Savor the Things that Are

"Live your life each day

 as you would climb a mountain.

An occasional glance towards the summit

 keeps the goal in mind,

But many beautiful scenes are to be observed

 from each new vantage point."

                                [Harold B. Melchart]

Sometimes we allow ourselves to become so weighed down with the things that 'are not' that we very often lose sight of the things that 'are.' We conjure up images of wellness or happiness and refuse to allow that any other interpretation, anything other than our 'perfect' picture is acceptable. We know exactly the paths our lives should take, and what our final destination should look like. And what do these notions translate to in everyday life? Us being thrown into a tizzy when our children exhibit less than the standards of behaviour we expect of them; getting angry because our husbands don't ever do the dishes while forgetting he's numbered among the ones that faithfully provide for his household; our complaining about his bulging stomach and neglecting to be thankful for his faithful heart.

Oh how easy it is to lose sight of that which is right and good and perfect in our lives because we are in pursuit of some goal that our egos created. Of course, it's important to set and achieve goals. I live by them. But how far more important it is for us to learn to stop along the path and celebrate what is...not allowing ourselves to become so enamored by what is possible that we neglect to see, to enjoy, to simply savor the blessings of the things that are......now, this moment, today. The truth is, our desire for a 'better state' can become so all-consuming that it blinds us to the current good. It creates in us a constant feeling of lack, of incompleteness, of inadequacy... 

How I wish I could properly articulate, underscore or explain the dangers of espousing feelings of lack. Yes, I know it seems a crazy proposition in light of all the things you dream of, and worse…all the things you need. To be sure, I’m not suggesting that we hide from our realities. A keen awareness of those realities will be instrumental in helping us get to the place we want to be. Still, we must get to the place where we understand the absolute necessity of learning to be happy in our discontentment….of knowing that we ARE enough, that what we HAVE is enough…right now, right in this moment…learning to be complete here, while we work on getting there.

And that learning to feel complete, to be happily discontented is about knowing and appreciating the realities of abundance and Providence; about embracing gratitude and beauty, and letting go of the way we think it should be. It comes down to not allowing our longing for something better to crowd out today’s beauty…to be able to relish the perfection of this moment….to enjoy the crystal glory of rain-drops on a petal, the pitter-patter of little feet in our homes, the frolic of our children’s play….the magic of a kiss…..There is beauty in every circumstance. There are lessons in every experience. On your climb to the summit, when your steps seem to go off course, stay a while and whisper….’all is as it should it’….be grateful for what is….. 

"Sweet are the Uses of Adversity"

Today as I am surrounded by a deep sense of 'aloneness', in this moment of solemn contemplations, when I’m forced to question friendships, and when my mustard seed-sized faith gets lost in the dust of my travails, I reach deep down into the recesses of my being and I emerge thankful…ever so thankful that for every time that life has forced me into this place, I have come up better, stronger, wiser.  

Duke Senior (a seventeenth century Shakespearean character from the play “As you like it”) deposed of his kingdom, stripped not only of his title, but more so his dignity…ashamed and nearly bereft of companionship in the Forest of Arden, whispered these words to his audience of nature…. “Sweet are the uses of adversity.”  In typical Shakespearean wisdom the former duke launches into the lessons that only stillness and solitude can teach.…in the stillness of the moment he concludes that nature is more eloquent than speeches, brooks teach far more than books and stones hit deeper than sermons. In the serenity he listens…and he hears, maybe for the first time the vibe of his own heart…he listens and he hears, in those adverse circumstances, the voice of God…and finally he comes  face to face with the life’s most substantive matters.

Now without a doubt, the conclusion drawn by Duke Senior is one we all come to at some point in our experience. As we mature and look back at our ‘valley of despondency’ experiences, we very often find ourselves thinking “I wouldn’t be where I am today, had I not gone through that.” So yes, inevitably we get wiser after we’ve been through it. But what struck me as instructive about Shakespeare’s unlikely hero is the fact that his utterance is made at what was probably the lowest point in his life…in the moment!  For someone so accustomed to pomp and ceremony, so used to the hum of activity, likely having heard declarations of life-long friendships and loyalty…now deposed, defamed and almost friendless, his ability to draw the lessons in the moment is something not to be overlooked – a lesson we all would do well to learn. 

