Three Values that Improve Every Relationship

I’ve hired many people … and fired only a few. My best co-workers thrived because of three key character qualities. The disappointing ones struggled because they lacked the very same qualities. I’ve noticed an identical dynamic in friendships, marriages and...

Spanglish

Today’s movie clip is one of my favorites. It illustrates several key relational skills, including empathy, self-control, and the use of perceptive questions rather than forceful arguments. The clip is taken from the movie, Spanglish. Its central character, Flor, is a...

The Golden Result

We all know the Golden Rule: “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” But do you know the Golden Result? “Other people will usually treat you the way you treat them.” Not always, but usually. Because that’s how our brains are wired. Here is a short movie clip...
Has Your Strength Become a Weakness?

Has Your Strength Become a Weakness?

To find your greatest weakness, first identify your greatest strength and then look right behind it. That’s one of the tragic results of sin: it twists our strengths into weaknesses, just as (-1) x 100 becomes -100. Are you highly intelligent and well-studied in the...

Are You Relational or Informational?

  Many pastors are much better at imparting information than they are at building relationships. They are comfortable in their studies. They love their books. They pride themselves on their sound doctrine. They come alive in the pulpit as they proclaim “the...
No Excuses

No Excuses

I failed a friend. Badly. No, not just badly … very badly. It took me a while to face it. When I finally realized what I’d done, embarrassment kept me from going to talk with him right away. So now I was doubly wrong. Failed to support him, and failed to admit it...