“ Unlock Your Self Improvement Power”

When we look at a certain object, a painting for example – we won’t be able to appreciate what’s in it, what is painted and what else goes with it if the painting is just an inch away from our face. But if we try to take it a little further, we’ll have a clearer vision of the whole art work.

We reach a point in our life when we are ready for change and a whole bunch of information that will help us unlock our self improvement power. Until then, something can be staring us right under our nose but we don’t see it. The only time we think of unlocking our self improvement power is when everything got worst. Take the frog principle for example-

Try placing Frog A in a pot of boiling water. What happens? He twerps! He jumps off! Why? Because he is not able to tolerate sudden change in his environment – the water’s temperature. Then try Frog B: place him in luke warm water, then turn the gas stove on. Wait til the water reaches a certain boiling point. Frog B then thinks “Ooh… it’s a bit warm in here”.

People are like Frog B in general. Today, Anna thinks Carl hates her. Tomorrow, Patrick walks up to her and told her he hates her. Anna stays the same and doesn’t mind her what her friends says. The next day, she learned that Kim and John also abhors her. Anna doesn’t realize at once the importance and the need for self improvement until the entire community hates her.

We learn our lessons when we experience pain. We finally see the warning signs and signals when things get rough and tough. When do we realize that we need to change diets? When none of our jeans and shirts would fit us. When do we stop eating candies and chocolates? When all of our teeth has fallen off. When do we realize that we need to stop smoking? When our lungs have gone bad. When do we pray and ask for help? When we realize that we’re gonna die tomorrow.

The only time most of us ever learn about unlocking our self improvement power is when the whole world is crashing and falling apart. We think and feel this way because it is not easy to change. But change becomes more painful when we ignore it.

Change will happen, like it or hate it. At one point or another, we are all going to experience different turning points in our life – and we are all going to eventually unlock our self improvement power not because the world says so, not because our friends are nagging us, but because we realized its for our own good.

Happy people don’t just accept change, they embrace it. Now, you don’t have to feel a tremendous heat before realizing the need for self improvement. Unlocking your self improvement power means unlocking yourself up in the cage of thought that “its just the way I am”. It is such a poor excuse for people who fear and resist change. Most of us program our minds like computers.

Jen repeatedly tells everyone that she doesn’t have the guts to be around groups of people. She heard her mom, her dad, her sister, her teacher tell the same things about her to other people. Over the years, that is what Jen believes. She believes its her story. And what happens? Every time a great crowd would troop over their house, in school, and in the community – she tends to step back, shy away and lock herself up in a room. Jen didn’t only believed in her story, she lived it.

Jen has to realize that she is not what she is in her story. Instead of having her story post around her face for everyone to remember, she has to have the spirit and show people “I am an important person and I should be treated accordingly!”

Self improvement may not be everybody’s favorite word, but if we look at things in a different point of view, we might have greater chances of enjoying the whole process instead of counting the days until we are fully improved. Three sessions in a week at the gym would result to a healthier life, reading books instead of looking at porns will shape up a more profound knowledge, going out with friends and peers will help you take a step back from work and unwind. And just when you are enjoying the whole process of unlocking your self improvement power, you’ll realize that you’re beginning to take things light and become happy.

