Success Management: The Defeat of all Cancers

We all have problems, challenges, and seemingly impossible tasks to accomplish.  Yesterday, we read the story of Job: he was a righteous man, yet he lost his wealth, family, and his health; not a good day for Job... Yet he did not quit.  

 

When problems strike, only 15% of all adults will survive and benefit from these temporary obstacles.   "Why?"  Because the other 85% may view problems as a link to failure and avoid success.  This 85% will quit, and await the next problem to penetrate their life.

In his book, The Psychology of Winning, author Denis Waitley says "Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing"  and  "Success is almost totally dependent upon drive and persistence. The extra energy required to make another effort or try another approach is the secret of winning." 

The origin of both "Failure" and "Success" come is the same source:  Our thoughts from our mind.   Proverbs 23:7 says:  For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.   This means:

• If we decide to be happy, we will most likely have a good day
  
• If we decide to avoid our problems, we are needlessly complicating our futures
  
• If we anticipate success, failure is not an option.
  

On Tuesday I met Brian (not my son, Brian), an acquaintance from church, for coffee at the Quarry.  Brian is a seasoned husband and dad, a 20 plus year military officer, and a notable physician.   Two of his siblings are missionaries and they tell great stories!   Brian is so optimistic, intelligent and wise, encouraging, and gracious, I am humbled to be with him.  Part of his story is that for the past 6 1/2 years, he is winning his battle with cancer.  It is in remission, and statistically his cancer will return within 7 years, or less.  Whether you want to discuss GOD's Word, military history & strategies, children and family, or crack a joke, Brian will captivate you or be a responsive listener.  

So why is Brian so optimistic?  I think it is because he sees a picture greater than himself.  He honors GOD, his family and friends, plus he is a vital member of our Armed Forces.  Brian looks to a successful future, rather than his own premature demise.   I have mentioned two "Brian's", and they are both "WINNER"s, because they both rebuke failure and declare success, before it occurs.

   

Loans * Retirement * Las Vegas * Relationships

What do all of these things have to do with each other?  Plenty.  Add to the mix "mortgages and credit card bills",  "health", and "job security",  you have the items that occupy over 90% of an adults conscience thoughts.  An most of these items have negative connotations.  

Anxiety comes about because of problems, worries, or seemingly injustices.  Of all the advice I have ever received on this topic, none has served me as well as these few words:   “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 

 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?   “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble".  Ahem .  This is the answer for anyone who is open to the truth. 

"Garbage in, Garbage out."  I do not like this cliche, but I keep it in mind, so I do not put needless and worthless thoughts in my mind.  And this item convinced me to do this:  Luke 6: 45 The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.  So, if my mind and heart are full of junk, how can I benefit anyone?  TV news, newspapers, talk radio, most of Hollywood, negative conversations, etc: most of these items may pollute my mind and then influence my words, and then bring what I do not want!  

Tomorrow: How to manage your day to day issues and be happy.

Baking and Back Aches

The list of things to accomplish, in the month of December, is extensive:  

• Decorate the house for Christmas,
  
• Rake the leaves (in San Antonio, trees shed leaves in (December through March)
  
• Plant the winter garden  (if you did not do that in October!)
  
• Shop.
  
• Facilitate numerous maintenance items (replace valves and flappers in toilets, lubricate squeaky doors, clean the garage - again)
  
• Prepare for guests (about 23 people from Terri's family will visit us between the 21st and the 31st)
  

And this is one I seldom do: baking, 8 dozen cookies: Oatmeal raisin and chocolate chip.  

Our Son, Brian, is currently deployed with the US Army, from the base at Fort Hood , Texas, to Baghdad, Iraq.  Initially, his MOS (the military's fancy term for "job description") was mechanical maintenance on helicopters.  The is his third trip to the Middle East, and his new job is a little more exciting: he is the door gunner on the helicopters he once repaired.  As a DAD, this new development gives me angst.  And Christ has put a band of angels around Brian to protect him and his colleagues.  Amen.

Back to the cookies.  I started the project yesterday afternoon by making the dough for 5 dozen oatmeal raisin cookies.   Aah, the flour, eggs, butter, vanilla, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, the oats, coconut, raisins, and flour.  After 90 minutes of prep, and the first 36, I quit: my mid back was in extreme pain.  Add stomach pain, the onset of fatigue, and dehydration, I was miserable.  Terri, wisely told me to take a nap and she would finish putting the dough in the oven and removing the cookies 14 minutes later.  Oh, she did a good job!

