Over
100 different Nehemiah Notes featured on
this site (articles by
Blaine Smith)! |
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Nehemiah
Notes, September 1, 2010 |
Regretting the Choice
That Seemed So Right
When Is a Decision Truly
a Bad One?
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When
Chandra was 39, she left a lucrative job in banking to pursue
a counseling career. Long wanting to make this change, she
chose to move forward when a psychologist friend promised her
a position with his counseling firm once she
completed her masters.
Chandra’s
friend did indeed hire her when she graduated. But a short time
later, he left the practice, and the
center foundered. Chandra was unable to find work with another
agency.
When Chandra
shared her experience with me, she said she was
certain she had missed
God’s will, and spoke repeatedly of having made a “bad
decision” . . .
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Sometimes a
decision that we think was the mistake of our life was more
enlightened than we realize. Blaine explains in this article,
and offers counsel for breaking the spell of regret over
past decisions.
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Nehemiah
Notes, August 15, 2010 |
Welcome
Guidance From
Unwelcome Circumstances
Reaping the Benefits of
Inspirational Dissatisfaction
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In the 1970s I served on the staff
of a Presbyterian church in St. Louis for several years. The
experience was a milestone for me. The senior pastor and the
congregation were highly supportive, and I grew in many
important ways.
Yet I was often frustrated by
the nature of pastoral work itself. Pastors are expected to be
generalists--wearing many hats. I found myself wanting to
concentrate more on certain areas of ministry that reflected my
gifts, and was often discouraged at how little time I had for
these activities . . .
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Our experiences of frustration can provide invaluable
insight into God's will for our life. Blaine
examines this positive role of discontentment in this article.
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Nehemiah
Notes, August 1, 2010 |
When
Is a Door Truly Closed?
Sometimes We're Too Quick
To Think God Is Saying No
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I’ll
never forget a story that made the national news a few years
ago. CNN announced, as a headline item, that a man had passed
his bar exam. Of course, passing the bar doesn’t normally
attract the attention of the national media. Yet this man’s case
was unusual, for he had failed the test forty-seven previous
times. Now, at age sixty, this tenacious soul had finally passed
on his forty-eighth try . . .
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When
does perseverance indicate faith,
and when stubbornness? Blaine explores this often
confusing question in this article.
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