John Harrell's Blog, page 54

Tax Day

On April 15th, Americans file their income taxes for the previous year. Or they have the option of extending the deadline to October 15th. Either way we pay.

I’m happy to pay taxes to support our military and keep our border secure. Our tax dollars should be used to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves, along with our veterans. These are legitimate expenses.

But Congress wastes tremendous amounts of money. They appropriated $3.5 million dollars for parade balloons in Michigan, and they sent $10 million to Pakistan for “gender studies.” Seriously.

Michigan can fund their own balloons and Pakistan can fund their gender studies without our money. It is our money. Government doesn’t produce revenue.

If you agree these are wasteful practices, write your Congressional Representatives. If they hear from enough people and believe they might not get reelected, then their behavior will change…

Power

Power. Everyone wants power, or do they? Perhaps they are seeking control and their perception is that power and control go hand in hand. They don’t.

First, let’s talk about control. The only thing we can control is our attitude. I can’t control what you think about me, and I can’t control whether you like me or not. Attitude is key to everything. It gets us through hell and keeps us going when things are tough.

Power comes from ceding power. That’s right. When we give up our quest to be powerful we actually gain power. Meekness is the best definition for gaining power. Meekness means strength under control. Doesn’t that sound a lot like power?

What we give, we get. And that includes power…

Useful Metaphors

Some things are said so often we can start to believe they are real. I call them “useful metaphors”

“Separation of church and state” is one of those metaphors. Nowhere in any of our founding documents will you find those words written. Yet, there are people who would swear in court that they are there. They are not.

“Follow your heart” is another one. It sounds nice, and it even has a spiritual ring to it. The Bible tells us that we should guard our hearts. The heart is deceitful. We should pursue our dreams, which might be a better way of saying follow your heart.

A true useful metaphor isn’t really a metaphor at all. That one says, “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is…”

Stay mindful…

Church

Church is kinda weird. Every week a group of strangers get together, sing, put money in a basket that goes who knows where, listen to someone speak, sing a little more and go home. And people do this voluntarily!

When life gets tough, when the shit hits the fan many people seek refuge in a church. This tells me they believe in a deity, and they believe he can do something about their situation. They are right on both counts, but the solution might not be what they want. Whatever it is, it is good.

Church should be a genuine, welcoming place. A desperate drug addict should feel as welcome as a guy in a suit. If there is a hierarchy of acceptance, I’m not sure God would go for that.

I encourage you to find a church home that allows a lot of margin for the sinful. And remember, that’s all of us…

Greatness

Our world is full of superstars. Athletes, celebrities and public figures catch our attention daily. People revere them. But I ask you, what is greatness and how do you achieve it?

Let’s consider the life of Jesus. He was born a baby. Infants must rely on others to care for them. When Jesus became an adult, he performed countless miracles, but not a single one benefited himself. He redeemed and restored the forgotten, the oppressed and the sick. Jesus did most of his work quietly, not seeking attention. Word spread, even without the aid of the internet, and his popularity grew. Yet, Jesus never made it about himself. His life was focused on glorifying God. That’s it. Through this, Jesus started something that’s affected billions of people for over 2,000 years.

Greatness, true greatness is achieved through service to others along with humility.

Do you want to be great? Follow the example of Jesus…

Timing

Timing is everything! This includes being on time as well. If you take an airplane to a different city, the airline typically leaves on time, with or without me.

God’s timing is perfect. I know the Bible tells us this, but it is evidenced everywhere in our lives. Look back on your life. Reflect and you will see.

When the 2001 terrorist attack happened, President Bush had the right experiences in his life to prepare him to lead us through that new and scary world. During the financial meltdown of 2008, the world’s leading expert on the depression was leading The Federal Reserve.

Every experience you have in life is preparing you for something else. This includes your bad experiences.

Trust the timing…

A Line in the Sand

It’s an election year in the United States. That means much of the adult population will become pundits, pollsters and experts in 2024. It’s as predictable as the sun rising in the East and setting in the West.

For some reason, our society has become politicized to the point where we draw lines in the sand. This truly baffles me. Voting is one of our greatest privileges, and we are free to vote for whoever we choose. I have been called unprintable names by people on the left who don’t even know me. I have been called names by people on the right because I went to hear Bill Clinton speak. Then I had the audacity to vote for a friend of mine who was running for president of the Travis County Democratic Party. Friendship transcends politics. At least it does to me.

Government is not the answer to our problems. The government has tremendous resources, but they are the most inefficient purveyors of those resources. If you want to move mountains, put those resources in the hands of the faith and philanthropic communities. They will move Heaven and Earth while wasting very little. It would be awe-inspiring!

If you want to draw a line in the sand, make it count. Draw a line for goodness over evil, for law and order, and for equal justice for everyone. Those count!

Unnatural

Worry is unnatural and unnecessary. When you take a moment to consider it, we weren’t born knowing how to worry. We learned how. Let’s dive a little deeper.

Perhaps we were raised by parents who worried. For certain, our world will give us much to worry about when you consider everything going on around us. But let’s change the word “worry” to concern. Being concerned rather than worried changes the narrative. Speaking of narratives, the media preys on people’s emotions such as worry. “You must stay tuned or you might miss something.” You will miss nothing. Tune out.

Replace your worries with childlike curiosity. Are you concerned about your health? Read scientific applications for better health. Do you want to be a better parent? Read credible resources about parenting and talk to people who have raised solid children. Do you see what I mean?

You aren’t going to miss a thing by turning off the news. So, don’t worry about it!

Ignition

The ignition on your car must be used to start the engine. If you don’t engage it, nothing happens and you go nowhere.

Similarly, the Word of God gets things, big things started when you believe. The Bible gives us the best, most comprehensive toolkit to live our lives well on this side of eternity.

Our planet and everything on it is broken and flawed. Yet, God transcends time and space. He is in the past, present and future at the same time. He knows what our future holds because He’s already there.

You will experience your share of trouble in this life. Thankfully we have the guide to get us through everything thrown our way.

Read God’s Word and pray. It’s time to get started…

Processed

You hear a lot about how bad processed foods are for us, and they are. Our bodies aren’t meant to handle unnatural elements.

In today’s post, I want to talk about processing our emotions. Our brains can handle a lot, yet sometimes the mind gets wired in an unhealthy manner. But there’s good news! What was done can be undone, if we are willing to do the work.

Stuffing down our emotions like anger can destroy us. Righteous anger is okay, but it must be channeled correctly. Use it as fuel to right some of the wrongs in our world. Then anger comes out in the right way.

If you have been hurt by another person, I’m truly sorry. People do horrible things to others and damage the innocent. But I encourage you to process your emotions in a healthy way. You might need the guidance of a psychotherapist to work through it. But you can get through it and live fully.

Start today. In fact, start now…