Tag Archives: #leadership

Spirituality

Against the Grain

Cutting meat against the grain is a way to make the meat more tender and easier to chew. But are there other times we should go against the grain? I believe so.

In this metaphor, the grain is society and culture. Going along to get along is sometimes okay, but not if it goes against your values. Picking on weaker people is never okay. Or gay people. Or animals.

As God’s creation, as all of us are, we are called to take care of others. This includes those who are marginalized and struggling. God sees everything, and he is really looking into our hearts. The heart is where our true personality and being are.

When you get your heart right, good things happen. Really good things…

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Spirituality

Gossipy People

For the last nine years I have led a men’s group on Wednesday mornings. It’s a great group of men. About every other month we meet for Happy Hour, too.

We have only one rule for the group. What is said there stays there. It would destroy the integrity of the group if someone gossiped about someone else. I can proudly say that no one has ever broken the rules.

Gossip is not only wrong, it’s harmful. Trust is broken and that’s difficult to get back once it’s gone. Having the trust of another person is a high honor.

When people choose to engage in gossip, it’s best to just walk away. Leave the conversation to the small-minded. They will find their crowd.

Always remember, if someone is talking to you about someone else, they are talking to someone else about you. Give them something worth discussing…

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Spirituality

A Rare Talent

Andy Warhol is credited with saying, “in the future everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” He said this decades before the first iteration of social media had come to be. Warhol’s flippant remark is something many in society are trying to fulfill.

People will work like hell to be called “influencers.” But what does that really mean? Influencer has the allure of someone you might want to look up to. Politicians have influence. I don’t consider them to be role models, though. The guys who created “Jackass” are considered to be influencers. All they did was some really outrageous things to gain viewers. Yet, I wasn’t influenced to do any of the crazy stuff they did!

It is a rare person who goes about their life, doing good work, taking care of others, yet they are not seeking attention. Jesus was one of those people. He healed many, yet never sought his own honor. He brought people back to life after they were dead, but told the witnesses to “tell no one.” His influence has lasted for over 2,000 years.

I have been privileged to meet people who are rare finds, they are truly treasures among us.

Good people are out there. Sometimes you gotta look hard to find them, but they are there. My encouragement to you is to follow their example. It doesn’t matter how many people notice or give you credit. We are only here for an audience of one. God will see what you did, and that’s all that matters…

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Spirituality

Rigid

Do you consider yourself to be open minded? Perhaps you see the world in black or white. The truth is, there’s a lot of grey area in between the two contrasts.

Much good has come from straightforward, objective analysis. For example, we wouldn’t want to drive across a bridge where the engineers had said their structural load calculations were, “close enough for government work!” No, we want their best work.

Adaptability has the greatest correlation to success, well above intelligence. Anyone who has ever been involved in buying a home understands this. Real estate transactions rarely go as smoothly as planned.

I encourage you to view the world with childlike curiosity. Question things, even your own beliefs and convictions. Listen and learn from others who see the world differently.

It’s not an affront to you to consider the views of other people. They may be right…

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Spirituality, Uncategorized

In Agreement

When we were little children we were told we should get along with others. The teachers didn’t show us how to resolve conflicts, though. We learned how to do that through after school fights on the playground!

In life, we like to see the adults play nice. We hope our world leaders can resolve differences without going to war. And we really like it when our politicians show civility to each other after brutal, nasty elections.

In case you haven’t noticed, people are at each other’s throats over political differences. Self-righteousness is on display daily on social media. Lifelong friendships have been left in tatters due to unresolvable conflicts. I believe we can do better, if we are willing.

I don’t have to agree with you to like you. If you are a good person, doing good in the world and caring for your fellow man, I’m okay with you. Over the course of my life I have observed that most people are good at heart. And it’s the heart that matters most.

My encouragement to you is to look for the good in the world. It’s there! Sometimes you gotta look hard to find it, but it’s there. And if you aren’t seeing it, change the lens you are seeing through…

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Spirituality

Choose Your Battles

If you’re on social media, you have probably observed that people like to fight. Something, anything happens and we must weigh in because, you know, our opinions are important! And when we state our case, the algorithm keeps feeding us similar posts to keep our righteous indignation alive.

