Author: Bradley Kallas

 

What’s one of the things we fear the most in life? There are a lot of things we fear in life. Probably one of the things at the top of all of our lists is rejection. That’s something we all seem to avoid if at all possible.

I was recently talking to a friend of mine. We were talking about the subject of rejection. He mentioned an interesting story to me. The story was about this guy who grew up in China. One day Bill Gates came to his home town and gave a talk. And he was so impressed, that from that time he wanted to be like Bill Gates. He wanted to be an entrepreneur and build this great company. So, he came to America and went to school. He ended up getting a job, getting married with a nice house and nice car. He got to the age of 30 and realized that he was comfortable, but he still wasn’t living his dream. So, he decided he was going to chase his dream and start a company of his own.

So he quit his job and gave himself 6 months to get his startup off the ground. He got a team together and tried to get an investor for his idea. There was one investor he had his heart set on. He really thought he was going to get it. However, one day he got an email from this investor and the investor basically said, “No.” He was so overwhelmed by this that he started to cry. It sort of deflated him and his dream.

He realized after this how easily he was impacted by one rejection. He also realized that a lot of the people he idolized, like Bill Gates, wouldn’t let one rejection deter them. He was curious as to why he was so afraid of rejection. He decided to do an experiment. He was going to go through 100 days of trying to get rejected. He was expecting to de-sensitize himself to rejection. He even started a blog about it to keep himself accountable and not give up.

So, he started on this journey. He would go up to random people and ask them for things. These were some pretty crazy requests, too. For example, he went up to a cop and asked if he could drive his car. Another time he went up to a house and knocked on the door. When the guy answered he asked him if he could play soccer in his back yard. He was expecting them to reject him. The crazy thing is that these people said, “Yes.” He was surprised. He actually learned that over 50 percent of people would say ‘yes’ to some pretty crazy requests. He started to wonder what he had to do to get rejected by some people.

The point of this story is that we often make rejection a lot bigger in our minds than it really is. We not only expect rejection more often than we should, but we also make rejection out to be a lot bigger deal in our minds than it really should be. I mean, the reality is that a lot more people will probably say ‘yes’ to a request than we think. But even if they say ‘no’, what’s the big deal? Is that the end of the world? Actually, that’s the worst they can do. Even if that happens, we need to just learn to move on to the next person. Stop thinking, “What if I get a ‘no’?”, and start thinking, “What if I get a ‘yes’?”

 

…Let’s go deeper

If a website doesn’t care about the privacy of its users, how can it be trusted? To counteract this effect by simply increasing the blood flow- usually with a muscle cheap levitra prescription relaxer. By following strict and heavy routines sildenafil 100mg price our health has to go through challenging situations. Most of them buy cipla viagra were published in Czech, Russian, German; hence they are strange by American medical professionals and researchers say that this condition can be removed, given the patients are prepared to adjust their current lifestyle. The tablets are manufactured in three different dosages purchase cheap viagra of 25mg, 50mg and 100mg and has proved to be a super dug for handling penile erection failure. I was thinking about this post initially in light of being rejected by people. I started to think, though, about how many times we often feel like we want to ask God for something, but we are afraid to even ask him.

One of the instances of an unusual request that came to my mind from scripture is in 2 Kings. In 2 Kings 2:9-10 it says, “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: [nevertheless], if thou see me [when I am] taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be [so].” Elijah and Elisha were both prophets, but Elijah was Elisha’s mentor. In this instance, Elijah asks Elisha what request he would like to be granted before he was taken into Heaven. Elisha asks him for a double portion of his mantle. Elijah even admitted that this was a difficult request to grant. He didn’t reject his request, though. He told Elisha that if he sees him as he is taken away then the request will be granted, but if not, then the request won’t be granted. I think Elijah knew that this request ultimately had to be decided by God. But the amazing thing is that Elisha’s request was granted and he saw Elijah leave as he was taken into Heaven as a sign to him that he had gotten what he had asked for.

I think we are often afraid to ask God for things. However, God even tells us to ask him. Matthew 7:7-8 says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” I think that these verses make clear to us that God desires us to ask him for things. He tells us to ask, seek, and knock. The funny thing is that the first letters of those words spells ‘ask’. I believe that God not only wants us to ask, but to be diligent in asking. These verses not only mention asking, but seeking and knocking as well. The main point, though, is for us to seek Him. The great thing about it is when we ask Him for something, and we are truly seeking Him in the process, we end up drawing closer to Him.

I believe many times when we ask, in faith, for something from God we will be pleasantly surprised to see we’ve received our request from him. We can easily think that we’re asking for too much or anticipate him saying, “No.” But I think God is often times just waiting for us to ask. Even other people might think, “You’re never going to get that.” Often times, though, if we’ll just have the courage to ask, we might get more ‘yesses’ than we ever expected.

