning, people all over the world are celebrating and opening gifts. But there is one gift we might overlook daily: the gift of life.

Birth itself is a miracle. It is awe-inspiring to study and understand all the things that must go right to produce a baby. The odds are against us, but when God is involved all the odds are shifted.

There are people who won’t wake up today. Some died naturally, while some chose to take their own life. Never take life for granted. It is a gift from God…

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#inspiration

Learn It!

Do you ever observe unhealthy patterns in other people and wonder why they won’t change? Why do people stay in abusive relationships, drink to excess or lie?

Here’s some truth which I will express as gently as I can: they have to learn healthy habits for themselves. When people find their voice, their inner strength, they change. They own the change because they did it for themselves.

Until that moment comes, pray for them. Pray hard, and believe God will change them because He can. There is unlimited power in Jesus. Believe it…

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