Just Continue That Thought...

A thought by Ken Blanchard & Morton Shaevitz (2015-02-02) from their book, Refire! Don't Retire:Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life (p. 112). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Ken and Morton say that, “EGO stands for Edging God Out.”  You call the shots, it’s all on you and that is great if you have a strong self-worth.  But then they asked, “Did you ever notice in your career that your performance was better at some times than others... And have you noticed that people are fickle— sometimes they’re with you and the next minute they’re not?” Then they said, “So your performance varies and people’s opinion of you fluctuates. When you base your self-worth on outside influences like these, every day is like walking on eggshells, because how you feel about yourself is totally dependent on outside circumstances and other people.”  But here is the key, “When you believe you are loved unco

A thought by Ken Blanchard & Morton Shaevitz (2015-02-02) from their book, Refire! Don't Retire:Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life (p. 31). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) We need people to fulfill who God wants us to be and to help us to mature.  God said that the first two main purposes that he has for us is to love him and to love other people.  It is a both and.  And the evil one does all he can to keep us from fulfilling his purpose in our life and to keep us from maturing. Ken and Morton give insights into what we are to do to refire through telling a story.  And they use a couple named Harold and Wendy to give us good advice in the relational part of refiring. Harold says, “Wendy and I believe that feedback is the breakfast of champions. If you really get to know others well, you’ll grow close enough that they’ll be willing to praise you when you’re fun to hang around with an

A thought by Ken Blanchard & Morton Shaevitz (2015-02-02) from their book, Refire! Don't Retire: Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life (p. 9). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) I love the title of this book, “ Refire! Don't Retire: Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life.”   And I am a living example of this title.   Now I am 67 and doing all I can to continue living the adventure that God has creative me to live.   And even at this stage of my life, it is truly an adventure and I do live it with all the gusto I can.   But do you?   Maybe no matter your age you would like to refire. That thought really clicks inside of you. Ken and Morton say, “To refire… i s to see each day as an opportunity for adventure and learning! It’s to infuse passion and zest into every area of your life— emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual. Heart, head, body, and soul.”   Is that

A thought by Ken Blanchard & Morton Shaevitz (2015-02-02) from their book, Refire! Don't Retire:Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life (p. 29). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Now I know that doesn’t come as a surprise to you but that doesn’t mean we just accept that fact and do nothing about those negative feelings.  Here is how the thought continues, “…and while we may not be able to control how we feel, we are responsible for how we react to those feelings. Whenever I feel anger building, I try to stop and take a deep breath. If I can, I might go for a short walk to calm down— because I know if I let that anger out, it’s not going to help the situation or make the world a better place.” What do you do?  Do you let those negative feelings control you and your day?   Or do you creatively find a way to turn those negative feelings into something that will make as they say, “the world

A thought by Ken Blanchard & Morton Shaevitz (2015-02-02) from their book, Refire! Don't Retire: Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life (Kindle Locations 308-309). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you found that there are some people that know how to rob you of joy?   I’m mean you want to walk away fast when you see them coming.   But what about looking at them in a new way.   And this thought is a good way to do that.   Take some time and do what you can to search for that pearl of good that is in them.   Yes they have that shell like the oyster that is not beautiful and when you see it you want to throw it away but what about that pearl that is inside it.   It takes some time but when you break it open you see that which is of great value inside them. That’s what Jesus does with each one of us.   Oh yes he sees the outside but he also sees the great potential for good that is insi