Posts Tagged ‘Choice’

Dumpster diving

I’m sitting in a restaurant looking out the window to a large construction project. There are several enormous dumpsters on the site. It reminds me of an old friend who built an entire storage unit from materials he found “dumpster diving.” For those who are not familiar with the term, let me define it. It’s…

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Elections

Elections weren’t generally popular during Bible times. Yes, ancient Greece was a “democracy” in theory, but according to Encyclopedia Britannica Online, it wasn’t until the 17th century that representative democracy used voting as the primary decision-making process. Leaders in the early church were chosen or appointed based on character. In fact, the selection of Elders…

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Road less traveled

In elementary school, we had a section of my English class that was devoted to the “classics”, especially poetry. One of those “classics” was a poem by Robert Frost called “The Road Not Taken”.It begins, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both.” It ends, “I took the one…

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Lay down your life?

Jesus was always at work teaching and training His disciples for a life of meaning and service for God and others. You see this written on most pages of the gospels. Related to his teaching, when He declares “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends “…

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I’ve got a problem

I hate to be so revealing of my inconsistencies and shortcomings, but I have a problem. I don’t think I’m the only one. You may struggle here too. This is my issue: I want my wife to tell me all of the “wonderful” things I do…all the time. Somehow my ego needs to be satisfied…

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Counter-culture

Now we who are strong have an obligation to bear the weaknesses of those without strength, and not to please ourselves. Each one of us must please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. For even the Messiah did not please Himself. Romans 15:1-2 Jesus turned the world upside-down concerning the “strong” and…

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Wake up!

Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments ” Now return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil.    Joel 2:12-13            …

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Celebrating with another

Why is it so hard to celebrate the successes of others? It might be because of jealousy. Dictionary.com defines jealousy this way: resentment against a rival, a person enjoying success or advantage, or against another’s success or advantage itself. Jealousy is a normal emotion that just about everyone experiences. But, jealousy can grow into anger…

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It’s just the way I am

Have you ever caught yourself saying, “that’s just the way I am.”? Maybe you lose your temper for a moment. Maybe you find yourself rarely finishing a project. Maybe your patience with your kids or your spouse isn’t what it should be. In the moment of frustration, you find yourself justifying your actions with those…

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The things that REALLY matter.

William “Bud” Post won $16.2 million in the Pennsylvania lottery in 1988, but he was $1 million in debt within a year. He said, “I wish it never happened,” “It was totally a nightmare.” A former girlfriend sued him for a third of his winnings, and his brother was arrested for hiring a hitman to kill him hoping he’d…

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Friday night

I was the president of my fraternity in college. Many of us lived in the fraternity house and Friday night we would have a regular poker game. It happened almost every Friday night. Before you get the wrong idea, it was penny poker with a primary goal of just hanging out with friends. I enjoyed…

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I wish he didn’t say that!

When you hang with people for any time at all, you eventually get in a conversation or overhear a conversation where you say to yourself, “I wish they hadn’t said that.” Maybe you heard a spouse say in the midst of pain, “I married the wrong person.” Maybe they say something the seems out of…

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Examination Time

I recently posted that I live in Arizona. The sun shines here over 350 days/year. So, I constantly out in the sunshine. It so happens that the exposure to the sun yields so not so good results. I’ve had lots of skin cancers including a melanoma which for you neophytes is a pretty serious cancer.…

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Haunting Thoughts

I’ve got a quick exercise for you. Close your eyes and think through the past 24 hours. Think schedule. Think about people. Think conversations. Think about work. Think home. Think commute. Think about sleep. Think about laughter. Think of tears. Think fears. Got it? Ok. Open your eyes and quickly write down who were the…

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Addiction

I’m always looking for a good read. Recently my daughter suggested I read the book, Irresistible by Adam Alter. My first thought from the title was, “it must be a fascinating book about me.” Just kidding. It was a compelling and convicting book about the seductive nature of technology and social media. I didn’t like…

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No Choice

Choices. In America, we are so grateful that we have them. Lots of them.  I mean, life is like a huge buffet. I can say what I want, go where I want, when I want. Now there are some restrictions. I probably can’t fly over Area 51 in Nevada. I can’t yell “fire” in a…

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