Life Principles

expiated · Jul 9, 2021

LAW 41
AVOID STEPPING INTO A GREAT MAN'S SHOES

What happens first always appears better and more original than what comes after. If you succeed a great man or have a famous parent, you will have to accomplish double their achievements to outshine them. Do not get lost in their shadow, or stuck in a past not of your own making: establish your own name and identity by changing course. Slay the overbearing father, disparage his legacy, and gain power by shining in your own way.

2 Corinthians 10:12-18

We don't dare put ourselves in the same class with those who think they are so important. We don't compare ourselves to them. They use themselves to measure themselves, and they judge themselves by what they themselves are. This shows that they know nothing. But we will not boast about anything outside the work that was given us to do. We will limit our boasting to the work God gave us… We limit our boasting to the work that is ours. We don't boast about the work other people have done…

We hope that you will help our work to grow much larger. We don't want to boast about work that has already been done in someone else's area. "Whoever boasts should boast only about the Lord."

What people say about themselves means nothing. What counts is whether the Lord says they have done well.

expiated · Jul 11, 2021

LAW 42
STRIKE THE SHEPHERD AND THE SHEEP WILL SCATTER

Trouble can often be traced to a single strong individual - the stirrer, the arrogant underling, the poisoner of good will. If you allow such people room to operate, others will succumb to their influence. Do not wait for the troubles they cause to multiply, do not try to negotiate with them - they are irredeemable. Neutralize their influence by isolating or banishing them. Strike at the source of the trouble and the sheep will scatter.

2 Corinthians 6:14-16
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God.

Galations 5:11
But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.

Psalm 26:4-5
I do not associate with troublemakers,

nor do I consort with hypocrites.

I reject the assembly of evildoers,

and I refuse to join with the wicked.

Psalm 1:1
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands along side of sinners,

nor sits in a seat among scoffers.

expiated · Jul 12, 2021

LAW 43
WORK ON THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF OTHERS

Coercion creates a reaction that will eventually work against you. You must seduce others into wanting to move in your direction. A person you have seduced becomes your loyal pawn. And the way to seduce others is to operate on their individual psychologies and weaknesses. Soften up the resistant by working on their emotions, playing on what they hold dear and what they fear. Ignore the hearts and minds of others and they will grow to hate you.

Oh man…this is kind of disgusting! It seems to me that what anyone who would take this approach to leadership needs to do before they do anything else is focus on changing their own heart and mind.

In the 12th chapter of Mark, the Messiah said that the second greatest command of all is to love your neighbor as yourself—not to pretend to do so.

When Jesus spoke at the well with the Samaritan woman from Sychar, I doubt seduction for the purpose of creating a loyal pawn was his motivation. There is no need to seduce people when your concern for them is genuine! Likewise when He told his disciples not to hinder the little children from coming to him, or when he ate with tax collectors and sinners, etc., surely He wasn't simply playing on people's emotions.

Along these same lines, four years ago I wrote a two-year curriculum on leadership for an elementary school in Singapore. Among those lessons were at least four that were directly or indirectly related to affecting the hearts and minds of followers, as summarized below:

LESSON 10

If leaders are able to "find common ground" with their followers, they will be better able to identify with them and relate to them in ways that increase their influence over them. Finding common ground means building relationships by discovering the thoughts, values, interests, and beliefs shared with followers. Three ways to find common ground are:

1. Let others into your life. Do not keep people at a distance.
2. Ask people what they dream, sing, and cry about.
3. Use active listening techniques.

LESSON 17

The most powerful way to influence other people is to affect their emotions—their feelings. You have to give them an emotional reason to change or to act. So to influence others, you must first influence yourself emotionally, because you cannot give others what you yourself do not have.

It is often said that people won't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Consequently, influencing other people starts by showing that you care about them. It starts by meeting their (emotional) needs. Among these needs are:

1. Certainty
2. Variety
3. Significance
4. Connection
5. Growth
6. Contribution

The degree to which a leader is able to influence others comes down to his or her ability to connect with others at a deep, emotional level.

