https://youtu.be/BKLVpDTZOPQ?si=NLwr39MyP3hOUqXC

For some reason (that I can’t wait to ask God about) we were built to be together.

Physically, in the same space.

We all need someone to sit next to us.

In our joy.

In our pain.

In our boredom.

In our confusion.

In our sadness.

We need to be there for each other.

Two quick additional thoughts.

One, if you need someone to sit with you – ASK! Don’t try to do it all on your own. Someone wants to be there with and for you – I promise.

Two, if you see someone sitting alone – go sit next to them.

Make it a great day.

Jake

There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self. – Aldous Huxley

It’s so easy to get sucked into spending our time thinking about all the things we don’t control.

What other people think…

What the president does or doesn’t do….

What the economy is or isn’t doing…

What our boss/coworker/customer is doing….

What is the new cool car/tech/clothes…..

If you want things to get better, you have to get better.

Work on what you can control.

And then let God take care of the rest.

Make it a great day.

Jake

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. – Aristotle

So much of our maturity lies in the decision we make between the moment we have a thought and whatever happens next.

Do we accept or reject it?

Do we act on it or let it pass?

Do we believe it and accept it as part of our identity?

Do we weighs its pros and cons?

What thoughts might need a little closer examination?

Thoughts like….

Its only this one small thing….what difference does it make.

I’m unlikeable/unlovable and that explains….

I don’t have time to….

One more day and then I’ll start….

It’s their fault that…..

If only he/she would…..

If I had more money/time I’d…..

Our minds are a fertile garden, growing whatever is planted. Habitual thoughts get planted, deeply and consistently. If we’d like a garden filled with joy, peace, love, etc. then we must plant carefully.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GRyyxmrf8/

I like this idea.

If you want to complain or whine or be negative, set a timer for 5 minutes on your phone.

Get it all out.

Then get over it.

Get back after it.

Life is way too short to spend too much time whining and moaning.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Maggie turns 20 today. Somehow this email from when she turned 16 seems even more relevant today than it did 4 years ago.

Today is Maggie’s 16th birthday.

Teaching Maggie to drive has been an experience in patience and empathy.

She’s full of the enthusiasm and desire for independence that most teenagers have. She’s ready to spread her wings and be her own person.

But the parents….not….quite…..ready. It’s a story as old as time. Parents learning to let go and kids trying to break free.

We watch this wonderful person and (think) we see all the future possibilities and want to have our hands on the steering wheel but have to let go. It’s harder than I thought it would be….

I feel so lucky and blessed to have such a good kid and to have had good parents who cared enough to struggle through all of this on my behalf.

It’s a good reminder that some haven’t been so lucky. We run into people every day and everywhere for whom this process didn’t go as well as it could have. Let’s remember to be as patient and kind with them as we all wished (or were lucky enough to have experienced) for from those in our lives.

God is good and I’m so very thankful that I get to be Maggie’s dad. She sure has taught me a lot.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/dOF6zlXDDoI?si=o-badNJOcQ_0JFa7

I often think of this movie and this scene:
https://youtu.be/953pSxnhoZc?si=71FN80HNLOjPG96e

I’m sure this movie and Bruce Almighty have plenty of moments of blasphemy, but the overall message in each is so good. Casting Morgan Freeman as God sure seems like the right move.

The message I take away from this scene is that God answers our prayers in unexpected ways.

He doesn’t work on our timelines and in the way we expect. He works in His own way and in His own time.

The key thing that I try to remind myself of – He loves me (and you) and wants what is best for me. He isn’t or is answering my prayers out of spite or a power trip or something else – He is or isn’t answering from a place of pure love.

Make it a great day.

Jake

“What’s done is done. There is no need to speak to Edmund about what has passed.” – Aslan from “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”

This is one of my favorite movies/books.

In the movie, Edmund’s character had just made it back after committing an act of treachery. Aslan gave him a “talking to” and then told everyone else the lines above.

We all need someone who can give us the stern talking to when we’ve stepped out of line.

But that isn’t what really stuck out to me.

What stuck out to me in particular was the idea of letting the past be the past. No need to talk about it again.

From both perspectives.

If we are the one needing forgiveness, to let things go and move forward. Not to dwell on our mistakes but to learn from them and move forward.

If we are the ones forgiving, to not bring it up again. To let our loved ones grow and move forward from their past.

Let go of past transgressions. What’s done is done. No need to speak of it again.

Make it a great day.

Jake

The most worth-while thing is to try to put happiness into the lives of others. – Robert Baden-Powell

One of the interesting twists in life is that when we work for joy and happiness for others we tend to find it ourselves.

It’s a mystery though – sometimes it works right away, sometimes it takes years. Sometimes a little effort yields a big reward, sometimes a lot of effort yields a little reward.

It’s not straight math – but it seems to work in one general direction, most of the time.

What to do when life isn’t as straight forward as we’d like it to be?

My advice is to trust the process. Sowing leads to reaping. What we sow, we will reap. So sow wisely. (What a great sentence.)

Try to put some happiness into the lives of others today.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face. – Victor Hugo

Quick reminder – laugh more.

Take a break from that serious book, movie, podcast, TV show, etc.

Pick up something lighthearted and fun.

Call that funny friend.

Watch that stand up comedian.

Do something to make yourself laugh. Maybe even once a day?

Make it a great day.

Jake

“This is the true joy in life: Being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one, being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and, as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.” – George Bernard Shaw

Does this describe you:

A mighty purpose….

A force of nature….

Or does this describe you:

A feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances…

Complaining that the whole world will not devote itself to making you happy…

We all have the same opportunity to find our purpose. To clarify as best we can. To live it every day.

And when we do….

Our splendid torch, which we have a hold for the moment, will burn brightly before we pass it on to the next generations.

If you haven’t taken the time to write down a personal mission statement or purpose statement, hopefully this has inspired you to spend some time working on one.

Make it a great day.

Jake