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Live Truth.

10/21/2014

Well, here we are on week two of our Difference Maker series. Last week we looked at how to make a difference in our own lives and in the lives of others by learning to Speak Life.

This week we're going to talk about what it means to Live Truth.

Live truth. It's one thing to know what's right and valuable, it's another thing to live it. This is especially true in a society that increasingly purports the notion that all truth is relative. Better stated, there is no truth and nothing is right or wrong. In fact, this philosophy claims that any belief system that teaches absolute right and wrong or clearly defined values is wrong. Wait! That means something can be wrong? See the flaw in that logic?

So how do we identify the right choices and the right path for our lives...our truth? And is that truth universal, or is it subjective?

I'm pretty sure we'd all agree that stealing is wrong. But what if it's stealing from the rich to feed the poor? I think we'd all agree that lying is wrong. But what if it's a lie that saves a life or protects the innocent?

The absolute truth is that we can "what if" ourselves into a corner and obliterate all sense of truth and morality. We can justify actions based on whatever sense of justice or entitlement helps us sleep easy at night. And we can watch our society continue on a downward spiral right along with our excuses.

There is a cost to living in truth. It's not easy. And it often requires the sacrifice of an achievement or material gain. The one thing it will never cost is self-respect. The reward for living in truth transcends any price you might be called to pay.

But, here's what I think. I think that living your truth IS an individual thing. We're all on a journey, and we're at different stages of that journey at all times. We must make choices and mistakes based on the information we have at the moment and the best intentions we can find in our heart.

I find truth in my faith. As a Christian I am comforted in knowing there is truth that is reliable and redeeming. My faith reinforces my understanding that I am anything but perfect. Yes, I stumble, fall, and then stumble again. I am far from perfect, and yet find myself on this journey of life with so many others just like me. My faith doesn't make that imperfection okay; it just fills in the holes and makes me whole. That's my absolute truth. It's the one thing I am sure of when nothing else seems for sure.

The compass point of truth is an unchanging direction. A fixed point by which to navigate through the midst of a storms of life. I believe to live truth is not only to find life, but to find life in its full abundance no matter what storms rage all around. Life is truth; truth is sure.

And possessing life and truth cannot be contained. When you have hold of it, you can't help but live it out loud.

“It is not courage that makes us speak the truth, but it is a hunger for truth that makes us courageous”
― Agona Apell, The Success Genome Unravelled: Turning Men from Rot to Rock

Is truth a confusing concept? Is it hard to know what to do when many choices seem right? When faced with decisions on how to act or what to say, you can filter your responses through the following questions:

Is the step I'm about to take rooted in selflessness and love?
Am I aware of or seeking a higher purpose for my next move?
Do I have to overlook the nagging of my conscience in order to move forward?

To live truth is to live life on purpose with such authenticity and vulnerability that each and every day is a transformational experience. It is knowing that even in the mist of the storms of life there is still hope, joy, and love.

So I encourage each of you, Live Truth each day as we move...

Onward!

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Speak life.

10/14/2014

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We're moving on into our series that begins with my look at the phrase Speak Life.

Speak life. I believe there is power in words, and we can harness that power through the things we say to people to either speak light, joy, and success into their lives, or to speak darkness and defeat. When I think of the meaning of the word life, I think of birth and growth and health. There's a sense of vibrancy and invigoration when you envision something moving forward. Energy.

In order to understand how to speak life, let's first look at the opposite. The opposite of growth and energy is stagnation and death. Negativity erodes and rots as it chokes out the breath of success. It can be expressed in many ways. Body language, facial expressions, inattention, disinterest, etc. But words hold the ultimate power. You'll never, You can't. Move over. You're worthless. I hate you. The expectation in those words is failure, and, really, the best way to assure someone's failure is to expect it from them.

Life invigorates. It energizes. It expects success. When you speak the words of life into someone's situation, it infuses a sense of positivity that is life changing. Great job. Good work. I trust you. You can handle this. In your hands, it'll be awesome. You rock. You're worthwhile. I value you. What a contrast to the other examples above.

