Digging for Gold

Americans today feel a need to find a deeper meaning to life. This is true of religious and non-religious people alike. I see at least 4 signs of this.

First, success and self-help literature is immensely popular. Apparently, people don't feel successful.

Secondly, Christian and religious success and self-help books are, if anything, more popular than even the secular market. The Associated Press published and article on May 20th, 2001 titled, "Writers Promote Bible as Self-help Manual". In fact, I recently visited a very large Christian book store and one of the largest sections in the store was called "Self-Help". by the way, one of the Christian books mentioned in the article was, If Men are Like Buses Then How Do I Catch One? Some of the more serious titles:

Half Time: Changing Your Game Plan from Success to Significance

The Gift of Peace (which sold 350,000 copies within 9 weeks).

So the literature is out there in vast quantities, indicating that people are interested in success and significance.

Thirdly, there is a rapidly developing new profession called "life coaching". At the August, 2001 World Conference of Christian Counselors, which I attended, more than 300 therapists, psychiatrists, and counselors gathered in a work-shop that hailed life coaching as an emerging trend. The definition of life coaching: a client-coach relationship that empowers the client to take action toward greater fulfillment in life. The fees are not inexpensive but people are signing up by the hundreds.

Fourthly, I know from personal experience the feeling that "there is something more to me than the world has yet seen." Do you ever have a feeling like that? Something great in you struggling to get out?

There is a deeply felt need among many Americans, no less in the church than out of it, to find a more significant and fulfilling way of life.

This need can be described as the quest to discover one's destiny. The Christian author and speaker Joyce Meyer, in her book How to Succeed at Being Yourself, says, "I hope you have a dream of vision in your heart for something greater than you have now. Ephesians 3:20 KJV tells us that God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond all that we can hope or ask or think. If we are not thinking, hoping, or asking for anything, we are cheating ourselves. We need to think big thoughts, hope for big things and ask for big things. I always say, I would rather ask God for a lot and get half of it, than to ask Him for a little and get all of it."

Finally, Joyce says, "There is a gold mine hidden in every life, but we have to dig to get to it."

Are you digging for the gold in your life? Have you even scratched the surface yet? Why wait any longer? Begin today thinking, hoping and praying for big things.

In the Beginning

In the beginning, God intended for you to pursue passionately His divinely ordained purpose for your existance. He designed that purpose for you and you for that purpose.

Your talents and fundamental characteristics, when fully developed and applied correctly, are the perfect tools for your specific assignment.

You experience a richness and fulness of life that cannot be improved on when you are pursuing this destiny, regardless of obstacles, pain or opposition.

People find themselves attracted to you because you radiate peace and contentment. You have meaningful relationships that are deep and strong. You accept the failings of others because you are happy with yourself, including your own weaknesses and shortcomings. You have been forgiven, you embrace your own forgiveness, and you forgive others.

In the beginning, God created you for a fulfilling destiny. Are you moving toward it?

P.Bio, Your Personal Biographer Review

Really cool product! P.Bio creates a timeline of your life, automatically!

Revolutionary new search technologies find, organize and present information about your life in an attractive, user-friendly way! In other words, P.Bio writes your biography for you! It's "Your Personal Biographer"!

Click Here for More Information!

Fight Your Fears and Phobias Review

Your comprehensive resource against fears, frustrations and worries, "Fight Your Fears and Phobias" is a self-help e-book designed to help you arrest and prevent emotional disturbances and if you are already beset by them, revealing how to identify and deal with underlying causes.

Topics include 15 ways to overcome loneliness, 25 proven ways to make friends, five ways to deal with discontent and much more.

The author, Andrea Baljak, is also associated with the website, www.mayertech.ca

The contents of the book and free chapters are available as a sneak preview.

For more information or to purchase.

Start a Fire!

Do you know your mission?

It is important, because a well-stated missions serves to focus passion.

Have you ever seen the use of a magnifying glass to start a fire? The magnifying glass collects and focuses. It pinpoints energy on a very specific target area. This generates enough heat to start a fire.

You’re going to expend a lot of energy over the course of your lifetime. Will it be so diffused, however, that it really accomplishes little? Or will you focus your passions and your interests and your motivations and your drives on one key purpose and thus magnify the impact of your life?

