Tag: adversity

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What golf teaches us about life?

Justin Thomas took home the Wannamaker trophy as the 2022 PGA Champion. Many experts thought Scottie Scheffler would be the winner but he missed the cut meaning he didn’t get to play over the weekend. It is often said, ”that is why they play the game”. Others would say, ”It just wasn’t his week”. Another friend remarked, ”You can prepare well but you can’t control the variables.”

Last week, I wrote about how the first three verses on Psalms 23. Here is the link https://thankfulinallthings.com/musings-on-psalms-23/ if you don’t subscribe (which I hope you will ?) or missed it. We must first acknowledge that the Lord is our shepherd who does not want us to want for anything. Golf like Life is hard and times can be tough at times. Therefore, God makes us rest and provides times of peace so that we can strive to walk the paths of righteousness with our souls refreshed. Why? Because the circumstances of life will come which we won’t have control of the outcome. That is when we must be able to trust that our Shepherd or a caddy/coach for a golfer is there to protect, provide comfort, and lead us out of the adversity that has come our way.


Each golfer has a yardage book for every course on which they play. It shows the exact distance to every place on each hole This book helps the player hit the right shot so that it avoids any hazard that has been placed between the tee and the green. The more the golfer plays a course, the more notes are written so they can better understand the best way to achieve success. The bible is our yardage book for life. The more we read it and take notes on what it teaches for each life situation, the better we will know how to live life well. When we are challenged we can choose to trust and not fear. We can find peace and comfort knowing God is with us whether walking by still waters or facing the valley of the shadow of death.

Believe it or not John 11:44 can provide a golf and life lesson at the same time as well. The well known story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, ends with Jesus saying to his friends and family, “now take off his dead clothes off so he can go home.” You see, Lazarus arms and legs were bound to his body so he couldn’t free himself without others help. In golf, there might be a few things that hinder you from hitting the ball properly. We need others who we trust to help us correct our mechanics allowing our swing to be freed up to hit the proper shot. Jesus teaches that we need others to help us live our lives well. Yes, we have the yardage book called the bible but it was not a mistake that He sent the disciples out in twos. https://biblehub.com/niv/mark/6.htm We need others to encourage us so we can be free to live the life God intended for each of us. We also desire folks who have our best interests in mind to help us correct our life mechanics so we can become the best version of ourselves.

Let’s all go out this week asking others to help us take off the things that restrain us from living the way God intends for us to live. Let’s also be willing to be that trusted friend who helps strip away things that keeps someone from living their best life.

If you enjoyed this blog, please subscribe so you can receive email notifications when new content is posted. I can be reached by email at [email protected]

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Musings on Psalms 23

I have been reciting Psalm 23 several times a day over the last couple years. Sometimes I just say it from start to finish. Other times I personalize it adding prayers for me and for others. Sometimes I fall asleep before finishing it at bedtime. And then there are the times when I’m in the middle of it and can’t remember the rest ? As many times as I have read it or set it out loud, I came across something this week that I’ve never thought about before.  This post will be my thoughts on the first three verses and how God prepares us for when adversity comes our way.

“The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Do you see it now? One verse leads us into the next. Each one prepares us for what is to come. First, we are to acknowledge that the Lord is our Shepherd who will provide all that we need. Secondly, He does not ask us to lie down in green pastures, He make us do it. He knows we need rest even when we might not think it is necessary. Once we have rested, he gives us the opportunity to experience the peace that comes from being led to still quiet, waters. There is nothing more peaceful for me than being at the ocean when there are no waves and the sun is yet to rise. It does indeed “restoreth my soul”

He has created us. He leads us. He calls us to rest so that we can be restored. Why? So that when adversity comes our way as it does each and every day, we will not fear because He promises to be with us. May this thought process cause you to “go out knowing that goodness and love will follow you all the days of your life, knowing you will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Psalm 23:6

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Here’s a resolution for you. Live like you are dying

My Friday morning men’s group is reading through Henri Nouwen’s book, ”Our Greatest Gift”. He writes about learning how to die and how we are to best care for those who are dying. our conversation reminded my of Tim McGraw’s song, Live like you were dying https://youtu.be/_9TShlMkQnc

He sings ”I went skydiving
I went Rocky Mountain climbing
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I’d been denying”
And he said
“Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dying”

Like the song says, If we were to live like we are dying, our perspectives would most certainly change. i am sure most of us would be much more intentional in how we spent our time and yes, find ways to be Thankful in all Things!