Enough already! It’s time to change the game by altering our attention. For example, I cannot make a difference by commenting on the political arena. What happens in Washington is going to happen no matter what I say or believe. So I stay out of the conversation.

There are certain things all of us are effective at. By focusing our energy in those areas we can make an impact. Our efforts count for something. And here’s a universal truth: we want our lives to matter.

The time is right to make a choice. You may choose to stay involved in meaningless chatter, or get busy doing what you’re called to do.

Ask yourself a question: How do I want to be remembered? Once you come up with your answer to that relevant question, you get to choose whether to pursue your purpose or not.

It’s your choice. Choose wisely and then make your move into meaning and purpose. Ignore the battles that don’t get you where you’re going because they just don’t matter…

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Spirituality, Uncategorized

There’s Always a Critic

Have you noticed how the court of public opinion passes judgment without knowing all the facts? People can look at the world through a lens of biases which cloud clear thinking.

The “Make America Healthy Again” movement has no shortage of uneducated critics. Since it’s associated with the Trump administration, it must be wrong! No, it’s not wrong. Obesity, especially in children, has risen to epidemic levels. Autism has gone from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 31 children. Science is constantly asking why. It’s a good and fair question.

The pharmaceutical lobby is the largest in the world. They certainly have their own share of biases. Keep America fat and unhealthy and they have a customer for life. There is solid research dating back to the 1940’s that demonstrates the efficacy of psychedelics. They remain schedule 1 drugs because the pharmaceutical lobby says they should.

Do your own research. Remove bias from your thinking. If you conclude that your opinion is supported by facts, then stick with it. But if you learn something new that’s different from your prior beliefs, be willing to accept it…

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Spirituality

The Meek

Being a meek person doesn’t mean you are weak or afraid to stand up for yourself. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. We think of the word in the wrong way.

Meek means strength under control. To display meekness means that when the crowd is losing their minds, you are the one who remains steady, the one who leads.

Meekness is strength of character, too. The meek don’t fold when things get tough. They remain steadfast in their convictions, sometimes running counterculture in the process.

Strive for meekness. Be strong when the world around you is weak.

And if you are a meek person, showing strength under control, you won’t need to tell anyone. Others will know…

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Spirituality, Uncategorized

Confession

It feels good to talk about things, doesn’t it? There’s much freedom that comes from unburdening yourself of your troubles.

Trigger warning: this is a dark story I’m about to tell you.

Last week, I was doing a round of volunteer speaking in prisons. On Wednesday morning, a few women inmates were sharing stories about their lives. One of the women said, “I was raped by my father from the time I was 3 until I was 13 and I ran away from home.” She went on to say that she had never told anyone until that moment. It’s heartbreaking to think about what she had been carrying inside for years, never talking about it. I cannot imagine what causes someone to harm an innocent child. He was a very sick fuck.

Everyone has a story. They aren’t always pretty. The woman I described above took her first step toward healing by talking about what happened to her. I asked her how it felt to tell someone and she said it felt good.

We need good people in our lives, people we can confide in who won’t judge us. Confession is a good first step to becoming whole…

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Spirituality

Care

There are a lot of causes I care about. The poor state of our world is almost overwhelming. Illiteracy, disease, hunger and child abuse are just a few needs to address.

No one person can solve all our societal ills. There are too many. Government is inefficient in solving problems. People tend to look there for solutions but the governments track record sucks. I have an idea!

If everyone alive who is capable took the time to work towards a problem they have a heart for, we could move the bar immeasurably. So few are fulfilling the call to help. My encouragement is for people to take one hour, only one hour per week to help. If less television turns into helping your fellow man, I believe that’s a good, worthwhile trade off.

I ask you to prayerfully consider what you can do. Then I encourage you to follow through and take action. Collectively we can make a difference.

Start today…

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