A Nugget of Inspiration

The Bible says, "Make the most of every opportunity" (Colossians 4:5).  Be ready to grab opportunities anytime, in season and out of season.  Discern the season.  Why go hungry during winter.   Be self-motivated.  Prepare for the rainy day. The ant has no master yet it gathers its food in summer.  Don't be narrow-minded.  Make the most of today.  Prepare for tomorrow.  True living is sacrificing today for tomorrow, not sacrificing tomorrow for today.

Lessons on the Power of Self-Sacrifice from our Legends

The stories of Esther, the four leapers, Jesus and Samson in the bible illustrate to us the power of self-sacrifice. Today, we are going to look at what each of these people did and the results of their actions as part of our investigation into the power of self-sacrifice.  

Esther

Esther laid her life down and saved Israel.

"If I die, I die." Esther 4:16

Esther could have been sentenced to death for approaching the king's presence without an invitation.  However, she did so and found favour with the king, who granted her request thereby delivering Israel from the hand of Haman.

The Four Leapers

The four leapers laid their life down and saved Samaria.

They said to each other, "Why stay here until we die? If we say, 'We'll go into the city'—the famine is there, and we will die. And if we stay here, we will die. So let's go over to the camp of the Arameans and surrender. If they spare us, we live; if they kill us, then we die." 2 Kings 7:3-4

Standing at the city gates and going hungry was less risky than going to the Arameans' camp.  Because they decided to go to the Arameans' camp, God cleared the way for them such that when they got there they found it vacant and ready for plunder.  The plunder was so bountiful that the four leapers could sell some it to the city, which was enduring a sever famine.

Samson

Samson laid his life down and defeated the Philistines.

Then Samson prayed to the LORD, "Sovereign LORD, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes." Judges 16:28

Samson said, "Let me die with the Philistines!" Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived. Judges 16:30

Jesus

Jesus laid His life down and saved Mankind.

"My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." Matthew 26:39

"My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done."  Matthew 26:42

Jesus was crucified to the cross and saved you and me from our sins.  Without the cross, there would be no redemption for all of mankind.

Self-sacrifice is a decision.  It is a choice that you take.  Like many other everyday decisions that you make, laying down your life has to be a conscious and voluntary decision.  Unlike many other everyday decisions that you make, however, laying down your life is usually a tough and costly choice that you have to take among not so many favourable or available courses of action.

Fragments

·        All things are made from nothing.  If you want to make a wise man bring together a man of nothing and a wise man.  If you want to make a foolish man bring together a man of nothing and a foolish man.

·        Your success tomorrow is dependent upon your preparations today.  Today, prepare as much as you can to increase your chances of success tomorrow.

·        In our challenges there is always a message for ourselves and for other.

·        In relationships, some are in a position to only to get from others, some are in a position to only to give to others, and others are in a position to only to get from and give to others.  Be the latter.
 

·        Where my greatest weakness is, is where I found my greatest strength.

·        Lasting change does not come passively.

Don’t Put Away Your Goals. Keep Them In From Of You

"New Year Resolutions suck!" shouted Mr. Lucky-Go-By at the top of his voice.

Mr. Lucky-Go-By once believed in making New Year Resolutions. Today, he is a grumpy old man. One New Year's Eve, he decided to sit down at his desk to compile his list of New Year Resolutions. He wrote them down on a clean white sheet of paper.  This was his first time to do so.  When he had finished, he picked up the sheet of paper, neatly folded it twice across its length and put it in the top right-hand drawer of his desk. He knew that it would be safe there. "I can always come back at any time to look at it each time I want to remind myself what my New Year Resolutions are," he said.

When the year was about to end, he sat down at his desk. He opened the top right-hand drawer and searched for the peace of paper on which he had written down his New Year Resolutions.  This was the first time that he had looked for this paper since the day he had put it away.  When he had found it, he unfolded it and laid it flat on top of his desk and begun to read the goals that he had set for himself at the beginning of the year.  He had achieved none of them.  "Maybe next year," he mumbled to himself, disappointed that he had achieved none of his goals.

He did the same thing the following year. And the year after that. He repeated this routine for a good number of years and he would be disappointed that he would achieve none of his goals each time he read the goals that he had set for himself at the beginning of the year.   "Why then do I keep on setting goals if I am going to achieve none of them?" he asked, with a frown on his face. "Life will decide my fate. It always has," he reasoned.  Therefore, he resolved never to set goals away.

Don't put away your goals. Keep Them In Front of You

The process of setting goal is not an end in itself.  You also have to keep looking at and pursue the goals that you set for yourself.  If you don't keep looking at them and pursue them, you won't achieve them. However, we oftentimes put away our goals soon after articulating them.  They may be written down or not, but we usually forgot them, put them on hold or loose track of them for a later time which never comes. And we don't achieve our dreams at the end of the day.

