Are you having a bad day?

March 19, 2024

The Best of Jack’s Winning Words 3/18/24 – reprises of posts to the blog of the late Pastor Jack Freed  – Originally sent May 17, 2016.

“Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something.” (H. Jackson Brown Jr) Someone I know was treated rudely by a bank teller. She asked the person, “Are you having a bad day, or are you always like this?” It was done in a caring way and not meant to be sarcastic. Everyone we meet is probably carrying some kind of burden, so we need to give them some slack and go easy with the voice…or horn. 😉  Jack

One of the harder things to consistently do is to be able step back from your own thoughts, issues and priorities to consider the state of mind or point of view of another person that you have encountered. Everyone has their own story and has arrived at this moment on a path that is different from yours.

If you cannot be empathetic or sympathetic, at least don’t be rude or mad. Perhaps your best retort to something down or rude that they may have said is to ask, “What’s causing you to feel that way (or to say that)?”

Sometimes the person that you need to say that to is the person that you are looking at in the mirror. If you are having a bad day, an important step to turning things around is trying to understand why. What is it that you are afraid of? What or who have you lost? What don’t you understand? What is causing you to be fearful, anxious, or angry?

One of the lessons that I am still learning as I get older is how really unimportant many things are (were) that used to drive my life and my behavior. It is all too easy, especially when one is younger, to become so focused and driven by what seems at the time to be important that one becomes rude or worse to those around them.

Divorces and family breakups are often caused by the intensity that a job may demand and the inability to let that go or “switch gears” when one is at home. The fact that many Gen Zers have resisted that work-mode intensity irks those in older generations when it should actually be showing us the way to a more fulfilling life.

So, if you are having a bad day that is work-oriented, stop and ask yourself is what you are concerned about really all that important? Will anybody die if you don’t get this task done right now? Will you die if you don’t get this task done right now? Asking those questions will help you to put things in perspective.

If all else fails, try the little prayer that I’ve posted here a few times – “Not my will, but Thy will be done.” Nothing frees you more to leave behind life’s burdens and get on with life than turning over your life to the will of God. Try it.

 Are you having a bad day? Ask yourself about it, then ask for God’s help.

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Posted by Norm Werner

Start over, but take a different path…

March 12, 2024

This graphic from my real estate company offers good advice, but perhaps not enough.

Certainly starting over does provide an opportunity to build something better, but only if you have learned from your past failures and take a different path this time.

There is an old saying that insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Sadly, too many people take that approach to life. Most don’t stop to analyze why they failed the other times that they tried. They convince themselves that if they just work harder along the same path that they took before they will succeed. Often, that approach leads only to a slightly different failure.

Thomas Edison was famous for telling people how many times he failed at some of his greatest inventions before he got them right. Edison learned from each failure and took a slightly different path on each try.

Starting over also allows one to modify their goal and define a new end point or expected result. That is important because failures allow you to examine those goals or your definition of success. It might also allow you to set more realistic and achievable short-term goals on the way towards a larger long-term goal. That way you can celebrate those short-term wins to keep yourself motivated for the long haul.

One roadblock to starting over that many people allow is to become fixated on the “sunk money” or “sunk time” that you have invested in your failed approach. You may think that “I’ve come too far to start over”. Give yourself a break. Congratulate yourself instead for being too smart to continue down that dead end path. And don’t waste any time looking for a scapegoat to blame. Own the bad choices that you made; learn from them and move on.

A good habit to adopt is to frequently stop and evaluate what you have done, what you are doing and what you think will come next. Are you making progress against your short and long-term goals? Is there anything that needs to be adjusted or perhaps even abandoned and a new direction taken? Regularly reviewing and evaluating where you are and what you think is next will keep you from going too far down rat-holes and wasting time and resources.

So, don’t be afraid to start over, just make sure that you take a different path this time. Persistence and perseverance are not good traits to have if you use them on the wrong path. Learn from your past mistakes and build something better this time.

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Posted by Norm Werner

Be happy with what you have…

March 11, 2024

The Best of Jack’s Winning Words 3/11/24 – reprises of posts to the Jack’s Winning Words blog or the late Pastor Jack Freed. Originally sent July 10, 2015.


“Just remember there is someone out there that is more than happy with less than what you have.” (Unknown) When I first read this quote, I could not help but stop and put aside my personal complaints. I have so much, and there are so many who have so little. Is it that way with you? It’s an old saying, but it’s true: “I complained, because I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.” There are many reasons for us to be generous with our riches. 😉  Jack
 

It doesn’t take anything other than the nightly news to give one reason to be happy that they are not the people in the news that night. The bread-and-butter of the nightly news shows is sharing the suffering of others. Inevitably some news reports will interview someone who’s home was just destroyed and whose family was wiped out and ask that stupid question that they all seem to use, “How does that make you feel?” The reporter is hoping for tears and lamenting, which makes for great TV viewing – or so they think.

