The Other 167 Hours

life outside the session

Archive for the month “April, 2009”

25 Apr 2009
8 Comments

Soft?

yelling“A soft answer turns away anger.”

I’m glad that verse is in proverbs. But sometimes I have to ask myself if I really believe it, since I don’t always act like I do. Sometimes I ask my clients if they believe it. But for now let’s assume it’s true. :)

What exactly does it mean?

We only have a few words to work with here. I kinda’ wish it said more. What type of soft answer? Does that include silence? Silence is pretty soft right?

Umm.. Anyone who has been on the receiving end of the “silent treatment” knows it doesn’t feel very soft. But, I can make the mistake of thinking “Silence is not as harsh as what I COULD say so it’s a soft answer.”

So why is that other person still angry?

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Posted by David Hamilton in Communication, Emotions in the Bible and tagged , , , , , , , ,
17 Apr 2009
2 Comments

The Ugliest Word

Wordle: 167hours2

What is the ugliest word in the English language? My vote is for “guilt.” Even sin is fun for a season, but I haven’t found that to be true for guilt.

It would be so nice if there were a remedy for our sin AND our guilt.

Unremedied guilt can mess up our lives in so many ways. It provides a way for the world to still “be all about me” and my guilt. The weight of guilt narrows our world. Like a car that travels over and over again on a road that cannot sustain the weight, a rut is formed and once formed is almost self sustaining. It becomes the defining feature of that section of road. Forever after we give that rut “the attention it deserves.” We now refer to that section of road as “that place with the deep rut in it.”

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Posted by David Hamilton in Depression, Emotions in the Bible, personal growth and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
02 Apr 2009
2 Comments

Everyone talks about the weather but no one does anything about it.

- my paraphrase of Mark Twain’s wisdom.

Cloudy Sky3.JPG

Climate-zone.com tells me that Grand Rapids has on average 205 cloudy days a year.  (They count partially cloudy days separately. So cloudy really means CLOUDY.)  Recently moving from northern California where the average number of clear days is about 3 times what it is here, I’m pretty sure my body notices that something has changed. Today I hear on the radio that Sunday we could have 6 inches of snow. It’s April 2nd. Enough already!

Our environment plays a crucial role in how we feel and act. The effect feels just plain “physical.” At these times, it’s very difficult to identify thoughts or beliefs that are “causing” what my body feels.  Luckily changing how my body feels is not the only option. This is what I do (when I remember) and it may be helpful to you.

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Posted by David Hamilton in Depression, personal growth and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

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