The Power of Suffering

 

I always found it hard to grasp passages like Colossians 1:24, where Paul says that he rejoices in his sufferings.  It feels as though we are going against our very nature to be happy about being uncomfortable.  It seems hard to imagine that any person could rejoice in sufferings.  How could anyone delight in being beaten, molested, fired, robbed or any other act that produces suffering?  What about deaths and divorces?  Why would anyone want to celebrate these things? Read more

Cocooning

 

Today’s culture has influenced many people into living a “cocooned life.”  In other words, we act according to the situation at hand in a way socially acceptable in all areas of life.  The message that it’s ok to be a Christian as long as you keep it at church is being heard more and more.  The first time I noticed this cocooing was many years ago while working at a warehouse.  The owner of a chain of electonic appliance stores was talking, defending himself because someone asked him about the priorities in his life.  I don’t remember the question that triggered the response, but I will remember the answer for the rest of my life. Read more

Am I Righteous Because I Can See A Little Wrong?

 

No one doubts that Ron Wilkins impacted the lives of many people before he died.  However, there were people who would not have anything to do with him because he had spent time in prison.  This is in spite of all the wonderful things he had done.  One may wonder why this would happen to someone like Ron, but the answer is quite simple.  It comes from one person thinking that someone else has an unforgivable sin and this attitude is an especially great temptation for people who have been raised in a spiritual environment.  These people have been taught the mindset that if they have not done anything as bad as someone else, they must be more righteous than him.  Read more

Keeping this World in its Proper Perspective

There are many who currently have high stress levels due to fear.   Fear of economic melt down, job loss, and the changes that are happening in the country are just a few.   These fears are understandable, but not absolutely necessary.  In reality, the events happening throughout the world are nothing to fear at all as long as people keep this world in its proper perspective. Read more

Can One Be Positive?

Anyone who has gone through the SFT Awareness training will know that an important piece of the pain processing puzzle is the positive attitude. One day I was working with a student who was struggling with issues at work. This person said he would try to think positively when issues came up, but was having a hard time at that. I then asked him what it means to be positive. The student really could not give a straight answer, but neither could I. It was then I realized that it was impossible for one to be positive. The idea of a positive attitude is really too broad a concept to grasp mentally. This makes it difficult to come up with positive solutions when the term itself is not properly defined. That is why this attitude must be broken down into smaller steps. Read more

Follow the Operating Manual

As I was growing up, my father may have thought I did not listen to what he had to say. However, I did learn many lessons from him as I grew up.  One of those lessons was to use things for what they were designed to do.  For example, I may use a socket wrench as a hammer or us the wrong shaped socket on a bolt.  Sure enough I would break or strip something causing us to go get a new part. 

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