Getting back to the title theme, the conclusion that one should draw from this quote and other experiences and observations during the day is that we have much to for which to be  happy. Unfortunately, we in the United States live within a society which puts a high value of getting more – more money, more power and more possessions. We don’t have time to reflect upon and be happy about what we have, because that wastes time from our pursuit of more. Be happy with what you have.

Oft times, when my wife and I are about to leave for a shopping trip, I will ask er the question, “What do you need?” Her reply most often is, “What I need and what I want are two different things.” For most American’s that is the problem – our wants far outstrip our needs. It is also not unusual for the cost of what we want to exceed what we can afford. We end up spending money that we don’t have on things that we don’t need. Be happy with what you have.

So, how does one become happy with what they have? You might start by being happy that the Lord has given you another day on earth. Realize that not everyone got that gift. You probably heard about some who aren’t here today on last night’s news shows. Be happy with what you have.

As you head into the shower, think about all of the people who not only can’t take a shower, but who have no safe water to drink. That was on last night’s news, too. Be happy with what you have.

As you rummage through your overstuffed closet for today’s outfit, consider the people who just escaped a housefire with only the clothes (or pajamas) on their backs. Consider those migrants at the border or the refuges in Gaza who have only the clothes that they had on when they fled. Be happy with what you have.

Throughout your workday, think about how lucky you are to have a job and/or the freedom to seek another one, if your current job isn’t working for you. In parts of the world torn by chaos and war, there are no jobs. Be happy with what you have.

As you end your day, perhaps a prayer of thanksgiving is in order. Pause to consider all of the places in the world where freedom of religious expression is suppressed or nonexistent. Be happy with what you have.

If praying isn’t your thing, at least give some thought to the quote that Jack used in his post – “Just remember there is someone out there that is more than happy with less than what you have.” (Unknown) Reflect upon how that could be true and the blessings that you have will flood into your mind. You will be happy with what you have.

Now, doesn’t that make you feel better? Be happy with what you have.

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Posted by Norm Werner

What world Booker T think about today’s world?

March 4, 2024

The Best of Jack’s Winning Words 3/4/24 – reprints of blog posts from the late Pastor Jack Freed.

“A lie doesn’t become truth, wrong doesn’t become right and evil doesn’t become good just because it’s accepted by a majority.” (Booker T. Washington)

Booker T. was born during the Civil War and grew up to be a respected educator, businessman and advisor to presidents. As I reread his quote, I sense that he’d be more than distressed at what has become of truth and the moral life. Truth is truth and right is right! Stand up for the truth, because if you don’t, who will? 😉 Jack

We certainly live in an era where the concept of truth has become muddled, if not for the majority at least for a large minority. Misinformation, disinformation and conspiracy theories have replaced the truth for many, especially those in politics.
But what is truth?
truth
/tro͞oTH/
noun
the quality or state of being true.

that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality.
noun: the truth
“tell me the truth”

a fact or belief that is accepted as true.
plural noun: truths
“the emergence of scientific truths”

It seems that as a society we have moved from the first definition of the truth being in accordance with fact or reality onto the looser part of the second definition – a belief that is accepted as true. Many have accepted conspiracy theories as truths, without any substantial or verifiable proof.

Once one’s view of the world becomes perverted by being based upon lies or false beliefs, it is a short jump to the rest of Booker T’s observation that wrong suddenly appears to be right and evil starts to look like good.

Booker T grew up in a world that was not that long removed from the belief that slave ownership was right, based upon the perverted belief that the slaves were somehow less human than their owners and thus had less rights and could be treated as property. That belief still exists in many parts of the country and has now morphed into a belief that the slaves should have been happy that they were rescued by their owners and taught valuable job skills. That new belief still sees the slaves and their descendants as somehow less human than their masters and thus less deserving of basic human rights.

Booker T would not have been happy with the assault against truth, what is right, and good that is taking place in places like Florida and Texas. Instead of stating that Florida is the place where “woke” goes to die, perhaps Booker T would have said that Florida is the place where the truth goes to die.

Jack’s admonition that we must each stand up for the truth has never been more important. Elections are being won based upon lies. Laws are being written based upon lies. Freedoms are being stripped away, based upon lies. The insanity of gun-related deaths is being protected based upon lies. As a popular TV show used to say in its tag line – “The truth is out there”. It is incumbent upon each of us to find it and to defend it.

There are elections coming up which once again give us the opportunity to vote for people who will base their power to govern on the truth and not just on beliefs or lies. At a minimum you must voted based upon the truth. At best you will work with others to insure that the candidates espousing the truth will win.

The truth is out there. Vote for the truth.

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Posted by Norm Werner