|
ZERO TOLERANCE TO NEGATIVE THINKING |
TURN BAD THINGS INTO BETTER THINGS
No
amount of positive thinking will take something bad and turn it
into something good, but positive thinking will turn it into
something better.
SNATCHING VICTORY FROM THE JAWS OF DEFEAT
This statement is the story of
every successful life. Everyone who achieves their dreams
becomes an expert at snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.
This essential skill insures you get the best out of life, no
matter what happens. It’s impossible to always get exactly what
you want. Nevertheless, you can always take a bad situation and
make it into something better.
I learned this lesson when I
had a fracture of my left femur, and the fracture was slow to
heal. The fracture required a metal plate, pin, and five screws
to keep it stable. Unfortunately, the non-healing fracture
interrupted my sailing voyage around the world. I had already
sailed from the east coast of the United States through the
Panama Canal and across the Pacific Ocean to arrive in New
Zealand. Now the slowly healing fractures prevented me from
continuing the trip.
Although, this was not a
disaster of monumental proportions affecting people around the
world, it was a personal disaster that affected my world. You
can’t safely sail thousands of miles offshore when you have a
broken leg. Sailing with an unhealed fracture is poor judgment
and an unnecessary risk that could potentially put other people
in danger. I needed an alternate plan to take the bad thing
that happened and turn it into something better.
I contacted the hospital in
Saudi Arabia where I previously worked and asked if they could
use my services for the next eight months while my fractures
were healing. They were happy for me to return to work, and I
was happy to take a bad situation and make it into something
better.
Although I would have preferred
to sail to Australia, that was neither prudent nor possible.
Eight months working in Arabia accomplished the healing of the
femoral fracture and replenished my cruising funds as well.
When I returned to New Zealand eight months later, my body was
ready for action and my cruising funds were in excellent shape.
Snatching victory from the jaws
of defeat wasn’t the only option. I could have remained on my
sailboat through the New Zealand winter while my fractures
healed. I would have been cold and uncomfortable, and I would
have depleted my cruising funds as well. It was a bad option
that needed to be made into something better; going to Arabia
was definitely something better.
LIFE IS FULL OF OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE BAD THINGS INTO BETTER
THINGS
As we sailed across the Pacific
Ocean, we had many opportunities to take something bad and make
it into something better. Educating my children during this
voyage was a major challenge. My children didn’t attend public
high school. They did high school by correspondence course from
the University of Nebraska so they could sail on our yacht
across the Pacific Ocean.
Neither of the children looked
forward to studying two semesters of chemistry on the yacht.
For them, chemistry looked like a potentially bad experience.
They delayed studying chemistry until we arrived in New
Zealand. Soon after our arrival, we were in a car accident that
put me in the hospital for two months.
After I got out of the
hospital, I underwent two months of physical therapy learning to
walk again. I couldn’t bend my right knee more than thirty
degrees, and I couldn’t walk up and down stairs. This could
easily be classified as something bad. I decided this would be
a good time to teach chemistry to my kids.
After I returned from two hours
of physical therapy each morning, I got out the chemistry book
and I taught them chemistry for four hours. I spent an
additional hour or two each day preparing for the next day of
correspondence chemistry classes. In four months, we finished
two semesters of high school chemistry. They completed their
studies in chemistry while I learned how to walk. We took
something bad and turned it into something better.
GO TO NEXT
PAGE
DIVERSITY REFLECTS THE MIND OF GOD
Have you ever had an original thought? I'm not talking about
thinking a thought that's new to you: that happens every day in
school. I'm talking about a thought than no one else has
thought before.
I'm not sure I've ever done it. I've occasionally looked at
things from a different angle and put things in a slightly
different perspective, but what I'm doing is simply modifying
something that already exists.
God is a lot different from us. He thinks original thoughts all
the time. When he created the universe out of nothing and
populated it with life, He thought billions of original
thoughts. Every creature that ever existed on planet earth is
one of God's original thoughts. Each creature is unique and
fits in a special place in God's master plan.
Scientists are always talking about the balance of nature, but
what they are really talking about is the mind of God. God
created millions of species, and he put each of those creatures
in a special niche that was custom made for just them. Each
species lives and survives in the garden of God's thoughts.
The Bible says that not even a sparrow falls to the ground
without God's knowledge. That means God cares a great deal
about his creatures, which isn't that surprising since all
living things are a reflection of His mind.
The number one miracle of the universe is
life, and the number two miracle is the diversity of life.
Diversity reflects the mind of God. God didn't make only one
type of people. He made dozens of different flavors and each
one is special and unique.
When God thought the universe into existence, He could have
created one planet, one sun, and one moon. He could have made
people one color and populated the animal kingdom with only dogs
and cats. But that's not the way God works; diversity is a part
of his master plan.
When God finished creating planet earth and populating it with
life, the Bible says He surveyed the results, and He said that
it was good. God loves diversity, and we should too. Every
time we celebrate diversity, we are celebrating the mind of God.
THE POSITIVE WEB RING
The Positive Web Ring has eleven positive web
sites. Each site lifts you up, pushes your mind in a positive
direction, and makes it easier to live your dreams. The
Positive Web Ring has something positive for everyone. There's
adventure,
positive
self-talk,
positive
spirituality,
positive
graphics,
positive music,
positive
podcasts, and much more.
The wheel of change always turns in the direction of what you put into
your mind, and the Positive Web Ring fills your mind with good things.
Give your mind a push in a positive direction today. Cruise your way
to a positive life. If you really want to be positive, nobody
can stop you.
PositiveWebRing.com
PositiveSelfTalk.com
PositiveThinkingRadio.com
PositiveGraphics.com
PositiveChristianRadio.com
PositiveButterflies.com
MaximumStrength PositiveThinking.com
ZeroToleranceToNegativeThinking.com
TooManyDrummers.com
GodLovesU.com
Maxingout.com
RED SEA CHRONICLES DVD
When Dr. Dave isn't working as a flying doctor for the Indian Health
Service, He is sailing around the world on his sailboat. Find
out what it's like to sail on the ocean of your dreams by watching
Captain Dave's DVD.
Red Sea
Chronicles DVD Previews |
