The thesis of the book is that we too easily deceive ourselves into believing that "other" people are the source of our unhappiness. Using the example of a husband who pretends not to hear the baby crying in the middle of the night, all while feeling he should get up and tend to the child out of love for his wife, the book points to the need to be faithful to our impulses of service. Once the husband in the book betrayed his sense of responsibility to his wife, he justifies that betrayal by deciding that his wife is just lazy--thereby deceiving himself into believing the wrong person was lazy. This puts the man "in the box" of self-deception, which leads to broken relationships and hard feelings all around. The rest of the book underscores the need to be selfless, focused on the needs of others, and working toward the good of the company/community.
The application to the church is obvious. If we are less concerned with ourselves, with personal offense, and with the shortcomings of others, then we are free to the live call of the Gospel, to be a witness to the power of God in Christ. As A.E.Whitham once wrote (and I paraphrase), "A firefighter who is rushing to put out a fire would take no notice of someone who yelled something offensive." It's too easy to walk around as a victim, when we need to be about the work God has called us to do.
Next in line is, "Now, Discover Your Strenths."
2 comments:
You’ve piqued my interest in the above mentioned book. You mentioned that it was written from a ‘business-world’ perspective. Was it also from an inherently religious perspective? It is interesting to me that it seems to say (from what I can gather from your review, such as the illustration of the husband not helping the infant) that humans have – by nature – an inclination to serve. That seems, from a secular perspective, counterintuitive to me.
If there is a religious underpinning to the book they mask it (intentionally or unintentionally). But you are correct, there is an assumption that most humans want to do "the right thing." Where that inclination comes from is never addressed, be it a desire to be a good spouse or employee or citizen. It's assumed. Maybe that's the subject of a different book by Arbinger.
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