One aspect of coaching is to help individuals get a better grip on their life. This can come in the form of better time management or gaining greater overall balance between the major components of one’s life. Typically the goal is to reduce stress and create a higher level of productivity, performance, and personal fulfillment. All of this of course, presupposes the individual has a certain amount of control over the issues they want to better manage.
Now, bringing our lives into a place of better harmony and balance can be a very good thing. No one wants to live life in a place of constantly feeling like they are up to their necks in water and struggling very hard just to keep their heads above it and breathing. The drain from such an existence can lead to all kinds of emotional and physical issues. Assisting others in moving their lives into a place where there is less stress and a greater sense of peace is one of the services a good coach can provide.
But beyond these practical concerns, what really should be the aim of coaching, particularly if it is to be considered “transformational”? Is the ultimate goal simply to help guide the individual towards eliminating all difficult and trying situations from their lives, even if that were possible? Is it simply to help them reduce stress and increase their performance or productivity?
Coaching, that has as its aim the transformation of the individual, takes into consideration the fact that much of personal development and growth in grace is directly connected with how one engages or deals with the uncomfortable, stress producing situations and circumstances of life. Regardless of how or why they have shown up in our lives, what should be our perspective about such situations and how might we engage them to bring about the best outcome in our spiritual development? This should be a focus of transformational coaching.
The target of transformational coaching is the heart, not just the performance, of the individual. It is coaching that defines success and forward movement in people’s lives in terms of the internal renovation of the heart that causes them to reflect more of Christ in their beliefs, thoughts and character and subsequently in their actions. It takes into consideration the “big picture” context in which everyone’s personal story is being written and lived out within the larger story of God in Christ reconciling the world to himself and producing a vast human family of sons and daughters who reflect the family image and are learning to rule and reign in life with him.
Each morning I receive a “Daily Reading” from Ransomed Heart ministries. This morning’s reading was entitled, “I Wonder What God Is Up To”. This particular posting was taken from the book, The Sacred Romance, co-authored by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge. This particular story appears to have been written by John. I’ve included it here in its brief entirety.
“Several years ago I went through one of the most painful trials of my professional life. The story involves a colleague whom I will call Dave, a man I hired and with whom I had labored several years in ministry. We spent many hours on the road together, speaking to churches about the Christian life. A point came when I needed to confront Dave about some issues in his life that were hurting his own ministry and the larger purposes of our team. In all fairness, I think I handled it poorly, but I was totally unprepared for what happened next. Dave turned on me with the ferocity of a cornered animal. He fabricated lies and spread rumors in an attempt to destroy my career. His actions were so out of proportion it was hard to believe we were reacting to the same events. He went to the head pastor in an attempt to have me dismissed. The attempt failed, but our friendship was lost, and several others were hurt in the process.
In the midst of the crisis, I spoke with Brent one afternoon about the turn of events and the awful pain of betrayal. He said, "I wonder what God is up to in all this?"
"God?" I said. "What's he got to do with it?" My practical agnosticism was revealed. I was caught up in the sociodrama, the smaller story, completely blind to the true story at that point in my life. Brent's question arrested my attention and brought it to a higher level. In fact, the process of our sanctification, our journey, rests entirely on our ability to see life from the basis of that question. As the poet William Blake warned long ago, "Life's dim window of the soul distorts the heavens from pole to pole, and leads you to believe a lie, when you see with, not through, the eye." (My emphasis)
That “practical agnosticism” is in every one of us. So, as a coach, what if we were to approach situations such as John’s with the question Brent posed? What is God up to? Transformational coaching zeros in on these kinds of situations as opportunities for God to deal with the issues of the heart, our belief paradigms. What is God's learning agenda for me in this situation? There will be times where God is calling us to be proactive in simplifying our lives and adjusting our priorities. There will be other situations where there isn’t a list of neat solutions we can apply to “fix” everything. God is using the situation to get at something deeper and more significant in our life.
God is concerned about every aspect of our lives, even the more basic and mundane. The scriptures are very clear on this. But certain things hold a greater priority than others for him. I’ve often said that God is more concerned about our character than he is about our comfort, and he will use a measure of discomfort to perfect our character, if indeed we allow him to. Transformational coaching seeks to address the issues that can potentially bring about change at the very core of who we are, our belief systems, thoughts, emotions, and will. It is change at this level leading to the formation of Christ in us, that results in the best benefit to us, and ultimately is for the sake of others and the glory of God.
