Principle led Living
“In Atlanta Georgia, traffic is always an issue but rarely an excuse.”
“People resist when you want something from them but they’re open when you
want something for them.”
“The one human quality you can always depend on is selfish interest.”
These are principles. I collect them… from sermons or friends or books. A few I actually made up….
“Participation without involvement breeds cynicism.”
“Whenever you find yourself arguing with the most emotion, you’re probably
least convinced.”
“Intentionality, over time, leads to isolation.”
These are principles. They aren’t laws…they aren’t ALWAYS true like the law of gravity. But they’re generally true. We get them from our parents, teachers, preachers, and from ‘the street.’ We all have them, and like it or not, they’re how we navigate life.
Principles are different from values. Values are things we hold sacred… honesty for example. If one of our values is honesty, we’ll tell the truth even if it hurts us. Values aren’t situational, they’re foundational. They’re what we attach our conscience to. Values are what we stand for.
Principles are more like wisdom for living….“filters” to sift decisions through. They can predict outcomes, not without absolute certainty but with good odds over time.
Principles help us navigate life between the “do/do not” and the “do whatever.” Living like the Pharisees, totally ‘ruled by the rules’ doesn’t work. And it takes all the joy out of life. Jesus came to free us up from that. On the other hand, nihilism or anarchy or whatever you’d call living without rules doesn’t work either… for society or individuals. You end up in jail, or on the street, or as a useless blob sitting in the dark in front of a video game.
Around church people, you’ll hear about Biblical principles. Some of those come from the words of Jesus. A lot come from Proverbs, like “Kind words heal and help: cutting words wound and maim” (Prov.15:4 The Message) and “He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm” (Proverbs 13:20). The Bible is a great place to find principles to live by.
What are the ‘top five’ principles that guide your life? Principles you’ve learned and live by.
Have you thought about it?
Probably should. Because you could have bought into principles that are unwise or even dangerous. For example, a lot of people believe…
“You can do whatever you want as long as it doesn’t hurt me.”
or…..
“He who dies with the most toys wins.”
or even….
“What you don’t know won’t hurt you.”
These are principles, just selfish, lazy, short-sighted and potentially deadly ones.
So here’s our homework assignment. Come up with your “top five” principles. What principles guide you every day? Don’t clean ‘em up. Don’t lie to yourself. Just write them down and post them as comments to this blog. It’s easy to do, I promise. If you’re reading this in an email, click through here and share them. I’ll write down my ‘top 5’ and post them on Thursday, along with the ‘best of the best’ from your comments. Together, we may come up with enough combined wisdom to change the world!
And even if you don’t post them as comments here, take this exercise seriously and do it for yourself. Imagine sharing the wisdom you’ve learned with your kids. Maybe you’ll teach them a principle that saves them a ton of trouble some day!
Question: Will you figure out the “top 5” principles you live by and post them as comments for all of us to share? Share here!
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Responses (10)
Another great post!
Mine are:
1. Do what you say you’re going to do
2. Do the right thing
3. Be courteous & respectful
Sorry – I’m a rule of 3 guy (can’t keep up any more than that!)
Regi – I think this one came from you as well … “Unsolicited advice between adults is actually criticism”.
1. Do unto others
2. The borrower is slave to the lender
3. Don’t let the sun go down on your anger.
4. Your friends determine the quality and direction of your life.
5. Is it the wise thing to do?
In no particular order –
– People aren’t against you, they are for themselves (Brett Smith)
– doing the next right thing is usually the best next move
– Keep a gratitude list (AA)
– What’s down in the well comes up in the bucket (Regi Campbell)
– The best remedy to cure a bad attitude, selfishness, lack of motivation, the blues is to do something for someone else anonymously
– stop treating everything as an “event” and start building “relationships” (Charlie Paparelli)
here goes of the top of my head
1. Attitude is everything
2. All Kids deserve my support and respect
3. I may hate your choices sometimes, but I will always love you no matter what you do!
4. I am always responsible for my choices
5. I always have a choice (God given free will)
Top 5 for me:
1. Showing up as transparent, vulnerable, and teachable will breakdown walls of distrust.
2. The more specific I am in my affirmation of others, the more they are inspired by my words.
3. Helping one person uncover noble purpose in their work does more to build morale than a bonus for a hundred workers.
4. People will remember more by the stories and the parables I tell than by the best of Prezi and PPT put together.
5. I get more of what I want by leveraging my influence and resources for the aspirations of others than by asking someone else to leverage their resource for me.
1. Love God, love people!
2. Relationships matter everything else burns in the end.
3. As a man thinketh so is he, so be careful what you think.
4. Find where God is at work and join in.
5. Do more than is expected.
The problem for me is not in the articulation but in living out what I profess to be important. Lord Help Me!
Each day you can choose your attitude
Your secrets have power and will control you
Gratitude is simply being aware of everything you have to be thankful for
You always have time for what you truly consider important
Living for the applause of others will steal your joy
Or a new principle I learned…
After you reach 50, never pass up a bathroom pit stop
3 of the principles I try to live by–all easier said than done:
* Prayer is the slender nerve that moves the muscles of omnipotence.
* Do not strive for an easy life. Strive to be a strong person.
* What difference is the thing you are worrying about (or chasing after) today, going to make 100 years from now?
Philippians 4:8 – Whatever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report; if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Make others smile, it will change their day and possible their lives.
Serve others, Your spouse, your kids, your family and all you come in contact with.
Have a plan for your life, know where your going, if you don’t you might not go anywhere.
Know where your going in life but be open to unexpected opportunity, God works in mysterious ways.