Book Summaries

Tramp for the Lord & The Hiding Place

By Corrie Ten Boom

 

(“Tramp for the Lord” is sequel to “The Hiding Place” — 1st set of notes from Tramp and 2nd set from Hiding Place)

 

– She is literally proof of what God can do with the person that is filled with the Holy Spirit.

– She started Bible groups in the prison camp so that others would know.

– She prayed that God would take away the bitterness that she had for her enemies and gave testimony that God did that for her (although this one not a one-time prayer but a battle she would overcome at times).

– One day when she thought she was going to die, she prayed that God would give her one more chance to witness before she was executed.

– She was released from the prison camp because of an administrative blunder. Come to find out, every woman her age was killed the next week. God saved her.

– Singing was one of the ways that her and other ladies kept her courage.

– When she was going into a prison camp in Germany, she was scared she would get caught with her Bible that was hanging around her neck. She prayed that God would protect her. When she went through the lines, the guards checked the people in front of her and behind her, never touching her.

– When the war was over, she believed God wanted her to be a missionary to America. She prayed the paperwork would work out and God began to move the mountains.

– She had become bitter at a man that tricked them to take all their money and sent her family to the concentration camp. She hated the man but then gave her bitterness to God and forgave the man. Later, when the man was on death row, she corresponded with him and he got saved.

– She said that working in the flesh instead of the power of the Spirit can be tedious and tiring.

– You never touch so much the ocean of God’s love as when you forgive another.

– God always has more for us than we can think of asking

– It is not our job to give God the tasks but to report for duty.

– It is not enough just to tell someone you forgive them, you must live it out. Remember that God threw their sins in the depths of the sea just like He did yours.

– We can trust God for emotions as well as for thoughts.

 

The Hiding Place

– Her dad, mom and her and her sister were watchmakers. Both her and her sister were single and lived at home.

– She was 53 years old when taken to prison.

– Her dad was very hospitable to people and when Germany started taking the Jews, they began to help the Jews by hiding them in their house or help them stay elsewhere.

– They had a code, using watches as their system, to tell others when they had a Jew who was in need.

– Both her dad and sister ended up dying in prison.

– At one point in prison, her sister told her that they need to give thanks for everything. She didn’t like this idea at first and specifically, when her sister said she was thankful for the fleas, she thought her sister was going to far. Later they began to use a room for preaching because the guards did not want to step foot in that “flea-infested room”… she remembered how her sister was right about being thankful for the fleas.

Winning with People

by John Maxwell

 

– It doesn’t matter what you work or do, if you can win with people then you will do well.

– People do not reach their full potential not because they are not talented but because they do not know how to work with people.

– We will see others from our own outlook – if we are critical, we will see everyone else as critical. If we are compassionate, we will see others as compassionate.

– Timing is important — when asking forgiveness, asking a favor or whatever it maybe.

– Selfishness will always hurt every relationship. We must put our personal agendas aside and build our relationships.

– Our attitudes and actions affect more than just the words that we say. Our tone of voice and how we act is more important than just the words.

– If our reaction is bigger than the action, the problem will become only bigger.

– The law of the elevator is that you lift people up or take them down. What other people say that you left them up or pull them down?

– There are 4 kinds of people in relationships:

1. Those to add value. Do all the good to all the people you can in every way that you can whenever you can – DL Moody Adding value to others requires that you give of yourself. Make it your goal to be a friend and add value to others. You’re more than the average guy and help everyone around you. Add value to everyone around you and to the job you have.

2. Some subtract things from life. We tolerate these people. Some people subtract from relationships by default because they do not add to the relationship. In relationships, receiving is easy but giving us more difficult.

3. Dividers. People that just want to cause some kind of division. If there’s someone good or better than them, they want to get rid of them.

4. Lifters. Those who lift up others around them.

 

– Caring for people should always come before confronting people.

– The people who learn the most are not necessarily the people who spend more time with smart people, they are people with a teachable attitude.

– Learn to smile, it is inviting.

– Remember that a person’s name is a sweet sound to their ears.

– Make other people feel important and do it sincerely.

– Believing the best in people brings out the best of those people.

– Everybody needs somebody. The question is not if we need others, but how much we need others.

– Reminding people who you are, your position or what you have done will never get you far in a friendship or any relationship.

– Being a victim and always feeling sorry for yourself will kill any friendship or relationship.

 

– Six ways of conflict resolution:

1. Confront a person only if you care for that person.

2. Meet with each other ASAP. Many times when there’s a problem, we try to avoid it or wait a long time to talk… this is a mistake. The more time you wait the bigger the problem gets. Meeting in person is always the best. Talking on the phone is possible if you cannot meet in person, but never do it via text or email.

3. Seek understanding, not necessarily agreement. Don’t give judgment before you understand. You cannot reach understanding if your focus is on yourself.

4. Outline the issue. Let the other person know how you feel about what is happening without attacking the person.

5. Encourage a response. Never finish a conversation without letting the other person respond.

6. Agree to an action plan. Working on an action plan shows you’re focusing on the future instead of the past or problems.

 

– Instead of putting people in their place, put yourself in their place.

– People are interested in the person that is interested in them.

