Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 299 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Legacy vs. Inheritance

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 299 of our trek, and yesterday we remained at camp around the campfire and explored the importance of investing time to relax and recharge as part of our life. I do struggle with this on a personal level but am committed to making a little R&R part of my regular schedule.

Today we will head back out and compare the trails of inheritance versus legacy. While there may be some cross over, they are distinctively different. Since we started our trek on day 0, today is our 300th day on the trails of life. Thank you so much for coming along with me each day as we explore and consume small “nuggets of wisdom.” These bits of wisdom help us to live a rich and satisfying life while creating a living legacy.  If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal. You can also subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on iTunes, Spreaker, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and Google Play, so each day’s trek will be downloaded to you automatically.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We have had some real beautiful spring days this week, the daffodils are in full bloom, and watching our pair of hawks outside our office window as been an awesome sight.  I have also included a couple of pictures from the refinished library in today’s journal.  We will have to let the polyurethane on the floor dry solid before moving the furniture back in this weekend.

It is now time to break camp and head out to explore a couple of trails that are similar but can be drastically different. Since one of the objectives on our Wisdom-Trek is to create a living legacy each day, we want to make sure that we have a clear understanding of the difference between:

Legacy vs. Inheritance

So often we tend to equate legacy to inheritance, but in fact, they are very different things. Inheritance is about money and possessions but legacy is about the person. Let’s think about it in these two descriptions.

Inheritance is something you leave. Legacy is something you place in them.  An inheritance is something given to a person. A legacy is something done in a person. When you leave something behind as an inheritance, the recipients are temporarily happy and satisfied. But when you leave them a legacy they are permanently transformed.  If you have been on our Wisdom-Trek over the past 300 days, you know that one of our primary focuses is not just to leave a legacy when you die, but to impact everyone each day through a living legacy that will change eternity.

The truth of the matter is that we need to be much more concerned about our legacy each day than the inheritance we will leave some day. Sure, we need to make sure our wills and other financial areas are in place and protected for the next generation. The Bible mentions inheritance nearly 60 times, so it does have an importance in our lives, such as is mentioned in Proverbs 13:22, "Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren, but the sinner’s wealth passes to the godly."

Even with its importance, legacy goes far beyond the time the money or stuff runs out. Legacy is eternal. Inheritance is gifts received. Legacy is values imparted into someone else. Inheritance is a temporary reward. Legacy is an eternal reward. One day we will all die, and we can’t take anything with us. That is why it is important that we live with our eternal impact in mind. That impact is the one thing that will last forever.

We need to first be sure our eternity is secure and that we have dealt with the ...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 298 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

9 Tips to Relax and Recharge

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 298 of our trek, and yesterday explored our final trail of the total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth. It was quite an extensive trek and was a little different than our previous treks that we have taken. I trust that you found this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek.

Today we will remain at camp and sit around the campfire as we invest some time exploring ways to relax and recharge. I struggle with this on a personal level, as there are always more projects to work on than there are hours in a day. I do realize that time for proper sleep, rest, and relaxation are an integral part of a healthy lifestyle. I am certainly trying to learn these lessons as we explore them. We have covered many different types of terrain on our nearly 300 daily hikes, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We are making good progress on both our client workload and renovations. I have completed the library woodwork and floors, so we will be able to move the furniture back in this weekend. Paula is going to paint the back wall of the built-in bookshelves in the library before we move all of the books back in. It is the old plaster walls and they could use a good coat of paint. I will post some pictures in the journal later this week. Although it is difficult work doing the renovations, I also find it a relaxing time away from constantly being at my standing desk in front of a computer.

It is time to share 9 tips to relax and recharge around our campfire today. I learned these tips from one of my virtual mentors, Brian Tracy whose courses I have learned much from over my business career so far.

9 Tips to Relax and Recharge

Most of us realize that regular relaxation is essential for a long life and personal effectiveness. The question is, if we know that, why don’t we make it a priority in our lives. I certainly am pointing my finger at myself on this one, so let us digest these nuggets of insight together. Here are some techniques for relaxing physically that are used by the most successful people in our fast-paced society of the western world.

1. Take Time Off Every Week

First of all, work only five or six days per week, and rest completely on the seventh day. Every single study in this area shows that you will be far more productive in the five or six days that you work if you take one or two days off completely than you ever would be if you worked straight through for seven days. Of course, God was the original designer of this concept as it declares in Genesis 2:1-3, "So the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was completed. On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation."

