Plato, at his best: “Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something.” And Solomon, at his: “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion” (Proverbs 18:2). Regarding social media, I’ve fallen into the fool camp more often than I’d like to admit.…
At a leadership conference earlier this year, a presenter made a remark from the platform that was quite crude, to say the least. I won’t repeat the remarks, but it had to do with giving away his male body parts if it would grow his church. And there were women in the room. It takes…
A museum in Los Angeles, California, recently opened to celebrate failure. The displays range from the featured image above to Pabst Blue Ribbon Mac & Cheese and Colgate Beef Lasagna. It’s literally called (wait for it)… The Museum of Failure. This museum strikes a nerve. We live in a culture that mostly celebrates success, especially…
It’s been said that anxiety is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do but gets you nowhere. We rock in anxiety over finances, health, family, opportunities, decisions, schedules, marriages, singleness, the future, and on I could go ad nauseum. Even when things are going too well in life we can get anxious…
Mark Twain once wrote, “Man is the only animal who blushes. Or needs to.” Man is also the only animal who has a conscience. Betray your conscience, experience the blush. Or will you? Regarding the behavior of the Jewish people of his day, the prophet Jeremiah declared, “Are they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not…
My mom told me years ago, “Jarrod, love people. I believe we were placed on this earth to love and serve people.” I think of her words often. And I think God gave me that kind of heart. Sometimes I want to give that heart back. To love is to risk and get hurt. But…
We are all broken. Damaged. The damage can be the result of what was self-inflicted, life-inflicted, or others-inflicted. But it makes you and me who we are. It’s a key part of our story. Barbara Bloom writes, “When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe…
I want to share with you a 40-minute podcast interview I agreed to do with Word of Life last week. If you want to listen to it on the go, you can go here (Episode 65) In this interview, I tossed my proverbial fig leaf to the side and got cringe-worthy transparent and honest. At…
Do you get anxious, nervous, or fearful at the thought of speaking in front of a group of people? I once did too. Still do at times! I’m sure that no matter how anxious you are about an opportunity, you don’t want to just “get through it” or “get it over with.” You want to…
Am I getting it right? I have a 13-year-old, 12-year-old, 11-year-old, and a 7-year-old. Two boys and two girls. And these kinds of questions abound! Am I doing enough? Am I scarring my kids for life? I’m convinced that what I refuse to do as a dad is more important than what I do. My…
“Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.” – W. Clement Stone Years ago, I finished up some business in Oklahoma and was headed to the airport. Christie was nine months…
Oh, to be twenty-one again. No thank you! When I was 21-years-old, I’m not sure I listened to anyone. But maybe I would’ve listened to the older me. Who knows? Either way, I would’ve needed a good firm talking to for the message to get across. So what might that little talk sound like? What…
Passive aggression. It’s the plague of relationships. And you can find it in all its glory on social media. I loathe passive-aggression. I’m careful not to do it. When aimed toward me (we all know when it’s meant for us), I refuse to give it any mental or emotional calories. Another post on how to…
“People never stop writing books. Too much studying will wear out your body“, declares the wisdom writer, Solomon. Apply that loosely to technology and social media and we’re on to something. Every other day I check about four media outlets to read up on personal growth, healthy habits, time-management, and productivity. I receive daily emails…
Sons want to capture their dad’s awe. Daughters want to capture their dad’s attention. John Elderidge, in his little booklet, You Have What It Takes: What Every Father Needs To Know, states it this way: “Little boys look to their dads to answer the question: ‘Do I have what it takes? Am I a man?’ Little…