The Miter Box - Life From a Different Angle
My reflections, observations, thoughts, insights, and perspective on life, my life's journey and other related issues.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Living Life on Purpose
What course is your life set on? Based on your life’s current trajectory (the sum total of your actions and choices), where do you think you will be five or ten years from now. In one sense, it’s really rather easy to predict. But where do you want to be? The answer to those two questions could be worlds apart. If so, what changes are necessary to see the life you want, become a reality?
For many people the life they would like to live always seems elusive, just out of reach. Simply wanting something different rarely produces it. Here’s a profound truth: I am where I am today because I have planned to be here. Even more provocative, I am who I am today because I have planned to be. Think about it for a moment. No planning, by default, is a form of planning. It’s planning which approaches life in a “caesura, sera, sera, whatever will be will be”, kind of way. Granted, the future is not ours to see, but the future of our life is also inextricably linked to the choices, actions, and decisions we make every day.
God has created us with a significant role to play in the unfolding of our life and destiny. Part of what it means to be created in the image of God is exercising the freedom and ability, while assuming the responsibility granted us to “co-create” with him as it pertains to the unfolding of our life and its impact on others. Our lack of engagement in that partnership whether by unwillingness, lack of relationship or ignorance, has untold fallout for us and those our lives could potentially impact.
Granted, there will always be things that happen to us of which we have no direct control over. However, even our choices and actions in those circumstances play a role in the shaping of who we are and ultimately, in our destiny.
So, back to the question I asked at the start, “What trajectory is your life currently set on?” How intentional (proactive) are you being about the development of the kind of person you are or want to be? How intentional (proactive) are you being about discovering and apprehending your unique life purpose and destiny? Where do you want to be five, ten, fifteen years from now? If you continue down the track you are currently on, will it get you there? What would be the benefits to you and others if you were to become more intentional about your life?
What would being more intentional about your life look like for you? Who might you pull in along side of you that could help you clarify your intentions, develop a plan and help you maintain momentum along the way? All of us need the help of others at times. Who might you be able to lean on in this process?
Remember, life is a journey, a challenge, an adventure with outcomes that affect you and others in very dramatic ways. Engage it in such a way that the very best outcomes can be assured for the benefit of others and the glory of God.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
The Gift of a Life of Substance
At what level do you find yourself living life most of the time? My guess is that the majority of us have come to live a large part of our lives on a rather shallow and superficial level. If we are in touch at all with the deeper thoughts, feelings and emotions of our heart, those things are probably rarely shared, if ever, with anyone else. Most of us have learned to either deny, ignore, dismiss, privatize, store, or compartmentalize those things that reside at the very core of our being. And the reasons we do so are varied yet common among us.
It is my conviction, however, this deeper level is the one from which we were meant to live, at least in some significant expression of our life. Connecting with another human being at this level is the essence of intimacy. It really is something we all hunger for.....something we were designed for. Without it, a very significant part of what it means to be human is missing.
That’s one reason why I find the Psalms in Scripture so fascinating on one hand and appealing on the other. Fascinating in the sense they appear so foreign to where many of us live our life…..appealing, because they strike a distant cord in our heart beckoning us to a deeper level of experience. Deep is calling to deep.
The Psalms were written by those who were in touch with the feelings and longings of their heart and were uninhibited in making them known. They wrote unabashedly about their fears, questions, inner wrestling and struggles, while at the same time revealed amazing insight into the nature, essence and goodness of God which could only come from first hand experience. These individuals knew what it meant to live life at a deeper level and as a result have passed down an incredible gift of substance for us who are beneficiaries of their writings.
From my angle, one reason we moderns tend to live life on the more superficial level is because we have buried the art of reflection in the busyness and noise of techno-laden, stimuli-filled modern living. There simply are too many things to distract, attract, entertain, and fill up every waking moment of our days. Hardly ever do we slow down long enough, or turn off the external stimuli to give much serious thought or attention to what’s going on inside, how we are doing, what might make our life more satisfying, or any other musing that could potentially drive us to a deeper level of living. And even if we are periodically successful at shutting off the exterior noise, the interior voices continue to rattle away uncensored.
