Focus on the Foundation (Part 2)

Since last week you began to write a vision for your life, this week you're ready for part 2 of the Focus on the Foundation process which involves surveying your surroundings.

If you are going to maximize your potential you are going to have to be willing to take a moment to assess what you're working with. I recently read an article by Pastor Steven Furtick of Elevation Church. The objective of the article was to encourage leaders to "Think inside the box." What he was suggesting was that you should consider what you have before you assume that you need what you don't.

Take an honest look at what you have in your hands and consider what could help you as well as what could hinder your progress. A great way to do this is to complete a SWOT analysis on yourself. "What is that", you ask? That's when you reflect on your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. This could be a series by itself but the aim of this exercise is to help you to stop sleep walking through life and make the most of where you are.

If you use what you have where you are it can help you to get where you're going but if you fail to assess your surroundings you'll miss the jewels that are present in your everyday life. This week don't just look ahead, look around!

You can find the podcast of this motivation at http://www.jessiejennings.podbean.com

Http://www.Mindtools.com has great tools for your SWOT analysis so check them out today.

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It's Worth the Wait

I voted today. I stood in line for about an hour in a hall that seemed to go on forever. The paint was bland, the walls were bare and the conversation was kept just above a whisper, but still I waited. I decided to vote early because its just, well, convenient but as I waited I heard the complaints of others of how inconvenient this voting process had become. "The should've had more people working the polls." "This line is too long." "I might as well have come on election day" some remarked...but I couldn't help but imagine how it used to be, while I waited.

I could imagine the dogs barking at me as I tried to exercise my right. I could envision the scowls of the angry mob as they jeered and threw bottles at me as I tried to vote. All of a sudden the wait didn't seem so bad because, after all, all I had to do was wait.

Not fight, but wait.
Not fear bodily harm, but wait.
Not plug my ears to ignore the racial epithets of others, but just wait.

When I thought about what others have had to do to cast their ballot before me, when I compared their experiences to the minor "inconvenience" I was enduring I couldn't help but enjoy the wait because the joy of being able to do what I was doing made it well worth (a lot more than) the wait.

If you haven't already gone to the polls to vote, do so this week. There may be a line and it may be inconvenient but trust me when I tell you that it's worth the wait. 

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If Your Team Sucks...

If you think you would be doing better if you just had a better team to work with chances are you have thought, more than once, that your team sucks. You're not the only one...but when these thoughts come there are several dynamics at work.

First, if you think your team sucks...your outlook probably does too.

If you consistently view your job as a burden, your department as a war zone and your team as a bunch of losers your mind will be closed to the creative thoughts of how you can turn it all around. Even if God were to give you an idea of small steps that will take you in the direction of a stronger team you won't see it because all you can see is that "so and so" is holding you back. Lift your eyes to higher heights. Sure, things may not be the way you want them to be yet. Sure, you may have been given a difficult hand to play but don't through it in just yet. Search for possible solutions instead of just resting on the fact that your team is under performing at the moment. When you raise your level of expectation your team just might raise their level of exertion to meet it. When you expect more, you can experience more.

Second, if you think your team sucks...your leadership skills may leave something to be desired as well.

There are some who need to improve and others you need to remove but that is your responsibility as the leader of the team. What are you doing about it? Are you just sitting in your office pouting thinking "This sucks!" or are you developing a strategy to help each person on the team to stop "sucking" or to take their sucky attitude somewhere else? That is your right and responsibility as the leader of your team and the more you demonstrate to your team that you are working to improve the work experience of the entire team it will boost morale which can increase performance. Then they stop viewing themselves as a losing team and start to see themselves as the underdogs who are about to come away with the victory.

Take some time each week to read materials that will help you to hone your skills as a leader. There are countless classics out there that describe principles that can help you to lead more effectively. Don't reinvent the wheel, find one that will roll smoothly in your organizational environment and build your "vehicle" around it. In the next few days I'll post a few books that I have been reading to get you going but don't delay...START TODAY!

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Thinking Like a Champion

The Olympics has come and gone and once again we are forced to find our inspiration elsewhere. The stories behind the athletes were incredible and it didn't take long to be inspired by their perseverance and dedication to excellence. I'm sure no one was on the field or in the pool practicing. They did not go to London to experiment. They went to repeat what they had done in preparation. They planned to succeed.

Plan

Are you thinking like a champion? Have you planned to succeed in your business? Do you have a training program in place to direct your team members toward excellence and an evaluation process that will either elevate or terminate them based on their performance? Do you have any idea where your industry is heading in the next 5-10 years and have you developed a strategy to ensure that your company is positioned to be there excelling and not just existing?