2. Get Your Mind Busy Elsewhere

During this time off, do not catch up on reports, organize your desk, prepare proposals, or do anything else that requires mental effort. Simply let your mind relax completely, and get busy doing things with your family and friends. Maybe work around the house, go for a walk, engage in physical exercise, watch television, go to a movie, or play with your children. Whatever you do, discipline yourself to shut your mental gears off completely for at least one 24-hour period every seven days.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 297 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Continuance

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 297 of our trek, and yesterday we hiked on the 17th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Cultivation. Today we will explore our final trail where we will learn how valuable it is to continue on our overall trek each day as we hike the Trail of Continuance.

There were a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we complete our overall trek, I trust that you have found this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. The new Air Conditioning and Furnace were installed on Monday and Tuesday, which replaced the furnace that had a crack in the heat exchanger. This was quite a large and unexpected expense, but as we mature we realize that things break down. And life does not always go as we expected or hoped. Regardless of what happens in life, we must continue on. Another Big House related task, we are continuing to make progress on the woodwork in the library as we balance that with our client workload.

Just like every area of our lives, our spiritual growth is one of continuing on each day. It may not always be easy or enjoyable, but that should not prevent us from living the rich and satisfying life that Christ has given us. It is now time to continue on for one last hike on our current trek called the Trail of Continuance. This is the 18th  and final trail, which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Continuance

As with most new initiatives in life when we first start out on our spiritual trek, we are hungry and enthusiastic to serve God. We feel like we are making extensive progress, and yet we have barely begun. As our Lord takes us along through the years, it slowly dawns on us that there are vast, almost infinite, areas of development through which He must still lead us.

Many of these development areas are like a dry desert—no noticeable spiritual activity, no service, little or no fellowship with God or with others. We feel like our prayers are forced and sometimes dropped altogether for months at a time. Bible study finally grinds to a halt; everything seems to add up to nothing. It is during these necessary times that the Christ follower often feels that God has ceased to carry out His part and that there is little or no use in seeking to continue on. When we are honest with ourselves, even during these dry times, there is a hunger deep within that will not allow him to quit. Truths like those found in 2 Timothy 2:19 helps us to carry on, even when we don’t feel like it and life does not make sense, "But God’s truth stands firm like a foundation stone with this inscription: 'The Lord knows those who are his,' and 'All who belong to the Lord must turn away from evil.'”

Are we to love and trust and respond to God only when He seems to be “blessing” us? What sort of love is that? Self-love? Our Father may strip everything away from time to time in order to give us the opportunity of loving and trusting and responding to Him just because He is our Father. He knows what the cross is going to mean in our lives. He knows the death-march that lies ahead of us so th...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 296 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Cultivation

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 296 of our trek, and yesterday we hiked on the 16th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Help. Today we will explore the importance of balance in all areas of our life as we hike the Trail of Cultivation.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek, we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. There is a lot of activity in and around The Big House this week. Sunday afternoon I invested several hours varnishing the woodwork in the library. I have the trim on two more walls to apply the 2nd coat to, and then it is onto the floor. Hopefully, we will have the library completed by the end of this week, and then we will move onto the other front room, which we call the parlor.

Our pair of hawks have been extremely busy this week and spending more time near their nest, which is right outside of our upstairs office, so it is enjoyable watching them. We can’t tell if they have actually laid their eggs yet as we do see both of them still flying around, but there is usually one of them near or on the nest. The female is noticeably larger than the male of this particular pair. If this is the same pair of hawks as in previous years, this is either their 5th or 6th year using the same nest.

As spring is manifesting itself with daylight lasting longer, the temperature rising, and flowers blooming, it is time to start cultivating our gardens and fields in preparation for planting crops. As we head out on our hike for today, we want to explore this important concept of our spiritual lives on the Trail of Cultivation. This is the 17th of 18 trails, which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Cultivation

The cultivation of good habits and character traits in all area of our lives is very important. As our children were growing up and still to this day, I emphasize the importance of balance in everything that we do or are involved in. There can be little question concerning the importance of balance. It is so vital in the mechanical, physical, aesthetic, and spiritual realms. Faulty balance often results in the breakdown and possible devastation to the surrounding area.  This is true as we think about the cultivation and growing of crops in our spiritual lives.