One of the greatest gifts we can give to another person is a life of substance….one that is marked by a depth of content and character that has arisen out of a personal wrestling with the harder and more difficult questions of the heart and experiences of life. It is a life marked by an open hearted pursuit of God which has resulted in coming to know him intimately, not through a book, but in person. It is a life that has intentionally chosen to pursue life, and has found it, at a deeper level.
“Surely, you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place” Psalm 51:6
It is my conviction, however, this deeper level is the one from which we were meant to live, at least in some significant expression of our life. Connecting with another human being at this level is the essence of intimacy. It really is something we all hunger for.....something we were designed for. Without it, a very significant part of what it means to be human is missing.
That’s one reason why I find the Psalms in Scripture so fascinating on one hand and appealing on the other. Fascinating in the sense they appear so foreign to where many of us live our life…..appealing, because they strike a distant cord in our heart beckoning us to a deeper level of experience. Deep is calling to deep.
The Psalms were written by those who were in touch with the feelings and longings of their heart and were uninhibited in making them known. They wrote unabashedly about their fears, questions, inner wrestling and struggles, while at the same time revealed amazing insight into the nature, essence and goodness of God which could only come from first hand experience. These individuals knew what it meant to live life at a deeper level and as a result have passed down an incredible gift of substance for us who are beneficiaries of their writings.
From my angle, one reason we moderns tend to live life on the more superficial level is because we have buried the art of reflection in the busyness and noise of techno-laden, stimuli-filled modern living. There simply are too many things to distract, attract, entertain, and fill up every waking moment of our days. Hardly ever do we slow down long enough, or turn off the external stimuli to give much serious thought or attention to what’s going on inside, how we are doing, what might make our life more satisfying, or any other musing that could potentially drive us to a deeper level of living. And even if we are periodically successful at shutting off the exterior noise, the interior voices continue to rattle away uncensored.
One of the greatest gifts we can give to another person is a life of substance….one that is marked by a depth of content and character that has arisen out of a personal wrestling with the harder and more difficult questions of the heart and experiences of life. It is a life marked by an open hearted pursuit of God which has resulted in coming to know him intimately, not through a book, but in person. It is a life that has intentionally chosen to pursue life, and has found it, at a deeper level.
“Surely, you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place” Psalm 51:6
Friday, October 22, 2010
Self Fulfillment is Overrated
I’m a life coach. It’s my joy to sit down with another human being and help them figure out just what they’re on this planet for. One of the aims of life coaching is to see people realize their full potential and fulfill their unique life purpose. Explicitly, and implicitly, implied in coaching is the idea that personal fulfillment is at the end of the rainbow of realized potential and purpose.
Now, to a large extent this is true. However, when we make anything simply about us, personal fulfillment becomes a short lived, fleeting, and rather illusive experience. The simple attainment of goals is not all that satisfying, at least, not for very long. Something much more significant must be added to the equation for the results of realized goals to have their ultimate impact in the heart of an individual.
We humans have been hard wired to serve a purpose that is larger than ourselves. When the purpose we are pursuing becomes measurably shrunk down to the size of ourselves, we become gutted of that which was designed to grant us our sense of significance. Significance does not come from simply feeling good about myself and my accomplishments. It comes from a higher source.
We were made to make a difference in this world for the sake and benefit of others, and, ultimately, for the glory of God. A life well lived is one that has enabled others to live well. Our temptation is to grasp and run after personal fulfillment. In the end we lose it. But if, on the other hand, we give ourselves for a purpose that eclipses our own life, in the end we find it.
For whom are you living?
Now, to a large extent this is true. However, when we make anything simply about us, personal fulfillment becomes a short lived, fleeting, and rather illusive experience. The simple attainment of goals is not all that satisfying, at least, not for very long. Something much more significant must be added to the equation for the results of realized goals to have their ultimate impact in the heart of an individual.
We humans have been hard wired to serve a purpose that is larger than ourselves. When the purpose we are pursuing becomes measurably shrunk down to the size of ourselves, we become gutted of that which was designed to grant us our sense of significance. Significance does not come from simply feeling good about myself and my accomplishments. It comes from a higher source.