It has been said time and time again that people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan. So why don't more people plan? I believe it's because there are so many things to do on a daily basis that most of their time is used putting out small fires so when the week is over they look up and just want to rest. There's no time to plan...or so they think. If you don't make time to plan you can bet that your time is not being used wisely because you aren't sure that what you are doing is going to get you where you desire to be. Write a plan, you'll be glad you did.

Persevere

The action of writing out a plan can relieve tension in and of itself but that is only the beginning of the process of becoming a champion in your industry. After you have a plan you must roll up your sleeves and carry it out. It does no good to know what to do if you are not willing to actually do it. You must be prepared to wake up every day and do something that will push you toward one of the benchmarks in your plan. Break your plan down into manageable steps and then start taking them.

As you slowly begin to move forward you will gain momentum which will encourage you to keep going. You'll be well on your way to champion status. This is not always easy but it is definitely effective. This can be seen in the fact that the Olympics has levels that a person has to compete on before they arrive in the "big leagues." When you get there, chances are that you're ready. Much in the same way, persevering through the steps necessary to get where you desire to be financially (through writing a budget, cutting expenses/ liabilities, increasing income/assets) or professionally (through increasing your knowledge, improving your performance and providing the highest quality of service) will ensure that you will be ready to manage life on that level when you get there. You'll be ready for the podium. You'll be positioned to go for the gold in a way that you would not have been had you gotten there over night.

Don't give up. Keep going! Write your plan and then persevere through the process because any champion will tell you that getting there wasn't easy but it was unbelievably worth it. Think like a champion!

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Slow Leaks and 3 Ways to Handle Them

This week my wife asked me to check on her front tire. It was getting lower and lower by the day and it had come to the point where if nothing was one to correct it, the problem could get dangerous. How did this happen? It's not a bad tire, we just put it on a few months ago. What could have gone wrong?

It was clear that she was experiencing what you may be going through right now as well. A slow leak. This is when you are losing enthusiasm each week but go to work anyway because you have to. This is when you look at your bank account at the end of a pay period or at market sheets at the end of a quarter and wonder where all the money went. This is when your view of your spouse has shifted from celebration to toleration. A slow leak doesn't happen over night but, if left unchecked, it can limit your mobility and increase the possibility of a crash.

So what can be done? I would suggest 3 things...

1.) Find the problem and fix it- No surprise here. If your leak is in your finances you would benefit from calling an emergency strategy session with yourself so you can write down your budget and see where the money is going. Money can be like a curious child that will wonder away if you aren't keeping an eye on it. Develop a budget, see where you can cut costs, and determine what is sucking the life out of your finances. Could be that weekly gourmet coffee you just have to have or those sales that you can't seem to pass up. Find what's causing the leak and plug it!

2.) Use A Preventative Approach- As the old saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure." Determine what you can do on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis that can prevent these slow leaks from getting out of hand. If it concerns your enthusiasm perhaps you could use a vacation or a quiet moment where you sketch out your desired destination. When you constantly remind yourself that what you're doing is getting you where you're going it makes it easier to stay motivated about it.

3.) Don't Ignore the Issue- You can act like it's not happening at first but over time you and everyone around you will be able to notice the leak in your life, finances, or department. Don't act like it's not happening. Don't act like everything is alright when it's not. If there is an area that is slowly losing steam take note and then take action. You'll be glad you did! After I took the time to take her car to correct the problem it drove a million times better. It was more pleasant to drive because the ride was quite a bit smoother and the stress of wondering if it was going to give out was gone. Wouldn't you like to experience that same relief of stress in your life? Stop ignoring the leaks & decide to do something about it.

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Team Work Makes My Head Hurt

You've heard the old saying, "Team work makes the dream work." That's true...but what I've also found is that team work can make your head hurt. What I mean is that team work can be one of the most frustrating and irritating parts of success. This is because it involves trust and understanding, both of which can lead to disappointment. What if they don't do their part? What if they don't know what you need to do yours? Communication can break down, selfishness raise its ugly head and miscommunications can cause unnecessary conflict.

It's making my head hurt just thinking about it.

Since team work is so important and yet, often times, so irritating what can be done to improve the experience?

Honesty

There has to be a space where each member of the team can honestly express their concerns about the other team members without the possibility of causing a rift in the team. If you can't confidently communicate what's wrong how can either of you expect to make things right? Each member of the team must be allowed to share things that will help the team improve without the other team members looking at them in contempt. If you can't be honest you can't take the team higher. Period.

