Anyone who's been a part of a traditional twelve-step community knows the phrase. Even those outside of recovery know it. It's supposed to encourage us to keep keepin' on, even when there's little emotional drive to endure. But some get stuck on the very first phrase: "fake it". We need to stop thinking of this phrase as forcing ourselves to do something we really don't want to do. That's not the whole picture.
Anyone who cares for a great comedy is mourning the loss of actor Robin Williams, apparently to suicide. Early reports indicate that the actor died from asphyxiation. But there's something more disturbing to me.
As a dad of two preschoolers, lots of things conspire to make me late. Things that are outside my control. But the longer I walk with Christ and the more I work with men in recovery, the more I realize God is never late - no matter what my impression is of His timeliness from my point of view.
In the moment, I tend to forget that when God is ready to do something, He doesn't need my help. In fact, I'm convinced that He will sometimes step back and wait for me to exhaust my own efforts before acting on my behalf. Unfortunately, it's a hard lesson I'm still in the process of learning.
I once worked as a telemarketer when I was starting out in my counseling career. Those were not my glory days and there was much about telemarketing I didn't appreciate. However, there are a few lessons I learned during this season that stuck with me. This is one of them.
It's not like the tree died. But its growth became stunted, unable to grow to its full and mature size, unable to become all that God created it to be. In this root-bound condition, a person often reaches out for help...