What does it take to succeed?

Lucille Ball
The Beatles
Ulysses S. Grant
Michael Jordon
Thomas Edison
Walt Disney
Abraham Lincoln

What do these people have in common?

Would you believe they were all failures? Each was told they didn’t have what it takes to achieve anything worthwhile. But, and this is important, they persevered and succeeded anyway.






I would disagree with the conclusion at the end of the YouTube in this way. I would say life = perseverance. People succeed because they persevered through adversity.

We could add Bible heroes to the list above. Noah, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, the prophets; Jesus, Peter, and Paul.

They weren’t heroes because they were exceptionally intelligent or bright or great leaders. They succeeded, every one, because they leaned on God as Mind, Truth, and Life, and persevered through adversity to success.

So if life looks bleak to you right now, don't give up. There is a way to go forward. There is a God who loves and cares about you and for you. It's OK to ask that God to show you what to do to be a blessing. I know "blessing" is a bit of an old-fashioned word, but nothing else says it quite so well.

The reason it's OK to ask God to show you how to be a blessing is because it's a life law that in blessing we are blessed. In being a blessing, we find a way to move forward.

Universal beauty

Sunset - heading south from Amman

Beauty is universal.

We saw it in the stars over Wadi Rum in Jordan.

About 3:30 am my tent-mate and I, returning from the ladies’ room, paused to look up, and stood there in awe for perhaps 20 minutes. (And yes! Even in the Bedouin's desert there are now tourist comfort facilities.)

Planting our feet in the sand, we gazed up to find the good old Big Dipper, Orion’s belt we think, although it seemed early in the season for the great hunter; and Cassiopia’s Chair. These Mid-East constellations are the same ones I grew up with in Palos Heights, Illinois. Isn't that something to think about!

Reluctantly we gave up counting the infrequent shooting stars as the desert chill drove us into our little tent.

There were dramatic daytime thrills of beauty as well.

Here is another:

Light challenging darkness

And my prayer for the people of Jordan -- that the silver lining be a promise of education, peace, and prosperity for all the country. And why not now?

Generosity in Jordan

Amman,

bustling Jordanian capitol

At the border crossing between Israel and Jordan, our Israeli guide took us skillfully through his side of the passport crossing; on the other side, our Jordanian guide shepherded us through his country’s passport stamping.

The first evening we were very privileged guests of an American Foreign Service worker at the US Embassy in Amman. Her Muslim friend catered a meal of attractively prepared Jordanian foods for our busload of 28 American and Canadian tourists. Our hostess loves Jordan and its people.

Our hostess, caterers,
and a feast of local food

On the way to the capital, our guide had assured us that all Jordanian children go to school. Yet that day we saw school-age children herding goats; and the next day school-age children were hawking bracelets and necklaces in Petra. “Oh pretty lady, you have beautiful eyes! Nice bracelet for you, one dollah! One dollah, pretty lady!”

My friend, Emilie, didn’t buy any jewelry, but she took a chocolate bar from her bag, and offered it to the enterprising little girl. The child’s whole body danced, from her eyes to her feet, as she accepted the gift. The chocolate might not educate her, but it clearly brightened her morning.

Queen Noor, American-born wife of the former King Hussein, has been a strong advocate for the empowerment of women in Jordan from establishing health care services as well as institutions providing microloans and technical assistance for start-up businesses.

This desert country with a bustling capitol and Bedouin herders is now more than a place on the map on the other side of the world to me. It is real people I met and talked to; it's where I rode a camel. It's what you see when you stand on the West Bank and look across the Dead Sea -- the mountains on the other side are Jordan.

I gain a sense of how important peace is to this region of Jewish-Muslim-Christian neighbors. And how important prosperity is to peace. And how important water is to prosperity.

I will pray more intelligently about peace.

Knowing what is ours to do

View of the Promised Land

from Mount Nebo, Jordan

Theories differ as to why Moses didn’t cross over into the Promised Land with his people. He had been guiding thousands, maybe tens of thousands, of grumblers and complainers for 40 years.

They complained about lack of water, and God gave them water. They complained about not having food, and God gave them food. They complained about Moses' leadership, and God strengthened Moses’ ability to lead. For forty years.

Some theorize Moses was being punished for his temper – like when he threw down the tablets with the Commandments on them. He was angry at how quickly the people had reverted to the pagan practices of their slavery days.

Others feel Moses had completed his job. There was simply no need for him to travel any further. His contract with this group was over.

I think it was God putting a reassuring arm around Moses' shouder and saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Here, take a look at where your people are going. And you, Moses, got them here. You guided and nurtured and encouraged them till they grew in readiness – prepared mentally, spiritually, and physically – to go forward under Joshua’s leadership. You have done a great job. I know it wasn’t easy most of the time. But here are the results.”

Traveling with the Carroll - Fischer Holy Land trip, we stopped at Mt. Nebo in Jordan, from which Moses is believed to have viewed the Promised Land. It presents quite a view in all directions.

I had always imagined their trek was mostly flat – through land like the desert in Arizona. Not so. Those escapees had a lot of ups and downs, mountains and sand dunes, to traverse during those four decades. Their route wasn’t at all simple or direct.

So perhaps one lesson for us is to discern, like Moses, what God has given us to do, and to do it to the best of our ability; and to discern what God has not given us to do, and to let whatever-that-may-be go with grace and peace.