– You can learn something from everyone if you will be teachable.

– Believing the best in people will usually bring the best out of people.

– Trust is the foundation of any relationship.

– Never let the situations be more important than your relationship.

– Do you see the big picture or just a bad picture?

– Do not make every situation a life or death situation.

– Be approachable to talk to.

– Be the kind of friend that others can trust.

– Relationships is like everything else, you get out of them what you invest in them.

 

– The People Principals in Relationships:

1. The gardening principle – all relationships need cultivation to grow.

2. The 101% principle – find the 1% that you agree on and give it your 100%. Most people look for the differences for whatever reason, but find what you can agree on, the common ground.

3. The patience principal – the journey with others is always slower than the journey alone. All good relationships take time.

4. The celebration principle – the real question is not how loyal we are when our friends fail, but how much we rejoice with them when they succeed.

5. The highroad principle – we go to another level by treating others better than they treat us. We can only take three routes: the low road where we treat others worse than they treat us; the middle toad where we treat others the same as they treat us; or the high road where we treat others better than they treat us.

You Can If you Think You Can

by Norman Vincent Peale

 

– Some people believe that life will be better if we did not have problems, but we would not be better off without the problems. Problems can actually be good for us.

– No one in a cemetery has problems, not a one… but they are dead.

– Every problem has within it the seeds of a solution.

– The only way to make strong people is through struggles.

– Character needs challenges to mature.

– You can if you think you can, but it is in your attitude.

– When fate throws a dagger at you, you have two ways to grab it: by the blade or by the handle.

– No one can escape problems, but you can look at them in a different way. Adopting a new attitude is the first step in overcoming and conquering problems.

– What is keeping you from running towards your goal? There are two big things that fight for control of your mind: fear and faith.

– Don’t let your fears push you around, believe that you can and start acting like it.

– One way to prepare for fear is to realize that all the resources you need are in your mind… they’re just waiting for you to summon them.

– Quit thinking about yourself and think of the others that need what you have.

– To give up is to invite complete defeat.

– If what you’re trying does not work, then, approach the problem another way. If that doesn’t work, then try another way. But the key does lie within you and you can get through the problem.

– If you want to win at something, do not talk defeat. You can actually talk yourself out of something by indulging yourself in negative language.

– If you are going to win and get through problems, fill your mind with the thought that it is too soon to quit and you can get through the problem.

– Will you give up or will you keep trying? What you decide is what will decide your future.

– When a problem comes your way, do not complain or give up, find the solution. Remember that every problem contains a solution within it.

– Have confidence. If you can think straight under pressure, the answer will come to you.

– Successful people do not get over alarmed by the problems and they do not get frightened by problems.

– When there is a problem, research, dissect and analyze.

– Your mind is a very complex organ. If you can calmly accept and think through a problem, you can find a solution.

– No matter what difficulty faces your life, you can handle it if you only believe you can.

– You will never know what you can do unless you try. And if you will keep moving forward with a positive attitude and persistence, you will get it done.

– Know where you want to go, what you want to be and go at achieving it.

– Pray about your goal. If it is not right, then don’t do it, but if it is a right goal then work at it. Nothing wrong ever turned out right and nothing right turned out wrong.

– Everyone faces crisis, but anticipating the worst will cause you to freeze up. Visualize that you can do it in your mind and your heart and actions will follow that visualization.

The Disciplines of the Christian Life

by Eric Liddell

 

– A life of discipleship. The key to discipleship is knowing God.

– Obedience is the secret to insight and knowing God. Not willingness to go, but willingness to do.

– Every Christian should live a God-guided life.

– Doing God’s will was like meat to Jesus – John 4:34

– You will know as much of God’s will as you are willing to do and to put in practice.

– Surrender your own will to whatever God wants.

– Honesty is yet another discipline that we need as Christians. Honesty with money, with work, with others, etc.

– Love – it is never rude, it is always patient, it is always open, never selfish, never selfcentered, always slow to expose, always eager to leave the best, is hopeful, it never fails.

– Humility – never justifies itself and never pushes itself forward. It self examine’s and always looks to the Savior. Pride is the great enemy of humility. Humility is not looking out for self yet always willing to reconcile if it has done wrong.

– To know God.

• To know God you must spend time with him every day.

• When you spend time with God:

1. Take time to just be silent.

2. Name the things that you are thankful for.

3. Reflect on what the challenges are to accept with God’s help

4. Reflect on what the new truths or challenges you received from God’s word today.

5. Remember your duty to witness for God in every moment throughout the day.

• Learn verses and learn hymns to be able to say and sing.

– Sin is the thing that separates us from God; it brings consequences.

– If we neglect time praying to God by saying that we can pray any time, we will likely pray at no time.

– Faith cast fear and feelings aside.

– Pure – Pure in speech, pure in body, pure in habits. Pure in mind and thought, pure in outlook towards those of the opposite sex.

– Self-discipline is essential in the Christian life.

– The only way to face persecution is to rejoice.

– Lordship means saying not my will but thine.

– We are stewards

– We could be slothful stewards (Matthew 25:14-30) but we could also be faithful stewards (1 Corinthians 4:1–2).