In the agricultural world, there has to be the balance of the proper amount of rain, sun, nutrients, and temperature for proper growth to occur with any type of crop. When there is the proper balance, then the crops will produce a bountiful harvest that can be shared with many. As the crops are properly cultivated, all of its resources are initially used so that plant can grow to maturity. Once mature, it can then start producing what will later become the harvest.

It is the same with our spiritual lives. Each of us must be thoroughly cultivated before we can effectively cultivate others through us. As we are maturing, there will be areas of service that we can provide for God.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 295 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Help

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 295 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 15th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Rest. Today we will explore a trail that all of us occasionally require which is the Trail of Help.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We drove up to Marietta on Saturday and arrived late Saturday evening. The daffodils are in full bloom and are beautiful. I have included a couple of pictures in today’s journal. It was cloudy and a bit rainy when we arrived, so I will try to get some additional pictures when it is sunny out this week. We do have a full week with work projects and renovation work ahead of us, so we will need to stay focused to meet our expectations. It does require coordination with Paula and me having a clear understanding of our individual strengths, so we can best serve our clients. We do not have to beg each other for help. We understand that help is available at all times. This allows us to maximize our effectiveness as we work closely with our clients assisting them with their businesses.

As we head out on our hike for today, an important aspect of our spiritual lives is to understand where our help comes from as we explore the Trail of Help.  This is the 16th of 18 trails which makes up the Trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Help

I would like to take a bit of a different approach to this concept of help. For most of us, it is time to stop asking God for help. He didn’t help us to be saved, and He doesn’t intend to help us live the Christian life. Now, this probably sounds somewhat far-reaching, but stay with me as I explain. We need to know and understand that God’s help has already been set aside for us. It is up to us to appropriate and apply that help to our lives each day. We do not have to continually beg for his help. His help is ours for the taking.

There is no question where our help comes from. Psalms 121:1-3 tells us, "I look up to the mountains, does my help come from there?  My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber."

As a Christ follower, it is not a matter of continually asking God for help. It is Christ living His life in us that already has provided all the help and strength that we will ever need. Hebrews 13:6 explains the confidence that we can have, "So we can say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?'” 

The evil one, Satan, wants to keep us in the place of continual defeat in our lives so that we remain ineffective. He wants us to be in the place where we are always asking for what God says He has already provided. This is a defeatist attitude that should not be part of our lives as Christ followers. This principle holds true for all aspects of our Christian life. In Christ, we are complete and have been provided with ev...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 294 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Rest

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 294 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 14th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of The Process of Discipleship.  Today we will explore a very important aspect of our overall trek, and that is the Trail of Rest.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. After several weeks of warmer than normal weather, it looks like this next week will be a bit cooler, especially since we will be farther north at The Big House for the next couple of weeks. As I mentioned, when we left from there the last time, the furnace has to be replaced due to a crack in the heat exchanger. Fortunately, the new furnace will be installed early this next week, so we should not be very many days without the furnace. All of the bedrooms do have gas inserts in them, and the kitchen/eating area has a separate large floor furnace. So, the house will not be without sources of heat. These situations are part of life, things wear out and break down, and we need to be prepared for these contingencies. In the same way, to make sure that our body, mind, and soul do not wear out prematurely, we need to exercise, eat properly, continue learning, and invest time in meditation and prayer. One very important area that I need to get better at is investing the proper time for sleep, rest, and relaxation.

As we head out on our hike for today, let us explore the very important Trail of Rest. This is the 15th of 18 trails which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Rest

To become more and more like the Master Christ requires a significant amount of focus on discipleship, which we explored during the past two days.  Remember, first we must die to self, then be diligent in our growth, so that we can produce an abundant harvest, which will allow us to use that harvest to feed others that hunger and thirst for God’s justice. This process may appear to be exhausting. What this scenario of discipleship does not take into account is that God has already provided us with rest through this process.

An analogy that is used in Hebrews 3-4 is the comparison that the nation of Israel who disobeyed God when they refused to enter The Promise Land, which is referred to as God’s rest for them. The nation refused to listen to Moses and forfeited the rest for 40 years. Now someone greater than Moses is here, which is Christ. In Hebrews 3:3-4 it explains this, "But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself. For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God."

