Persistence

I'm a big fan of persistence. I think it is the ultimate power tool. With it you can conquer the world! Before its wrath, obstacles are blown away, problems fall by the wayside, setbacks are scoffed at. Whatever you are trying to accomplish, persistence wins.

So many people give up just before they turn the corner. If they could just see through the clouds, they'd see success.

Here are some of my favorite quotes on persistence:

• Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in. - Bill Bradley
  
  
• Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success. – Napoleon Hill
  
  
• Energy and persistence conquer all things. - Ben Franklin
  
  
• Persistence is what makes the impossible possible, the possible likely, and the likely definite. - Robert Half
  
  
• Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance. - Samual Johnson
  
  
• Fall seven times, stand up eight. - Japanese proverb
  
  
• When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stone-cutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it would split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before together. - Jacob A. Riis, journalist and social reformer (1849-1914)
  
  
• Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. - Calvin Coolidge
  
  
• It is the `follow through' that makes the great difference between ultimate success and failure, because it is so easy to stop. - Charles F. Kettering
  

Being in Awe of God

I listened to a sermon recently about how to have a better prayer life and one thing I heard that really stayed with me was how we often fail to appreciate the magnitude of God and the reverence that appreciation should generate. He compared praying and attending church to visiting the President - would we wear old clothes, take cell phone calls during dinner, or otherwise be disrespectful? Of course not, a visit like that would be a once-in-a-lifetime honor for most of us.

If that's how we'd feel about a meeting with the President, how should we feel about a meeting (prayer, church) with the creator of the universe?

I hadn't thought about it that way, but that really stuck in my mind, and I've decided that I need to show more awe toward God.

Don't Worry, Be Happy

"If you have fear of some pain or suffering, you should examine whether there is anything you can do about it. If you can, there is no need to worry about it; if you cannot do anything, then also there is no need to worry." - Dalai Lama

I've had this posted on the wall of my office for a long time. I think about it often, and if you know me very well I've probably told you about it at one point or another.

I think this is one of the most valuable pieces of advice anyone could ever get, and I try to live by it. Is it hard to implement? Oh yeah, definitely. But is it possible?

I believe so. And the upside is tremendous!

Like anything else, the first step in implementing it is to think about it. When you find yourself stressing about something, examine it and ask yourself which of the two of the Dalai Lama's categories it fits into, and then decide whether you need to worry!

I'm only being partly facetious - the more you try to do this, the better your results will be. Practice makes perfect (well, if not perfect, at least mostly worry free).

One final thing: I've had friends point out that they know there is something they can do about their situation, but they don't, and so they just worry (or worry about why they aren't doing it). All I can say is that if your problem is that you know what you need to do, but can't get yourself to do it...well, that's a topic for another day...

Asking God for Help

Do you believe that if you ask God for help, he'll answer you? Even more do you believe he'll actually do something to help you? If he does, will you be able to recognize it?

I suppose a good part of that depends on what you ask:

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. - 1 John 5:14 - ESV

Now I've struggled for a long time about what to ask for. There are people like Joel Osteen who, as far as I can understand, believe you should ask God for a bigger house or more money. That doesn't seem right to me, as I read the Bible to say that I shouldn't really care that much about those things:

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. - Matthew 6:31-33 - ESV

As C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity, "Do not think I'm going faster than I really am." I'm not against being wealthy any more than I'm against being well fed or having a roof over my head. It is the pursuit of wealth or food or possessions above all else (or maybe to great extremes) that seems to me to be the problem. In any case, I suspect Jesus said all that business about the camel and the needle for a reason...

But that's not the point of this post. The point is that I believe I can show you something that God will always grant you, though I'm not sure how it may be manifested in your case. For me, it has worked like this:

Ever since I started down the path toward becoming a Christian, I've been asking God for help. I've not been sure exactly what to say to him but in general I have just asked him to help me get closer to him, and to show me the truth. And at least for the past few years, I've been clear that I'm willing to subjugate my will to his. As I look back I marvel at what he has done: for the past 10 years I've had a succession of people always there offering to study with me. Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, Catholics, Church of Christ people, and people who just considered themselves "spiritual". At every single step of my journey I had multiple people there helping me, and they always seemed to be the right ones at that time. I didn't always (and sometimes still don't) agree with everything they were saying, and sometimes they (very properly) made me a bit uncomfortable as they pushed me to examine my sometimes mistaken or inconsistent or irrational beliefs.

I don't know how you feel about that kind of thing, but the only conclusion I can reach is that God has been sending me these people. There have been too many of them, over too long of a time, for any other explanation.

So what does this all mean? Look back at 1 John 5:14 and pray for things that are "according to his will".

"Procrastination feeds on distractions." - Paul Graham

Here is an interesting article on how easy it is to be distracted. Whether you are as ADD as me or just a normal person trying to get work done, you'll appreciate these insights.

"I'm Fantastic!"

I have a goal that I've worked on for quite a few years: wherever I am, I want to be the happiest, most positive person in the room. If you know me think of the last time you asked me how I was doing - chances are I said "Fantastic!" or "Great!" or "Fabulous!".

I do that because I believe thinking it makes it so. Saying it makes it even more so. But that applies to whatever "it" is: "I'm stupid." or "I'll never get that right." are just as self-fulfilling as "I feel great!".

Henry Ford said "Whether you think that you can, or that you can't, you are usually right. " and you've probably heard the old saw "You are what you eat!". There is a similar and probably more important saying from Earl Nightingale called The Strangest Secret: "We become what we think about."