Credibility

One of the reasons people aren't open to constructive criticism is because it's not being offered by someone who is actually putting their criticism into practice. In other words, you don't practice what you preach. When you don't set an example in your own character of the conduct that you expect out of the rest of the team, you greatly limit the amount of influence that you have with them. You may have the right answers but no one wants to hear them from you. Since this is true, make sure you do it first and ask others to do it second.

Respect

"You always drop the ball!" "You never come through!" "You are such a loser!" Who wants to respond well to that? Not me, and I'm sure you don't either so make every effort to communicate with a high level of respect. This is not just saying, "with all due respect" before you tear them a new belly button. This is saying what you're saying in a tone and with words that illustrate that your end goal is to help not to humiliate.

Hard Work

Finally, you have to be willing to work at building your team every day. This will not be easy but it can unquestionably multiply your department's performance. You can't do it all, that's why you have a team. Take some Tylenol and build your team so that your team work will make your head hurt a lot less and make your dream work a lot more.

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How to Lose Customers (Part3)

After you have offered service quickly and with a personal touch things can still go sour from time to time. This is when your customer service kicks in.

If you want to lose customers make customer service your last priority. Make it appear as though you don't care what happens after the sale.

This practice may cut it if you were a peanut butter factory in the middle of a deserted island full of vegetarians but chances are this isn't the makeup of your customer base. In reality, you are not the only business, church, or employee who offers what you are "selling" so what are you doing to make people glad that they picked you? On a daily basis people are making decisions and why should they decide on you? When others have worked with you or attended your services did you make them feel glad that they did or did you make them regret their decision?

If you are going to grow as an entrepreneur, manager, pastor, or leader you have to think through the experiences that others have when interacting with you. For example: Is it difficult to get in touch with you when they have a problem? Can you quickly address concerns or is there a stack of red tape that they have to go through to get it addressed. Do you reply with canned responses or do you demonstrate that you actually listened to what they said? In business the customer counts. I won't go as far as to say that they are always right because you know that's not the case but they deserve to be treated with respect if for no other reason than you reflect Jesus to them because you proclaim that you are a Christian.

How would Jesus want you to treat them? Ignore their calls? Take 3 weeks to respond? Hide your "contact us" info under a stack of links on your website? I don't think so. If you want to lose them, look over them. If you want to keep them, care for them.

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How to Lose Customers (Part 2)

Not only is it important to offer excellent service in a timely manner but another aspect of service involves personal attention. If you want to lose customers treat every one as though you are doing them a favor and their business does not matter.

The moment that people feel as though you don't care about them or that you only see dollar signs when you look at them they will leave your church or business faster than you can say "Yabba Dabba Doo." People want to feel valued and if you can offer this in addition to whatever product or service that you provide you will begin to stand head and shoulders above the rest because many people/ organizations are unwilling to go above and beyond the call of duty.

You may have a million and one members, customers, or clients today but one of the factors that will determine whether or not you have them with you tomorrow is if you are willing to treat each one as if they are the only one. You have to work to make each person feel special. You can do this by truly being in the moment when you're interacting with them. Not looking at your watch and not easing away but truly being in the moment (even if only for a minute or two).

If you are on the phone with one don't try to hurry them off the line to talk to another. Be on the line with them. If you see a member in the store don't rush away to get out of the door, take a moment to actually acknowledge them. Sure you can't spend all day with each person, after all you have a business, organization or church to run, but you can spare a minute and trust that God is able to redeem the time from you pausing to demonstrate a loving attitude toward one of the people that He has sent your way. At best, you may change their life and at the very least you will demonstrate that they have value in your eyes and I have found that the more you value others the more they will value you.

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How to Lose a Customer (Part 1)

Everyone has a customer base. Everyone is trying to sell others on something. For you this may mean convincing others that your products or services deserve to be paid for. Or perhaps you are selling people on an idea such as: "My church is awesome, you should come!" or "I am worth every penny of the salary that you're paying me." Whether you realize it or not you have a customer base, a clientele that you're serving every day so it is important to understand the things that consistently drive people away so that you can avoid them at all costs.

In the first of this three-part series on How to Lose Customers I'd like to describe something that can test one's love for Christ to it's very core. Okay...that was a bit dramatic, maybe it's not that critical but it can definitely play a huge role in someone's decision to stick with you or move on. The characteristic that I am referring to is impatience. Companies, organizations and/or employees that consistently keep people waiting are consistently losing business, clients, constituents and congregants. The reason is clear...NO ONE WANTS TO WAIT! We live in a culture that makes it convenient to find what we're looking for quickly and if you are unable/ unwilling to do so be prepared to see the window of opportunity slide shut right before your eyes.

