I was asked recently what I thought are some of the important lessons we can learn and internalize from this 2 plus years that we have endured.
I immediately said, Strength, Courage and to Stop Being Afraid.
This is an updated post with elements from an earlier time but it bears repeating even more so as we walk forward into the future.
May it encourage us to think more clearly than we may have before so we can stand with strength, courage and fearlessness!
We can learn a lot from nature; the way ants work, bird migration formations, fish (salmon) swimming upstream. There is a danger to swimming upstream; the current is against them, predators waiting for the ambush moment, but there is a bonus at the end when they make it.
This Forward Friday is about the courage to stand alone, even when the winds of the day appear to be gusting in only one direction. But like the salmon that swims upstream to spawn, we can become much more fearless in the areas of life that are not easy if we dare face the wind...stand...and keep walking...
Let’s Get Into This:
This period of time has been fragile to say the least and in many cases, if one didn’t fall in line with some of the prevailing thinking of the day, one could and would feel like being on the outside looking in.
But if we are to be governed by our conscience, then maybe sometimes it may not be a bad thing to be standing alone.
Cases in point: here in Canada, the government has spent millions of dollars on an advertising campaign to tell Canadians how systemically racist we are. We have Critical Race Theory which propagates that everything should be viewed through the lens of race. (The program had to be suspended because one of the chief organizers of this campaign that was hired by the government was found out to be anti-Semitic: fascinating and one can't make this up)
In fact, many who hold this view espouse that white people are born inherently racist. Besides the fact that we should have a new acronym for CRT and we could call it, “Coherent Rational Thought”, the assumption is false that people , particularly white people are born racists.
Maybe we should have a new acronym for CRT and we could call it, “Coherent Rational Thought”
While there are racial issues that rear their heads in every facet of society among all groups and races of people, we have created an atmosphere for more discontent by pushing this illogical view.
I know I could and should feel conflicted because I am of mixed descent so what side of me is racist and which is not? And few rarely talk about it but to be clear, racism is not a one sided street because there are racists in every creed, nationality and color of skin..
Yet, the strength of a backbone means that sometimes, we must walk against the wind and not allow the prevailing thinking of the day determine our steps..
It was also troubling to see the covert, overt pressure being exacted upon people regarding the taking of the vaccine or not by friends, family, co-workers, leaders in different fields, the carrot dangling of enticements, potential loss of jobs (this happened), the threat of not having the liberties as those who were vaccinated.
It is interesting that the government(s) who took away the liberties in the first place was then saying that unless we did this thing, we wouldn’t get back what we had before? Interesting.. This is not a critique for those who have been vaccinated or not as we live in a society or we should live in such a society where freedom of conscience reigns, the same ability should be afforded those who choose with their conscience a different route.
Besides the ramped up talk of doing it for the next guy/girl, if the guy/girl chose and decided to vaccinate, the next person’s decision should not affect that one because that person is protected. Or so we were told. At the end of the day, we must live with our conscience and decisions and those decisions should/must be respected in as much as they could be directly opposite to what another may do.
So when the next "Thing" is thrown our way as the "Thing To Fear", maybe we will be more prudent in our reactions and it will not be easy for fear to cause us to acquiesce/quickly bend to the pressure being thrown at us.
Sometimes, the strength of the backbone means that our walk in and against the wind could be and many a time very lonely but to be able to look oneself in the mirror, head held high and at peace means that courage must grow from the inside out.
Courage is also sometimes having the ability to admit when we have made a mistake or had the best of intentions and the outcome didn’t turn out as we had hoped.
I wrote a post during the summer riots of 2020 and in it talked about some of the incidents that happened to us.
The impression received was that of a victim, the sheer number of views (the most of any post in 2 ½ years) and comments spoke to that trend of thinking.
What was interesting was subsequent posts were designed to look at solutions which garnered barely a ¼ of that original post.
There were omissions in writing that post that didn’t get in.
Like the fact that for every incident that was negative, there have been 10 positive moments that have enriched my life.
That wasn’t said and I regret that oversight but it is never too late to get something right or corrected because I am not a victim.
In this victim laden age, yes there are things that happen to us at times that should never happen but to balance the picture, we need to talk about the positive moments that enrich and help us and to help and encourage others.
Courage takes strength and in this day and age, a backbone is needed to stand against the wind, especially when it’s not comfortable to do so.
In Every Season Of Life, There Are Backbone Walk Against The Wind Courage Moments That We Must Face And Decide To Move Forward With/On.
Things Like:
The Relationship That Demands A Shift, Change, Adjustment…
The Job Situation That Is Causing Flux.
The Weight Issue That Keeps Getting Pushed To The Side.
Here Are A Few Everyday Courage Acts We Can Practice
The Ability To Say We Are Sorry/Blew it
It takes courage to admit when we are wrong. It’s a bold act to admit when we make a mistake. To say we got it wrong takes us out of our comfort zone. It’s A Big Deal.
Be Ourselves
Who we are is a gift to the world
Learning To Say No
Refuse to hold back when our gut says to move forward.
“One of the most courageous acts is still to think for ourselves”.
Forgive
We should consider to stop stumbling over what could have been.
Forgive ourselves. Forgive those who have hurt us.
What happened is over unless we keep it alive by reliving it in our mind. Get help to work through the pains of the past but we must work to get to the other side of the pain/issue.
When we know better, we do better.
It takes courage to move forward.
It doesn’t mean we allow ourselves to be run over again, but we choose a different outlook.
Listening
Listen to people who disagree with us.
Listen to family/friends who think we may not be looking at things correctly.
Listen when we only want to speak and give advice.
Listen and be thankful to others for sharing.
There are always lessons to be learned, even in uncomfortable spaces.
Learn From Our Mistakes
Reflect On What Went Wrong And What We Could Have Done Better.
Look For The Lesson In The Wind. Choose To Grow Forward.
Be Compassionate.
Make A New Plan.
Refuse To Give Up.
Some Good Medicine To Help Us Into The Weekend
Our uniqueness will many times feel like awkwardness until God at the right time shows us the relevance of where we’ve been and where we are going.
There is a learning curve to being okay being the only one in the room so to speak
The Wishbone will never experience the benefits of the Backbone.
Be strong and take heart, all who hope in the LORD
"Courage is contagious. When a brave man/woman takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened."
We need courage in every facet, corner of our lives. It isn’t easy going against the wind when it would be so easy to go with the wind….. But sometimes…… The Strength of the Backbone of courage demands different.
It isn’t easy but we can become more fearless if we dare to walk into the wind….Walking with you….
Dave
#ForwardFriday#Courage#StrengthOfTheBackbone#LegacyStrength#Blog#Speaker#Fearless#CourageIsContagious#GoodMedicine#PracticeCourage
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