How many of us have learned to embrace the value of adversity while the storms are howling? Too often we are too busy being unhappy, too wrapped up in self-pity, too unwilling to forgive, too reluctant to let go, to ever discover the sweet uses of adversity. We envelope ourselves in worry and fear, we make despair our bedfellow when all the time we are called to be still…to wait, to extend faith beyond the realm of what is humanly possible, to study in quietude the benefits of our current experience.  So today as I reach into the recesses of my being, and as I emerge my mind is inundated with the reminder that ‘sweet are the uses of adversity’…and in typical intentional fashion, I pull out my journal, and I question “what is good about this my time of aloneness and despair?”…and I write… and a deep sense of peace envelopes me ...…..and once again my heart is content.

What do you add to the Room?

I recently heard some-one ask the very poignant question, 'what do you add to the room? That is, 'what value do you bring? It's a question we hear all the time in different ways: "What do you bring to to the table?" True, it's an old question... one that we are probably more prepared to answer in a career kind of environment. The fact is, we are mostly pretty clear on what we can add in a work-place. We rehearse it for every job interview...now whether we are actually able to add the value we claim we can....that's another story altogether.But have you given thought to the value you add outside of the work-world?

The point is we need to be crystal clear about what we bring to the various areas/elements of our lives. What do I bring to my relationships? How do I enhance my partner? How do I enrich my children's lives? What lessons do I impart? What character traits am I reinforcing or influencing? What is my distinctive contribution to their sense of worth, their sense of usefulness and effectiveness? And if you are not big on relationships....( though I'm not sure why you wouldn't be), you would do well to answer your employer's implicit questions about your value proposition. In the same way that the world around us changes, employers' needs frequently change and they want to be assured of the dynamism of employees' value proposition. How might you be able to clearly answer these questions if you are not at least aware of them yourself? What do I know? What do I impart? What is my competitive advantage? Are you able to answer these questions right here, right now?


The truth is these are not questions that we answer once and for all. Remaining relevant and contributing in meaningfully to the lives of others, to strong causes requires constant recalibration, renewal of our offerings. In Jamaican parlance 'yuh haffi know how fi wheel an' come again." That's a fact. But long before we get there, and with every life change or new involvement, we have to be fully aware, fully in the know as to what we have to offer. We have to know ourselves so well as to understand our worth in any given situation. We need to be sure, confident of the difference we can make and further to be able to convincingly articulate that value to whomever the potential buyer is.

But it takes deliberate effort, intentionality. Nope, it's not gonna happen by osmosis. It may mean making a list of all our 'customers', stakeholders', or other interest groups and outlining all  the qualities we have that can potentially enhance these relationships/interactions. And even before we get there, we may have to work to acquire these skills, behaviours, competencies. And more than anything, we need to understand the importance of adding value. It must strike a chord in our being. 

And when you are there....when you get to the place where you understand your value at any given moment, in any given situation.....savour it. Drink it in. Let it touch you in ways as to build your confidence, win you worthwhile associates, take you out of oblivion and prepare you to pour that value out on the world....There's nothing quite like it!

It's worth doing badly

Some years ago I heard some-one say "Anything worth doing, is worth doing badly." And I smile from way down deep inside came over me. Whatever happened to the conventional wisdom that anything worth doing is worth doing well? Finally the pathway to excellence was being widened to include those persons wise enough and willing enough to fail their way to success. But if truth be told, we have all been painstakingly aware of the many scientists and entrepreneurs who had been convicted enough of the validity of their ideas that they were willing to face failures of massive consequences. But failures such as these were never  glamourized. Failure, in fact, was never seen as an option. Fast forward a number of years and failure is hailed as the flip-side to success.....two sides of the same coin, they say - failure, a necessary step in the process.