What Moses and Joshua were unable to do was completely fulfilled in Christ. Hebrews 4:8-11 explains this, "Now if Joshua had succeeded in giving them this rest, God would not have spoken about another day of rest still to come. So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from ...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 293 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - The Process of Discipleship

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 293 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 13th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Discipleship. Today we will explore a related trail which will help us to put practical content into what we explored yesterday as we hike the Trail of The Process of Discipleship.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy.

As we continue on each trial of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of the days of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. If all goes according to plan, we should be heading to The Big House on the day this episode releases. We hope to get a lot more renovation work completed while we are in Marietta this time.

Paula should be back from her visit with Aunt Pauline late Friday. It has been a great visit for her, and we are certainly glad that she made the choice to invest the time with her.

Speaking of investing time, as we head out for our hike, today we want to discover how best to invest our time in the process of becoming a disciple of Christ. As with every activity that we integrate into our lives, let’s change our mentality from spending time to investing time. When we invest time, it has a return on it, just like a monetary investment. The difference is when we invest time, it can have an eternal return that is part of living our legacy each day. Our trail for today is the Trail of The Process of Discipleship as we learn the process to become an effective disciple. This is the 14th of 18 trails which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – The Process of Discipleship

One of the best analogies of the process of discipleship is found in the Parable of the Sower in Luke 8:15 where it says, "And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest." It shows a distinct process of growth through patience.  A parallel passage to this which gives us an analogy of return is Mark 4:8, "Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!" There is a theme throughout the Bible of what it takes for solid growth that produces a good return.  It is integral to the process of discipleship if it is to be long lasting. A farmer completely understands that concept that is also mentioned in James 5:7, "Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen."

Within our lives, it has been a long season of growth from when the seed fell on the fertile soil of our hearts, sprouted, grew and is now producing an abundant harvest in our lives that is nourishing others. So many Christ followers only get to the 2nd or 3rd stage in this life process toward discipleship. If you are just growing and not producing an abundant harvest,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 292 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Discipleship

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 292 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 12th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of The Cross. Today we will explore a trail that we should seek after in many areas of our lives and that is Trail of Discipleship.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy.  As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. I have been able to stay focused this week on the tasks that need to be completed, so we are able to accomplish a good bit. AT&T cell coverage where Paula is in Fort Myers is nearly non-existent. Although phone calls can be made, the signal is certainly not strong enough to use as a computer hot-spot. I have been able to pick up the required daily duties that Paula provides for our client’s, so we are able to cover our duties as she is away.

Paula’s visit with her Aunt Pauline is going well, and they are finalizing the details needed for when God takes Aunt Pauline home whether it is soon or months away. Paula is her executor, and although they had all the planning and paperwork completed several years ago, it is best to recheck to make sure everyone is prepared and nothing has changed.

As we head out on our hike for today, it is necessary that we are also prepared for our daily trek. Many times we can learn from those that have traveled this path before. This is referred to as being a disciple of a master. Our trail for today is the Trail of Discipleship as we learn from the ultimate master, Jesus Christ. This is the 13th of 18 trails which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Discipleship

When we think of being a disciple of someone, it evokes the concept of learning. We are the student or the apprentice of someone who is a master in their craft or knowledge. As a Christ follower, we should desire to be a disciple of Christ. While the word disciple in my mind creates a positive image, the same root word discipline does not. How about you? Do these two words bring two different concepts in your mind? I like to think of myself as a disciplined person, but the thought of being disciplined by someone else does not give me the same sense.

Let’s explore what Biblical discipleship means. A disciple is one who first maintains the fellowship of the cross, which results in fellowship with his Lord or Master, which is discipleship. Christ is the master, but the cross is needed to clear the way for Him. It was because of the cross that He also became our master.

As a true master would, in spiritual progress Christ never pushes. He gently leads us step by step both in word and deed. We struggle and fail through our self-effort, which sets up a yearning and desire to overcome the times of failure in our lives. We learn from our master by observing Him as Hebrews 12:2 tells us, "We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 291 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - The Cross

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 291 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 11th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Self-Denial. Today we will focus on one of the most important trails which is the Trail of The Cross.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Paula had a long, but pleasant trip to Fort Myers on Tuesday to visit Aunt Pauline. Her aunt is very weak but is still living by herself. She has always been a very strong-willed person, but we are not sure how many more days on earth that God may grant to her. We are glad that our work situation and lifestyle allows for Paula to go and visit her on short notice. I was left to hold down the fort and have more work to do than hours in the day, so it was prudent that I remained in Charlotte although I would have liked to go. Paula is due back Friday night, and then we head to Marietta Ohio early on Saturday. We delayed returning to The Big House by a day so Paula could spend another day with Aunt Pauline.