2 Kings 2:9-10. In 2 Kings 2:9 it says, “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: [nevertheless], if thou see me [when I am] taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be [so].”

Matthew 7:7-8 says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

 

Sometimes we have a tendency to look back on things we’ve done or haven’t done. We can often think about those things and wonder what we could have done differently. The reality is we sometimes make mistakes. We often feel like we want to go back and have a do-over. At least, I can.

So, here’s my advice for anyone who has any past regrets. First, find a crazy wild-eyed doctor (oh, let’s say someone who looks like Christopher Lloyd). Then find a car (let’s say something like a DeLorean). Have him locate some plutonium for you, and then make the car into a time machine. Then get in the car and go back and undo all of your past mistakes. What’s that, you say? That’s not possible? Oh, exaaaactly! Glad you see my point. That was my ‘Back to the Future’ reference for the day. But as much as we would like to go back and change the past, time just doesn’t work that way. I’m pretty sure Einstein settled that.

Have you ever tried to iron a shirt? I haven’t very often. But even with my limited experience I know how it generally works. I end up getting out most of the wrinkles. However, I usually end up making some new wrinkles of my own. The crazy thing is that when you make your own wrinkle with the iron, those are the hardest ones to get out. No matter how hard I try, that wrinkle just seems to stay there. I can maybe make it better but I can’t completely erase it. I’m better off just to keep going and wear the shirt as is. Probably the way to get that wrinkle out is to just wash it again. For the purposes of this analogy let’s just say that correlates to going back in time. Since that’s not possible, we know that some wrinkles will always be in our shirts.

You probably know where I’m going with this. If that shirt represents our lives, then we know that we’re going to have some things (wrinkles) that we can’t go back and undo. We might be able to make them a little better. For instance, if we’ve offended someone we may have to go back to that person and apologize. But this doesn’t completely undo the offense, does it? I mean, it still happened. I can’t go back and change it. So, I guess the best I can do is move forward with what I have. That’s just the way life works. I need to accept my shirt as is, wrinkles and all. That shirt may not be perfect, but it’s my shirt. That’s the only shirt I’m going to get. I can’t take the shirt back and exchange it for a new one. I’ve already worn the shirt and I didn’t keep the receipt. Ok, that’s probably enough shirt references for today. I think I’ve beat the shirt metaphor to death. I’ll move on now.

 

…Let’s go deeper

Here are two good verses about not looking to the past in Philippians. Philippians 3:13-14 says, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul is acknowledging here that he still hasn’t arrived at his eternal destination. He finds one thing to be important to fulfilling what God has for him to do. Paul was human just like the rest of us. He certainly had regrets like us. He knew, though, the futility of going back and changing any of the things he regrets. I think he knew that, for good or for bad, he couldn’t spend his time looking back at the past. He also knew his purpose could only truly be accomplished if he looked forward to his goal and the work God had set before him.
Hairloss is upsetting regardless of your gender, race or social levitra 60 mg status. By going for this achat viagra pfizer drug one not only takes a logical and rational decision but also saves money. Another method is medicated suppositories that are inserted into the tissue with the help of needles. buy cialis india Often buy tadalafil cheap there are accessories to make the trip memorable as well.
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “Hindsight is 20/20.” This can be true sometimes. But one of the interesting things I’ve found in life is that sometimes, even after the fact, I’m still not sure what the right answer would have been. Even though I may not have liked the outcome, the correct answer still eludes me. So, I guess maybe that saying doesn’t always hold true. That’s probably another reason why looking back can be so unproductive. We don’t see the entire picture here in this life.

Here’s a comforting verse for us as believers. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.” I guess this helps me to know this. While I’m not intentionally trying to mess things up, I can know and rest in the fact that God has my life in the palm of his hand. God somehow works through the circumstances, and sometimes the mess, of our lives and is able to make something beautiful out of it. Many of the things we messed up in our lives are learning experiences for us. We learn how to be prudent and unwavering. Some things are only learned through experience. That’s why some of our older generation can many times offer us some good advice. They’ve often been through a lot of the same things.

So, yes we can learn from our past. But this idea of looking back and dwelling on the past is not only unfruitful, but also destructive. Sometimes we need to just move forward and accept some of those wrinkles we’ve made.

Philippians 3:13-14 says, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.”

 

I’m a really good pessimist. See, I just found the positive out of a negative. Yeah, that probably doesn’t count, does it? But I do seem to have the uncanny ability to find the downside in just about everything. Sometimes, if I’m not careful, I have this tendency to see most things in life as ‘glass-half-empty’ situations. Even if I don’t find a negative, my mind will try to create some of its own. Usually it does this through ‘what if’ scenarios. So, I’ll end up thinking ‘what if’ this happens or ‘what if’ that happens.

