On Sundays I write on Spirituality, Faith and Ethics.  I do it because I believe we’re all spiritual beings and have some sort of a moral compass in our lives.  You can learn more by clicking here.

How did you start your day today?

This morning, after my alarm sounded, I took a few moments to express gratitude to God for another day of life.  It’s a habit I learned several years ago.  I put it into practice every day.

Each morning, I also express thanks for the people in my life who mean the most to me – my family and friends – and also for the people who have impacted my life over the last few days.

I also take time to say thanks for other blessings in my life:  a good income, a comfortable home, a car to drive, clothes to wear, and food to eat.

I used to not be so thrilled to wake up and start my day.  But thanks to a book entitled Receiving the Day: Christian Practices for Opening the Gift of Time by Dorothy C. Bass, I’ve learned to start each day by receiving it as a gift, being grateful for what I have, and deciding to make the most of the day for myself and others.

This practice of gratitude, called “receiving the day,” is an ancient Christian tradition, but anyone can practice it.  Whether you express thanks to God or to no one in particular, I believe the act of giving thanks does something to us and for us.

For me, it helps keep me positive, helps me realize the important contributions that others make in our lives, and inspires me to do all I can to help and bless others.

If you have a hard time waking up in the morning, or if you find yourself waking up on the “wrong” side of bed with an unhappy attitude, you might give “receiving the day” a try.  It’s made a difference in your life.  Maybe it will in yours too.

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Giving Thanks

On Sundays I write on Spirituality, Faith and Ethics.  I do it because I believe we’re all spiritual beings and have some sort of a moral compass in our lives.  You can learn more by clicking here.

A few days ago, my friend Mark Wilson asked the question, “How Do You Define Success?” on his blog.

After asking the question, he went on to share some of the popular definitions of success that we hear in the world today.  Here’s what he wrote:

Many people define success as MORE:

More money
More toys
More vacations
More luxuries
More things

Others define success as BETTER:

Driving a better car
Living in a better house
Having better vacations
Being promoted to a better position

Still, others define success as ATTRACTION:

Being beautiful
Being intelligent
Being popular
Being acclaimed

Some define success as POWER:

Influence
Authority
Strength
Conquest

But how does the Bible define success?

Read the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. They are considered wisdom literature, written by Solomon, noted as the wisest man who ever lived. How is success defined in the world’s greatest wisdom guides?

1. Trusting God.
2. Being Faithful
3. Seeking Wisdom and Understanding
4. Enjoying your Work
5. Enjoying your Relationships
6. Staying Sweet
7. Doing Good
8. Blessing (Refreshing) Others

In other words, true success goes far deeper than the outward appearance. It is a matter of the heart.

“Commit to the Lord all that you do and your plans will succeed.” Proverbs 16:3
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might. . .” Ecclesiastes 9:10
“A generous man will prosper. He who refreshes others, will himself be refreshed.” Proverbs 11:25

What do you think?  Do any of these match up with your definition of success?

On Sundays I write on Spirituality, Faith and Ethics.  I do it because I believe we’re all spiritual beings and have some sort of a moral compass in our lives.  You can learn more by clicking here.

If you’ve been a reader at Life Compass for a while, you know I am a firm believer in the power of brainstorming and making plans to achieve goals and dreams in life.

But, is there ever a limit to human planning?  A proverb from The Bible seems to indicate that there is:

We humans keep brainstorming options and plans, but God’s purpose prevails (Proverbs 19:21).

Taken at face value, this proverb says that God’s purpose, or his plan, prevails regardless of the plans I make.  In addition, I think there are a few other principles we can extract:

• Even if I screw things up, God will still make happen the things he wants to happen.
• If God wants me to do something, and I don’t, he will use someone else to do it.
• It will be beneficial to me if the plans I make line up with God’s purpose for me, as best as I understand it.
• I can’t thwart the universal principles or laws that God has set into place…like the idea that we reap what we sew.

What do you think?  Have you ever noticed this to be true in your own life?

On Sundays I write on Spirituality, Faith and Ethics.  I do it because I believe we’re all spiritual beings and have some sort of a moral compass in our lives, and because the topic personally interests me.  You can learn more by clicking here.

Today, the Bernie Madoff scandal is in the news again, due to the death of Madoff associate Jeffry Picower.  Picower, who had a fortune of over $1 billion according to this year’s Forbes 400 List (he ranked #371), was found dead in his Palm Beach swimming pool, of an apparent heart attack.

