To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Faith

Simple thoughts Sunday

Our human thinking is often so limiting. We question God and wonder where He is in all of “this.” Whatever “this” is in the moment. Do you ever stop and think maybe God is taking you on this path for a reason? Maybe you think you want something, and maybe God wants you to have something better? Something that might exceed our greatest desires? Steven Furtick’s message last week was incredible… Here was the takeaway (for me at least):

“Faith cannot rest in God fulfilling OUR agenda.” If we “zoom out” there may be a purpose that is greater and a plan that is bigger than we can even conjure up in our simple minds.

I am believing this today my friends. I often find myself in a place of wondering. It is a familiar and well-worn path in my mind, to question where God is taking me. Despite being under some great teachers in my life, I get dragged in by my own reasoning. I am grateful today that God’s logic is not even close to mine and that His ways are greater. I am counting on better paths and in God’s great design to exceed my wildest dreams.

How to live out honor

Honor | It’s a heavy word. A word filled with so much opportunity. A word bursting with love and meaning.

I have a friend who shared a recent conversation/argument they were having with their fiancé. The exchange was hurtful, leaving a recovery scene of fear and pain – anything but honor.

Similarly, I was in my office last week when I overheard a staff member sharing how they were hurt by another employee’s comments about them that they heard through the grapevine.

Without giving a lot of thought to our words, we create an environment that does not promote honor. How and why does this happen? I do not believe that’s anyone’s intent. It’s not like you wake up and say to yourself, “Today I am going to extend hurt instead of love… ” That doesn’t happen in the world I live in, yet the reality is our homes, car and corridors at times leave a residue of dishonor.

Today, it would be awesome to put honor back on top of our lists. I even told my young, soon-to-be-married friend that if I had to do it over, I might tattoo “honor” on my wrist before my wedding day. Beyond my marriage, the permanent reminder to show honor to the ones I love and who God has entrusted and surrounded me with seems like a great idea.

What is honor? Honor is focusing on admiration & respect in all we do. Here are some thoughts that might be helpful:

  • Compliment early and often – Esteem those deserving publicly and privately
  • Be patient – Remember that “slow to speak…” blog from Sunday?
  • Ask questions and show interest – Actually appreciate differences and opposing view points
  • Overlook mistakes and comments
  • Use the Acronym THINK in your thoughts, intentions and actions – Is it True? Helpful? Inspiring? Necessary? Kind?
  • Forgive quickly

One of my favorite coaching messages for myself and others is to “always wear the white hat,” stand above the comments you know aren’t real, but are full of emotion and a pain generally not rooted in the truth. If you like Michelle Obama, then her famous quote, “When they go low, we go high,” comes to mind.

Let’s outdo each other with HONOR this week.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: What, God? What are you trying to teach me?

As most of the folks who hang with me know, I am committed to my faith and believe 100% that God is guiding me and all of us along our relative paths. I believe that we don’t encounter lessons that won’t be used to help provide a light for our path. That we don’t meet people we aren’t supposed to love and serve in some way.

I want to admit today that I have had many life moments that have left me wondering years later what the intended lesson was. What in the world am I supposed to learn from this? How do I grow, and how can I understand it more clearly? Perhaps, on this side of heaven, we don’t get that opportunity. Perhaps I’m not patient or haven’t arrived yet at the right timing. I’ve found that’s why it’s called faith.

There is fairly common scripture, “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. Plans for good, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Today, regardless of what is going on in your life and where life has taken you, I pray that you will join me in believing that there is a plan and that the plan is for your good. I believe that it is for you to achieve your best self – the you that feels pure joy and love surrounding you deeply.

Cheering you on. Bold prayers my friends, bold prayers.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: “We gotta take care of each other.”

I have to tell you, I was absolutely stunned by the Grammy Awards this year. I honestly don’t remember watching them for long the last several years, but the opening act this year and the ever-incredible Alicia Keys had me hooked from the beginning. (I guess you don’t “age out” after all.)

So, the strong message to me was beyond music unifying, although it clearly has in every generation. It was about using your platform, whatever that is that God has given you, to improve our world. Lady Gaga, (who, by the way, is my surprise new love) used her stage to talk about mental health, compelling us all to take care of each other. I honestly have never met a person who didn’t need to hear this. Have you?

