Frustration is a tell. It is the tip off that something is up. It lets you know that there is something going on.
Continue reading Don’t Let Disappointment Ruin Your Day
Today my mom would have been 89 years old. Her legacy carries on in the lives of my children and grandchildren. They may not always know it but they get the best of her through me. When I take them places about history or science, I am reliving her life. She empowered me to think and understand. Continue reading I Don’t Wanna Grow Up
This morning I awoke very early. Too early. I did not want to be awake. I just lay there. And I decided to hang out with Him. With God. I spent some time praying. Some time meditating. But I began to think “who is God”. Not is He real? Or does He exist. Not even the where is He or why can’t I see Him. But who is He? I can list off His characteristics or describe His values. I can tell you who He says He is. (For instance I am that I am.) But then I came down to the “who am I”. Do I see God as a person looking more like me? (Why does He show up like that?) Or do I see Him as some enlivened mist? Meaning when He enters your room or the atmosphere, how is that happening? Needless to say I often end up with considerably more questions, embracing more mystery than “one who is supposed to know” perhaps ought to. Continue reading His Presence Is Present
A few nights ago, I was questioning my “existence”. I was not discouraged or depressed, but I definitely felt like there was a rabbit hole of sorts about me. My wife was away and God and I were having a pow wow about my life. Perhaps I had pulled out my checklist at some point. “This is good. This…not so much. This I do well. This is I stink at. Etc…” “Why am I here?” My “WISE” had turned to “WHYS”. Not necessarily the “bestest” of places to be. But I had to work through it. Continue reading Stop, Drop And Roll – It Time To Overcome The Fire Of Fear!
Yesterday I wrote about mentoring. Many people wrote me about it. I am glad. I think it is often a piece missing in the walk of the believer. Today I want to deal with character a little. I can tell you a lot of people want to mentor, but currently do not have a grid for it. For one there are often areas of life that need to be worked on. This is important in moving ahead for both parties. Continue reading Character & Integrity Are Important In the Mentoring Process
While reading the news this morning in the quiet I have before the day starts, I thought how different is life these days. How much do people really think is important? How much responsibility do they think they have? If there is one thing that defines character, it is most likely accepting the responsibility for “failure” and doing something about it. Continue reading Character And Grace
When I was a young child, I wanted to be the man of the house. When my dad traveled he would “leave” me in charge. But you know as well as I do that just because I was “left” in charge, my 6 year old state was not going to harm anyone who would try and enter nor even probably stop them. But I was a “man” in my own eyes.
I see a lot of that. Just because you are chronologically “man age” or even have moments of being a man, being that man requires more than just words. One of those issues is the issue of character. I am not going to devote a lot of time to the word character other than to say this, when I speak of “good” character I am speaking of the traits that emulate God through His spirit. Continue reading Gifting Does Not Equal Character
One of the greatest hurts sustained in the body of the Christ is that time when someone falls or fails. When one hurts in the body we all hurt. 1 Corinthians 12:26
For some it is that moment when a “Judas” appeared in their life. A trusted person or persons let them down. Judas had a failing or a fall. (I am not talking about a fall from grace for that is simply a return to the law and leaving the understanding of grace.) It is the time where someone walks away or acts in a way that brings pain. Other times it is the recognition of a problem that causes so much pain. Continue reading The Importance Of Character
When I was young everyone knew or had seen Mexican jumping beans. They were seed pods that had been occupied by the larva of a little moth. The bean would begin to jump as the bean was heated, because the larva would spasm in response to the heat, attempting to move the bean to a cooler place to avoid dehydration and possible death. Just holding the seeds or beans in your hand would cause them to heat up and jump.
One day I brought some to school and put them in our teacher’s drawer. As she came in she told me to “sit down…Now!” I told her I was looking for my snake. Needless to say when the beans jumped in the drawer…. Continue reading Mexican Jumping Beans – Turning Up The Heat
This is an old story but a good one.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. Continue reading Carrots, Eggs, And Coffee – How Do you Respond?
