Category: Personal Interest

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A Life Lived Well: Intro to “How Full Is Your Bucket?”

Positive Strategies For Work & Life, written by Tom Rath

In the early 1950s my grandfather Don Clifton was teaching psychology at the University of Nebraska when he noticed a major problem: The field of psychology was based almost entirely on the study of what is wrong with people.

Strictly merlin’s speculations: And as previously cited in the prior post Negativity Kills, Don’s review of one specific case study by Dr. Wm E Mayer of the 1000 N Korean American POW’s altered the entire focus of his career and life. And I maintain that we as His ambassadors, if we would answer His spiritual call affirmatively, between our years of 15-23 yrs of age when accompanied with His transformation & empowerment, and with the necessary discipline, encouragement & mentoring, as Gallup proved 50 years later with their boatloads of data, that His kingdom legacies would abound, perhaps not so well known here on earth, but during those reunions & impromptu meet & greets in heaven, the journey dots will finally be connected…. And our glorification with Him will be recognized & eternally enjoyed. Remember, Jesus is always invitational & it is never too late to begin, except AFTER the trumpet call!

Don began to wonder if it wouldn’t be more important to study what is right with people.

So, over the past five decades, Don and his colleagues conducted millions of interviews missing on the positive instead of the negative.

Early in his research Don discovered that our lives are shaped by our interactions with others. Whether we have a long conversation with a friend or simply place an order at a restaurant, every interaction makes a difference. The results of our encounters are rarely neutral; they are almost always positive or negative. And although we take these interactions for granted, they accumulate and profoundly affect our lives.

During the course of Don’s work in the 1990’s a new field of study emerged: Positive Psychology, which focuses on what is right with people. Today many of the world’s leading scientists study the effects of positive emotions.

In 2002, Don’s pioneering work was recognized by the American Psychological Association, which cited him as Grandfather of Positive Psychology and the Father of Strengths Psychology. That same year, Don learned that an aggressive and terminal cancer had spread throughout his body. Knowing his time was limited, he spent his final months doing what he did best and what people who knew him well, would have expected: helping others focus on the positive.

Although Don had written already written several books including the best seller, Now Discover Your Strengths, he asked me to join him in writing one last book – one based on a theory he created in the 1960s. People had been asking Don to write this book for decades as a result of the theory’s popularity. Over the past forty years, more than 5000 organizations and one million people have applied this theory. And people always passed it along to friends, colleagues, and loved ones.

Based on a simple metaphor of a “dipper” and a “bucket,” Don’s theory carried profound implications and simplified his life’s work for others. So in his final months, Don and I worked night and day to assemble the most compelling differences he had gathered over half a century of work. Although Don was undergoing chemotherapy and radiation, we continued to work on this book whenever he had the energy – which was the majority of the time.

We sat in his study for hours, reviewing the research, statistics, and stories, we thought you would find compelling. As Don’s health deteriorated, I read sections to him and took notes on his feedback. He reviewed every section wanting each story and insight to resonate with you.

For my part, I was honored to be Don’s partner in creating this book. He was my mentor, teacher, role model, and friend. We were exceptionally close, and I cherished the time we had together. I was always motivated and inspired by his vision. And Don knew that I had been touched deeply by his theory throughout my life. As we will describe in Chapter Four, applying Don’s Theory of the Dipper and the Bucket energized and probably save me in my own battles with cancer.

In hindsight, I think this project also gave Don additional energy in the final stages of his fight with cancer. He had spent his life trying to make the world a better place one person at a time and he understood that completing this book would make a difference. We finished our first draft of this book just weeks before his death in September of 2003.

Over the 79 years of Don’s life, he touched millions of individuals through his books, teaching, and the global business he built. Don reached so many people as a result of his unwavering belief in helping individuals and organizations focus on what is right. (merlin: Can we do any less?)

As you read this book, we hope that you will discover the power of bucket filling in your own life.

Tom Rath

NEXT UP:

5 Steps For Creating The Art in Our Life With God

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North Korea’s “Ultimate Weapon”

Pg 21 From How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies For Work & Life. Continued from Tuesday’s post. If you’ve not read that, begin there first.

Mayer reported that the North Koreans’ objective was to “deny men the emotional support that comes from interpersonal relationships.” To do this, the captors use four primary tactics:

  1. Informing
  2. self-criticism
  3. breaking loyalty to leadership and country
  4. withholding all positive emotional support

To encourage informing, the North Koreans gave prisoners rewards such as cigarettes when they snitched on one another. But neither the offender nor the soldier reporting the violation was punished – the captors encouraged this practice for a different reason. Their intent was to break relationships and turn the men against each other. The captors understood that the soldiers could actually harm each other if they were encouraged to dip from their comrades’ buckets every day.

To promote self-criticism the captors gathered groups of 10 or 12 soldiers and employed what Mayer described as “a corruption of group psychotherapy.” In these sessions each man was required to stand up in front of the group and confess all the bad things he had done as well as all the good things he could have done but failed to do.

The most important part of this tactic was that the soldiers were not “confessing” to the North Koreans, but to their own peers. By subtly eroding the caring, trust, respect, and social acceptance among the American soldiers, the North Koreans created an environment which buckets of goodwill were constantly and ruthlessly drained.

The third major tactic that the captors employed was breaking loyalty to leadership and country. The primary way they did this was by slowly and relentlessly undermining a soldier’s allegiance to his superiors.

The consequences were ghastly. In one case, a Colonel instructed one of his men not to drink the water from a rice paddy field but because he knew the organisms in the water might kill him. The soldier looked at his Colonel and remarked, “Buddy you ain’t no colonel anymore; you’re just a lousy prisoner like me. You take care of yourself and I’ll take care of me.”  The soldier died of dysentery a few days later.

In another case, 40 men stood by as three of their extremely ill fellow soldiers were thrown out of their mud hut by a comrade and left to die in the elements. Why did their fellow soldiers do nothing to help them? Because it “wasn’t their job.” The relationships had been broken; the soldiers simply didn’t care about each other anymore.

But the 4th tactic of withholding all positive emotional support while inundating soldiers with negative emotions was perhaps bucket dipping in its purest and most malicious form. If a soldier received a support letter from home, the captors withheld it. All negative letters however – such as those telling of a relative and was going to remarry – were delivered to soldiers immediately.

