2011 goals

I'm taking a little time to think through what I can accomplish this new year with God's help. It's just too easy to float through life unintentionally. God has called us to so much more. Maybe they are spiritual goals, financial goals of giving or saving or maybe personal goals of health or family. I have heard it said that the first 90 days of a year will set the tone for the rest of the year. In other words, what you begin and make strides toward in the first 90 days, will most likely be carried through.

time

This week we are starting a new series called "Time-Out." Just as a player or coach calls a time-out to refocus, ask questions or get a new plan, so are we going to take a look at our lives. Here are some questions that I want to pose;
- How much time are you wasting?
- What is important to you and do you really invest your time there?
- Are you the person you want to be?
- Are you living out God's plan for your life?
- Are you investing your life's time and energy into the right thing?
- What changes do you need to make?
- How and when will you make them?

little things

It is truly the little things in life that matter. I loved spending a couple days hanging out with my family and doing nothing but just being together. Telling stories and re-living old memories, to just sitting with my kids while watching a movie. It's the little things that all add up. I enjoyed taking some time off.

master

What master's you? Are you controlled by anything? Here are some questions that might reveal if you are:
- Can you go a week without it?
- Do you arrange your schedule and money around it?
- Have you hurt other people because of it?
- Do you make excuses or it?
Your honest answers will reveal the truth.

Find your master, find your freedom.

worry

I read that "worry is a control issue." That is so true. When I worry, I have to realize it's because I don't trust. Trust that someone or something won't come through or worry that God doesn't have it all under control. That hurts, but I believe that to be true. I am trying to eliminate worry from my life by trusting more.

see far?

Constantin Brancusi said, "To see far is one thing; going there is another."
How many of us see where we want to be, but just can't get there? I have been there plenty of times myself. I think the keys to getting there are planning, courage, action and tenacity to stay with it. I tell my kids, if something were easy, everybody would be amazing at it. But the truth is, not many people want to work hard enough to get there. Will you?

different

What will be different about 2011 for you? Are you heading in the right direction? If you keep heading in the same direction, will you end up where you want to be? Are you satisfied with who you are becoming? Have you done everything you want to do in life? Are you achieving your potential through Christ Jesus?

So what are you waiting for?........Go change the world!

sir

I played basketball at a church nearby that uses it as an outreach to guys in the community. I had a couple firsts last night. I was playing with all younger guys who play a lot of ball. A couple times during the night, I had guys call me "sir." I have never been called sir and suddenly realized I was the oldest guy by 10 years on the court. Then, when another other team was choosing who to guard, I was referred to as "the white man." I got a good laugh out of both. I don't think they have ever played with a guy who smiles, introduces himself to the guy he's guarding and even compliments the other team on a good play. Just for the record, the games last 8 minutes and the winning team stays, we played 6 in a row. Not too bad for an old white man!

Daniel

Reading today in Daniel 6, where the political leaders around Daniel were so jealous of him that they were digging deep to find dirt on him. The Bible says, "They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent."
They could find NO dirt on him. He was that much of a man of integrity. He was neither corrupt nor negligent. Not corrupt, meaning that everything he did was honorable and not negligent meaning that there was nothing he wasn't doing that he was supposed to. Daniel is a great role model for all of us.
How deep would someone have to dig to find dirt on you?

puzzle

Leadership is a puzzle. Your trying to find the right pieces that fit in the right holes. It is an incredible challenge that takes time and sometimes trial and error. But when the right people are in the right places, it creates a beautiful picture. Right now, I am working on defining some of the smaller pieces of the bigger vision, in order to give us a picture as the goal.

keeper of the culture

As a leader of something, I am the Keeper of that Culture. I can blame others or situations and circumstances, but ultimately it is my responsibility. Today in our staff meeting, I will be asking what kind of culture have we created in our different areas? Is it one where leaders have opportunity to rise to the top and lead? Is it one where people are stifled? Does our culture free people to dream and use their giftings for God, or push them into a box? Whatever the reality is....I am responsible for it.

God's name

Craig Groeschel said, "The way you address God or refer to Him just might reveal the depth of your intimacy with Him. Or your lack of."
That really made me think of how I address God. It's funny, I can tell by the way someone pronounces my name, if they know me well or not. So can God. When we spend time with someone and truly get to know them, many times we have nicknames or terms of endearment for them. We do this because we are on a different level of closeness or intimacy. Can you say that about God? Can I?

the past

"The past is passed." If we could only live this way. What is in your past, the keeps coming back up?

do

I was reading this morning about Paul and how he was content in and through all situations. Whether he had nothing or he had an abundance. The key for him was he didn't focus on what he didn't have, which leads to a selfish way of living. Rather, he kept moving toward what he was called by God to do. His focus on what he had to DO, kept him from focusing on what he did not have. I want to live my life that way as well.

sympathy

I shot a half racked (would have been an 8pt) buck on Monday morning back in my old stomping grounds in St. Clairsville Ohio. I'm taking 12 other guys from my church this weekend to hunt in Waverly Ohio. We got a cabin in a state park and we will have a blast no doubt.

Anyway, I read a quote that made me think this morning. It said, "divine sympathy without action is worthless." I feel one of the problems with Christians in the U.S. (and I lump myself in this), is that we see something or hear about some evil in the world and we feel moved emotionally. The problem is, that is as far as it really goes. Yes, we may even talk to others about it, then we both shake our heads, but never do anything about it. What good is it if we never ACT. I want to put some action to my sympathy, because pity without remedy is a tragedy.