dignity – Page 9 – Watch. Stand. Pray.

234 – It Starts In Our Hearts

God puts desires in our hearts. When you feel it, recognize it and pay attention. It can be a calling. It can be a prayer request. It can be a message for a friend or even someone you don’t know. It can be instructions to go somewhere or to teach an idea, which is often called “preaching”.

Spiritual gifts come to us in our hearts, perhaps a knack for administration or extreme people skills. God might give us business or political savvy, again beginning in the heart.

Having a topic in your heart does not make you an expert, however. Preaching starts with a fire in the heart from God and can’t be faked. A Bible preacher once said, “An ongoing preacher without God’s anointing will kill people spiritually.” Just because you have a desire for a job does not mean God wants you in that job right now—or ever at all. Perhaps God wants you to pray for people in that job or study it. A classroom or coach can help us refine some skills, diligence and experience are equally vital, but we must also have both the fire and the calling from God in order to be effective in any line of work.

It all comes back to the heart. In the early years around Jesus’s birth, Mary stored things up in her heart to ponder them. She knew that many people would not be able to have peer-level conversation with her as she saw the small blessings while carrying the Son of God in her womb. At times, we all encounter events in life that others could never identify with. Keeping them in your heart to ponder them with God will open up a universe in your inner self.

Never neglect the heart, but keep it as strong as your outward family, social, and work life. In the day Jesus reigns, God’s Law will be written on our hearts. We won’t need anyone to teach us about God because, ultimately, the fire in the heart from God is and comes from God Himself—to know God to love God. As the Image of God, God will speak to our hearts first.

2 Chronicles 29:10, Psalm 40:8, Luke 2:19, 51, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

235 – Excellence in Craft

The work we do is a reflection of who we are as the Image of God the Creator. In being careful and thoughtful in whatever you make or whatever service you perform, you are demonstrating the good character traits of a Divine Image. Angels will watch what you do in order to understand God; even though they have known Him for thousands of years, they will learn more about Him by watching humans perform tasks with excellence. Even when we are not careful, animals see our craft and know that we do things they never could. When we do whatever we do with excellence and care, we bring justice to the world around us.

No one died because bridges were made too well or because paper held it’s form. While wicked men exploit tools for wickedness, their wickedness would continue without quality work. But, if the bridge holds, then people can cross in safety and we can come to the rescue of people who have no hope. If paper holds its form, messages and ideas can make their ways through the world, helping humanity to understand each other and progress.

When you don’t do a good job, you create cleanup work for others, thus taxing their time when they have done nothing wrong. Such is not the justice of God. Having your work finished properly, well-assembled, robust, and suited for its purpose, other people can focus on their own tasks and needs, having their work been helped by whatever part you finished well.

No matter how insignificant or boring, your work explains God and dispenses justice to everything around you. Work and effort are like a shining light, but traveling through the presence of tools and pathways rather than through photons.

Rightly so, God will judge every one of us for how we perform our work much more than whatever work it is that we do. If you drive a car, drive it with skill, speed, safety, and respect for other drivers on the road. If you clean toilets, minister to every visitor of the lavatory by granting them the cleanliness of Heaven. If you govern, help the efforts of the skilled people you serve.

238 – Exclusive Respect

All dogs might go to Heaven, but humans ain’t dogs. Prayer works powerfully on the condition that it is requested to Jesus as the one and only. Jesus does not ask that Christians squabble and contend with others over matters of faith and doctrine, but he does not accept being confused with the devil either.

One dangerous lie in the spineless blog of “unificationism” is the argument that bringing up the devil is the source of evil. That itself is a lie from the devil since the devil’s second greatest achievement is to convince humanity that he doesn’t exist; his greatest accomplishment is convincing humanity that he is the Jesus of Sunday Morning. If people believe that their worship of the devil is actually worship of Jesus, then wicked men can sleep at night and those who hate the devil’s deed will misplace the blame on Jesus. The devil exists and lurks. Avoiding him or denying his very evident existence does no service.