The captors would even deliver overdue bills from collection agencies back home – within less than two weeks of the original postmark. The effects were devastating: the soldiers had nothing to live for and lost basic belief in themselves and their loved ones, not to mention God and country. Mayer said that the North Koreans had put the American soldiers “into a kind of emotional and psychological isolation, the likes of which we have never seen.”

Studying Positivity

Moved by this story of psychological torture and deprivation – and perhaps inspired by the hope that these soldiers had not suffered or died in vain – Don Clifton and his colleagues studied decided to study the flip side of this horrific equation. They wondered: If people can be literally destroyed by unrelenting negative reinforcement, can they be uplifted and inspired to greater degree by similar levels of positivity? In essence, they asked:

Can positivity have an even stronger impact than negativity?

Their research to answer this question inspired the Theory of the Dipper and the Bucket. The theory is based on the following principles:

  1. Everyone has an invisible bucket. We are at our best when our buckets are over flowing – and at our worst when they are empty.
  • Everyone also has an invisible dipper. In each interaction, we can use our dipper either to fill or to dip from others buckets.
  • Whenever we choose to fill others’ buckets, we in turn fill our own.

The Theory of the Dipper and the Bucket has been investigated, applied, and embraced by millions around the world over the past half century. People who have heard this theory found it to be inspiring and easily applicable in their everyday lives. Most importantly it is a theory you can put to work to make your life better – right now.

In the pages that follow, you will find:

  1. a simple language to use and share with others
  2. a summary of research discoveries that are applicable in your daily life  
  3. true dipper and bucket stories
  4. ways to eliminate negativity from your workplace and life
  5. five proven strategies for increasing positive emotions

NEXT UP:

Ch Two: Positivity, Negativity, and Productivity

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Ch ONE : NEGATIVITY KILLS!

From Tom Rath’s “How Full Is Your Bucket?”

merlin: Make sure you understand the pivotal importance of this first paragraph for not only the life altering influence for Don CLifton, Ph.D., but also for his grandson Tom Rath, Gallup, and millions of others benefiting from his initial research in the 50’s at the University of Nebraska.

When we started writing this book, the first question I asked my grandfather was: “Why did you begin studying what is right with people?” Don answered my question without a moment’s hesitation – his review of one specific case study had altered the entire focus of his career and life. And this study was about as far as possible from a positive or inspiring story:

Following the Korean War, Major (Dr.) William E Mayer, who later became the US Army chief psychiatrist, studied 1000 American prisoners of war who had been detained in a North Korean camp. He was particularly interested in examining one of the most extreme and perversely effective cases of psychological warfare on record – one that had a devastating impact on its subjects.

American soldiers had been detained in camps that were not considered especially cruel or unusual by conventional standards. The captive soldiers had adequate food, water, and shelter. They weren’t subjected to common physical torture tactics of the times such as having bamboo shoots driven under their fingernails. In fact, fewer cases of physical abuse were reported in the North Korean POW camps that in prison camps from any other major military conflict throughout history.

Why, then, did so many American soldiers die in these camps? They weren’t hemmed in with barbed wire. Armed guards did not surround the camps. Yet no soldier ever tried to escape. Furthermore, these men regularly broke rank and turned against each other, sometimes forming close relationships with their N Korean captors.

When the survivors were released to a Red Cross group in Japan, they were given the chance to phone loved ones to let them know they were alive. Very few bothered to make the call.

Upon returning home, the soldiers maintained no friendships or relationships with each other. Mayer described each man as being in a mental “solitary confinement cell…  without any steel or concrete.

Mayer had discovered a new disease in the POW camps – a disease of extreme hopelessness. It was not uncommon for a soldier to wander into his hut and look despairingly about, deciding there was no use in trying to participate in his own survival. He would go into a corner alone, sit down, pull a blanket over his head. And he would be dead within two days.

The soldiers actually call it “give up-it is.” The doctors labored it labeled it “marasmus,” meaning, in Mayer’s words, “a lack of resistance, a passivity.” If the soldiers had been hit, spat upon, or slapped, they would have become angry. Their anger would have given them the motivation to survive. But in the absence of motivation, they simply died, even though there was no medical justification for their deaths.

Despite relatively minimal physical torture, “marasmus” raised the overall death rate in the North Korean POW camps to incredible 38% – the highest POW death rate in the US military history. Even more astounding was that half of these soldiers died simply because they ‘d given up. They had completely surrendered both mentally and physically.

How could this have happened the answers were found in the extreme mental tactics that the North Korean captors used. They employed what Mayer described as the “ultimate weapon” of war.

To Be Continued:

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How to LET the Holy Spirit LEAD Your Life

By Illustrated Theology

Why do we keep falling into the same sins? Even after promising we wouldn’t ever again! It’s not a lack of willpower, & it’s not because we don’t love God. The truth is, that there is a war going on inside us. And if we don’t learn to walk in the Spirit now, our enemy will always win. But take heart, the Bible shows us the way.

merlin: Again, as prior, if technology works, you may either read the script, or scroll down for the YouTube version at the bottom. Your choice. As always, your comments are appreciated, and everything posted, is first & foremost, written to myself, so don’t cob an attitude as time is short and THE night is coming!

Step 1: Recognize the Inner War

First of all, we need to face the reality there is a war going on inside of us, and it’s not an occasional conflict, that only shows up in times of crisis. Rather, it’s a constant daily and inevitable battle. Paul makes this clear in Galatians 5:17 “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would.”

In other words, there is no neutral zone. It’s not maybe; it’s an actual struggle! It is always happening! Every day your flesh pulls one way and the Spirit pulls the other. It’s as if there were two voices inside of you fighting for control of your life and this conflict shows up in the simplest things. Your flesh says, sleep 30 more minutes, the spirit says, get up and pray. Your flesh shouts, just one more episode, the spirit whispers, go read the word. Your flesh demands, respond in the same measure, the spirit calls, offer forgiveness. Your flesh cries out for immediate pleasure, the Spirit reminds you, of eternal joy.

