Quick question: What would you do if you knew that you only had 30 days to live the life you now have? After that, your will life will be completely redefined.
You aren’t dead – just relocated.
Every relationship: history.
Every past accomplishment: strictly a thing of the past.
Every possession: soon to be somebody else’s.
Maybe, for the sake of playing out the fantasy side of the question, it’s a witness relocation effort or something. But regardless, the clock is ticking, and life as you know it is drawing to a close.
What would you do? Who would you do it with? How would you approach the growing, grim reality? [click to continue…]
It was one of those eye-opening days, I guess. Back to school time for me. I was living north of Dallas, and still involved in youth ministry. I taught a Monday night Bible Study that served as the centerpiece of the ministry, and on this particular night I passed out blank paper with a special request: List, in order, the five things it would take to make you perfectly happy.
How would you answer that?
I really thought I knew what the answers would be – a lot of selfish stuff like cars, a driver’s license, money, or popularity. But what I heard taught me a lesson I’ll never forget. Here are some of their actual answers: [click to continue…]
New Year’s Eve. We’d had a great dinner with friends, and were doing the potty wait in the restaurant foyer, when out walked a small group from another dining room. I recognized her immediately, though we hadn’t spoken in more than three years.
She was (and is) a part of my team. My Dream Team.
If this was baseball, she’d be the heavy hitter off the bench. If it was football, she’d be the Hail Mary quarterback who came in the game in the fourth quarter. If it was business, she’d be the turnaround specialist.
As it is, she’s my frontline intercessor.
As I explained to my friend, she is one of the godliest women I know, and a powerful intercessor. And she has occupied a very unique place in my life. “When my back is to the wall and I’m desperate,” I told him, “and I need somebody who knows how to pray with heavy artillery, she’s the one I call.”
I’m thinking of a few times since we last spoke when it may have been a good idea to make that call. Anyway… [click to continue…]
Dateline Barcelona, 1992. The Summer Olympics are hosting the first-ever competition of the truly-best in their respective nations, as professionals and amateurs are all invited to the party. The United States has assembled a collection of NBA-plus-one stars that may be the best roster to ever take a tip-off. And their nickname: “The Dream Team.”
This isn’t about basketball. It’s about teams, and how you need a “dream team” of your own. Not the kind the wins medals, but the kind that empowers lives. While our culture idolizes the individual, the truth is, you were designed by creation and redesigned by gifts and talents to need the contributions of others in order to maximize your potential. I’d like to show you how to go about doing it. [click to continue…]
(From the forthcoming book, Coach Lightning)
Mention Morris Brown’s name around Jones County, Mississippi to anybody who knew him, and they’ll probably reply, “Oh, you mean Coach?” Not much chance of somebody piping up and saying, “He was my Social Studies teacher!”
But don’t let the labels fool you. Coach was always a teacher at heart. And while a football field or basketball court may have been his favorite classrooms, they certainly weren’t his only ones. There were precious few, if any, specialists in rural education in the 1950s. But that was fine with Coach Brown. He willingly embraced teachable moments wherever the situation called for it.
Just ask Dale Holifield, who grew up on a small farm in Jones County. At age 11, Dale was so shy he could have been considered antisocial. Outside of farming, he participated in very few activities. Even when he went hunting and fishing, he usually did it alone. All of that changed one summer day at the W. C. Houston grocery store, across from Shady Grove School. Dale was getting a cold RC cola to drink and chatting with Bubba Houston, the store owner’s son. The time came for Bubba to go to baseball practice, and he invited Dale to come along. Dale reluctantly accepted, and joined Bubba at the small practice field behind Bubba’s house. Hoping not to be noticed, Dale took a seat on the ground under a shade tree to watch the practice.
He didn’t sit very long. [click to continue…]
(Something of a “life lessons year in review,” in no certain order. I’d love to hear yours. Feel free to add your own in the comments section.)
1. How awesome your cancer surgeon is.
2. How nice people can be, even when you wish they would just hate you.
3. How God provides, even sometimes for fools.
4. The sun really does come out tomorrow.
5. How to spell “aneurysm.”
6. Life goes on, with you or without you.
7. Contrary to the words to the MASH theme, suicide is NOT painless.
8. Failure doesn’t stop people from loving you.
9. Rejection does not come with a cocoon to wrap you away for a while.
10. Nobody is more committed to your success than you are. [click to continue…]
Can we talk about The Elephant in the Room?
Most of the time we use the phrase to describe the unspoken but obvious thing between two or more people that no one is talking about. There’s a different elephant, however, that I want to explore.
It’s the one in your head.
I don’t know what yours is doing, but the elephant my head likes to dance. Badly.
The Elephant in Your Head is the one or two things that appear in every mental photo. The two or three things that interrupt – albeit silently – any patterns of forward thinking.
What do you do when you’re the elephant in the room? [click to continue…]
‘Tis the season. . . to roll your eyes whenever somebody starts something with “’Tis the season!”
Anyway…
This is the season to give, give give! Toys for Tots, help for the homeless, marches for missions, and then, of course, those never-ending shopping lists.
With all the emphasis on giving, how about a nice change of pace? You’ve heard that God loves a cheerful giver. Well, guess what givers like? Cheerful receivers!
Did you know it’s possible to actually motivate someone to be thoughtful and generous, to feel good about themselves and you? It all comes when you learn the wonderful art of being a good receiver. Here are seven ways you can do that: [click to continue…]
It’s a common exchange, repeated in restaurants, homes, and shopping malls everywhere…
“Oh there you are! I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”
“I’ve been right here the whole time.”
Life gives us seasons – and this is one of them – when we are reminded that the greatest blessings come in the form of the simple happiness of relationships. Working together. Enjoying down time together. Praying together. Simply enjoying the Gift of Being There…
It’s one of the most common prayer requests you’ll hear, especially for someone who’s going though “the stuff.” The theology is a little strange, because somebody’s asking God to do what He is already doing. But we all sort of know what it means: “Lord, be with them during this time.” We’re asking God to give someone else the Gift of Being There.
I can’t think of a more God-like expression of generosity, grace, and love than what some people call “the ministry of presence.” [click to continue…]
Remember the time your life was changed because you doubted your ability, and someone you trusted convinced you that you could do it?
Do you remember the healing effect that took place when somebody who hurt you deeply said those magic words? “I was wrong” or “I’m sorry” changed everything in an instant.
How about the time somebody saw something in you that you couldn’t see in yourself – something unique, special, gifted – and pointed it out?
All of these are examples of the six most powerful things you can say to someone.
You and I wouldn’t have to talk very long to agree that words have power. The old proverb still rings true that “death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21). If that’s true, then doesn’t it make sense that we have the power to intentionally choose life with our words?
I’ve made my living with words for a long time. And yes, I have seen up close and personal how words can crush someone’s spirit, destroy relationships, and create a slow (or quick) march to death. But I have also been on both sides of conversations where words gave life, strength, renewed passion and courage.
There are all kinds of ways to encourage, inform, and give new vision. But six expressions stand apart, in a league of their own. If you want to take your words to the next stratosphere, try one or all of these six in your relationships: [click to continue…]
Quick question: What would you do if you knew that you only had 30 days to live the life you now have? After that, your will life will be completely redefined. 
