“Our actions are like perfectly obedient boomerangs: whatever we send out will return to us, by law.”  Leslie Householder

How do you deal with annoying and difficult people?

Don’t be misled. Remember that you can’t ignore God and get away with it. You will always reap what you sow!  (Gal. 6:7; NLT)

In my reading recently, I was reminded of a fascinating thought which I would like to propose could become a fascinating experiment for us (note that I’m including myself).  Who among us don’t have someone (or maybe even several someone’s) in our lives whom we would quickly label as an annoying or a difficult person?  It could be someone you encounter once every once-in-a-while, or maybe on a weekly basis, or (bless you) on a daily basis.  It might be someone at your workplace–maybe your supervisor.  It could even be your spouse, or more specifically, a particular behavior of your spouse that bugs you.

I’m also sure you’ve heard somewhere along the line that a nemesis such as that is usually in our life for specific reason.  Usually that reason is to motivate us to make a change of some sort.  The nature of my proposed experiment is to learn to use another one of those irrefutable laws in a manner that makes it work for you instead of against you.  Today I want to focus your attention on the Law of Seed and Harvest (aka cause and effect) as described back in the 8/8/08 DG. 

The experiment asks you to change your thinking by looking at each and every one of these people whom you consider to be a nemesis as if they are acting in whatever way they are especially to SERVE you, that is, to pressure you to make that long needed change. They’re doing whatever they do just to give you the lessons and opportunities you need. Be grateful to them for these gifts.

Grateful?  Yes, grateful!  Think thoughts of gratitude and blessing toward them every time you think of them or see them.  It that possible?  Yes it is!  It is hard?  Yes it is hard.  Does it pay dividends?  Absolutely!  Immeasurable dividends!  How long will it take?  Do thoughts have an effect?  Try the experiment and see for yourself.

BTW, I have proposed this experiment to coaching clients on two occasions, and on both occasions saw remarkable results.  So, I fully expect this to work for you and I as well.

Prayer Power
Lord, this is hard.  We ask you to fill us with the grace necessary to make this possible.  For some, this will be pushing Your command to “love one another” way out of their comfort zone.  Lord, reward them for their efforts in a fashion that quickly and undeniably verifies the cause/effect relationship that is involved with this.

Link of the Day
Gratitude at Work

Blessings on you as you choose to be grateful rather than hateful to someone this week.
 

“Thoughts are more powerful than devils! Think right, live right!”  Gregory Dickow

How often are you finding yourself worrying about the uncertainties of the economy and the election?

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.  (Phil. 4:6,7; NLT)

The phrase “do not worry” appears 10 times in the NIV version of the Bible while the synonymous phrase “don’t worry” appears 27 times in the NLT.  I remember in seminary how they emphasized that when you saw something in the Bible once, it was important.  When you saw the same thing repeated twice, it was really significant.  But 27 times?  Give me a break!

Over a year ago I wrote a DG entitled “What Me Worry?” (9/24/07 DG) in which I used an anonymous quote that read “Worrying is praying for what you don’t want.”  In view of all that’s been in the news over the last week or so, there sure seems to be a lot of people praying.  How can you pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV without being given a strong temptation to worry.

I been reading a fascinating series on a daily basis for the last several months (starting my 3rd time through now) by a fellow named Greg Dickow that revolves around the idea of fasting from wrong thinking.  One of the topics he dealt with was worry.  He wrote, “The key to fasting from this thought [I'm so worried], is to realize that worry is a habit. The  more you do it, the more you become addicted to it. People try to  comfort themselves with worry, and yet it has the exact opposite effect.”

Dickow goes on to offer the following insight and tips:
(1) Worry does no good.
(2) Worry hurts–it produces burdens and sickness.
(3) Since worry is thinking about things that are wrong, start thinking about all the things that are right.
(4) Turn worry around and make it work in your favor by treating it as a signal to pray, a la one of the “dummy lights” in your car (note the above verse).
(5) Focus your thoughts on your overall life mission, e.g., helping others, serving others, etc.

If it does nothing else, the above excellent advice makes it clear that worry is a choice.  You can choose to not worry…or to worry.  Choose life or death.  Which do you choose?

