Home » genuine (Page 55)
Category Archives: genuine
Desire’s Perfect Goal Should Not Disenthrall Thy Soul—Here is a Star, there is a Star, Some Lose Their Way!
The love that lasts longest is the love that is never returned. Love would conquer all, of course, but one has to know when it is there first. Glaucus was a fisherman. One day he had drawn his nets to land and had taken a great many fishes of various kinds. So he emptied his nets and proceeded to sort the fishes on the grass. The place where he stood was a beautiful island in the river, a solitary spot, uninhabited, and not used for pasturage of cattle, not visited by anyone but himself. On a sudden, the fishes, which had been laid on the grass, began to revive and move their fins as if they were in the water; and while he looked on astonished, they one and all moved off to the water, plunged in, and swam away. He did not know what to make of this, whether some god had done it, or some secret power in the herbage. “What herb has such a power?” he exclaimed; and gathering some of it, he tasted it. Scarce had the juices of the plant reached his palate when he found himself agitated with a longing desire for the water. Glaucus could no longer restrain himself, but bidding farewell to Earth, he plunged into the stream. The gods of the water received him graciously and admitted hi to the honour of their society. They obtained the consent of Oceanus and Tethys, the sovereign of the sea, that all that was mortal in him should be washed away. #RandolphHarris 1 of 10
A hundred rivers poured their waters over Glaucus and then he lost all sense of his former nature and all consciousness. When he recovered, he found himself changed in form and mind. His hair was sea-green, and trailed behind him on the water; his shoulders grew broad, and what had been thighs and legs assumed the form of a fish’s tail. The sea-gods complimented him on the change of his appearance, and Glaucus fancied himself rather a good-looking personage. One day, Glaucus saw a beautiful maiden Scylla, the favourite of the water-nymphs, rambling on the shore, and when she had found a sheltered nook, laving her limbs on the clear water, he fell in live with her. Glaucus showed himself on the surface, spoke to the maiden, saying such things as he thought most likely to win her to stay; for she turned to run immediately on sight of him, and ran till she had gained a cliff overlooking the sea. Here she stopped and turned round to see whether it was a god or s sea animal, and observed with wonder his shape and colour. Glaucus, partly emerging from the water and supporting himself against a rock, said, “Maiden, I am not monster, nor sea animal, but a god; and neither Proteus nor Triton ranks higher than I. Once I was a mortal, and followed the sea for a living; but now I belong wholly to it.” #RandolphHarris 2 of 10
Then he told the story of his metamorphosis, and how he had been promoted to his present dignity, and added, “But what avails all this if it fails to move your heart?” Glaucus was going on in this strain, but the maiden, Scylla, turned and hastened away. Glaucus was in despair, but it occurred to him to consult the enchantress, Circe. Accordingly he repaired to her island. After mutual salutations, Glaucus said, “Goddess, I entreat your pity; you alone can relieve the pain I suffer. The power of the herbs I know as well as any one, for it is to them I owe my change of form. I love Scylla. I am ashamed to tell you how I have sued and promised to her, and how scornfully she has treated me. I beseech you to use your incantations, or potent herbs, if they are more prevailing, not to cure me of my love—for that I do not wish—but to make Scylla share it and yield me a like return.” To which Circe replied, for she was not insensible to the attractions of the sea-green deity, “You had better pursue a willing object; you are worthy to be sought, instead of having to seek in vain. Be not different, know your own worth. I protest to you that even I, goddess though I be, and learned in the virtue of plants and spells, should not know how to refuse you. If Scylla scorns you, scorn her; meet one who is ready to meet you half way, and thus make a due return to both at once.” #RandolphHarris 3 of 10
However, Glaucus replied, “Sooner shall trees grow at the bottom of the ocean, and seaweed on the top of the mountains, than I will cease to love Scylla, and her alone.” The goddess Circe was indignant, but she could not punish him, neither did she wish to do so, for she liked him too well; so she turned all her wrath against her rival, poor Scylla. She took her plants of poisonous powers and mixed them together, with incantations and charms. Then she passed through the crowd of gamboling beasts, the victims of her art, and proceeded to the coast of Sicily, where Scylla lived. There was a little bay on the shore to which Scylla used to resort, in the heat of the day, to breathe their air of the sea, and to bathe in its waters. Here the goddess poured her poisonous mixture, and muttered over it incantations of mighty power. Scylla came as usual and plunged into the water up to her waist. What was her horror to perceive a brood of serpents and barking monsters surrounding her! At first she could not imagine they were a part of herself, and tried to run from them and to drive them away; but as she ran she carried them with her, and when she tried to touch her limbs, she found her hands touch only the yawning jaws of monsters. Scylla remained rooted to the spot. #RandolphHarris 4 of 10