As we move up the trail on our hike today, we are on the Trail of The Cross. The cross is where we gain our identity in Christ and the path to bring our image in line with God’s image. Until we learn how our lives as believers are completely integrated with Christ through the cross, we will have difficulty growing to maturity spiritually. This is the 12th of 18 trails, which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – The Cross

Understanding and appropriating the facts of the cross proves to be one of the most difficult and trying of all phases for the growing believer. Our Lord holds His most vital and best things in store for those who desire to grow into a mature faith, for those who hunger and thirst for His very best as it is provided through our Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 5:6 tells us, "God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied." The believer’s understanding of the two aspects of the cross gives the key to both spiritual growth and life-giving service.

The cross is the starting point from which all Godly living must grow. We shall never know the experience of Christ’s victory in our lives until we are prepared to put our faith in His victory at the cross as the solution for our personal victory today.

There is no victory for us which was not first His. What we are to experience He purchased, and what He purchased for us we ought to experience. The beginning of the life of holiness is faith in the crucified Christ which sees more than His substitutionary work. It is a faith which sees yourself identified with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.

As our Substitute, He went to the cross alone, without us, to pay the penalty of our sins. As our Representative, He took us with Him to the cross, and there, in the sight of God, we all died together with Christ. We may be forgiven because He died in our stead.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 290 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Principles of Spiritual Growth - Self-Denial

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 290 of our trek. Yesterday we hiked on the 10th trail of this trek, which was the Trail of Self. Today we will expand on yesterday’s trail, as we hike the Trail of Self-Denial.

There is a total of 18 trails on the trek we call the Principles of Spiritual Growth, which is adapted from a short book written by Miles J. Stanford. These practical lessons were instrumental in my spiritual growth as a young man seeking to create and live my legacy. As we continue on each trail of our overall trek, I trust that you will also find this information valuable in your own life, regardless of where you happen to be on your faith trek. Each of the trails that we hike builds on the previous one, so if you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at Home2 in Charlotte, North Carolina. It has been a good week for work progress so far, and we have already completed several tasks that have been in the queue for a while and are making progress on others.

In a somewhat unexpected event, Paula headed to Fort Myers, Florida early Tuesday morning to spend a couple of days with her Aunt Pauline. She is not doing well, and it may be the last time she will be able to visit her. It’s a 12-hour drive, so it makes for a long trip to take alone. But, we both agreed that it would be best if I stayed and focused on our workload. Plus, it would be difficult to make arrangements on short notice for Paula’s mom who lives with us.

As we move from the Trail of Self, it is time now to hike a parallel trail called the Trail of Self-Denial. One of the most difficult tasks that we have in our lives is to deny ourselves those things which we crave. That could be food, drink, sex, power, or anything else that we struggle to overcome. Self-denial usually will not allow lasting victory through the struggles in our life because it is based on self. We established yesterday that left to ourselves, we will usually choose self over service to others or God. On our hike today, we will focus on why it requires a real change of heart and mind to grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and certainly spiritually.

This is the 11th of 18 trails which makes up the trek we call…

Principles of Spiritual Growth – Self-Denial

Remember that I have mentioned several times previously that the word for heart and mind is used interchangeably within God’s Word. To keep it simple, I will refer to the mind throughout this hike today.

Until we are willing to change our thinking by what we allow going into our minds about ourselves and our commitment to God, we will continue on the roller coaster of spiritual chaos. Self-denial will never work long-term unless we change the way we think. We change the way we think by what we permit through the filters of our mind. This is why diets rarely work and addicts have such a difficult time breaking free from the chains that bind them. Although you may desire to be free, until and unless you see yourself as being completely free in your mind, you will eventually slip back into your old mindset.

In order to grow spiritually, you have to be convinced in your mind that it all happened at the cross of Christ. Your sins were paid for. Your sinfulness was dealt with. Both by the ultimate act, which is death. As Christ called out as he gave up His life, “It is finished.” You have already received the benefits of the work of the cross simply by grasping this truth and believing the fin...