10 ways to be a superhero without any supernatural abilities

1. Think not only of your own interests, but also the interests of others.
2. Find satisfaction in service.
3. Determine life's true priorities and fanatically pursue those things.
4. Be a mentor and let someone mentor you.
5. Do what you know is right even when you don't feel like it.
6. Ask people about their lives and be prepared to listen.
7. Clean up the mess. Do what others think is beneath them.
8. Apologize when you make a mistake.
9. Be a principle-based person who does what is right, not just what is expedient or lucrative.
10. Honor those who are older.

How to Summit Life’s Everyday Mountains

“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” ~Confucius

How can a mountain better prepare us for life? At over 14,000 feet, there’s more to learn than I would have thought.

Last week I sat on top of Mt. Shasta, a 14,179 foot mountain in Northern California. It was my first real summit and I was proud. Getting there took me through two days of snow, ice and below-freezing camping conditions, using crampons, an ice axe, and more layers than I thought I owned.

As I climbed, and especially on my way down, I began to realize the lessons required to reach the top and make it back down safely. As it turns out, the most important rules are just as relevant in the snow as they are in conquering our everyday challenges.

When was the last time you reached a mountain summit, whether outdoors or in life?

We face our own mountains everyday. Some small. Some big. There’s always a summit we want to reach. Maybe it’s running those few miles before work, making that intimidating sales call, or running your business. Goals, no matter the size, require a strategy for success.

A cold tall mountain reinforced an approach that can convert life’s everyday challenges into gratifying accomplishments.

A Guide to Reaching Life’s Summits

Pack light. I wish I took this more seriously. Every unnecessary piece of gear complicates things and detracts from the experience. Aside from the bare necessities, things do not make life better. They often cause more stress and keep you from what’s most important. The lighter your pack the better. Life is too short to be burdened with excessive possessions, emotional baggage or regrets. Positive thoughts, relationships and experiences weigh nothing at all. Pile them on and leave the rest behind. They’ll lift you to the top.

Take one step at a time. Any major accomplishment can be broken down into a series of single steps. My pattern for the mountain was 15 steps up, 15 breaths of rest. I did that for 7 hours. If I would have only focused on the very top, frustration would have overcome me. If your summit is too intimidating, break it into smaller steps. Focus on those one by one. Eventually one step will be the one that puts you on top.

Don’t go at it alone. When climbing, a partner is a must. For safety, support, camaraderie, motivation and simply to share the journey. You’d be silly (and putting yourself in great danger) to go up alone. Life is meant to be experienced with others. It makes the valleys shallower and the peaks higher. Relationships magnify experiences and help you do things that prove impossible alone. Don’t leave home without your support team.

Listen to the experts. Halfway up, a passing guide told us if we couldn’t get to the top by 12:30 at the latest, then to turn back. Chances of late day thunderstorms were too great. As amateurs we would have had no idea. While we all ought to experience our own paths, it’s foolish not to learn from and observe the guidance of experts. Choose your life models wisely and keep them close by on your journey.

Slow down. As Yvon Chouinard of Patagonia says, “It’s about how you got there. Not what you’ve accomplished.” Despite what colleagues and competitors may tell you, there is no rush. Rushing on the mountain risks slipping, not acclimating to thinning air, exhaustion and possibly death. In life the biggest risk is that you miss the wonders of everyday experiences in your pursuit to the top. The top is secondary to the process.

Look back and take in the view. There’s never any guarantee that you’ll get to the top, but you always have the ability to stop, take in a deep breath, smile and enjoy the view-whether it’s miles of wilderness or two feet of fog. It’s all wonderful. Every moment of life is a new view to appreciate.

Save some energy for the trip down. We thought the summit was “just over that peak” half a dozen times before it actually was. Conserve energy. Things will inevitably take longer than expected. Don’t be discouraged. Budget your capital, energy and drive appropriately. Rarely is anything in life an all out sprint. Treat it like a marathon. You may need your reserves when you least expect it.

Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory. These are Ed Viesturs’ famous words; the first U.S. man to summit all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters with no bottled oxygen. The summit will be there tomorrow and likely so will yours. If more planning, a stronger team or more support is required, then save the summit for a time when the payout is safer and more probable. If you are outmatched, know when to turn back, only to return stronger and more savvy tomorrow. Stay objective and don’t let short-term excitement get in the way of long-term fulfillment.

Failure is a part of the process. If we would have started our climb the week before, conditions would have been too grave to make it. Be ok with not reaching the summit every time. Falling short is inevitable. You will never learn more than from your failures…at anything. Embrace them.

A daunting summit is nothing more than a challenge. A challenge is simply an opportunity in disguise. You won’t summit every one you come across, but you will become a better person with each attempt.

There will always be another mountain. You are not meant to conquer them all. Past summits are simply preparing you for the next. With the right strategy, you’ll put the top within reach. When your summit arrives, you will be ready.

“It is not the mountains we conquer but ourselves.” ~Sir Edmund Hillary

7 Characteristics of Successful Parents

1) Successful parents don't expect perfection either from themselves or their children.

Parenting is an art, not a science.? Successful parents understand that, like themselves, their children aren't perfect either.? This frees them to love their children unreservedly.

2) Successful parents don't fear occasional failures.

They understand that mistakes are a normal, even healthy, part of parenting.? They make the best decisions they can and when they're wrong, they learn from their mistakes and try to do better the next time.

3) Successful parents don't expect to have smooth sailing.

Children have their own opinions, personalities and preferences. Inevitably, they cause us to say "Where did THAT come from" or "What WERE you thinking" Our responsibility to provide them with limits and guidance will sometimes clash with their growing desire for independence. Successful parents aren't surprised by them; they expect them. But successful parents understand that their responsibility to their children is not to always please them or make them happy - it's to make the hard decisions that will be for their best in the long run.

4) Successful parents don't go it alone.

Successful parenting means trusting yourself, but not being a Lone Ranger. No one has the experience or answers to every parenting challenge. But each of us has some of the answers and, together, we've got them all. So successful parents aren't reluctant to seek out the wisdom of others. They know that, at the end of the day, the decision is theirs, but before they get there, there is plenty of wisdom along the way waiting to help them.

5) Successful parents try harder.

They face the same pressures we all do - demanding jobs, spouses and children who need them. But they live by this rule: "You get back what you put in." They have a clear sense of priority for their family and are willing to put in the time to achieve it. They give more than the "average parent" so their children will be more than just "average children." These parents work at nurturing and developing themselves to be the best parents they can be.

6) Successful parents enjoy being parents.

They enjoy parenting not because it's easy or instantly rewarding, but because of the sheer joy and privilege of cooperating with God in shaping another unique and precious life. Any parent of grown children will tell you "they grow up so quickly." Successful parents remind themselves of that and try to savor every day with their children. They immerse themselves in their children as much as possible and just enjoy them - even the days of dirty diapers, illness and disappointments. They don't just LOVE their children, they LIKE them and look forward to spending time with them.

7) Successful parents strive to be the person they want their children to become.

There are no formulas for parents. You can't just "program" children like a computer and be guaranteed of the result. But children are great observers and imitators. They watch, listen and absorb values and habits from the people who have the greatest influence on them - their parents. So successful parents resolve that they will set the best example they can for their children.

Lost a Leg, Gained a Wife

John DeButts was the CEO of AT&T just prior to its breakup in the 1980s. At the zenith of his power, he had more than 1,000,000 employees around the world. DeButts retired very wealthy. Not long after that, he needed to have a leg amputated.
He later said, "In spite of all that money, power, prestige and influence, do you know that as I lay there in my hospital bed, not one person came to see me, called me on the phone, or dropped me a card?  But there at my bedside, tending to my needs day-by-day, was the woman I had ignored for 30 years."
If you haven't let your wife know lately how much you love and appreciate her, send her an e-mail or text right now.  Better yet, stop by a flower shop on the way home tonight.

Shelter from the Storms

Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us." Psalm 62:8 (NAS)

The thunder and lightning of a powerful storm rattled our house last night.  As rain slashed against the windows and lightning lit up the dark sky, I woke up just long enough to make room for my youngest son and yellow lab to join me and my husband in bed.  I remember thinking with surprise that I didn't even know it was going to storm. 

