Monthly Archives: July 2014

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Desire and Control

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EC blog 724Are Your Desires Controlling You? or Are You Controlling Your Desires?

Desires. We all have them. To have desires is to be human. We were created with the ability to have desires. Desires turned to dreams move us to achieve things in life.

A desire is a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen. We have physical, emotional, spiritual and mental desires.  But not all desires are good for us; the fulfillment of some desires would negatively impact us and/or those around us. Imagine what would happen if you went through with the desire you felt when a driver cut you off, or when a person cut into line in front of you?

To have everything we desire would certainly lead to our demise. We literally could not handle getting everything we desire. Imagine for a moment that you actually did get everything you desired. Where would your life be today?

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Becoming a Wounded Healer

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Prayer manWhile in graduate school in the mid ‘80s I read Henri Nouwen’s book, The Wounded Healer. That book changed my life. At the time I was walking around with wounds I had experienced physically, emotionally, verbally, mentally, and spiritually. I was ashamed of these wounds and did not know what to do with them. After reading the book I began the journey of becoming a wounded healer.

In another book, Bread for Journey, Nouwen states:

Nobody escapes being wounded. We all are wounded people, whether physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually. The main question is not “How can we hide our wounds?” so we don’t have to be embarrassed, but “How can we put our woundedness in the service of others?” When our wounds cease to be a source of shame, and become a source of healing, we have become wounded healers.

We have all been wounded in some way. The question is, as Nouwen puts it, “not how can we hide

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Don’t Look Now But Your Influence Is Showing

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brush teethThere is a saying used by those giving advice on parenting: “More is caught than taught by children.” In other words, children learn more from what they see their parents do than from what their parents say.

The same saying applies to leaders. Some leaders command an audience by their eloquence and commanding presence. But these quickly lose hold when the talk does not match the walk. Leaders must tell people what is important and then live out their own words.

What are your followers learning about physical self-care?

  • Are they learning that physical care is as important as spiritual care? Are you modeling physical well-being by what you eat, how you rest, how much you exercise?
  • Do you stay home and take care of yourself when you are sick?
  • Do you get an annual physical and heed your doctor’s advice or warning?
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The Best You Can Be to Others

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help othersWhat’s Your Motivation Part 3

Seeing the best in others and treating them with respect and dignity regardlesPreview Changess of their color, race, gender, or socioeconomic status begins with how you view yourself.

If you think yourself superior to others then that is exactly how you will treat them. However, if you think everyone is better than you, then you will interact with them accordingly.

On the other hand if you begin with the understanding that you are fearfully and wonderfully made by God and unconditionally loved by Him, then you will view others in the same way.

Being the best you can be to others begins from within as a reflection of your beliefs and values.

Value others. Being the best to others starts with acknowledging their value. This value can be based solely on the fact that they, like you, are fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Accepting this is what leads you to be kind and loving to others, because you see in them the same value you see in yourself.