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Thursday, February 08, 2007

"Are you relaxed as you’re climbing up?"


A friend of mine recently went rock climbing. He emailed me some pictures from his adventure. One shot was from the bottom of the rock he climbed, looking straight up a sheer face that was really tall. Several others were from various places along the way.

I asked him, "How did you climb straight up like that?"

He said, "The guy I climbed with is experienced. He had all the safety ropes in place so there was virtually no way to get hurt if you did what he told you. He said to relax and climb on up so I did."

My friend went on to say, "And it was a real confidence booster for me because if I can climb a rock like that, then I can do lots of other things I’ve never done."

Are you listening to life with my friend? He had a guide. He relaxed and climbed on up. He did something he wasn’t sure he could and is more confident.

Today ask God to be your guide. Relax and climb on up your life’s challenge. Do something you’re not sure about and grow confident as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living.

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

"How do you sleep?"


I’ve found a great way to listen to life while you sleep and it helps you wake up positively refreshed. Here’s how it works.

Every night, I get in my bed a little while before I want to go to sleep. I relax, close my eyes, and name three things I’m thankful for that happened that day. Now, I am as specific as possible. Instead of saying, "I’m thankful for my wife," I say, "I’m thankful for my wife and her generous gift of her time in running three errands for me today." Or, instead of just saying, "I’m grateful for my friend Louise", I say, "I’m grateful for my friend Louise, that she discovered today she doesn’t have breast cancer, for her surgeon’s skilled hands, and for the pathologist’s knowledge."

Being specific seems to help. I feel more refreshed than usual the next morning because I’ve put these positive thanksgivings in my mind and my brain processed them overnight. And that helps me listen to life and make a life, not just a living in positive, God-sensitive ways.

Try counting your blessings every night and listen to life while you sleep!

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

"Do you praise or criticize?"


Someone did an experiment with two groups of golfers. Each group had a round of golf videotaped.

The video of the rounds was edited. The first group was shown video of their best shots—their longest drives, their most accurate iron shots and chips, their one-putts. The instructor conducting the experiment praised the golfers and told them to, "Go out there and play like this again." And the golfers did. In fact, they went out and actually improved their scores.

The second group was shown video of their worst shots—their drives that were topped, their shots that were hooked and chips that went over the greens, their missed short putts. The instructor conducting the experiment told these golfers, "People, is this any way to play golf? Now go out there and fix those shots." And the golfers immediately went out and played worse than before.

Praise someone and you encourage him to do his best. Criticize her and expect her to fix it on her own and you discourage her from improving.

Listen to life and make a life by praising those around you.

Monday, February 05, 2007

"Do you always understand what someone else is saying?"


Do you always understand what someone else is saying? It seems to me so often that even when you mean well, it’s so easy to misunderstand another.

For instance, a group was sharing their prayer concerns. A little boy, probably about 9 years old, raised his hand, and said, "Please pray for my Mom. She’s sick."

The group’s leader said, "Thank you, Johnny. Let’s pray for Johnny’s mom because she’s ill."

And the little boy said, "Oh no sir. She’s sick. She’s not ill. She does get ill with me sometimes, but right now she’s mostly sick."

For Johnny, there’s a difference between his Mom being sick and being ill. For the group’s leader, there wasn’t.

It’s not a matter of who’s right and who’s wrong when you’re communicating, it’s a matter of listening ever so closely to understand what the other person is talking about.

How well do you listen? Ask God to help you listen from the heart as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living today.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

"What are you thinking about right now?"


I was in the Washington, DC area recently, driving through some of what I’m convinced is the eternal road construction there. So here I am driving slowly in traffic when I see beside me this huge motor grader running about 35 mph on what will be a road. It looks like it’s carrying about 20 tons of dirt in it, and its moving faster than I am.

Well, up on top of this gigantic piece of equipment carrying all of that dirt is a little man, sitting in a cab, both hands on the steering wheel. He weighs a fraction of the equipment and dirt, but still controls it.

Now the good news is he controlled it very well. But what if he didn’t? What if he took both hands off the steering wheel and just let the machine go? That would be devastating, wouldn’t it?

Your thoughts seem to weigh a fraction of who you are, and yet they are your little man in the cab. You become what you think about. So keep your hands on the wheel of your mind, carry positive thoughts with you, and steer in God’s direction as you listen to life and make a life.