The Law of Going the Extra Mile

An action that I had previously dismissed as a simple rule of thumb taught by my parents is a law of enormous importance. I had performed it without consciously doing it for many years but lately I had started to slack off ‘cause I thought I didn’t have the time and I should focus more on the things that directly supported me and my goals.

This is the Law of Going the Extra Mile.

The Boy Scouts say that they should always leave a place better than they found it. Jesus said that if we are asked to carry something one mile to take in another one without being asked. We tell each other that we should “do unto others what we would like others to do to us.” Wouldn’t you like that other person to do more than just make your fries, flip your burger, or sell you a roll of stamps? Wouldn’t you like that extra smile, that good attitude, that suggestion that another choice would be better for you and cost less at the same time?

This is the law of Going the Extra Mile.

This mind set will boost your potential and make you a valuable asset no matter where you are or what you do. It will promote you to the top of what ever group you are in and place you in places above where your formal education promised you would go. It will make you a desired individual, and make you stand out among the rest of your co-workers, family, students, friends.

This is the law of Going the Extra Mile

It requires you to go beyond what you have been asked to do and what you have been paid to do. It requires excellence or quality in your actions and a positive/happy mental attitude. I encourage you to practice this law on-purpose for the next 7-days on a constant basis, without telling any one of what you are doing. After this “test period” you will experience how powerful this law is and will not want to stop.

Your Eyes and Ears

Have you ever thought about your eyes and ears? I have thought about them when I see or hear of someone who doesn't have a working pair. But other than that, they don't even cross my mind.

I was going to a meeting the other day when I was thinking about the way I experience the world around me. And how that information might change the way I experience the rest of the day or the rest of my life. As long as I am awake I have my eyes open and am listening to the sounds around me. They don't have a filter but act as a funnel device. As long as the image is in front of me, it is recorded and as long as the sound is relatively close it is recorded as well. I can "pay attention" to a certain part of the image or sound to make a decision to continue, buy, reject, walk, duck, smile, turn away, run, get excited, be depressed, be full of hope, expect the divine, accept defeat, etc.

But the interesting thing is that when I come across an image or sound that I have seen or heard before I automatically remember how I reacted the first time I came across that situation. This makes my reaction time faster. But what I realized was that sometimes my initial reaction wasn't the correct one. This makes it difficult to "reprogram" my reactions.

This makes it very important to "pay attention" or realize what we are looking at and listening too. Since there is no built in filter on either of the input devices it is up to the user to "filter" by choosing wisely.

I remember a song my mother would sing to me that went "Cuidado los ojitos al mirar..." Translated (be careful what your eyes look at). It is important that we take care of what we put in our heart, mind, soul.

Whatever we look at stays with us for a loooooooong time. If I were to ask you, "What have you seen that you shouldn't have?" you will automatically remember the image. Impressive, right? It would be great if it worked that way for the Biology, Chemistry, Algebra and geometry formulae, but I haven't got it to work that way. In any case we should take to experiment to heart and realize how important we should apply our personal "filter" and guide our eyes and ears to see and listen to that which is uplifting kind, patient, loving, nobel, and uplifting.

The Value

I didn't realize how little the value of business was valued until just recently when I was overcharged by several dollars.

I was using the taxi service offered by my office and after a two hour shuttle I was returned to my house. The driver mumbled the fare over his shoulder and held out his hand for the money. But the amount he was charging me was a few dollars over the negotiated rate my office had agreed upon with the taxi company.

Thinking that I must have misunderstood the driver I asked that he repeat his fare. He repeated his inflated fare even after I asked him to double check. It was late, there was no supervisor in their main dispatch office and I didn't want to argue so I paid him what he asked for.

I, later, got in touch with the corporate sales manager and got the situation cleared up and a reimbursement of my money. But what struck me was the short-sightedness of the taxi driver. He put his livelihood, his reputation and that of the taxi company future earnings and business on the line in order to make a few extra dollars.

