My wife and millions of other people read Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling or Jesus Calling Devotional Bible every day. While doing so their faiths have been strengthened and their lives transformed.

Jesus Calling was written as if Jesus Christ was calling you for a chat. Today’s essay contains wise and thoughtful advice for each of us to consider this Father’s Day.

STAY ON THE HIGH ROAD WITH ME. 1

“Many voices clamor for your attention, trying to divert you to another path. But I have called you to walk ever so closely with Me, soaking in My Presence, living in My Peace. This is My unique design for you, planned before the world began.

Bad foundations in relationships lead to relationship-rot.

A bad start to a relationship does not have to be a deal-breaker, but it usually is.

Why does it happen that way?

Because broken people break people, and hurting people hurt people.

– When people assume others will abandon them, they choose not to invest.
– When people assume others are suspicious, they choose not to trust.
– When people assume others will take rather than give, they selfishly protect.
– When people assume others are means to an end: “Greed meets a need.”

That sounds so fatalistic, but it’s not.

Often times when people contact me about their relationship problems it’s because their relationships were built on unstable foundations.

Let me explain, relationships, like buildings, need a firm and solid foundation including:
– Honesty
– Respect
– Kindness
– Thoughtfulness

Unfortunately, many relationships begin just the opposite:
– Dishonesty
– Suspicion
– Selfishness
– Greed

Oh, I know that sounds harsh, but it’s true. Consider these four examples:

Example 1 – Because of deep-seated fears rooted after the loss of her mother at a young add she guards herself with dishonesty.

As I was approaching fifty years old I sought the wisdom of my elders. I sought out men and women older than I was to learn lessons on life that they had been learning.

Last Monday I began a series entitled A Treasure Chest Of Wisdom, including:

1. Don’t Hold Grudges
2. Take Care Of Your Health.
3. Compassion Makes Sense and Giving Is Better Than Taking
4. Greed Gains Momentum
5. Gratitude Leads To Contentment
6. Contentment Leads To Generosity

Everyone Splashes.  Splash Blessings.

Today begins a three-part series on chains that lock us down. 

By that I mean that:

They shackle us to selfishness
They clamp our compassion
They fasten our desire to offer forgiveness
They latch us to loneliness
They padlock our potential

Today’s two chains poison us:

Gotta Be My Way – If we spend all our time demanding that others think and sound like we do we’ll never really learn, much less embrace, what they think.

Drama Dragger – Trying to drag others into our emotional slop so they will make us feel better never works for long.

“Run — flee the evil desires of youth; run away; run away from infantile indulgence; run from temptations that capture young people; run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts — instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.“  1

Okay, yeah love is the obvious choice, but why does the choice STILL have to be so [expletive] hard!

1 – 2 Timothy 2:22

Yesterday was my wife Amy’s birthday. 

Amy is one of the most caring and unselfish people I know.  She is often a benchmark of selflessness.  More than once I thought I should wear a W>W>A>D> bracelet to remind me to ask myself, “What Would Amy Do?”, in order to overcome some of my natural selfishness.

What is one way that I can intentionally give up some of my selfishness today?

I try to have high moral standards, but I think that question is a fair question to ask every day.

My selfishness unintentionally compromises the health of my relationships.

9493 days ago I met this really cute blond girl in the lobby of her college dorm. A couple months later I was thrilled she agreed to go out with me.  You can read more about our relationship here.

As Amy and I started dating it became clear that she set a benchmark of kindness, humility and thoughtfulness that far exceeded my own.

Amy does not pursue unsolicited attention for her actions, but I watched and wondered, “Could I ever be like her?”

Embrace Yourself!

Late Spring is a time for renewal.  Everything in my garden is coming alive again.  It’s a great time for reflection and self assessment.  Through the month of June I’m writing about the importance of embracing yourself, the real, the whole you.

Gathering into yourself all the pieces of you.

Embrace Yourself!

Note – No theft nor harm intended.  I’ll gladly give credit to the photographer[s] and owner[s].    I found the photos in this series attached to a file called cool-images4121_pps.