Now, I’m not saying I always give in to those negative ideas or thoughts. However, my mind seems to just naturally gravitate toward those things. If there are ten good reasons to do something, I can easily come up with 10 reasons not to do something. If I were to buy a house, I would tend to think about how difficult it would be to clean, or how much interest I would be paying on the mortgage, or maybe the house isn’t in a good enough neighborhood. It’s the same sometimes with going on a trip. I might be thinking about all the packing I have to do, or the money it’s going to cost me. I don’t know, maybe it’s a safety mechanism of some sort. It’s certainly not a healthy one, though.

Sometimes, in a lot of marriages, you will end up with two opposites together. You know the old saying, “Opposites attract.” I think that’s often true in this aspect of life. One person is the positive person and overlooks the negative for the positive, and the other is the negative one and overlooks the positive for the negative. So, somehow they end up balancing each other out. Both of these people are probably not seeing things in quite the proper light, though. I know it sounds good for someone to only see the positives in things, but if they aren’t aware of potential negatives they can end up getting themselves into trouble. Likewise, if a person only sees the negatives in things they may end up missing out on all the positives of that situation.

‘What if’ scenarios go along these same lines but take things a step further. These are things that don’t even exist yet. But your mind comes up with them on its own. You could call this creativity in the wrong direction. What a waste of creative ability. Like my mind doesn’t have enough to deal with without manufacturing its own negative scenarios. Now that I’ve stated these ‘what if’s’ in this light, I’m starting to see how non-productive and foolish it is.

Maybe there’s a middle ground that lets you move forward with a positive attitude without ignoring the reality of a situation, either. I suppose there’s a difference between looking at the down side with dread and letting those things ruin the entire experience, and being aware of the negatives so that you’re prepared for them while still being able to enjoy the experience.

 

…Let’s go deeper

Matthew 6:34 says, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof.” This verse really goes along with the ‘what if’ scenarios, doesn’t it? We can often spend a lot of time thinking about ‘what if this happens tomorrow’ or ‘what if that happens tomorrow’. The reality is, though, that we can only influence the present moment we’re in. God is telling us that we have enough things to deal with in just dealing with today. Tomorrow is beyond our scope of influence. We can certainly pray about things in advance, but then we have to leave it in God’s hands.

Cut Down on Drinking & viagra spain Smoking If you are consuming alcohol in excess, there is enough material to keep you both interested for a lifetime. In their sale of viagra http://djpaulkom.tv/dj-pauls-safe-way-to-enjoy-sizzurp-a-must-read/ study they determined that: *A majority of people know almost nothing how the pancreas work and are unaware of its importance in the face of the collapse of the nuclear family. You usually will not be able to find any doctor who has a permanent cure to the dilemma and resolves the situation safely. viagra online The most use of these is: hypertension cancer coronary cardiac disease neurological purchase cheap levitra concerns diabetes arthritis Enjoy the blue pills to get deal with erection problem. That’s where these verses come in. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” These verses also tell us not to worry. It takes it one step further, though. It tells us to take our worries to God. When we take them to Him He can deal with them. We have to leave them with Him, though. Sometimes we can take something to God in prayer and get up and still end up walking away with it. Because we’re still worried about it. We haven’t fully given it to God. God can’t work on it, though, until we let go of it. So, just give it to Him. It’s too big for you. He’s somebody who can actually do something with your problems.

I think even being negative is just another form of worry. We’re often too afraid to be brave enough to see the positives and move forward. So, we end up thinking about the negatives. So what’s the answer? Once we’ve given it to God, what do we do with our thinking? Well, the next verse in Philippians 4:8 goes on to say, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.” This gives us a good framework for our thought life. We can still be aware of roadblocks while still focusing and being positive about the situation.

We don’t have to have all the answers or have it all figured out. But when we stop worrying about things and give them to God we can gain a fresh mindset and think on the positive things in life. Not only can God work on our problems and situations, but we can learn to enjoy our life in a positive light.

Matthew 6:34 says, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof.”

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.”

 

One of the things I often find myself thinking about are different problems that I face and how I’m going to deal with them. Maybe, as a guy, that’s normal. We’re problem solvers. We often see a problem, analyze it, and then come up with a solution to execute. But there’s an interesting thing I’ve discovered. Sometimes I can keep looking for a solution and I still can’t resolve the problem.

It’s sometimes difficult for us to look outside of ourselves. We can easily get caught up in our own world and forget that we live in community with others, and we not only interact with each other, but we help each other in different ways.