Understand this is essential, because many people feel being a Christian means no longer feeling the desire to sin. But that’s a myth. Conversion does not eliminate the desires of the flesh. It puts you on the battlefield against them, the difference now is that you are no longer unarmed. Before without Christ, you had no choice; the flesh commanded and you obeyed. But now with the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, there is power to say No! The desire of the flesh still exists, but obedience is no longer inescapable. This tension will not disappear while we are in this body. Paul himself confessed, for the good that I would, I do not. But the evil which I would not, that I do. Even the apostle fought daily against this inner war. So, walking in the Spirit, begins by recognizing there is no neutrality. There is a war inside of you, but just being aware of this war is not enough.

Step 2: is Essential, Feed the Spirit Daily.

Joshua received this clear command from God. “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein, for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous and then thou shalt have good success.” Notice the principle. Joshua’s victory would not come merely from military strategy or courage before enemies, but from his faithfulness to the Word of God. Victory begins with obedience and dependence on the Scriptures. Now think with me. No one wins a war with starving soldiers. In the same way, no one wins the spiritual battles of life if the Spirit is malnourished. If the Holy Spirit dwells in you, He needs to be fed and the food is the Word of God. Jesus said,

“It is the Spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you; they are Spirit and they are life Without this daily nourishment our faith weakens and the flesh takes control. It’s simple. If the Bible stays closed, the flesh grows. If the Bible is opened every day, the Spirit speaks louder, and here’s the practical test, what is the first thing you feed in the morning? The mind, with social media, or the Spirit, with the Word? This seemingly small choice reveals who is getting stronger inside of you, the flesh, or the Spirit?

I realized that one of the greatest changes in my spiritual life was something very simple; replacing the habit of waking up and grabbing my phone with the habit of opening the Bible. Now, besides my devotional time, I begin my day by reading at least a Psalm or a passage from the Gospels. It’s amazing how this, changes the tone of the entire day. Before being bombarded by work, bad news, demands and daily problems, I’ve already set my feet on what is eternal. This simple choice has helped me start the day walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh.  

Step 3: Pray Without Ceasing.

Many people have a distorted idea of what it means to walk in the Spirit. Some imagine it’s living in a trance, levitating, having visions every moment, or experiencing spectacular manifestations every day, but the reality is much simpler, and at the same time much more important than that. Walking in the Spirit is living, while seeking God’s direction in every moment of life. Paul summarized this brilliantly when he wrote “Pray without Ceasing.”

Of course, he wasn’t saying we should spend 24 hours on our knees isolated from the world without working, studying, or talking. What he meant is that we can turn each ordinary moment of our day into an opportunity for prayer. It’s like living with the heart always online with God, without losing connection. That means when you thank God for your food, even in a quick meal, you are walking in the Spirit. When you ask for guidance before a meeting or an important decision you are walking in the Spirit. When you choose to pray instead of complaining, you are giving space for the Spirit to guide your reaction.

And here comes the practical application, create prayer triggers throughout your day, small habits that remind you almost automatically to turn your mind back to God. For example, every time you open the door to leave the house, thank him for your family, and your home. Before answering a difficult message, pray for wisdom and calm. In traffic, instead of letting irritation take over, turn it into praise. Play a hymn. Thank him for transportation. Ask for patience. These gestures may seem small but they allow the Spirit to guide your life. Here comes the most radical part and at the same time, the most forgotten by many, Paul wrote “And they that are Christ’s, have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts.

Step Four: Crucify the Flesh Daily.

Pay close attention. He didn’t say the flesh must be educated, disciplined, or improved; he said crucified. Walking in the Spirit is not only about doing good deeds, attending church services, or performing right actions. It is also about denying what draws us away from God. It is choosing to die to impulses that may feel natural, but in reality, lead to spiritual death. You will need to make a value exchange. The flesh says, “Follow your heart; the Spirit says, “Deny yourself. The flesh says, “Do what makes you happy.” The Spirit says, “Do what glorifies God.” The flesh says, “Enjoy today because tomorrow is uncertain.” The Spirit replies “Sow today to reap in eternity.”

Crucifying the flesh means taking concrete steps against sin. If laziness is your weakness, impose discipline, set schedules, complete tasks, even without desire. Defeat apathy with consistency. If pride rules your heart, practice acts of service in secret, without seeking applause, doing it only to please God. Many people reduce the idea of walking in the Spirit to simply avoiding sin. Of course, resisting sin is fundamental, but that is not the complete picture. Paul explains that the fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, Peace, Long-Suffering, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Meekness, & Temperance.

Step 5: Produce the Fruit of the Spirit.

Notice two important things. First, he uses the word fruit in the singular, not fruits. This shows that it’s not about separate qualities but a complete character that the Holy Spirit forms within us. The fruit is one, but with several aspects, that together reveal the life of Christ in us. Second, this fruit is not produced by your willpower. You cannot by human effort consistently become a person full of love, joy and peace. The fruit is the work of the Spirit. He produces it in you as you surrender, abide in Christ, and feed on His word. Jesus said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me, you can do nothing.”

In every situation of life, don’t just ask what should I not do; instead go further, and ask which aspect of the fruit of the Spirit, can I manifest here? In conflict, can I show meekness? Instead of an outburst, in waiting, can I display patience instead of anxiety? Under pressure, can I live with self-control, instead of giving into impulse? In pain, can I choose the joy that comes from the Lord? Do you see the difference?

BOTTOM LINE:

Those who live only running from sin live on the defensive, like someone who is always putting out fires, but those who walk in the Spirit, live on the offensive, revealing Christ in every detail.

So, what should you know about walking in the Spirit? Remember that it’s not a privilege for a select few, but the calling of every Christian. You do this when you recognize the inner war! Feed the Spirit daily with the Word. Live in constant prayer. Crucify the flesh every day. Produce the fruit of the Spirit. And here is the greatest truth, you don’t walk in the Spirit alone. It is the Spirit Himself who enables you. Your part is to choose to surrender, to hand over the direction of your life to Him every day. Remember the flesh promises quick pleasure but delivers a pervading, enduring & disgusting emptiness, not to mention eternal death! The Spirit may lead you through the narrow path, but in the end, He brings you to abundant life, forever! So, the decision is yours. Will you keep giving in to the impulses of the flesh, or will you choose to walk filled with the Spirit?

NEXT UP: How To Differentiate Your Voice and God’s Voice

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Daisy and I Soon Found The Mayor’s House …… Part II

If you’ve not read Part I, I suggest do so prior to reading this.

