Life | christopherhildreth

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Just Words?

June 1, 2008

Words – are they just words?

Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country – Kennedy

I have a dream – Martin Luther King Jr.

Mr. Gorbachev tear down that wall – Ronald Reagan

Lincoln at Gettysburg

These words unified and catalyzed a nation, but words can also have negative consequences.

I am not a crook – Nixon

No new taxes – Bush Sr.

I did not have sex with that woman – Clinton

Intrinsic in words are power, influence and impact. Today’s message we talked about this issue of words. It should cause us pause as we prepare for the events of life. Words are free and we can use them however we choose, but the choosing is perhaps the hardest part.

The easy thing is to just say what we feel and let the chips fall wherever and on whoever they will, but the hard thing is to control and harness our words to become the most effective life creating thing we have.

Today, look for opportunities to change a situation from negative to positive with just the power of your words.

Categories: Belief, Cultural Ideas, Influence, Life, Message Series

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Matters of the Heart

May 25, 2008

To continue on the talk we heard this morning, the issues of the heart are, without a doubt, issues that define who we are in the moment. The way we respond determines our future. In times of stress and anxiety the struggle between the heart and the mind can become fierce, but we have the last say in which one wins.

In every situation our heart plays a dominant roll because the heart listens and speaks on a different level than the mind. Actions that may seem perfectly coherent and logical with the mind can cause the heart tremendous stress. In relationships, arrangements and group activity the mind and heart are continually vying for dominance.

We can work on trying to alleviate this pressure, but the focus of our attention should be on watching and observing our actions. Taking ourselves out of the situation and looking through the eyes of an observer can cause us to experience frustrating and exhausting heart/mind struggles in a different way.

As an observer, we don’t “have a dog in the race”. Our position is merely to watch and see what is happening. Many times when we do this one thing, the attitude and build up of emotional pressure will be lessened considerably making way for a more rational approach to a problem or set of circumstances.

The battle between heart/mind ownership won’t stop, but observation can remove the power they both try to wield.

Categories: Belief, Context, Influence, Life, Lifepoint, Message Series

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Fast Company

May 23, 2008

I love culture. Let me say that agin – I LOVE CULTURE! It never stays the same. It is always challenging the now. It is not predictable…I love it.

I do my best to stay up with and look a little ahead of culture. I’ve been right about a few things and wrong about many more, but the intrigue of “what may be” has always had it’s hook in me.

One of the ways I stay in tune with culture is Fast Company. It is a magazine that, from my experience, has it’s hand on the pulse of culture. The stories you “need to know about”, in reference to culture and its changes and shifts are always there. Fast Company gives the reader what they need to make informed decisions about the world culture.

This month the focus is on a guy named Alex Bogusky. He has been hired by Microsoft to reinvent its image and go on the offensive against the Great Advertising Wonder that is Apple. Only time will tell, but a lot is on the line for Alex and Microsoft.

One thing he mentioned in the interview was, “edginess and risk taking mean nothing without results”. Often we try to be cool and do things that are edgy, but in the end if the results aren’t there, all we’ve done is spin our wheels…we’ve gone nowhere. Nowhere is not a place we want to be or a place we want to be comfortable in. In life results are the measure of correct decisions and choices.

Categories: Context, Creativity, Cultural Ideas, Influence, Life

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A Change is Gonna Come…

May 12, 2008

Lately, things are happening all over the world. One day there is a typhoon then next storms, and then earthquakes. All of this taking place in a heated election year. It is during times such as these that many can become paralyzed by the magnitude of change happening around them. What we know deep in our spirit is that the pendulum of change has swung and will swing again bringing both pain and pleasure. To be human is to experience both emotions.

The real test is our response to the unsettling events and our seeming inability to control anything. The first response should be to breathe. Breathe in all of the events as they happen – experience the moment, but realize that as soon as it has occurred for you in the present, with the ticking of the clock the event moves to it’s permanent residence in the past. You, however, are still here…in the present.

Be true to your feelings, be they grief or joy. Simply understand they are just feelings and can change based on our future recollections. What may seem horrible now, may have peace or joy attached to it later. In the meantime, accept that the changing nature of life won’t stop.

This observation will bring hope to some and none to others, our perception shades every experience of our lives. We get to choose how we respond to situations in our lives. And with those choices a road is paved before us.

I, like you, look at the global news and hear the troubling reports, but in the shock we can see that the undulating ribbons of God’s love has never stopped.

Though we question and do not understand fully the “Why?” and the “How?”, we can be grateful of an opportunity to see greater and larger view of God as we hear the stories of those who…”if it had not been for my neighbor waking up and telling me to move, I would be dead.” or “if we had not moved to another part of the house when we did, we wouldn’t have survived.” This is what I choose to do, and I hope you will join me in purposing to hear the good in a time when we will be hearing so much bad.

Categories: Context, Cultural Ideas, Influence, Life

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This Hurts

May 11, 2008

One of my favorite places to “get away” is Academy Sports. After the storms last night and this morning, the store suffered some damage. Prayers to all those in business who experienced damage and loss.

