Humpty Dumpty Experiences in Life

Anyone who has ever aspired to greatness and set out to accomplish anything of significance undoubtedly has learned that life (and success) is truly a journey and not a static destination point. Ironically, the more specific you are in planning your goals and charting your path towards important goals, the more you will need to be ready to adjust and adapt as twists in the road emerge that you could not have foreseen as you initiated your well planned journey. Does this mean that planning and goal setting is pointless? Of course not, the power of setting specific goals and creating an action plan to achieve those goals is a very powerful force and is a process the most successful people use to stretch and make the most of their potential.

When the unexpected occurs in life, especially those moments in life or career that put you face to face with a significant and unexpected change of course in your direction, it is important to remember that we never have had, nor never will have the power to plan and execute a path solely based on our will (regardless of talent, work ethic or intentions).

Unanticipated changes happen all the time and what differentiates those who rapidly bounce back and in fact in many cases come through the experience as a better, deeper person after moving through the experience are 3 core characteristics:

1. Faith: To know that you were designed to succeed in life and given unique talents to help you achieve greatness
2. Attitude: To focus forward and not live life in the past always looking in the rearview mirror for “what might have been.” Look back only enough to honestly assess and learn from any course corrections that will help you move towards you future in a positive manner.
3. Courage: Are you “seized up” with tension and paralysis caused by fear of the unknown or are you moving forward with boldness and the confidence to know you were built to prosper (Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, “For I know the plans I have for you, they are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”)

There are a variety of reasons unexpected change in our lives occurs, sometimes through self inflicted mistakes and sometimes through changes completely outside your control which you had absolutely nothing to do with. When major life changes occur, especially in the midst of the experience, it is easy to feel a bit like Humpty Dumpty, in pieces on the ground after a significant fall. My advice when this type of life experience presents itself:

1. Acknowledge your disappointment that a change is occurring which you did not expect or necessarily desire
2. Determine what your strongest skills and passions are and chart a course moving forward that aligns with what is “True North” in your own internal life compass. In other words, what you believe is the best path forward based on your own priorities, direction and intended purpose.
3. Life is lived more with a compass than a specific map. A compass allows us to always move in the right direction, regardless of where we find ourselves, however a map is only useful up to the point where an unexpected (and un-mapped) change in the road happens.
4. Don’t forget to count your blessings and enjoy the journey!

In the spirit of the great radio personality Paul Harvey (“Now you know the rest of the story”), for those interested in the origin of the Humpty Dumpty Nursery Rhyme we all know so well, the following provides a background on the history and roots of the poem.

The History and Origins of the Humpty Dumpty Rhyme (adapted from http://www.rhymes.org)
Humpty Dumpty was in fact believed to be a large cannon!  It was used during the English Civil War (1642 – 1649) in the Siege of Colchester (13 Jun 1648 – 27 Aug 1648). Colchester was strongly fortified by the Royalists and was laid to siege by the Parliamentarians (Roundheads). In 1648 the town of Colchester was a walled town with a castle and several churches and was protected by the city wall. Standing immediately adjacent the city wall, was St Mary’s Church. A huge cannon, colloquially called Humpty Dumpty, was strategically placed on the wall next to St Mary’s Church. The historical events detailing the siege of Colchester are well documented – references to the cannon ( Humpty Dumpty) are as follows:

• June 15th 1648 – St Mary’s Church is fortified and a large cannon is placed on the roof which was fired by ‘One-Eyed Jack Thompson’
• July 14th / July 15th 1648 – The Royalist fort within the walls at St Mary’s church is blown to pieces and their main cannon battery ( Humpty Dumpty) is destroyed.
• August 28th 1648 – The Royalists lay down their arms, open the gates of Colchester and surrender to the Parliamentarians

A shot from a Parliamentary cannon succeeded in damaging the wall beneath Humpty Dumpty which caused the cannon to tumble to the ground. The Royalists, or Cavaliers, (known in the nursery rhyme as “all the King’s men”) attempted to raise Humpty Dumpty on to another part of the wall. However, because the cannon (Humpty Dumpty) was so heavy “All the King’s horses and all the King’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again!” This had a drastic consequence for the Royalists as the strategically important town of Colchester fell to the Parliamentarians after a siege lasting eleven weeks. Earliest traceable publication 1810.

Author: Joel Goode

www.bestlifeandcareer.com

Popularity: 15%

Jesus Paid It All, All To Him I Owe?

When I’ve sung this song, it often produced feelings of guilt and stirred feelings of “I gotta pay you back, Jesus.  Thanks for covering me. My turn.”

I’ve heard people say many times, “You’ve got to count the cost of following Jesus. It’s going to cost you everything.”

What does that mean?  Isn’t grace free?

We live in a culture where we demand equality.  Especially in financial matters.  We will not allow someone to give us anything without feeling obligated to send something in return.

When we get a great gift, we feel obligated to give a great gift back.

We get increasingly competitive at Christmas, and constantly try to out-do each other.