Prayer Power
Lord, I’m so grateful that you have led me out of the wilderness of worry over the past several years.  It has made such an incredible difference in my life.  I ask that you would do the same for those readers who have been lured back into that terrible place.

Link of the Day
Gregory Dickow Ministries

Blessings on you as you have a “worry-free” day.
 

“So when you are down, expect to go up.  When you are up, expect that one day your ‘up’ won’t be enough to keep you happy and it will feel like a down.  It’s all good.”  Leslie Householder

Are you up or down today?  How are you feeling about that?

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again–rejoice!  (Phil. 4:4, NLT)

How’s that for a strange title given the fact that this is being published on a Monday.  Wouldn’t “Sunday Came” be more appropriate?  Well, if you’ve been following me in this series so far, you recognize that in the metaphor I’ve been using, it’s still Friday, but Sunday’s coming.  If none of this makes any sense, please go back and read last Wednesday’s post as well as last Friday’s post.  We’ve been talking about the Law of Seasons (or Law of Rhythm, if you prefer), and how we should be remembering that law as we seemingly move into some pretty turbulent times (a “low” for many).  With the proper application of that law, we should take solace in the fact that better times are ahead (a “high” or Sunday is coming).

My premise is that if we know that better times are ahead, we would do well to focus on them rather than to focus on the difficulties that we are currently experiencing.  However, when we are on a high, that same law tells us that a low is coming.  Using the same logic, should we then focus on the coming low?  Au contraire, but let me quickly confess that I used to think that way.  When I was down, I was worried about how down I was and how much lower I might go, and then when I was up, I was excited about that, but worried about what tomorrow would bring.  In case you haven’t noticed, worry is a habit…every bit as destructive as smoking, drinking, overeating, or any number of “bad” habits.

So, what should we be thinking about the upcoming low if we’re currently experiencing a high?  Well, use the universal or irrefutable laws to your advantage rather than to your detriment.  Remember the Law of Comparisons (Law of Polarity to some) that says nothing is ever good or bad until you choose to make it so?  (See the 9/29/08 DG.)  That particular law tells us that even the worst of circumstances are actually fabulous.  That’s what we should be thinking when things are going well.  Yes, it’s inevitable that a low is coming, but understand that a low is only the absence of a high.

Think of life as a giant staircase.  You climb to a new high and it feels great.  After a bit, if you don’t continue to climb, you will actually stagnate (stop changing) and the feeling of exhilaration from the high will invariably morph into a feeling of low.  (To feel requires change.)  Now if you let yourself focus on feeling low, you are very likely to actually regress and start slipping backwards.  But if you continue to focus on progression and the next high while you’re feeling low, the feeling will soon pass and you will begin another upward assent, leading to a new high.  So learn to view those lows as important resting places as you climb higher and higher.  Reflect a bit on your life…haven’t you seen this phenomenon in action?

Isn’t all this just so much positive thinking mumbo-jumbo?  Well, with all due respect, I don’t believe so.  I believe that positive thinking is trying to define something as positive without basis.  That is simply wishful thinking.  What I’ve been talking about over the last several DGs is solidly based on universal laws.  Laws that are just as irrefutable as gravity.  Yes, it is certainly is thought management, i.e., choosing what to think about, but when you choose to think on something that is inevitable due to law, it’s not wishful thinking.  Hoping, yes…but not wishing.  There is a huge difference, and the kind of thinking that I’m advocating here is backed by a plethora of Scripture passages.  The Bible clearly tells us to manage our thoughts and to not worry.  In fact, I’m feeling led to make Wednesday’s DG about worry–seems rather timely.  See you then!

BTW…don’t miss the pictures at the end of today’s link.  You will rob yourself of a real blessing if you choose not to look.

Prayer Power
Lord, I thank You again that You chose to give us the power to choose.  You gave us the capability as well as written instructions on how to properly use that great gift.  Forgive us for those many times when we ignored the wise use of what You intended to make us the “head” rather than the “tail.”  And especially for those times when we arrogantly blamed You for the outcome.

Link of the Day
The Law of Polarity - Principle of Prosperity  (Don’t miss the pictures at the end of this link!)

Blessings on you as you choose to see you’re lows as a launching point for new highs.
 

“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”  Dale Carnegie

What do you predict will be the outcome of the current financial crisis?

