Blood, Sweat, and Tears

This week I am very grateful for the gift of a new friendship.

Yes, we have been neighbors for nearly a year and have willingly spent a few minutes in over-the-fence-hey-how-are-you-conversations during the past 12 months. But this time, a spur-of-the-moment decision led us to spend a couple of hours talking.   

NOTE: This was not a result of any Mediterranean Egg Salad distribution.  But since I’ve opened this topic, I think I will change that plan by replacing the egg salad for Smores.  As I was thinking about it, I wondered how many people would be appreciative of some homemade item dropped off at their door from someone they really don’t know. And since it’s summer, leaving a dish made with mayonnaise outside in the heat also seemed like potential trouble. In my head, I was hearing, "Danger, Will Robinson." Smores will probably be a safer and more acceptable plan. 

Anyway, back to my new friend and the real reason for writing.

A Heaven on Earth Recipe

It’s almost summer.  I equate that with egg salad sandwiches. There were two things my mother loved for lunch during the hotter season in Minnesota (whether ‘summer’ was for a month or just for a few days). Egg Salad held favored first preference followed very closely by the famous BLT. I had a great childhood!

I suspect that lunchtime with the bacon-lettuce-tomato came in second because of the tomato. They HAD to be garden-grown fresh, or the sandwich was completely ruined. The eggs?  Well, anytime works for eggs.

Impactful Stores 2 - The Styrofoam Cup

Written by Simon Sinek.
Found published by A Learning a Day.

"I heard a story about a former Under Secretary of Defense who gave a speech at a large conference. He took his place on the stage and began talking, sharing his prepared remarks with the audience. He paused to take a sip of coffee from the Styrofoam cup he’d brought on stage with him. He took another sip, looked down at the cup and smiled.

“You know,” he said, interrupting his own speech, “I spoke here last year. I presented at this same conference on this same stage. But last year, I was still an Under Secretary,” he said.

Impactful Stories 1 - Stay on the Bus

I am still working through the “Power” series. It was my goal to publish the second article this morning. Although I’m taking the easy road today, you’re not off the hook.

Graduation season is upon us, and the associated speeches will be quoted by many in the coming months and years.  I wrote about one of these speeches in 2017 with “Airborne Mortar Boards”.  

Only one of the following stories was spoken as advice to graduates. But I believe that as we travel our own paths, we are continually graduating. We learn, evaluate, consider, decide, and improve (or not). Our life's trajectory serves to make these two stories forever appropriate.

I will make no comment on the words chosen by the speakers. I will leave it to you entirely. That’s me being lazy. I have every confidence you'll see something of personal value by the time you're finished.

It's Only a Dollar

I was checking out groceries this past week. When it was time to pay, I was asked if I would like to contribute to a charity. The clerk added, “It’s only a dollar.”

Of course, this was just a little extra nudge from a sales position. It was also a statement that the amount is not significant to me especially considering a fifty-dollar grocery bill. Well, I agreed and one more dollar was added to my total.

The interaction cranked up the wheels of brain activity and silent questions began pinging around inside grey matter.

• Was the sales pitch correct or is that dollar important to me?
• Was I (just a little bit) conned?
• Whether the dollar was or was not significant to me, was it significant to the cause?
• Would the clerk be impressed if I said, “Yes?”
• Would I be impressed if I said, “Yes?”

One Dollar. I decided that it was all about the mindset in which we find ourselves at that point in time. A particularly interesting discovery reveals that the decision is made in a split second.  Not much pondering. No little voice saying, “Let me think about it and I’ll get back to you.” Just a heartbeat followed by the affirmative - or not. And at that moment, we have reacted based on, 

• Value comparisons and trade-offs,
• Worldview stories of self-image, generosity, and compassion,
• The tribes (relationships, friends, families) we belong to,
• Fear, scarcity, and security.

In other words, this simple decision (to give a dollar or not) is based on our entire history. What matters at this very moment is based on what has happened to us in the past and what we think will happen to us in the future. 

If we love clipping coupons, this dollar might be quite a score. If we have been donation-burned in the past, we will hesitate. In either case, we are probably more likely to refuse this contribution.