– We are to be stewards of our finances, stewards of our minds, stewards of our bodies, memory, education, gifts, time, talents, etc. All to be used for his will not our will.

– Do not live in fear. Fear paralyzes faith. If God put something in your heart to do, do it even if you are afraid. Fear does not come from looking at yourself but looking at Jesus.

– In Mark 5:36, Jesus says not to be afraid but only believe. Faith acts and victory follows.

The Complete Negotiator

by Gerard Nierenberg

 

– Life is not a game that only one can win, it is more that both sides can win.

– You get further in life by understanding the other person.

– Instead of thinking your ideas are the rational ones and the other person’s are irrational, spend more time trying to understand the person instead of condemning the person.

– You should listen to the other person. This does not mean that you have to change your premises but it doesn’t mean that you can understand the other person to work it out better.

– A successful negotiation is one in which everyone wins.

– Negotiation requires communication, which requires both listening and speaking.

– People show more of their attitude by nonverbal actions than they do verbally. Learn to look at how they are communicating verbally, pay attention. A good negotiator listens with both the eyes and the ears.

– Keep control of the situation by not responding according to their reactions.

– You control the climate, the climate does not control you.

The Coaching Habit

by Michael Stanier

 

– Coaching should be a daily, informal event not a rare, formal event that is announced.

– Coaching lies within building and helping others.

– Theory is no good if you do not know how to put it into practice.

– Ask just one question and then keep quiet and listen so they can respond.

– Small talk might be a way to start up, but it rarely leads to a good conversation piece.

– Be careful not to coach for performance but for development.

– If you know what questions to ask, get straight to the point.

– Instead of warming up or waiting around hoping to get to the point, just ask the question and then shut up and listen to what the person has to say.

– Tell less and ask more.

– Ask one more time. We tend to not ask enough, so for clarity sake, make sure to ask one more time.

– Learn to say “and what else”.

– Do not ask a rhetorical question, ask a real question.

– Begin with “what’s on your mind?”

– The reasonable man adapts himself to the world, the unreasonable man tries to adapt the world to himself. Therefore it is the unreasonable man that makes the progress.

– Commit more slowly by not saying yes or no so quickly. Listen and ask questions.

– When you have to say no, make sure it is clear that you’re saying no to the task and not note to the person.

– There are book ends to a good conversation when coaching someone: “what’s on your mind” to start and “what was most helpful to you” to finish.

– Add more curiosity. A little less advice and a lot more of curiosity will get you further.

The Art of the Deal

by Donald Trump

 

– Some of the best deals are the ones you do not make.

– Always listen to your gut feeling and not just what looks good on paper.

– You need to be able to act promptly.

– He has his food ordered in and sent to his office because going out to eat is a waste of time in his opinion.

– He does not like parties but will go if he needs to for business purposes.

– Aim high and keep pushing, pushing, pushing to get what you are aiming for.

– A lot of dealmaking is not about intelligence but about instincts.

– Think big. If you have to think anyways, you might as well think big. Most people think small.

– Don’t take too seriously your critics.

– Leverage is having something the other guy needs or wants – always deal with leverage.

– Deliver the goods. You can create excitement and get away with things for a while, but eventually people will figure it out and you cannot con them forever… You must deliver the goods.

– Contain the cost – spend what you have to but don’t spend what you don’t have to.

– When all of his friends in college were reading comics, he was reading books on politics and other important issues.

– Anything cleaned up and maintained is worth more money – if you wax and polish your car, you could probably get $400 more out of it; and the same goes with real estate and everything else.

– It does not stay up at night worrying about many things, it is mainly an optimist.

– Be direct, simple and enthusiastic.

– A good-looking presentation goes a long way.

– Quality attracts more quality.

– Credibility is crucial.

– Hire the best people and give them a salary they deserve and you will have a topclass organization.

– There are times when you must be aggressive and other times we must be willing to just lay back and be calm.

– Great management pays off.

– A good view is worth a small fortune.

– In any partnership, you are only as strong as your weakest link.

– Leadership is the key to getting the job done.

– You are not measured by how much you undertake, but how much you accomplish.

– Learn to overcome obstacles and motivate others to do their work.

The Art of Storytelling

by Jeff Davidson

 

– Storytelling is something that has been done in every culture throughout history.

– Storytelling is essentially using props or anything to get your point across when sharing something.

– But good storytelling is not merely using a prop as it is involving their own lives into that of the listeners.

– Good storytellers formulate images in the mind of their listeners so they can imagine and be with them in the story in order that the listeners can share the experience with the speaker.

– It is important to understand that the audience speaks to the storyteller just as much as the storyteller speaks to the audience. With their movements, their eyes, sitting up or different cues with their body that communicate with the storyteller.

– Good storytellers are not just giving a performance to the audience as much as they are involving the audience.

– The storyteller must not get so wrapped up in his story that he loses the audience and does not take them along with him. If he does not make eye contact, the right amount of pauses, etc., the audience will drift off.

– If you understand the motivation of why you are sharing the story more than just the fact that you’re sharing the story, it will greatly help you get your story across to the people.

– If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then a story is worth many thousands if not millions.