Scylla’s temper grew as ugly as her form, and she took pleasure in devouring hapless mariners who came within her grasp. Thus she destroyed six of the companions of Ulysses, and tried to wreck the ships of Aeneas, till at least she was turned into a rock, and as such still continues to be a terror to mariners. Mistakes are a deliberately wrong choice in the contest between what is clearly good and what is clearly bad is sin. We all want a partner, but some want one to the point of it being a pathology. Many people knowingly or unknowingly force a relationship due to an addiction of love. If one is honest with oneself, and know that one has nothing in common with their focus of their intertest, such as different goals, different lifestyles, and different hobbies, and the person is not attracted to the individual pursing a relationship, this is a clear indication that they do not like you in a romantic way, much like how Scylla was not in the least bit interested in Glaucus. Yet, Glaucus could not take no for an answer and ended up running her like, and the rage she experienced ruined the lives of others. Absolutely imagine if you had people dragging you into things you did not want to be part of, and you will understand why this is not a healthy thing to do. It is never a healthy thing to do. #RandolphHarris 5 of 10
People who think they can learn from their mistakes have a different brain reaction to mistake than people who think intelligence is fixed. One major difference between people who think intelligence is malleable and those who think intelligence is fixed is how one responds to mistake. When one makes a mistake, the best thing to do is to try to learn from it and figure it out. Conversely, some people who think they cannot gain intelligence will not take the opportunities to learn from their mistakes, and they usually employ defense mechanisms to justify their behaviour so they do not feel guilt or remourse. Defense mechanisms are psychological maneuvers that operate below the surface of one’s awareness (they are unconscious) to protect one from emotional pain or distress. The most familiar one is probably denial. Denial allows one to dismiss a painful reality so that one can go on acting as if a situation or event is not true—because one does not want to admit it is true. Transgression is different from being overtaken in a fault. Both sins and mistakes can hurt us and both require attention. People who try to force relations, often end up feeling insecure, hurt, and betrayed for no reason. Then these individuals start questioning themselves as to why they are never good enough for the person they are interested in. #RandolphHarris 6 of 10
There should be no license for sin, but mercy should go hand and hand with reproof. Though it may be hard to admit, there comes a time when one just needs to cut their losses and leave a person alone. The progression of a romantic relationship cannot be formed. It must evolve naturally, over time. Impatient, insecure, or damaged people try to force relationships. Mortal make these kinds of mistakes all the times. However, these things are on an essentially predetermined course. A fool is a person lacking judgment or prudence. The Saviour used the term fool to characterize the lesson in this parable about the rich man who built greater barns to store his abundant fruits and goods and then said to his soul, “Thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry,” reports Luke 12.19. The distinction between sins and mistakes is important to our actions. We have seen some very bitter finger pointing. All of us make mistakes, and some of us very serious ones. Any thoughtful person feels a kind of failure because one’s sins or moral failure. One does not get clean by rolling in the mire. One does not get clean and whole by brooding unduly over the past, although we can certainly learn from our mistake. There is no strength in weakness; there is no strength in sin; and we do not overcome our mistake and our sins by fighting them directly. #RandolphHarris 7 of 10
If people dwell upon them too much, they may succumb to their sins. The avoidance of guilt can be addictive, too. Guilt-avoidance has become a drug of choice for many people, because it is so pleasurable, almost intoxicating, to think of oneself as morally pure. Those who are addicted to guilt-avoidance are usually a bit inconsistent. They avoid the guilt themselves, but they do not mind imposing a bit of it—maybe even a lot of it—on others. It can be immensely pleasurable to notice the flaws of others while ignoring your own. However, that is a sin, too. All things considered, we are on a safer ground when we focus on our own sins, not those of others. At least this is how we process theologians see things. We believe that when we harm others, or fail to act in ways that prevent them from being harmed, we violated something deep within the nature of nature. We have violated an Eros toward life’s flourishing that is divine. In sinning against others, we sin against God. It takes courage to stand up. The freedom to be different. The freedom to take guilt and make something beautiful of it. Humans have the freedom to turn guilt into love. Few gifts are more desirable than a clear conscience—a soul at peace with itself. Only God can heal a troubled soul. However, if we want God to forgive us, we must follow the procedure he has given to us. #RandolphHarris 8 of 10