Guillain Barre Syndrome https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/guillain-barre-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20362793 did this for me. Although I never thought I was going to die (some around me thought so ?) my life changed forever because of my bout with this disease. As Nouwen writes in his book, it brought be face to face with my mortality. I had very rarely been sick and then suddenly I was paralyzed from my head down looking at being on a ventilator if my lungs shut down. ** In no way do I want to have that experience again but in that moment, I have never felt closer to God. He met me in that place and as a friend said recently, ”when I reached for God I realized He already had a hold on me like the poem Footprints in the Sand”.

Or in the grass on golf course 🙂

I also was never more appreciative of my friends and family as they rose up to care for me and Dottie. When I get discouraged or my day isn’t going well, I conjur back to almost three years ago where I am reminded of how blessed I am today and feel fortunate to have had that experience. I am a better man having gone through it. I love deeper “I try to speak sweeter. I look for His promises in the Good Book.” Yes, as Tim McGraw’s continues, my wish for you is:

Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dying
Like tomorrow was a gift
And you’ve got eternity
To think about
What you’d do with it
What could you do with it
What did I do with it?
What would I do with it?

Yesterday is past, tomorrow is not guaranteed, today is a gift. That is why it is call a present ? Please subscribe the blog so you can receive email notifications when new content is posted. I can be reached by email at [email protected] PS. **If you don’t know my GBS story you can visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie

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Who will stand in the gap?

grand canyon sunset

The definition of the word divide is “a wide divergence between two groups, typically producing tension or hostility.” These days there are so many places we see division; “To wear or not wear a mask”, “how in the world can people be gathering in large groups”, and “aren’t those people lucky they have a cool place to shelter in place” just to name a few. Of course there are much bigger things like “do Black Lives Matter” and what does it mean to “Defund the police” Where we all don’t have the same answer on how to solve the problem. These challenges whether small and petty or large and Important have created divisions even in families and amongst friends for whom we really care about. The question is are the majority of us willing to stand in the gap in these conversations so that love will prevail vs allowing those who espouse hatred to seize control.

Let me take a little poetic license with one verse in The classic song, “what’s love got to do with it”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGpFcHTxjZs As you read the lyrics, Think about engaging with someone who doesn’t think the way you do.

It may seem to you that I’m acting confused
When you’re close to me
If I tend to look dazed I’ve read it someplace
I’ve got cause to be
There’s a name for it
There’s a phrase that fits
But whatever the reason you do it for me

Aren’t we all confused by how people are acting? Haven’t the tensions and yes, hostilities, left you a bit dazed and tired? There are many names for it and a phrases that fit. Here are a few words that might sum it up: discouragement, fatigue, hopelessness, and despair. Along with Phrases such as : you don’t care, you can’t understand, and I can’t trust you all lead up to feeling divided, one against another with a sense that there is no way to bridge the gap. The reason that I can remain thankful in all things in this very different season of adversity is that I have hope that “love can conquer all things” Why? Because Jesus validates it when asked what are the most important commandments?

We are to 1st “love God with all our heart, mind, and soul.” The 2nd is that we are to “love others as God loves us”. If we can figure out the 1st, our personal inward hopes (closer to Christ, relationships, etc.)” we will experience a freedom to do the 2nd an outward expression of loving others in a way that is useful to the Lord, Making it His work not mine. Can it be so simple that if My desire is to Love Him with all my heart, love others as He loves me (even though I often times am unloveable) leads to being released that I can count on the fact that His plan not mine will be the outcome? If so, I can strive to stand in the gap “pressing on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14) The prize these days would be to see divisiveness turned into unity.