You may think that people should be more patient in which case you would be right, but are you going to be the employee who is known for consistently offering your boss "character building opportunities?" I don't think so! You'll be known as the one who just can't seem to get things done. Are you going to be known as the business that offers service with a smile and a side order of opportunities to practice patience? Probably not. You're going to be known as the company that couldn't cut it last time and most people aren't forgiving enough to continue to give multiple opportunities.

If you're going to do business, ministry or service differently you would do well to offer excellence expeditiously. When you do this they'll tell others but if you don't do this they'll tell others! Which testimony would you want to be told about you?

Don't keep people waiting.

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The Best Kept Secret!

It's a Fact of Life.

Do you remember the old television show called The Facts of Life? One of the lines in the theme song was “You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have the Facts of Life, the Facts of Life.” Well, one fact of life that you can be sure of it is that you are going to be tempted. I know you don't think so, or at least you want people to think that you're beyond that but I have discovered that it doesn’t matter how much you pray, fast, go to church or read your Bible temptation is going to knock on your door. Don’t be alarmed; you’re not the only one. A very well known young man in the Bible named Joseph had to endure tempting as he tried to be all that God was telling him that he could be (Genesis 39: 7-10).

It's not just You.

The bible tells us that the only things that tempt us are the things that commonly tempt others (1 Corinthians 10:13) so there are no new temptations out there. All of us get tempted. All of us!

It can be Overcome!

So how can we overcome these temptations? We can not prevent them from coming in and out of our minds but what we can do is make our minds hostile to temptation by filling it with God’s Word.

When Jesus was being tempted the only thing that He continued to repeat was the Word of the LORD concerning the areas of temptation. He emerged victorious and so can we. The next time temptation raises its ugly head in your mind quickly reply to it with the Word of the Lord because there's another "fact of life" which is that God’s Word never fails.

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3 Ways to Build Your Brand (Part 3)

In the past 2 posts I have challenged you to be careful about what you do so you'll be perceived the way that you desire and to promote the "why" behind what you want your customers, clients, community or corporate office to believe about you. In this last post of the How to Build Your Brand series I want to discuss one of the most significant aspects of branding which is practicing PRECISION.

Overlooking this principle can cause you to waste countless dollars on promotions that go nowhere, resumes that don't get a callback and church ads that no one responds to. If you're going to build a brand that creates a community of followers that goes beyond your Twitter account you're going to have to clearly define who you're trying to reach. The reason is simple, you can't reach everyone and the target audience will determine the overall design, language and approach that your branding reflects.

-You can't state that you ,as an employee, would be a great fit for any position because you don't even want every position.

-You can't argue that your product will be great for everyone because it won't be useful for everyone.

-You can't imply that everyone would love the type of worship service that you offer because some people will prefer a different style of music or preaching so don't try to appeal to everyone, try to find the niche that you can reach and press as deeply as you can into that.

It's not about everyone.

Everyone doesn't buy computers at $1,200 a pop but it hasn't stopped Apple from being successful. Why? They have found their niche and they lean into it. The goal of building a solid brand is not to try to make something or make yourself out to be someone that is loved by everyone because even Jesus had people that didn't see the value He offers. The goal of building a solid brand is to build something that provides value and as you consistently provide value to people they will share what you're doing with others who have similar interests.

Thus, your aim should be to find out who you can add the most value to with the gifts, skills & resources that are at your disposal and focus your brand in their direction.

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3 Ways to Build Your Brand (Part 2)

Now that you have begun to give careful consideration to how you, your company, or your church are being perceived it's time to move to the next facet of building your brand which involves strategic PROMOTION.

Promotion is concerned with getting the word out about the service that you provide and more importantly how it will benefit your audience. Letting people know that you have an 11 o'clock worship service is great but simply announcing that isn't effective promotion. You have to promote the fact that lives are being changed each week, marriages are being restored, the community is being transformed; SOMETHING is happening there! Promote that.

An invitation is just information if it doesn't provide an incentive for it's acceptance.

You have to promote the "WHY?"

If you're promoting your business don't just share the address, share about the stellar service that you provide. Share about how you will not stop until your customers are satisfied. Share testimonials from customers who can confirm that you are telling the truth.