Confession is a necessary requirement for complete forgiveness. It is an indication of true Godly sorrow. It is part of the cleansing process—the starting anew requires a clean page in the diary of our conscience. Confessions should be made to the appropriate person who has been wronged by us and to the Lord also. In addition, the nature of our transgression may be serious enough to require a confession to God in prayer. “Therefore I say unto you, Go; and whoever transgressed against me, him shall you judge according to the sins which he or she has committed; and if he or she confess his or her sins before thee and me, and repents in the sincerity of one’s heart, that person one shall forgive, and I will also forgive that individual,” reports Mosiah 26.29. Remember, it is complete deliverance from the tortures of a guilt-ridden soul that we seek. Repentance is not easy. Godly sorrow brings one to the depth of humility. This is why the gift of forgiveness is so sweet and draws the transgressor so close to the Saviour with a special bond of affection. Full repentance liberates the individual with joy unspeakable. #RandolphHarris 9 of 10
Any type of open and truthful disclosure reduces stress and helps individuals come to terms with their behaviour. It is not coincidental that some of the most powerful people or institutions in may cultures encourage people to confess their transgressions. And there is strong evidence that writing about upsetting experiences or dark secrets can benefit your mental and physical well-being. Similar to religious confessions, expressive writing encouraged individuals to explore their deepest thoughts and feelings about upsetting experiences. For such emotional purges to work, people must be completely honest with themselves. Putting emotional turmoil into words changes how we think about it. Giving concrete form to secret experiences can help categorize them in new ways. Talking or writing about a disturbing event helps us to understand it better. And things we do not understand cause greater anxiety. Once we are able to express our upheavals, we tend to ruminate about them less, freeing us up to focus on others thing. Dozens of studies have also shown that expression is linked to less stress and improved sleep and cardiovascular function. Also, better sleep is associated with enhanced immune function and better general health—which correlates with better mental health, too. Confession can help people get through difficult times. #RandolphHarris 10 of 10
You Left Me a Heavenly Sweet Legacy of Love–Meet Me on Top of the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day
I have really hope you have found happiness, and if ever in need of something, like someone to love you, do not hesitate to call me. Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the sensitive soul to tears, but our intellect…must itself lack all those things which of its nature it understands. Since then it naturally understands all sensible and bodily things, it must be lacking in every bodily nature; just as the sense of sight, being able to know colour, lacks all colour. If sight itself had any particular colour, this colour would prevent it from seeing others colours, just as the tongue of a feverish person, being coated with bitter moisture, cannot taste anything sweet. The true genius shudders at incompleteness—imperfection—and usually prefers silence to saying the something which not everything should be said. Maybe there is something divine in the bliss we feel. Love aims at transcending human existence, at connecting it with the eternal and infinite, and thereby at achieving the only aspect of immortality that is open to us as human beings. Because many people want both height and depth, spirituality strengthens and develops love and transforms it into a desire for a higher level of understanding of the self, others, and the Universe. When our eyes fall upon the beauty of the Earth, our soul is able to remember true love and reverences as it enjoys the expression of the divine—of temperance, justice, and knowledge of the absolute. #RandolphHarris 1 of 9