So often we are sold stories of celebrities, politicians, high-profile media personalities and others in the public domain who are said to be born with exceptional talent, have above-average intelligence or are in some other way in possession of traits that pre-dispose them to succeed. We are hardly ever told stories of minions who fight their way to success, or the intellectually challenged who eventually achieve academic excellence. How often do we hear of the average man with a passion for something for which he is not particularly talented? How many would be intrigued by stories of the average man constrained by a dream he feels compelled to bring to the light? Who wants to hear the stories of the untalented investing years of his time in a pursuit nobody thinks he's suited for? Not many.....maybe not any. Is it any wonder we never hear those stories?

The fact is that many of today's renowned were not born with an inclination towards their craft, skill or passion. They simply responded to what they felt was a calling. To them it mattered not so much that they did it poorly year after year. It mattered far more simply that they did it. Being great at the start was not the primary concern. Becoming great along the way was a far more appealing prospect. And the ones who wanted it badly enough are the ones who are today hailed as immensely talented. You may not be able to do it well today but its worth continuing the fight. You may long for some cheer-leaders along the way and not find any, but keep at it. If it's important to you keep doing it badly til it's perfected. Champions are not made in the ring!

It gets better with time...If you let it

I'm not sure I'd be as bold as to say that time heals all wounds but I know I can speak with authority when I say everything gets better with time...if we allow it to. The truth is that adversities - big and small - are the lot of every human being. They are not hand-picked for the less fortunate, the uneducated, minorities or  you...... And trust me, nobody's out to get you. Your troubles are no more horrendous than your neighbours', your misfortunes no less tragic. It's called life. It wasn't meant to be easy. It's important that we keep reminding ourselves of this fact; important that we fight the urge to succumb to the victim syndrome; important that we understand that life's but a cyclical process. that whatever happens to us happens to everybody, and that this too shall pass.

Without a doubt, what makes adversity so hard to accept, and to deal with, is the fact that it always seems to hit us on the blind-side.....right out of the blue, when you least expect it. Relationship problems, life-changing health issues, accidents, financial reverses, job-loss  - very real issues that have the ability to leave you reeling. Right in that moment, in the poignant gloom of the present, the future has no power to inspire or attract. Pretty soon your only meaningful (though painful) occupation is seeking answers to the question 'Why?' or worse yet, 'Why me?'

The truth is that most of us have, at one time or another, have found ourselves in that uncanny position asking those same questions. The wiser among us eventually get to the place where they realize that asking 'Why not me?' yields better results. They come to the place where they affirm that bad things happen to good, and bad, people. They make the discovery that life has more to do with how we respond to adversity than the adversity itself. They recognize that though they can't control the winds or the seas that toss them about, they can adjust the sails of their vessels. They accept the challenges as teachers, the pain as a purifier....and as difficult as it may be, they open themselves for the hope of the future.

And it gets better with time.....well, that's if you ever get to the place where you allow it to. Yes......if you allow it to make you better and not bitter; if you release the hurt enough to learn to dance in the rain, to smile through the storm; to overcome your adversity in such a way as to inspire others so affected to endure and overcome like you did. When all is said and done, it's your life and though the difficulties you face are often not of your making, it's still your lot. Still your life - and it's up to you to decide whether it gets better with time.

Of Passion and Healing....

Writing is therapy. For me it is. It is my space far from the madding crowd. It is my time to lose myself, and find myself. It is my place of truth, of revelations and self-discovery....and yet a place of strange contradictions - an arena of open contention between peace and discontentment, hope and disillusionment. Still it's here that I find my truth. It is here that I fall in love with me all over again; where I unearth the beauty that is hidden beneath the mundane; where the truths of what lies within me, become far weightier matters than the facts of what lies around me.