If you are promoting yourself as a possible employee you can't just tell the manager that you are available. Tell them how you plan to make their life easier. Tell them how you can support the company's vision. Tell them how you are not in it for the money but your performance will demonstrate that you will be an asset and not a liability.

When pushing your promotions to the next level you have to promote the benefits of using you and not just that you are available to be used. It's an open market and there are hundreds of other companies, thousands of other churches and millions of other possible employees so why should they choose you? On every flyer, commercial, resume or promo you have to promote the why.

Where to promote

Conventional wisdom would suggest that you begin by promoting on your own website and that's a great start but it certainly cannot be the end of your efforts.

You have to put yourself or your organization anywhere your target audience's eyes are looking. If you want to reach young adults why not place your logo and an encouragement on the napkins at a club? If you want to reach soccer moms why not donate coolers with your website on them filled with all the liquid refreshment a team can drink to the teams in a local league next season? If you want to reach techies why not host a contest where a web designer can design your next website and receive a ton of free gear for winning. Do you think they wouldn't brag about their work? Guess where they would send their friends to see it??? You guessed it, your website!

You have to be creative and place your brand (or yourself) where your audience is. In this age of technology it is possible to place yourself in front of more people than ever before. I would suggest going beyond your own website and going to where the people are (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc.) because with a million other options out there competing for your audience's attention you have to work for their time. When you're fortunate enough to get a few moments of it as they look at your posters, read your resume, or view your commercial be sure to share "why" it was not a waste of their time.

What creative ideas have you used in promoting yourself or your organization?

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3 Ways to Build Your Brand (Part 1)

As I celebrate 20,000+ video views on Youtube I thought I would use a few posts to discuss brand building. How does one build a solid brand? This is an important question to ask whether you're a CEO of a multilevel organization that you want to expand, a pastor of a church that you desire to see flourish or an employee that desires to remain gainfully employed. All of us are involved in personal or professional branding of some sort but what are some keys that can help us to brand well? That's what I will be focusing on in the next few posts. The first element that we must factor into effective branding is PERCEPTION.

What are you known for?

Branding is all about perception. What are you known for? Starbucks is known for white cups and delicious coffee. Burger King is known for (whether they actually come through or not) being the place where "you can have it your way." Apple Computers are known for..well, working and the truth of the matter is that YOU are known for something too.

It may be for coming in late or it may be for staying late.
It may be for taking short cuts or for coming through no matter what.
It may be for being reliable or for being a crap shoot but you can rest assured that when people think of you, your company or your church something comes to mind.

Control Your Image

The key to successful branding is to control the image that comes to mind when your name comes up in conversation. You can do this by consistently reflecting the image that you would like for people to think of when they think of you or your organization. Perceptions are built by consistency. In other words you can't expect for people to think of excellence when your work often appears shoddy and poorly prepared. You can't expect for people to think that your church is welcoming when you fuss at everyone from the stage and no one speaks to each other before or after service. You can't expect for people to think of your business as convenient when your marketing strategy only makes business convenient for you. In order for your audience to develop a positive perception of you, you must perform in a positive manner time and time again.

This does not happen over night but the more you reflect the image that you speak of in your company's mission, your church's vision or your personal goals the more others will begin to see you this way. You may have some naysayers along the way speaking otherwise but your consistency will speak for you.

Whether it's your campaign, your promotability or your bottom line you have to give careful thought to how you are being perceived.

Therefore, the first step to building your brand is to be mindful of how you will be perceived through every publication, Tweet, Facebook status, conversation, interaction, transaction, sermon, assignment etc. because perception is built brick by brick and once it's built it's difficult to renovate.

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Burger King, Branding and Broken Promises

Branding is an effort to shape your reputation. It's an attempt to convince people that you are who you say you are. With such being the case, it always requires making promises somehow. Promises very from business to business and from person to person but every professional makes them in one way or another. Some companies make promises that they'll get a package delivered in rain, sleet, or snow. Some people make promises that they'll complete an assignment efficiently and effectively. Some churches make promises that they will welcome anyone that comes though their doors with the love of Jesus. Whatever your market or industry, you are probably a part of a daily effort to build a brand on the back of promises. This can be helpful if your company (or you as an employee) become known for consistently coming through on your promises but it can also destroy your business or personal potential for growth when you fail to follow through with what you say you will provide.

