Telling Ourselves the
Truth
Audio is available... portions of the material are from "The Lies We Believe" by Dr. Chris Therman
Story
road runner cartoon
“When the
one Great Scorer comes to write against your name, he marks not that you won or
lost, but how you played the game.” ~Grantland Rice
Truth #9: The virtue lies in the struggle, not the
prize.
1 Cor 9:24-27
24 Do you not know that in a race all
the runners run, but only one gets the prize?(AM) Run(AN) in such a way as to get the prize.
25 Everyone
who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown(AO) that will not last, but we do it
to get a crown that will last forever.(AP) 26 Therefore
I do not run like someone running aimlessly;(AQ) I do not fight like a boxer
beating the air.(AR) 27 No, I
strike a blow to my body(AS) and make it my slave so that after
I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.(AT)
Truth - We need the struggle
Consider the butterfly in the Cocoon
Ecclesiastes 1
2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.“Utterly
meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.”(C) 3 What do people gain from all their labors
at which they toil under the sun?(D)
8 All things are wearisome,
Everything is meaningless.”(C) 3 What do people gain from all their labors
at which they toil under the sun?(D)
8 All things are wearisome,
Truth – We Must Accept the Struggle
And with
that.. realize that our struggle may not necessarily end with the goal/ reward
that we have in mind.
“the
virtue is always in our efforts, not in what they yield”
When we
don’t get the speedy results we want our mindset is: “No virtue in the effort,
just the prize”. What is your mindset?
- Is winning the only important thing to you?
Vince
Lombardi: “Winning isn’t everything; it’s the ONLY thing.”
Teddy
Roosevelt: “The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose
face is marred by dust and sweat; who strives valiantly; who errs and may fail
again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming; but
who actually continues and strives to do the deeds, who knows great enthusiasm,
and great devotion”.
"If
you do your best at something, you end up a winner even if the scoreboard says
you've lost".
WRITE IT
DOWN & MEMORIZE IT “The virtue lies in the struggle, not the prize”.
“It’s how
you play the game that really matters. Give it your best shot!”
Truth #10
“Life is like playing a violin solo in public and
learning the instrument as one goes on.” ~Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Remember
one of life’s most embarrassing moments......
Truth #10 – Life is difficult
Dr. M.
Scott Peck in “The Road Less Traveled” says… this is one of the greatest truths
and one that few people come to grips with.
Belief:
Life shouldn’t be difficult
The point
is: whether in small ways, large ways, or in-between ways, life is difficult.
~Dr. Chris Thurman
Consider the Apostle Paul ...
Whatever anyone else dares to boast about—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast about.(AM) 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I.(AN) Are they Israelites? So am I.(AO) Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I.(AP) 23 Are they servants of Christ?(AQ) (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder,(AR) been in prison more frequently,(AS) been flogged more severely,(AT) and been exposed to death again and again.(AU) 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes(AV) minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods,(AW) once I was pelted with stones,(AX) three times I was shipwrecked,(AY) I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews,(AZ) in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city,(BA) in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.(BB) 27 I have labored and toiled(BC) and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food;(BD) I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.(BE) 29 Who is weak, and I do not feel weak?(BF) Who is led into sin,(BG) and I do not inwardly burn?
30 If I must boast, I will boast(BH) of the things that show my weakness.(
Telling Ourselves the Truth # 9 & 10
Group Work
1. What benefits have you found in the
struggle?
2. Discuss ways we can ‘fail forward’,
‘fall forward’?
3. How does not believing the truth
that Life is Difficult affect our lives?
4. Write down some of the problems you
have had in your life that have made it difficult (even those that seem small
or petty). They can be problems others caused you, you caused, or no one caused
or all three.
What do
you see from your list? Lots of major problems, mostly minor with a big one or
two or? No major problems yet? How has life been to you so far?
Discuss/ share one of them with the group.
Homework… for each problem you have written
on your list, ask yourself, Have I accepted that I had/ have this problem yet?
For any ‘no’, write in your journal why you think that is the case. Then with each, follow the outline/ script on
the handout you are being given.
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