We were made to make a difference in this world for the sake and benefit of others, and, ultimately, for the glory of God. A life well lived is one that has enabled others to live well. Our temptation is to grasp and run after personal fulfillment. In the end we lose it. But if, on the other hand, we give ourselves for a purpose that eclipses our own life, in the end we find it.
For whom are you living?
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Image Is Everything
A number of years ago, now, Cannon put out a commercial with the catch line, "Image is everything". I remember thinking back then how that line captured the prevailing value of our culture. A few blogs back I wrote on how our American culture seems to be fixated on image - that outward or public view others have of us governed by the values of good looks, outstanding talent, noticeable accomplishments, wealth, etc., etc., often overlooking, or minimizing the issue of character. But there is another, far more positive, side to "image" I want to address.
In the book of Genesis, it is recorded that God made man and woman "in his own image". No other part of creation is mentioned as having this unique stamp. But what exactly is God's image? And, based on what we can know about God, in what ways were we created to be like him? Theologians have spilled a lot of ink attempting to answer those questions.
Now, before we become too pompous, on the one hand, or disillusioned on the other, one thing we can immediately put to rest is the idea that this image has anything to do with a physical resemblance. God is Spirit and does not possess the corporal or physical qualities of man.
In attempting to understand the image of the Divine we need look no further than the person of Jesus. Want a perfect picture of what God is like? Take a good long look at his Son. Jesus put it this way, "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father". And as followers or apprentices of Jesus it is clear from scripture that we are in a process of being transformed into his likeness.
If Jesus is “the exact representation of his (God’s) being”, and, as his follower, I am being transformed into his likeness, it stands to reason, then, that the more I reflect Christ the more I am fulfilling God’s original intention and purpose for my life.
But, again, what did that original “likeness” entail, and in what ways or capacities is that image being restored in Christ? Most theologians agree that one of the most significant aspects of God’s image of which we were created has to do with a moral likeness.
Unfortunately, holiness and righteousness have, more often than not, received a bad rap due to misrepresentation. However, God's holiness is described as a form of beauty in scripture. God is actually adorned in holiness and righteousness. These attributes make him beautiful, attractive beyond words. When they are manifested in you and me, his, and thus our own beauty, is revealed.
Another way to understand God’s holiness and righteousness is to see it as that which is completely and utterly separate from and opposite to all that brings trouble, heartache, violence, misery, division, strife, and death to people and this planet. In other words, God’s holiness stands in direct contrast to all that makes life on this planet ugly.
But let’s break this down a little further. What actually goes into this moral likeness to God? When I think about this question my thoughts go back to Jesus. Descriptions come to mind like strong in character, capable of standing for what is right under opposition, courageous in speaking the truth, kind, compassionate, forgiving, powerful in doing good (that which truly benefits), clear sighted in terms of what’s really important, a man of his word (integrity), merciful, gracious, generous, powerful in word (speaks with the authority of first hand knowledge and experience), and loyal, just to mention a few.
Here’s the deal. The world is in desperate need of this kind of beauty. We were all created with the capacity for it. We’ve blown it, but Christ came to restore it. Now, in Christ that original beauty is being renewed. For those of us who have chosen to follow Christ, one primary purpose remains, to reflect his beauty in the world around us.
When we stop to think about it in these terms, image really is everything!
In the book of Genesis, it is recorded that God made man and woman "in his own image". No other part of creation is mentioned as having this unique stamp. But what exactly is God's image? And, based on what we can know about God, in what ways were we created to be like him? Theologians have spilled a lot of ink attempting to answer those questions.
Now, before we become too pompous, on the one hand, or disillusioned on the other, one thing we can immediately put to rest is the idea that this image has anything to do with a physical resemblance. God is Spirit and does not possess the corporal or physical qualities of man.
In attempting to understand the image of the Divine we need look no further than the person of Jesus. Want a perfect picture of what God is like? Take a good long look at his Son. Jesus put it this way, "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father". And as followers or apprentices of Jesus it is clear from scripture that we are in a process of being transformed into his likeness.
If Jesus is “the exact representation of his (God’s) being”, and, as his follower, I am being transformed into his likeness, it stands to reason, then, that the more I reflect Christ the more I am fulfilling God’s original intention and purpose for my life.
But, again, what did that original “likeness” entail, and in what ways or capacities is that image being restored in Christ? Most theologians agree that one of the most significant aspects of God’s image of which we were created has to do with a moral likeness.
