Ask your doctor if SPAGARD is right for you

May 10, 2005 General

Hello, my name is Greg Taylor, and I have ARD.

A lot of people are suffering these days from ARD: Attention Requirement Disorder.

Notably, ministers often crave attention, recognition and affirmation and therefore “suffer” from ARD. But ministers aren’t the only ones who contract ARD. Artists, writers, bloggers, doctors, teachers and those in many other vocations and stations in life can all potentially have ARD.

You may have ARD if you do the following:

  • Check your email often, many times looking for affirmation of your ideas and proposals
  • Constantly look for affirmation from spouse, boss, co-workers, even from children
  • Require compliments on your accomplishments in order to feel proud of them
  • Always asking for feedback from everyone regarding things you say, teach, preach, do, and participate in.

    Granted, some people are loved with words of affirmation rather than other forms of love such as touch, acts of service, and gift-giving, but any of the ways we feel love can potentially lead to ARD.

    Can we medicate ARD? No, but we can treat it. Ask your doctor if SPAGARD is right for you. S-P-A-G-A-R-D helps sooth those inflamed attention requirement glands and settle you down to work without anxiously seeking affirmation from your peers and loved ones. A daily regimen of SPAGARD gives ARD sufferers these daily requirements in order to overcome:

  • Solitude
  • Prayer
  • Attend to others
  • Give without others knowing
  • Accomplish work without affirmation at every turn and learning to feel satisfied with a job well done and not the words “well done” from anyone but God the Father
  • Run to God for building identity
  • Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God

    S-P-A-G-A-R-D . . . ask your doctor if it’s right for you. Do it for all the loved ones in your life.

    • Greg Taylor

    My wife, Jill, and I have three children: Ashley, Anna, and Jacob. We live in Broken Arrow and I preach for The Journey: a New Generation Church of Christ in Tulsa (www.thejourneychurch.faith). I have a B.A. in Journalism and an M.Div. from Harding School of Theology in Memphis, Tennessee. Before coming to Tulsa, we lived in Nashville, Tennessee four years, where I worked with The Zoe Group and Wineskins Magazine. From 1994-2001 we lived in Jinja, Uganda, where we worked with a church planting team, an experience that forever changed our lives. With Randy Harris, I co-authored Living Jesus: Doing What Jesus Says in the Sermon on the Mount and you can learn about other books I've written at my web site, www.gregtaylor.org. My most recent book co-authored with Randy is Daring Faith: Meeting Jesus in the Book of John.

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    8 Responses

    1. David U says:
      May 10, 2005 at 11:02 am

      Great post Greg! Sure was great to see you last week, dude! Keep posting….you challenge us when you do!

      DU

    2. Fajita says:
      May 10, 2005 at 11:37 am

      Gt, you’ve nailed it. I have a serious case of ARD, blog type.

      Thanks for the cure.

    3. john alan turner says:
      May 10, 2005 at 12:03 pm

      Dude,
      I am so guilty of this. And I’ve probably looked to you a couple of times for my fix. Sorry. Great to see you last week, and congrats on the whole Tulsa thing.

    4. Wade says:
      May 10, 2005 at 12:05 pm

      Great post Greg. One of the best I’ve ever read. I affirm it. I affirm you. You are awesome!

      What Tulsa thing?

    5. Kevin Hammond says:
      May 10, 2005 at 12:41 pm

      Ouch. Don’t hit so close to home next time…

      (…actually, GREAT post…)

    6. Keith Brenton says:
      May 10, 2005 at 12:51 pm

      I love people like david u, and him especially. He is a great enabler for my chronic ARD.

      Is SPAGARD effective against Diotrephes Syndrome too? I got a bad case of it …

    7. Milton Stanley says:
      May 10, 2005 at 4:15 pm

      Greg–You’ve got my attention; I read your blog regularly. And just remember: You’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and doggone it, people like you! Also, SPAGARD seems like a good solution to not have to depend on affirmation from schlumps like me. Peace.

    8. Rudy says:
      May 18, 2005 at 5:51 pm

      OK, I’ll help to deflate your ARDiness.

      You smile too much, give away your time, talents and money waaaaaay too much. And, you can’t stick with one home location. You seem to think you must go where God leads you.

      See? You’re not so perfect. Who needs affirmation of that?

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