How are you going to stoke the fires of joy today?

“Joy is the holy fire that keeps our purpose warm and our intelligence aglow.”

Helen Keller

What is it that you do that brings you joy? When do you feel fully alive and that every fiber of your being is singing in glorious harmony? Does it have anything to do with your vocation, or does it even need to?  

These aren’t questions you should ignore. It is an absolute imperative that you must find your source of joy.  It is the coal that stokes the fires and allows you to weather any storm and deliver your best self to those you love and those whom you serve.  If you don’t have a fire burning, one you tend to regularly, how on earth can you show up and be your very best? What happens if your fire goes out?

Because of faith, you can have hope…

“Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.”

Helen Keller

Hope – Seeing what isn’t there – yet…

Hope – Feeling that you are on the right path, even when no evidence exists to substantiate that fact.  

Hope – Achieving the impossible comes as a result of persevering through the doubts and the trials.

Faith – What gives hope its legs…

Live the adventure!

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. To keep our faces toward change and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable.”

Helen Keller

If you aren’t living life in this way what exactly do you have? An existence. Simply a series of events moving you towards a point in the future which may or may not be meaningful. For most of us, present times set aside, our lives are no longer about mere survival. We have more to give, more to see, more to do, more to live.

When we become timid and choose to wait to see what the world throws at us, we lose the ability to seek out the new adventures that might be just beyond the turn in the road in front of us.

The best way to live life in the moment, and not miss out on what is truly important, is to focus on being present TODAY and thereby reducing future regrets. When the end comes, and it will come for all of us, what will you regret having NOT done? What adventures will you wish you HAD taken? Who will you wish you had spent MORE time with?

clear glass with red sand grainer
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Optimism is the foundation of achievement…

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement.”

Helen Keller

Throughout life I have found that having an optimistic attitude and achieving long-term success are positively correlated. It is really hard to achieve anything if one has a negative attitude or perspective on how things are going to turn out.

What is your natural tendency? Do you have an optimistic view towards the future and faith that all things will progress for the better? Optimism that there is a better way and a better day is the foundation of all achievement. Without it, no one would ever try to make anything better.

Be careful, how we approach the future can become a self-fulfilling prophecy…

Merry Christmas!

“The only real blind person at Christmas-time is he who has not Christmas in his heart.”

Helen Keller

The joy and power of the gift that we celebrate today is beyond all measure and comprehension. I hope and pray that everyone can find the true joy of Christmas in their heart today and keep it forever.

‘For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’

Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas!

How much change, and when?

“A bend in the road is not the end of the road… Unless you fail to make the turn.”

Helen Keller

How do you know when you need to change?  How much change is necessary?  I really like this quote because it makes me think through those two questions.  When you are driving a car on the interstate your changes are subtle and slight.  A big change in direction can be accomplished with just a few degrees of adjustment on the steering wheel and very little pressure because the change is happening over a great span of distance.  But if you are driving across town, and come to a ninety degree turn, you are turning the steering wheel through multiple rotations to accomplish the change in direction that is necessary.

Life and leadership can be a lot like these examples.  Sometimes the changes needed are minor adjustments that end up making huge impact over time.  Other times the change needed is immediate and drastic and must happen NOW.  Know when to make the right type of change decision is key.  Because if you don’t, as Helen Keller said, you will fail to make the turn…

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dusty

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