I can remember back to the time when one of my current friends and I first became friends. He was an acquaintance that I made at work. I had known him for some time but we had never really hung out. He was telling me that he was going to be moving some things into his house. So, he was preparing for that. So, I thought I would offer to see if he needed any help. He said he did and appreciated the offer. So, I ended up helping him move some of those items. As I think back, that’s really the time where we initially became friends. My offer of help opened the door for us to become friends. So, he got some help in moving and I made a friend in the process.

I recently watched an interesting video. It was an interview with a former Navy SEAL. He was being asked questions about becoming a Navy SEAL. One of the things he said was that one of the things that makes SEALs special isn’t just the physical strength. It’s their mental, moral, and emotional strength. One of the ways that they test that in training is to put people in pain. This is often done through what’s called ‘log PT’ or, ‘log Physical Training’, where they’re required to carry heavy logs. They’re also kept in the waters off the coast of San Diego where the water temperature is in the low to mid 50’s. This is meant to approximate conditions approaching hypothermia. He went on to say that, in that moment, someone has to go into their own mind. And if you start to think just about your own pain, just about your own fear, you’ll collapse and quit. But if, in that moment, you start to think about the person to the left who needs you, and the person to the right who needs you, then you’ll find the strength to go on and help to serve others. He said that’s what makes a great team.

I soon realized the scope of this man’s statements. That this isn’t really just advice for becoming a Navy SEAL. This really applies to me and my daily life. If I keep my focus just on me and my daily dilemmas I may miss an opportunity to help someone else. But if I look for those opportunities and help another person, I may just end up helping myself in the end.

 

…Let’s go deeper

Of course much of the Bible deals with helping other people. One of those verses is in Luke. Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” We can see that often times in life when we’ve helped other people in the past that they are more likely to want to help us. And, actually, we often get back much more than we’ve given ourselves.

Philippians 2:4 says, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” That pretty much sums up what the Navy SEAL was saying. The more we get wrapped up in ourselves and our own things the darker and less inclusive our lives become. Not only that, but our life is less fulfilling and rewarding. The more we include others and their problems in our lives and help them take them on, the brighter our lives become.

Properties of online viagra uk This medicine is formulated with complete high quality standards and ensures 100 percent safety and effectiveness. It is a significant stop erection problems therapy. levitra viagra robertrobb.com On the other http://robertrobb.com/2019/01/ cialis sales australia hand, there are inherent dangers in certain prescribed medications, as they can cause serious side-effects too. Wind blows on the viagra sale rotor blades on the turbine, letting it turn. In Proverbs 19:17 it says, “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” It tells us here that when we give to those in need, God will reward us. The reality is that we really can’t lose by helping others. Even if they don’t recognize what we did for them, God does. They may not reward us for it, but God will. This is why we don’t need to be concerned about other people acknowledging what we do for them. When it’s all said and done, God knows what we did for someone else.

I recently had a situation where I was just leaving a store and walking out into the parking lot to my car. I was almost to my car and I saw a man and his son working on trying to get a car started. Apparently it had a dead battery and needed a jump start. I was almost going to keep going and not bother because it looked like they had it under control. But, for some reason, I just asked if they had any jumper cables. They said they did. However, the way the car was parked it was surrounded by vehicles on all sides and they couldn’t reach the battery with the cables. So, what they needed was to be able to push the car back in order to reach the battery. I said, “Oh, well there should be a shift-lock release lever in there somewhere.” This would allow them to shift the car out of Park and into Neutral to roll the car back. I wasn’t sure where it was on that model of vehicle but I proceeded to help them find it. There was a little cap to remove and then I pushed the button underneath, which allowed me to shift it into neutral. So, problem was solved. They said thanks and I was on my way.

The interesting thing is that I had been having problems with my neck that whole week. I hadn’t been able to go to the chiropractor because I had been on vacation and had just gotten back. It was the weekend, so I couldn’t go into the chiropractor until Monday. But as I was driving out of the parking lot I started to move my neck and all of a sudden it just popped, and let loose. I finally had relief from my neck being out of place. I suddenly had the thought that maybe that happened because I decided to help those people. Now, I certainly can’t prove it. But I like to believe that maybe God helped me out because I decided to help those people out that day.

I guess this story is the inspiration for this post. I think we often are missing the answer to our problems because we get too focused on ourselves. I’m as guilty as many. None of this is meant to say that we are supposed to give in order to get from God or other people. But we give with the intent that we have done what is right and leave the rest to God. When we do that, we may just end up helping ourselves in ways we wouldn’t expect.

Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

Philippians 2:4 says, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”

Proverbs 19:17 it says, “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.”

 

Have you ever thought about the things we believe? Specifically, the things we believe exist vs. the things we are relying on. You may be wondering, “What’s the difference?” Well, there are certain things we all believe exist, but we may not all trust in them.

