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Understanding Infatuation (Finding Your Soul Mate, Part 2)

In the previous article, we identified calmly and logically, myriad virtues, values, beliefs, attitudes and life choices you may or may not share in common with your future lifetime partner. The idea is pretty simple. If you're going to share your life with someone, you'd better have a whole lot more in common then just an inexplicable attraction or infatuation!

But this giddy, delirious infatuation we call "falling in love" is one of the most potent forces on earth. Why do we call it "falling?" Because it's usually unexpected and unplanned, and to boot, it seems to send us spiraling out of control.

How to Pray
by Leonard Sweet, PhD

Our direct uplink (or better, surround-link) to the Almighty is called prayer. Prayer is the primal and primary religious act. Prayer is the trigger mechanism that releases God's will in our life and world. Prayer is the art of hole-punching the sky so that "as it is in heaven" becomes an earthly reality. As with all high-powered, high-voltage sources, prayer mandates certain vectors.

Don’t Put Up With Bullies
By Dr. Monte Wilson

Years ago, an older woman called to ask my advice about dealing with her husband’s harsh treatment of her. While he had always been a bit on the stern side, due to some debilitating illnesses his behavior had become unbearable. Knowing that I knew her husband quite well, she wanted to know if she should patiently endure his abuse or confront him.

True Friends

One of my favorite Proverbs is: "Associate with the wise and you become like them, associate with fools and become one" (13:20) - a piece of wisdom that can be especially telling when looking at the quality of our friendships.

We all (I hope) have friends. Yet most of us yearn for a true friendship, one deeper, richer, and safer then what we have now. So what is a true friend?

Making a Difference in People's Lives Begins in the Neighborhood

One of the things that distinguishes people of faith is their desire to help others. Jesus repeatedly taught on this theme (most notably the Golden Rule and the parable of the Good Samaritan.) In fact, Jesus earned the undying enmity of the religious authorities of his day by audaciously summing up all of "God's law" (thousands of Hebrew Scriptures) in one short sentence: Love your neighbor as yourself.

Dealing With Know-It-Alls
By C.V. Doner PhD

We all know them. Those people who seem to think they know everything - the proverbial "know-it-all." Not only are they never wrong, but they also tend to be judgmental, condescending, haughty and bossy. In other words, full of themselves (or something else)! To boot, they're seemingly unaware of other people or at least of other people's feelings or perspectives.

How To Raise Great Kids

Number One - Love and value yourself

If you don't cherish yourself, you may end up treating your child with the same lack of respect or confidence you feel towards yourself. Remember, you are their primary role model. Your attitude will mold their own —they may well accept your dysfunctions as normative.

Love is a Lifestyle
By Dr. Monte Wilson

When I was a child I thought there was only one kind of love. You love your family, you love your friends, you love your dog: love is love.

When I became a young man and read CS Lewis’ The Four Loves, he confirmed something I had begun to experience: there were all kinds of love—affection, friendship, eros, and charity.

The Big “D’s”
Written By Brant Doner

After studying many inspirational teachers, attending transformational seminars and reading books like “Celebrate Life” by Colonel Doner or inspirational books by Monte Wilson, and Tony Robbins, I’ve managed to pick up a few things like how to find my soul-mate (turns out it was my best friend, who is a German Shepherd), how to find true friends, how to not sweat the small stuff and how to lose a guy in ten days. You get the point. But what stuck with me even after forgetting the names of most of the books was the unanimous advice to have a goal or dream in life.

The Golden Rule

We've all heard that we should treat others like we'd like to be treated ourselves; so many times it's become a trite cliché. We don't even know where the saying came from. We think perhaps that our Grandmother made it up. Or at least somebody's Grandmother.

In fact, Jesus stated it first, two thousand years ago when he said, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Like most of His teachings, He was explaining the intent of God's universal laws as expressed in the Hebrew Scripture (found in the Old Testament). Specifically, He was summing up the meaning of the Ten Commandments, the core of God's law given to Moses.

Have to, Need To or Want To?
By Dr. Monte Wilson

A young man who had attended one of my Sales and Persuasion trainings a while back recently emailed me asking if I could possibly help him with a problem he was having. I said certainly and we set up a time for a conversation on the phone. The problem? His job was “killing” him. As he had been in and out of doctor’s offices seeking to deal with his stress levels and anxiety attacks, he meant that literally.

Stealth Warfare
Monte Wilson

We have all encountered such behavior:

You walk into her office, as scheduled, prepared to get a critical report you will need for your meeting with upper management. The report is not ready. What happened was that her computer froze. Time before that her car broke down.