The human being is a spiritual being at the core. We are the soul and have an existence beyond the physical. Our personality has, in fact, many sub-personalities or different, often conflicting, aspects. Some of these aspects can be very troublesome and sabotage our efforts at success and happiness. Magically, if we can observe some aspect of ourselves with detachment, then we can change that aspect or somewhat control it. The idea of aspects of personality and observing them is now part of our daily language (largely do the work of Psychosynthesis). We regularly hear people say, “There is a part of me that wants marry Walter, but the other part of me is says Sam Baldwin is my destiny.” Psychosynthesis work sets up a dialogue with the different aspects of self to try to find a way of balance and integration of these, often, conflicting, parts. People tend to be dominated by love, will, and intelligent activity. Love deals with matters of the heart, compassion, emotion, and sensitivity. The will is one’s drive, need to achieve, power to remove and overcome come obstacles. Intelligent activity is the capacity to actively plan, organize, construct mental schemes and models of things. #RandolphHarris 2 of 9
Psychosynthesis tries to identify the basic type and then attempt to bring in balance if necessary. For example, the love type may need to develop the will to be less vulnerable and more effective. The will type may need to develop emotional sensibility so as to learn to love and be loved. In the 1993 film, Sleepless in Seattle is a classic fairy tale which involves a love struck, beautiful, enchanted princess Anne Reed, and sleepless, pragmatic, handsome prince Sam Baldwin. After the death of his wife, Sam moved to Seattle with his son and is convinced he will never find love again, and he just focuses on his work in architecture and never sleeps. His son, Jonah calls a talk-radio program hosted by a psychiatrist and Johan tells the World how concerned he is about his dad, and then the father gets on the phone and talks about what love means to him. The World falls madly in love with him, and many women want to meet him, but he is not interested. Anne Reed hears the call, and although she is already engaged, she feels he is her destiny. Anne bases he love life on the 1957 film An Affair to Remember. #RandolphHarris 3 of 9
Psychosynthesis would have helped Anne balance her need for love, and would have helped Sam develop a less will driven and emotional aspect of his personality, which is a form of conscious balance and choice. It lets people know where they are lacking balance in their lives, and as you see it is not always a chemical imbalance, but a lack of development or personal understanding. However, fate brings the lovers together in hopes they can balance each other out. There are usually three levels of satisfaction: Happiness, joy, and bliss. Happiness is the goal for most people’s lives it is the arrangement of life events to bring about the desired end. Problem, it can be fleeting and may not last for long. Joy is the constant states of soul, and is the surest sign of the presence of the soul. Bliss is the condition of the spirit beyond all material limitations. The intellect here serves as a bridge. Because of the refinement of the matter composing it, the intellect is well adapted as a medium of consciousness—it is like a translucent substance through which the soul can shine. However, it is only in conjunction with a soul that the intellect and the whole psychophysical organism can have experiences. The soul can gain release through discriminatory knowledge (viveka), that is, by realizing the essential distinction between itself and nature. #RandolphHarris 4 of 9
Contemplative techniques induce a stilling and purification of the mind in which the essential nature of the soul is reflected clearly. Thereby the soul learns to recognize the repression of the sublime, which tend to lead to unhappy and neurotic states that are the result of failure to understand and admit the spiritual aspects in ourselves and others. We cannot base on life on films like Sleepless in Seattle because taking such a risk could turn out to be more like Sleeping with the Enemy. Sleeping with the Enemy is a 1991 film in which a character called Laura Burney lives in a beautiful home by the beach on Cape Cod with her husband, Martin, a charming, handsome and wealthy investment counselor. In reality, Martin is not charming at all. He is volatile and charged with energy. Martin is extremely obsessive and has control issues. Martin is also physically and emotionally abusive toward his wife, Laura, throughout their marriage. He makes her keep the house crystal clean, makes her pretend to be happy, tells her what she is allowed to wear, selects the music she can listen to, and even controls her social activities. Therefore, we need to teach our kids that life is not all about finding love, but more about finding a career that allows one to support oneself and becoming aware of the external World, since mental and physical entities evolve on a parallel and mutually adapted lines; thus, it opens the way to a correspondence theory of perception. #RandolphHarris 5 of 9
According to the theory of perception, external happenings imprint themselves via the sense and the sensus communis, or mind organ (manas), on the intellect. These images are then illuminated by the soul. The mind is, so to say, a screen containing pictures of the outer World, and the soul lights these up. However, the soul itself cannot be illuminated and this perceived introspectively; therefore, its existence is known only by inference (or by a special state of consciousness). This is why religion and talk therapy have become some popular. Doctors realize a lot of people do not have chemical imbalances, but they are experiencing situations and conditions that they are not equipped to handle and need guidance of someone who can help them recognize there is nothing wrong with them, but they may be in a situation that is not conductive to their development. By medicating people who do not have chemical imbalances, we could be doing more damage than good because we are using a drug to control them and forcing them to adapt to situations, which may be unsafe. Conversely, some people do need medication because there is something wrong with their brain. #RandolphHarris 6 of 9
