The Paper May 2013 – Ready For A Change?
In his book, Thinking
for a Change, Dr. John Maxwell, a well known International motivational
speaker, says, “The right thought, plus the right people, in the right
environment, at the right time, for the right reason, always produces the right
result”. Brutus in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar,
summarised the same concept in a different way when he said, “There is a tide in the affairs of men,
which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune”. Whilst Dr Maxwell is looking at ways
to consciously impact the environment and help construct a desired result,
Shakespeare is suggesting that life is much more a game of chance, and that we
need to be ready to seize each opportunity as and when it arises.
The issue many of us have, however, is in knowing
what is the “right” result, the “right” thought, the “right” environment and so
on. In our society today the assignment
of “right” and “wrong” is often made based on a personal assessment rather than
through reference to an absolute standard.
In Science there are standard units for distance, weight, temperature,
heat , time and so on, which are clearly defined. In Mathematics there are accepted processes
for manipulation of numbers and formulae.
In the written word there are construction techniques considered to be
correct. But when it comes to the real
issues of life, such as behavioural, emotional and relational issues, in response
to real life events, most people think they are on their own. But are they or should they be?
Most religious groups believe that there are
standards of behaviour that should be followed.
These may vary between Religions and cultures, but there is a
recognition of a standard for what is “right”, rather than it being left to the
choice of the individual. There are, if
you like, a set of Cosmos behavioural patterns which are recognised as
“right”. There are some foundation
standards that all have in common such as concern and compassion for others.
Christians in particular believe that there is an
absolute standard of behaviour which is set out in the Bible – the Guide Book
for living. Jesus said, “He that findeth
his life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life shall find it”. (Matthew 10:39)
There are many testimonies from people who have experienced that whilst
they were primarily thinking of themselves, their lives were unsatisfying, but
once they started thinking of others their lives became meaningful. I had an old Aunty who had a few
life-challenges, but whenever she felt down she would always find someone in a
worse situation than herself, and do something to help them. Remember the old addage, “I had no shoes and
complained, until I met a man who had no feet”. (Anonymous)
St Paul, writing in the New Testament of the Bible (Hebrews 4:7-11) talks about reviewing our life-situation
within our environment, and making decisions to change or renew aspects of our
lifestyle so that we can be at peace with where we are and what we are doing. He concludes that there is no better time to
do that than “Now”. “To-day if ye will
hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”
The Bible message is that we need help from outside to be able to arrive
at peace within ourselves - Christians believe that events of some 2,000 years
ago have made a way for people in all generations to receive this help. This ties together a continuum of life – an
existence prior to us coming into this world, our presence here now, and what
happens in the future.
Going back to where we started, how do we achieve
the “right result” to which John Maxwell referred? If we want to improve our life understanding we
have the right thought, if we mentor our lives on those who have achieved an
inward peace we have the right people, if we mix with like minded people we will
have the right environment, “now” is the right time, and if the reason is
because we want to do what is “right” in an absolute sense, not just from our
own assessment, then we have the right reason.
If we put all this together we will surely benefit with an improved
life-style which is the right result.
We would like to invite you to visit us, or a Church in your local
Community, to talk about what might be the “right things” in your life, and if
you are thinking for a change, to
discuss how you might go about setting the right conditions for that change to
occur. See Church Notices in this Paper
for times of Meetings at the Christian Israelite Church at 196 Campbell Street
– we have been there since 1853 - 160 years.
Rodney
Gray – Pastor Christian Israelite Church, 196 Campbell Street, Sydney (www.cichurch.com or visit
cichurch.blogspot.com.au)
