A Large Place

Yesterday's Scripture Sweet was Psalm 118:5.  "I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place."  I've always found the Lord's response to the Psalmist's plea quite interesting.  This morning as we discussed this scripture as a family several thoughts rang through my mind.  This ancient recording does not read that the Lord answered him and "rescued him from his afflictions," "lightened his load," or "saved him from distress."  Instead, it simply states that he was answered by being set in a large place.  I am struck by the reality that in the midst of personal adversity, He gives us room to grow.  What a blessing this is!! Yes, he commands perfection (Matthew 5:48), and He offers us His grace along our journey.

I am blessed with friends and family that have also "set me in a large place."  I feel their grace also as they have repeatedly given me room to grow on my journey through this mortal life.  Michelangelo once shared, "Every block of stone has a statue inside it, and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it."  As the stone is carved away, the David beneath is revealed.  In that sense, there's nothing to attaining perfection either.  With the help of the Almighty, we can remove all the obstacles in our life that would stand in the way of perfection. In a grander sense, our inner Davids slay our personal Goliaths on a daily basis.

How is this accomplished?  In many ways, the task seems insurmountable.  In enters LIFE and the Mental Fitness Challenge.  Yes, our greatest tool for perfection is God's word.  However, we have been given companion tools that are specifically designed to help us along our journey.  The Mental Fitness Challenge (MFC) designed by Chris Brady and Orrin Woodward is a revolutionary way to start our journey to perfection!  Changes come best if we take one item at a time.  The MFC starts out by offering us a baseline view of ourself through the Self-Assessment and 360 degree feedback.  By examining our Wheel of LIFE we can target key areas of our life that are those pieces of stone ready for crumbling.  When we perform the daily steps of the MFC...reading 15 minutes, listening to two audios, watching the video, reviewing our goal, and taking specific action toward that goal...we are chiseling away at the sculpture waiting to be revealed.  The Challenge Group environment helps us to see how the mallet is working in the lives of other LIFE members and customers, and our chisels are sharpened through the LIFE subscriptions and LIFE's coaching and mentoring process.

What better way to achieve perfection than by focusing on one area at a time! Striving for perfection in business? home? family?  Begin with one area in your life and become perfect in it!  Add trust in your relationships by becoming perfect at always being on time.  Show your wife you love her by becoming perfect at speaking her love language.  Increase your health and wellness by becoming perfect at quitting smoking.  Grow your business by becoming perfect at edifying and validating those you work with.  Share optimism by becoming perfect at avoiding negative self talk.

We have been set in a large place.  As pebbles in God's canyon, He awaits the discovery of our boulder within.