Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 179 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

A Thankful Servant Part 1

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 179 of our Trek, and yesterday we climbed the five steps to a Thankful Thanksgiving. Today and for the next two days, we will look at the Psalm of Thanksgiving, Psalm 100. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. Today is a special day in the United States, one of the most special days of all year. It is Thanksgiving Day.  This is a day to watch parades, enjoy a delicious meal, fellowship with our family and friends, and watch football or other fun activities.

As a Christ follower, it is also a day when we give thanks to God from whom all blessing flow. On our Trek today and the next two days, let us learn to become a thankful servant as we look closely at the Psalm of Thanksgiving, which is Psalms 100.

A Thankful Servant Part 1

We all love to hear the story of the Pilgrims. In 1620, a ship full of 102 religious refugees and 30 crew members, set sail for Virginia. The Christians longed to build a community to the greater glory of God. But, having been blown off course, they landed on Cape Cod.

Coming ashore at Plymouth Rock they established a settlement and prepared as best they could for their first winter. Short on supplies and even with the aid of native Indians, just half the Pilgrims survived the bitter freeze. Only three couples that began their voyage together were spared the ravages of death in their family.

In the light of such bitter hardship and disappointment, what would be their disposition towards life and God? After all, they came to America precisely because they were convinced it was God’s will. They wanted to worship God without the interference of the state and to get their children away from the worldliness of Europe. But, rather than feeling sorry for themselves in the face of loss and succumbing to cynicism or fleeing back to Europe, they celebrated what has become known as the ideal American holiday, Thanksgiving. This simple act of faith is one of the most tenacious expressions of true spirituality in our history!

The observance of Thanksgiving comes directly out of the Old Testament tradition of Feast Days. A thank offering was prescribed in the Law of Moses as a special burnt offering for deliverance granted or blessings received. In the Old Testament we have a beautiful expression of thanksgiving that serves as a window into which we will peer to see the spirit of true, thankful worship of God.

Psalms 100 is the only Psalm entitled, “A Psalm of Thanksgiving.” The Psalm is written from the perspective of a worshipper who has come to the temple in order to present their thank offering. Psalm 100 is the pinnacle of praise in a series of Psalms that exalts the Covenant Lord of Israel as the great king of all the earth.

Imagine yourself back in Old Testament days coming to the temple, with your family to offer your thank offering. You enter into the outer court of the temple, and in front of you is the brazen altar. You feel the radiant heat from its fire and smell the savory aroma of its sacrifices. As you present your gift to the priest, he asks you, “What has God done for you for which you are thankful?” On this Thanksgiving, what are the reasons for which you have come to praise God?

Psalm 100 gives us instruction in our thanksgiving.

1.   Your Thank Offerings Must Be Passionate

Psalm 100:1-2 says, “Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 178 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

5 Steps to a Thankful Thanksgiving

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 178 of our Trek, and yesterday we explored Thanksgiving through the Bible as we focused on some key verses. Today we want to climb the five steps to a thankful Thanksgiving. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them and read the daily journal.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. With our client workload a little less this week, it is our hope to start putting some structure into our plans going into 2016. We see several areas of opportunity but want to make sure to focus on the wise opportunities for this season of life. As with many of the decisions that we make in our lives, it is not the choice between a good or bad option. Those are clear, but it is choosing the wisest option among several possible good options. The more you focus on making wise choices, the more you will realize just how very important it is.

Tomorrow we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States, and as such, we have been focusing on Thanksgiving all week. We have learned much through these nuggets of wisdom and thankfulness, so today we want to climb the 5 steps to have a thankful Thanksgiving.

5 Steps to a Thankful Thanksgiving

If your home is like most, your Thanksgiving Day will be very busy, with either traveling to where you want to go or preparing your home to have others over for the day. Either way, that can be very hectic and emotionally trying, which doesn't lend itself to preparing your heart to be reflective and thankful.

This means all the more that if we want to be the kind of people who are characterized by thankfulness, then we must make sure that we focus on it, not just on Thanksgiving Day but at all times during the year.

Here are a few key steps as well as some thoughts that are simple and practical to apply that you can use right away in your quest to become more thankful.

1. Time

Set aside time regularly to be quiet and to reflect. We live in the fastest paced time ever. From the moment we awake to the moment we collapse into bed, we have the opportunity to go at full speed and never slow down. If we schedule time every day during which we can be quiet and reflect, we will free our hearts and minds up from the tyranny of the urgent and rushed.

