There is something much deeper here than this simple question.
My dad died when he was fifty-four. I was only thirteen and considered him old. Soon I turn sixty-eight and I keep telling myself that sixty-eight is the new 40 – and I certainly do not consider that old!
Last month we had a chance to visit churches in Europe along the Rhine River.
· The Cologne Cathedral was started in 1248 in Cologne, Germany.
· The church of St. Castor, in Castor, Germany was started in 817.
· Speyer Cathedral in Speyer, Germany was founded in 1030 – but remodeled at the end of the 11th century.
· The Catholic Strasbourg Cathedral in Strasbourg, France was started in 1015 and finished in 1439.
The Pilgrims landed in America in the 1600s. Much later than ALL these churches were built.
What is big and what is small?
I recently read an article from one of my fave authors, Mitch Albom. He started an orphanage in Haiti many years ago. Have Faith Haiti Mission - Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage In his latest newsletter he describes the orphanage, including land, of being less than the size of his home in Michigan.
Inside the walls houses fifty-five kids plus fifty staff and teachers. I hope you join him in his endeavor by subscribing to his weekly newsletter for just $2.99 per month. You’ll learn what is big and what is small.
What is a lot of money and what is not much money?
I bought my first house in Rockford, IL for $19,750. The payments were $192 per month, and I was scared to death because that was so much money!
I thought that if I could ever have a $40,000 house and make $25,000 per year, I would really have it made!
Baseball home run records in a year?
In 1919 Babe Ruth broke the season high for home runs with twenty-nine. The next year he had fifty-four. In 1927 he had sixty. In took until 1961, with eight more games, for Roger Maris to hit 61. Mark McGwire hit 70 in 1998 before Barry Bonds hit 73 in 2001. (See: steroid scandal)
How about running the mile?
In 1954 no one believed that ANYONE could break the 4-minute mile. That is until May 6th when Roger Bannister ran it in 3:59.4.
10 years later Jim Ryun, only a junior in high school, ran it in 3:59.0. In 1965 he ran it in 3:58.3. Thirty-six years later Allan Webb broke this running 3:53.43. (He still holds the record he set in 2001.) sixteen high school kids have now run the 4-minute mile – an accomplishment no one ever thought could be done.
Get the picture?
Life is about perspective.
When is the last time you said to someone?
· “This is too hard!”
· “I can’t do this.”
· “There is no way this can be done!”
· “I worked on this for so long and I just can’t figure it out.”
When you said this to someone, did they look at you like you had four eyes and three noses? Did they give you this disgusting look which meant to you that they just didn’t want to understand how difficult this certain situation was?????
Why?
To them this situation might be a walk in the park. They have most likely gone through something much more difficult in their own lives that makes your challenge so simple.
The Lesson
One of my fave books from many years ago was Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich. In was written and published in 1937.
Another one of my faves is Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking. It was written by Dr. Peale in 1952.
Some may say that these are books some old guys wrote decades ago and that one can’t relate to in 2022. I beg to differ. Just as I believe that the 10 commandments delivered in the second book of the Bible are still apropos today.
Put life in perspective. Put lessons like these in perspective. Simply put life is about perspectives and the choices we make not only on how we look at things – but also how we deal with things. How? By putting our challenges in perspective and believes that there is always a solution. Edison had over 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. Colonel Sanders said his recipe was rejected 1,009 times before anyone accepted it.
Your challenges have answers! You just didn’t find the answer yet. Hill would tell you to think about it. Peale would tell you to stay positive while you are searching for the answer.
Instead of saying, “I can’t” be honest with yourself and simply say, “I choose not to try any harder than I am already trying. I know it can be done but it just isn’t that important to me to try any harder.”
