John Harrell's Blog, page 5

Me, Myself and I

We live in a selfish world. The culture of The United States is greed. I have seen a bumper sticker that says, “the one with the most toys wins.” No, they die.

There’s nothing wrong with accumulating wealth. Our resources allow us to live in a nice home, send our children to good schools, and we don’t go hungry. But the challenge with wealth is the desire to hold onto it too tightly. That’s the intersection of greed and charity. Which way will we turn?

Our government has tremendous, almost unlimited resources. They are the worst I have ever seen at getting those resources into the hands of the people who need it. Want to move heaven and earth? Put those resources in the hands of the faith and philanthropic communities. They are on the ground in their communities and waste very little.

God cares greatly for widows and orphans, the marginalized. He talks about it a lot. It’s our duty to care for those who cannot care for themselves. Otherwise, what good does our wealth do? Holding onto too tightly can turn you into a bitter, resentful person.

Over the course of my life, I have known some people of great means. They are, to a person, the most charitable people in their communities. They give money, but they will go deliver food and other items in the sketchiest areas of town. They are inspiring role models.

I encourage you to get involved. Find causes that touch your heart. We can’t help everyone. The poor will be with us always. But everyone can help someone…

Inner Courage

Sometimes I see people jumping out of perfectly good airplanes. Occasionally they say this is making them fearless. But they are wrong. Courage comes from within, not from the external. Let’s examine this a little more.

Fear is a learned behavior. You weren’t born with it. Children learn to walk even though they fail many times while trying to master the skill. They refuse to give up, yet they know they might fall down on their next attempt. Their desire to succeed is greater than their fear of failure.

The world is hard. There’s no doubt about that. It’s expensive to live, people are yelling at each other, and there’s no end in sight to stop our division. And it takes courage to face our own fears while navigating our way through the mess. Yet, it’s possible to live fearlessly. How, you ask?

Remember that God is in control of everything. Evil cannot harm you unless God allows it. But He sees the good that only He can bring from it. Keep in the forefront of your mind that God is watching you all the time, and will see you through your troubles if you trust Him.

Write down whatever you are worried about. Talk it through with someone you trust. Then let God do his thing…

Annual Physical

This morning I had my annual physical. It’s important to build a long-term relationship with your physician. He or she can keep an eye on trends in your overall health and your body. And a good doctor will ask about your social life as well, because that has a lot to do with your overall wellness.

Many people wait until something is wrong before going to the doctor. This puts the physician in a difficult position. You might be going to a doctor you’ve never seen before which means they are starting from scratch.

Don’t be afraid to see where you stand, health wise. Your doctor might suggest some changes to your lifestyle or diet, but that’s a good thing. You may be able to stave off some health issues later.

And for the record, I received a perfect bill of health! So, God willing, I’ll be writing for a long time…

Eliminate This Word

When my children were growing up, they weren’t allowed to say the word “can’t.” I told them to substitute won’t because that’s what they were really saying. It was an invitation for them to try, whether they experienced success or a setback.

Can’t is an excuse, nothing more. Victimhood has become popular in the culture of today, although it’s been around for a long while. Social media gives “victims” a bigger platform.

There are scores of people who need help, no doubt. If someone was born into poverty it is our responsibility to make sure they are fed, housed and clothed. But we can encourage the needy to change their mindset about poverty. It’s only permanent if you accept that it is. Sadly, not everyone will grow out of poverty.

Ben Carson should have been a statistic. He grew up in horrible conditions, raised by an uneducated single mother who dropped out of school in the third grade. One day young Ben’s mother told him and his brother Curtis to turn off the television. They were to read two books per week and write book reports for her. The two boys were not happy, but they respected their mother’s wishes. She would “read” their reports, marking them up with a red pen. The truth was, their mother couldn’t read. To shorten the story, Curtis became an aerospace engineer while Ben became a pediatric neurosurgeon. Their mindset about themselves and their abilities were changed.

Eliminate can’t from your vocabulary and your thoughts. See how far you can go…

Volunteerism

How do you spend your free time? There are many opportunities to serve your community. Every organization needs help and volunteers allows them to defray costs.

Many people give money to support their favorite charities. That’s wonderful because it takes financial resources to make the machine go. The men and women who choose to make philanthropy their life’s work aren’t doing it for fame or fortune. They work in service to others because they want to help.

