VisionPassionFaith"The last of the human freedoms: to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."- Viktor Frankl
"People get discouraged. They should remember, from me, it takes courage to not be discouraged."- Ben Ferencz
"There is no pit so deep, that God's love is not deeper still" - Corrie Ten Boom
VisionPassionFaithSince my next blog series is going to be on women and wellness, I thought I’d do my last blog post in this series, “My Takeaways & The New Show 'Takeaways’,” on the segment that Kirk did with his sister Candace Cameron Bure.
Kirk's entire series to date, is really great! He shares wisdom, thoughts, and perspectives with both men and women, and I highly recommend watching.
As a young girl, all I wanted was to get married, and have children. I was not one of those women who dreamed of a “career.” Though I did well in school, I was more interested in the arts, as well as seeking for truth in my life. I learned early on my first year in law school, that man’s laws can be quite different than God’s laws, and through the years, it becomes more and more evident to me.
As a woman, I look out into our culture, and ask where are all the great female role models? As I listened to this interview, when Kirk mentioned the fact that Woman's Day Magazine named Candace their chief spiritual advisor, I thought how terrific!!!
Candace is a mom, wife, “celebrity,” and also a woman of grace, faith, and hope. For me, this was one of my favorite interviews, and I hope that other women, as well as men, enjoy all she shares!
Kirk talks about the fact that people often get angry with those who don’t think like them, act like them, and don't believe like they do. I have witnessed this most of my life, and I do believe that now especially, it is more common than not. Kirk asks his sister,” how does she manage to stay kind among opposing views,” etc...
“A gentle voice will diffuse a situation,” Candace says. Kirk mentions the verse in
Proverbs (Proverbs 15:1 “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”), and they go on to talk a bit about kindness.
“Kindness does not mean you have to be agreeable,” Candace shares,” it just means you have to be kind and respectful.” She goes on to talk about the importance of being calm and also sober in demeanor.
Kirk makes a great point when he says that sometimes one can be kind, and it can “blow up” in his/her face. He asks the question as to "how can we be kind without becoming a doormat for someone?"
Candace agrees that sometimes kindness does not work. She goes on to share that one can still be respectful and kind, but it does not mean one has to be a doormat. One can be kind, and also strong and tough at the same time. Kirk mentions the great Bible verse Micah 6:8 “Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with God.”
Later in the interview they talk about joy. Kirk asks the question to his sister as to how does she find joy when storms are circling around? Candace makes the distinction between joy and happiness, and I do agree, that there is a true distinction.
She says that “Joy comes from the inside and sustains you when circumstances around you are tough/unhappy. Happiness is conditionally based, and that can change at any moment.” She goes on to say there are many days where she may be unhappy, but she still has joy. “The joy I have comes from God.”
Later on it the interview they talk about peace, and how true peace comes from God.
Be sure to check out the full interview on TBN, it is wonderful!
VisionPassionFaithLast year I did a blog series on Leadership. In the interview series, the question was asked, “What is the definition of a good leader?”
Some of the answers to this question were the following:
- “good leaders inspire one another;”
- “everyone gets to be a leader in their life, whether in a community, family, sports, etc.;”
- “leaders put others' first and lead by example;”
- “good leaders pull from others' strengths and ally their team to grow;”
- “good leaders treat people like they want to be treated, and hold others’ accountable;”
- “A good leader is someone who can look at their team and work with each individual’s strengths.”
The format of all my blog interviews are always fun and unique, and I end each section with a “My Takeaways” part. With my new series “My Takeaways & The New Show 'Takeaways,” I was excited to write about Kirk Cameron’s interview with Mike Huckabee. They both share so much wisdom, perspectives, and thoughts on the topics of faith and leadership (and more)! Hope you enjoy!
Kirk asks the important question to Mr. Huckabee as to what makes a good leader? He goes on to say that in today’s “climate” – politically, spiritually, economically, and culturally, we need good leaders and good leaders are tasked with making good decisions.
The question of spirituality and faith is a great topic to delve into further, especially with Mr Huckabee's diverse experience as a pastor, past Arkansas governor, popular communicator and bass player. Kirk goes on to ask Mr. Huckabee, how can a leader make decisions wisely and influence.
Mr. Huckabee shares the following:
#1. To lead by loving not by shoving. Love people and don't condemn people.
#2. Leaders don't ask others to do what they themselves are unwilling to do themselves.
#3. Know deep down that what you are putting forth comes from a true belief and a conviction.
#4. Leadership is like being a musician. Before one plays a song, one has to tune the instrument. The question one must ask, is what are you tuned to? In music, we play to a fixed standard, that is unchanging and rigid. The “c note” is always the “c note.”
Kirk and Mr. Huckabee go on to discuss the importance of looking for opportunities to link arms with others. They both share some great examples of how this can be done. One of the examples that Kirk gives, which was quite powerful I thought, was the fact that his pastor at his church welcomed all people, and many who came to attend were those who had a deep love of freedom. He specifically mentions surfers and skaters who were seeing their “streams of liberty drying up” and they wanted to move “upstream” to find the source of liberty. He goes on to state that liberty is God’s idea and not man's idea, and this is a great example of the common value of loving freedom, and wanting to learn more about where liberty comes from.
I love how Kirk makes the distinction between God’s ideas, and man’s ideas. They can be very different, just as “man's laws” can be very opposed to God’s laws. I do believe that great leaders know this, and understand the distinctions.
If you have time, check out the entire interview on TBN.