I saw this clearly over the course of the past week. Since I am usually on the move, I often eat fast food. Up to a few days ago my food of choice was a burger from Burger King. A flame broiled burger made just how I like it? Count me in! I was a frequent customer until I made the decision that had finally had enough of their broken promises. What promises you ask? Well, Burger King has built a brand on the back of a promise to let you "Have it your way" but the past few times (actually 3 in a row at completely separate locations) I chose them over their competitors I was faced with the disappointment of yet another broken promise. I kindly asked for no onions on my burger (not world peace, just no onions) and they failed to come through. In fact, it's almost as if they added more onions just because I asked for a burger without them. This would not have been a problem at McDonald's because I would have expected to have to peel them off myself but since Burger King has built their brand on the promise of completing my order as I requested it, the margin for error is a lot smaller. Since they have consistently failed to come through I have decided to step away from "the King" and allow someone else to reign. No more burgers for me (as far as they're concerned) and it's all because of their failure to keep their promises.

What does this have to do with you?

Are you failing to receive the promotions and new opportunities that you desire? Are your sales down this quarter? Are you losing business, revenue or fresh assignments? Perhaps it's because you have been providing a bogus bill of goods to your employer, customers or clients. Maybe they have heard one too many broken promises from you. You said that you could get the deal completed before the deadline and didn't. You said that you were willing to stay late when needed and haven't. You said that you were self-motivated and aren't, and maybe the people you serve have just had enough. If this describes you don't be offended, be inspired. Be inspired to change your behavior. Be inspired to change your approach to business. Be inspired to make a personal commitment to begin to come through on the promises that you make on a daily basis.

If you say you can do it, do it. If you say you can provide it, provide it. If you say you're willing to offer it, offer it but if you're not willing to put your money where your mouth is, it's best to not make the promise in the first place. Build your brand based on what you can do and not just what you think your boss or customer wants to hear because they may look over your broken promise once or twice but after a while your brand (or you as an employee) will become known not for your remarkable branding, but for the promises that you're continuously breaking...and who wants to keep paying for that?

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Reality Check

Today is the second day of the second month of the year. I believe that this is a great time to see where we're heading and whether or not we're on target to achieve all of the things that we want to accomplish this year.The first day of the year is often a time filled with dreams, ambitions & goals and many of us have made resolutions that we wanted to implement in our lives to get where we have always wanted to be. Now that a month has already come and gone we are faced with a reality check. As we begin February of this new year we have to ask ourselves, "Am I closer to my dreams today than I was on New Year's Eve?" This can be a challenging question but it is necessary if we are going to break the cycle of mediocrity and move into higher levels of success.

Have you developed better work habits? Have you begun to use your time more wisely? Have you actually started working out like you said you would? What have you done with the dreams that you developed as you celebrated the beginning of the year? It's time for a reality check because you only have 11 more months to accomplish what you've set out to do this year but if you refuse to change your habits you will find yourself shifting into next year in the same position that you were in last year. You don't have that kind of time to waste. God is able to do more through you than that and you know you're expecting God to do more for you than that so buckle down, face reality and do whatever you have to do to add works to your faith because "faith without works is dead." If you have faith that God is able to do more in your life than you're seeing right now you're going to have to be willing to step up and add some some works to that faith right now.

One month is already gone. That was 5 weeks, 2 pay periods and 31 days to make forward strides toward the life you've been dreaming of. What did you do with them? I know this may come off as somewhat of a harsh message but I believe in you too much to let 11 more months go by without challenging you to make the most of every one of them. I faced reality this morning and refocused to make the most of the rest of the year. I challenge you to do the same. If you desire a new life, it's time to start walking toward it now because the "reality" is that if you don't take steps toward it, it is highly unlikely that you will ever step into it.

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Be Flexible

On Wednesday evening I learned an interesting lesson about being flexible. As I sat on the front row in class I noticed that my professor had not said much, which was unusual because she was normally quite social. A few minutes before the beginning of our gathering she called me to the podium to ask me to read Psalm 96 to the class and pray because she had recently had a surgery performed which made it difficult to speak. Interestingly enough, the scripture that she suggested began with the phrase "Sing to the Lord a new song...sing to the Lord and praise his Name."

The fact that she was able to maintain an attitude of faith in the midst of a difficult circumstance was truly remarkable. Immediately following the prayer she began to teach the class by typing her instructions on an overhead projector and was able to capture the class' attention without the use of her voice better than many professors have with the perfect use of theirs. Everyone was engaged in the learning process so that what could have been viewed as a setback was actually used to her benefit, but this powerful demonstration of the will to accomplish one's goals would not have been visible that evening if the professor had not made the decision to be flexible. What if she had decided that this semester it would be impossible to be able to do what she clearly loves doing because of the difficulties that her present challenges present? What if she had listened to the negative voice that was probably on the inside whispering "They're not going to listen?" What if she had been stuck in the box of her previous methods of teaching and refused to consider new methods for accomplishing her mission? I believe that if she had not been flexible not only would she have missed out on a wonderful opportunity to see God continue to work through her gift of teaching but we as her students would have also missed out on the opportunity to learn how to "roll with the punches."