Psalms 119:15, "I will study your commandments and reflect on your ways."

 

2. Thought

Give thought to the many blessings that you have. Living in a consumer culture, most of us are fully aware of what we do not have and how we absolutely must have "it." But how often do we reflect upon that which we already have? Take some time each day and think of one or two things that you have that you may typically take for granted, and then take a moment and give thanks for those.

Psalms 85:12, "Yes, the Lord pours down his blessings. Our land will yield its bountiful harvest."

3. Generosity

Be generous toward those with less and not envious of those with more. We tend to look at others who may be wealthier than ourselves and think, "I sure wish I had what he does." That kind of thinking breeds envy and jealousy rather than contentment. What can we do to break that cycle? I would suggest being generous to those who are less fortunate than yourself. Go to work at a food bank. This should not just be during the holidays — everybody works there then — but on a regular basis during the year. That will remind you of how good you really have it.

Psalms 112:19,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 177 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

4 Essentials of Thanksgiving

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 177 of our Trek, and yesterday we explored the concept of “Thanksgiving or Thanks-living, What Is the Difference?” Today we will explore the four essentials of Thanksgiving. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, please go to Wisdom-Trek.com to listen to them 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 late on Friday, and after sleeping in a bit on Saturday, we were able to spend the remainder of the day on the leaf harvest. It was a cool but sunny day, so it was a perfect day to be outside. Fortunately, Paula and I were able to pick up all of the leaves that were remaining on the property. My brother Jack had already picked up the leaves on his property which is all connected, so that enabled us to complete our task just as it was getting too dark to see clearly. It also started to rain just as I was parking the mower for the night. Even Paula’s mom who is 82 helped out with the blower, getting the leaves away from the house so I could pick them up with the mower and vacuum.

After I clean out the gutters and blow off the roofs next weekend, I will quickly run over the lawn once more to pick up any remaining leaves. It feels good to have the leaf harvest nearly completed for another year. We are thankful for the good health to be very active as well as the beauty that the trees bring to our property.

It is a cool week in Marietta with temperatures in the 30’s, and it is nice to be able to work indoors as I am able to enjoy the view from our 2nd story office with large windows overlooking the property. We are looking forward to celebrating Thanksgiving later this week with two of our children and five of our six grandchildren along with a niece, her husband, and their two young children. We have many blessings and so much to be grateful for.

It is time to head out on our Trek for today, and as we hike through each day, our focus and thoughts turn to the various aspects of Thanksgiving. As such, I thought that it would be appropriate to reflect on.

4 Essentials of Thanksgiving

As we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States this Thursday, I began to wonder what the Bible says about "Thanksgiving." Thankfulness plays an important part in the Scripture. In fact, some form of thanks is mentioned over 150 times. I knew that the Bible references thankfulness often, but I was curious about the specifics. Let’s explore a few of the many aspects of Thanksgiving found in scripture.

1. Good Deeds Produce Thanksgiving

Jesus died upon the cross to purify for Himself, a group of people zealous for good deeds as listed in Titus 2:14, "He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."

As Jesus's people, we work diligently in our Lord's kingdom to do the good works God prepared beforehand as written in Ephesians 2:10, "For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."

As we do the Lord's work, we affect the lives of others. The result is Thanksgiving directed toward God.

Matthew 5:16 reminds us that people in the world see our good works and glorify God. – "In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."

2 Corinthians 9:11 states that good deeds directed toward our brethren produce thanksgiving to God. -  "Yes,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 176 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

Thanksgiving or Thanks-Living?

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 176 of our Trek, and yesterday we shared additional details about the Blessings of the First Thanksgiving. Today we want to explore the concept of Thanksgiving or Thanks-living to determine what the difference is. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. This episode will air on Monday, and we are rapidly coming up on Thanksgiving this week. We still have much work and preparations that need to be completed before Thursday, but it is always such a special time of year.  We have so much to be thankful for. We are thankful that we can once again celebrate Thanksgiving with family and friends at The Big House. God has been gracious to allow us to be caretakers of this family heritage, and we are pleased that it can be shared by so many.