Ketika Ibu Telah Menjadi Tua

Seorang ibu tua bersama seorang anak laki-lakinya yang sudah beranjak dewasa sedang duduk di sofa ruang tamu rumah mereka. Mereka berbincang-bincang ceria tentang kehidupan yang telah mereka lalui selama itu.
Ketika asyik berbincang-bincang, sang ibu melihat seekor burung gereja terbang dan hinggap di pagar halaman rumah mereka, dan ibu pun bertanya pada anaknya: "Nak, apa itu?" Sang anak menjawab dengan lembut: "Oh, itu burung gereja, Ma." Mereka pun melanjutkan perbincangan mereka, dan tak lama kemudian sang ibu bertanya pula: "Nak, apakah itu?" Sang anak menjawab: "Mama, saya kan sudah bilang, itu burung gereja." Namun tak lama setelah itu, sang ibu bertanya untuk yang ketiga kalinya:"Nak, apakah itu?" Mendengar pertanyaan yang sama untuk ketiga kalinya dari ibunya, sang anak rupanya kehilangan kesabarannya dan menjawab dengan nada keras: "Mama! sudah tiga kali ini mama bertanya hal yang sama, dan aku sudah menjawab tiga kali bahwa itu adalah burung gereja!"
Sang ibu tersenyum, lalu beranjak masuk ke kamarnya. Tak lama kemudian, ia kembali menemui anaknya di sofa di mana mereka berbincang-bincang sambil membawa sebuah buku diari tua di tangan keriputnya.
Sambil tersenyum, sang ibu terus membuka lembar demi lembar diarinya, seolah dirinya terhanyut pada masa-masa menyenangkan di masa lalu.
Ketika tiba di suatu halaman diarinya, sang ibu mulai membaca dengan bersuara.
"Hari ini, aku bahagia sekali, bisa duduk bersama anak laki-lakiku di sofa ruang tamu rumahku. Kami bercanda, bercengkrama seolah tiada hari yang lebih menyenangkan selain hari itu. Aku mendongeng cerita kesukaan anakku, dan ia dengan menggemaskan serius mendengarkan dongeng yang aku ceritakan. Oh ya, anakku sekarang sudah berumur 3 tahun. Dia adalah anak yang cerdas dan pintar. Dia selalu ingin tahu akan hal yang baru dilihatnya. Seperti hari ini, saat aku tengah bercerita, tiba-tiba seekor burung terbang dan hinggap di pagar halaman rumahku. Anakku tiba-tiba berdiri dan berlari ke jendela sambil bertanya: "Mama, apa itu?" Aku mengatakan padanya bahwa itu adalah burung gereja. Tak lama setelah itu ia menanyakan hal yang sama, dan aku menjawab dengan sabar setiap pertanyaan yang sama, yang ditanyakannya padaku. Dan hari ini, anakku bertanya tentang burung gereja sebanyak 25 kali."
Ketika mendengar ibunya membaca diari yang ditulisnya 30 tahun lalu, sang anak segera menyadari kesalahannya, dan segera berlari dan berlutut di depan sang ibu sambil meminta maaf padanya.
Sang ibu dengan arif, membelai kepala anaknya dengan lembut dan berkata: "Nak, mama selalu memaafkan engkau disaat engkau melakukan kesalahan, sekalipun engkau tidak mengatakannya padaku. Apa yang engkau pelajari hari ini, ajarkan pada anak-anakmu tentang arti kasih sayang orang tua."

Bagaimana sikap kita kepada orang tua kita, ketika mereka telah mulai lanjut usia? Bukankah kita seringkali kehilangan kesabaran dalam menghadapi mereka, dan kita sering merasa direpotkan oleh mereka?
Sahabatku, kita seringkali melakukan hal-hal itu pada orang tua kita, entah kita sadar atau tidak melakukannya. Mulai saat ini, kita harus benar-benar belajar untuk mengasihi mereka, seperti mereka telah mengasihi kita di saat kita masih lemah dan tidak berdaya dalam menjalani kehidupan ini. Ingatlah, bahwa suatu saat nanti, kita pun akan menjadi orang tua seperti mereka.

Emotions & Disease

The medical world admits that 75% to 85% of all disease is stress-related. That would make most diseases emotionally rooted, wouldn't it? If God tells us to be "anxious for nothing." Should we be? Can He bless us if we continue to disobey without even a heart to make an effort to change? Do we believe the world's "go-go/run-run" instead of Him...and thereby reap the consequences of it? If God gives us a command should we obey it? If we do not, aren't there natural consequences?

So when we beg God for healing and it doesn't come ... is it because we have" asked" to be sick and weak? In Deuteronomy God gave a choice of being blessed or being cursed. Do we make the choices for the curses and expect the blessings? Is God's Word true and is He unchangeable - the same today, yesterday and tomorrow? Scripture tells us that He will show mercy where He will show mercy, so there can always be exceptions, but basically as I see it, He has set the world up and it works the way He ordained it to do so.

As Pastor Henry Wright puts it in the book, "A More Excellent Way," "It isn't that God cannot heal, it's an issue that He can't do it without denying His own holiness and giving us a leavened gospel that would say we can keep our sin and receive His blessings."

I've been reading Dean Ornish's book, "Love and Intimacy" which mentions all the research that has been done with heart disease, and other health issues, and the link between relationships and the emotional side of health. When they studied this, all of the "environmental" factors didn't even count. If somebody had a meaningful, loving relationship (and the more they had the better the odds), then their prognosis ended up so much better (like 6X) than those without. And the amazing part of it was that it crossed the boundaries of the co-factors of smoking, diet, drinking, exercise, etc.