… tucked under the spread of a huge banyan tree. The doors finally creaked open after a long pause following my loud knocking, and a charming, elderly Chinese lady who spoke fluent English with a British accent greeted us. “Good evening. Won’t you please come in,” she invited with polite formality. “My husband will be out soon to visit with you. Please be seated,” our host urged pointing us to several elaborately carved wooden chairs. I finally saw the mayor shuffling towards us through a darkened doorway. His wife immediately left her seat offering it to her husband and she scooted off. The mayor seemed ancient, his face a mass of wrinkles that nearly swallowed his eyes.

I could tell the mayor was very calculating by the questions he asked. Like his wife, he spoke fluent British English. Finally, the questioning came to the heart of our visit, as he directly inquired. “Why have you left America to come to Hong Kong? Why do you want to live in our village?”

I knew this was the crucial question because this was obviously a Buddhist village that practiced ancestral worship. The chances that they would allow a Western Christian Gweilo, a “foreign devil,” as Westerners are commonly called, to live among them seem very unlikely. But I also knew, I had to be totally honest about the call God had placed on our lives.

Taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling, I ventured, “We’re here because the living God directed us to come. We are here to tell Chinese people about his Son, Jesus Christ. Do you know who he is?”

The mayor looked at me for an uncomfortably long time. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking as he stared at me from expressionless eyes peering out of narrow slits. Finally, a slight smile began to break scattering the wrinkles on his face in different directions.

 To my complete surprise, he said, “Well, praise the Lord! I’ve been preparing for years that God would bring someone to this village with the gospel. What can I do to help you?”

By the end of our visit, the mayor and I had an agreement that would help renovate an older two-story house in the middle of the village. His daughter owned it and been used for storage over the previous 20 years. In exchange they would waive the standard two-month deposit along with the first month’s rent. They would also pay for all the materials we required make the property livable again. Before Daisy and I left the village, we prayed together with the mayor that God would use us to bring glory to His name and that His love would be revealed in the village.

Work on our new project began the next day as we rushed to beat the two-week deadline of vacating the company apartment. Working late into the evening hours and on weekends, Daisy and I replaced 40 broken window panes, and removed piles of trash. We scrubbed and painted the inside of the two-story building from top to bottom. By the time I completed the last two weeks of employment, we were ready to move our few belongings out of the company apartment and into our miracle house.

Needless to say, our arrival attracted the attention of the entire village. Being the only white Westerners who ever lived in this village, I was very aware that nearly every move I made was being scrutinized, especially by the old grandmas who lived in the houses surrounding ours on all four sides. How I treated my children and my wife was carefully watched, and I felt the pressure to be on my very best behavior for the sake of representing Jesus well.

This is the second two-post revealing Wendell & Daisy’s intimate dependence on God to provide. I trust you can recall similar instances on your own journey. Count your Blessings. Be honest with your own current situation & do intercede for others you know whom are similarly struggling.

NEXT UP: An thought-provoking discourse on How To Talk “WITH” God and Not “TO” God, a 10 minute YouTube following the written script. Plan accordingly.

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GO NOW From the Innermost Parts of the Heart to the Uttermost Parts of the World

This is the second two-post revealing Wendell & Daisy’s intimate dependence on God to provide. I trust you can recall similar instances on your own journey. Count your Blessings. Be honest with your own current situation & do intercede for others you know whom are similarly struggling.

Chapter 20 Evidence of Things Not Seen Part 1.

So don’t worry about these things, saying, “What will we eat? What will we drink” What will we wear?” These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your Heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need. So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Matthew 6:31-34 (NLT)

In January 1988, having worked as an art director at the import and export company for over a year, Daisy and I determined that we really had to move on. The call of God on our lives was stronger now than ever. We recognized that God had brought us this far by faith. If we were going to continue with Him on this journey, we needed to keep going by faith. The challenge of deliberately cutting from the source of finances we were now so dependent upon, was once again the battle we would have to fight. However, I didn’t want to go through that agonizing process the way I had experienced it when I left the job teaching at the college.

“Daisy, we need to know for sure if God called us a full-time service or not. If God really called us here to serve him, then the only way I know how to do this is to trust him 100 percent to take care of us and provide for our needs. I just can’t do what God has put in my heart and keep working at this job at the same time.”

Daisy agreed, and so, together, we made the choice to take another step of faith. We determined I would leave my place of employment deliberately and not tell anyone about it except God alone. No hinting by requesting prayers for our finances in newsletters to our friends, family, and church back in the states. Likewise, no telling our friends and other missionaries, or even Daisy’s family in Hong Kong that I was leaving my job. This would be between ourselves and God alone. “This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust Him.” Psalm 9:2

Without deliberating further, I gave notice that I was leaving my job. This time the response from my boss was different from when I left my teaching job over a year ago.

“I want you to hire a new art director and be out of your office and the company apartment in two weeks,” I was told matter-of-factly.

I’d almost forgotten that we were living free in the company apartment and that sudden realization brought a wave of alarm I tried hard not to show. “No problem, we’ll be gone,” I replied with a faint coolness.

My mind, however screamed, Big problem! Big big problem! Just like that, I had once again taken my family on a wild plug for the edge of a cliff with no hope of a safe landing, except that God would intervene.

Word quickly spread among my office staff. “Do you know where you’re going to live?” asked Cheung, the first artist I had hired a year ago. “If you’re looking for a good place, I know some vacant apartments available in a little village where I live near the China border.” Checking himself, he said, “But I don’t know if they’ll even allow a Westerner to live there. It’s privately owned, traditional old-style Chinese village that has belonged to the Hui family for many generations. But I suppose I can find out for sure if you want me to.”

Since we had no other options for housing, on such notice, this seemed like a good idea as any. “Well, sure, why not let’s see what happens.” I replied hopefully.

When Chang arrived at the office the next day, he reported he’d already arranged for Daisy and me to meet the village mayor the following evening. The mayor wanted to interview with us before determining if permission for outsiders to live among them would be granted

Leaving our children in the care of Daisy’s mother we arrived at the village the following evening after a 35-minute train ride from our home in Mong Kok. It was a dark as we found our way to the entrance that passed through a 12-foot-thick section of an ancient fortification wall that surrounded the village for many generations. Within that gate was an altar in front of an idol of a Buddhist deity where the smoke of incense rose from the glowing tips of several just set behind a few oranges, a bowl of rice and a cup of tea. This was to honor and entreat protection from the village god and family ancestors.