Here comes the question of the day...get ready for it...How flexible are YOU? How do you respond when things don't go as planned? How do you react when an idea doesn't bring the desired results? How do you respond when your partner's personality seems to stand in the way of peace in your marriage? What do you do when things seem to be falling apart? When you find yourself in these experiences you have a choice to make. You can either get frustrated, wondering why things happened the way that they did, or you can be flexible and find a way to make it work. If my professor could "sing to the Lord" through someone else and talk through the use of modern technology to get her message across, surely you can find other ways to accomplish what you're trying to do. It's 5 a.m. on a Friday morning as I write this encouragement just for you. As you read and reflect on the difficulties that you may be experiencing on the way to your destiny you can either be frustrated or flexible. I choose to be flexible because I have seen that God is still "able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we may ask or think according to the power that works in us" (Ephesians 3:20). Remember that what's possible is according to God's power and not the perfection of our circumstances. With that being said, be flexible enough to act in faith believing that God can still get you where you're going even if you have to take a different route than expected. Don't get frustrated...be flexible.

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Fix it and Move Forward

I love riding my bike. I'm not talking about a Harley Davidson or a souped up hot rod. I'm talking about a 16 speed road bike that makes Memphis Tennessee feel like the Tour de France. Okay, maybe not quite but it's still one of my favorite hobbies. A few nights ago I decided that I was going to go on a ride for at least 20 miles and would not return home until my mission was complete. Everything was going well until I was 10 miles out and I heard the disturbing hiss of discouragement tempting me to give up on my goal. You've heard the hiss I'm sure...perhaps it came in the form of another bill that said that you'll never be able to get out of debt. Maybe it was the sound of an argument that tempted you to think that the best days of your marriage are behind you. Maybe it was the sound of bad news from your child that made you think that all of the things that you tried to teach them went in one ear and out of the other. There you were progressing through your goals when all of a sudden the wind is let out of your sails and you come to a halt. Psssssssssssssss... Stinks doesn't it?!

I don't know how you feel about yours but when I heard the hiss of disappointment coming from my tire that caused me to have to place my progress on pause I was tempted to give up on my goal and say, "at least I tried". I felt discouraged for a moment and thought about how much it stunk to have to sit on the side of the road in 90 degree heat fixing a tire with a swarm of mosquitoes adding insult to injury but before I allowed the negative to take over I decided to say "Praise God that I have a spare". With a quick breath of optimism and gratitude I commenced to repair the tire and finish the course that I had planned. In fact, I was able to add an additional 5 miles to my goal! Much in the same way, as you make plans to walk in the victory that you see in the Bible and hear about in church you will undoubtedly encounter challenges along the way and you will have a choice to make. You can either allow the frustration to bring you down or you can fix it and move forward. I chose the latter and I hope you'll do the same.

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Guess What...

A few days ago my wife showed me a book that chronicled my niece's first year of life. Since she was celebrating her first birthday I guess my brother & sister-in-law thought now was as good a time as any to have a book made to depict her first memories. I agree. Although, as I looked through the book I made it about half way through and noticed something quite humorous...I didn't see any pictures of me in the book. I saw pictures of my niece (of course). I saw pictures of her parents. I even saw pictures of her parent's parents, but I didn't see me. In fact, I noticed pictures of events where I was present but my image was cropped out of the picture. I decided to call my sister-in-law to give her a piece of my mind (relax, I'm just kidding) but as I called to joke with her about cropping me out of the pictures I noticed one picture where I was in the background behind my niece. I had a cameo! Which brings me to the thought that I wanted to share with you.

