Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts

For the past couple of months I have enjoyed writing for this blog.  It has helped me begin to refine my writing skills and allowed me to have a broader voice in the world around me.  I have been amazed each day to review the analytics for my blog to discover that it has been viewed by people all around the world.  We truly do live in a global community.

I have also enjoyed serving in full time ministry as a youth pastor for the past five years.  This calling on my life has helped me become more of the person that God has called me to be.  I have walked hand in hand with teenagers that have lost brothers and sisters, made the transition into college, accepted calls into ministry, and much more.  I find it very humbling that so many teenagers have allowed me to influence their lives over the years.

Most of my life I have enjoyed the friendship of my friend Tom Wise.  It seems very ironic that we both serve as youth pastors so close to where we grew up together.  However, I have come to realize that there is no such thing as coincidence in God’s plans.  Over the years his friendship has challenged me to be a better person and helped me to not take life so seriously.  I am blessed to have him as a friend.

These past few years have brought many changes into my life and many new people.  One of those persons is Todd Morris.  Over the past few years he has quickly become a life long friend.  Much like Tom he has helped me become a better person and challenged be to strive towards things I did not think I could accomplish.  His confidence in me has given me the courage to try new things and helped me feel comfortable in being myself.  I am a better man for having him as my friend.

You may wonder at this point why any of that matters.  Well, for you it matters very little, but for me these factors are working together once again to change the direction of my life.  Unfortunately this will be the last blog post you read from me on this site for a while.  But it will not be the last you hear from me unless you choose to have it that way.

I am excited to announce that I am partnering with Tom Wise and Todd Morris to launch a new site.  Once the new site is up and running I will be writing in a blog format once again.  This new site will be focused on helping people of all ages and all walks of life explore the mysteries of God.  I hope that all of you that are subscribers here at this blog will continue to read on the new blog.  The blog content will be much the same but it will be incorporated into a much larger web-site.  I look forward to an ongoing dialogue with you.

The current question on my Facebook status is “Do you know what God desires for you life?”  This is the question that we hope to help individuals answer on the new site. As well as provide resources to parents and youth workers that will help create environments in the home and church to accomplish this same task.

I hope that this new site will only take a couple of months to get up and running.  I look forward to writing once again.

Think about this question for just a moment.

Have you ever imagined what life would be like if you had unlimited resources?  Perhaps you have seen shows that capture the lifestyles of the rich and famous and wondered what it would be like to show up at a restaurant and just order whatever you wanted.  Or what it would be like to walk onto the lot of a car dealership and pick out what you want, then pay in cash (without having to negotiate the price).  I could handle that lifestyle.
The above exercise can help you help you live like a billionaire.  If you sat down and asked yourself this question about the different areas of your life, you could quickly begin to see some changes in your direction and quality of life.  For instance:

1. How would I express my love towards my wife if I had unlimited resources and time?
   
   Maybe you would buy her a diamond ring to show your affection for her.  Or maybe you would treat her to freauent spa treatments or massages.  Could it be a new car?  Maybe you would take her to that expensive restaurant she has been wanting to go to (in Paris, New York, or Venice).  Would you send her back to school to finish getting her degree? 
   What about these questions?
   
   
2. What type of job would I have if I had unlimited resources and time?
3. What would I give to charity if I had unlimited resources and time?
4. What would I do for myself if I had unlimited resources and time?

When you take time to answer these questions you will have a solution to begin to work backwards from.  You can now begin to put a plan in place to see some of these things happen.  And along the way you can give the best you can with your current resources in equivalent ways.  If you cannot afford a diamond ring, then give her the best gift that you can that says I took the time to pick this out with you in mind.  If you cannot afford weekly trips to the spa, then pay to have her nails done every once in a while and give her a massage yourself once a week.  If you cannot afford a nice restaurant in London, then get a sitter for the weekend and make a candle light dinner for two and you do all of the cooking.
If you want to live like a billionaire then you have to make the most of your current situation.  It is not about the money that you have, but the mindset.  Wanting to be a billionaire is less about the money and more about having the freedom to do what we want.  You have that freedom right now in the choices that you make everyday. 
The truth is, I cannot tell you how to make tons of cash.  But I can tell you that your attitude towards life is what makes you rich.  Not the amount of your paycheck.
Work backwards from your ideal dream in any area of your life and you can begin to see it take place with small steps starting today.  For most people, the fantasy of having dinner at an expensive restaurant in Paris is a fleeting desire, but to sit across the table from our spouse in any setting, knowing that the whole evening has been planned for our pleasure is worth more than Donald Trump’s bank roll can purchase.

