October 30: Confront or Surround?

Affirmation: Peace and happiness are inside of me.

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Ponder, Personalize, Practice: Once again spend time pondering Romans 12:12”…faithful in prayer.” Spend time each day talking to God about what is going on in your life. Be faithful in prayer.
Romans  12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
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Wholehearted Guidepost from Brené Brown

Guidepost 3: Cultivating Your Resilient Spirit, Letting Go of Numbing and Powerlessness

DIG Deep

At the end of each lesson, Brené guides you to wholeheartedness and puts the lesson into practice by helping you to DIG Deep. Reflect on how to apply this lesson to your life using thought-provoking questions to help you Get Deliberate, Get Inspired and Get Going. Write your answers in your journal, talk them over with friends or family, and spark a discussion.

GET DELIBERATE

Make a copy of your "comfort wisdom" page and hang it where you need it. I have one copy in the pantry, one over my desk and one on my bathroom mirror. Sometimes, our urge to numb comes from the part of our brain that doesn't stop to think, analyze and reflect. A physical reminder between us and those numbing agents can stop the numbing before it starts. It wakes us up and gives us the opportunity to make a choice.

GET INSPIRED

Sometimes a quick quote, photo or decoration can remind you to lean into the dark to find the light. I literally have twinkle lights all over my study. Is there something you put out to inspire you?

GET GOING

Share your "comfort wisdom" list with a friend, partner or family member. Choose someone you trust and who is willing to say: "You're struggling. Are you getting enough __________?"

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Mastering the 7 Decisions from Andy Andrews 

The Persistent Decision 

7. I WILL PERSIST WITHOUT EXCEPTION.

I possess the greatest power ever bestowed upon mankind. I hold fast to my dreams. I stay the course. I do not quit.

I acknowledge that most people quit when exhaustion sets in, but I am not “most people.”

I am stronger than most people. Average people compare themselves with other people, and that is why they remain average.

I compare myself to my potential. I am not average. I see exhaustion as a precursor to victory. By persisting without exception, my outcome—my success—is assured.

It is my wish that you have gained something positive and productive from reading about these seven decisions.

I strongly believe that there is nothing you can’t do if you have the proper mindset and conviction.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength.

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Reading for Today

Walk in Grace. Live in Love by Bob Goff

October 30

We Can Confront People With Their Failures Or Surround Them With Our Love. Either Way, We’ll Be Remembered.

He lifted me out of a slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock, and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:2.

Close your eyes and take 10 seconds to remember one of the most embarrassing moments of your life.

Got it?

OK, if you’re anything like me, that moment was something that happened in front of someone else. Embarrassing moments in private usually make us chuckle at ourselves. Embarrassing moments in front of other people, well, that can, be cause for a lifetime of unnecessarily beating ourselves up. If that weren’t true, why is it so easy to remember our failures?

I think it’s because we’ve been exposed. Sometimes it’s just a blooper, like our pants splitting when we bend over in public, but sometimes it’s a moral failure, and we’re embarrassed. And our relationships in those moments, it can feel like our whole fragile selves sit in the hands of the people who witnessed our failure. We wait for the response. Will they tell other people? Will they scold us the way we’ve scolded ourselves? Will they use us as an example to the rest of the world, making a mockery of what little dignity we have left?

We never forget the way people respond to us and our failures. Will they show us empathy or forgiveness, or will they kick us while we’re down? The moments when people are most exposed are the times we can have the greatest impact on their lives, for better or worse. We can confront people with their failure or surround them with our love. Either way, we’ll be remembered.

Who do you know who’s been experiencing failure lately? What can you show them about who they are instead?