Getting involved at the ground level places you alongside the recipients of charity. Consider working a Habitat For Humanity build, or a food bank. When serving others, we are getting involved with “the least among us” as Jesus talked about.

Find the organization(s) that reach your heart. Make contact. Get involved. You never know where God will take you when you do…

Giveaways

Companies advertise things like “buy one, get one free” and other offers to entice customers. Oftentimes the company is offering something really good. And we love a bargain or a sale, don’t we?

What about you? You have unique gifts and talents that were given to you by God. He doesn’t want us to hold onto them or hide them from view. No. God gave us special talents to benefit others. Keeping them to ourselves is selfish. You are uniquely qualified to influence others for good, thereby advancing God’s Kingdom agenda.

If you aren’t using your gifts, or perhaps you have allowed them to lie dormant for a while, I encourage you to begin using them. The world needs what you have to offer. Start now…

Rational Lies

We lie to ourselves. Now that is a true statement! We lie to ourselves and then we rationalize the lies. We overeat and swear we will exercise harder next week. We tell a little white lie and believe we are sparing someone some bad news. It’s time for this to stop.

People can handle the truth. In fact, most people can handle criticism if it’s done constructively. You discuss the behavior without criticizing the person. People appreciate honesty, especially when it’s designed to help them.

All of us have blind spots. There are things we need to improve in ourselves, yet we may be unaware of them. This is where we need our friends to tell us the truth. We need to be honest with others about their blind spots. We can take a lesson from the Apostle Paul and deliver the message with “gentleness and self-control.”

What are the lies you tell yourself? Take a moment of accountability. Write them down. Then actively work to improve. It’s a challenge, but you can rise and meet the challenge if you’re willing…

It Was A Mistake

Have you ever made a mistake? Of course you have! It’s a rhetorical question. Here’s another one for you: Do you know people who continue throwing your past mistakes in your face? Move those people out of your life, far away.

Some people have a habit of looking for the worst in others. They revel in it. At their core, they are refusing to look at themselves so they spend their efforts pointing out the flaws and shortcomings of others. Their misgivings about themselves turn into projection.

It’s a beautiful thing when you trust someone to the point where you allow them to see you for who you are. Their acceptance of you can turn into self-improvement on your part. You want to be better.

Mistakes are part of life. They aren’t intentional. Don’t allow mistakes of the past to stop you from taking risks. Mistakes are vital for learning which leads to eventual success. Keep pushing forward…

Devils Among Us

There is evil in this world. It may not always represent itself in murder, terrorism and other crimes of violence. Evil also comes in the forms of abuse, disease and loss.

Bad things happen to good people and we don’t understand why. People blame God and lash out in anger. That’s okay. He can take it. I have some experience with this. During much of my young life I hit him. Hard. Regularly.

But here’s a thought. When bad things happen in our lives, when the shit really hits the fan, we have a choice. We can hate God for allowing it or we can grow closer to Him. It doesn’t take away the pain. We still have to grieve and go through it. Even when we are at our lowest, when we have given up on God, He hasn’t given up on us. He doesn’t throw in the towel when he’s had enough of us raging at him. He still cares.

There are a lot of things we aren’t going to understand on this side of eternity. The spiritual battle that rages around us is just one of those things. We can’t see it, but it is happening. We can’t see gravity either, but I’m not going to jump off a high rise building.

Gravity works every time. So does God. He is the only one who can bring good from evil. Give Him a chance…

Working People

Unless you were born into a family with great wealth, you know what it’s like to work. Working people make the economy go. We don’t see who produces our food, or drives the trucks to get it to us, or the people who control our traffic signals. But they are there and they are important well beyond just their work.

People are important. All people, not just the ones we like or admire. We tend to place people into categories: those who can do something for us and those who can’t. If someone can’t help us achieve our wants and needs, it doesn’t diminish their importance to God. He created them, too, and I don’t believe God has categorized us. I’m very grateful he doesn’t!

Take the time to get to know people. Find out where they are from, what makes them tick. See others the way God sees them, not through the limited vision of human eyes.

When we see humanity through God’s eyes, the lens of our vision grows larger, much larger…