However, if we are just leaving a church after hearing a sermon on generosity, the decision to say no might be overruled in a blink.

In this example, we are completely subject to impulse giving.

If we've said yes to this impulse, we might be patting ourselves on the back as we revel in thoughts of our generous nature as it lifts our spirits and puts a bounce in our step. Our good deed for the day has been realized!

This is truly a good thing we've done!

But let's just reflect on the statement written earlier: 

"In other words, this simple decision (to give a dollar or not) is based on our entire history. What has happened to us in the past and what we think will happen to us in the future matters."

Given the concept that impulse decisions are based on our entire history (worldview, fear, etc.) we will be more likely to accept the challenge of impulse giving if we are already cultivating a spirit of generosity in our daily lives. This is done through deliberate action and prayer. 

Our focus on intentional generosity will effectively create a generous worldview within us.

• We will be more likely to respond positively to impulse giving.
• We will more often feel the satisfaction of a generous nature.
• We will find ourselves becoming more loving as we understand the needs of others.
• We will find that money isn't the only form of generosity as we notice ways to be actively involved with our communities and the entire world.

"Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!" Psalm 119:36

Speaking of generosity, is there anything at all more generous than a good mother?

From Hannah Kardon, Pastor at Elston Avenue United Methodist Church

"To the Moms Who Are

• To the Moms who are struggling, to those filled with incandescent joy.
• To the Moms who are remembering children who have died, and pregnancies that miscarried.
• To the Moms who decided other parents were the best choice for their babies, to the Moms who adopted those kids and loved them fiercely.
• To those experiencing frustration or desperation in infertility.
• To those who knew they never wanted kids and the ways they have contributed to our shared world.
• To those who mothered colleagues, mentees, neighborhood kids, and anyone who needed it.
• To those remembering Moms no longer with us.
• To those moving forward from Moms who did not show love, or hurt those they should have cared for.
• Today is a day to honor the unyielding love and care for others we call 'Motherhood,' wherever we have found it and in whatever ways we have found to cultivate it within ourselves."

Looking at Power, Article 1 – Power OF ONE

This title might scare you because it mentions the word “power” followed by the realization that this won’t be the last time. 

Don’t be. This thing started with a dream. All I know about this dream is that a week ago, I woke up and wrote down the words, “Power of One” and then quietly and uneventfully slid back into the unconscious world of sleep. 

Note: There was no drinking before, during, or after this event.

The next day, I put this topic on ice 

Note: There was no drinking before, during, or after this event.  

The scribbled words of my midnight madness were marked, ‘Pending: Consider for future exploration’.

And then, this very morning, I heard a teaching about, yes it should be obvious, power. The future is here, and exploration has apparently begun. 

If you remember, I chose millimeters as my "Word of the Year" for 2022. This year, I am to review the almost imperceptible adjustments that can be made to create incredible, beautiful, and beneficial results in all areas of my life.

The "Word of the Year" relates to the word power as the word power itself relates to various prepositions (read: millimeters).  And here we are.

I will just start this series with The Power OF ONE. since that's where the dream started.

One is an important number. I am remembering an impactful sermon heard many years ago. I know it was because I still remember it!  Here’s what I said in a post written in 2015. 

“If I put the things in my life before the substance of my life, I'm making a tragic mistake.  If I put my job (in my life) before God (my life), I've put the zero first. If I put my finances, friends, vacation plans, retirement plans, and the other things in my life first, there is no value gained. But, if I put God first, before the zero, the value of both increases. “

To clarify:

• Placing the things of my life first (zero before one - 01, 001, 0001, etc.) will not increase the value of my life nor will it increase the value of my relationship with God. 
• Placing God first (one before zero - 10, 100, 1000, etc.) increases both. 

Credit:
Jacobs Media Strategies

God is the Power of One.

But so am I. And so are you!

He has made us in His image with the ability to love. He has provided the ability to see, hear, and feel the needs of someone else.  With simple actions, we can change someone’s life.

That also is the Power of One.

“Good humans never fail to remind us that there is a lot to be grateful for.” (A Learning a Day)

Just a thought. Perhaps we could spend our power being good humans.