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  (Rom. 12:12; NIV)

As discussed in Wednesday’s DG, the financial crisis that looms before us is truly a picture of the line that declares “it’s Friday,” while the irrefutable law of seasons or (as some call it, the law of rhythm) assures us that “Sunday’s coming!”  This law states that everything is in a constant state of flux, moving to and fro, forward and backward, high tide and low tide, high feelings and low feelings, winter and summer, spring and fall.  This law is expressed in the saying, no condition is permanent.  Or…this too shall pass.  You could also say, “When you feel down be assured that an upswing is coming.”

It always has come, and according to this law, it always will come.  Some uncomfortable changes may have to be made, but interestingly enough, those are usually changes that desperately needed to be made in the first place.  In reality, we were never willing to endure the pain of the change, unless we were forced to do so…as seems to be happening right now. 

Think back on your own life.  You won’t have to think too hard to see examples of this cycle in action.  Everything was going great, then something happened to change it all, and after the pain subsided and the adjustments were made, you now find yourself strangely grateful for the new outcome.  Note that those adjustments likely wouldn’t have happened otherwise. 

Properly understood and used, this law should cause us to look with hope and gratitude on the “high” that is coming.  Admittedly, that takes some effort and discipline, but if we choose instead to look at the “low” we are currently experiencing, or worse yet, how much lower we could go, we will simply exacerbate the pain of the adjustment.  Don’t forget that what you focus on always grows. 

Unfortunately, the reality is, that bad news sells and good news doesn’t.  Therefore we are the unwitting victims of the frenzy created by the media as they seek to “keep us informed.”  But, we always have a choice.  We don’t have to be victims.  We can choose to look with great anticipation at the coming mountaintop instead of worrying about the current valley.  Pollyannaish?  It’s your choice.

Now, if you’re thinking ahead, you see that this law has a corollary.  If you’re experiencing a high…then a low is coming.  Great observation!  Let’s talk about that on Monday.  Make it a fantastic weekend.  Remember, Sunday’s coming!!!

Prayer Power
Lord, we can’t deny that to think positively during negative times is hard.  We admit that we need Your help to persist through times like this.  Help us to be able to confidently relax and keep our eyes on the hope that’s ahead.

Link of the Day
Today’s Economic Issues - Prosperity Lost?

Blessings on you as you turn your eyes to the hope that’s before you this weekend.
 

“Once you choose hope, anything’s possible.”  Christopher Reeve

How are you coping with all the financial news these days?

But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  (Rom. 8:25; NIV)

As you can tell by some of my recent DGs, I’ve been continuing to process the irrefutable laws I featured back in August.  I’ve also been reading information from others who have written on those same laws.  Over the last several days I have found myself drawn to the promise of hope offered by the Law of Seasons (8/18/08 DG) and also known as the Law of Rhythm by a number of other authors. 

Let me be clear from the outset that given my personal beliefs as a Christian, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind where my hope lies–but since He is also the maker of the universe, I have no difficulty in thinking about the hope offered by a irrefutable or universal law clearly put in place by the “Manufacturer.”  As a parallel idea, note that we have no difficulty attributing the force that keeps us from drifting off into space as gravity while simultaneously acknowledging the source and wisdom of that gravity. 

All that aside for a moment, where does the title “It’s Friday, But Sunday’s Coming” come from?  Many of you will recognize the title as a often repeated line in a very famous sermon preached by Marshall Shepherd, Sr. at a mostly black church in West Philadelphia and heard by Tony Campolo, Ph.D., who went on to use the line as the title of one of his most popular messages as well as the title of one of the 35 books he has written.  Campolo is professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University and for ten years was on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania.  (BTW, a link to an mp3 file of Campolo’s famous message is today’s link.)

The message revolves around the events of Easter weekend, with the bleak outlook presented by the crucifixion of Christ on Friday, but with the complete turnaround due to His resurrection on Sunday.  What’s all that got to do with the law of seasons?  Follow my line of thinking for a moment if you will.  I have never heard as much doom and gloom, fear, panic and concern in my entire life as we’re experiencing right now with the financial crisis that our country and the world is facing.  The only thing that comes close in my memory was Y2K which pales in comparison to this.  The media is having an absolute field day.  And when I say that I’m not trying to minimize the seriousness of the issue, but to observe that the sensationalist headlines and news stories we are hearing are simply fanning the flame to make the fire much hotter than it would probably otherwise be.  Borrowing from Campolo’s message…It’s (clearly) Friday!