Beth Moore exhorts us forward by writing, “True greatness will never come to those who seek to be great. It will come to those who make themselves of no reputation and give their unseen everyday lives, their everyday energies, their everyday faith to serving others amid their own everyday sufferings & unrequited desires.”

1 Corinthians 13 says the 3 most important things in life are Faith, Hope, and Love but the greatest of these is Love. Our faith in each other is wavering which can cause us to lose hope. I began this post with lyrics from a classic Tina Turner song. Let me end it with the chorus of one of my favorite campfire songs by the Youngbloods. Go ahead, take the time to listen to it. 🙂 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRbTvoxRNxM


Come on people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another
Right now

James 3:18 says “Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.” If we choose to go out with an intent to love one another, I believe we can cause others to do the same. In doing so, we can in fact stand in the gap shining light in the dark, letting good to defeat evil knowing and regaining the hope that love will conquer hatred.

My Guillain Barre Syndrome story which is what started this blog can be found by visiting www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can contact me by making a comment here on the blog or by emailing me at [email protected]

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How are you dealing with the adversity in your life?

Charles Stanley-“For us to accept that God allows–or even sends–afflictions, we must see adversity from His perspective. Is your focus on the pain of your experience or on the Lord and His faithfulness? As believers, we’re assured that no adversity comes our way unless He can use it to achieve His good purposes.” Even Paul faced adversity throughout his ministry which h called “the thorn in my side”

Do we believe what is stated above? People ask, “what did you learn from your bout with Guillain Barre?” The simplest answer is my faith life was tested, found real, and is stronger than ever. I don’t have the wisdom to know exactly how God works, but I Now know from personal experience that the more I submit to him, the more of His power He can entrust to me. When I become less (like not being able to move ?) and He becomes more, His power is able to move through me (which it literally did) more freely. I would rather have not been paralyzed and in a rehab facility for 2 months. The challenge, however, provided the opportunity for me exercise my belief and trust while relinquishing control of the outcome. He made real what I already believed. That through his power, love, and self-discipline, I don’t need to be afraid because His power is unlimited and like this song shares, unstoppable. https://youtu.be/De6gZZT1690 My only job is to love Him with all my heart, love others as He loves me so His power can flow through me to the world around me.

Little did I know how important these lessons would be a year and a few months later. If navigating Covid19 wasn’t enough, we must now study and learn from each other and humbly seek understanding on the matter of race. I have written in a previous post about our need to Study and Learn from others so that we can understand things from other people’s perspective. We need to make ourselves vulnerable so others can help us with our blind spots. Like Lazarus when he was raised front the dead (John 11) we have things in our life restricting us from the abundant life God want us to live. In verse 44 Jesus said to Lazarus’ friends after he came out with his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.  “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” Who will you allow into your life to help you do the same?

Once you have done your due diligence and allowed God to provide you new insights ask yourself the question my friend George Morris is asking me. “What will you do to make a difference that you have never done before?”

To read more about my bout with Guillain Barre Syndrome go to www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can email me at [email protected]

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How could this year be seen as worse than last year

If you have been reading this blog since the fall of 2019 or following my journey through adversity Via www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelGuthrie, you know that an immune system disorder led to a syndrome called Guillain Barre. It left me unable to move for 17 days and gave me the “opportunity” to be in a rehab facility while I regained my strength allowing me to walk out and go home 43 days later. March-June of 2019 were pretty much lost. So, why would I say 2020 has actually been worse than the same time in 2019?