LESSON 21

To think that leaders can best influence others by preaching or yelling at them is a mistake. Leaders can have a deeper, more long-lasting impact on their followers by the examples they set and the behavior they model in their day-to-day lives, SOME of which include:

Treating others courteously
Listening carefully and focusing on what others are saying when talking to them
Trying to completely understand other people’s points of view as opposed to immediately challenging them
Being authentic and honest
Following through on commitments and keeping promises
Sharing the credit for successes or giving it to others
Using language that shapes a positive reality

LESSON 26

It is human nature for people to be more loyal and devoted to leaders who meet their needs than they are to leaders who do not. It is therefore extremely important for leaders to understand their followers as much as possible so that they are better able to identify and meet such needs as:

Trust
Compassion
Connection
Hope
Identity
Meaning
Significance
Growth and development
Contribution
Achievement
Certainty
Stability
Variety
Inspiration

How Funny! I wrote all this on Saturday and was going to post it on Sunday. But then I got too busy doing other stuff and decided to just wait until today to post it. But, when I navigated to YouTube this morning, the following video was showing among the selections, which fit right in (more-or-less) with what I wrote two days ago...

expiated · Jul 13, 2021

LAW 44
DISARM AND INFURIATE WITH THE MIRROR EFFECT

The mirror reflects reality, but it is also the perfect tool for deception: when you mirror your enemies, doing exactly as they do, they cannot figure out your strategy. The Mirror Effect mocks and humiliates them, making them overreact. By holding up a mirror to their psyches, you seduce them with the illusion that you share their values; by holding up a mirror to their actions, you teach them a lesson. Few can resist the power of the Mirror Effect.

This strikes me as kind of silly. But, since I returned the book to the library a long time ago, I'm unable to read up on it to find out exactly what it's talking about. About the most I can say is that this book is great for gaining insight into how devious underhanded people think and operate.

expiated · Jul 14, 2021

expiated said:
About the most I can say is that this book is great for gaining insight into how devious underhanded people think and operate.

Those who seek power, and those who obtain it, don't tend to be the best human beings among us.
(I've heard Robert Barnes repeat this quote, but I don't know who originally said it.)

expiated · Jul 15, 2021

LAW 45
PREACH THE NEED FOR CHANGE, BUT NEVER REFORM TOO MUCH AT ONCE

Everyone understands the need for change in the abstract, but on the day-to-day level people are creatures of habit. Too much innovation is traumatic, and will lead to revolt. If you are new to a position of power, or an outsider trying to build a power base, make a show of respecting the old way of doing things. If change is necessary, make it feel like a gentle improvement on the past.

3 Corinthians 3:18

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

expiated · Jul 16, 2021

LAW 46
NEVER APPEAR TOO PERFECT

Appearing better than others is always dangerous, but most dangerous of all is to appear to have no faults or weaknesses. Envy creates silent enemies. It is smart to occasionally display defects, and admit to harmless vices, in order to deflect envy and appear more human and approachable. Only gods and the dead can seem perfect with impunity.

Romans 7:15-23

I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.

1 John 1:8-10

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

expiated · Jul 17, 2021

LAW 47
DO NOT GO PAST THE MARK YOU AIMED FOR; IN VICTORY, LEARN WHEN TO STOP

The moment of victory is often the moment of greatest peril. In the heat of victory, arrogance and overconfidence can push you past the goal you had aimed for, and by going too far, you make more enemies than you defeat. Do not allow success to go to your head. There is no substitute for strategy and careful planning. Set a goal, and when you reach it, stop.

1 John 2:16
For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

Proverbs 22:1
A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.

Proverbs 1:31
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

Luke 12:15a
Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed..."

Proverbs 28:25
The greedy stir up conflict, but those who trust in the LORD will prosper.

Proverbs 15:27a
The greedy bring ruin to their households...

expiated · Jul 18, 2021

LAW 48
ASSUME FORMLESSNESS

By taking a shape, by having a visible plan, you open yourself to attack. Instead of taking a form for your enemy to grasp, keep yourself adaptable and on the move. Accept the fact that nothing is certain and no law is fixed. The best way to protect yourself is to be as fluid and formless as water; never bet on stability or lasting order. Everything changes.

Mark 1:28-29
And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

Luke 15:5
And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today."

Luke 10:38
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house.

Luke 9:57-58
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."

John 4:1-4
Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. And he had to pass through Samaria.

John 7:1
After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him.

John 11:54
Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and there he stayed with the disciples.

Acts 9:23-25
When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket.

2 Corinthians 11:32-33
At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

1 Corinthians 9:19-22
For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.