Archive for Growth and Maturity
29 Years Old Today – What I’ve learned So Far
Posted by: | CommentsSo another birthday has rolled around. 29 years ago April 8th, 1981, I was born. The older I get the more I learn about myself, friends, family and life. The older I get the more mature I get.
Although I’ve always been kind of an “old head” in a way, the test of time has brought on many challenges in my life. Some were interesting others were more difficult. All in all I can say that I’ve learned a few things throughout my 29 years of living so far.
What I’ve learned so far:
- To seize every moment in life. I can’t buy back time. I can’t buy back memories. Appreciate every waking moment.
- To cherish the close family and friends in my life.
- Love is priceless. – Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
- To make wise decisions. Every choice I make has a big impact on myself.
- There is power in prayer.
- Sometimes you just have to say NO and other times you must say Yes.
- I’ve learned when to say NO and when to say Yes.
- It’s better to have loved and lost.
- I’ve learned how good it feels to extend a helping hand.
- To be grateful for that which I have.
- No matter how bad it seems, it could always be worse.
- I’ve learned that denial is not just a river in Egypt.
- Speaking of Egypt… I’ve learned that just like Pharaoh, sometimes you just have to “Let People Go!” (leave some people behind)
- I’ve learned to let go and let God.
- Success doesn’t come easy. Indeed there’s a price to pay for it.
- Sometimes you just gotta roll with the punches – other times you gotta stand your ground.
- The devil doesn’t come in the form of a temptress in a blue dress, neither does he come in a red cape, holding a dagger staff, or has two horns growing out his head… he’s real and he plays hard ball. Read More→
Play and Act The Part
Posted by: | CommentsI was watching a favorite sitcom of mine, My Wife and Kids on TV the other day. I happened to turn it on and there was an episode where, the son of the household, Michael Kyle Jr., took an S.A.T test at school.
If you watch the show, you know that Michael Kyle Jr.’s character (or Jr. as they call him) isn’t one of the brightest characters around. Some might even say his elevator doesn’t rise all the way to the top.
Photo by Newton Free LibraryWell Jr. came home with a perfect score on the S.A.Ts. After seeing this, it changed his parent’s perspective over him. They began to re-evaluate his intellect and his humor over the years and place a sense of high validation on him, based on his test score.
His father began to treat him as though he was a genius. And most importantly, Jr. began to act like a genius. Instead of going around making crazy off the wall statements, like he usually does, he began to apply himself to small tasks around the house based on the validation he was receiving from his parents.
Then one day, the mother got a call from the school stating that the school staff made an error and mismatched Jr.’s test score with another student’s score. Instead of receiving a perfect score on the S.A.Ts, he received a very low score.
After hearing this, Jr. began to mope around and feel sorry for himself. When he thought he had a perfect score on Read More→
Good Angel or Bad Angel, Who Will You Listen To?
Posted by: | CommentsMany people ignore that voice inside of them that guides them on the right path. You know, that voice inside that tells you to do this, don’t do that- go here, don’t go there. It’s that voice of wisdom, the voice of understanding.
It guides you, advises you, it will even motivate you if you let it. The problem is most people develop selective hearing when it comes to doing what is right.
We all have that voice of guidance inside of us. It’s as if we have a large volume control where we can turn up the voice when we like what it’s saying and turn it down when we don’t like what it’s saying.
It’s like an annoying, nagging friend. If you don’t like what they’re saying you either tune them out or leave the room. When you do like what they’re saying you’d tune in better than you would tune in your favorite song on the radio. If they were your favorite track on your ipod, you’d put them on repeat.
The problem is that most of the time when it comes to doing the things that we want to do, if it goes against what we know is right, we tune out that voice of reasoning. We listen to the voice that grants us permission as to why we should do what we want to do, even if it is wrong.
Good angel or bad angel
It’s like the good angel vs the bad angel. You know the scene where the good angel sits on one shoulder advising you of what you should do, which is the right thing. Whereas, the bad angel sits on the other shoulder doing just the opposite, giving you reasons why you should do what YOU want to do, which isn’t always the right thing to do.
Take notice, the bad angel will never come out and say that’s he’s wrong. In fact, he’ll try to convince you that he’s right and the good angel is wrong. The bad angel knows that if he’s trying to sell you on his idea that it wouldn’t be too smart to tell you that he’s wrong.
I don’t know the statistics, and maybe I’m naive being the optimist that I am, but I’d like to think that most people have a natural tendency to want to do what is right. But we have even more of a tendency to do what WE want to do or do what makes us feel comfortable.
If doing what makes us feel comfortable is wrong, then more than likely we’ll tune out the voice that gives us Read More→
Are You a One Hit Wonder?
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s interesting to watch public figures grow-up in the music industry. Over a period of time you’ve probably seen celebrities or have even watched your favorite music artists do their thing in the public eye. You’ve probably enjoyed watching them venture throughout their journey to reach their ultimate level of success. Read More→
The Disadvantage Of Putting On False Personas
Posted by: | CommentsEvery since we were in grade school, we’ve been looking outside of ourselves for influences. We’ve based who we were on those that were closest to us. We saw traits in others and we modeled ourselves after those people.
I’m a firm believer in the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Outside influences stem from parents, extended relatives, close peers, teachers Read More→
Should We Pray For Patience?
Posted by: | CommentsDo you fear praying for patience? Many people fear praying for patience due to the fact that it might bring about more instances in which they will have to be more patient.
I’ll never forget, years ago I was in a meeting at work and I mentioned that I was praying for more patience. The response I got sort of disappointed me because I was told that you should never pray for patience.
Needless to say when I left the meeting that rang in my thoughts because I thought, “well, whose to say what I pray for? I can pray for whatever I want in life.” However the more I thought about it I weighed the fact that when someone tells you not to pray for Read More→
You’re In The Driver’s Seat, Take Control!
Posted by: | CommentsWhat are your influences in life? What’s your inspiration for life? Are you following behind the wrong crowd? Many times following behind the wrong people can lead to destruction in life.
You have the choice to either be a leader or a follower. You’re either in the driver’s seat or you’re in the passenger’s seat. Which will it be? Read More→
Leave Mediocrity Behind And Rise To A New Level
Posted by: | CommentsMany times we find ourselves falling victim to stagnation. I’ll be the first to admit that I get caught lying dormant in my comfort zone.
It’s easy to become comfortable and settled because it relieves us of the responsibility of thinking outside of the box. Sometimes when we know that there is a task to do, we do only what it takes to get the job done.
We don’t always challenge ourselves and go the extra mile, we Read More→
Change Is Not A Bad Thing
Posted by: | Comments (Ephesians 4:21) If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:
(22) that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, (23) and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, (24) and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
Accepting change can be a difficult thing when it puts us out of our comfort zone. Sometimes we become so stagnant in where we are that it’s hard to accept when God is moving in our lives.
Sometimes what seems like a curse is really a blessing in disguise. When it seems like the enemy is gaining ground, sometimes, is Gods way of preparing the way for a blessing in our lives.
Henceforth we become closed minded to change and we get discouraged and assume the enemy is plotting an attack.
Friends I encourage you to have an open mind when God is moving in your lives. In order for God to take us to the next level sometime He has to break down some of the damage that has been done in order to make way for improvement. Read More→