TO BE CONTINUED

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Why Smart Young Americans Are Falling for Communism

And Why It Looks So Different This Time.

By Kay Rubacek, an award-winning filmmaker, author, and podcast host. After being detained in a Chinese prison for advocating for human rights, she has dedicated her work to promoting human value and facing communist regimes in their modern forms. Her forthcoming book is “Staying Human in the Age of AI.” She has also contributed to The Epoch Times since 2010. Note: All underlined words are links to documentation. This is one of my most important posts ever! Don’t miss merlin’s last paragraph BOTTOM LINE Parting Shot Over the Bow….

“They’re the smartest, most connected, and most educated generation in human history, yet also the most despairing.

They can learn quantum physics on YouTube, yet can’t afford rent. They can text anyone, anywhere, anytime, yet say they’ve never felt more alone. They’re anxious, medicated, and exhausted by a world that feels out of control: climate, economy, identity, you name it.

So when someone like mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani, the smiling socialist from Queens, New York, talks about free groceries, free buses, and free childcare, it doesn’t sound radical. It sounds like an offer of rescue.

Older generations were shocked and appalled by his sudden rise in popularity. Many shook their heads and asked: “How could they fall for communism again?” But they forget what it’s like to be young and searching for purpose, especially in a new digital world that’s lost its sense of meaning.

Communism Doesn’t Look Like It Used To

My grandparents fled communism twice: first from Russia, then from China. My parents-in-law fled the same ideology in Czechoslovakia.

The communism they escaped was visible: soldiers, propaganda, murder, and fear. Physical control.

Today’s version looks like compassion. It wears a smile. It speaks the language of equity and inclusion.

It doesn’t promise to seize your farm; it promises to cancel your debt.

It doesn’t call for revolution; it calls for “fairness.”

That’s what makes it more dangerous because it doesn’t look dangerous at all.

And it’s spreading through a culture where many no longer even know what the word socialism means.

What Socialism Is and What It Isn’t

“Socialism” once meant something concrete: collective or state ownership of production to enforce equality.

“Communism” was the endgame. A world without private ownership, where the state fades because everyone lives as one in peace and harmony. A “heaven on earth” created by those who want to “play God”.

But over time, those meanings dissolved and:

  • Schools stopped teaching what socialism actually was.
  • Language softened to the point where “democratic socialism” sounds harmless.
  • History blurred to the point where younger Americans associate socialism with fairness, not famine.

So now, “socialism” means virtually anything from free college to condemning government or capitalist corruption, to just being nice. And when words lose meaning, people they get confused. They lose vigilance. They stop standing up. And they stop asking hard questions.

That’s how every “new experiment” in socialism began: with good intentions and moral confusion.

Most people don’t even realize that China, the world’s largest communist state, calls itself a “democratic socialist system.” It’s run by the Chinese Communist Party, a one-party surveillance regime, and the world’s worst human rights abuser, and yet it uses the same vocabulary of fairness and equality that American socialists now repeat.

If we’re using the same word to describe both China’s dictatorship and New York’s proposed rent freeze, free buses, and free childcare for all, maybe the confusion isn’t accidental.

The DSA: An Ideology, Not a Party

Zohran Mamdani, isn’t just a Democrat, he’s part of the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA. The distinction is important whether you live in New York or not.

The DSA describes its mission this way:

“We are democratic socialists because we reject an authoritarian state and favor democracy—in both politics and the economy. We believe that working people should run both the economy and society democratically to meet human needs, not to make profits for a few.” ~ Democratic Socialists of America

That may sound reasonable at first glance. But read it closely. It isn’t a policy platform, it’s a moral creed.

The DSA isn’t structured like a traditional U.S. political party that trades in compromise, data, and incremental progress. It’s an ideological movement, guided by belief, not evidence. It’s not designed to include a broad coalition of differing views or negotiate competing interests the way a traditional party does. It’s designed to reshape culture itself over the long term, to shift moral language, redefine values, and make its worldview feel like common sense rather than political choice.

It’s driven more by faith than by reason. It is based on the belief that if people like them ran the system, they could fix it. That is idealism disguised as governance. And that’s why it resonates with the young.

In a world of despair, it tells the youth they can be the saviors.

That’s a powerful message, yet a dangerous one. It’s a message designed to indoctrinate, not to educate.

The Long March Through the Institutions

In the 1960s, a German activist named Rudi Dutschke coined the phrase “the long march through the institutions.”

He meant that socialism could win over nations by slowly reshaping culture—schools, media, art, faith, and language—until people stopped noticing the change.

Leftist intellectuals like Herbert Marcuse, a German-born Marxist thinker and “the Father of the New Left” helped teach and apply that strategy to America’s institutions, describing it as “working against the established institutions while working in them”.

Same goal. Different method.

And it worked.

Over decades, socialism has rebranded as empathy. Now, many Americans who would never dream of calling themselves communists proudly call themselves “democratic socialists.”

They don’t realize it’s the same ideological seed just planted in softer soil.

This Is More Than a Social Trend

In their youth, our older generations sought belonging—to find their place in society that they were coming to understand.

This generation of youth is different. They are seeking reasons to live at all.

They’re living through an existential crisis:

  • Youth suicide rates have never been higher.
  • In Canada, the government has received requests for assisted suicide from children as young as twelve, and they’re considering offering it to them.

When life feels that empty, ideology is a replacement for meaning, for purpose. It isn’t just politics, it’s salvation.

Socialism offers that: a moral framework, a simple villain (the rich, the system), and a promise of redemption through equality.

It says: Your pain isn’t your fault. The system did this to you. And if we rebuild the system, you’ll finally be free.

That’s more secular gospel than a political message. And it works when it is filling a void that used to be filled by faith, family, mental freedom, and purpose.

Why the Old Warnings Don’t Work

Telling a 20-year-old that communism killed 100 million people won’t reach them when they already feel like life isn’t worth living.

Milton Friedman, economist and Nobel laureate prepared us that we would have to play our part for each future generation:

“The battle for freedom must be won over and over again. The socialists in all parties… must once again be persuaded or defeated if we are to remain free men.”