While we are on the subject of mental health, there was this interesting study about a mental who was schizophrenic, he was a witness to a crime, and was arrested. He mother did not want him on medication because she believed it was dangerous for him. He was being assaulted in jail because he was not normal. The investigators forced him to take a shot of an antipsychotic that would last a month so he could clear his head up enough to see lucid and testify. After taking the medication, he hanged himself because he suffered from depression, as his friends, the voices in his head were gone, and he was lonely. Therefore, not everyone needs therapy and not everyone needs medication. As a society, we just have to understand there are different types of people and not everyone is typical and we cannot force them to adhere to our standards. Of course, we can never understand what life is like for some people, who have mental or physical impairments, or who have been sheltered and do not understand the World, because we have never been in their shoes. So, it is not our job to sit back and judge people who have learned to adapt as best to life as they can. Sometimes people are living unimaginable lives. “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you,” reports Matthew 7.1-2. #RandolphHarris 7 of 9
A layperson’s most natural way of defending belief in induction is that it has worked in the past. Concealed in this reply, of course, is the assumption that what has already worked will continue to do so. However, there is a lack of clarity about what counts as success in using the rule. Our society has much neglected the need for the development of the capacity for expression of love and beauty. Love is a basic soul quality. When unfolded, it enables the person to love and accept the people they encounter and find the good in all people. We have to identify our infinity of living Worlds in endless pace with the infinity of God. Knowledge therefore must begin not with sense experience but with a rational search for units of divine life. The atoms of the physical World are carried in the ether, which is the universal medium of the divine life and power. The conquest of the self, in which the intellect achieves mastery over the passions of humans and drives out the beast is were all the traditional virtues of moderation and self-control have place, and at this level we appear to have the choice between good and evil. However, when we use this freedom as reason dictates, we become aware that we are simply following the urge of our nature toward union with the divine; and the rational person burns with the heroic fury of an intellectual love of God. #RandolphHarris 8 of 9
The mind senses the presence of God in the whole of his creation. Beauty is everywhere. We live in the beauty, but in reality everything is beautiful. We place immense trust in the analogical power of reason as a means of empathy with the universal of life of things. In mathematical reasoning, we possess the standard for God’s own knowledge, and whatever we can prove mathematically we know as surely and as perfectly as God does. Thus in the genuinely scientific investigation of nature we possess a revelation equal in authority, though not in importance, to the revelation concerning human’s moral duties and destiny that is contained in the Holy Scripture. “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise person who built his or her house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. However, everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish person who built his or her house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with great crash,” reports Matthew 7.24- 27. That is why God wants us to apply his ways in our lives now. What we can take with us for all eternity is our love and concern with one another. #RandolphHarris 9 of 9
The Conscience of Us All Can Read Without its Glasses on Revelation’s Wall
Emotional love is an exception to all the general rules—it is the strongest of all emotions. Although the emotional love, for instance that of a mother for her infant, is one of the strongest of which the mind is capable, it can hardly be said to have any proper or peculiar means of expression; and this is intelligible, as it has not habitually led to any special line of action. A strong desire to touch the beloved person is commonly felt; love is expressed by this means more plainly than by any other. We probably own this desire to inherited habit, in association with the nursing and tending of our children and with the mutual caresses of lovers. The physiological processes are influenced by emotional states, and our bodies are affected by the way we think and feel. Human emotions significantly affect our physical and mental well-being. And, if we ignore or deny the importance of emotions, we will be unable to understand the roots of many crippling infirmaries. Fear, worries and states of rage and resentment leave no clear traces in the brain. What, then, have physicians to do with them? If physicians show this indifference, however, is it surprising that men and women, beset by emotional stresses, turn from them and go for help to faith healers and to others who recognize the reality of these disturbing emotional states? Emotions can be experienced when the body does not reveal a physiological reaction. #RandolphHarris 1 of 12