Unfortunately, holiness and righteousness have, more often than not, received a bad rap due to misrepresentation. However, God's holiness is described as a form of beauty in scripture. God is actually adorned in holiness and righteousness. These attributes make him beautiful, attractive beyond words. When they are manifested in you and me, his, and thus our own beauty, is revealed.
Another way to understand God’s holiness and righteousness is to see it as that which is completely and utterly separate from and opposite to all that brings trouble, heartache, violence, misery, division, strife, and death to people and this planet. In other words, God’s holiness stands in direct contrast to all that makes life on this planet ugly.
But let’s break this down a little further. What actually goes into this moral likeness to God? When I think about this question my thoughts go back to Jesus. Descriptions come to mind like strong in character, capable of standing for what is right under opposition, courageous in speaking the truth, kind, compassionate, forgiving, powerful in doing good (that which truly benefits), clear sighted in terms of what’s really important, a man of his word (integrity), merciful, gracious, generous, powerful in word (speaks with the authority of first hand knowledge and experience), and loyal, just to mention a few.
Here’s the deal. The world is in desperate need of this kind of beauty. We were all created with the capacity for it. We’ve blown it, but Christ came to restore it. Now, in Christ that original beauty is being renewed. For those of us who have chosen to follow Christ, one primary purpose remains, to reflect his beauty in the world around us.
When we stop to think about it in these terms, image really is everything!
Monday, September 27, 2010
Belief and Behavior
Have you ever thought about the connection between what one believes and how one behaves? What might we learn about someone by watching their behavior over a protracted period of time? All of us are really open books and to the observant we can be read fairly easily.
Your world view, the things you believe to be true about life, about yourself, about God, about why you are here, etc, etc, form the platform on which you live out your life. Beliefs are very powerful in this regard. Beliefs can lead someone to spend their life caring for AIDS victims in Africa, or on the other hand, lead another to drive a plane into a building killing thousands of people. These two very opposite behaviors both spring from a foundational belief system and world view.
The person confined to a padded room and straight jacket, thinking the CIA have surrounded his room, and the young dad, just home from a hard day's work, playing with his young son on the carpet, are both acting from a belief system that has come to define their view of life, reality, and help shape their behavior.
What we have come to believe and accept as true, as reality, shapes our lives in ways we aren’t even aware of most of the time. Observe you own life. Make note of your actions and choices over a period of time. What might they reveal about what you really believe or at least what your true core values are? I understand any of us can act “out of character” at times, but our behavior over the long haul always tells the truth.
Herein lays the importance of truth, and true reality, as it relates to the process of spiritual formation. Jesus said it beautifully, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”. In another place he made this amazing declaration, “I have come to give testimony to the truth”. When John is introducing Jesus in his gospel, he makes this breathtaking pronouncement, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”. When it comes to the things that contribute most to our spiritual formation, grace and truth are right up there at the top of the list, and both are embodied in the person of Christ.
Jesus lived and taught a new reality. He brought a radical new paradigm of truth that resulted in turning the world “upside down”, or should we say right side up. The truth he embodied became the dividing point of human history. A whole new way of viewing God and his relationship to people shook the known world then and continues to shake it today. Those who embraced him by faith became carriers of this new reality…this belief system….this world view….this truth, and the world has never been the same.
The challenge for us who are followers of Jesus is to make sure we are seeing (believing) from his point of reference. One of my favorite quotes comes from my pastor, Bill Johnson, who says, "Jesus is perfect theology". Oh, so true! On the other hand, bad theology has lead to all kinds of horrific and idiotic acts of behavior.
If we wish to be apprentices of Jesus who become like him in his actions than it is imperative we think like him – that our view of reality is his view of reality. This is what it means to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. When my belief system and world view becomes shaped by Truth (by Jesus), in such a way that my thoughts, emotions and actions are deeply impacted, then I can expect my behavior to become increasingly more like his.
“…... as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17b NKJV)
Your world view, the things you believe to be true about life, about yourself, about God, about why you are here, etc, etc, form the platform on which you live out your life. Beliefs are very powerful in this regard. Beliefs can lead someone to spend their life caring for AIDS victims in Africa, or on the other hand, lead another to drive a plane into a building killing thousands of people. These two very opposite behaviors both spring from a foundational belief system and world view.