Living An Inspired Life
By Leonard Sweet

The art of making a moment into something holy is the art of magnetizing moments with the Spirit. To make a moment is not to manufacture a moment or concoct a split-second spirituality. It is rather to identify a moment in such a way that it can be become a conscious moment, as an enjoyed moment and an enduring moment that redounds to the glory of God. When a moment is magnetized by the Spirit, it becomes whole, holy and eternal.

When Life Doesn't Show-Up as Planned

Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance.

–Bruce Barton

Somewhere along the line we have adopted the belief that life should be easy and comfortable for every living soul, especially “mine.” There are to be no barriers along our path, nothing standing in the way of our goals, no one to aggravate us or go contrary to our beliefs of how-things-are-to-be-done, no one making us eat our vegetables. This may be the way we wish for life to come to us but it is not the way life here on earth plays out.

Live to Live Forever
By Leonard Sweet, Ph. D.

To live to live forever is to abolish the concept of middle age. Increasingly, what is being defined as old is getting older. Where old used to be defined as over sixty, now 32 percent say that old is over seventy, 15 percent say it is over eighty, as 37 percent argue that age is only a state of mind. When middle age becomes something between thirty and seventy-five, it becomes a meaningless category. That's why what used to be called middle age I call mid-youth. When the seventy-four-year-old Illinois Republican Henry Hyde deflected the uncovering of a five-year illicit relationship during his forties with a dismissive the statue of limitations has long since passed on my youthful indiscretions, he had it exactly right. Your forties are youthful.

Creating A Better Leader

A leader is an "individual with a mission."

The mission could be building a bigger business or a better product; making a kinder world (or finding a new one); defeating a threatening enemy (war, disease, famine, ignorance); helping the poor, sick, handicapped or orphaned; (providing justice to the oppressed); or stewarding God's good creation (by caring for a part of the cosmos - art, science, church, family, business, government, the environment, etc.). But having a mission is not what makes a leader effective; the following 11 criteria also must be present.

The Missing Soul
By Monte Wilson

As a coach, one of the more common problems my clients wrestle with is the issue of what author Thomas Moore refers to as loss of soul: the loss of a sense of wholeness, feeling disconnected from life.

The Rules!

The guiding principles to a fulfilling life

VII. Celebrate Life: The Principle of Pleasure

Life should be a celebration! Every minister, therapist, counselor, rabbi or priest understands that people move toward pleasurable experiences and away from painful ones. Would you rather go to the dentist or to a movie? Go to work or to the beach? Take an exam or a nap? Confront an adversary, or hang out with a friend? The answers to those questions are quite obvious.

The real question is, do you think God is also in on this universal secret? Or are you convinced He is a cosmic killjoy, only demanding of us things that are obviously painful and unpleasant, like some of the ancient mystics who felt driven to whip themselves for their sins?

What do other religions have in common with Christianity?

By Peter Kreeft PhD
Excerpted from Your Questions God's Answers

Vatican Council II told us that there are some profound truths we can learn from other religions, because God has not left the world in darkness, but has given many valuable insights to people in other religions, too, though he has come to earth in person only once, in Christ.

Living Life with Skill

Why do you need wisdom?

One of the most critical virtues you need for a successful life journey is wisdom. Solomon knew this when God offered to grant him any request he might make. King Solomon didn't ask for riches, health, or power; he asked for wisdom Of course, with the wisdom, God gave him riches, health and power as well.

Age is Attitude
by Greg Anderson

The most up-to-date research in gerontology has uncovered a shocking conclusion: as much as 80 percent of what we now call "old age" is NOT related to biology. Instead, it has its roots in expectations and attitudes. True, the 20 percent that is a product of biology may incapacitate us and even result in our death. But the good news is this: if we concentrate on improving and changing the unnecessary 80 percent, we stand to profit beyond our most optimistic expectations.

The Rules!

The guiding principles to a fulfilling life

V. Sharing Your Blessings: Principle of Reciprocity

God's ground rules and principles for successful living teach us how to access and apply the wisdom we need to be prosperous, healthy, productive and contented. Specifically, Jesus offers us the way to an "abundant life," Jesus taught that when we give generously to others (i.e. of our time, talent, love and finances) God, in turn, is very generous to us. In other words, enjoying a wholesome prosperity, we must share whatever we have been blessed with.

Ancient Hebrew Scriptures tell us that if we honor God with the "first results of our labors" we will be prosperous beyond imagination (Proverbs 3:9, Malachi 3:10). Traditionally, this has been interpreted to mean giving away 10 percent of your income (or more) to your temple, church, parish or directly to the needy themselves (Matthew 25, Luke 10, James 1:2, Proverbs 3:27).

Getting in Touch With Your Feelings
By Dr. Monte Wilson

“The most sentimental thing in the world is to hide your feelings; it is making too much of them.” GK Chesterton

I came into this world a very sensitive, emotional person. God in his wisdom saw to it that my father was not.