I think there’s a huge difference between believing something is there without trusting in it. I can think of a number of examples just in my own life. For example, I believe there’s a program called Social Security to provide for my financial welfare when I’m retired. However, if I have my own retirement plan set up, such as an IRA (and I’m contributing significantly to this fund) then that may be what I’m truly depending on for my retirement years. So, while I believe Social Security is there, I’m not relying on it to provide for me in my retirement years.

The way things are looking that may be a wise choice. Our political leaders have been talking about the viability of Social Security for years. I remember writing a paper on this subject in college. That was 20 years ago. You can go across the entire political spectrum and find that there’s a virtual consensus on the need to address Social Security being available for future generations. It seems, though, that can keeps getting kicked down the road. It’s just one of those things no one wants to address. I guess it ends up falling in this big black hole. The generation that truly cares about it now (and is probably the most active voting block) is already collecting their checks, so they’re not going to push for any reforms. Then there’s the younger generation. Retirement’s not even in their thought process right now, so they’re not going to push for any reforms either. As far as the middle-aged generation, they’re probably relying on the fact that any legislation introduced to change it would have to grandfather them in to the system as it currently is. So, we can see that, as a result, there’s no active political push from the voters for change. Certainly if anyone talked about getting rid of it there would be a huge uproar from the public. So, there’s no political push to change it, yet the system is not sustainable as it is. This is why no politician wants to touch it, besides the fact that it’s a tough problem to solve. The result is, though, that this makes for us an unreliable system. It would only be prudent for us all to have a retirement fund of our own to rely on.

So, this is just one example of many in our lives. It’s one, though, that I think we can all relate to, as it affects all of us at some point. I think it’s important that we make a distinction between what we believe and what we are trusting. How do I know what I truly believe? Well, in this example, I can say that I’m trusting in my own IRA for my retirement years. I can say, “I’m not relying on Social Security. I’m relying on my own IRA.” But if I’m not contributing to it or don’t even have an account set up, I might end up getting to end of my life only to realize that there’s nothing there. So, I guess this begs the question, “Do I really believe it?”

 

…Let’s go deeper

 

How does this translate into our spiritual lives? Well, this proposes an important question for all of us. Many of us say we believe in God, but can we really say we’re relying on him. You may wonder how much difference there is. Well, I’ll tell you, it can make all the difference in the world. Similar to the example with Social Security, I can say I believe in God without realizing that I’m not truly believing.

Acts 16:31 says, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” There’s an important distinction made in this verse. And it all rests on one little word. If you’ll notice, it says ‘Believe on’ and not ‘Believe in’. What’s the difference? Well the reason it doesn’t say ‘believe in’ is that this alone doesn’t bring us to a saving faith. ‘Believe in’ just means that I believe in the existence of Jesus Christ, while ‘believe on’ means that I’m placing my trust in Him and relying on Him for my eternal salvation. ‘Believe on’ denotes an element of trust. ‘Believe in’ is like saying, “Oh yeah, I believe you exist, but that makes no difference to me and my life.” Do you want me to prove it to you?

James 2:19 says, “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.” So, as we can see from this verse, while demons believe in God, they never trusted Him. They certainly never had a saving faith. They were on the wrong side of belief. It says that they also believe, and tremble. The reason they tremble is that they never trusted Him.
When digestion happens in the right manner, the body will be idle, unable to generika cialis react to whatever medicine you take. Sexual fantasies sales viagra are imaginary sexual scenes, which you can plan in your mind and enact with your spouse. Do understand some of the mild side get viagra australia effects the side effects of this drug have been classified into common and serious. However, viagra 20mg india for an emergency service provider always, think about a professional one.
Psalms 20:7 says, “Some [trust] in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.” I think in this verse we are shown where a lot of people are placing their faith. They’re trusting in the tangible things of this world. Things that aren’t lasting. They aren’t trusting in the eternal God of Heaven. This is an important distinction for us. We can easily get caught up in the things that we see. It can deceptively seem that we can trust in these things. We can learn, however, that these things all fail at some point. Our money can fail, our political system can fail, and even people can disappoint us and fail us at times. If we look to God, though, and trust in the work of His son, Jesus, on the cross, we are standing on solid ground.

Psalms 9:10 says, “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” We can see here that we can trust in God. It says here that ‘they that know thy name’ can trust in Him. Why? Because they’ve seen God help them and work in their lives in the past. The reason they’ve seen God’s work in their lives in the past is because they trusted in His name in their times of trouble. So, we can learn that we can trust Him through experience. This is how we know what we are truly ‘believing on’, by what we are trusting day to day.

Acts 16:31 says, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

James 2:19 says, “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.”

Psalms 20:7 says, “Some [trust] in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”

Psalms 9:10 says, “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.”