The person confined to a padded room and straight jacket, thinking the CIA have surrounded his room, and the young dad, just home from a hard day's work, playing with his young son on the carpet, are both acting from a belief system that has come to define their view of life, reality, and help shape their behavior.
What we have come to believe and accept as true, as reality, shapes our lives in ways we aren’t even aware of most of the time. Observe you own life. Make note of your actions and choices over a period of time. What might they reveal about what you really believe or at least what your true core values are? I understand any of us can act “out of character” at times, but our behavior over the long haul always tells the truth.
Herein lays the importance of truth, and true reality, as it relates to the process of spiritual formation. Jesus said it beautifully, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”. In another place he made this amazing declaration, “I have come to give testimony to the truth”. When John is introducing Jesus in his gospel, he makes this breathtaking pronouncement, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”. When it comes to the things that contribute most to our spiritual formation, grace and truth are right up there at the top of the list, and both are embodied in the person of Christ.
Jesus lived and taught a new reality. He brought a radical new paradigm of truth that resulted in turning the world “upside down”, or should we say right side up. The truth he embodied became the dividing point of human history. A whole new way of viewing God and his relationship to people shook the known world then and continues to shake it today. Those who embraced him by faith became carriers of this new reality…this belief system….this world view….this truth, and the world has never been the same.
The challenge for us who are followers of Jesus is to make sure we are seeing (believing) from his point of reference. One of my favorite quotes comes from my pastor, Bill Johnson, who says, "Jesus is perfect theology". Oh, so true! On the other hand, bad theology has lead to all kinds of horrific and idiotic acts of behavior.
If we wish to be apprentices of Jesus who become like him in his actions than it is imperative we think like him – that our view of reality is his view of reality. This is what it means to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. When my belief system and world view becomes shaped by Truth (by Jesus), in such a way that my thoughts, emotions and actions are deeply impacted, then I can expect my behavior to become increasingly more like his.
“…... as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17b NKJV)
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Living Favor Minded
Something amazing happened last Saturday evening. My family and I were at a football game my 17 year old high school senior was playing in. This is only Ryan's second year playing football. He went out his freshman year but ended up sitting on the bench for the season. He opted not to play his sophomore and junior year. For some reason he chose to go out again his senior year and has ended up on the starting defensive squad as corner back. He also plays on all special teams.
As the game got underway, I found myself hoping he would do well and not make any major mistakes or suffer any injury. I have to admit, tracking down negative paths has tended to come rather natural for me. Anyway, somewhere into the second quarter, I consciously made a shift in my thinking and began to declare God's favor over Ryan. I declared that Ryan was a favored son and asked God to make that favor visible by allowing him to make a pick (an interception) and run it back and even score a touchdown (a pick six).
I had been declaring these things only for a few minutes when suddenly a pass from the opposing quarterback was tipped by his intended receiver and was grabbed in the air by Ryan. Ryan charged off down the field managing to out run two pursuing defenders. As he approached the end zone, he was pushed from behind, fell forward, and landed in the end zone for a touchdown. He had covered 63 yards on the return. Luanne and I were ecstatic. The pick and run back alone were amazing. The touchdown was icing on the cake. I was impressed with the speed he crossed those 63 yards.
As I was taking it all in and celebrating I began sputtering to Luanne, trying to explain to her what I had just been declaring over Ryan. This was no coincidence. God had responded to that faith declaration over Ryan, and he had done so almost immediately. I was awed. Later in the game I again declared more favor over him, and once again, within a few short minutes, Ryan made his second pick of the game.
Now, I'm not suggesting there was some kind of magic in my words. What I do believe is that God was teaching me a simple yet profound lesson regarding the connection between my thoughts, my words and my faith.
Days prior to this game I had began reading a book by Joel Osteen entitled "Your Best Life Now". I had come across this book at my mother-in-law's on a visit to Sacramento and just casually began reading it. Now, you must understand, Joel Osteen has never been on my list of favorite authors and I have rarely listened to him on TV. However, as I began reading this particular book I sensed God saying to me, "Joel has something to say to you. Hear him out". So I borrowed the book and brought it home.
