In this week’s spotlight I want to discuss the idea of self-sufficiency. When I was much younger, I read Emerson’s essay on Self-Reliance. I was so impressed that I later purchased a large book titled The Universal Self-Instructor. Emerson’s message had three real take-aways for me: 1. Self-responsibility; 2. Self-ability; and 3. Follow your individual will instead of conforming to social expectations. In the past I have written a lot about self-responsibility and resisting conforming for purposes of fitting in, so today I’ll focus on the idea of self-ability. What ... Read More
In this week’s spotlight I want to discuss motivation. What is it that keeps us motivated, and when our motivation seems to slow down, what do we do to renew it? We all know that motivation begins with enthusiasm. We have an idea, a new job, a goal or ambition, etc., and when we’re motivated to go for it—the fuel is enthusiasm. No enthusiasm—insufficient motivation to succeed. So perhaps we should ask, what happens to our enthusiasm when our motivation begins to dwindle? Moreover, is it possible to refill our ... Read More
In this week’s spotlight I want to examine the idea of good. Think about what good means to you. No doubt you’re aware that good means different things to different cultures. What one culture finds good may well be held in great disgust by another culture. For example, there are cultures that promote the good in marring your daughter and other cultures that find the idea revolting. Good It’s quite common to speak of God and good in the same breath. Given we have differing definitions of good, what constitutes ... Read More
In this week’s spotlight I’d like to discuss doubt. There are very many religious leaders who instruct us that faith arises only when doubt exists. That is, there is no such thing as faith in things known—faith arises only from things unknown. Ought? Still other religious leaders and spiritual teachers instruct us that doubt is the denial of faith. Doubt is to be vanquished and the word of God should replace it. Indeed, doubt is the work of the Deceiver for, as stated in Romans 14:23, “But he who doubts ... Read More
In this week’s spotlight I want to address the fine line between feeling remorse and falling into the abyss of self-pity. One might ask, is there any advantage to be gained by feeling remorse? One might also fairly ask, what is the difference between self-pity and remorse? So let’s begin by examining those two questions. Guilt and Pain Remorse is generally defined as deep regret or even guilt for a wrong committed. Now many in today’s world find guilt to be an unnecessary and damaging human emotion, but is ... Read More