It is time to head out on our Trek for today. As we hike, we have time to remember all the blessings in our own lives, and we want to consider these two questions:

Do our lives only show thankfulness and gratitude during special times or seasons?

Do our lives reveal that thankfulness and gratitude are part of the very fabric of who we are?

Thanksgiving or Thanks-living

Our speech is a great revealer of what is in our hearts. It is from the abundance of the heart or mind that the mouth speaks. Jesus put it in these terms in Matthew 12:33-37, “A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.  You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say.  A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.  And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak.  The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.”

Jesus said again in Matthew 15:8, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” We can say we are thankful, but our attitude and action will give us away. To quote Jesus for a third time in Matthew 12:37 he says, “The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.” If we are truly thankful in our hearts, it will be reflected in how we live. Our Thanksgiving will become thanks-living.

Thanks-living is about attitude. Zig Ziglar is quoted saying, “Attitude determines your altitude.” I believe that is true in our spiritual and natural life. I know some gifted and talented people who seem to stay perpetually grounded and go nowhere simply because they have rotten attitudes.

The Bible is full of people who lived a life of thanks-living. This attitude helped David endure years on the run, sleeping in caves and the wilderness, while being hunted like an animal to be slaughtered by Saul. Instead of becoming a victim or an old sour puss, David allowed God to use all this to make him into one of the greatest kings to ever walk the earth.

Thanks-living is not living in denial. It is not the same as denying the pain of a situation or pretending that everything is fine when it really is not. Thanks-living is being able to be thankful in spite of our circumstances because we choose to look at our life and circumstances through the filter of God’s love and goodness. Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Thessalonica 5:18,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 175 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

The First Thanksgiving

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 175 of our Trek, and yesterday we located the 7-mile markers to boost your gratitude. Today I will share additional details around the Blessings of the First Thanksgiving. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. This episode is being released the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and if things go according to our plan, we should have most of the leaves harvested. I will update you with those details once it is accomplished.

The sinusitis or cold that I have been battling for over a week now is finally starting to wane although it has really zapped my energy this week, which is unusual. I spoke with my brother Jack today, and his family has had the same type of cold. He also mentioned that it has really drained him of energy also. It is good to know that soon I will be back to normal, or at least normal for me.

It is time to head out on our trek for today. As we hike, it is a time to remember all the blessings in our own lives and discover how the first Thanksgiving Day was established. I will share this story with you so that we can remember it, gain wisdom from it, and apply it to creating our living legacy. Our story today is…

Remember the Blessings of the First Thanksgiving

This week Americans across the country will sit down and devour their turkey dinner with all the trimmings, including pumpkin pie. Some will bow their heads and say a humble "thank you" to God for their blessings of the year while others will just dive in and eat. Regardless of your family's practice, most people agree that this is one of our country's most popular and enjoyable holidays. But how many of us talk about the history of this particular holiday that makes it so unique? Let's do that right now!

Thanksgiving is our oldest national holiday and is the only holiday in the United States decreed by a joint resolution of both houses of Congress and yearly proclamations by our presidents. Each proclamation has expressed gratitude to God, making Thanksgiving the only holiday of a religious nature that seems to be politically correct today. Thanksgiving is a holiday that can be celebrated without religious reservation by Jews, Christians (Roman Catholics and Protestants of all denominations), Muslims, or, for that matter, followers of any religion practiced in the United States. While a few other countries have similar celebrations, Thanksgiving as we know it is a holiday observed only in the United States. It truly is unique.

From our earliest days in school, we have heard the story of that first Thanksgiving. Having arrived in the United States after a very difficult sea voyage that took much longer than expected, a group of 102 people (44 men and 58 women and children) made their way to shore. It was on Dec. 21, 1620, and the bitter cold of winter had already set in.