He was right. But persuasion isn’t just about logic. It’s about meaning. We can’t out-argue socialism with data or intellect. We have to out-inspire it by showing that freedom, responsibility, and creativity give life deeper purpose than any government plan ever could.

Going Forward

Freedom alone isn’t enough anymore, especially for the youth. It has to mean something. And that meaning begins with the one thing socialism always promises but never truly delivers: human connection.

When people feel unseen, ideology is seductive.

Mamdani’s smile isn’t powerful because it’s political, it’s powerful because it’s human. It makes people feel seen.

That’s the same hunger that algorithms exploit, that politics manipulates, and that too many of us forget to feed in our daily lives.

The real answer isn’t more politics or a new ideology. It’s relearning how to be human again—a handshake, a hug, a conversation that isn’t scored for likes or for outrage.

It’s building community by choice, not by coercion. Growing compassion without collectivism. Seeking truth and honesty without manipulation or indoctrination.

We already have algorithms pretending to be our friends. We don’t need politics to become another substitute for human connection.

And we certainly don’t need more social experiments to prove another inevitable socialist failure. We need to move on after learning from a century of failed attempts.

Young people aren’t crazy for wanting a better world. They’re desperate for a reason to care but they’re looking for it in all the wrong places. If we want to help them, we have to start where politics can’t go: with real human warmth. Because the only thing stronger than ideology is still the human heart which is as immeasurable as it is powerful. And which has seen man through the darkest of times and has never let us down.

merlin’s BOTTOM LINE: Parting Shot Over the Bow….

Listen, the above from Kay is well & good, and needs to be said, but beware, it is not enough! And I well understand, how the human heart by itself is so easily deceived. (Jeremiah 17:9) “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” I too was deceived and lulled complacently for decades, but once I surrendered to the gospel of Jesus Christ, to His compelling & enlightening path, being personally & intimately called (and not merely by algorithms either), both convicted & forgiven of my sin, then transformed & empowered, such that we are instantly justified, continually sanctified, eventually GLORIFIED INTO HIS PRESENCE! All absolutely & infinitely beyond any earthly political or church culture kingdom comparison! And now, as His Ambassadors, we must speak His truth! And dare I say, collectively or individually in our sheltered community enclaves, we’re often failing miserably. I know, for too long I’ve been a hypocrite, merely culturally engaged, like the Pharisees legalistically checking boxes! But, once Christ’s love is in our Hearts & Minds, confirmed by our living in obedience to Him, everything will change in our communities and the world.

Lest We Forget in memory of JFK’s inaugural address with a twist, “Ask not what your country can do for you–ask rather, whom God would have you love in His kingdom today!”

And that my friend, is light years beyond an Irrational Act of Generosity!

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Five People GOD Commands You Not to Help!  By “Illustrated Theology.”

FYI, after the “Irrational Generosity” post, a trusted spiritual mentor, Rob, actually he is half my age (note age has no correlation to spiritual wisdom), within hours, sent me this You Tube for my review. It spoke truth Loretta & I needed to hear. Notice I even went to the trouble to place its 12 minute script in print (2900 words) so you can review it to better ruminate on its implications. I must say I’m intrigued by their other titles, a few of which are below.  

Other Video You Tube Titles :

Jesus revealed In Every Book of the Old Testament

Don’t Fall For These 5 Satanic Traps

How To Talk WITH God and NOT TO God / Pray Effectively

How to LET the Holy Spirit LEAD Your Life

How to Differentiate Your VOICE and God’s VOICE

Five People GOD Commands You Not to Help!  By “Illustrated Theology.”

If I told you that God commands not to help certain kinds of people, would you believe it? It almost sounds wrong to say that.  We’re constantly told that Christians must help everyone, say yes to every request, and never refuse anyone in need. But, when you actually read the Bible carefully, you discover something surprising. God does not approve of every kind of help. In fact, there are certain types of people that when you help them, you’re actually disobeying the Lord and you may even be putting your own life at risk. Stay in this video until the end because I’m going to show you exactly who these people are.

  1. The first kind of person you should not help is the Manipulator.

Proverbs 12:22 states clearly “lying lips are abomination to the Lord but they that deal truly are His delight.” Look at the word God uses. Abomination. In other words, manipulation is not just a personality trait, not just the way they are, much less, emotional neediness. It is sin. God does not look at lies with pity. He looks at them with disgust, and when you support someone who lives in this game of deception, even without realizing it, you are not healthy. You are sponsoring their sin and you know the mistake most Christians make here, thinking that loving someone means saying yes to everything, that we are obligated to fix everyone’s problems. But that idea is wrong, because Jesus didn’t do that. There was a time when a man came to him and said, “Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.” And how did Jesus reply? “Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?”

In other words, Jesus refused to get involved in that issue. Jesus did not allow people to place him in roles that were not His. He knew exactly when to help and when to say, “That’s not mine to handle.” He would not let himself be manipulated by a greedy man. So, understand this once and for all. If someone only remembers you when they need something, if they constantly back you into a corner with phrases like, “If you were a real Christian, you’d do this for me,” if they make you feel guilty for protecting your peace or your boundaries, that is not a cry for help, that is manipulation and helping a manipulator does not set anyone free. It only strengthens their control over you. And sometimes, the manipulator will shower you with praises and compliments, that you hopefully, instantly recognize & know in your heart and spirit, that such are of evil origin. That’s why sometimes the most biblical response you can have is not to extend your hand, but to cut off access. Love is not saying yes to blackmail. Love is saying, “I’m here for you, but I will not play your game.”

2. Now I need to talk about a Lazy person,

the kind of person that many Christian’s support, thinking they’re doing charity, when in reality, they’re getting in the way of what God wants to teach the lazy, and I’m not talking about someone going through a hard time, struggling with unemployment, trying to rebuild their life. That kind of person deserves help, encouragement, prayer, and support. The problem is the one who never takes a step, yet wants life to move forward by itself. They’re always asking for prayer, but have never bent their own knees, always asking for help, but never lift a finger to help themselves.

On this Paul, says in II Thessalonians 3:10 “For even when we were with you, we commanded you that if any would not work, neither should he eat.” Pay attention to the wording “would not”, not “could not.” The difference is massive. Some people suffer because of things they cannot change, but others suffer because they chose not to make an effort, and what happens? You step in and help, you fix the situation. The person feels relieved and you think now they’ll change but they don’t. The following week they’re back and you help again. Then they’re back and you help again, until one day you realize the person is entrapped in hardship.

