I Love It When...

I love it when people make me think.

I tend to be a rather confident person with a strong personality. The healthy aspect of that characteristic is the ability to press through challenges, determined to see things through. The dysfunctional aspect is stubborness that keeps me from changing horses, even though mine's been dead for a while. So it's especially important for me to keep myself open to people who see things and think about things differently than I do.

For this reason, I read TIME magazine. Here's a publication written from a perspective that I rarely share. But it's good for me to see the world through those eyes in order to challenge my thinking.

For this reason, I keep up with a variety of "cutting edge" blog authors, both in ministry and in business. Left to my own devices, I will slide toward tradition. These writers keep me asking the important question, "Are we winning"?

For this reason, I read works by contemplatives, like Henri Nouwen. My "evangelical" background has given me a burden for lost souls, but it didn't provide a deepness to my own spiritual journey. These authors challenge me to bare my own soul before the grace of God.

For this reason, I ask questions. I really want to know what people think. Their responses sometimes solidify my thinking. Sometimes they change my thinking. And although I have to really work hard at listening to what people are saying, when I'm successful, I learn so very much.