There are hundreds if not thousands of books on the power of positive thinking - you don't need me to tell you about them. Just try this for the next week: Anytime anyone asks you how you feel, smile and say "Great!" Whenever you catch yourself saying or thinking anything negative about yourself, just stop.

If you do that consistently for a week, I bet you see a big improvement in how you feel!

Stress is like a cockroach

Most likely you feel stress. Some days more, some days less, some people more, some people less, but we pretty much all feel it. Here is a good definition from Hans Selye, M.D.: "a nonspecific response of the body to a demand."

Note the word "nonspecific". Stress gets its power from being fuzzy and undefined. It lives in the shadows and doesn't like the light. If you shine the light of your focused thoughts on it, it will try to hide and often just fade away.

Try this the next time you feel stressed or overwhelmed: just sit down and think about exactly what is bothering you.

You don't have to pretend things aren't bad if they really are. You don't have to say "it will be OK" if you don't believe it. Just think about what is likely to happen. Think about the worst possible thing that could happen. Try to figure out what is bothering you - what is causing these feelings. Don't try to solve it, just think about it, turn it over in your mind, look at it from all sides. Feel it as intensely as you can. Embrace it. Wallow in it. Stand in front of a mirror and talk to yourself like you were explaining it to a friend - help them understand exactly why were are feeling this way.

You will often find that the emotions you feel are in excess of the actual facts - sometimes significantly so. Stress is that way. It is gets its power from being undefined, unclear, fuzzy, nonspecific. Shine your light on it and don't let it be like that for you.

Absolute Truth?

Do you believe in absolute truth? Or do you think that different people can have different versions of the truth, and all be right (that truth is relative)?

A lot of people seem to believe that truth is relative. I have to disagree with them because if that's true (pun intended), I don't see how we can know anything.

A friend emailed me and put it in a way I hadn't considered: if it is OK to believe anything (or many things), why does the Bible warn against false teaching?

Think about that - wouldn't "false teaching" imply that some things are true/right and some things are false/wrong? That there is a standard somewhere by which all teachings will be judged to be right or wrong?

"...and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." - John 8:32, ESV

If "the truth" exists as Jesus said it does, does that mean that it is right and something else is wrong? What could Jesus have meant by this:

"For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. - Matthew 24:24, ESV

Unless there is such a thing as falsehood, and false teachings, how could I be led astray? Wouldn't anything I believe be the truth for me? I've had many people assert this very thing to me, but I just can't see how it is possible. What would a false christ/prophet say that would be wrong? Wouldn't that just be his own truth?

Why I Love the ESV

The ESV (English Standard Version) is a relatively new Bible translation and I hope it becomes very popular. Where I attend church many people use the NKJV (New King James Version) which is a very accurate translation and is much easier for most people to read than the KJV (King James Version) or the ASV (American Standard Version), both of which are also very accurate.

I think the ESV combines the best of both accuracy and ease of reading for the modern American. See what they say about their Translation Philosophy:

The ESV is an “essentially literal” translation that seeks as far as possible to capture the precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible writer. As such, its emphasis is on “word-for-word” correspondence, at the same time taking into account differences of grammar, syntax, and idiom between current literary English and the original languages. Thus it seeks to be transparent to the original text, letting the reader see as directly as possible the structure and meaning of the original.

In contrast to the ESV, some Bible versions have followed a “thought-for-thought” rather than “word-for-word” translation philosophy, emphasizing “dynamic equivalence” rather than the “essentially literal” meaning of the original. A “thought-for-thought” translation is of necessity more inclined to reflect the interpretive opinions of the translator and the influences of contemporary culture.

Every translation is at many points a trade-off between literal precision and readability, between “formal equivalence” in expression and “functional equivalence” in communication, and the ESV is no exception. Within this framework we have sought to be “as literal as possible” while maintaining clarity of expression and literary excellence.

Therefore, to the extent that plain English permits and the meaning in each case allows, we have sought to use the same English word for important recurring words in the original; and, as far as grammar and syntax allow, we have rendered Old Testament passages cited in the New in ways that show their correspondence. Thus in each of these areas, as well as throughout the Bible as a whole, we have sought to capture the echoes and overtones of meaning that are so abundantly present in the original texts.

As an essentially literal translation, then, the ESV seeks to carry over every possible nuance of meaning in the original words of Scripture into our own language. As such, it is ideally suited for in-depth study of the Bible. Indeed, with its emphasis on literary excellence, the ESV is equally suited for public reading and preaching, for private reading and reflection, for both academic and devotional study, and for Scripture memorization.

Go to Bible Gateway and read some of your favorite verses in the ESV and see what you think!

My Heart Condition

All I can do is thank God for the news I just received and all of you for your prayers!

Most of you know of the heart condition I've been dealing with since January. My heart function had been 20-24% (normal is 50-60%) and my aortic valve had a fairly severe leak (enough that the Dr. would have recommended surgery if my heart had been stronger).

Today I got the results of an echocardiogram that I had 3 weeks ago (after about 2 months on my meds): My heart function had risen to 40-45% and there was no sign of any problems with my aortic valve!

The Dr. said it was possible that I'll continue to improve and return to normal heart function. She did point out that this is a lifetime condition, and I'll never go off of these meds, but still, this is great news! The only restriction is that I'll pretty much always have to stay away from lifting anything over about 20 lbs, which is a pain, but overall I have to say that I'm the luckiest man in the world!

Thanks every one of you for your prayers and support - God Bless you all!

Keith