Honest Effort

Let’s be honest. Or is that even possible?

I ask that question because of my own self-doubt. And why do I doubt myself you ask? Because as hard as I try and as important as honesty is to me, if I take a hard look back at my life, I can see that I often fail. Sometimes it’s just little things, like telling someone I’m too busy to do what they want me to do when in reality I just don’t want to do it. Or I might have told somebody they look nice when the truth is they look like they just got ran over by a mac truck. Or perhaps (and I’ve done this more than once), I “spin the truth” to make the story more entertaining, or to make myself look better, or just to be funny. But the truth is, no matter how you spin it… it’s not the truth, unless it’s nothing but the whole truth, so help you God!

And there’s the problem. I can hide the truth from somebody, which is something I did recently, which I feel absolutely horrible about, which totally sucks, which makes me so mad at myself, which is why I am writing this message. But I can’t ever hide the truth from God!

So why not just be truthful at all times, about everything? If we were always truthful my guess is, we would be a lot happier. But it simply isn’t that easy. Try it sometime. Try going just one week without telling any type of small lie, big lie, white lie, or half-truth. Don’t exaggerate, spin, or embellish anything you say. Can’t do it? That’s okay. Try to complete one day of total honesty first. Once you have one day down, you might be able to turn it into two days. And if you keep at it and focus on it, you might make it up to a week. Who knows, maybe a month! The point is… if you focus on being honest, you’ll recognize it when you’re not… and recognizing the problem is the first step towards fixing it.

I believe in the importance of honesty and integrity and have worked hard at it and preached it my whole life. But in the interest of full disclosure, I fully admit that I have failed at times. The good news is… I recognize the problem and I’m working on fixing it. The great news is… with God all things are possible!

A lie gets halfway around the world 

before the truth has a chance to put its pants on.

~ Winston Churchill

Stairway to Heaven

I like to think of myself as a fairly clever person when it comes to fixing things or solving problems. You know, kind of a MacGyver type of guy. But sometimes I realize I just can’t fix everything, and that can be frustrating. Unless I remember to look at it in the right light!

Recently I was working on a Pole Inspection Project in San Diego. It was getting late in the day, but the 20 light poles in the front parking lot were easy to work on and that part of the job went smooth. However, when I went to the rear parking lot, the poles were mounted on top of a retaining wall along a slope, which I could immediately see was going to be a problem.

My job is to inspect the metal at the base of each pole. Unfortunately, the base of the first pole was out of my reach. No problem. I grabbed an empty bucket out of my truck, flipped it upside down and stood on it. The next two poles were slightly higher, so the bucket trick didn’t work. No problem. I pulled my truck close to each one, flipped the tail gate down and stood on it. The next two poles were even higher. No problem. I flipped the tail gate down, put the bucket on top of it, and then stood on the bucket.

Then came the last two poles, which were even higher and completely out of my reach. It was getting late, the sun was going down, and I was getting really frustrated because to leave the job and come back a different day with a ladder would erase all my profit. But I couldn’t come up with a solution. So I packed up my tools and started to drive away. That’s when I noticed a maintenance shed in the rear of the complex. I got out, took a quick look around, and found a broken old wooden ladder laying on the ground. With a little bit of duct tape and a few wood screws, I had that ladder back in action and finished the job just as the parking lot lights came on. I admit the ladder was shaky and probably not that safe as I climbed each rung, but it felt good to get to the top and finish the job.

And that got me thinking… I am not a perfect person and I make a lot of mistakes, which I am sure does not make God happy with me. But if I can get just a little better, a little wiser, a little more clever each day, slowly climbing up that spiritual ladder that leads to heaven… I am pretty sure there will be a bright light at the top!

I may not be there yet, but I’m closer than I was yesterday!

~ Anonymous

The Shape of Things to Come

For the past 13 months, I haven’t been able to hug a single one of my four children or six grandchildren. I never in my life thought that would be an issue, but then I never in my life imagined I would be living through a worldwide pandemic that has killed nearly 3 million people worldwide so far. And just here in the United States alone more than 560,000 people have died.

It has been a game changing year for me for sure. I no longer worry about getting tickets to go see a ball game, I just want a ticket to go see my family. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel now that vaccines are available, and I did get to go see three of my grandkids over the weekend. I didn’t get to hug them, but I did get to stand out in the front yard and talk with them and one of them had a surprising request for me!

My 13-year-old granddaughter, Andie Rose, asked me if I would break in her new baseball glove for her. She and I have played catch before and apparently, she really likes it because she got herself a brand-new Rawlings HFP12 baseball glove. How cool is that!

I took her glove home so I could oil it, rub it, place a baseball in it, and then drive over it with my truck. That may sound strange but it’s a great way to stretch out the leather and form a nice pocket in the webbing. Then the secret is to play a lot of catch so the glove molds to your hand. You want to be able to squeeze it, but it’s got to be able to hold its shape.