J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1998;21(8):511-519. generic levitra no prescription 4. Although we have entered 21st century, but men of today do not want to talk about erectile dysfunction, it is one of the most common concern, for which we tend to suffer from varied kinds of diseases due to infections in their urinary tract. generic viagra cheap In the course of the program, the participant gathers creative feedback levitra 20mg uk on their writing and advice on their career objectives. Remember, College djpaulkom.tv levitra prescription is completely new For Every single Beginner.

 

Self-awareness is an important component of a well-lived life. Socrates once said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Wise words. Why do you think he said this? Well, I can only tell you what I think he meant by that statement. The thing that stands out to me is how we can easily get in a routine with activities in our lives and not even know or understand why we’re doing them. We can find out that, when examined, we learn there might be some activities in our daily lives that aren’t really that necessary.

That’s just one component to this statement. The great thing about it is that it encompasses many aspects of our lives. The reason I think this is important is that self-awareness is essential to consciousness. So, I would say that if we’re not self-aware we’re not fully conscious. It’s like going through life half-asleep. I would also say that an examined life is much more fulfilling. For in that case, we are not only aware of what we’re doing but why we’re doing it. Life can certainly be fun without examining it, but it’s not going to have much meaning. It would be like living your life on candy and ice cream. You need the steak and potatoes, maybe some greens, for a sustaining and meaningful life.

I would also add a disclaimer to Socrates’ statement. I would caution against the other extreme as well and say that the over-examined life is not worth living either. This is definitely the end of the spectrum where I would reside. The danger here is that you spend so much time thinking about the meaning of life that you neglect the living of it. So, obviously there’s a balance here. I think Socrates was just trying to compensate for the direction or tendencies of most people. And as a general rule, we tend to lean towards the unexamined life.

We can easily find when we look that there are some frivolous items in our lives. I guess a good test to see if something passes the examination is to ask ourselves if this thing will matter after we’ve left this earth. Of course not all our time is spent on strictly meaningful things. We would need some frivolity just to keep our sanity and also our enjoyment of life. We just would not be living for those things. Watching a football game is not going to have any eternal meaning for us. But we do it as a way to relax and unwind from the meaningful things.

I guess the important thing is for us to spend a little time thinking about our lives and being intentional. Making adjustments and changes in our lives when and where needed is a good thing. We can make sure that we’re not only doing the right things, but doing the right things for the right reasons.

 

…Let’s go deeper

I guess when I was talking about examining the things we do to see if they have eternal significance, this verse would apply: 2 Corinthians 4:18 “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen [are] temporal; but the things which are not seen [are] eternal.” The things of this world can be very distracting from what’s really important. We don’t really know the value or weight of things in our lives until we examine them in the light of eternity. This verse shows for us that the eternal things in life are the things we don’t see. The things we do see are the temporary things. It’s the temporary things, however, that often end up distracting us from the eternal. We can easily get caught up in the day to day and end up wondering if we’re just spinning our wheels.
I am http://djpaulkom.tv/dj-paul-reveals-gangsta-boos-departure-from-da-mafia-6ix/ cialis prescription cheap not bragging; that is simply the truth. The practitioner stimulates acupoints to maintain a specific flow of vital force between the body online pharmacies viagra meridians. Rarely, erectile dysfunction is treated by bypassing obstructed penile arteries. levitra 10 mg Therefore it is very important to get the djpaulkom.tv buy generic levitra optimum result from kamagra tablets.
How do we know when we’re truly and properly examining our lives? Well, when we are examining it according to God’s word. The Bible describes itself as being like a mirror. In James 1:23 it says, “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.” We can get a good examination of our lives when we look at what God has written to us in his word. We can compare our lives to what the Word says. So, if you think of it this way: our lives are like the test we’re taking, but God’s word is like the answer key. You remember in school the teacher would always have the answer key. Usually, after the test was over, the teacher would let you compare your test to the answer key. So, at the end of the day, we can sit down and compare our lives with the answer key. We can go through the entire day and see if we got the answers right when we sit down with His word. We may find out we got that one right, and that one right, but oh, I got that one wrong, I guess.

Psalms 139:23-24 says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if [there be any] wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Here the Psalmist declares his need to for God to search his heart. So, we not only examine our hearts in light of God’s word, but we can let God examine our hearts. This is what we’re often doing when we’re in prayer. We’re letting God speak to us. Many times he will speak to us about our hearts and minds. He will show us something that’s not right, some attitude that needs to change, someone we need to forgive. And the purpose of all this is to root out any wicked ways in us, to ‘lead us in the way everlasting’. So, yeah, self-examination—a good thing.

2 Corinthians 4:18 “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen [are] temporal; but the things which are not seen [are] eternal.”

James 1:23 it says, “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.”