Mental clutter can be overwhelming. Life happens and as we process the issues that affect our lives we often tend to push stuff under the mental carpet. We shelve issues we would rather not confront and pretty soon our mental closets become cluttered with the secrets and skeletons we have kept from view. Yeah, it used to get like that for me sometimes. Often I found myself alone in my dilemma, trying to fight my ghosts. Guilt and shame make poor bed-fellows I've found, so getting into bed with them is not my idea of a fun or restful way to spend the night. I find I much prefer to face my ghosts by putting pen to paper. And there I find my escape from the narrowly-targeted arrows of life's realities. It is then that I pour out...out of my soul's extremities into the empty yet animate pages that lay awaiting.. I solve and I absolve.....and then it all makes sense. By becoming vulnerable in my own secret chamber, under the scrutiny of my own conscience  I get in touch with my truth; I find strength and character; I unearth my motives and find perspective....and like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes I rise again to meet another day's challenge.

But more important than the value it brings to me, I write because of the difference I know it can make in the lives of others. I understand the power of words. I understand the appeal they can have. I know of their power to connect, resonate and reverberate. Words are life-giving. And it's not that I have mastered the art of making words dance, or invoking the emotive to play upon your psyche, its simply that I hope that with each entry I make in this not-so-private diary, somebody's spirit is lifted; that somebody who is overwhelmed with the feeling of failure or mediocrity might be encouraged to get back up again. I'm always trusting that someone might be so aroused as to find that which for you is therapeutic, and that you'll keep at it till you find healing.

I do not know what it is that you easily lose yourself in, what it is that makes time pass unnoticed for you, but I know that whatever it is, that is your therapy. It is your place of healing and growth . It is your place of personal impact. The truth is, it may not be earth-shattering, it may not bring you loads of money but it is what is easiest on your heart, it is what speaks to you, what makes waking up each morning worth the while. As you indulge, as you bask in your truth, and as your personal journey to self-discovery becomes more therapeutic you will find an urge to share your passion and your experiences..and an even stronger obligation to respond to that urge The ball is now in your court..... let the healing begin. .

Trust the Process

Things don't always have to go the way we expect, the way we planned, dreamed or wanted them to go for them to be going right. Our desires don't have to take a straight path to nascency, nor our dreams to actuality. In fact, more often than not the trek will take us along paths we never in our wildest dreams imagined. No doubt some of these paths will be exhilarating, wild and exciting...but the reality is that some will be cold, harsh and lonely, taking twists and turns into valleys of disappointment, despair and confusion  And if you are a control freak, like many of us are, no doubt this will lead to dissonance and consternation if you let it.

The truth is, holding on to ideas and fancy imaginings of how our lives should play out is a formula for disaster. It guarantees us experiencing a sense of hopelessness and loss. Of course, it is a foolish man (or woman) who doesn't have a plan for his life, who gets up from day to day and finds himself at the mercy of every whim and fancy, whose only plan is the plan somebody else has for him. But even with the best blue-prints (and maybe especially so) we must be willing to allow for the fact that our plans may have not been ideal, that we may have misinterpreted the lyrics of our own heart-song, that there may be a myriad of ways to experience our passions. We must come to the place where we are willing to surrender the means in order to get to the end.

And so, we must learn to let go. Let life happen.. Trust the process. Trusting that all things are as they should be is not always easy. Maybe major illness was never a part of the picture you painted, financial reverses certainly didn't enter your dream at any time. Your desire was never marred by the unfaithfulness of those you trusted most. You knew it was not going to be easy, but you never would have thought it could  get as complicated and off-kilter as it now is. And you look around you and everybody else seems to be having a whale of a time on their own life paths. Maybe it's time to remove those rose-coloured glasses; maybe it's time to realize that this is your reality, this is your journey. We all have different paths to take on the way to achieving our heart's desire.Believe that you are enough. Believe that the path that has been mapped for you, the  is the best path to your personal growth. Yes, the hills may be hard to climb, your mental and emotional feet may be sore from the scorching heat of the roads you take, you may feel alone, but it is your path. Own it.. All things are as they should be.  Trust the process

Let Life In

There are times when you read or hear something and it resonates with you. And if you stop to consider at the reason, more often than not you will find that it resonates either because it marks your experience or that it represents a deep (and often previously unrecognized) longing. That's how I felt when I first read Jim Rohn's words..."The walls we build around ourselves to keep sadness out, also keep out the joy." For the first time I admitted to myself that I have spent the last several years carefully erecting a giant stone monument around myself. Hurt and resentment had marked my experience and I had 'successfully' closed myself in. 

