Think About It

The other day I was going through my online banking activity and realized something rather startling – instead of deducting my remaining tax bill once, the IRS had withdrawn the amount twice. I never got an email alerting me to the second withdrawal, it just happened. You can imagine my surprise at this level of double-dipping. Had this happened at other times in our lives, this would have been a devastating blow because we would have not only been overdrawn, we would have been WAY overdrawn, but we were financially in a position to be able to withstand the mistake. Now, the point to my story is not how awful the IRS treated me, rather it is to say that I had to make a choice. I could either be upset at what had happened or I could be thankful that we had been blessed to be able to absorb the financial loss. I could either call the IRS (and be put on hold for a half hour), then rant and rave about the incompetence that led to this mistake or could calmly wait my turn to call atte...

Can you be “right” and “wrong” at the same time? I believe we can have an accurate set of facts, but still be in the wrong. It is tempting to feel that being accurate gives us the freedom to act in whatever way we want to act. In essence, being correct gives us ability (and maybe even the responsibility) to bowl people over. Having an accurate fact base is more important than conveying it in an understandable way. Yet, the truth is that we can be “correct” and still be wrong. When we mistreat others, when we are insensitive to those around us, we are bound to lose no matter how “right” we are! Maya Angelou is credited with saying, “I have learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”. I believe this observation is needed as much now as it is in any other time. We have a lot of people claiming to be right, but doing so at the expense of others. It’s almost like they are hoping to beat peop...

What guides our lives? That is a pretty broad question, isn’t it? Let me see if I can narrow it down a bit. As we approach life, what dictates how we view things? Will we be derailed by emotion, overwhelmed by circumstances and side-tracked by folly or will we rely on wisdom to guide us through life? Wisdom is one of those interesting words: we think we’ll know it when we see it, but can we define it? I believe that wisdom is the ability to take all the knowledge we have accrued through the years and apply it to the situations that present themselves to us. It is properly combining book-learning, experiences and spiritual maturity to address the issues we face. Life is going to be difficult, and people are going to be harsh. None of us have been promised an easy existence, so to be successful we are going to have to develop wisdom because if we don’t things are going to tough. I remember a pretty insightful quote, “Life is hard … it is even harder if you are foolish!”. The ...

I was a wrestling fan when I was younger. (Maybe I should say I was a fan of ‘Rasslin’ – you know the stuff that was done by people like Dusty Rhodes, Andre the Giant and the Funk Brothers). I would get wound up over who beat who in the spotlight matches on Saturday afternoons. In fact, my friends and I would argue over our favorites to the point that we might get in a scrap that chipped away at our relationship. Come to find out years later, these guys who seemed to hate each other on T.V. were eating dinners together and riding the same bus or plane to the next venue. I wonder how many childhood friendships were destroyed (or at least damaged) by cosmetic rivalries. The reason I bring up old-time wrestling is that I see something akin to it in modern times. I wonder if modern debaters have done us as much good as the heartache they have caused? There are a lot of politicians, pundits and community leaders that are driving wedges between people. They stand up on their platfor...

When we think about idols, most of us conjure up a vision of an icon made of wood or stone that sits at the door of some religious place. While this can be an idol, I believe that idols can be more than physical images of pagan gods. An idol can be a political system that we revere more than godliness. Idols can be movements that make more social sense than adhering to the spiritual principles. Idols can be people we listen to more than we heed the word of God. Idols can be a principle of natural or social science that claims to explain humanity more completely than the Creator. An idol can be the monetary currency we put our faith in rather than trusting that the All-powerful God will take care of our every need. Simply put, an idol is anything that usurps our reliance on and worship for God. The interesting thing about idols is that their power is limited because they were created by humans. Several years ago, one of God’s prophets considered the futility of idolatry by obs...

If you have spent much time studying the Bible, it is quite possible that you have heard Abraham referred to as the “Father of Faith” (or maybe even the “Father of the Faithful”). Have you ever wondered why he was given that title? No, it wasn’t because he got everything right – rather, it is because he followed the Lord’s direction. There are several examples of his faith throughout his life, but to me, one of the most impressive occurs when Abraham (or, as he was known at that time, Abram) followed the Lord’s direction when he was told, “Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, the land which I will show you …” (Genesis 12:1). The Lord followed up with the blessings Abram and his descendants would receive, but it was contingent on his willingness to go. God didn’t give him a map, nor step by step instructions on how he would achieve his reward – he was told to go and the great patriarch went. He was convinced that God had something speci...

Have you ever thought about what makes the difference between a victim and a victor? When we first consider it, we might attribute the difference to talent or opportunity – and while that might have something to do with it – the bottom line is persistence. Too often, victims are those who just give up too soon while victors are the ones who keep going until they have the ability to get what they want or need. The phrase “victim of circumstances” is often used as a regrettable fact of life; but could it merely be that someone gave up too soon? One of the challenges of modern society is the acceptance of victimization – and in some cases the pursuit of victimization. When we look for excuses to give up, we can easily find them and, when we do, we have a built-in reason for not being successful. What would happen if, rather than settling for what is easy, we press on for what we desire? No, we won’t always get what we want, but when we keep going we’ll have a chance to win more t...