I am celebrating today Davis and Jensen White, sons of our friends Paul and Ann White. Davis is headed for two years of missionary service while Jensen is receiving his Eagle Scout recognition. This celebration of each has caused me to ponder what it means to sacrifice and to serve. Davis will sacrifice two years of his normal life, put on hold education, working, and personal pursuits (like dating for one) in order to serve as a missionary. Jensen has…
Review the “Journey of Success” graphic and then answer the following questions in relation to a significant challenge in your life or area of focus. In connection to your challenge or focus, do you feel you are mostly in the “Normal World” or in “Struggles & Growth”? Of the stages listed, what stage do you feel you are at now? Do you feel you are stuck at that stage or effectively moving forward? When you feel stuck, how do you…
Every journey we take is accomplished one day at a time. Difficult journeys; normal journeys. Hard journeys; easy journeys. “One Day At A Time,” no matter the journey, creates significant power on the very first day of a journey. One day at a time is the salvation of daily life. We don’t have to conquer the mountain in one day, nor must we eat the elephant in just one bite. I first learned the power of “One Day At A…
As the old adage goes… “Out with the old, in with the new!” But what is “the old”? Old is anything that clutters up life or confuses our direction in life. This could literally be the old stuff you no longer use, that pile in the closet you dread going through, that stack of papers on the desk you need to file, or the gazillion of boxes of junk filling up the garage. Or it could be old thinking, old…
I have been granted the gift of life. My heart that tried to stop working daily for seven weeks has been repaired and is functioning well. My lungs that did stop working when a blood clot showed up are healing as my blood flows as it should. My greatest fear is that I will forget this miraculous gift. History is full of proof, from individuals to complete civilizations, we are quick to forget such miraculous experiences. The gift of life…
The Journey of the Heart continues as I share once again the story of the Christmas I spent in Iraq. My Christmas in Iraq was cold and scary, warm and sacred. Few experiences have touched my heart as deeply as that Christmas (though this Christmas is right up there with reaching deep into my heart!). As we remember those serving in harm’s way around the world, and as you remember your own loved ones who are unable to be home for Christmas,…
The excitement, wonder, and fun of Christmas are magical! I love decorating the tree, wrapping presents, and singing carols. I love letters to Santa and hints from children. I love the anticipation on Christmas Eve and the enthusiasm on Christmas morning. I love how my new heart has me feeling like a kid again! Family traditions are wonderful parts of the magic. We love counting down the days with tiny chocolate pieces, Santa slowly dropping down a wooden chimney, and…
The heart is very fragile. The lungs are very fragile. Life as a whole is very fragile. Over the last two weeks, I’ve experienced just how very fragile… “very fragile” can be. Here is the sixty second version… The surgery at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray went well and I spent most of a week recovering in the hospital. I enjoyed a night and a day at home. Then I stopped breathing. Four times in a couple of hours, the…
The words stir the collective passion of America, unlike any other song… If tomorrow all the things were gone I worked for all my life And I had to start again With just my children and my wife We vigorously sing along with the entire song, not just the chorus… I’d thank my lucky stars To be livin’ here today ‘Cause the flag still stands for freedom And they can’t take that away She rings as a glorious foundational anthem,…
Few words echo the united feeling we have as Americans more than Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless The U.S.A.” Especially in times of tragedy. Written and released in 1983, the patriotic anthem has found new meaning over the last nearly forty years. “It keeps having a different kind of life,” Lee Greenwood said of his signature song. “I mean during the Gulf War, it was a song of the war for General Schwarzkopf. After Hurricane Katrina, it was a song for…