Spiritual Hippo

“Whoever wishes to rank first must remain the last one and the servant of all”. 

~ Mark 9:35

Ambition, pride and hubris…among all the other ways we can channel our behavior; is human.  There’s so much talk about servant leadership today and still, rarely is it exhibited, even in the occasional way.  I had an interesting exchange recently in a faith based setting that caused discomfort when I mentioned this was not only needed, and also demanded of us to live a truly righteous, fulfilled life.  So even the most aware of these teachings struggle with this.  Have you noticed that the greatest of us tend to also be some of the most humble, and giving?  Servant leadership: It takes practice.

Show yourself in all respects a model of good deeds, and in your teaching show integrity, gravity, ~ Titus 2:7

While on a recent pilgrimage, attending daily mass, my homilist conveyed his concern for the lack of guidance from leading generations to emerging ones.

“For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, virtue with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with devotion, devotion with mutual affection, mutual affection with love.”

~ 2 Peter 1:5-7

I came across this passage very recently and it struck me in this way: it’s not about falling in love with the world’s things and what it is offering you.

“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”  ~ C.S. Lewis

The past is gone.  It’s a history that is not yours.

Proverbs 18:24

“There are friends who pretend to be friends, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother”

Do you have friends in your workplace? I’m not talking about lunch buddies and cube farm chat pals. Do you have a loyal friend where you work or within the market or sector that you maintain your professional brand?

“Courage is not the absence of fear; it is the refusal to be mastered by it.”

~Mark Hart

One of the four cardinal virtues. When was the last time you displayed courage to yourself or others when challenged with a new idea or direction?