This entire saga, of how a few people bilked billions of dollars from hundreds of innocent investors, is a tragedy on two counts:

1. Because they deceived hundreds of innocent people.
2. Because they deceived themselves.

Most of the news coverage has focused on tragedy #1 – the hundreds of innocent people who have been deceived, many of whom have lost everything.

But more important, in my mind, is tragedy #2.  Why?  Because a person can’t deceive others until he has first deceived himself.

Conversely, these great tragedies which affect others can be avoided if we first manage our own lives well.

Self-deception is one of the greatest enemies we face when it comes to personal growth and work-life balance.  It is a self-betrayal against our moral compass, our innate sense of what we know is right and wrong.

And it rarely stays small.  Self-deception in one area of life almost inevitably lead to problems in other areas – especially our career, finances, and relationships.

What can you do to prevent self-deception in your life?  I have an idea that sounds too simple and obvious, but it works.

Simply ask yourself, at least once a week:  Am I deceiving myself in any area of my life?

You can make this a part of your weekly review process.  Think back over your actions from this past week.  Are you proud of them all?  Have you cut corners?  Have you told white lies?  Have there been times when your actions haven’t quite matched up to your beliefs?

If so, the good news is that you still have time to do something about them, before it is too late.  The sooner we make corrections, the lower the cost.

This point is so important that I’d like to say it again, in a different way.  The longer we deceive ourselves, and others, the higher the cost – to us, to those we’ve directly impacted, and to those we love the most.

Give it a try, and let me know if this exercise is a help to you.  In fact, why not start right now?

If you’re new to Life Compass, on Sundays I write on Spirituality, Faith and Ethics.  I do it because I believe we’re all spiritual beings and have some sort of a moral compass in our lives, and because the topic personally interests me.  You can learn more by clicking here.

For thousands of years, millions of people have turned to The Book of Psalms for comfort in times of need and for instruction and wisdom in how to live a life of meaning and purpose.

There’s one Psalm in particular that speaks to me about work-life balance, and that’s Psalm 127:1-2.  Here it is, from The Message paraphrase at www.biblegateway.com:

If God doesn’t build the house, the builders only build shacks.
If God doesn’t guard the city,
the night watchman might as well nap.

It’s useless to rise early and go to bed late,
and work your worried fingers to the bone.
Don’t you know he enjoys
giving rest to those he loves?

To me, verse 1 says that I can do nothing in my own strength that will be of lasting value.  If God is not the initiator, if he is not directing and guiding my steps, if he is not the driving force of what I’m doing, then all that I strive for will come to nothing.

Verse 2 is closely related.  It tells me that if God is the initiator, if he’s guiding and directing my steps, then there’s no need to knock myself out by staying up late or getting up early all the time to try to get the task done.

Yes, I need to be diligent and do my part.  But there is a time to rest, and rest is a gift from God.  I wrote about that in last Sunday’s post: How a Day of Rest Can Improve Work-Life Balance.

Whenever I read this Psalm, I wrestle with a couple of questions that pop into my head:

1. Doesn’t God value hard work? I think the answer to this, from reading the whole of scripture, is that he does value diligence and hard work.  But if God is not “in” whatever it is that I’m doing, no amount of hard work on my part will make up for God’s uninvolvement or lack of blessing.
2. Is it wrong for me to stay up late or get up early in order to get ahead? I think there are times when it may make sense for us to do this.  But if we consistently short-change our sleep in order to get work done, we might think we’re getting ahead in our career or finances, but we may end up falling behind in other life areas like our health or relationships.
3. How can I know that I’m doing what God wants me to do? I can only tell you what has worked for me.  I seek to have a relationship with God through prayer, reading the scriptures, and seeking to follow his ways.  The more I do these things, the more I feel like I know what God wants me to do. When I’m in doubt or unsure, I ask people who know me best – my spouse and friends – for their help in discerning whether I’m on the right track or not.
   

In times when my life feels out of balance, I’m learning to pause and ask myself these questions:

1. Is God “in” what I’m doing?  Is it consistent with what I know about God, and what I know he wants me to do? This is a question of the heart.
   
2. Am I doing it in the right way, in a way that is consistent with the values that are important to me? This is a question of my actions and obedience.
   
3. Am I doing it for the right reasons? This is a question of my motivation.

Does your life feel like it is out of balance right now?  Do you feel the stress level rising?  Do you find yourself moving backwards while you’re trying to get ahead?

If so, you might want to make time to consider how these scriptures could be applied in your own life.  If you have questions or need help, let me know.