tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8293326938158793456.post1686427977309612927..comments2023-08-07T09:30:53.000-05:00Comments on Michael Gregory: What are you willing to give up!Michael Gregoryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01026096862259659245noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8293326938158793456.post-71405323440897682692009-04-15T23:17:00.000-05:002009-04-15T23:17:00.000-05:00The Apple in the Garden of the Eden.
The One Rin...The Apple in the Garden of the Eden. <br /><br />The One Ring in the Lord of the Rings. <br /><br />The promise of power offered to Luke by Darth Vader in Star Wars. <br /><br />It's a tale as old as time: a promise is made, a person accepts it out of weakness or desire for personal gain, and a sin is committed. <br /><br />I think this is the starting-point of mediocrity: we have a thought - 'I must have it' - we act on it, and it brings predictable consequences, rather than the ones we might dream in the back of our minds about manifesting.<br /><br />The difficulty, I think, comes from the fact that we don't always know how many times we've made an error in judgement that has led us down the wrong path - we just know we have wound up in the wrong place. If we don't see it in our past, how can we see it in our present? (This is like the client who texted me the other day that she was having a bad day and 'needed' sugary food. An erroneous conclusion, in fact - "I feel bad, so I need poison." But it's a thought process most of us have inside of us because of advertising and marketing we all grew up with).<br /><br />Lusts are subtle and tricky, and taking a moral inventory of your life in the five areas you mentioned is crucial. I guess what I get out of your post is this: we all must take stock of our lives in all five areas, and we all need to do it with a mentor. How else can we see which of our beliefs serve us and which are manifesting vice in our life (e.g. choosing the wrong romantic partner over and over and yet still being attracted to & dating the same 'type' - a person might do it because they didn't have good parental role models growing up so their beliefs about the ideal partner are based on movies they watched, magazines they read - but how are they to know that?).<br /><br />If you get with someone whose physical fitness you admire to talk about working out, they are going to tell you that you gotta go low on squats, and you gotta lift heavy - rather than the little hops in Zumba class you think are going to get you to your goals. You may not like what they have to say, but there it is.<br /><br />Likewise, if you get with someone whose financial situation you admire and they tell you that they spend 5 hours a week on sales calls, you might have trouble stomaching it, but there it is.<br /><br />Told to select a partner who goes against your natural inclinations is just plain unorthodox. But if a happy marriage is your goal, well then there it is.<br /><br />Life is not a movie, and success is not an accident.<br /><br />This post spoke to me: I am right now in the middle of a major moral inventory of my life that I am following with concomitant action. It's not esay. But I know short-term pain will be rewarded with long-term comfort. For too long my pain threshhold has been through the roof because I haven't wanted to tear the bandaid off some gaping wounds.<br /><br />Influnces, habits, and beliefs that don't serve me - I'm swimming in them. I guess what I took from your post is I need to surround myself with mentors, shut up, listen, and act.REVEXhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09001125207028989425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8293326938158793456.post-67855923472779431522009-04-15T23:16:00.000-05:002009-04-15T23:16:00.000-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.REVEXhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09001125207028989425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8293326938158793456.post-30054632035837075982009-04-15T23:12:00.000-05:002009-04-15T23:12:00.000-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.REVEXhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09001125207028989425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8293326938158793456.post-54564815247077057782009-04-15T22:48:00.000-05:002009-04-15T22:48:00.000-05:00I always want to be learning and then taking my ne...I always want to be learning and then taking my new knowledge and figuring out unorthodox ways to apply it. I also want to be constantly assessing what is going on around me and how I might be a blessing in whatever situation I find myself in. I trust in God's sovereignty and that his grace is sufficient for me, so I don't want to waste cycles worrying about myself. At the same time, I want to equip myself to contend well with whatever comes my way. And you're definitely equipping me, Mike, for a full life, and freeing me to do whatever I want or need to do without having to worry about if I'm up for the task. So, there's not a lot of time left then for mediocrity, I think.Walterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17853220335523048598noreply@blogger.com