Whether consciously or subconsciously I had built a fortress of control, independence, individuality...all bolstered by a modest level of achievement of which I was understandably proud - after all, they were but just rewards for my struggles. But if I'm to be true to myself achievement came at great cost, not mere financial cost, but far more importantly, at great emotional cost. I had come to the place where the major source of happiness was achievement - and today I still have the residual effect. But I am not alone, and I have found that people put walls around themselves for various reasons....to keep out the hurt and pain of the past, to protect a heart previously broken, to prevent the recurrence of poor life choices....our walls are shields to protect our vulnerable hearts - a safe place to hide, a closet where we can hunker down and close the door on our skeletons.

But lately I have been giving more attention and credence to some even more potent words of Jim's....."Let life in. Let it touch you. Let sad things make you sad, and happy things make you happy. Our emotions need to be as educated as our intellect." Wow! That's profound. What an invitation to vulnerability! What if I became more open to deconstructing those walls? What if I were more willing to take a chance on life, a chance on deep and heart-moving friendships? What if I were willing to risk loss and hurt......and just feel life, like a soft wind, taking it all in? Or to be present in every turbulent moment, to experience the highs and lows of human emotion...to be ridiculed yet comfortable, to be judged and not feel a need to be vindicated...to feel fear yet square my shoulders and go forward anyway.....What if I could exit my doors without the tortoise-shell of my over-protected emotions? What if I did not feel a need to pull my little tortoise head in at every sound of threat to my safe place of control and independence?

 No....there's no adrenalin rush at the thought of all this.....instead deep curiosity, steeped in fear. But also an admission that so much has been lost behind those walls over the years. A quiet mental recording of the missed advantage of vulnerability....of allowing my emotions to be fully educated by the lessons of life. And yes, a growing willingness to let life in...to be willing to step into the arena of life without the facade of impenetrability...to let go of the ego and bare my soul to those worthy of the experience....to live in the moment...if just for a moment...to let life in!

When it Matters to You....

Google.com

One of the first things we teach aspiring entrepreneurs is the necessity of assessing the market demand for a product or service prior to making financial, time or emotional investments in it. A worthwhile business opportunity exists, we say, when an innovative idea is backed by potential customers' willingness to pay. In this scenario, your personal love affair with your business idea is of little importance, at least in the short run. If you are interested in hitting the ground running, making quick money and exiting the stage, it comes down simply to the target market's response. Here it's all about satisfying the desires of the client. That's the long and short of it.

If, however, your desire is to build lasting success - whether in business, career, personal affairs or relationships - this is where it must matter to YOU. It's not about satisfying clients or pleasing onlookers. It has to have personal meaning and significance. At this point the influence of friends, relatives - and especially naysayers should not bear as heavily on your decision to continue as should your own interest, your own passion, your own need to be driven by your dream.

When it matters enough to you, you will be strong enough to close your ears to discouragement and open your eyes to possibilities. When an activity has meaning to you....when the cause has its own appeal, when it ignites a passion, failure is always an option. In fact, failure becomes a necessary rung in the ladder of success. When your efforts are not rewarded with accolades and cheers, the only thing that will take you to the finish line is that the cause or activity you are pursuing means the world to you. When it matters to you, you'll be able to visualize tomorrow's success today, and it is that vision of your tomorrows that will take you through the sham and drudgery of today's realities. The truth is..when it doesn't matter to you, getting out of bed in the mornings is far less appealing than pulling the sheets up over your head at the sound of the alarm; your job is a task, and your boss a harsh, exacting creditor. When it doesn't matter to you the cause has no charisma and the likelihood of your making a difference in your world is as remote as a snowball surviving the onset of spring.

