Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7, NET).
It’s one thing to be prayerless and anxious.
You can pray, though, and still be anxious. [click to continue…]
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“I don’t know how to describe this.”
Ever have an experience like that?
Ever observe something so profound, so extraordinary, so loaded with meaning that words looked cheap next to it?
One of the finest wordsmiths of all time, and a major contributor to the Bible itself, had that very experience. And in the midst of his gritty, get-it-done work and demeanor, even he was at a loss to use words to describe what was taking place. All Paul could say was, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”
That’s a profound thing to say, considering some of the things he did describe in his New Testament letters.
Know what makes it even more profound? This “indescribable gift” came disguised as something rather ordinary, that anyone, anywhere can enjoy. This isn’t some secret sauce for super-saints. In fact, on a surface level it looks rather common and ordinary. And yet something behind the scenes turns the ordinary into a speechless wonder.
Know what makes it even better than that? You may have been participating in this indescribable gift and didn’t even realize it. Or if you haven’t, you can start today. [click to continue…]
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I grew up in the true home of Mardi Gras. And being in the high school band back in the day, we marched in our share of Mardi Gras parades. It was a nice way to raise money for the band, contribute to local community life, and to create some space between the floats so they didn’t run into each other. Plus, we helped contribute to festive atmosphere of Carnival season.
I had a pretty interesting role in all this, because I was the Drum Major – the guy in the fuzzy hat that directs the band on the street as they march.
Which means I spent a lot of my time marching backwards through the streets of Mobile.
There are two things you learn by marching backwards on a five-mile parade route. First, it’s always better to be at the front of the parade than the back. Why?
Horses. Lots and lots of cancer-free-and-proud-of-it horses, who exist on a high-fiber diet.
Need I say more? [click to continue…]
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Think fast…
When was the last time you asked the Lord to do something for you and He graciously did it?
Think faster…
Why did He do that?
Sorry for being presumptuous, but let me guess at some typical think-fast answers…
I’m sure there are more, and I’m quite sure that whatever you came up with has at least some measure of truth in it. But I’m not sure we’ve landed on the ultimate prize.
Slow down your thinking a little and read this carefully (the emphasis is mine): [click to continue…]
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Come on, admit it… when you first saw this title you started hearing the old hymn in your head, didn’t you?
I once was lost, but now I’m found,
Was blind, but now I see.
If not, I’ll bet you are now.
With apologies to Philip Yancey for borrowing the title of his excellent book, I had a curious collision with “amazing” the other day and thought I’d share it. It started when I read this simple greeting from the Apostle Paul to a group of Christians in Corinth.
I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus.
Isn’t that sweet?
Any believer anywhere can testify, as John Newton and the Corinthians could, that the grace of God has been given to us by Christ Jesus. And if this verse had no other context or backdrop it would be precious enough. But our thinking about it would soon lose its edge. Sure, everybody who knows Christ can testify of the grace of God.
Next!
Sure, we were “wretches” and now we’re saved. But that was a long time ago for a lot of us. In the immortal words of Janet Jackson, what have you done for me lately, Grace?
The answer to that – Grace in the present, not the past – is what’s so amazing about grace. [click to continue…]
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In the mood for a little detective work? Care to uncover a secret that may have right in front of our noses for years? It certainly was in mine, and I was oblivious.
Would you be interested in mining out some clues if I told you that when you do, you may have discovered one of the most powerful life and success principles known to humanity? And that if you master this one skill, the transformation in your own life, to say nothing of your influence and circumstances, can be breathtaking?
Am I exaggerating? No, if anything I’m understating the potential of this discovery.
Getting this – I mean really getting it – can explain why you tend to sabotage yourself after you’ve made progress toward a goal.
It may explain why churches or individual leaders lose their influence, or why they nourish it.
It may explain why you have made progress toward healing, then somehow hit a wall.
It may explain why your relationships go in frustrating cycles – hot today, cold tomorrow… intimate today, lonely later.
Finding this secret is like discovering a clock on your wall that’s been there the whole time, quietly ticking away, pointing to the correct time, but you may have never noticed it. In one sense it’s obvious – in another, it probably calls for a closer look than you have given it.
Will it help you win the lottery? Doubtful. But it could lead you to a place where you never pine away for sudden wealth again.
Will it solve all your relationship problems? Maybe, maybe not. But it will position you to gain the most from every relationship you have or want to have, whether others cooperate or not.
I wish I could tell you that this secret has been locked away in some government vault and is now being released to a select few, and that if you pay me $3,999.00 I will share it with you, along with seven free bonus offers. But the thing is, this secret has been in open view for anybody to see – and it’s free.
Still here? Ready? Okay, no more hype. [click to continue…]
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Count me in. I now know what all the fuss is about.
Went to hear Garth Brooks in concert over the weekend in Birmingham, Alabama. Definitely a step outside of my routine, but anybody with experience I talked to about the upcoming event told me, “It’s one of the best, if not THE best, concert experiences you will ever experience.”
Yeah, that.
Six of us took a road trip with center-section, row 9 seats. Close enough to see the sweat and be covered when the confetti dropped. And as-advertised, it was an extraordinary experience. In part I felt like an outsider looking in because I didn’t know every word of every song like most of the crowd apparently did. But on this night it didn’t matter. I was part of something bigger than myself, regardless of my lack of experience. Garth and his team saw to that.
Now before you “Older Brother” types write me off and resume your search for friends in HIGH places, hang with me. I’ve had some time to think about what we saw and heard that night. I’ve looked at it through several different lenses. A leadership lens. An organization lens. Even a Church World lens. Here are a few lessons I’ve learned that can speak to your world, too. [click to continue…]
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Nobody talks about the life-changing leader who helped them raise their umbrella at the beach. Influence happens only rarely in comfort zones or times of ease. Vision is not the starry-eyed product of Monday morning quarterbacks or couch potatoes. Adversity was made for leadership. And leaders were made for adversity.
Seth Godin puts it this way: [click to continue…]
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There’s a productivity that gets things done.
There’s another productivity that makes things one… that nourishes the soul and flourishes into gratitude…
Expectancy…
Joy.
This is Productivity of the Soul.
Both are important. [click to continue…]
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Are we there yet?
No.
When are we gonna get there?
Five minutes sooner than the last time you asked.
We’re never gonna get there.
We’ll get there.
When?
Soon enough. Look outside and see how far we’ve come and how fast we’re moving.
Are we there yet?
+++++++
I’ll bet you’ve had a few conversations like that if you’ve ever been on a road trip with kids (or maybe a few adults). And inevitably, the younger he or she is, the sooner this question pops up:
Why does it have to take so long to get there?
And the only right answer, which they can never seem to grasp at that age, is, because to get there, first you have to go here. And here is where we are. But we can still enjoy being here until we get there.
The Christian life has its own version of “There Yet.” [click to continue…]
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