Find the mission and start your fire!

Mini-Seminar: Stress

Why People Love Stress
And
How to Stay That Way as Long as You Live
(Which Probably Won’t be That Long)

Why People Love Stress

Stress, tension, and burnout are common in modern society. I have come to the following conclusion: THEY WANT TO STAY STRESSED! The following provides you with a few reasons why.

STRESS HELPS YOU SEEM IMPORTANT. Anyone as stressed as you must be working very hard and, therefore, is probably doing something very crucial.

IT HELPS YOU TO MAINTAIN PERSONAL DISTANCE AND AVOID INTIMACY. Anyone as busy as you are certainly can't be expected to form emotional attachments to anyone. And let's
face it, you're not much fun to be around anyway.

IT HELPS YOU AVOID RESPONSIBILITIES. Obviously you're too stressed to be given any more work. This gets you off the hook for all the mundane chores; let someone else take care of them.

IT GIVES YOU A CHEMICAL RUSH. Stress might be considered a cheap thrill, and you can give yourself a "hit" anytime you chose. Be careful, you might get addicted to your own adrenaline.

IT HELPS YOU AVOID SUCCESS. Why risk being "successful" when by simply staying stressed you can avoid all of that? Stress can keep your performance level low enough that success won't ever be a threat.

STRESS ALSO LETS YOU KEEP YOUR AUTHORITARIAN MANAGEMENT STYLE. The authoritarian style of "Just do what I say!" is generally permissible under crisis conditions. If you maintain a permanently stressed crisis atmosphere, you can justify an authoritarian style all the time. How to Stay Permanently StressedSold on the value of stress? Are you worried now about how to stay stressed? You'll have no trouble if you practice the following clinically proven methods:

NEVER EXERCISE. Exercise wastes a lot of time that could be spent worrying.

EAT ANYTHING YOU WANT. Hey, if cigarette smoke can't cleanse your system, a balanced
diet isn't likely to, either. So, why bother?

GAIN WEIGHT. Work hard at staying at least 25 pounds over your recommended weight.

TAKE PLENTY OF STIMULANTS. The old standards of caffeine, nicotine, sugar, and cola will
continue to do the job just fine.

GET RID OF YOUR SOCIAL SUPPORT SYSTEM. Let the few friends who are willing to tolerate you know that concern yourself with friendships only if you have time – and you never have time. If a few people persist in trying to be your friend, avoid them.

PERSONALIZE ALL CRITICISM. Anyone who criticizes any aspect of your work, family, dog, house, or car is mounting a personal attack. Don't waste your time listening; instead, be offended, then return the attack! Maintain the cycle as long as possible.

THROW OUT YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR. Staying stressed is no laughing matter, and it shouldn't be treated as one.

MALES AND FEMALES ALIKE - BE MACHO. Never ever ask for help, and if you want it done right, do it yourself!

BECOME A WORKAHOLIC. Put work before everything else, and be sure to take work home evenings and weekends. Keep reminding yourself that vacations are for losers. You can also tell they are losers by how cheerful and stress-free they are.

DISCARD GOOD TIME MANAGEMENT SKILLS. Schedule in more activities every day than you can possibly get done and then worry about it all whenever you get a chance.

PROCRASTINATE. Putting things off to the last second always produces a marvelous amount of stress.

WORRY ABOUT THINGS YOU CAN'T CONTROL. Worry about the stock market, earthquakes, the approaching Ice Age, you know, all the big issues.

BECOME NOT ONLY A PERFECTIONIST BUT ALSO SET IMPOSSIBLY HIGH STANDARDS... feel guilty, depressed, discouraged, and/or inadequate when you don't meet them."

A stress-filled life can be yours today!

God's Will and Destiny

Have you ever prayed to know the will of God?

I know a lot of religious people have prayed that kind of prayer; maybe a lot of not-very-religious people
have done the same, I don't know.

If you have prayed to know the will of God, what actually was the "life domain" in which you wanted to know God’s will?

Probably, it was the arena of a major decision in your life, such as, “God, is it your will for me to change careers?” Or, “God, is it your will for me to do this or that?” Most likely, your prayer was about “do” and not “who”. Right? "God, what should I do?"