Wickedness, like gentlemen’s disagreements, must be accounted for, never dwelt on. Identify the devil, then forget about him. Decent people are able to disagree without becoming unfriendly. People who claim that “all religions are the same” do so to mask their immature inability to be respectable in differences. Jesus taught to know the truth and to love all people. Christianity is able to recognize Jesus as the one and only mediator between God and man while not needing to fight others. Needing agreement in order to get along is a sign that someone desperately needs Jesus.

Never encourage anyone to believe both Jesus and another religion. Doing so will not make two friends, but two enemies.

Jesus is the exclusive Christ because he alone is the Son, the Word made flesh, sacrificing himself to open the way. His message is repentance toward hope based on knowable truth.

The “tolerance” movement that demands so-called “acceptance” of everyone will harshly reject anyone who doesn’t define tolerance on their terms. This is their proof of a self-contradicting worldview. Don’t take the passive-aggressive little comments that “everyone is right” because those comments will quickly turn hostile-aggressive. Jesus path of truth and love is the higher perspective.

246 – Anger Poisons the Angry

Anger is a deadly toxin. Physicians claim the same on a medical level. Psychologists deal with it on a social level. The Bible makes its own contribution. Anger is every bit contagious as it is toxic. Don’t join the epidemic.

The topic of anger is double-edged: whether to deal with anger in oneself or to deal with anger from others. Either way, know that anger is self-destructive; don’t self-destruct and don’t fret about people who do.

Anger is not about forgiveness; the two are unrelated. “Forgiveness” is actually a choice to not seek repayment on a debt, whether through money, sweat, or blood. Anger, however, is about the choice of where to focus one’s thought life.

Things happen in life that are bound to make us angry. For whatever reason, we let these things surprise us. We get indignant and act surprised as if whatever happened to us makes us the only thirsty starfish in the ocean.

Never forget that the next hitch in your plans has already been prepared. When the time is right, you’ll be provoked to anger. Be ready and know what you will do before that time comes. Don’t let anger catch you off guard.

We can limp through life for years, clinging to whatever thing happened to us so long ago; many people make it decades, half a century or even more. That anger infects the mind, promoting the lie that carrying the past will make your journey better in some way. We don’t need to bring our past with us in order to learn from it. Take your lesson in a doggy bag and get out of town, leave anger behind and make tracks as fast as you can.

What happened once might never happen the same way again. Chewing on what happened in the past—mulling over it—replaying it again and again—arguing with people in your mind—that only makes things worse, solving nothing.

We don’t know every reason why things happened they did. When we make ourselves the “firemen” to save ourselves from a house fire, we climb the firetruck ladder right back into the flames. Just save yourself and get out of the house.

249 – Correct by Teaching Indirectly

Say what you mean and mean what you say, but do so with charm and never say everything you think. Some ideas are foolish and you will disagree yourself after a few seconds, but you can’t take those words back.

Learn the art of indirection and implication. When someone is blatantly foolish, discuss abstract topics related more fundamentally to their error. Love “conceals” a sin, which means when someone makes a big mistake, help to heal the problem, don’t gossip, publishing and promulgating that person’s error. Don’t make the wound bigger; just help fix it.

Sometimes we can be blunt, other times we only need to drip small, relevant ideas in the form of unrelated advice or discussing topics on a broad or detailed level that no one else will recognize as relating to the topic at hand

Remember however, that when you solve a problem indirectly, you give up all claim to expect that other people understand you. If your purpose is to be clear, then be clear and literal. If your goal is to be diplomatic, then clarity is not your goal, so it can’t be your expectation either.

When a dog poops in the house, say, “No,” pick it up with a tissue, take it outside with the dog, place it on the ground, then smile and say, “Good dog.” This is the best way to potty train a dog because the dog wants to obey, but needs to understand the rules in order to obey them. Dogs and people share this ability to learn. Quietly doing a task the correct way, with minimal explanation, can be a respectful way to help other people learn.