It pointed out a flaw in his reasoning and a principle should follow. Always round off the deal in the client's favor.

We will always be confronted with situations in which, while no one is watching, we could take advantage of the client. That may mean making more money on that deal but it will, without a doubt, mean a loss of a business relationship. And after it is all said and done its the personal relationships we make along the way that validate our words and produce dividends beyond what we can see, taste or feel.

G

-- Post From My iPhone

Canceling out God's Word

I always believed that there was nothing that could stand up against God's Word. He Is God, so it would stand to reason that there shouldn't be anything that could stand against His Word, right? He created the heavens and the earth. He placed the stars in the sky with the words of His mouth. He measures the oceans in the palm of His hand. So, it's logical to believe that His words will carry with them the power to fullfill them and nothing can stop it.

Well, to my surprise, that has an exception clause.

Yes. God's words have the power to fulfill their purpose but God's plans can be thwarted.

Think about this... Isn't it God's will that all men might be saved? So, are they all saved? Is it God's fault? Wouldn't you agre that this is an interesting situation in which God's will is not fulfilled because of man.

In a like manner God's words are held back or are of no effect (ie can not take effect or cause an effect) because of man's traditions.

I won't write about man's traditions this time but we should all take a moment and check ourselves, asking "are my ideas, experiences, or philosophies nullifying God's word?" have we ever said "I know that is what the Bible says BUT...." if so we might be nullifying God's word in our life.



-- Post From My iPhone

As for me and my family

When I read what Joshua said I didn't have a family of my own. I was encouraged by his conviction and leadership. I imagined Mel Gibson in Braveheart as he ran before his men on his steed encouraging his men before the battle.

I whole heartedly agreed, and vowed to do the same when my time came to be a head-of-household. Then I got married and I realized that William Wallace wasn't married when he so valiently stood before his men and made his pledge.

Joshua's pledge took on a different meaning. It wasn't just a stand but a commitment to God and to his family. It was a declaration of how he would live his life in such a way that every action and word would serve as a guide to his children and children's children on serving God.

It may sound simple but that statement means a denial of self interests and becoming sold out to a higher cause. In fact it means that those who make that statement must live the life they want their family to live.

I, for one, believe that it's worth it. And so I repeat those words I shouted out in Vision Juvenil 86 and Joshua declared before the people of Israel "...as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."


-- Post From My iPhone

What are you doing!?

Our every action is important. Our every word propels us toward a certain future. And if we take our 24 hours lightly we will find ourselves in a difficult and inhospitable place.

Look at the ships on the sea. If they don't have a ploted course they will eventually land on the rocks.

How is your day plotted? Are you taking advantage of your down time? Are you investing in yourself and on your future?

I challenge you to take an inventory of your day and record the time you spend. I submit that, if you are spending more than 120 minutes a day in non-productive activities, your floating dangerously near the rocks.

Take advantage of every moment of every day. Don't let your life slip by.

Gabriel G


-- Post From My iPhone

Ride to school

The taxi jerked to the left in order to avoid a horse-drawn cart making it's way down the Javier Prado (a semi-highway in Lima) and I looked down at my 4-year old laughing and singing beside me.

She knows no other life except the one overseas. To her it's normal to see horses on the highway, and over stuffed buses. To her it's a wonderful experience to eat an empanada on the street corner and haggle with the street vendor for a better price on her M&M's.

She's growing up and experiencing the world at lighting speed. I feel many times like the crowd in the stands watching the runner rush by on her way towards the finish line.

She used to fit in one arm. Now she looks up at me from her side of the taxi pointing at the fire eater asking for money at the light-stop.

We're going to her school and some would think it to be a waste of time, others would fill the 10-15 minutes with a phone call or an email to their boss. To me it's 15 minutes that I will cherish for a lifetime.

My beautiful baby girl







-- Post From My iPhone