What we call the process, God calls the objective. – Oswald Chambers
It was Wednesday afternoon, 2:37 p.m. to be exact, when my iPhone alerted me to a new text message. The text message was from our middle daughter, Monica and read …
Olivia had a seizure, from what we know. We are at Baptist, she is doing fine and has been stable. They are observing her and will more than likely let us go. She nursed and is sleeping now. Please pray it’s nothing serious, I’ll keep you posted.
Olivia is 10 months old and our ninth grandchild. Needless to say, the message stopped my world.
The Reminder of Uncertainty
Life is unpredictable.
Here in our area, Connie Laxton’s home was in the path of a roaring wildfire in Mannford, Oklahoma. As reported by the Associated Press:
The fields around Connie Laxton’s home in Oklahoma were black with ash Monday after a roaring wildfire tore across her property and ran right up to her gray, brick ranch home — where it suddenly stopped.
The fire line is marked in the grass a foot from house, and the smell of smoke permeates the inside. One side of the three 40-foot pear trees in the yard is charred gray and black; the other is leafy and green.
Unpredictable.
It’s no secret there is a lot of anxiety in our nation and our world today. I’m reminded of John Steinbeck’s line in his book Travels with Charley: In Search of America…
A journey is a person itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us. (Page 4)
The Writer of the ancient Hebrew Proverb warns us to be humble about “our plans” …
Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring. NLT
We can become so accustomed to our routine, to the predictability of our lives, that we can miss opportunities and think we are in control.
Then, something happens we did not have in our script.
How Resilient are You?
The ability to not only live in the moment but be able to bounce back, to recover quickly is a characteristic to be cultivated if we are to live well in the Story. Life happens and your resilience is vital to a successful trip, wherever it takes you.
Here are five ways* you can support your resilience in the light of life’s stressful times:
- Be responsible. Blaming others is unproductive and limits our hope for a better tomorrow; IF you had nothing to do with how you got here, how will you move forward to “there”?
- Live connected. Quality relationships are vital, we need people who urge us to move forward with our contribution to the world
- Cultivate gratitude. What are you thankful for? Who do you appreciate?
- Stay flexible. Yes, goals are important, planning is necessary, but what if…?
- Silence the “those” voices. Yes, those ancient, destructive or negative thoughts; expose them to the truth
Resilience is a quality of leaders, people who get things done.
Good news, Olivia went home, later that same afternoon. We thank God. Tests will be run to be certain, but for now we live in the moment with gratitude for another day of life.
What do you think? Please share your comments below.
Do know someone that this would interest, please forward to a friend or colleague or tweet to your followers.
*This list was inspired by the work of Daniel Amen, M.D. and his article, “Develop a Leader’s Mind”, Success Magazine, August 2012
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Steve,
I’m compelled to take a quick moment and comment as I always read your insight you so graciously offer. Please allow me to first praise God for Olivia’s health and wellness as I am certain we are standing in agreement on that. Second, I wanted to thank you for continuously providing content that is thoughtful, positive, nourishing while promoting accountability and deliberate self-evaluation. Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing!
Julian, thank you for your support in Olivia’s behalf and encouragement towards this weekly endeavor of writing.
First, an update on Olivia…we are told this is called BHS (yes, Breath Holding Spells). Who knew? Reasonably easy to deal with.
You are right, it is my goal to promote personal responsibility, accountability, and self-evaluation in order to help all of us achieve and contribute our best to the people in our lives. “The Challenge and Call to Live in the Moment”, said another way, is to embrace a Reflective Lifestyle. Likely, that is next week’s topic…but for fun, my working definition follows:
“Reflection is looking beneath the surface – using both one’s head and heart to discern what is authentically right (true).”
Steve
Note: Following comment was received via email…
This was a nice read, Steve. Thank you.
I disagree with Mr. Steinbeck in that not ALL plans and safeguards are fruitless, but it seems an absolute truth that we do not take the trip, the trip takes us. Of course, we must embark on the trip in the first place.
Hope you are well and your little granddaughter is doing ok. Shawna