Joel is, what some might label, an eternal optimist. Every page resonates with his positive, faith filled attitude. You would have to be a deeply committed pessimist not to find yourself being encouraged and hope beginning to rise a little higher just by his positive outlook and the stories illustrating his points. However, for one whose default mode tends toward the negative, Joel's perspective and language can, at first, come across as something a bit trumped up. Something along the lines of a spiritual "happy meal". As I was able to put my biases aside, his words of encouragement were feeling more like a refreshing splash of cold water on a hot day.
The truth of the matter is, those of us who are followers of Jesus really have every reason to be the most encouraged and positive people on the planet. This is not to say that we will not encounter hardship, disappointment, discouragement, heartbreak, or any other difficulty that is common to the human condition. It is to say, we should have a perspective, based on a belief system in God and his view of us, that transcends all that stuff, and can provide in the midst of it, an abiding hope, joy and optimistic outlook. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33b NIV)
What Joel was reinforcing in my thinking is that we need to live not for favor but from favor. That little shift is huge. As one who has already been accepted by God in Christ, I am a favored child. I have been seated with Christ in heavenly places! That's quite a position of favor if you ask me. Living favor minded is simply accepting the truth of God's love and delight in us and trusting the goodness of his heart toward us. His thoughts and plans for us are not to harm us, but to prosper us and to give us a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)
As the game got underway, I found myself hoping he would do well and not make any major mistakes or suffer any injury. I have to admit, tracking down negative paths has tended to come rather natural for me. Anyway, somewhere into the second quarter, I consciously made a shift in my thinking and began to declare God's favor over Ryan. I declared that Ryan was a favored son and asked God to make that favor visible by allowing him to make a pick (an interception) and run it back and even score a touchdown (a pick six).
I had been declaring these things only for a few minutes when suddenly a pass from the opposing quarterback was tipped by his intended receiver and was grabbed in the air by Ryan. Ryan charged off down the field managing to out run two pursuing defenders. As he approached the end zone, he was pushed from behind, fell forward, and landed in the end zone for a touchdown. He had covered 63 yards on the return. Luanne and I were ecstatic. The pick and run back alone were amazing. The touchdown was icing on the cake. I was impressed with the speed he crossed those 63 yards.
As I was taking it all in and celebrating I began sputtering to Luanne, trying to explain to her what I had just been declaring over Ryan. This was no coincidence. God had responded to that faith declaration over Ryan, and he had done so almost immediately. I was awed. Later in the game I again declared more favor over him, and once again, within a few short minutes, Ryan made his second pick of the game.
Now, I'm not suggesting there was some kind of magic in my words. What I do believe is that God was teaching me a simple yet profound lesson regarding the connection between my thoughts, my words and my faith.
Days prior to this game I had began reading a book by Joel Osteen entitled "Your Best Life Now". I had come across this book at my mother-in-law's on a visit to Sacramento and just casually began reading it. Now, you must understand, Joel Osteen has never been on my list of favorite authors and I have rarely listened to him on TV. However, as I began reading this particular book I sensed God saying to me, "Joel has something to say to you. Hear him out". So I borrowed the book and brought it home.
Joel is, what some might label, an eternal optimist. Every page resonates with his positive, faith filled attitude. You would have to be a deeply committed pessimist not to find yourself being encouraged and hope beginning to rise a little higher just by his positive outlook and the stories illustrating his points. However, for one whose default mode tends toward the negative, Joel's perspective and language can, at first, come across as something a bit trumped up. Something along the lines of a spiritual "happy meal". As I was able to put my biases aside, his words of encouragement were feeling more like a refreshing splash of cold water on a hot day.
The truth of the matter is, those of us who are followers of Jesus really have every reason to be the most encouraged and positive people on the planet. This is not to say that we will not encounter hardship, disappointment, discouragement, heartbreak, or any other difficulty that is common to the human condition. It is to say, we should have a perspective, based on a belief system in God and his view of us, that transcends all that stuff, and can provide in the midst of it, an abiding hope, joy and optimistic outlook. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33b NIV)
What Joel was reinforcing in my thinking is that we need to live not for favor but from favor. That little shift is huge. As one who has already been accepted by God in Christ, I am a favored child. I have been seated with Christ in heavenly places! That's quite a position of favor if you ask me. Living favor minded is simply accepting the truth of God's love and delight in us and trusting the goodness of his heart toward us. His thoughts and plans for us are not to harm us, but to prosper us and to give us a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)