The Doug Ellingsworth Blog

Living

On Being Sick

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on March 17, 2016

hospital-bc-laboratory-form-with-syringe-2-1315572 Blah! For the past three weeks, I’ve traveled around the sun cradled in my worn oversized recliner. My bout with the flu evolved into my first experience with pneumonia. My family has tolerated my occupation of our living room in good humor, even offering me popsicles and jello from time to time.

While I can’t say I’ve enjoyed these days of fever and chills, they have given me time to ponder life and circumstances and trouble. I jotted down a few notes to help me remember things that seemed most significant and worthy to be revisited now and then.

Family/Living

Making A Deal With God

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on February 24, 2016

face-skeptical-1527130-1279x878 The idea isn’t my own, but it’s a good one. I’m not sure I can point to a specific verse to give it scriptural sanction, but in the dust and sweat of every day living, it’s worth mulling over.

The reason I say it’s worth considering is because it connects the essence of your life – your work – to the essence of love – giving. When giving is among your highest priorities, it is frequently on your mind. Since God is love, loving to give is a sure way to stay close to His heart.

If you are one of those who struggle with knowing when, how much, and to whom you should give, this might help you sort all that out. Tithing and giving at your church is the place to start, but most of us need to give beyond our tithe and a token offering.

So, here is a suggestion for those who are a little fearful about testing their faith.

Family/Living

When We Mess Love Up

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on February 15, 2016

love-1241392 I’ve been thinking about love. Not so surprising, I guess, considering that yesterday was Valentine’s Day.

It’s not the romantic sentiments of love that I’ve been pondering, but the harder and tougher consequences that result when we mess love up.

Love is summed up by John in his short little books toward the back of the Bible, and by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians. In I John, we learn that God is love and how we manage love in our lives indicates whether or not we even know God. Then, in his weighty instructions to married couples, Paul says that love demands that we place our wants and wishes second to those of the one we love.

Love is not a burning emotion launched into your unsuspecting heart at some random meeting, but is a spiritual decision. Love is much more a commitment than it is a feeling.

Ministry

When You Don’t Meet The Expectations Of Others

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on February 4, 2016

prozac-nation-1317104 Forty million Americans suffer from anxiety disorder, our country’s most common mental illness.

I wonder how many of those conditions are tied to a sense of worthlessness caused by failing to live up to what others expect of them?

We’ve raised a couple of generations of self-absorbed offspring who are grossly offended by any act or expression that even suggests they could be wrong. I’m not talking about this kind. But knowing that you have disappointed someone you care deeply about hurts. Especially when you realize that you don’t have the ability to be or do what they demand.

So, what do you do when you can’t meet the expectations others set for you?

Living

America, Meet Your Next President!

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 27, 2016

bernie-sanders-portrait-02 Your next President is a 74-year-old carpenter, film maker, and politician. He plans to raise your taxes, give you free universal healthcare, make college a free ride for all, raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, force large banks to downsize, guarantee you 12 weeks of paid medical and family leave to go with at least two weeks paid vacation, and start a universal child care program for children 0-3.

Without changing the prices on the value menu at McDonalds.

He believes that “climate change ravages our planet and our people – all because the wealthiest industry in the history of our planet has bribed politicians into ignoring science.” He says that “today in America, if you are black, you can be killed for getting a pack of Skittles during a basketball game. Or murdered in your church while you are praying” – as if no white, red, or brown people have ever been murdered. As for working for the LGBT activists, as President he will “sign into law the Equality Act, the Every Child Deserves a Family Act, and any other bill that prohibits discrimination against LGBT people.” He also promises to “veto any legislation that purports to “protect” religious liberty at the expense of others’ rights.”

Say hello to Bernie Sanders.

Ministry

Why I Do What I Do

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 22, 2016

Chaplain_E_book_

To borrow from Mr. Dickens – It was the best of times, it was the worst of times in West Tennessee this past week.