After 90 minutes of deep slumber, I arose, and checked our creation: Wonderful!  That evening, Terri and Mary took a trip to Costco, so I made 4 dozen chocolate chip cookies.  Then, I cleaned the utensils I used, cleaned the kitchen, and admired my work.  I will think twice before I ask Terri to whip up a batch of fresh cookies: This is real work!  

Now I made up three pint sized bags of nuts and dried fruit; different combinations.  I packed up the nut/fruit bags and the cookies, along with a deck of cards, a magazine, some peanut butter / chocolate candies, and a letter to Brian.  He should get it in about 10 days.   

Having my only Son in harm's way, again, is much more than an annoyance, being somewhat worried, or being angry at times.   It is about about "trust".  This Earth, is not his home, but rather it is Heaven.  We are just visitors here for 20, 40, 60, or 80 years, then eternity with our Lord and Maker: now this is comforting!  

I am reminded of that last account of Job's life.  He had a great family and was financially successful.  In fact, "that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil." Then Satan made a deal with GOD, concerning God's servant, Job.  Satan first took from Job all of his health and good fortune, then Satan afflicted Job with boils; now that makes me sorry I whined about my back aches yesterday!  The book is great, but I want to tell you how the story ends.  For 40 more chapters we read about Job, his wife, and Job's friends.  We read of the dialogue of GOD.  

This is no ordinary story: it is unique because it is the story of so many people in our world today: success, failure, family laughter, then sorrow.  Today's current events are merely reruns of history.  And now we have a chance to learn from the past to improve our lives today.

The odds were against Job, according to conventional wisdom.  The deck was stacked against him.  Imagine Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, Carl Icahn, or some wholesome entertainer or athlete suddenly loosing all of their wealth, and then their health.  What happened to Job was worse: he was very lucid and aware of what was going on, but he saw no reason all these calamities should be happening to him!  Yet he praised GOD, rather than curse HIM (as his wife suggested he do).

This is an exciting story.  If your Bible is not available, I will tell you how this story ends.  If you want to read the account in it's entirety, stop here and get your Bible.  NOTE: Look for "Grace" in the last chapter.

And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold.

And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.  He had also seven sons and three daughters.  And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch.  And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job's daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.  And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, four generations.  And Job died, an old man, and full of days. (Job, chapter 41)

Merry Christmas

Two Seasons: Spending, and Success and Prosperity

The news from the The Street is that Holiday Shoppers are doing as expected: Spending Money

• Parties!  December 7 through Super Bowl Sunday: a boon Food and Beverage Businesses!
  
• And New babies!  We all want to buy them cute outfits and toys.
  
• We may lavish for our "significant other" with gifts of adornment , bows, and a gift receipt.
• Year End Clearance Time: We deserve that new car, mattress, or liposuction procedure.
  
• And come January, "Time for another Fitness club membership and books on healthy eating."

But are we spending enough?  Let's go back to "The Street" and learn what they think.  Since September:

1. Walmart, America's Most Popular Retailer (AMPR) is up 10%.
   
2. Ford is down 13%.
   
3. And for the sake of our meds .... Pfizer is down, but only 5%, but Merck is up 20%. (Whew!)
   
4. Our mortgage companies, CitiBank, CountryWide, and WaMU are off by 33%, 50%, and 57%
   
5. The Chinese utility we bought in July,  Yingli Green Energy Holding, is up 105%!
   
6. Fuelers (Chevron-Texaco, British Petro and Exxon) are still 401k favorites.
   
7. And for our National Nutrition Sources, Sara Lee and Anheuser-Busch, are up modestly, but Tyson Chicken is down: Go Figure that one out!
   

"So are we spending enough to keep our retirement accounts healthy?"  Well that depends on who you talk to.  

... According to the banking industry, business is both good, and not so good: credit card profits are way up, but we are defaulting on too many mortgages.  

... While tract home sales are off, luxury home sales in the Sun Belt are making us money.  

... But the Social Security Department (makes you feel safe and protected, doesn't it?)  says 93% of all Boomer (and Gen Xers) are broke or working toward becoming broke by the time we retire.  

So let us turn to a few recent cultural Icons for their take on the situation. 

*** Fleetwood Mac gave us these words:  "Everythings waiting for you ...   You can go your own way ....  You an call it Another lonely day.

*** And Huey Lewis tells us "this ain't no circus and I don't need a clown   Your cash ain't nothin' but trash".

*** and GOD says this in Joshua, Chapter 1  :5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”