Emotional intelligence is a powerful way to focus our energy in one direction with tremendous results. People with high emotional intelligence make $29,000.00 more annually than people with low emotional intelligence. Ninety percent of top performers have high emotional intelligence, and a single-point increase in our emotional intelligence adds $1,300.00 to our salary. I probably will not go jumping off the library tower. Your letter offered me a much-welcome break from studying. It even helped to soothe my throbbing head. I was in the hospital recently and still am not quite up to snuff. I am not sure if my parents know how I feel about school. When I was starting college and mentioned I would fancy studying American literature, my father actually laughed. Did not even look up from his newspaper. Just laughed and said, “Ridiculous.” He has a big walrus mustache, and when he laughs, he does not make a sound. You only know because the tips of his mustache twitch. There he sat, sniffing, mustache twitching, saying things like “Ridiculous” and “No career in that.” “But, I enjoy literature,” I protested. “Medicine. That is what you need to study. You will thank me for it later. Nothing more rewarding.” The relationship between our mind-body, our environment, and our emotional behaviours dictate survival. Let us spice up our life with love. #RandolphHarris 2 of 12
Every day is a new beginning for me with new experiences. I really did try to tell him then, babe, honest I did. However, it only bloomed into an argument, with my mother wringing her hands and imploring me to just “give it a try.” My father finally thumped his newspaper down and declared that he was not paying for that nonsense and that, if I wanted to study something frivolous like literature, it would not be on his dime. So you see why I cannot talk to my parents. I need to just carry on. Finish college, finish medical school. Once I get a job, I can make my own decisions. Maybe. I should get back to my studying. I am looking forward to the holidays as a time to rest up and recuperate before the term starts up again. What I pleaded with you for you will never forget, and what you told me about I will keep every bit and drop forever. To us, memory will never be gone with the wind, nor will fade with the passing day. Under physical and mental stressors, the body constantly adapts to heal and recover. Human can become adapted to adverse environmental conditions. However, these situations and conditions place great demand on our cells, organs, and systems. As we grow older, we have to learn how to cope with these changes. Many of us search for answers through human experiences that elevate and unite our thoughts and feelings. #RandolphHarris 3 of 12
As we begin to better understand life’s complexities and the relevance of our experiences, only then are we able to make decisions that will alleviate negative stressors that suppress our health. We must replace such stressors with more beneficial actions that serve to enhance our health. To make effective change depends on input and participation of every individual. If people are not genuine, emotional intelligence will not do a thing for them. People do not accept demonstrations of emotional intelligence at face value. They are too skeptical for that. Most individuals want to know that it is genuine—that your emotions are authentic. People are not just mindless automatons. They think about the emotion they see and care whether they are sincere or manipulative. Since people and leaders are good at motivating others because they inspire trust and admiration through their actions, not just their words. Many leaders indicate that authenticity is important to them, but genuine leaders implement their beliefs through their words. It is not enough to just go through the motions, trying to demonstrate qualities that are associated with emotional intelligence. One has to be genuine. Authenticity requires a certain measure of vulnerability, transparency, and integrity. Genuine people do not try to make people like them. #RandolphHarris 4 of 12
