“To Be Thankful…”
November 24, 2010 by admin
Filed under Blog, cultural manliness, Faith, Fatherhood, manliness, Virtue
I’ve been thinking that a number of my posts have been negative examples of males lately, or simply negative in
nature in one way or another. I wanted to post this video of an incredible man. Nick Vujicic is an awesome inspiration. You may have seen him before, but I suggest that you watch this video all the way through. Shortly into the video, he shares some principles for life. The first thing he says is simple, and important considering that tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day. He says, “I’ve learned to be thankful.” Simple, but true.
“It’s a lie to think that you’re not good enough. It’s a lie to think that you’re not worth anything.” From Nick Vujicic, the man with no arms or legs. Believe this!
Watch the video, then think of all the times that you’ve wanted something you shouldn’t have, and in turn, have been completely lacking in thankfulness for the things you do have. This guy doesn’t have any arms or legs, for goodness sake! He swims, plays soccer, fishes, drives boats! This man is incredible… what do you have to complain about? Nothing!
I thought a part of the story that is important for men who are either newly married, engaged to be married or hoping to one day be married, was the part of the story when he spoke about not needing hands to hold her heart. Powerful.
TrueMan up!
In a World of Negativity, Think Positive
There’s a lot of junk happening lately and lots of bad stuff happening in the world. We’ve got gigantic problems in Washington, we’re
fighting a war in the Middle East where there hasn’t been peace, well, ever. We’re constantly facing persecution for being “moral, ethical citizens”. Babies are being destroyed for the sake of convenience and preference. A good deal of the time, it doesn’t seem like anything is ever going to get better.
Look on the bright side, we have lots to be thankful for. Someone, somewhere has it much, much worse than you or me. Belly-achin’ and complainin’ about stuff isn’t going to make anything better. Yes, there are plenty of really horrible things taking place in our world, but they shouldn’t effect our daily lives from being focused and centered on Christ.
Imagine how badly St. Paul had it… beatings, being stoned, imprisonment and so on! (Read Philippians 2:12-18.)
Thinking positively helps us take a bad situation and turn it into something decent. There’s serious power in the reality of the power of positive thought. I encourage everyone to try three things over the next three days, and see if your attitude changes.
- Refrain from complaining.
- Find a positive side to everything.
- Do something kind for someone else at least once a day.
After three days, after you’ve tried these three things, comment back, or email, or post on Facebook, or wherever. I want to know what you experienced.
Man up!
In Response to a Comment: More Positive Examples, Please
James,
I greatly appreciate your comment, keep ’em comin’! The topic of negative/judgemental material has been brought to my attention before, and I would like to publicly respond. I will write this post here, as well as respond to you in the comment section under “About TrueManhood’s Author”.
The first time I was asked about it, someone asked me, “Do I really believe that men are as bad off as I make them seem?” My answer was emphatically “Yes!”. I witness unconscionable behavior almost on a daily basis, and this behavior has become the socially accepted norm for males. I also, on occasion, see an example of manliness lived out in our modern world – I typically write about it.
I’d like to draw attention to the majority of my past posts during the months of June/July 09; these posts are positive examples of men living out virtue and encouraing others to do the same. Since Father’s Day, 7 of my last 9 posts have had optimistic and positive outlooks on men and their manliness. The few posts that seem to have a negative and/or seemingly judgemental approach are written as real life examples of men who fail to live out the call that has been placed on all of our hearts since the dawn of time. (See the discourse between God and Adam in The Book of Genesis.) These few “negative” examples are in place in order to bring light to the darkness and to hopefully start to reverse a trend that I (I believe we all see it happening in front of us daily) see happening in our culture; this trend is that a stereotypical male lives a certain way. I have referred to this as “cultural manliness” – the idea that a man is judged based on how much money, power, possessions and sex he has. I desire to fight this stereotype, reverse it so that the trend is of virtuous men living out their God-given call and to win souls for Christ.
I would really appreciate any and all comments on this topic!
Man up!
It Depends on How You Look At It
My wife and I woke up this morning to our truck missing. It was parked on the curb, locked. Apparently, someone thought they wanted/needed it more than we do.
I knew immediately, as Catherine came in from the driveway (preparing to leave for work this morning) and asked, “Dave, where did you park the Avalanche last night?”, that it was gone. I got up to look out the front windows, knowing that my looking wasn’t going to bring it back. I kissed her, told her it would be alright and she headed to work. I calmly called the local PD and reported it stolen. The officer was great and kept the conversation positive by saying “We have a 65% recovery rate, so don’t lose hope.” I could have chosen to look at it much differently than I did.
It depends on how you look at it…
On the one hand, someone had the audacity to violate my property. They found my possession more important for them to possess. They put a scare in the families who, at one time, felt safe in our private cul de sac. They caused me to question the security of my home and whether or not I should go out and purchase car alarms for each of my vehicles. It caused me lots of paperwork and hassle. They stole not only my vehicle but $4K worth of my stuff that was inside of it. How dare they.
On the other hand, I’m probably going to get a newer, nicer vehicle. I’ll most likely get all my possessions replaced and my family will move on and be stronger because we made a choice to look at the bright side. Through adversity comes unity within a family unit.
This sort of incident can eat away at a person. A person can let it consume them and let the emotions that come along with it form their attitude. I’m choosing to respond differently. I know that God will provide for us and that this happened for a reason. Good can come from this and I’m positive that it will. What good would it do me to complain? What good would becoming angry or frustrated bring me? Obviously, in this situation, what’s done is done. If the police find it and it’s not damaged, great. If it’s gone forever, then God is protecting my family from something.
When something like this happens to you or to someone close to you, set an example of how to react. Staying even-keeled and consistent with your emotions will be a strong witness. Remain strong in God the Father and know that He wants good for you. Be strong.
Man up!