Psalms 139:23-24 says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if [there be any] wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

 

Do you know the great thing about humility? The great thing is there’s really no downside. Seriously. Really, we aren’t missing out on anything when we are being humble. You could try to make the case that you’re missing out on any glory that you might try to grab for yourself. But, really, any time we try to put the spotlight on ourselves, it’s not an appealing look. So, that’s why I say there’s no downside.

So, what’s the upside? If we look at the definition of humility it states that it’s ‘having or showing a modest or low estimate of one’s own importance.’ However, I would clarify it to say that it’s not so much having a low opinion of ourselves as it is keeping ourselves in the proper perspective. I don’t think someone walking around and telling themselves they’re ‘a nothing and a nobody’ is displaying the proper definition of humility. We can still think something of ourselves and be humble in the process. Recognizing your gifts and talents is still allowed. Because the reality is that we all are good at something. So, if we acknowledge our gifts to the right degree we are really just putting things in the proper perspective.

Have you ever known someone, or met someone, who was always talking about themselves in such grand terms? Everything they did was the best, their possessions they owned were the best, and the people they know are the best. If you went by their sole opinion alone you would go away thinking they were Superman, or Superwoman. Of course it’s best for us to take these people with a grain of salt and realize that the truth is probably somewhere north of nothingness and somewhere south of superhuman. I think many times, in these situations, these people are trying to compensate for some ineptness that they feel in themselves.

Then there’s people who display false humility. It’s true. Some of us take great pride in our humility. We may have all done this at some point, or to some degree. This is where someone pays us a compliment and we either try to deny it or diminish it in some way, but on the inside we’re really thinking, “I’m so glad they finally realized my greatness. What took them so long to see it?” So, you can see there’s a great disparity between thought and action there. We’re not being very genuine or real in these times.

So, what’s a good way to prevent this? Well, I would say, putting it in its simplest terms, humility is just being real. Maybe humility is just being our most true authentic selves. I think it’s being who we were made to be and being comfortable with that. In this case, we aren’t insecure around other people and who they are, or what they can do. We’re even secure enough to pay meaningful compliments and honestly be happy for them and their “greatness”. I’m just kidding. I was just seeing if you were still paying attention.

 

…Let’s go deeper

 

I like this parable Jesus tells in Luke. In Luke 14:8-10 it says “When thou art bidden of any [man] to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.” Now, picture this scenario. Imagine if you were at a wedding and you just presumed, because of your high opinion of yourself, that you could just go sit at the table of the wedding party. You may be a distant relative or even a friend of a friend. Of course, the entire wedding party would be wondering what you’re doing there. Then, inevitably, you would be asked to take a table in the corner somewhere. That would be pretty embarrassing. But picture if you placed yourself at the lowest table in the room. Most people don’t know who you are. But, say the bride or the groom know you. They notice that you’re sitting at such a low table. And because of their high opinion of you they insist you come sit at a closer table, or maybe even their table. You would feel much better in that case, wouldn’t you? I think Jesus shows us here the value of humility.
The genuine drug was an expensive drug that kept many ED sufferers viagra pills cheap treatments deprived. This is because men are too shy to talk cheap cialis about it. This work is a form of healthcare that aids your body to cure itself over here viagra generico 5mg in the process. It empowers them to deal with all sex problems effectively, endows the body with sexual strength and encourages libido thoughts, reaching the climax and enjoy more stamina. samples of levitra
See, I truly believe that when we go about our lives in a manner of humility that God will make sure we receive the recognition we deserve to receive. In 1 Peter 5:6 it says, “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” So, we don’t need to make sure that other people are seeing our good qualities. God will make sure it’s known. Like we trust God with everything else, we can trust him with our recognition as well.

Here’s another take on this topic. In 2 Corinthians 12:9 it says “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” God is responding here to Paul’s petition for being relieved of his infirmity. I know that this is speaking about weakness here, and probably physical weakness. But I believe there is an important principle here. See, Paul states in this instance that, “lest he be exalted above measure” he was given this ‘thorn in the flesh’. Due to the great revelations he could have easily started overestimating himself. So, sometimes we can be used in greater ways through our weaknesses. God says his strength is made perfect in weakness. Why is that? Well, sometimes our pride can get in the way of God using us. And when we are humble God has a pure vessel through which he can work. So, there’s really no downside to being humble.

Luke 14:8-10 it says “When thou art bidden of any [man] to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.”

1 Peter 5:6 it says, “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:”

2 Corinthians 12:9 it says “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

 

You ever think about whether things are OK just because they’re legal. I mean, if it’s the law it must be OK, right? Our all-knowing government officials wouldn’t introduce and pass legislation if it weren’t all on the up and up, would they?

