A pair of socks, a glass of wine and a telephone call.

I met a homeless man the other day; he came into the Laundromat to wash the new clothes he had bought from community goods shop. I heard him speaking to one of the customer assistants as he showed off his new patched trousers, she smiled and let him be. I watched him through the pages of my newspaper as he crouched over in the corner to undo the lace that held his cardboard sneakers together. He pulled off half a sock from one foot and from the other foot a different sock altogether, I watched as he sighed, his head bent over in a moment of quiet thought and instead of throwing them in the washer, he turned and dropped them in the bin. I looked over at my half done washing and decided to offer one of my own pairs of socks to him I approached him and stretched out my hand, he looked at me and said, “you better not tell the guys in the bin that I took these from you. We come a long way and they’ll be more than heart broken.” I smiled and went back to observing him through the pages. I felt quite noble and proud of the deed I had done and I was sure that this man might have seen a bit of Jesus in me. 

While packing my clean goods in the car, the man came to me with a friend and said, “I wanted to thank you but you were busy.” He bent over, opened his backpack, which held very little other than the 1liter carton of red wine, which he poured and offered to me in a well preserved polystyrene cup. I explained that I didn’t drink and he kindly drank on my behalf, Once more he attempted to offer the only other item of value he possessed, a beautiful pair of earrings. They belonged to his wife he said, “She passed away two years now, she died and left me here.” I closed his open hand and looked him in the eyes. I realized then that it was not him who needed to see Jesus in me but rather for the first time it was I who saw Jesus in him. I asked him if I could offer him something more? He sighed and said, “Sir, Just one phone call home, my time is up and there is nothing more I want than to make sure my mother and children are taken care of. I too soon will pass I’ll never make it home, the doctor made it clear.” 

A pair of socks, a glass of wine and a telephone call reminded me of Jesus, who had no home, who offered all, even His very last and then called home to say, “Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”

Just to make sure we’re all taken care of.

Do What You Love To Do

Work, Home, Life...

“Do what you love to do” is one of the most basic productivity tips of all.  The fact is that you’ll be much more productive when you do work you enjoy. Unfortunately, this tip is as obvious as it is ignored.

Doing work you love is not remotely the same thing as doing work you find moderately pleasant either. When you’re working in a field you love, your motivation is usually high because you feel passionate about what you’re doing. You don’t have to push yourself just to get going each day. You wake up in the morning already motivated and certain that you are going to do something you love.

One usually works at a fast tempo when you enjoy your work. You’ll also do better quality work, and high-quality work is more efficient than low-quality work. Low-quality work generates inferior results and often has to be redone.

It’s a waste of time trying to be productive in a field you don’t enjoy. Such a struggle is a complete waste of your life. Why subject yourself to such punishment? You deserve better!

I’ve heard hundreds of different excuses for why people claim they can’t do what they love — not enough money, no time, not good enough, wife won’t let me, etc. They can all be condensed down to two words: “I’m scared.”

The people who are doing what they love were also scared. They could all come up with the same excuses. But at some point they decided it was unacceptable to have their lives dictated by fear, so they opted to face their fear and push through it. They decided to overcome their problems instead of turning them into excuses. Those who remain stuck still allow their fear to rule them.

Ultimately it’s a choice. Either you commit to doing what you love, or you don’t. Which side do you think involves the most suffering?

Start With the Physical

Many of us have some improvements that we’d like to make in our lives - career, relationship, health, spiritual. The question is – where should you begin? My suggestion is that you begin with your physical body. Improving your level of fitness and/or diet will produce some positive results in the long run. This is because by improving your level of fitness and diet you will have a lot more extra energy available to you everyday. This will result in more energy to invest in your career, relationships, mental, and spiritual development.

It’s been said that people spend their first 50 years trading their health for wealth, and then they spend the next 50 years trading their wealth for health. This is not a trade that we should make at all.

A fact is that you take your body with you wherever you go. If you are overweight then you carry around that excess weight with you at all times. Now an extra 7kg may not seem like much, but if you carry around an extra 7kg dumbbell all day long, you will soon see that it feels exhausting and tires you out much faster. 7kg of excess fat weighs the same as a 7kg dumbbell, and carrying it around all day will definitely feel burdensome and drain your energy.

I remember the times in my life when I kept to a strict exercise routine and watched my diet. I was able to think clearer and could concentrate for much longer periods without getting tired because I had a lot more energy. One of the many advantages of exercise is that it provides an increase in blood flow, which helps oxygenate the body, especially the brain. Another key benefit of improving your body is that you will see the physical results within a short space of time if you are consistent with your routine. This is very satisfying and an important motivating factor. Loss of fitness appears gradually and you will hardly notice it. If you eat poorly and don’t exercise, you will pay the consequences.

I have read many stories and know about many people who have transformed their lives for the better – and physical fitness and diet was almost always a significant component from the beginning.