I have a Master’s degree in Moody. There are some who see the glass half full, and others who see the glass half-empty. Left to my own devices, I see the glass as 100% of whatever mood I may be in.
That said, I’m re-learning (God is such a patient teacher!) a powerful, powerful principle:
Never, never, never pass up an opportunity to say “Thank you.”
Why?
Because gratitude is the gateway to abundance. I am living it.
Gratitude widens the road – at least in the spirit, if not in the circumstances. As I live gratefully, forces line up to move the circumstances. But in the meantime, even while the circumstances are narrow, my soul is broad.
That’s hard for the Master of Moody to accept sometimes. I am capable of such broodiness that disciplined gratitude must be that – disciplined. And I don’t do it well. [click to continue…]
Somewhere in the places where sighs give way to hope and promises sing to aching hearts, your soul waits for something different. More than the pleasure of a passing moment or those 15 minutes of look-at-me, you were created with a craving soul. “He has planted eternity in the human heart,” Solomon said, “but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.”
One day – sooner rather than later – that craving will be satisfied. And not by what the pavement is made of or what the real estate market is like past the pearly gates. Not by something that resembles Sunday morning at the church house, Monday noon at the White House, or Friday night at the penthouse. Craving souls are smarter and deeper than that.
One day – nearer rather than farther – tired hearts, stale relationships and flyblown religion will give way to a new dawn. And at long last your soul will taste satisfaction. Ashes will give way to beauty. You’ll trade your mourning in for the oil of joy. You’ll wear a garment of praise – complete with dancing shoes – instead of a spirit of heaviness. In the satisfaction of the soul… [click to continue…]
Give thanks to the Lord, the God of gods, the Lord of Lords, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness. The Lord is good to all, righteous in all His ways, kind in all His deeds, and His mercies are over all His works. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him in truth.
I will give thanks to the Lord according to His righteousness, and will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High. For Your name is near; You have answered me, And You have become my salvation. [click to continue…]
I don’t know where it started, but if you’re watching, you may discover a fresh face of encouragement. In this neck of the woods… um, well, we don’t have woods. On these windswept plains, you’ll find it on Facebook among a group of teenagers in the Abilene area.
It’s a simple formula, really, but it hits a nerve of elegance, authenticity, and power.
It’s a declaration of something valuable or important one person sees in another, preceded by the words, “Truth is.”
Here’s a sampling: [click to continue…]
(A puzzle… wrapped in a true story)
I was standing in the bank branch foyer the other day. It was lunchtime, and only two tellers were working, so there was a small line.
Waiting my turn, the man in front of me turned around, and I recognized him. He was an acquaintance from a former church where I had served. The truth is, the last we’d seen of each other in any meaningful way was on a rafting trip more than 10 years ago. We had a few minutes to catch up – not asking eternal-type questions mind you – just mainly the life-and-work stuff.
He had retired a few years ago, just in time for the stock market to crater. So he had figured out that the way out was the way back in, and had gone back to do some consulting.
I told him I am a teacher now for four different universities, soon to be five. I didn’t mention the part about being an aspiring author and counselor.
His back to the tellers, I had to tell him there was one who was available.
“Hello, Mr. Scott,” she said. It was the beginning of a powerful lesson.
Wow, I thought to myself. He must get by here a lot. He must be The Man. I wondered what it was like to have the fab bank teller know you as a somebody. [click to continue…]
Last night the Texas Rangers won their first-ever postseason series.
And they celebrated with ginger ale.
Why?
Because Josh Hamilton, the Rangers’ star outfielder, graciously refuses to go anywhere near alcohol.
When the Rangers clinched their division in Oakland back in September, as beer and champagne flowed in the visitors’ locker room, Josh changed in a side office and left the clubhouse to go speak to a church group in Oakland about his life and testimony.
But last night, after winning the division series – something the Texas Rangers (and former Washington Senators) had never done – the team made sure it would be a team celebration. [click to continue…]
“Loneliness does not come from having no people about one, but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important to oneself, or from holding certain views which others find inadmissible.” (Carl Jung)
In an eastern hospital years ago, a group of medical students were doing a pediatric rotation. As they worked with these hospitalized kids each day, they noticed that the patients responded with great joy to one particular med student. Nobody could figure out why. So they talked one of their cohort members into doing a little spying.
The observer followed him around all day and discovered nothing. Finally that night, the mystery was solved when the young doctor made his last round. [click to continue…]
What comes to mind when you hear the name “Solomon?”
Yeah, that. Wisdom. Too bad he lived long enough to throw his life into reverse.
Solomon was a piece of work. He went from healthy, wealthy and wise to hedonistic, weird and wicked. Finally, toward the end of his reign, the Lord had seen enough. He spoke to Solomon and told him he was going to tear away all but one tribe from his son (1 Kings 11:13).
Okay. But why not clean house? Why not do a clean sweep? He’d done it before with Israel’s first king. And may I just say… Saul may have gone from compromiser to crazy, but compared to Solomon, Saul was a saint.
So what gives with God? [click to continue…]
There wasn’t much about Barry Wheeler to command respect. He was certainly no athlete. His skinny frame was the product of a lifetime of allergies and a bad case of asthma that earned him the cruel nickname of “Barry Wheezer.”
Barry was no musician or class politician. He couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, and his shy, withdrawn personality made him just another face in the crowd at high school in Topeka.
Barry was no geekzilla either. A “B” student in regular classes, nobody called Barry out for the National Honor Society – or any honor, for that matter.
Barry was just a guy. But he had one thing going for him. [click to continue…]
I want to talk to you about something that for some people is pretty painful and scary. Because of that, I want to say first that I am writing this in love. I hope you can feel the love that compels me to say these things, even if they are difficult to receive or comprehend.
If this isn’t for you, it’s for somebody you know. Maybe you can pass it along.
The truth is, I am afraid for you.
As you look in the mirror, as you go forth into the world, and as you relate to others, you only know two views.
You’re either a hero or a zero.
You are either on a pedestal or in the sewer. [click to continue…]
I have a Master’s degree in Moody. There are some who see the glass half full, and others who see the glass half-empty. Left to my own devices, I see the glass as 100% of whatever mood I may be in.