 

I watched this video and realized that this advice is good and practical for everyday living.  How many times have you heard information passed on about a person, event, or an organization and you knew it just couldn’t be true.  This happens with others more often than we care to think and probably happens with us more often than we care to admit.

It happens so much that the web-site Snopes has been developed to debunk urban legends.  Our society gets so caught up in telling the next best story with lots of juicy details that we take little concern about who we are hurting and whether or not there is any truth in what we are passing along.

So I say, “Get you behind up out of the chair” and make sure you know what your talking about when you open your mouth or press send.  And even then it would still be prudent to care more about people than the telling of your story!

 

Have you shared anything in the past month that you knew could have been untrue or exaggerated?

Take a look at the picture to the left.  How often do you notice these persons around you?  Individuals and families that just don’t comprehend the obvious.

If at this point you are wondering what I am talking about then I am speaking to you today.  Keep looking at the photo.  Go get some help if you need to.

Today is a good day to take a step back and look at the choices that you are making.  How would you react if you saw someone else making the same choices?  Perhaps you need someone from the outside to look in. 

Maybe someone is looking at your life, your family, your choices, and they are thinking the same thing that all of us are thinking about the man in the photo.

 

What are the obvious choices that you should be making today?

I know today is Friday and many of you will be posting on your facebook, “So glad the weekend is here.”  I want to encourage you to be thankful for your job today.  In our economy many hard working men and women have lost their means of employment.  Some had been at their job for decades.

If your job does not afford you the opportunity to play to your strengths then you should begin making steps today to allow yourself that freedom.  Take matters into your own hands.  Don’t sit around and complain about being stuck in a dead end, underpaid, thankless job.

After all, you are on the job more than you are anywhere else.  More than with family, friends, and hobbies.  You should be doing something that allows you to express who you are and brings you a sense of fulfillment.  Small steps today can bring a better future for you and your family (this doesn’t necessarily mean money—money does not always equal fulfillment).

Whatever your job is today, it surely isn’t as bad as the gentleman in the picture below.  Have a great day!

 

Quote by Teddy Roosevelt
It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.  The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly…who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.

There is something about the above quote by Teddy Roosevelt that makes me want to go pick a fight with the world around me.  To mix it up a little.  To try something new, no not new, BOLD.  To be different, to be outspoken, to speak up just to see how people react, or to just say, “I’m moving on to something new!”

How often do we forget that it is a noble thing to try something new?  That it is honorable to give your life to charitable causes?  That it is bravery that compels us to do what others fear?  That it takes great character to formulate you own opinions and live your own convictions?

We forget because too many of us live among the peasants.  We live among those that have settled for what they have been given in life.  They would like to have better, but they can’t see themselves beyond their own anticipated failure.  Because that fear of failure or the cry of the critic holds on with so much power that they cannot see their God given potential.

I know it is scary to think about getting hurt or facing failure, but really, what do you have to lose?  A little pride or some dignity?  Just remember that the lessons we remember the most are the ones that come through failure and adversity.  Do something BOLD today!  Start making plans for a new future, a better marriage, or a more enjoyable work environment.

Victory only comes to those who compete.

What have you been contemplating doing that you have pushed aside because of fear or criticism?

Have you ever made one of the following statements about your family, church, or occupation?

• “We just don’t have enough money for that.”
• “How are we going to pay for it?”
• “We will have to spend a lot of money to do it right.”

I have to agree that in some cases, “you get what you pay for!”  But in other cases there is room to have big impact with little cost.  You may have to work a little harder, be more creative, or learn some things that are new to you, but if you put forth the effort you can achieve much with little.

A couple of years ago I tried to put in ceramic floor in our kitchen.  It looked great for the first few days and then the tiles started to crack.  I realized then that there was a skill to this work that I did not possess.  Thus, I will never be putting down ceramic tile in my house again. 