As you walk through life attempting to serve God and love His people. As you pour yourself into ministry or in the efforts to make the world a better place you may look at the plans of God, the big picture, or who is getting the credit and within yourself, "I don't see me", "Or where am I in all of this". I know that it's not easy to admit that we look for our own benefit sometimes or consider how things will help us as we serve but the truth of the matter is sometimes we do. Since this is always a temptation we must be careful to remember what I had to keep in mind when looking at my niece's book...IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU! It's not about you getting the glory, it's not about you being the center of attention. It's not about people seeing you, celebrating you, or salivating over you. It's about using our lives to cause others to do these things for GOD. It's about doing what we can to help others to see the goodness and kindness of Jesus Christ. Much like my niece's book, this life is all about God. The "big picture" goal is to reveal His glory and when we get caught up in looking for ourselves and trying to get others to see us, we miss the purpose that God intended for our lives. Frances Chan said it best by saying "The point of our lives is to point to God." The point of my niece's book was to show the world my niece and the point of our lives is to show the world our God. If we will live our lives with this understanding the sky is the limit to how we can be used to demonstrate how awesome God truly is...and who knows, maybe with close examination, when it's all said and done we'll see ourselves in the background of the big picture as God gets more glory and be able to say, "Hey, there I am."

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"May Pop!"

I'm sure you've felt the rattle and heard the thumping. The stressful rhythm of the bump, bump, bump that occurs when your tires are running low on tread. When I was 16 my father told me that this meant that you were riding on "may pop", meaning that they could pop at any moment. I have begun to hear the sound lately, in more ways than one. Yes, I am purchasing new tires for my car this week but this is only part of the problem. There is another area of my life that has been running low as well. It recently occurred to me that I have gone 5 years without taking a single vacation. It's not that the vacation time was not available but that in my great enthusiasm and tremendous ambition I have failed to use it. I told myself that the opportunities that I get to travel and share God's Word are all the vacation I need and while this has worked for quite a while I have started to hear the sound in my spirit that I am running low and "may pop" if the environment (or criticisms) were just right.

While I have been hearing the sound of needed rest ringing within for quite some time now it was not until this morning that I decided to head the warning. After leaving an excellent event at the church yesterday I laid down for a moment to rest and didn't wake up until it was time for church this morning (14 hours later). As I prepared for church I was reminded of Psalm 23 that says that "He maketh me to lay down beside still waters and He restores my soul..." and felt the conviction of God for not taking heed to His commands to rest. I believe that God has been repeating to me "Lay down for a moment and rest" over and over again for months and now I'm ready to listen. What about you? Have you been so wrapped up in your goals, responsibilities and dreams that you have forgotten to trust God and rest? Have you forgotten that even God used 6 days to create and reserved one day to rest? Have you forgotten that even Jesus would take time to break away from the crowd and spend time with God or have fun at a wedding? I had but I'm thankful for a God who "Makes me lay down beside still waters..." because He knows that I wouldn't have chosen to do so on my own. Just as my car will ride smoothly after I take the time to replace the tires, my soul will ride smoothly after I take the time to relax and recharge my spiritual & emotional batteries and I don't know about you but I'd rather take the moment to make that minor adjustment than to continue to ride around on "may pop".

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Customers Vs. Christians

For the past few days I have been considering something that has been bothering me for quite a while. I often read about the subversive nature of Christianity in the gospels and how a relationship with Christ is to transform the way we approach life, ministry, and one another but sometimes this is a far cry from what I see expressed in the modern church. We are to be a place where people come to connect with God in a community where the scriptures guide the way toward destiny but some how it appears as though many people come with a marketplace mentality where the congregants are "customers" and, as the old saying goes, "the customer is always right".

This type of consumer based Christianity can prevent people from truly experiencing the new life that can be ours in Christ because the purpose of the church then becomes to make us happy, meet our needs, pay our bills, inspire us to have better lives, give us stock tips, provide free daycare for our children, have great gourmet coffee for free, and never (and I mean NEVER) make us feel like we didn't receive the very best service possible. While these may be great business practices they are not necessarily biblical principles concerning the church. While "the customer is never wrong" the congregant is not a customer and due to our propensity to sin the congregant (you and I) may very well be wrong from time to time. That is why we need the Savior and the purifying work of the Holy Spirit. We can be wrong and thus stand in need of correction through the Word of God; both clergy and congregants must realize this if we are to move into the fullness of new life in Christ.

What can we do? Well, a good start is to truly surrender to the cause of Christ rather than our own selfish desires. After all, that's what it means to make Jesus LORD of your life. If He is LORD, by default you are not. Instead of coming to church focusing on how the church can serve us, let us begin to look at the church as a place that God desires to meet with us, communicate His Word to us, and allow us to share our lives, energy, expertise, and resources to bless others. From this perspective we are no longer the customers seeking to be pleased by the church and church leaders but rather we become followers of Christ seeking to be the greatest that we can be and according to Jesus "the greatest among you shall be your servant." (Matthew 23:11) So let's stop acting like customers and start acting like Christians.

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