In preparation for a speaking engagement in May, I’ve been analyzing the qualities that help people thrive when faced with a challenge. So far I’ve come up with this list:
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The Lure Of More
Big enough is big enough, biggest isn’t necessary. Seth Godin In an article titled Infinity: they Keep Making More Of It, Seth Godin describes the dilemma of our obsession with numbers. In a global, mobile world, there’s no practical limit to growth and, apparently, no such thing as big enough. Our culture defines churches, businesses, […]
Continue readingMore TagDeveloping Resilience: Optimism And The 8000/2000 Principle
An optimist looks at a piece of moldy bread and sees penicillin. Leonard was tired of my endless complaining. More than a year after my accident I still invested more energy in seeking sympathy than working to get better. He was sick of my lousy attitude. Leonard was the latest in a series of physical […]
Continue readingMore TagDeveloping Resilience: Creativity
“Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” – Albert Einstein. I’ve been thinking a bit (an unusual and dangerous development) about the notion of overcoming adversity. As a paraplaegic, I’m often asked questions like: How did you deal with it? How did you get past it? What helped you move forward?
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In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins – not through strength, but through persistence. Do you recall waiting in long lines to get your driver’s license?
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“How do you develop resilience?” We were discussing an approaching event at which I’ll speak to a group of nonprofit leaders about the notion of confronting and overcoming adversity.
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I like to read bumper stickers. I think there’s something clever about expressing an important bit of philosophy in a few memorable words and convincing someone to display your wisdom on their car. I saw a catchy phrase yesterday that summarized the way I seem to live a good deal of my life: trapped behind […]
Continue readingMore TagWhere’d He Go?
An odd thing happened. Monday arrived, and Easter apparently became one more family holiday memory. Taxes and tea parties dominated public discourse, and bitter bickering resumed. Echoed cries of “HE IS RISEN INDEED” faded into oblivion.
Continue readingMore TagBlame Or Response-ability
Name it and Blame it. Doesn’t mean you solved it, nor owned it, nor changed it. Grace McGarvie Blame has apparently replaced baseball as America’s pastime. The burning question of the day is, “Whose fault is it?” I understand. From my permanent seat in a wheelchair I’ve wasted countless hours asking, “Why did this happen?” […]
Continue readingMore TagIs This Who I Think It Is?
If you’ve read RELENTLESS GRACE, you understand the varied levels of significance embedded in the question, “Is this who I think it is?”
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Good Friday is an awkward day for me. It’s the day set aside to commemorate Jesus’ suffering and horrific, tortuous death by crucifixion. In perfect obedience and service to God, Christ humbly, willingly walked the final steps of the path to the cross. His pre-ordained act of self-sacrificial love, planned from the beginning of time, […]
Continue readingMore TagWasted Worry
If you can imagine the worst–and see the possibility in it–you have turned a corner. Everything begins to shift. Worry is transformed into creativity. Michael Hyatt Are you as burned out on negativity as I am? I’ve basically stopped watching television news. My radio mostly blares mindless sports talk these days. I scan a few […]
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