Genuine people know who they are and understand that some people will like them and some will not. And they are comfortable with that. It is not that they care whether or not other people will like them, but simply that they are not going to let someone’s opinion of them get in the way of doing the right thing. However, it is part of human nature to want to look our best. It is why many of us work so hard on the exterior and interior of our homes and why so many men and women make sure every hair is in place, just in case the run into that special someone. There is nothing wrong with shining our shoes, smelling our best, or even cleaning the dirty dishes before someone comes over. However, when taken to the extremes, this desire to impress can shift from useful to deceitful. The Saviour was understanding and compassionate with people whose hearts were humble and sincere. However, he rose up in righteous anger against hypocrites who tried to appear righteous in order to win the praise, influence, and wealth of the World, all the while oppressing the people they should have been blessing. When people do this, the Heaven withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved. Why does this happen? Why do we sometimes try to appear active, prosperous, and dedicated outwardly when on the inside we have left our first love? #RandolphHarris 5 of 12
In some cases, we may simply have lost our focus on the essence of the gospel, mistaking the form of Godliness for the power thereof. This is especially dangerous when we direct our outward expression of discipleship to impress others for personal gain or influence. It is then that we are at risk of entering the territory of the adversary, and it becomes high time to examine our hearts to make immediate course corrections. It may be beneficial to search our own hearts. People who harbour immorality in their hearts make every effort to conceal it from the faithful. Their apparent ways of life, speech, behaviour, the things they do and the way they lead their lives all resemble those of the pious. Indeed, they do not seem very different, for they conceal their immortality and secretly experience the suffering that it entails. Despite this, however, some of their attitudes reveal the different spiritual state they experience. Strikingly, it is not only the believers who notice this situation. Though lacking concrete evidence, within a short while, even a person who has adopted the ignorant society’s beliefs can form an idea of whether someone is sincere or not. Even if an insincere person is no different from believers in how he or she eats, drinks, laughs and talks, and exhibits no irritating behaviour, still the faithful can see the difference. Here, indeed, the term negative vibes finds its full impact. #RandolphHarris 6 of 12
Insincere people do not enjoy a tranquil, authentic, relaxed and comfortable spiritual state. There is a tension in their voice, the way the words come out, their flow and modulation creates serious discomfort in the hearts of the sincere. In addition, such behaviours as trying to push themselves to the fore among speakers, using expression that pander to their narcissism and speaking according a negative plan in their heads gives them away. People often conspire with others to ruin people who are happy and successful. And one of their methods, after everything else has failed, is to play with the heart. Find a target who is not interested in them, then pretend to be interested, then flirt with other people in your face when they think there has been significant time for one to catch feelings. Then, they will act nice and pretend to be supportive, but not show too much effort, nor make any gestures to show they are real. They are hoping that you are desperate for love and so they try to slither their way into your life, when they are actually on the same team as the vipers in the pit. The purpose of not showing too much effort is so they can try to make you look crazy if you confront them about flirting with other people and then go brag about it to others. Once you can disrupt someone emotionally, then you can throw them off of their game and cause them to slip. #RandolphHarris 7 of 12
Another tactic the snakes will use when their subtle advances do not work, they will pretend to be sad or act like they are going to hurt themselves, but you just have to let them go. Snakes are grown adults and they have to deal with the consequences of their own actions. Your physical and mental well-being are more important that their games and with there being over 7 billion people in the World, eventually the right person will come along. If someone is really interested in you, they will go out of their way to show you, by asking you out and spending time with you, and making you feel good about yourself. I feel that my heart is more important than playing lute to the cattle. If people said what they mean, how much easier would life be? There should be more sincerity and heart in human relations, more silence and simplicity in our interactions. Good communication is based on a message being delivered as well as received. One cannot expect someone to receive the message they want them to receive when that individual is telling them something different. Insincerity breeds insincerity. If all of your friends are fake, people sense you will be as well. However, a little sincerity does a long way in encouraging others to practice in encouraging others to practice it in their relationships. #RandolphHarris 8 of 12
