Friday, January 4, 2008

The Traveler's Gift - Book Review

This book was a Christmas present from a dear and cherished friend, Ken Rogers. The book has a subtitle of: Seven Decisions that Determine Personal Success and is an easy read. It is written as a narrative in which David Ponder, a 46 year-old man who feels like a total failure as his life seems to be unraveling around him, travels back in time to meet leaders and heroes at crucial moments in their lives. From each one David receives one decision that will determine his success. By making these decisions David gets a second chance to create a life worth living, no matter what opposition or obstacles he might face.

The people David Ponder encounters and the seven decisions are:
Harry Truman – The buck stops here. I am responsible for my past and my future.
King Solomon – I will seek wisdom. I will be a servant to all.
Joshua Chamberlain – I am a person of action. I seize the moment. I choose now.
Christopher Columbus – I have a decided heart. My destiny is assured.
Anne Frank – Today I will choose to be happy. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.
Abraham Lincoln – I will greet each day with a forgiving spirit. I will forgive myself.
Gabriel the Angel – I will persist without exception. I am a person of great faith.

One scene that really challenged me was when Gabriel was showing David through this VERY, VERY large warehouse (so large that David could not see all of it) filled with pictures, papers and gadgets. David could not figure out what it was all about or why he was there so he asked Gabriel, “What is this place?” This is the answer that was given, “This, my friend, is the place that never was. This is the place where we keep all the things that were about to be delivered just as a person stopped working and praying for them. The contents of this warehouse are filled with the dreams and goals of the less courageous.”

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

iipastor.blogspot.com; You saved my day again.

Anonymous said...

Hi, i think that i saw you visited my blog so i came to
“return the favor”.I am attempting to find things to enhance my site!
I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!


Also visit my webpage bmi chart for women

Anonymous said...

Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up.
The text in your article seem to be running off the screen in Opera.
I'm not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with web browser compatibility but I
figured I'd post to let you know. The design and style look great
though! Hope you get the issue fixed soon. Thanks

my homepage: ottawa houses for sale

Anonymous said...

I couldn't refrain from commenting. Exceptionally well written!

Feel free to visit my homepage - what is the best security system

Anonymous said...

Hello, of course this piece of writing is in fact nice and I have learned
lot of things from it regarding blogging. thanks.


My blog post; Prosolution

Anonymous said...

Remember that women want to be part of YOUR world, not the
other way around. As a strong man, a man who
your woman RESPECTS and is sexually attracted to - it is your job to instigate the
sex. I don't go along because I have to stay inside with the cordless phone ready
to dial 911.

Feel free to surf to my homepage :: Macho Alfa PDF