What a picture of my life lately.  It's been a year of unexpected rain.  Some just drizzles, but others, like the storm hitting me most recently, have rattled windows with wave after wave of thunder and bursts of lightning.

What about you?  Is there stormy weather in your life right now?  Where are you finding shelter from the storms? 

My friends and family have been a shelter for me this year, just like my family was last night as we all huddled together in bed.  They've encouraged and supported me.  And most importantly, they've pointed me to the strongest shelter from the storms, my Heavenly Father. 

As I've turned to Scripture this week, I'm amazed at the number of times it reminds us God is our shelter.  God knows that we will encounter hard times and His Word reminds us that the strongest and safest shelter is God Himself. 

As always we have a choice: get drenched in the rain or seek shelter.  You see, the storms of life can cause us to run toward God, but just as easily they can cause us to turn away.  A whole range of emotions can leave us standing in the rain to get drenched: bitterness, anger, confusion, helplessness, or hopelessness.  If you can relate to these emotions, you might feel badly for having these emotions, but don't let these feelings keep you from God. 

Read the Psalms and you'll see that God can handle every emotion. Negative emotions are not a reason to turn away from God.  They're the very reason to turn to Him, desperately wanting the kind of faith and strength only God can provide.  

Keep turning to God, continue to tell Him in prayer how you feel, and leave your emotions with Him.  As you do, you'll start to feel His nearness, His hope, His promise, and His comfort.  If you find yourself returning to feelings of fear or hopelessness, just go back to God.  Be honest in your prayers.  Acknowledge that you're having a hard time, but that you want to trust Him in your circumstances. Know that He loves you and will consistently and constantly be your shelter from the storms.

Do You Think You Know Everything?

This is a quiz for people who know everything! These are not trick questions. They are straight questions with straight answers.
1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.
2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?
3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?
4. What fruit has its seeds on the outside?
5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is genuine, it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?
6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters "dw" and they are all common words. Name two of them.
7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?
8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.
9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter "S."

Answers To Quiz:
1. The one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends. Boxing
2. North American landmark constantly moving backward. Niagara Falls (The rim is worn down about two and a half feet each year because of the millions of gallons of water that rush over it every minute..)
3. Only two vegetables that can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. Asparagus and rhubarb.
4. The fruit with its seeds on the outside. Strawberry.
5. How did the pear get inside the brandy bottle? It grew inside the bottle. The bottles are placed over pear buds when they are small, and are wired in place on the tree. The bottle is left in place for the entire growing season. When the pears are ripe, they are snipped off at the stems.
6. Three English words beginning with dw. Dwarf, dwell and dwindle. (Isn't "Dweeb" a word?)
7. Fourteen punctuation marks in English grammar. Period, comma, colon, semicolon, dash, hyphen, apostrophe, question mark, exclamation point, quotation mark, brackets, parenthesis, braces, and ellipses.
8.. The only vegetable or fruit never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form but fresh.Lettuce.
9. Six or more things you can wear on your feet beginning with "S".
Shoes, socks, sandals, sneakers, slippers, skis, skates, snowshoes, stockings, stilts.

Why Does God Love Me?

Why does God love you and me so much?  Why did He send His Son to die such a horrible death for us on the cross?  It is not because you and I are so wonderful; it is because God is so wonderful (Deut. 7:6-9).  The Scripture clearly tells us "God is love" (1 John 4:8).  Love is a BIG part of His nature.      
God chose to love us regardless of who we are or what we do.  Because it was a choice of God, it is not dependent on you and me.  Talk about getting off the performance-based acceptance train!  Here is truth to put in your heart: There is nothing you can do to get God to love you any more than He already does, and there is nothing you can do to get God to love you any less than He already does.  HE JUST LOVES YOU!   
Our job is to receive His love and rejoice in His love.  Obedience to His commands comes when you realize that everything God tells us to do or not to do is for our greatest good.  The God who loves me tells me "yes" to some things and "no" to other things.  His commandments are not given to deprive me; they are given to bless me because every one of them is given in love.