If people don’t get your message, be more direct, but of course with charm.

When Simon the Pharisee harbored arrogance toward the woman washing Jesus’s feet in Simon’s house, Jesus addressed Simon’s error with a parable and a philosophical question. In the end, no one knew the relevance but Simon and Jesus. Jesus worded Simon’s teaching for everyone, “Those who have been forgiven much love much, just like this woman.” Neither depend solely on shooting straight nor using indirection; master both because each will have its day.

Proverbs 17:9, Luke 7:36-50

250 – Bring Sunshine

Rain is not contagious. When you enter a dark and stormy social environment, don’t let the rain clouds convince you to become a rain cloud yourself. Bring some sunshine to spare.

Joy is a choice, but not everyone has learned to make that choice. Learn the choice of joy yourself so you can bring it to people who haven’t yet learned. You might even end up teaching a few people by example.

In some sense it’s better to light a lamp and keep watch, rather than hide in a corner and curse the darkness. But, the greater value is in being the source of light yourself. Don’t depend on an external light source—be that light source yourself and just stand up.

Ponder the proverb, “A gentle answer turns away wrath.” It’s truly about bringing sunshine to someone who is so angry that he wants to hurt you.

No one wakes up in the morning and randomly decides to go injure people; injured people injure people, and they do this because they are sad, angry, upset—some rain cloud looms over their lives. They feel that there is some enemy out there causing them trouble, denying them sunlight, so they will punch at anything in their way hoping to punch a hole in the rainstorm overhead. To shine the light of kindness is to give what is most needed, especially in times of anger.

The sun isn’t only about feeling good, it provides vital nutrients. Any of us can become angry and bitter when we are malnourished, you have those moments yourself. Smacking people for smacking people doesn’t remove the hunger to smack people, it only grows the hunger. Anger is toxic, but it stems from malnutrition. Once you can see lack of sunshine as a deficiency of light rather than an excess of darkness you will be able to help friends through their own times of trouble, even friends you never knew you could have.

We celebrate people who cheer us up, you know who those people are. You can be that person. It only takes the choice to be happy. When it’s raining on someone’s parade, offer aid by bringing your own sunshine.

254 – Do Your Best Always and All Your Work Will Last

Every day, every moment, make every effort your best. The Universe and its Creator are watching you. Gravity will find favor for those who never slack off and hold to high standards, even when no one is looking. God created laws of nature to work that way, to reward righteousness done in secret. There is no way you can ever serve kings and queens if you don’t serve everyone as you would a king or queen.

Kings and queens want to hire people who make excellence seem effortless, which means that your best needs to be your “normal”. Never give into the poison of people telling you, “That’s good enough,” when you know it’s not.

It is true that with some things we need to recognize that high standards are not our highest priority. Knowing what things to “do to standard” and with what things to “exceed expectation” is part of good judgment—part of doing your best. No matter how old we get, we never stop improving our good judgment of knowing which standards fit where. So, always do your best at learning this good judgment.

If you know that more work won’t help and that other matters need your attention, move on. If you know you have exhausted your energies for the time being, rest. But, never lay down your hammer and pen because you want an excuse to not do your best. Only the best work pays the best.

Place a high value on delayed gratification in every sector of life. Hard work empowers delayed gratification and delayed gratification teaches us self-control, creating resilience against corruption, bribery, and blackmail. With consumer products, don’t make a product that is weak, then ask the customer to “be careful”. Make the product idiot-proof. Murphy’s Law applies to testing; diligently test and consider every scenario.

In college, I came to define “integrity” as a structure’s ability to withstand: 1. use, 2. abuse, 3. time, and 4. the elements. I was building two coffee stands. Observing, my father said, “People are going to stand on these things and do all sorts of things they weren’t made for. If you make them strong, they’ll out-live you, just like grandpa’s bookshelf over there.”