They took shelter for the winter in a makeshift building that the men had gone ashore and built during the previous weeks. They had intended to land in Jamestown, VA, where friends and relatives were expecting them and had made arrangements for getting them settled. But because of ship repairs and problems of navigation that resulted in their being considerably off course and spending several extra weeks trying to find Virginia, the ship finally dropped anchor for the winter at Plymouth, Mass., far north of their intended destination.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 174 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

7 Ways to Boost Your Gratitude

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 174 of our Trek, and yesterday we hiked on the trails of unleashing gratitude in your life. Today as we hike on our trail, we will search for the 7-mile markers to boost your gratitude. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. By the time this episode is released, we will be back at The Big House for a couple of weeks. In addition to a smaller family Thanksgiving celebration, we will be headlong in the leaf harvest. Most of the leaves have fallen, and the ground is covered quite thick with leaves. With about three acres of open area to collect from, that is a lot of leaves. On Wednesday this past week, we were able to spend an evening out with my sister Rebecca, which is one of the monthly blessings that I look forward to as we always enjoy the time reminiscing and sharing God’s blessings in our lives. Rebecca is a marvelous piano player, and as I approached her door to let her know we had arrived, the beautiful playing of the old hymn “Count Your Blessings” was flowing from her fingertips. One of the best ways to boost your gratitude is to count your blessings and name them one by one. It is then you will see that your life is full.

So let’s get started on our trek in our exploration for the…

7 Mile Markers to Boost Your Gratitude

It is the season to be grateful. After all, the dictionary defines the word “thanksgiving” as "the expression of gratitude."

Gratitude refers to feeling thankfulness and appreciation for people, places, and events. An attitude of gratitude can really change your life. As Willie Nelson once said, "When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around."

How do you boost your attitude of gratitude?

Okay, I will admit, there are times when we just don’t feel very thankful. Sometimes life deals us a bad hand, which may be completely out of our control. But how we play that hand is what counts. Let’s hike our trail today and look for the seven mile markers to help you boost your gratitude. I will let you in on a little secret here…Most of these take very little time and absolutely no money! I want to challenge you to make a point to try any one (or more) of these today to improve your attitude of gratitude.

1. Say thank you more frequently.

Thank everyone around you, from the people who serve you or those who simply exist in your life. No need to wait until someone does something huge for you. Just the mere fact that your spouse or friend is in your life can warrant a "thank you."

More than just saying it, it is also important that you really feel it. President John F. Kennedy put it this way, “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them."

We focus so much on saying "thank you," in our society (especially with children) that sometimes we don't make the connection between the words and the genuine, heartfelt gratitude they should convey. Thanksgiving Day is a wonderful reminder for all of us to take some time to thank the people in our lives for all those intangible gifts they give us every day – gifts of compassion, friendship, laughter, support, and love. So much to be thankful for!

Make sure when you do thank someone you also experience the sense of appreciation for them.

2. Be present.

Many of us are well versed at juggling dozens of different thought...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 173 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

4 Steps to Unleash Gratitude in Your Life

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 173 of our Trek, and yesterday we hiked on the trails of gratitude and thanksgiving through a series of inspirational stories for our trek of life. Today and for the next week, we will continue this hike on the trails of gratitude and thanksgiving. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. As we continue our focus on the season of Thanksgiving, regardless of how difficult life may or may not have been during this past year, each of us has much to be thankful for. The best way to maintain an attitude of gratitude is to make a gratitude list and review it daily to focus on those blessings that we have each day. It’s the best way to start each day.

On today’s trek, we want to head down memory lane and learn how to…

Unleash Gratitude in Your Life!

I have many wonderful memories of Thanksgiving on the Farm. Mom always prepared a huge turkey with all the trimmings and side dishes. I have continued that tradition with hosting family Thanksgivings at The Big House for many years.  During my trek of life, I had a mom who loved us and taught all 10 of us to cook.  I especially enjoyed the times in the kitchen that we spent together as she taught me the love of cooking. One of my favorite memories is mom and I making fruit cakes.  It was one baking event that just mom and I did together.

 

It’s been over 16 years since mom lost her battle with cancer, but I am so thankful for the 68 years of life that she was granted. She lived life to the fullest. While it would be wonderful if she were still with us to impact our lives and the lives of her grandchildren and now great-grandchildren, in a very real way she is through the impact that we can make each day. All who knew and loved her are reminded and thankful for all the great moments they shared. The laughter, the lessons, and the wisdom that she shared with me is invaluable. What I have learned is that she is not in my past but in my future. I celebrate her life and blessing of mentorship that she shared.

During this next week in the United States, everybody is getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I enjoy spending time with my family, sitting around the table and enjoying good food and the incredible opportunity to express gratitude for all the many blessings in my life. Thanksgiving is not something that should be restricted to a day, though. Thanksgiving is a lifestyle that anybody can cultivate. Gratitude is one of my favorite things in the whole world. Here are a few lessons on how you can unleash gratitude in your life.

