Your Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have people designated as “followers.” In other words, they are interested in what you are up to.
If people are following you, then you might be considered a leader in some way. Lead well…
Monthly Archives: March 2023
Necessities
Basic needs are food, clothing and shelter, right? If we have those we are set. But there’s something else we need: other people.
It’s easy to get caught up in chasing status and stuff. The greedy side of us says if one’s good, then two is better and three is best. Yet we ignore our relationships in our driven pursuit of materialism.
Let’s slow down and take inventory of the good people God has placed in our lives. They are there for a purpose, and the good people aren’t there to help us acquire more stuff. They are in our lives to fulfill a need…
Black and White
Some people like to deal in absolutes. They are rigid in their thinking and their beliefs with no room for margin. I find those types of people to be difficult to work with.
The world is not black and white, it’s gray. We can learn from each other, but only if we are willing.
I encourage you to open your mind and your heart. Try to see things through the eyes of others. It’s not a threat to your beliefs, but a way to expand your worldview…
Awaken
This morning I have the privilege of speaking with a group of high school students about how to create safer, better connected schools. But first, allow me to awaken you to some chilling statistics.
Over 160,000 students skip school every day for fear of being bullied. 840,000 teenagers skip school at least once per month for fear of their own safety. The percentage of high school students who said they often felt lonely increased from 26% in 2012 to 39% in 2017. And finally, 100,000 kids carry a gun to school every day.
Rachel’s Challenge creates safer, better connected schools. The organization receives hundreds of messages from kids every year saying, “I was going to kill myself until I heard Rachel’s story. Thank you.”
We can change this, if we are willing. Let’s be willing…
Riches
The culture of the United States is greed. People work themselves to poor health, shaky relationships and find themselves disillusioned. They may have acquired wealth, but lost themselves along the way.
None of this is taught in the Bible. Solomon, the wealthiest man to ever live, asked God for wisdom. And he got it!
You must decide what’s important to you. If you value your family, your health and seek fulfillment, you might not have as much money, but you will be wealthier than most…
Faithfulness
It’s easy to have faith when things are going well in our lives. But how strong is our faith when the shit hits the fan? I’m guessing that for most of us our faith gets shaken.
Jesus told the disciples their faith would be shaken, and it was. I believe Jesus was saying that message for our benefit, too. It’s hard to believe when it seems that life is falling apart. We are humans, and all we can see is this side of eternity. But there’s more to the story.
Worry is a sign that we don’t believe that God is in control, nor do we believe He can fix our situation. He can, and He does. Just believe…
Choices
Every day we are faced with innumerable choices. Do we go right or left, up or down, do the right thing or take the easy way out?
Each day, give yourself an evaluation of how you did. What did you do right, and what could you do differently? Do not beat yourself up over bad choices. And don’t over reward yourself for your good choices. Just evaluate.
Whether or not you decide to do this self evaluation is up to you. It’s your choice…
The Limelight
We experience great, even phenomenal performances by gifted athletes, musicians, actors and speakers. Their God-given talents appear to be effortless.
Behind every great performance lies hours and hours of preparation. Many lonely times and frustrating setbacks are part of their journey. Yet they press on.
Everything we see in the limelight was prepared in the dark, sometimes in the darkest of times…
The TikTok Generation
TikTok has robbed us of our ability to focused like a laser beam. The short, oftentimes entertaining videos hit the pleasure spot in the brain, so we keep scrolling. we are consciously rewiring our brains.
I encourage you to wean yourself off most social media. Replace TikTok with a book. Take back your mind…
Painful
Pain is a tool, and pain has a purpose. No one escapes life on this side of eternity without experiencing pain.
Oftentimes we hide our pain from the world. We want everyone to believe we “have it all together.” But when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable and openly share what we are going through, it creates intimacy with others. Our challenges in life can be used to encourage and inspire others.
So whatever you are experiencing or have experienced in the past, let go of your pride and share it with the world. You never know who you might help…
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