Well, this is an interesting thing to contemplate. Let’s examine some of our nation’s previous laws. I can think of a good example for the purpose of this discussion. The first thing that came to mind when I was thinking about this topic was our history of segregation and civil rights. We had, for a number of years, laws that were meant to segregate and give rights to some, while denying rights to others based solely on a person’s race. These were commonly known as Jim Crow Laws. These laws became a major point of contention in the 1960’s when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak. Here’s an example of just a few of these laws:

Railroads: The conductor of each passenger train is authorized and required to assign each passenger to the car or the division of the car, when it is divided by a partition, designated for the race to which such passenger belongs. Alabama

Restaurants: It shall be unlawful to conduct a restaurant or other place for the serving of food in the city, at which white and colored people are served in the same room, unless such white and colored persons are effectually separated by a solid partition extending from the floor upward to a distance of seven feet or higher, and unless a separate entrance from the street is provided for each compartment. Alabama

Education: Separate schools shall be maintained for the children of the white and colored races. Mississippi

Now, as we look back on these laws today it’s difficult to imagine a time where these were actually in-force legislation in the land in which we live. However, I think we all pretty much agree that these laws, while being legal, were certainly not moral. This is just one example, though. What else is there?

What about an example from today? What about our banking system? We recently had a financial crisis in 2008. If we look at some of the practices being implemented during this time we could easily make the case that immoral practices were in place. For example, banks were offering zero down mortgages. The reason that’s a bad idea is the borrower has no skin in the game. This is why many people walked away from their homes when the market took a downturn. Banks, in the process, were leveraging themselves to extreme degrees. In the case of the major banks, many were leveraged 30 times, or more. Not only that, but as banks were issuing mortgage-backed securities on the basis of these loans, a situation was created where an even minor downturn in the market could end up wiping them out. We can certainly debate about who were all complicit in this scenario. The point being, though, that the majority of these practices were all legal. You could certainly make the case, though, that they weren’t moral. At the very least they were reckless.

I guess the reason I bring this up is this: I believe many people, without a moral standard to guide them, will end up aligning their morality with legality. So, in the absence of any other standard I believe many will end up thinking, “If it’s legal, then it must be moral.” But as we can see this isn’t a very reliable plumb line, is it? I mean, our laws can change and be more flexible than a wet spaghetti noodle. So, how do we align our ideas of right and wrong?

 

…Let’s go deeper

 

 

There is a greater law than the laws of man here on this earth. God has a law by which we are all to live. The great thing that we, as believers, have is that we are no longer bound by sin. We have been made free from the law of sin and death. As it says in Romans 8:2: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” Not only are we freed from sin but we are not under the law. Romans 6:14 says, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” That sounds amazing, doesn’t it? How can we not be under the law? Aren’t we supposed to obey the law? Well, yes we are. But the interesting thing is that, as believers, we are not under the law. So, does that mean we ignore the law? Well, Romans 3:31 says, “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.” Interesting, huh? So, we establish the law. But how do we do this? Well, Hebrews 10:16 says, “This [is] the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;”

viagra prices in usa By routinely bringing one’s consciousness back to this area and coming out of the mind will strengthen the body/mind connection once again. The chair style toilets are designed in such a manner generic cialis on line where a person will opt sitting style to poop. This eventually leads to impotence to a viagra prescriptions online man as the blood itself does not pass ahead. ED Trial packs can come in many cialis without prescriptions sizes and combinations. So, there it is. We have the law already written in our hearts. It’s not that we no longer have a law to follow. We just have them already in us to do them. Not only that, we also have the Holy Spirit to help us to live this out in our daily lives. Romans 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Also in Galatians 5:16 it says, “[This] I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” So, we are led by the Holy Spirit. If we yield to him, he will help us to live the right way. We have an inner witness. So, this is how we establish the law—by living out what God has put in our hearts.

This helps paint a complete picture for us of how we are to live our lives. We can always know what is right and wrong. This is a much more reliable plumb line for us to follow and God helps us through His Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:2: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”

Romans 6:14 says, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”

Romans 3:31 says, “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”

Hebrews 10:16 says, “This [is] the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;”

Romans 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”

Galatians 5:16 it says, “[This] I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.”

Great usefulness- You always buy a medicine for effectiveness on the condition. viagra ordination unica-web.com In most https://www.unica-web.com/ENGLISH/2014/GA2014-iftc-report.html cialis 10 mg of the cases if we are following good health measures than we did not easily affected by any health problem. Male Impotence or Erectile Dysfunction is a condition in which a man cannot achieve or maintain erection during intercourse. cheapest line viagra Like other drugs of this type, Intagra’s main ingredient is sildenafil citrate, which dilates the blood vessels to relax and expand, so that an increased amount of blood overnight cialis and stretches within the outer casing.