Are you looking at and pursuing the goals that you set for yourself this year? Do so if you really want to achieve your goals.  Don't put your goals away. Keep them in front of you. In Philippians 3:13-14, Paul says, "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." Set your goals. Keep sight of them. Pursue them.

Get Goliath Before He Gets You! How to Handle Intimidation

Everyone has been intimidated by one thing or another in his or her life but not everyone has been able to handle it just as well as they were supposed to.  Reading the story of David and Goliath recently, I discovered a number of strategies how a person can effectively handle intimidation.  

You handle intimidation by:

1.        Maintaining Your Cool

Do not be afraid. David was not afraid of Goliath.

2.        Trusting in Yourself

Go by what you believe, not what you see. David was not moved by what he saw but by what he believed.

3.        Being Yourself

Stick to who you are. Do not try to wear someone else's shoes. They will not fit. David stuck to his clothes.  He could not fit in Saul's armory.

4.        Using your own tools

Stick to techniques, skills and abilities that you have always been using.  Do not try anything new. David went to Goliath with just a sling and a few stones.

5.        Getting Goliath before he Gets You

Be Bold. Take the first shot. Strike out intimidation first. Do not give intimidation a chance to strike you first.  He will strike you out. David took the first shot and struck Goliath out.  Goliath had no chance to strike David out. He was dead!

The story of David and Goliath has many great lessons on how to handle intimidation.  You will be mustered by intimidation only if you let it.  You have all the power and resources that you need in order to master it.  The next time you come face to face with intimidation, maintain your cool, trust in yourself, be yourself, use your own tools and get goliath before he gets you.

Life Lessons from Sports

There are a number of life lessons that we can borrow from sports. The article today focuses on principles that cause achievement, as suggested by Dianne Holum.

Dianne Holum once said, "To achieve in sports you first have to have a dream, and then you must act on that dream. The best athletes are those who truly enjoy what they are doing and display a tremendous amount of work ethic. They continue to persevere in spite of setbacks and never lose sight of their ultimate goal." The statement contains six attributes of a successful athelete – they dream, act on their dream, enjoy what they are doing, display a tremendous amount of work ethic, persevere spite of setbacks and never lose sight of their ultimate goal. I believe that these attributes do not only make one

Dream
A dream begins the process.  A dream gives you direction, motivation and a focal point. There is nothing that can happen where there is no dream.

Act on that dream
After crafting your dream, you need to take the next step. Move forward.  Do not fall into the trap of presumption or procrastination.  Start working towards the realization of your dream as soon as possible.  Do whatever is in your power to do to make your dream come true.

Truly enjoy what you are doing
Pursuing your dream is sometimes hard work. Truly enjoying what you are doing motivates you to pursue your dream and stay committed to it until it comes true, even if it is hard work.

Display a tremendous amount of work ethic
Closely related to enjoying what you are doing, you have to have a positive attitude to what you are doing.  You will enjoy it more. You push at it more.

Persevere in spite of setbacks
Life's obstacles are not there to hold you back, but to prove you. How true are you to your dream? You should not be distracted by the temporary setbacks, but press on to attain your dream.  

Never lose sight of your ultimate goal
Achieving your dream is all that matters.  The setbacks, the interim triumphs and everything else are just part of the journey.  You should always keep your eyes on your dream.

The principles for one's advancement in life and in sports are pretty much the same.  Like in sports, to achieve in life, you have to first have a dream, act on that dream, enjoy what you are doing, display a tremendous amount of work ethic, persevere in spite of setbacks and never lose sight of your ultimate goal.

Don’t plan to survive 2012 – plan to live!

It is the beginning of yet another year and what a great opportunity it is for one to take some time out and do some personal planning.  This time is useful in giving oneself the much needed direction and meaning in a world that is full of chaos and disorder. But whenever we do this there is always a problem of sabotaging our own success: we tend to plan to survive instead of planning to live.

What do I mean? Well, in the simplest of terms, we tend to plan to mitigate or endure life's hardships. If we cannot mitigate or completely remove them from our lives, then we might as well endure them we tell ourselves as we plan. This is survival. And this is "THE PLAN" for those that plan to survive.  

Planning to live, on the other hand, is planning to utilize and enjoy life's opportunities. Life is full of opportunities and it is up to us to utilize and enjoy them we tell ourselves as we plan. This is living. And this is "THE PLAN" for those that plan to live.

Planning to survive is planning to mitigate or endure life's hardships. Planning to live is planning to utilize and enjoy life's opportunities.  Don't plan to survive 2012 – plan to live!