What's important too, is that you are unlikely to successfully force a match. Something either matters or it doesn't. As I think about it now, I guess it's a lot like love.....you either do or you don't. And who's to say who or what we love?  What holds meaning for you might appear foolish or simplistic to someone else looking on. What matters to you now, may not matter to you a few years down the road. After all, who guarantees a life-long love affair? And who is to say there can't be more than one thing/cause/activity that holds deep meaning to you? When it comes to finding meaning, monogamous relationships are over-rated.  So go ahead, allow your own deep-rooted desires to lead you to a place of meaning...to something that matters..They say, "we lose ourselves in the things we love".....but more importantly, "we find ourselves there too."

Relish the Journey into Self-Discovery

"Like wolves who leave the pack, we risk danger, loss, and solitude--the price often paid by those with a passion for discovery. And however the moments may feel, the journey is well worth it." Often that journey is one into self-discovery, and time and experience have taught me that that journey is always worth the risk of 'danger, loss or solitude.'

There are few things as crucial to operating from a place of meaning, fulfillment and authenticity as taking that journey into self discovery. It's about finding out who you really are amidst the fray of voices competing for your attention and affection. It's about wading through the years of intellectual fodder that you have been fed, the religious dogmas, the restraints and constraints that have been artificially imposed upon your psyche, restricting your actions and in many cases depleting your happiness. Til after years of semi-conscious exposure to the emotional and mental elements, you wake up to the reverberating question "Who am I?" And almost in resentment, you are seized with a fierce desire to discover your own interpretation of truth, to draw your own conclusions, to make your own mistakes and learn from them, to be awed by your own internal and external beauty, to be overwhelmed with the depth of your own personhood. 

But if truth be told the journey into self discovery is not without its dangers and pitfalls. Indeed we risk the death of friendships, excommunication from church fellowships, alienation from family members, loss of fortune and maybe even relinquishing fame. Solitude may become our constant companion for many days, and mental and emotional anguish may become all too familiar bedfellows. But the price we pay for independence, authenticity and meaning are minuscule when compared with its rewards. But let's take it one step further  - to understanding the truth that no matter how the moments may feel, the journey itself is rewarding, long before we gain the independence, authenticity and meaning for which we search.

So while we search, while we discover who we truly are, with every eye-opening word we read, every revealing conversation, every heart-rending confession, let's savour the moments. Let's learn to enjoy calling a spade a spade. As we experience the fires of controversy, let's seek to emerge unscathed, unrelenting, undeterred by criticism....Let's mark the milestones of self-discovery with flags signifying our advancement to another level of growth..Let's relish who we are becoming on the way to who we truly are.

Being Positively In the Moment

I am smiling at close of day, whereas I was despondent at its beginning. Truly, when we understand the importance of our thoughts in determining the quality of our day (and consequently the trajectory of your life), we make a colossal effort to ensure positive, wholesome, uplifting thoughts.

Today I was determined to ensure that I did not become overwhelmed by my circumstances. I was resolute in treating situation/circumstance as opportunities for growth. I determined that I would be fully present in my day, fully aware of what was going on around as well as within me. I made my mind up to embrace it, to allow my thoughts to happen, to face my fears, confront my ghosts and deal with them head on...acknowledging their reality...yet accepting that I can exist in but one moment at a time and therefore there was no need to control anything but that one moment. I was determined to think my way through my challenges...

So at end of day, I am grateful because ....I was present, I was aware, I was focused, I was hopeful, I was friendly, I was frank, I was open, and most importantly....I was deliberate. And so, right now I am reaping the fruits of intentional gratitude, intentional positive thinking, intentional awareness. Without a doubt at close of day, the lessons have been many and tremendous. I've learnt that instead of wishing my circumstances away, there is much greater value in embracing them, in giving thanks through each difficulty, in asking 'what can I glean, what lessons might I learn?' Indeed I have learnt that the gains from learning the art of being present while maintaining positive thoughts are tremendous...Indeed it is a major ticket to becoming stronger, wiser, better.

Yes, my day was difficult. The circumstances of my life converged and seemed at times to be in cruel collusion against me. But I pulled on the age-old philosophy of my mentor...."Don't just get through the day, get from the day!" And how better to get from the day than through deliberate presence and intentional positive thinking? For me it meant the difference between smiling or complaining at end of day, but more importantly, it will tell for how my life ends up a few years from today. Life accumulates....moment by moment.