I’ll have to explain this in greater depth in my next DG (interestingly enough on a Friday), but my message to you is that the law of seasons or law of rhythm offers us the incredible hope that it may be Friday, but Sunday’s coming!  Yes, this too will pass.  Many adjustments will undoubtedly have to be made, but if the law is truly a law (i.e., no exceptions), then one day we will be able to look back on this very difficult time with gratitude and see that most of those corrections and adjustments were for the good.  Next time I will spend more time on the law itself and hopefully make all this just a little clearer.  In the meantime, I encourage you to read or re-read the 8/18 DG.

Prayer Power
Lord, we’re so grateful that no matter what’s happening, Sunday’s coming!  We ask for grace to be able to keep our eyes on the good news that’s coming no matter how bleak it looks at the present time.

Link of the Day
It’s Friday, But Sunday’s Coming (mp3 file)
(Click to load and listen, right click to save as to your computer/mp3 player)

Blessings on you as you contemplate the ramifications of the Law of Seasons.
 

“I never considered myself unique, but people are constantly telling me, ‘I am a miracle.’ To me, I was just an ordinary ‘guy’ with realistic goals and big dreams. I was a 19-year-old student at the University of Texas and well on my way toward fulfilling my ‘big dream’ of one day becoming an orthopedic surgeon.”  Michael Jordan Segal, MSW

How would you cope if your “big dream” were snatched from you with no hope of recovery?

That night the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!  (1 Kings 3:5; NLT)

A couple of times last week I wrote about the Law of Comparisons (aka the Law of Relativity).  Sometimes as I read about some of these universal laws and then turn around and try to write about them, I find myself amazed at the logic and wisdom they convey, but privately wonder how they would work with the “big” things in life.  You know what I mean?  It’s one thing to choose to look for the good with something that is relatively minor, i.e., more of a nuisance than a catastrophe, but what about a big, life altering events?  Obviously this kind of thinking has to move from your head to your heart so that it becomes automatic or instinctive.

I ran across a true story sent out by one of my mentors, Bob Proctor in his newsletter.  He passed along the story of a fellow named Michael Segal who wrote the following:

“Life is full of people who are not satisfied and not thankful for what they have. Many times people are constantly dwelling on what they have lost, rather than being satisfied and thankful for what they still have left. Believe me, I speak from experience.

“When I was 19 and well on my way to fulfilling my life-long dream of becoming a surgeon, I walked into a convenience store which was in the process of being robbed. One of the thieves shot me in the back of my head, leaving me for dead. However, I fooled everyone. Sure, I have my disabilities and I used to constantly dwell on the many things I had lost, being negative, saying, ‘Before I was shot I was athletic, now I can barely walk (with a significant limp), my arm is very weak, I speak somewhat slowly, my voice is hoarse. Before I was shot I could do 500 things really well, after the shooting, I can do only 200 things well. For a long time, I was constantly dwelling on the 300 things I had lost.’ However, eventually I began focusing on the 200 things I could still do. It wasn’t easy and it took me a long time, but refocusing one’s attitude is crucial — not merely for people shot in the head, not merely for people who are sick, but for everyone. Having a more positive attitude is vital and essential.

“One of my friends had a stroke. I would always try to encourage him by trying to get him to refocus on the positive. It was not easy but it was slowly working and he was improving. He still had a long way to go but he was getting there. He was always asking, ‘How long did it take you to walk? I hope I will be able to walk again.’

“I would say to him, ‘Everyone is different. Even though I have problems walking, my hopes and prayers are that one day you’ll be able to walk.’ With that statement I limped out of the hospital room.

“When I visited my friend the next week I immediately asked him to ‘tell me something good.’ He started by saying he had walked 60 feet with a cane in therapy, but just then his doctor (whom I knew) came in and asked how he was doing.

“‘Fine,’ replied my friend, ‘but I just want to be able to walk perfectly again — just like Mike.’ I stood there, a little shocked, but I said to myself, ‘He’s just started on the road to recovery. He’s beginning to think positive.’