And that got me thinking… Everything we experience in life is helping to shape us and mold us. We may be suffering through a life changing pandemic that feels like we’re getting run over by a truck, but I truly believe we will come out better and stronger when its over. And I may not be able to hug my little Andie Rose right now, but I can still help mold her and shape her by being a smiling and positive example for her even in the tough times. Come to think of it, how could I not smile… when two of the things I love most… come together!

A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.

~ Jackie Robinson

Vow #10 - "I Will Always Maintain Contact With My Creator"

I do not remember the exact day that it occurred, but somewhere along the path of my life I made a conscious decision to make talking with God a daily ritual in my life. I had so many bad habits at the time that I decided I could at least develop one good habit… and so I did. That habit has stayed with me to this day. Sometimes, even when I am working on a Monday Message, I will stop and ask for help and I seem to always receive inspiration.

Through triumph and despair, love and heartbreak, ecstasy and pain, applause and rejection, success and failure, I can always light up my attitude and renew my strength with a simple prayer. Prayer doesn’t have to be a long-drawn-out difficult process. For me, most times it is simply a heartfelt conversation with someone I love and trust. Sometimes, the fewer the words, the better the prayer.

I know that God hears what my heart speaks. Better yet, I know that God listens and cares!

Watch your thoughts; they become words. 

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny!

Vow #9 - Each Night I Will Examine My Deeds of the Fading Day

My wife and I developed a tradition with our children while they were growing up. We had this thing where every night as we sat down for dinner, we would ask our four kids, “Okay, So what was your good thing today, and what was your bad thing?”

The kids hated it because it forced them to think and talk when all they wanted to do was chill and eat. But it was a really good thing to do. We almost always ended up with some pretty lively conversations. In our house, we kept the lines of communication open as much as possible and tried to get our kids to think about complex issues as well as the simple day to day of life. As much as the kids complained about it, I firmly believe that when they are parents, they will do the same thing with their kids!

Now that I look back on it, I see that what we were doing, was “examining the deeds of our day”, without even realizing that we were doing it at the time. I recommend this practice for everyone because only by carefully weighing the progress and the problems of our journey, will we be able to create a diary for today and a textbook for tomorrow.

Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Vow #8 - I Will Persist Until I Succeed

When I was a struggling young salesperson in my twenties, I worked for a wholesale lighting supply company in Irvine. One Monday morning, the boss gave me the challenge of landing the biggest account in our area. It was a huge property management company that owned apartments, shopping centers, and office buildings. It would be the largest account that we could ever add to our company, but it would also be an extremely difficult challenge.

I knew it would be really hard, but I was young and full of energy and enthusiasm. As I started making sales calls, I was turned down over and over and the business always went to the larger companies in town. But I never gave up and just kept knocking at their door with polite firmness. I figured as long as I kept knocking, I still had a chance. One day, the Purchasing Manager allowed me to meet with him in person for a few minutes, so I gave him my price quote along with my best sales pitch. I left that day with a signed purchase order in my hand and a great compliment, at least I think it was a compliment. The Purchasing Manager said, “I am not giving you business because you have the best pricing. I’m giving it to you because you’re so darn persistent!”

According to the great author Og Mandino, “The prizes of life are at the end of each journey, not near the beginning; and it is not given to us to know how many steps are necessary in order to reach our goals. We may encounter failure after a thousand steps, yet success may be hiding behind the very next bend in the road. We will never know how close it lies unless we turn the corner.”

Always take another step. 

If that doesn’t work, take another, and yet another.

In truth, one step at a time is not too difficult for anyone.

Vow #7 - With Patience I Will Control My Destiny

Every priceless attribute which wise men trumpet as necessary for the achievement of success is useless without patience and there are generally two areas where patience is needed most.

First, is with circumstances. Typically, it will be circumstances such as wanting to be promoted at work but not having the education or experience to be there yet. Or wanting to be a great musician but not having practiced enough yet. Or wanting to get to work on time but being held up in traffic by an accident. Sometimes the circumstances are beyond our control and other times, it is just a matter of being patient. When it comes to circumstances, patience can truly help us to control our frustration and forge a better future.

Second, is when we are in a long-term relationship with someone we truly love. Sharing your life with a chosen partner means exercising patience on a daily basis. It is not easy for two people to live together sharing a home, the chores, the struggles, and the many burdens without an occasional problem. On my bathroom mirror I have taped one of my favorite sayings. It has helped calm my spirit and remind me to be patient on many occasions where the stresses of the day have threatened to crowd their way into my relationship with the woman I love so very, very much.

It is only three sentences long, but the words are potent and the message is powerful.

Patience is not passive.

On the contrary, it is active.

It requires concentrated strength.