As I read I thought of what the Bible says: "the greatest of these is love" and "love covers a multitude of sins" (diet, toxins, etc.). VERY intriguing! I thought about the environmental factors in regards to cancer, allergies and the diseases of our present age. If the toxins are the key, then why doesn't EVERYBODY have the diseases from it? Why do some people seem to slip right on through without the health problems?

The studies show that where diet (junk) enters, so does disease ... but is that because the nutrient deficiencies make us addicted, messes with our blood sugar, and changes our mood and personalities?

Or is it the other way around? Do we eat the junk because of a love hunger and hatred for our own body? That's what Dr. Ornish mentioned. You can tell people how much difference changing the diet makes, but unless the person loves himself, he doesn't have any motivation to leave what he does love behind - the junk food.

Think about it!

Temporary Satisfication

A. W. Tozer says, “The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness.”

I’ve been reading a book given to me by my Auntie Carolyn. “Seasons Of My Heart,” written by Barbara Peretti. In it she details her marriage with Frank Peretti and the many struggles they had financially and spiritually along the way.

From 1972 to 1990 they prayed in most of their daily provisions and worked toward their dreams at what seemed like a slow pace, as they grew in character and wisdom and love for each other. During this time they lived in a remodeled chicken coop growing food and counting pennies. In 1990 Frank Peretti’s novels were bringing in overflowing blessings and they were finally able to build a home.

A dream come true for Barbara was to purchase some fine Queen Anne furniture, at about the same time as they added a Great Pyrenees puppy to the family since they could now afford food for another mouth. The beautiful cherry furniture brought great pleasure, as did the adorable puppy, Reuben.

She writes, “One day while vacuuming I was horrified to discover deep teeth marks in the legs of my cherished wing chairs. I couldn’t believe my eyes! Surely the sweet, bundle of fur that delightfully nuzzled our necks with his wet little doggy nose wouldn’t do such a thing! I had never found a shredded sock, not even a shoe with a hole in the sole. But though the disfiguring evidence was merely circumstantial, I had to rule Reuben the guilty party.

I have never replaced the scarred chair legs. Instead I allow the deep scratches to remind me that ordinary treasures are perishable; they cannot offer enduring enjoyment. The bright spring flowers come and go with the passing seasons, our furniture has since accumulated additional mars and scratches, even our puppy “has aged and his 148-pound frame is resting from a second knee surgery. The distinct pleasure each earthly thing brings to our lives is temporal; the joy it affords lasts but for a season.

Limitless joy, on the other hand, is found in God’s immeasurable bounty. The pearls of wisdom that do endure the test of time lie hidden in God’s Word. They are awaiting our discovery. Deep abiding peace comes when we apply God’s principles to our lives; and for those who accept Christ’s redeeming act of death on the cross, He extends the most valuable treasure of all - life eternal.”

Gerejaku sayang, gerejaku malang

Trenyuh rasa hati ini, melihat gereja di mana aku dididik dalam iman, gereja yang aku lihat dibangun atas dasar iman dan kehidupan doa yang kemudian memberkati begitu banyak gereja yang lain, kini tidak lagi mencerminkan kehidupan gereja yang bersumber dari kasih karunia Allah.
Rumah Tuhan yang seharusnya dipenuhi dengan hamba-hamba Allah yang dengan ketulusan hati serta kesetiaan mengabdi kepada Sang Pemberi kasih karunia, kini dipenuhi bahkan dikangkangi oleh segelintir preman-preman yang mengatasnamakan pelayanan kasih kepada Allah.
Kata-kata penuh penghiburan dan pembangkit harapan kini nyaris tak terdengar. Rasa tenang dan damai bergulir menjadi kecemasan dan ketakutan karena intimidasi dan teror yang senantiasa bergaung di setiap lorong bangunan rumah Tuhan.
Pengajaran tentang iman kepada Allah yang harus dihidupi oleh setiap hamba Tuhan yang terlibat di dalam pengembangan kerajaan Allah, seolah pupus dan beralih harapan pada segelintir manusia yang menyebut diri sang penguasa. Tiada lagi asa pada berkat Allah. Yang ada hanyalah penantian terhadap tunjangan rutin.
Pengajaran untuk berbagi berkat terhadap sesama menguap seiring tumbuhnya keserakahan. Persembahan jemaat seolah sekedar upeti yang bisa seenaknya dipakai untuk mengambil keuntungan bagi dirinya sendiri melalui proyek-proyek rekayasa dengan kedok penambahan fasilitas jemaat.
Dahulu suara Tuhan dicari untuk diterjemahkan sesuai kehendak Tuhan, sekarang suara "sang penguasa" diperdengarkan seolah sebagai suara Tuhan. Suara Tuhan bukan lagi dianggap sebagai kedaulatan Allah, tetapi hanya sekedar konfirmasi dari kehendak hati sang penguasa.
Ah... gerejaku sayang....
engkau kini diubah menjadi gereja yang penuh persoalan sengketa, tiada lagi jalan kasih dan kelemahlembutan. Tiada hukum kasih, tetapi hukum rimba. Bukan yang hidup taat dan menuruti firman Allah yang memiliki kuasa dan mengimpartasikan kuasa Ilahi, tetapi yang menguasai keuanganlah yang memegang kekuasaan.
Kebenaran sudah mati! Orang-orang yang dengan berani menyuarakan kebenaran dibunuh karakternya. Penjilat dan pencari muka serta orang-orang yang tidak memiliki iman hidup dengan nyaman di dalamnya. Orang-orang kritis yang punya hati terhadap gereja dan pekerjaan Tuhan dibabat habis, diganti kerbau-kerbau yang telah dicucuk hidungnya dengan jabatan dan sejumlah uang. Ah... sungguh menjijikkan!
Sampai berapa lama Tuhan membiarkan hal seperti ini terus terjadi?
Sungguh malang nasib gerejaku. Tapi aku tahu, bahwa tidak selama-lamanya Tuhan mengijinkan penindasan. Aku tahu gereja di mana aku dididik dan bertumbuh pasti dipulihkan oleh Tuhan, Kepala Gereja.