Dottie and I were struck the other day that we have lost the same 4 months this year because of a completely different type of adversity, Covid19 aka The Coronavirus. I have found myself discouraged and on edge in a way that Is not normal for me. I am sure the pandemic has some you feeling the same. This discouragement and angst oozes itself into all aspects of my life which results in a sadness that has led me to ask why? Dottie’ answers, “It is the uncertainty of not knowing what to expect with Covid19. Your bout w GBS was different. Once we knew you were not going to be put on a ventilator, we had the confidence that although it would take a long time, you would get better. We have no idea where the pandemic is taking us and what will be its long term effects.” I find myself fighting this realization but at the end of the day, she is absolutely right. Whether one wants to say this is not a big deal or that it is being over blown by the media, the fact remains no one knows the long term effects of the Coronavirus be it physical, psychological, or economically.

The second reason for 2020 being worse than 2019 will not come as a surprise to anyone who knows me. It has been the subject matter of several blog posts here. I MISS MY PEOPLE ?. We are not made to travel this life alone. Jesus knew it and that is why he sent the disciples out in twos. “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.” ~ Luke 10:1 We need others in our lives to keep us uplifted when it is so easy to fall into despair.

There is also the African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together” My recovery from Guillain Barre was indeed a group effort. Friends spent the night with me in the hospital and in rehab. People brought us lunch every day. I had so many visitors that Dottie had to, lovingly but fiercely, become the gatekeeper so I would get my rest. I was in a bad way but throughout the ordeal and even after we came home, we had people cheering and encouraging us along the way. 2020 is harder than 2019 because this is a fresh and different kind of adversity. I am sure that many of you are struggling with the pandemic’s “shelter in place” in some of the same ways. GBS without a doubt was the biggest challenge I have faced in my life. The difference this year is I don’t have the people around me as I did last year. Dottie and I are fortunate to have each other but it is tough going through this pretty much by ourselves. Like us, You are tired, lonely, and Frustrated. Asking, “When will this ever end?” You are longing life to get back to normal. I am grateful that Jesus says in Matthew,  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Picked this one because i wish I was at the beach 🙂

Reading through Proverbs in June teaches God want us to wait on Him. Be patient. Trust that He already knows the outcome of the Covid19 story and as this song reminds us, He has never failed us yet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B_lnQIITxU When we do Isaiah 40 lifts us up knowing “those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength”. I will look unto the hills, to the One who loves me, for rest in my soul and a renewed strength. How bout you?

Have you found this blog helpful? Please subscribe so that you can get email updates when new material is posted. You can also reach me at [email protected]

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What does it mean to be a Father?

I wish I could remember what Coach Jensen said that day in 8th grade. I know I admired him, if only because his brother was the great Jackie Jensen. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/jenseja01.shtml Jackie played for my beloved New York Yankees and was the AL MVP for the rival Red Sox in 1958. But I digress ? I came home from school that day in 1968 and announced to my mom, “I know what I want to be when I grow up” I wish she was here to wish I had asked her while she was alive what she thought I might say? I do remember her surprise when she nicely asked what it was I wanted to be. “I want to be a coach and a dad!” Given how I felt about Coach Jensen and my Lions Club baseball coaches, Larry Rentch and Tom Proctor, the 1st answer made sense. The dad part took my mom totally by surprise. I have coached folks all my life in sports, business, and personal development but I never worked as a coach. 52 years later, on this my 39th Father’s Day, I got the second part right and nothing I have accomplished in my life means more to me.

Dottie and I are blessed with 3 children (a boy and two girls) who are all now married and have allowed me to reach another goal; becoming a grandfather. The now 7 grandchildren affectionately call me, “MRG or MRGie.” I knew I wanted to be a dad but not until they moved past the toddler or what I called the “physically tiring” stage of life did I realize the great responsibility that comes along with the title, Dad.