1. Gratitude is one of the most important habits you can ever develop.

As a business person, church leader, gramps, dad, and husband, I have been privileged to influence and encourage many throughout the world to have a greater impact on their world. Many people wonder and desire to learn how to be happy and successful. However, many don’t immediately realize that the first lesson they must learn is in gratitude. This may be puzzling at first, but I know that no other force but gratitude will empower you for true joy and success in life.

For many years, I have made a conscious decision to keep a list of what I am grateful for. I then review that list first thing every morning and thank God for each blessing on the list.  There are seasons and circumstances that change,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 172 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

3 Trails of Gratitude

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 172 of our Trek. Yesterday we asked the question, “Are you affecting or infecting others that you impact?” Starting today and for the next week, we will hike on the trails of gratitude and thanksgiving through a series of inspirational stories for our trek of life. If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. While I enjoy all seasons of the year, fall seems to be extra special for me. It may be from growing up on an apple orchard when we would pick apples and make fresh apple cider and apple butter in the huge copper pot over an open fire. It may also be that the crisp fall air carries with it a fresh relief after the hot and humid days of summer.

Growing up in a family of 10 children with loving parents, for me fall also meant a huge Thanksgiving feast and then on to Christmas. Both holidays hold a very special meaning for me. As we trek through life, let us always be thankful for the bountiful blessings that we have. Let us also remember the birth of Christ who provides us with a rich and satisfying life on earth and eternal life.

 

Even if you do not live in the United States, where we celebrate Thanksgiving in November, take this time to share in our celebration of thanks and gratitude.

Let’s hike three trails of gratitude today, which we will title…

Gratitude Stories

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, the following gratitude stories might be helpful to you. They all fall under the theme of 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." Of course, this verse doesn't mean that everything that happens to us is God's will. It's not God's will that we lose our jobs or get a diagnosis of cancer, or that our children make poor choices. What this verse does say is that it's God's will for us to be thankful people in all circumstances, even in hard times — especially in hard times.

Consider these three trails.

1. Robinson Crusoe

When Robinson Crusoe was wrecked on his lonely island, he drew two columns and listed the good and bad of his situation. He was cast on a desolate island, but he was still alive. He was divided from humanity, but he was not starving. He had no clothes, but he was in a warm climate and didn't need them. He had no means of defense but saw no wild beasts which threatened him. He had no one to talk to, but the destroyed ship was near the shore and he could get out of it all the things necessary for his basic survival. He concluded, therefore, that no condition in the world was so miserable that one could not find something to be grateful for.

2. John Claypool, Part 1

When the late John Claypool lost his ten-year-old daughter to leukemia, gratitude was the only way he survived. He tells about that experience in his profound book, Tracks of a Fellow Struggler. After his daughter's death, John walked down three different paths. The first path was to say, "Well, it was just God's will. I have to accept it." But that was not helpful. He could not believe that God willed ten-year-old girls to die of leukemia. A second path was to try to find an intellectual answer as to why this happened. He tried to make sense of it. But that didn't work either. His daughter's death didn't make any sense. Finally, John walked the path of gratitude. He realized that life is a gift. We are not entitled to it.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 171 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

Do You Affect or Infect Others?

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 171 of our Trek, and yesterday we finished exploring the 5 trails needed to get over yourself so you can trek on in life. Today we will ask the question, “Are you affecting or infecting others that you impact?”  If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. Our workload continues briskly, but we continue on our trek, one step at a time. If we do not stop, I know we will reach our destination. My voice is starting to get a bit stronger, but I hope my raspy voice has not been too distracting this past week. It has been years since I have had any type of sinusitis or cold like has hit me pretty hard this past week. I am on the back side of it now, though, so hopefully my voice will improve each day.

Do You Affect or Infect Others?

Words, words, words! In my opinion, when we talk about the connection between attitude and behavior, there are two words that come to mind, "affect" and "infect." My first reaction is to think of "affect" as a positive verb and "infect" as a negative verb, but I guess they can be both.

According to www.dictionary.com:

af•fect - verb (used with object) - 1. to act on; produce an effect or change in; 2. to impress the mind or move the feelings of; 3. (of pain, disease, etc.) to attack or lay hold of.

in•fect - verb (used with object) - 1. to affect or contaminate (a person, organ, wound, etc.) with disease-producing germs; 3. to taint or contaminate with something that affects quality, character, or condition unfavorably; 4. to corrupt or affect morally; 5. to imbue with some pernicious belief, opinion, etc.