We never want to be in a position of “owing” anybody anything.  We try to make good with anyone that we’ve been given something from, because we’re totally uncomfortable until we even up.

We do this with the crucifixion.  We try and put ourselves into a state where we grieve over and over for Jesus and the beating he took for us.  We cannot stand that Jesus had to suffer and die FOR ALL THE SINS I’VE DONE.  We drive up the “debt” of guilt and spend all our time working to free ourselves from that debt.  All our service and activity is geared toward relieving that guilt.  That makes us feel better.

What did Jesus really demand when he talked about “the cost” of following him?  Could he mean something way different than money?

One of my friends sent me an email a while back, and he said he had a dream about me.  In his dream, he was watching a man shovel hay in from a huge pile into a bigger barn.  The man was doing the work himself.  On a bench away from the action, another man was sitting there watching the other man do all the work.  At closer inspection, my friend identified the man working as Jesus (don’t know how, but he knew), and the man sitting on the bench was me! Jesus turned to my friend and told him that the work he was doing was for Bob and he looked over at me on the bench.

When I heard of the dream, immediately I had 2 reactions – I am seriously allergic to hay, so the thought of taking a pitchfork and shoveling hay into a barn on a hot day closes my lungs up.  Yet even with my aversion to hay and what it would do to me physically, I felt really guilty and had a desire in my heart to pick up the fork and help him.

Then it hit me with 100-ton force – I am a bad receiver.  I cannot accept grace from anyone — even Jesus himself.

I HATE receiving gifts, and NEVER feel comfortable receiving anything for free.  I always position myself as the giver, and absolutely love giving the bigger and better gifts and the feeling that produced in me.  I never allow myself the grace to receive anything from anybody without giving back in return.

Strip that all away and it is nothing more than pride and false humility.  It’s not humility at all – it’s sin.

So when I had my breakdown, and I had to give up everything, I had to let Jesus start doing things for me. I had to let others start doing things for. It made me really uncomfortable.  I mean physically uncomfortable.

Think about that dream.  It was as if I was embarrassed and unable to allow Jesus to work for me.  I wanted to take his place even in a state of weakness.  How in the world do I resolve in my mind that me doing something like shoveling a mountain of hay is not something I can allow Jesus to do for me, even if it will kill me?  I remember Peter had the same issue.  “Jesus you ain’t washing my feet, dude.”

Jesus WANTS to do the work. The work would kill me, but for him it’s easy and enjoyable.  Why is it so hard to let someone else do the work for me, let alone my brother and savior Jesus Christ? This attitude makes it impossible for me to accept grace from him, or get it from others.  I just could not receive anything from anybody, especially God himself.

I have to think that in the scheme of things, this extended season I am going through is as much about me giving up the things which drove me – pride, approval of others, being the giver not the receiver, always being the “fall guy”, doing the work myself when others need to do it, taking financial and emotional responsibility for people that willingly give it up to me, always being the “responsible one”, never accepting a handout, never accepting a gift with grace, and countless other flaws.

Letting all of this go has been painful – for me and those around me.  People are confused, upset, and judgmental.  It’s been a horrible ride for people that counted on me in the past, and I can no longer provide the support or be counted on doing the work. There’s people I even owe things to that I cannot pay back right now.

I am in a season where I am limited in what I can do, and limited in where I feel free to roam.  My “ministry or service” is nothing anyone would sanction with a budget or fanfare.  Loving people one at a time and engaging them in conversation seems too simple and small, yet it’s what he’s showing me to do.

He’s got my spiritual life, my business, and my relationships in a purifying fire to burn away all the crap that I’ve allowed to pile on.  I’m betting there’s a lot of crap in that hay pile that Jesus needs to shovel away too.  It’s getting to the pure gold and burning away the garbage I’ve built up on it.

I am accepting the fact that Jesus paid it all. I am accepting the fact I don’t have to pay him back.  I am accepting the fact that in this season I will let a lot of people down that used to count on me, and people will continue to question, judge, and be upset with my lack of action.  There are people that have given me financial help, physical help, spiritual help, and advice for which I am unable to pay back now, or maybe ever.

My life has been simplified to a being totally engaged with Father, Spirit, and Son and figuring that out without distraction.  Being totally engaged with my wife and daughters  and family in a new way.  Getting real with a few old and new friends who are accepting this new me and totally supporting me, even while going through their own process. Being a person that lives in the moment, and has eyes to see what’s going on around me right now and totally live in that.

My question to you is this – are you trying to pay back a debt for something you cannot pay? Is Jesus someone you accept gifts from, or accept and try to pay back?  Are you able to accept gifts from others?  What have you experienced?

Popularity: 13%

Darin Hufford Video Series – Love Is Not Rude

Posted here for your listening pleasure, the incomparable Darin Hufford (wearing a shirt and tie, no less) preaching the Love message that led to the book, “The Misunderstood God”.

Popularity: 7%

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