I remember the first time I heard Beethoven’s 9th Symphony: I was so moved by the grandeur of the music that I wept. I was 10 years old. When my father saw this, he yelled out to my mother, “Billie…he is crying…OVER THE MUSIC!” This greatly troubled my dad and continued to do so until I brought home my first girlfriend.

Radical Sabbaticals
By Leonard Sweet, PhD

Sabbath was not designed to be a day to do what you please, Isaiah warned (58:13), but to do what pleases God.

Sometimes what pleases God is serious self-examination. The Hebrew term for the verb “to pray” is le hitpalel, which means

Courage
by Monte Wilson

It often takes courage to say no to an unethical but very profitable opportunity. It takes courage to tell your boss what he or she will not enjoy hearing. It takes courage to take off on a direction that you have faith will lead to success while everyone around you is counseling you to take another route. It takes courage to invest your resources – time, money and energy – in a vision that may not be realized for years to come. It takes courage to initiate, to act decisively when everyone else around you is hanging back.

The Ultimate Enlightenment
By C.V. Doner, Phd.

Those of us chasing madly after spiritual maturity, enlightenment, (or near-perfect levels of self-improvement) are chasing our tails. We will never find "perfection" by seeking it because we already have it. We just need to recognize and accept it.

What we're looking for is a feeling (or deep knowing) that we are, after all, who God made us to be. In other words, that we're really, truly OK. Relax. You are OK, just the way you are.

Prayer tips for facing "trials" and challenges

Life offers many challenges, the ultimate being death itself. We are sometimes called upon to face pain, suffering, loss, and grief that may seem impossible to handle. Prayer gives us hope and keeps us moving. Here is a formula you may use to help overcome. When confronted with a trial of any kind:

1. Face it
2. Lift it
3. Commit it
4. Release it

Finding Ourselves

What Is Your Ultimate Purpose?

"We have lost the sense of ultimate purpose gained over thousands of years of human life."

- Emile Caillet

What is the meaning of life- in particular, of your life? True meaning is derived from accomplishing the specific purpose for which you were created. The good news is that God actually wants you to be a success in life! We know this because God explicitly created us in His image (Genesis 1:7, 9:6), for the express purpose of taking care of His creation (Genesis 1:28-30). Since we are designed to be caretakers of His magnificent world, He undoubtedly wants us to be successful as Jesus Himself taught in the parable of the "Talents" (Mathew 25:14-40).

How to keep the extra weight off …permanently:

The Law of Nutritional Frugality.
By Greg Anderson

As soon as we mention the word diet, two predictable objections always arise. The first has to do with lack of willpower: “I’ve tried a hundred diets and can’t stay on one of them.” The mental programming is that we’ll fail on any future attempt.

The second predictable objection is taste: “I just love a meal of beef roast and apple dumplings! I’m never going to settle for some tasteless diet, no matter how good it is for me.”

Avoiding Fools and Other Draining People
By C. V. Doner

"Do not cast your pearls (of wisdom/energy) before swine (fools)."

- Jesus

The evocative image here is one of filthy, indiscriminate animals gobbling up beautiful gems (your wisdom, love, energy) like they were so much garbage.

Playing at Marriage
By Leonard Sweet PhD

A marriage that isn't "working" is a marriage that isn't playing. Elizabeth and I are learning how to play at marriage, not work at it. To "make our relationship work" would be for us to grind away at it and grind it down. To "make our relationship play" is to orbit our lives around a mission - creating advance centers in the three landscapes Jesus picked to root and reboot his own spirit: the mountains, the water, and the desert.

Your DNA Is a Song

National Geographic did a story recently about "DNA music". The idea is that each DNA molecule makes a unique "sound" that can be translated into musical notes. Since each of us has a unique combination of DNA molecules (our "genetic blueprint"), we each represent a unique musical composition - or song.

In other words, you make a song that no one else makes. Actually, you're an amazingly beautiful, complex and very long symphony: if all of your DNA was unpacked and stretched out, it would reach from here to the sun and back 30 TIMES.

Who is Responsible for Physical Health?
BY Greg Andersen

Most people think wellness is a question of eating your vegetables, taking a daily walk, and having good genes. In the long run, they figure, "my genes will determine my health and my life. My efforts are secondary."

That belief is an illustration. The Law of Personal Accountability states that it is we - yes, you and I - who are responsible, first and foremost, for our own wellness.

Celebrate Life!

Secrets for Celebrating Life

Have you ever wondered why some people seem to have it all together?

Some people appear to have the "golden touch" in finances; they enjoy wonderful relationships; their health is good; they appear more youthful than their years indicate. Their attitude is vibrant, even effervescent; they actually seem to celebrate life. They are energized, rather than depressed by challenges. These people have discovered how to apply God's universal principles for successful living- what we simply call life's secrets, or "Ground Rules."

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