Think back over your own life, how many wonderful things do you remember hearing people say about you and to you? It's hard to remember those things, yet I'll bet there are a few zingers of negativity that dot the landscape of your history. A few hurtful phrases swung at you by hurting people. Those things you can recall on a moment's notice. But it's much easier to believe the negative things about ourselves. It feels more natural to most of us.

But we do have a responsibility, not only to speak life, but also to receive it. If we can control our minds to reject the lies of death that speak failure over us, and embrace the words of hope and promise and success, we will not only walk through each day more confidently but we will see more success in our lives overall. That's true in business and in all of life. That makes sense, but sounds a lot easier than it actually is. Trust me; I know.

Here's what you need to do: When someone speaks negativity into your life, measure it against these three questions:

How much of what this person is saying is rooted in their own pain or fear?
How can I reshape those words to offer myself something constructive that can help me grow?
What is the truth about myself?

If it's not constructive, when it's rooted in someone else's struggles, and when it's not your truth (and it seldom is) then discard it like the rubbish it is. Refresh your thinking by spending time with a mentor or pouring yourself into someone you're mentoring. That's where the life is.

You can't control what others say or do. But you can control the words and story that comes out of your mouth, and how you receive words into your life.

Toby Mac: Speak Life

What are some ways you can Speak Life to those around you this week? Consider the people you come in contact with each day. Your coworkers, friends, family...those are a given, but what about the UPS guy, the clerk at the grocery store, and even the unhelpful support person on the other end of the phone line? Life feeds on itself and reproduces at warp speed. So give the gift of life through your words and watch how your own life changes in response.

And I'll leave you with this little reminder from our friend Toby Mac: Speak Life Video by Toby Mac

ONWARD!

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Speak Life. Live Truth. Love Well.

10/1/2014

1 Comment

A motto has been developing in my mind lately. It goes right along with some of the life lessons I have explored in my writing here on this blog and in my book The Difference Maker, that phrase is:

Speak Life. Live Truth. Love Well.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to break down what those components mean to me, and what I believe they can mean to you.

Speak life. I believe there is power in words and we can harness that power through the things we say to people to either speak light and life and joy into their lives, or to speak darkness and defeat. How can we speak life? What kinds of words do we use? What if criticism is necessary? Does the hearer have any responsibility? Do we need to shield ourselves from the damaging effects of words? We will answer those questions and more as we dig into this topic next week.

Live truth. It's one thing to know what's right and valuable, it's another thing to live it. How do we identify the right choices and the right path for our lives? And then once we do, how do we ensure we stay on that path even when times get tough? Are we walking the path of the truth we speak? We'll look into issues like hypocrisy, cause-and-effect, and our higher calling in two weeks.

Love well. Family and friends are a gift. Reciprocated love is vital to successful a joyful living. What does it mean to love well? What is true sacrificial love? Is it possible to love another human being unconditionally? Are we to "love" people from all categories of our relationships? How can we love the unlovable? This is a big topic and will wrap up our series in three weeks with this one.

I hope you'll stick around for this series starting next week. Don't miss out on new giveaways with each post. And why wait? Here's the first:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Author

Tony Bridwell is a Partner and Practice Leader for Partners In Leadership with nearly three decades of executive leadership experience. Most recently serving as the Chief People Officer of Brinker International, Tony is a highly recognized thought leader, speaker, and coach in corporate culture, L&D, and human resources, being named 2015 HR Executive of the Year and also receiving the 2015 Strategic Leadership Award .

A native Oklahoman, Tony, who has three grown children, now resides in Dallas, Texas with his wife, Dee. In addition to being a husband and father, Tony is an active member of his church, where he serves as a Deacon and leadership mentor.

Tony is the author of two books:
The Difference Maker: A Simple Fable About Making A Difference In The Life Of Others (August 2013)
The Kingmaker: A Leadership Story of Integrity and Purpose (June 2016)

Live Truth.

Speak life.

Speak Life. Live Truth. Love Well.

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