Living from the inside out

What do you do when your heart tells you to push through...when your gut says, 'carry on' but all around you are mountains and challenges, hurdles and obstacles? And especially at a time in your life when resources are non-existent and inspiration is low? When the voices in your head tell you you haven't got what it takes and the results you produce seem to nod in acquiescence? And what if that which you thought was your passion pales in comparison to the abilities, skills and results of others in your field?

I guess there's always the option of yielding to the voices, continuing to compare yourself to others, becoming overwhelmed by the things life throws at you....or you could allow yourself to be led by your passion, to filter your life experiences through the funnel of 'meaning', and 'passion' and 'purpose'.....to resolve to give yourself only to that which has meaning to you. When we are completely certain as to what bears meaning and what holds value for us, then we will have little doubt as to the things we should actively pursue, the people we should spend time with, the causes that are worth the fight, for whom we should sacrifice, who or what is worth our pain.

Most of us have had the experience of working at a job that meant absolutely nothing more than providing the means of putting food on the table, and all of us have looked back and wished we had spent more time with the significant people in our lives. What I have found for sure is that the people who have found their calling, people who find the will to push through, who are able to answer the call to 'carry-on' are the people who have learnt to be led from the inside out.....who listen to their gut, who are not distracted by the call of comparison, but who, instead, have perfected the art of being in tune with their deeper purpose and who are intentional about responding to those dictates.

So go ahead..do what has meaning for you....despite the results. Spend time with the people who mean the world to you, perfect your passions, deepen your resolve to pursue your purpose. Abundant living happens from the inside out....its never about what is acceptable to friends or what 'improves' your status in life. Rather, it's about what ends the dissonance and the noise...what increases meaning and purpose, what brings peace...its about the difference you make everyday you wake up...living from the inside out!

Nobody Cares what You Need......Really!

I am not sure if it makes me a cynic to think, and suggest, that life does not respond to our needs....and neither does God. I have come to the place in my experience where I am fully convinced that God and everything in life responds to the extent of the effort we make to achieve the things we desire. In other words, we must deserve it.

Strange, isn't it, that I should make such an assertion about God? Especially against the background of my knowing that His grace cannot be earned. The fact is, however, that all the evidence in the Bible indicates that God responds not to the extent of our need, but the extent of our faith. It becomes obvious,therefore, that even with God what we deserve trumps what we need. And in this instance, what we deserve is determined by the measure of our faith.

In the same way, in the natural realm, people are not particularly interested in what your needs are. Employers are far more concerned about what you bring to the bargaining table, to the market-place. They want to know what value it is that you can add to their product or service, to their project or venture. Potential customers want to know what differentiates your product, they want to see your value proposition in order that you might earn their buy-in. 

There are far too many of us who still believe that our bigger need qualifies us for a faster, bigger response from life, or from God. Recently I conducted a life-change seminar and had brought the audience to the point of feeling a yearning for change. But then I pulled on that old Jack Cranfield tactic of asking who was ready for change, who was ready to move to the next level, to experience life lived to its full potential. Obviously, the entire audience was worked up and enthusiastically registered their readiness with shouts in the affirmative. When I got to the potent question of who wants $500.00 (money in hand), I had to ask it eight times of the audience before somebody finally moved forward to accept the money. They had not made the distinction between wanting (or needing) and deserving. More importantly, though, as the one brave woman returned to her seat (money in hand) I heard a woman near to me whisper "...I'm sure I needed it more than she." I am still amazed, after many days, that the extent of her need didn't drive her to get up and do something to deserve the cash!

Don't be afraid to bring your good seeds to this fertile ground called life, for it is a fact that we reap far more than we sow. Our efforts may not always be rewarded immediately, but it will happen sooner than later. There may be seasons of drought, the birds may get some of the seeds, but always, some will fall on good ground. Don't be afraid to act on your desires, to take decided action to be the one to fulfill your own needs, to extend yourself in faith to the One by whose deliberate design it is that all of life responds to what we deserve and not what we need.