I am one of 6 kids and if there is one thing for sure, Mom and Dad did a great job teaching us to find our own way. We are all very different and didn’t always do the right thing nor did we always think the same way as our parents. One thing we did know is we were loved and that our Buppy and Papa, the General were our biggest fans As I wrote in my Mother’s Day blog, we are all trying to live out that legacy they created for us to follow. https://thankfulinallthings.com/mothers-day-how-does-it-answer-the-question-what-does-it-mean-to-leave-a-legacy/


I am not surprised that the Lord would have me reading through Proverbs during the month of June. It started as a challenge to a younger friend who has started his own faith journey. I had shared my thoughts about how we are to Study so we can learn, seek Understanding and then make ourselves Vulnerable in our interactions with others. He had never read the Bible so we decided to read one chapter a day since there are 30 chapters. I thought I was doing it for him. God, my Heavenly Father, had other plans because you see, as a child of God, He wants me to mature and become the man He created. I take seriously the responsibility of doing the same for my kids and now, their kids. For me, there is no better legacy I could leave. The recurring theme in Proverbs is instruction or as Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young sang, “teach your children well”

Here are just a few living and parenting tips that come out of Proverbs. Pay attention. Listen well. Maintain discretion.. Pursue knowledge. Heed Instruction. Know that you are in full sight of the Lord. I am not perfect so don’t make others feel like they have to be. Be grateful for God’s grace and mercy. Offer the same to everyone around you. Love the Lord always and love others in the same way.

As I shared earlier, my parents let us grow up with the thought, “you can be anyone you want.” I am sure Dad would have loved for one of his children to have gone into the military. None of us did but he was proud of and bragged on us all the time. Dottie and I can certainly say the same about JM, Katie, and Becca. Our greatest joy is watching them learn how to be incredible parents. Yes the CTNY song, reminds us to teach our children well. But is also shares to do it well, you must have a code.” Mine comes from the greatest commandment in the bible. “Love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and soul. Love your children (inserted for effect here) and everyone else as I have loved you Joshua 24:15 says, “ But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” What is the code on which you stand to teach your children? As you strive to teach your children well, Make sure know the code.

Learn more about the journey that inspired me to write this blog. www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie contact me at [email protected] Please subscribe to this blog so you can get email updates when new posts are added.

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What does it mean to be made new?

I heard a sermon yesterday where the pastor preached on 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. It talks about how through our trusting in the Lord, we are made a new creation. We are given the opportunity for our lives to be transformed. My recovery from Guillain Barre has given me a new appreciation for what that means. I have thought a great deal and now have written about how my life has changed because of my auto immune system going haywire in late February/early March of 2019. This morning in a devotional written by Randy Wolff he talked about how a friend of his is handling suffering. It communicates exactly what I have been trying to articulate over these last few months.  “Suffering woke me up! I am fully awake and aware of new lessons being learned daily. I just knew about the lessons before. Now I really know priority and who to depend upon.”Sometimes we all need suffering to make us fully awake and alive. I am now convinced of this truth. I have more faith because of what I have experienced.” This quote is exactly why I started this blog. I want to choose and encourage others to be thankful in all things, good or bad.

Sometimes we all need suffering to make us fully awake and alive.

What follows is the way I paraphrased 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 to personalize it for me. “Since my bout with Guillain Barre Syndrome I now know what it is to fear the Lord and why I now feel compelled to persuade others to do the same. I am not trying to commend myself to you but am touched and humbled by folks saying my faith and fight has been an inspiration. I am thankful that my recovery has given me an opportunity to answer those who dwell on what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. Christ’s love and the love shown to me and Dottie is what compelled us, because we are convinced that the one who died for all, Jesus, met us in what was indeed a nadir moment. So from now on I will strive to regard nothing from a worldly point of view. Though I believed Christ would be our rock no matter what, I now know it to be true. I speak boldly that Therefore, since I know I am in Christ, the new creation has come both physically and spiritually. I am learning the old has gone and because of what I have and am going through, a new me is here!  I am ,therefore, Christ’s ambassador, and God has given me a platform to make His appeal to you through me. I write to implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. Why? Because one never knows when adversity will come your way and you definitely want God at your side when it does.” God has showed up time and time again for me which has given me renewed confidence in a promise I have always known to be true and now has been verified.