Changed status, same purpose!

During the last fourteen years while working as a personal Life Coach, alongside my responsibilities as a Christian Minister, I have worked with many individuals helping them to be inspired to achieve and attain certain goals and ambitions.

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There are different stages in life when we have to make important decisions either planned or forced! In such circumstances we may offer a resignation to leave a job or end certain relationships.

Alongside resignation we may aspire to take up a new resolution to navigate present changes and future transitions. In the course of time we find ourselves at stages of retirement from roles that we have held for many years which might not be age related.

Resignation

As a fall out from the pandemic many workers have been quitting their jobs which has come to be known as the Great Resignation. In my own working career I have handed in three resignations that have been quite consequential and life changing. Two of those resignations were made after a period of time weighting up the pros and cons. The third one was made very quickly but confidently trusting that I had made the best decision at the right time and without any subsequent regrets. In actual fact all three resignations have produced very good outcomes which considerably advanced my work and personal life.  

In making such decisions one has to be courageous, decisive and embrace personal support offered from friends and family to ensure, as far as it is possible, a smooth transition. In the context of my faith I have always prayed for wisdom and guidance so that I make a right decision. However, if a situation didn’t work out I would continue to seek a further wisdom and capacity to turn things around.  

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Resolution

On a daily basis we have to find and work towards resolutions at work, home and play. Life can get very messy and we have to apply resilience, tenacity and fortitude to ride any storm or period of calm. In action planning and clear thinking that is shared with family, friends and professionals we can climb any mountain to enjoy the stay and the view. We will then have a greater confidence and resolution to climb even bigger mountains with grandeur accommodation and landscape.

Retirement

In November of last year after a time of reviewing my coaching practice I resigned myself to retire from my role as a personal life coach. At this present time I feel it is a good resolution that will open up new opportunities and mountains to climb. My status will have changed but I endeavour to retain the same passion and purpose to enable many people to grow and succeed in whatever they feel is before them in my continued work as a Christian Minister and author.

Rest and Relaxation

After periods of creativity and busyness it is important to find opportunities to rest and recover which can then lead to new areas of activity. People share many stories about entering into a different season while retaining their passion with a purpose and in so doing become more purposeful and productive.  

• At this time of the year think about your own status, passion and purpose?

• Are you still as enthusiastic and eager to make a difference?

• Are you just hanging on by your finger tips and tempted to join the Great Resignation with little idea where you may want to move forward to?

My website inspire2achieve has been a tool to promote my availability as a Life Coach. It has also been an opportunity to gently and confidently apply Christian faith and insight for others to reflect and think over. I have repurposed the site to be an encouragement for daily living.

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Since September 2021 I have created a new website with a colleague exploretoinspire.uk which is designed to raise and discuss topical subjects and relate modern-day issues from a Christian perspective. In these days when there is so much mass and social media it can be difficult to find a spiritual angle behind the headlines or the comments. I hope the website will encourage people to embrace a fair and balanced view of the many issues that exist in our country and round the world.

It has been a joy to travel with friends on WordPress, LinkedIn and beyond and I look forward to ascending new peaks and surroundings in the days to come with family, friends and professionals.

Graham

Brother, sister pain!

My Dad Henry, had quite a lot of arthritis due to his manual work as a master plumber and would often refer to it as ‘brother pain.’It reflected his acknowledgment of his pain and his positive attitude of naming it. Dad was full of faith and sought a healing and comfort to his pain, alongside advice and medication from his doctor. A good soak in the bath would not go amiss, as well as other remedies to relieve his ‘brother pain.’

Pain can present itself physically, mentally, spiritually and circumstantially. This painting from 1893 is known in German as ‘The scream of nature.’  The expressionist artist is Edvard Munch and in Norwegian it is known as ‘The Shriek.’ The painting is often interpreted as an expression of the anxiety and pain of modern life. The person shown can be thought to be hearing the scream of nature or personally screaming out loud in frustration of nature and its anxiety and pain.

Recently I was reading about a man from antiquity who experienced being taken into a ‘third heaven,’ a Jewish phrase to convey the presence of God. He saw things that no one else had seen and presented himself to the local people as someone quite ordinary who had experienced an extraordinary presence of God.

The man had experienced many sufferings and lots of pain in his life. He had been imprisoned, beaten, lashed, stoned, ship wrecked three times and exposed to dangers from rivers, robbers, and people against him. He was often thirsty and hungry, cold and exposed. In all of those experiences he honored such pain in the context that they made him stronger in character, resilience and perseverance.Alongside such experiences the man had to live with, what he identified as, ‘a thorn in his side’ which constantly troubled and affected him. In thinking about what that ‘thorn’ might have been we are not exactly sure but we have some form of clue that related to a further life changing experience the man had. He was blinded for three days during an initial divine presence which may have led to him contracting some form of eye infection.

He then spent three years in the Arabian desert meditating and being grounded in his faith and belief. Later on the man visited various communities and in one setting he was quite conscious that his bodily illness could have upset the people he was visiting. They received him favorably almost as an ‘angel of God’ and in appreciation they would have given their own eyes to him if that was possible. (1) So the man’s blindness could have been his ‘thorn in his side.’ (2)

I wonder what type of pain you are facing today. Are you willing to acknowledge, name it and find grace, comfort and healing for it?

In the desperation that pain brings to us, we scream out to be heard and listen to the pain of those around us who may turn to drastic solutions to ease their problems in the form of self-harm, excessive alcohol, drugs and other practices.

In the Christian tradition pain comes early in Genesis 3 as found in the Old Testament. It is likened to a ‘curse’ that had been placed upon humankind and creation due to the disobedience of Adam and Eve.

To Eve her pain in childbirth would be multiplied. To Adam the ground he works will be cursed and in toil he shall eat from it. Life for all of us can feel like a curse or pain as well as being a joy and delight.

At this time of ‘Lent’ the person central to Easter experienced pain and death for an eternal purpose which would bring new spiritual life to all believers. He had to come to terms three times with his fathers will for him in a secluded garden.In the midst of personal pain and rejection he confirmed that his ‘soul is sorrowful even unto death. “Father if possible let this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will, but thy will be done,” and then was denied and betrayed by two of his close friends. (3)

Such experiences helped the man cope with opposition, abuse and rejection. He found an ease within himself to negotiate fame and adoration and had empathy to weep for those he loved and many experiencing deep pain, illness and sorry. I have heard it said that most pain and ill heath comes from attitudes that exclude a spirit of forgiveness. I’m not sure how that can be substantiated but it is interesting to note that the most common of prayers includes “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who have trespassed against us,” and it seeks to deliver us from pain, suffering, and discomfort.

As I recall my Dad’s ‘brother pain’ we can also acknowledge a ‘sister pain.’ When we experience deep, deep, deep pain and despair, there is nothing like the relief of that pain and despair: the tooth is calmed, the limb feels better, the heart murmurs cease, the circumstances of life change and sunshine enters into an otherwise dark place.

There are many natural remedies that are available as a pain relief? Exercise can ease pain and discomfort. We also seek a peaceful heart and mind to relieve the pain that causes us to ‘scream out loud’ as well as hearing the ‘screams of people around us.’

So welcome ‘brother and sister pain.’ Silently and with a scream name and accept it. Then seek to find a healing place for it today and for the tomorrows.

Graham

For further reading hit the links below for the second edition of my book Blog 51 (October 2020) in black and white or colour

(1) Galatians 4 v 12 – 15.    (2)  Corinthians 12 v 7 – 9   (3) Matthew 26.