The truth is, we save everyone a lot of confusion and discomfort by being since. Playing games keeps us from being real. Since genuine people are not desperate for attention, they do not try to show off. They know that when they speak in a friendly, confident, and concise manner, people are much more attentive to and interested in what they have to say than if they try to show people that they are important. People catch on to your attitude quickly and are more attracted to the right attitude than what or how many people you know. Genuine people are open-minded, which makes them approachable and interesting to others. No one wants to have a conversation with someone who has already formed an opinion and is not willing to listen to them. Genuine people forge their own paths. They do not derive their sense of pleasure and satisfaction from the opinions of others. This frees them up to follow their own internal compasses. They know who they are and do not pretend to be anything else. Their direction comes from within, from their own principles and values. They do what they believe to be the right thing, and they are not swayed by the fact that somebody might like it or not. #RandolphHarris 9 of 12
We have all worked with people who constantly hold something back, whether it is knowledge or resources. They act as if they are afraid you will outshine them if they give you access to everything you need to do your job. Genuine people are unfailingly generous with whom they know, what they know, and the resources they have access to. They want you to do well more than anything else because they are team players and they are confident enough to never worry that your success might make them look bad. I am here because I desire with all my heart to follow God. I yearn to do all that he asks of me in this great cause. I hunger to be edified by the Holy Spirit and hear the voice of God as he speaks through his ordained people. I am here to become a better person, to be lifted by the inspiring examples of good people, and to learn how to more effectively succeed in life. The person who fears an authentic encounter with another can find many reasons why he or she should stay behind the mask and not let anyone know his or her true feelings. Sharing love and warmth is a great gift, however. To those who hide such gifts because of the fear of what others may do or says may dampen their spirit. “But with some I am not well pleased, for they will not open their mouths, but they hide the talent which I have given unto them, because of the fear of humans. Wo unto them, because of the fear of human. Wo unto them such, for mine anger is kindled against them,” reports Doctrine and Covenants 60.2. #RandolphHarris 10 of 12
To be false to oneself is to not let your behavior represent what you really are like inside. People who do not represent by their actions a respect of purity; a rejection of bigotry, insensitivity, and crudity; a love of truth, beauty, and goodness is not being true to oneself. Sometimes there are things about ourselves that we do not like and want to change. To be authentic would require us to admit those dislikes to others and honestly try to eliminate or change undesirable areas of our behaviour. If a person has values such as wanting to be kind and responsive to others, he or she will build people up rather than put them down. One must be honest to these values too, and this will lead an individual to try to eliminate fakeness. Perhaps if we can be assured that the Lord has counseled us to share our feelings under the influence of his spirit, we might gain the courage to be an authentic person and to build relationships that may have the potential to last through eternity. People gravitate toward those who are genuine because they know they can trust them. #RandolphHarris 11 of 12
When you do not know who they really are and how they really feel, it is difficult to like someone. Genuine people mean what they say, and if they make a commitment, they keep it. Genuine people have a strong enough sense of self that they do not go around seeing offense that is not there. When genuine people commit to a conversation, they focus all of their energy on the conversation. You will find that conversations are more enjoyable and effective when you immerse yourself in the. When you robotically approach people with small talk and are tethered to your phone, this puts their brains on autopilot and prevents them from having any real affinity for you. Genuine people create connection and find depth even in short, everyday conversations. Dialogue is the elixir of life; without it we cannot survive. And yet, we still seem to know so little about it, and so little about the relationship between dialogue, love, human companionship, and health. Dialogue is a dynamic, ever-changing force. Like the billions of snowflakes that fall in a Winter storm, no two human dialogues are the same. The people who render the World prosperous are those who are courageous in life to try to solve new problems in life. My friend, may you be one of them. I had no time to hate, because the grave would hinder me, and life was not so ample I could finish enmity. Not had I time to love; but since some industry must be, the little toil of love, I thought, was large enough for me. #RandolphHarris 12 of 12
Randolph Harris II International Institute 