The worst? The Chamberlains suffered a family’s worst nightmare when their two-year-old son ran from his grandmother who was taking him and his older sister for a walk in the woods. In moments, the rambunctious boy was out of sight, lost among the trees and ravines and creek beds.

The best? Hundreds of volunteers came from all over the region to help search for the lost toddler. Enduring freezing temperatures and icy rain, they searched the rough and wooded Chester county hill country grid-by-grid for seven days and nights. Strangers became comrades at prayer vigils, interceding for a family most had never met. Searchers waited at the staging area for hours on end just in case they were needed. Human compassion and selflessness at their highest levels were on display for world to see.

Leadership/Living

Focus. Automatic or Manual?

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 12, 2016

old-camera-1550965-1918x1200 I’m not all that old, but I remember when the first “point and shoot” cameras came out. Remember the old Instamatics? Drop in a film cartridge, spin the little wheel a couple of times with your thumb, and you were ready to go. No lens settings to worry about, no rings to adjust. Just aim, click, and wind.

What made those cameras so universal was that they were always in focus. Unless you had a mighty jittery hand or you snapped a picture while jumping on your neighbor’s trampoline, the odds were that every picture would turn out. Of course, you wouldn’t know for sure for a week or so – depending on how long it took to get them developed.

With today’s digital cameras, the auto focus feature makes us all good photographers. But good is all it can do. That wonderful feature that automatically focuses for you cannot see all that’s framed in the viewfinder, and often prevents you from seeing the detail that separates good from great.

Leadership/Living

2016 Reading List

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 6, 2016

old-books-1520670 Happy New Year!

2016 was ushered in on rain drops and flood waters here in west Tennessee. Epic floods were forecast, and folks began the daunting task of moving and storing their belongs before the rivers crested. Farmers moved all of their equipment out of what we call the bottoms – the low ground where the Obion and Forked Deer Rivers meet and flow into the Mississippi. The newspaper ran a picture of the sheriff leading a convoy of nearly 50 tractors headed for higher ground. Fortunately, the crest was not as high as predicted so it looks as if we might be spared this go around.

Time to stop watching the water and get to work.

I’ve put together a reading list for this year. I’ve mixed a few new books in with some old ones I just never got around to reading. I also had a few recommendations from friends, so I added them to the list.

Family/Living

Merry Christmas … eh, I Think!

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on December 22, 2015

1324268_22442257 If our nation’s collective behavior could be diagnosed this week, I am sure we would be pronounced mentally ill.

Exhibit A. Click here to read how our President’s staff has decorated the White House with trees, lights, and nativity sets to celebrate Christmas, the birth of Jesus. Click here to read how our President’s staff is punishing military staff for displaying their personal faith in Jesus.

On the one hand, we want to enjoy the warm, fuzzy feelings of Christmas, while on the other, we don’t want people to embrace its results. It’s okay to sing the songs and soak in the sentiment, but letting it effect our behavior is a no-no. It’s fine to enjoy the peace, love, joy, and prosperity of the Christian Christmas, but the lifestyle that produces it must be publicly squelched.

Leadership/Living

Beating Fear This New Year

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on December 17, 2015

Okay, it’s that time again. Time for all Americans to embrace the new year and determine, in the next 12 months, how many pounds we will lose, how much money we will save, which bad habits we will change, and all the books we will read. For most of us, the task is easy: just dust off last year’s plan and we are good to go. We aren’t so good at making resolutions and sticking to them.

There are different reasons why – and all of them good ones. Who wants to drink water when you can have sweet tea? Despite the promises on the label, that fat-free stuff tastes nothing like ice cream. And no low-fat, sugar-free, watered-down substitute prepares you for sleep like that midnight snack of Oreos and whole milk.

But the most powerful reason that we fail to keep our New Year’s resolutions is because they force us to move out of our comfort zones and create new ones. It’s been proven that humans will often take a beating rather than face the unknown. (Can anybody say spousal abuse?). We don’t often identify it, but the underlying force that prevents our success is fear.