“Another friend of mine once told me that he used to feel sorry when he would see people who needed walkers. However, I will never forget what he said after that: ‘I would give anything if my daughter (diagnosed with a possible brain tumor and currently needing a wheel chair) could progress to the point where she just needed a walker.’ He prays for that; I pray for that; and many other people are praying for that.

“Again, ‘Be thankful for what you have, and set your goals for higher things.’ The world is full of many horrible things, as well as many wonderful things. Sometimes a person is constantly looking at the ‘horrible’ things. However, my hopes are that they will be able to find the beauty in life. It’s there — if you look for it!”

Clearly, Michael Segal has demonstrated how effective this way of thinking really can be.  I’m so thankful that I have been blessed to learn and practice these laws on little things.  I can unequivocally testify that my attitude (and life) has transformed drastically over the last four or five years, and I (and everybody around me) is so grateful that it has.  Try it…it works!

BTW, Michael Segal was shot in the head during a robbery, and defied all odds by first surviving and then returning to college. He then earned two degrees with honors, married his high school sweetheart, Sharon, and became a father to their daughter Shawn. Mike is a social worker at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston and an author (currently he has two book projects he’s working on: an autobiography and an anthology of his short stories — as well as very soon he will have a CD of some of his best stories available). He also is a popular inspirational speaker sharing his “recipe” for recovery, happiness, and success. For more information see the Link of the Day below.

Prayer Power
Lord, we are so grateful that You have given us the gift to manage our thoughts.  We further ask that You would give us the grace to instinctively manage them in a constructive way in time of great stress.

Link of the Day
Michael Segal’s Web Site

Blessings on you as you continue to practice making wise choices about what you’re thinking about.
 

“Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don’t count on harvesting Golden Delicious.”  Bill Meyer

How’s your day going so far?  What keeping it from being a great day?

This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.  (Psa. 118: 24; NLT)

How many times in the average day do you hear the phrase, “Have a good day?”  Often used as a substitute for or supplement to good-bye, it has almost become trite because just like the standard greeting “How are you,” most people are just mouthing the words with no real sincerity or interest behind them.  If you’re like me, you probably use those phrases as much as everybody else.  It’s become a habit for many of us because when we say those things we don’t have to stop and think.

As I was reflecting on what to write about today, I remembered Monday’s DG wherein we talked about the Law of Comparison or the Law of Relativity and how anything that happens is neither good nor bad until we decide what to compare it to.  Therefore, we can choose to compare it to something worse and it is therefore good; or we can choose to compare it to something better and thereby declare it to be bad.

Well, if that is the case, and I truly believe that it is, then the already trite and meaningless “Have a good day” makes even less sense because it suggests that we are helpless victims to the circumstances that happen to come our way, and the well-wisher is simply hoping that there will be more good events than bad events so that we can feel like we’ve had a good day. 

If those circumstances or events can be interpreted by us to be to be good (or bad), then that takes the victim out of it completely.  Now it’s fully our responsibility about how those circumstances or events are viewed and we can choose to have either a good day or a bad day.  (Why anyone would choose to have a bad day is beyond my comprehension, but I’m sure there are some who would make that choice for any number of reasons.)

So, given that we have been given the power to make the choice, wouldn’t it make much more sense to end a conversation with “Make it a good day” or better still, “Make it a great day.”  Now it still might not be offered in a sincere manner, but nevertheless it carries the strong implication that the hearer has a choice in the matter.  Maybe if we were reminded enough times, it might just begin sink in that we do have the power to choose to have a good day.

I don’t know about you, but I am going to choose life instead of choosing death.  Sounds like a lot more fun.

Prayer Power
Lord, remind us to choose life and to interpret things that happen to us in a positive fashion.  Help us find the good in everything so that we can sincerely celebrate life on a moment by moment basis.

Link of the Day
How To Have A Good Day Every Day

Blessings on you as you choose to have an awesome weekend!
 

“The Land of Opportunity is more than a place…it’s a state of mind.  It is an openness to new ideas, a willingness to listen, an eagerness to learn, a desire to grow, and the flexibility to change.”  from “A Peacock in the Land of Penguins”

Are you being your true self?  If not, why not?

The king had a fleet of trading ships that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded down with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.  (1 Kings 10:22; NLT)

Many of you who know me, know that one of my  many “quirks” is my disdain for neck