Follow Me... (ke mana dulu...?)

Pagi ini, waktu aku berangkat kerja, di sebuah traffic light aku melihat seorang gadis cantik, dan kelihatan terpelajar. Ada sesuatu yang membuatku tersentak ketika melihat ke arahnya. Bukan karena terpesona dengan kecantikannya, tetapi melihat pakaian yang dikenakannya.
Emang sih, apa yang dipakainya itu sangat sopan, tapi yang membuatku geleng-geleng kepala adalah tulisan di pakaiannya itu: Follow Me to Hell...
Dalam analisis singkat dalam hatiku, aku berpikir bahwa bagiku itu adalah hal yang sangat aneh. Pertama, adalah aneh karena tidak mungkin gadis itu tidak mengerti makna dari kalimat yang tertulis di bajunya. Kedua, bagiku itu aneh karena sepertinya gadis tersebut berseberangan haluan dengan kebanyakan orang yang justru ingin mengajak sesamanya ke sorga.
Setibanya di kantor, aku kembali merenungkan apa yang aku lihat tersebut, dan akhirnya aku menemukan realitas yang lebih banyak lagi tentang fenomena di akhir zaman. Di saat ini, betapa banyak orang bangga untuk menunjukkan identitasnya sebagai pengikut Iblis. Suatu ketika aku pernah melihat sticker yang dipasang di kaca belakang sebuah mobil yang berbunyi "The Satan Followers" dan nopol mobilnya 666, dan beberapa kali melihat sticker atau coretan-coretan di dinding yang isinya begitu mengidolakan Setan.
Yah...beginilah emangnya keadaan akhir zaman. Tuhan sendiri sudah bilang, kalo di akhir zaman, orang yang kudus akan semakin kudus, orang yang jahat akan semakin jahat.
Sesungguhnya, hal-hal semacam ini merupakan tantangan bagi kita yang menyebut diri sebagai anak-anak Allah. Mereka mengajak orang untuk mengikuti jejaknya karena ada sesuatu yang dapat diandalkan untuk "diteladani" sekalipun itu teladan yang pastinya bertentangan dengan kehendak Allah.
Hai, orang-orang muda, bukankah firman Tuhan berkata pada kita agar kita menjadi teladan dalam segala aspek kehidupan kita, sekalipun kita muda sehingga tidak ada seorang pun yang merendahkan kita karena kita masih muda. Kenallah Allahmu selagi engkau muda, dan Ia akan membimbing langkah hidupmu dalam kehendak-Nya, sehingga engkau pun dapat berkata kepada setiap orang Follow Me to Heaven!

Jangan seorangpun menganggap engkau rendah karena engkau muda. Jadilah teladan bagi orang-orang percaya, dalam perkataanmu, dalam tingkah lakumu, dalam kasihmu, dalam kesetiaanmu dan dalam kesucianmu. (1 Tim 4:12)

God Bless You