Think About It

When someone says something we don’t appreciate, what do we do?  Whether we think the statement is a personal attack or just in violation of something we believe to be correct, it is tempting to come back with a retort.  Now, while there might be a time and place to correct facts stated in error, we must be careful not to allow the discussion to become personal.  It is awful tempting to feel compelled to straighten out another person, but what is our true intent?  The problem with this type of logic is that as soon as we make our defense, the other person might take issue with what we say and the conversation can deteriorate into an argument.   Before too long, anger is applied, logic is lost and things heat up.  We don’t always have to argue our point – even if we are correct.  If it is bound to end up in conflict, we might be better off to let it go.  When I was younger, I was encouraged to be insightful when I was advised not to get down a...

A lot of people are quite familiar with the witticisms of Yogi Berra; but how many of us are familiar with Casey Stengel?  Charles Stengel was around the game of baseball for generations. While he may not have been as humorous as Yogi, he was quite insightful on his own.  The other day, I came across a couple of Casey’s quotes – the first one was, “Finding good players is easy.  Getting them to play as a team is another story.”.  In a sports world filled with talented athletes, this is as true (or maybe truer) today as it was in Casey’s day.  Now, as insightful as this observation was, the one that really got me to thinking was, “All blame is a waste of time.  No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you.  The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for … reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration.”.  (As I went back and researched the quote...

One of my favorite verses is James 1:19-20, “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”.   When we are looking for a life lesson on how to get along with people, here we go.   Recently, when I was reconsidering this passage, a couple observations came to mind.   First, did you notice that James almost seems to refer to this as a firm grasp of the obvious?   He didn’t offer them anything groundbreaking; in fact, he prefaced the statement with “this you know …”.   These principles of humanity shouldn’t surprise any of us!   Yet, the other observation is almost as insightful – why in the world do we still have trouble following these guidelines?   Understanding them isn’t rocket science and we teach them to children, so why haven’t we mastered them?   I don’t think the problem is that we d...

When I was 17-year-old, I agreed to do a job for someone … but, just never got around to it.  At the end of the summer, I headed off to college and failed to make good on my agreement.  (In fact, if I remember correctly, I think my Dad ended up doing the job for me – more of a credit to his work ethic than mine.)  Now, the reason I bring this event up some fifty years later is that this is one of my decisions that still embarrasses me.  Through the years, I have come to realize I didn’t live up to what I should have done and who I should have been.  While I still feel a twinge of guilt associated with this, I have to remind myself that I have become a better person and a harder worker since then.   When I am honest with myself, I believe my legacy will be defined by more than this mistake. Is there something from your past that keeps nagging at you?  Did you make a mistake that you are still struggling with?  If so, let me ask a question – wh...

          It is probably natural, but have you noticed how easy it is to condemn modern society?   It is tempting to look back at how things used to be and see the good, then look forward and dread the direction we are headed.   While nostalgia is fun and gives us a warm feeling, it isn’t all that accurate.   You see, the past isn’t always as pure as we believe.   There have always been issues and – as long as there are people – there will be problems.   One of the condemnations made about modern society is how rapidly people are to discount the truth and promote their own opinions to get their own ways.   I will not deny that this happens today, but in the interest of honesty, it has been that way throughout the ages.   Even thousands of years ago, at the beginning of the Christian era, deception was a problem.   After describing false prophets, the Apostle Peter notes, “ Many will follow their sensuality, and b...

After many years of inactivity, I am picking up my golf clubs again.  Well, let me rephrase that – I am pulling out the new clubs Jeane and our children gave me.  I am excited about my renewed interest in the game.  I have played off and on during various seasons of my life and I (and they) think it’s time to give it another try.  Now, the reason I share this with you is to relate a couple of lessons I have learned in the process.  First of all, I can’t expect to pick up my clubs after years (decades) of inactivity and expect to be proficient.  Yet maybe the biggest lesson is that I will have to learn to play “old man’s golf”.  I was never a long hitter, but now that I have gotten more gray hair, I can’t expect to hit the ball as far as a used to.  The great thing about golf is that you can be successful even if you aren’t a monster driver.  The important thing is to play within your strengths and keep the ball in the fairway.  I am actu...