What if I said that you don’t have to pray to know will of God? After all, the model prayer – that is, the Lord's Prayer – says, “Thy will be done.” It does not say, “Show me your will.”

Consider this story from the gospels:

While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.” He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:46-50 NIV)

Surely, it is not our career choice that makes us Jesus’ brother or sister! It doesn't fit, does it? “Whoever chooses the right career is my brother and sister.”

How about this: “Whoever is my disciple and learns of me is my brother and sister.” Does that not sound much more likely?

What if I said that I can tell God’s will for your life right now? Here are some direct quotes from the Bible:

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk… instead, be filled with the Spirit!

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality…

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Submit yourself… to every authority instituted among men… for it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men .

So the will of God is much more about “who” than “do”. Who are you to be? You are to be sober, spiritual, self-controlled especially in the realm of your sexuality, joyful, prayerful, thankful, and a law-abiding citizen. That is the will of God for your life.

So then, what about career decisions? How do we pray about those? Those decisions are a matter of wisom. And if anyone lack wisdom, let him ask of God who, according to one verse, "doesn't mind if you ask". The interesting thing about wisdom is that it implies that we ultimately must participate in the decision and make the decision. It is really easy for God to move us into the right career and the right geographical location if we are genuinely committed to becoming His kind of person.

The “do” flows from the “who”.

Focus on become the kind of person you were designed to be; career and financial prosperity will flow out of a series of events in your life which will in the end prove to have been providential.

Behind, Ahead, Within

What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us.

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Holmes seems to suggest that inner strength can easily overcome the conditioning of our past and the obstacles in our future.

It is character that counts.

Your search for your destiny may focus on the activities and major decisions of your life: what should I do? who should I marry? what are the correct career decisions? and so on.

Such is no sufficient way to pursure your destiny.

Your true destiny will be revealed and achieved only if you pursue the answer to this question: what kind of person did God create me to be?

One beauty of the Christian faith: that Christ is in us and that is our "hope of glory".

We are to be like Him. That is our destiny.

In the Beginning, Reprise

In the beginning, God intended for you to pursue passionately His divinely ordained purpose for your existance. He designed that purpose for you and you for that purpose.

Your talents and fundamental characteristics, when fully developed and applied correctly, are the perfect tools for your specific assignment. You experience a richness and fulness of life that cannot be improved on when you are pursuing this destiny, regardless of obstacles, pain or opposition.

People find themselves attracted to you because you radiate peace and contentment. You have meaningful relationships that are deep and strong. You accept the failings of others because you are happy with yourself, including your own weaknesses and shortcomings. You have been forgiven, you embrace your own forgiveness, and you forgive others.

In the beginning, God created you for a fulfilling destiny. Are you moving toward it?

Mindframes

Interested in a personality assessment? It's free - no tricks or mumbo-jumbo. Just click on the banner ad above or on the title of this post, Mindframes.

You can take the assessment and get a report on-line at absolutely no cost. If you do want more than the basic report, there is a small charge but for readers of this blog there is a 10% discount on any of the other specialty reports simply by entering this special code when prompted:

destiny

There's a lot of fun stuff you can do with these free assessments. They have a weight-loss 'thin from with-in" report and a couple compatibility report. And remember - you and any of your friends can get additional add-on reports just by entering the codeword:

destiny

Self-awareness is one aspect of discovering your destiny but there are others. Peruse the blog for more perspectives. Thanks for stopping in for a read!

How Did You Overcome Your Greatest Fear?

Personally, sky-diving helped me confront a fear of heights. In fact, I believe it liberated me in many ways, even though I still do not relish standing on top of a building.

I believe there are at least 7 keys to reaching your God-given destiny. The first is to overcome your fears.

What is the biggest fear you have overcome? How did you do it?

I am interested, so if you like, use the comment link below and tell your story.

Discover Your True Calling

Po Bronson is the author of The New York Times Bestseller "What Should I Do with My Life?" -- a book that chronicles inspirational true stories of people who have found the most meaningful answers to that great question. He is the author of two other books and has written articles for The New York Times Magazine and The Wall Street Journal.

Check out a CNN article on his book here or by clicking on the title of this post.