Categories: Context, Life

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Do Something Amazing Each Day

May 6, 2008

I can’t remember where I saw this in the past few days. I hate not knowing because I’m usually a stickler for keeping track of those things. Be that as it may, this phrase, “Do something amazing each day”, has decided to take up dwelling in my mind-space.

The only thing I do recall is that the quote was by someone who was an amputee. He resolved that after his amputation he would “do something amazing each day”. I don’t know about you but most of my days really aren’t that amazing. I’ve had good days, really, really good days, but “amazing”?

I started to think and have been thinking of what would constitute an amazing day. What would have to have happened, been felt, said, etc. for a day to qualify as amazing?

One thing I think would have to be evident: that an action I either did, or was instrumental in having done, effected a real positive change in either my life or the ones I wanted affected.

One more quote that’s been lurking since I read it is that the only real eternal life there is is the present. The present does not have a past or future, it is timeless. Therefore, the present is the only time that is “out of time”. To truly embrace the eternal life we’ve been given is to live in the Now, the present.

Combine those two thoughts together and you have a pretty ambitious approach to living. Seriously though, think, just for a moment, what your life would look like if you introduced each of these contexts into your daily rhythm of living. Then imagine if we all took these two items to heart.

Naive? Maybe, but out of naivete can come some of the most profound and illuminating propositions for life.

Categories: Awareness, Context, Cultural Ideas, Influence, Life

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Jung

March 23, 2008

“What you resist, persists.” That was spoken by Carl Jung, one of my favorite people. I know some would question, but I really do enjoy reading about Jung and the perception he had on life and the formation of our inner person.

This quote resounds with me. When we focus our attention on negative things, we find ourselves surrounded by more of the same. When we strive and put forth all our effort in one direction against one idea or issue, it seems that the idea or issue grows in magnitude right before our eyes.

Have you wanted to start eating healthy, and as soon as you make “the commitment” every fast food chain suddenly comes out with brand new sandwiches? You finally decide you need to start saving money, and as quick as you deposit the first bit into your savings, the greatest sale is announced. Do you find yourself asking – “What gives?”

Instead of focusing our interest on the negative, put the positive in front of your eyes and center on those things.

It has been said that energy flows where attention goes. If you want the negatives to have energy and momentum in your life – put those things in front of you, but if you want the positive actions and issues in your life to grow and become energized – put the spotlight on them and see what happens.

Categories: Belief, Cultural Ideas, Influence, Life

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“Love”

March 22, 2008

In the church world, it is easy to continually ruminate over the ins and outs of dogma and theory. We can find ourselves questioning this and that, but never asking what are perhaps the better questions. Tons of paper has been used to print volumes of commentaries on Scripture. Men have made their lives work a quest to finish a complete observation and interpretation of what they think the authors meant.

I was listening to Dennis Miller yesterday, and he quoted Bill Hicks as saying, “Never trust a man who begins his sentence by saying,’I think what Jesus was saying here was…’ ” I thought that was right on. Even though I’ve spent a great amount of time reading and a lot of money purchasing those same commentaries, the ultimate point of decision must lie with me.

When I read scripture – at least currently – I keep coming back to the place where the Pharisees ask Jesus which commandment is the greatest. Jesus had a wealth of both oral and written tradition to choose from. I still find myself feeling a little amazed that he comes back with “love”, as in “love your neighbor as yourself”. He says that we should love God, but He makes a point to identify loving each other as paramount.

Over the past few months I have parked here often and pondered over the little word “love”. So much is contained in those four letters. To be a people who follow the teachings of Jesus – whatever else we differ on, we cannot differ on the issue of love.

Categories: Belief, Context, Cultural Ideas, Life

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Georgia loss

March 20, 2008

So I’m no NCAA analyst. I was motivated by heart to pull for Georgia, and they almost got it – but almost doesn’t win games. After the first 5 from Xavier it was all Georgia until the second half and the Xavier surge. Georgia had been 14-4 when leading at the half.

They maintained a slim lead, but fouls and free throws got the best of them. I have to say that it was a great game – had me clinching my hands and uttering loud noises. 14 seeds are scary sometimes and I think that Xavier went into this game thinking it would go a lot easier than it did. Onward to the next bracketology issues….who knows maybe Baylor could win it all.

Categories: Life, Me

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Georgia vs Xavier

March 20, 2008

Up front, just to let you know, this is a self-indulgent post. I love March Madness and the Georgia Bulldogs are what that madness is all about.

Alright, just a few minutes until NCAA Basketball. Georgia upset the apple cart Sunday with their amazing comeback by beating Arkansas 66-57 in the championship game. “From last to first in four days” one of the signs said. That win earned Georgia its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2002. Well, today the Dawgs take on Xavier.

Dennis Felton should go into this game feeling a little more secure in his job as coach following the SEC championship victory Sunday. I’m not going to try to put this game in the proper perspective – you can’t do that if you’re rooting for a team; especially an underdog team who isn’t supposed to be where they are.

I pick Georgia to win this game today by at least 8, probably 10. It’ll be close, but by the time the game is over, I think you’ll have seen a refreshed, refocused Georgia team on their way to the Sweet 16.

Another game I’m interested in is Baylor vs. Purdue. I’d love to see Baylor beat Purdue, but I think Baylor may lose by 4.

GO DAWGS!

Categories: Life, Me

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