Now on the other hand, there are some things that I have learned to do over the years that have contributed to making our home more appealing to my wife.  Take the light in our bedroom.  It is a chandelier style light that hangs from the ceiling.  It took a while to read through the directions (yes, I did read the directions) but I was able to figure out everything that I needed to know to complete the project successfully.  I admit that it took me much longer than it would someone who had experience in such matters, but this was my very first attempt at installing a new light fixture.

It is important for us to recognize those things in every area of our life that require a special skill set to accomplish and those things that can be learned so that we do not need a professional and allow us to make a contribution without regard to how much money I have.

Here’s what it might look like for my home:

I cannot put down ceramic tile, but I can but down peel and stick vinyl tile.

I cannot remodel my home, but I can put on a fresh coat of paint.

I cannot completely rewire my house, but I can put up a new light fixture or replace a bad switch.

Here’s what it might look like with my friends:

I cannot fix Joe’s marital difficulties, but I can go to the game with him (and perhaps pay his way).

I cannot mend Sue’s broken arm, but I can take her a meal that I prepared so she doesn’t have to worry about trying to cook.

Here’s what it might look like in your church:

I cannot force Sally’s parents to come to church, but I can take the time to talk with her when she shows up.

I cannot afford to buy Bruce a new car, but I can stop by and pick him up for church.

These are just a few areas where we can have a huge impact with little money and no professional training.  We should quit looking for “white collar” answers and start doing “blue collar work.”

What is it that you can do today in spite of your financial situation and lack of professional training that will help improve your situation or someone else’s?

Tomorrow I will give you 10 things that you can do for your neighbor that you can do for under $20 and will require no special skills or training.

I am sure you have had someone in your life tell you to follow “the golden rule.”  Today I wonder if we are teaching our children and modeling the simple practice of following the “golden rule.”

Do you even know what the “golden rule” is?  If not, let me share it with you.

DO UNTO OTHERS, AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO YOU.

I dare say that if all of us would follow just this one simple task our lives and our world would be a much different place.  Just think about it for a minute if you would.  If you acted impulsively and responded harshly to someone wouldn’t you want to receive forgiveness?  If you were sick, wouldn’t you want someone to help take care of you?  If you were poor, wouldn’t you want someone to help feed your children?  If you were lonely, wouldn’t you want someone to be your friend?

I guess it is easy to know what we would want if we were in those situations and hope that we receive it, but it seems a much greater task to see others in those situations and be motivated to give them what we would want if we were in their shoes.  I guess that is probably because most of the time our favorite person to think about is “me.”  Can you relate to that?

Have you ever had someone act impulsively and respond harshly to you and you carry a grudge and say “he had know business talking to ‘me’ that way?”

Have you ever had a friend or a neighbor that is sick and you say, “ ‘I’ am working late today, ‘I’ don’t have time to stop by?”

Have you ever know someone to be poor and without food, only to say, “ ‘I’ just can’t afford to help and then go out and spend $40 on a date or $300 for an i-pod?'”

Have you ever been around someone who was always alone.  For whatever reason they couldn’t make friends and you found yourself saying, “She is just too much for ‘me’ to handle.  She wears ‘me’ out.”

Here’s a thought… What if we started putting ourselves in others shoes and responding to them the way that we would want them to respond to us, if the roles were reversed?

This is a powerful video! Please watch and think about your life. If you were to write a note to yourself at the age of 5 what would it say about the journey you would take? What would your priorities be? Just some food for thought.




If you write such a letter I would love to see it and even share it with the world via this blog if you would be comfortable with that.

Leave a comment. What are some things you would share with yourself?

With today's technology it is possible to stay connected with Christian music even when you work and travel. Here are four web-sites that will allow you to stream Christian music from your laptop, office computer, or possibly your smartphone.

Air1

KLove

Remedy.fm

Pandora


Air1, KLove, and Pandora all have apps for the i-phone and Pandora also has an app for the BlackBerry, Palm Pre, and is currently available through Windows Mobile on the following handsets: HTC Mogul on Sprint, HTC XV6900 on Verizon, HTC Touch on Sprint, Motorola Q9C on Sprint & Verizon, and Samsung SCH-i760 on Verizon.