I love this quote attributed to, Eleanor Roosevelt, "Every one of us every day has choices to make about the kind of person we are and what we wish to become. You can decide to be someone who brings people together, or you can fall prey to those who wish to divide us. You can be someone who educates yourself, or you can believe that being negative is clever and being cynical is fashionable. You have a choice.”

How true…Which one are you? What would your family, friends, and/or work colleagues say about you?

If you have listened to many episodes of Wisdom-Trek or read the daily journals, you've heard me say over and over, "Attitude is a choice!" It’s a split second choice, 24/7/365!

As we begin winding down yet another year of ups and downs, triumphs and tragedies, let’s take a few moments to be thankful for all the good in our lives rather than focusing on the negative.

By making a conscious choice to be a "power surge" rather than a "power drain," we can open ourselves to have a positive "affect" (influence) on ourselves and others regardless of the conditions around us. We can even "infect" our world in a positive way – spread the positive attitude virus, look for the good, and trust for the right results. How freeing this thinking is! What an uplifting, renewing way to live!

“So it is, life is actually made up of our choices. We are the sum total of them, and if we hold to an attitude of love and thanksgiving for all the good things within our grasp we may have what all ambitious people long for — success,” Maya Angelou.

What about you?  Have you have been infected with the disease of a negative attitude and mindset through those you associate with or because you have not filtered out the garbage that is en...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 170 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

5 Trails to Hike to Get Over Yourself #2

Thank you for joining us for our 7 days a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 170 of our Trek, and yesterday we explored trails 1-3 of the 5 trails needed to get over yourself so you can trek on in life. Today we will complete trails 4 and 5.  If you miss any of our Wisdom-Trek episodes, 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. After a relaxing, but productive weekend, the work week is full with activities that we need to wrap up before heading back to Marietta at the end of this week. Leaf harvest will keep us busy for a few days when we return to the Big House. We will remain in Marietta through the 1st week of December. The days, months, and years are rapidly passing us by. I have to continually remind myself to slow down and enjoy the journey.

5 Trails Hiked to Getting Over Yourself So You Can Trek On With Your Life

Let’s review the introduction from yesterday’s exploration of trails 1 -3 to refresh your memory. If you did not trek with us yesterday, please listen to Day 169 before proceeding with us today so that you will experience the entire trek that we are taking.

Have you ever noticed that life just happens? It just does. And yet we spend so much time trying to control what happens in our lives, micro-managing how it happens and then telling everyone else what they should do to control and manage their lives that often we miss the point of what we are actually experiencing in ours.

The question is why do we expend so much energy trying to control things we really have no control over. At the end of the day, isn’t it just exhausting?

Life is actually quite simple. We have two choices in any given situation, circumstance, or event. We can be a victim and believe that things are happening to us, that we have no control over our situation, and blame others for the injury we have suffered. Or, we can start taking responsibility for our own lives, our own thoughts, our own words, and our own actions and decide that regardless of the injury, we are going to choose to live life on our own terms, powerfully.

In our society, we are supported, encouraged, and even rewarded for being victims. And yet, does being a victim ever feel good? Not usually. Being a victim tends to make us feel weak, vulnerable, and powerless. And these feelings in turn can lead to depression, frustration, and uncertainty.

The difference between taking responsibility for ourselves when life throws us a curve ball versus being a victim of a situation is that we become far better equipped spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and many times even physically. We stop allowing energy vampires to suck the life out of us, and rather than feeling powerless, depressed, and frustrated, we are able to experience our situation as an opportunity to test our superpowers of strength, positivity, clarity, and focus.

If you are sick and tired of feeling frustrated, drained, like you just can’t get a break, and are ready to get over yourself and on with your life, here are a few guidelines for living life on your own terms.

Yesterday we hiked the first three trails which were:

1. Stop blaming everyone else.

2. Your life is your responsibility.

3. Things are not always as they seem.

Today we will hike the final two trails.

4. Acknowledge your feelings.

Feelings are simple, really. We like things that make us feel good – love, affection, romance, acknowledgment…We don’t like things that make us feel bad – frus...