They’re comfortable in the dependency you built, and Paul continues saying, “There were some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busy bodies.” In other words, the lazy has no energy to work, but has plenty of time to gossip. The apostle is making it clear, if someone does not occupy themselves with what they should, they will end up occupied with what they shouldn’t, so if you’re carrying someone who refuses to walk, stop helping, not to abandon them, but to let God do what you’ve been preventing. Sometimes the fall you keep rescuing them from is exactly the push God wants to use to wake them up, so they can finally overcome laziness.

3. The Repeat Fool

Another kind of person you should not help is the Repeat Fool. This one is a specialist in draining your patience, because unlike the lazy, he seems like he wants help. He listens to advice, nods his head, agrees with every word you say; sometimes he even cries. He says that this time, it’ll be different and you believe it, but after a week, there he is again, in the same mistake, with the same speech, with the same empty promises. You pray for him, talk to him, give advice, send him Bible verses, sermons, videos, devotionals, and what changes? Nothing! Why? He doesn’t want transformation; he wants relief. He wants you to become his spiritual nursing home, where he can rest between one fall and the next, without ever having to truly decide to break away from what destroys him.

The Bible describes this kind of person perfectly. Proverbs 26:11 says, “As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly.” Strong, yes! Disgusting, also! But that is exactly what happens. Some people leave a terrible relationship, only to enter another just like it. They get out of debt, and go right back to spending the same way. They ask for prayer over a sin, but change nothing in their routine, to overcome that sin. They don’t want deliverance, they want anesthesia, and then the question starts hammering in your head. “Do I have to keep helping? And the biblical answer is, “You help those who want to get out, not those who just want to rest between stumbles, because if you keep rescuing them every time, you are no longer a helper, you’ve become a lifeguard for someone who likes to drown.

 The Bible is direct & explicit about this. Proverbs 23:9 says, “Speak not in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.” In other words, do not waste counsel on someone who doesn’t want change, because your time is valuable, your energy is limited, and while you’re trying to save someone who doesn’t want to be saved, there is someone beside you who does want to be transformed, but you don’t see them, because you’re too busy rescuing someone who turned foolishness into a lifestyle.

4. Proud

 If the fool wears you out by repetition, the proud wears you out by resistance. You show them the Bible, they argue, you give them advice, they roll their eyes. You point out the danger. They respond saying they know what they’re doing. And the most ironic part, sometimes this kind even comes asking for help, but on their terms. They want a solution without admitting they were wrong. They want healing, without confessing, they are sick. They want change, without humbling themselves.

About this kind of person, James 4:6 says “But he giveth more grace, wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” Look at that word, resisteth. God opposes. God stands against pride. Translation, if even God is not helping someone because they refuse to humble themselves and admit their need, who are you to try?

And there’s more! Proverbs 26:12 says, “Seeth thou a man wise in his own conceit; there is more hope of a fool than of him.” In other words, it’s easier to convince a fool than a proud man, because the fool still knows he needs help. He may fall 1000 times but at some level, he recognizes he is lost, but the proud thinks he’s right. He’s not only in error, he is convinced his error is the right path, and someone who thinks they’re fine, will never seek change.

And remember the rich young ruler, Jesus spoke truth in love, showed him the way, offered him the chance to follow him. The man heard it, understood it, but preferred to keep the status and pride that came with his will. He didn’t just walk away sad. He walked away chained to his own pedestal and what did Jesus do, did he chase after him, saying “Wait, I take it back. I didn’t mean it that strongly!” Jesus let him go because some people only learn when they lose.

5. Quarrelsome One

Another kind of person you should not help is the Quarrelsome One, and I’m not talking about someone who defends the truth firmly. I’m talking about someone who creates conflict wherever they go. They fight at work, argue in traffic, stir up trouble in the family, cause division in the church, they are never wrong! They are always the one being mistreated, and you with your Christian heart, go there trying to be a peacemaker. You defend them, take their side, argue on their behalf, thinking you’re being righteous. But as soon as one war ends, they’re already in another, because they don’t want peace. They want attention.

Proverbs 19:19 speaks exactly about such a person. “A man of great wrath shall suffer punishment, for if thou deliver him, yet thou must do it again.” In other words, if you put out the fire that he himself started, get ready to put out another tomorrow, because he will create another mess. That’s why the Bible is stating clearly, “Do not help the quarrelsome one. Let him reap the fruit of his own chaos,” because many times, the discipline he needs, does not come in the form of a hug, it comes in the form of consequence, and you know what the danger is? If you keep rescuing him, You stop being a peacemaker, and become an accomplice.

You are not bringing peace, you are prolonging the chaos. Because as long as someone keeps bailing him out, he will never change. So, understand, it is not a lack of love to let the quarrelsome person feel the weight of their own choices. Sometimes the best help is to step aside and let God deal with them.

 So in review, who are the five types of people the Bible says you should not help?

  1. First, the MANIPULATOR who doesn’t ask for help, but controls.
  2. Second, the LAZY who doesn’t want change, only comfort.
  3. Third, the REPEAT FOOL who keeps making the same mistakes and uses you as temporary relief.
  4. Fourth, the PROUD who wants a solution without admitting fault.
  5. Fifth, the QUARRELSOME who is always stirring conflict with everyone.

BOTTOM LINE:

Maybe now you have that question hammering in your mind, “But if I stop helping, am I sinning?” The answer is simple. It depends. If you are helping someone who truly wants change, keep going. The Bible commands us to carry one another’s burdens. But if you are sustaining sin, feeding your responsibility, or protecting someone God is trying to confront, then that is not love, it is disobedience.

Illustrated Theology Advertising:

Now if you want to go deeper in your Bible study check out my exclusive resource “Mind Maps” of all the books of the Bible designed to make your learning easier and more effective. You’ll also get bonus materials to take your Bible journey to the next level. Don’t miss out. Click the link in the description to get instant access and before you go, don’t forget to watch the next video that’s showing up on your screen. It’s one you won’t want to miss, “Stay in Peace.” See you next time!

NEXT UP:

Why Smart Young Americans Are Falling For Communism…. Kay Rubacek

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“HIS-Just-In-Time-Publishing” Gives You Today’s SPIRITUAL ENCOURAGEMENT & CULTURAL INSIGHTS

From Wendell Martin’s GO NOW Ch 22 “The First Bible Courier Trip.”

The good news about the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world so that all nations will hear it and the then the end will come. Matthew 24:14 (NLT)

Last evening the future blog post pantry was bare. I did not despair. This morning after our intense separate hour walk (currently, l can’t begin to keep up with Loretta’s & Angel’s pace), so after listening to the book of James and prayer, when I returned home, I read these words to Loretta from Go Now. I was compelled to share. Enjoy. And DO COUNT Your Blessings! merlin

“One of the most outstanding things about Hong Kong is how crowded it is. It was almost impossible to escape the multitudes of people once stepping outside our tiny apartment. The border area that links Hong Kong and China is no exception. Over 250,000 people process through immigration customs every day as they walk the short distance from the train terminals to cross between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, China.

In December 1978, just a little over two years after the death of Maul Zedong, the founder of China’s Communist Party, his successor Deng Xiaoping, had announced a new open-door policy paving the way for foreign businesses to once again do business in China. For 30 years, China’s government had imposed self-isolation from the rest of the world as Mao Zedong had elevated himself to the status of a god. He wielded his power to create a new socialist China using radical and merciless tactics that left the nation in ruin, at the terrible cost of an estimated 60 to 80 million Chinese lives.

Many things that happened under Mao Zedong’s control were disastrous for the people of China; however, there were some good things too. One of the great accomplishments under his regime was a new form of writing called the “simplified script.” With this, Chairman Mao was able to educate a mostly illiterate nation how to read.

With a literate nation, Mao Zedong was able to unify, indoctrinate, and control the population through propaganda and his famous Little Red Book, which was full of quotations from his speeches and writings. It became almost mandatory for every Chinese citizen to own, read, and carry the book so they could easily refer to it for guidance and inspiration. Tens of millions of copies were published. Failures produce a copy when requested would result in punishment which varied from verbal harassment and beatings to a prison sentence. At the same time, classic literature and modern works were destroyed so the Chinese citizens could only read the Little Red Book. In spite of the horrific aftermath of Chairman Mao’s policies, the nation still exalted and worshiped him some out of blind loyalty and others out of sheer terror.

With very little approved literature available. it is easy to understand that China developed a deep hunger for anything in writing. This included the Bible! With a spiritual vacuum and a hunger for the written word, God’s Word was eagerly sought after by a nation disillusioned by empty government promises and heavy-handed control.

In those early days, every Bible brought into China was a treasure that purportedly resulted in at least 100 people coming to faith in Jesus. The Chinese told us once that they had a Bible, it was passed from one hungry person to another without ever being put down. Its treasured pages were hand-copied and large portions were committed to memory. God’s word was like gasoline poured on a smoldering fire. The move of God in China exploded as thousands upon thousands of people found new life hope and purpose and salvation through Jesus. They found freedom from the grip of sin and the spiritual vacuum left in the wake of communist ideology.

As China began opening to the rest of the world, Christian tourists visiting China began crossing the borders in the China carrying Bibles hidden in their luggage. Although Bibles carried into China from outside were not specifically listed as contraband, it was illegal for Chinese citizens to receive a Bible from outside China.

While many of these Bibles were confiscated at the border, some were allowed to slip through. China had a delicate dance to perform on the world stage on which they now found themselves. On the one hand, they did not want to be seen by the international community as being totally intolerant of Christianity. Doing so could impede the inflow of Western wealth that China so desperately needed. On the other hand, they also needed to maintain thought control and squelch the unsettling move of God sweeping across China. Jesus was drawing millions of people into a unified grassroots movement. This posed a serious threat to a system of government that could not fully function with people answering to a higher power than their government leaders.

While the Chinese custom officials made every effort to control the number of Bibles coming over their border, the reality was that God was working on the behalf of his people. Over the years as China opened to the West, millions of Bibles were carefully carried into China by couriers making two and three trips across the border every day with their precious cargo.

NEXT UP: Not Yet Revealed. No Rush. His Timing!

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ROAD TRIP

Welcome to 2MinuteMark, a weekly email with one agenda – inspiration from God’s Word

The photos promised peace—

A place away from the busyness of life.

The busyness of a mom with three toddlers,

Demanding attention, diaper changes, and breakfast.

The busyness of a father,

Diligent at work, needed at home,

Even there, work calls pierced the walls of his castle.

They knew they needed a vacation.

Their friends knew it too.

And a friend of a friend had a solution:

A cabin in the mountains.

Rest and relaxation awaited.

But it required travel—

Cross-country travel.

Reality should’ve whispered,

“You’ll need a vacation when you return.”

The phrase “Road Trip,” like the cabin photos,

Promised excitement, family bonding,

A future free from the mess of daily grind.

But the trip was an endurance run,

A marathon of discomfort,

Overwritten by the promise of the finish line.

Finally, they arrived.

And instantly realized—

The photos were from a much distant past.

Weeds as tall as window sills,

Two broken windows,

A gopher hole by the front porch,

Punctured their vacation dreams.

The distance between expectation and reality

Is the story of history.

Our vision of the perfect getaway

Is really a longing to return to Eden—

The difference between a God-designed world

And one of our own making.

We fight to survive the ravages of sin—

Sin and its final payment: death.

But we have an option.

A forward Eden.

It’s called Eternal Life.

Our first thought of eternal life,

Is of its duration; it’s forever.

But its reward is a transformative quality of life.

And it starts right now!

It’s a life where, on earth, sin exists,

But doesn’t control us.

Where God, through the Holy Spirit,

Shapes our thoughts, our environment,

And seals our destiny.

Our best-laid plans are often

Momentary visions of comfort and achievement—

Trophies our children will one day toss in the trash.

A life without an eternal viewpoint

Is a life of weeds and broken windows.

Yes, there are mini-victories.

But it’s always a struggle.

Eternal-life living is so much more.

“In their hearts humans plan their course,

But the Lord establishes their steps.” — Proverbs 16:9

Eternal life begins when we choose God’s plan

Rather than our own.

As for my friend—

Another friend of a friend rescued their trip.

A house near the beach.

A memory-maker.

In a world ravaged by sin,

We’re never alone.

God orders our steps.

And often He sends friends

To help us find the way.

–Mark Coblentz

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