From the beginning of time, God instructed us to take care of one another. There are numerous scriptures, but here are a few of my favorites…

1 Thessalonians 5:11: “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up…”

Galatians 6:2: “Bear one another’s burdens…”

Ephesians 4:32: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted…”

As a Christian, I rest in these truths. But I have friends from many beliefs and religions, and I believe the sheer majority of the world believes in this truth.

I hope as we go into a new week we can all be on the look out for how we can best “take care.” I also hope that we can shake off every bit of negative feeling that comes with asking for help. Many of my best days are because I did just that. We are not meant to do life alone.

Have the best of weeks.

Taking action: Continuing to add wood to the fire – the demands of success

Most people know success is not a stagnant function. In order to “stay on top of our game,” we have to continue to “add wood to the fire.” I love this analogy in Grant Cardone’s best seller, ‘The 10X Rule.’ Sometimes we have no idea what we are fueling, but our actions tend to create results, for better or for worse. If we are truly hoping to serve in the best way, we must be clear about what areas we are adding wood (or water) to the fire.

So, for today, let’s think through some main areas of our lives….

Finances: Any wood I need to add here? Are there areas that require my attention? Any areas I need to add water and put the fire out a bit?

Spiritual: Is my fire at a slow burn, or are the embers barely lit?Am I shining as bright as I could and warming others in the process?

Career (be it in the community, home or retirement): What actions am I taking to ensure that I am continuously growing?

Health, Mind & Body: Am I optimizing what God has given me? Where do I need to add a few branches (or actions) to up my game? After all, I cannot really be successful without a healthy mind and body.

I hope the idea that continuous success requires ongoing action is something that resonates with you. The visual to me was a strong one. Some fires require actual large pieces of wood, some only need kindling, and others need a dousing of water to extinguish the crazy and bring us down a notch. Where do you need to take action?

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Elevate the SPARKLE this week!

Who else is ready to “shake off” winter and bring on the sparkle of warmer days? That surely is a metaphor for life in general… Sometimes, we need to “shake” off a season and pray that God will provide some clear skies and brighter moments.

There is a great scripture that points us to the fact that God is pushing us toward sparkle toward a life fulfilled and joyful…

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:4

I’ve heard this read at weddings, and at other celebratory moments in life – those “sparkling” moments, if you will. It strikes me that we need “every day sparkle,” like the kind that happens on a cold winter day. The kind that shows up when a fun song hits the radio, throwing you back to your youth, when “adulting” hadn’t quite taken hold. The kind that makes you smile. We need this truth today.

Today’s simple thought is this: I am praying over each of you right now that God might remove any “yuck” and provide a path of clarity, richness and pure DELIGHT for you and those you love. I hope you will join me in elevating the SPARKLE this week.

The power of our emotions

Not sure where I heard this, but I put it down in my notes as a reminder to blog about at some point. Here’s what I think about this: OUCH!

It resonates because it’s spot on. When our emotions cause our minds to go off course, we are creating stories and narratives that quite possibly aren’t viable or true. The obvious problem with this is we have this amazing ability as humans to manifest our own thoughts. We can use the power of the mind to, at times, turn these emotions into a reality. (I’ve done it more times than I’d like to admit.)

I like the idea that we should OBSERVE these emotions – fear, anxiety, exhilaration, and more – all as a feedback system. A feedback mechanism that was built inside of us to process and make better decisions. Intentionally taking the time to “harness,” if you will, the emotion and asking ourselves where it came from. Is it based on real facts or have we allowed our minds to blow it up into something more? You get the thought here, I hope.

I have a therapist who has asked me to take time to “sit” with my emotions or feelings… don’t pursue them or run from them – just sit. At first that baffled me because I am a doer, as in, “let’s deal with this and move on.” So, this realization that there is another option to observe and understand has been a game changer for me.

I hope this topic strikes home with at least a few of you. It is not easy, but it is important to really consider that God has given us this amazing feedback system for us to both protect ourselves and to help us thrive. We should use it as such and not allow it to be anything more.

Cheers to a great week!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Trust the re-route

I absolutely love this.

Actually, let’s re-phrase that… I have grown to love the idea of this. God has taken me on some crazy paths in my life, and often they have (at least in the end) made sense. Some, on the other hand, make me wonder “what the heck was that all about?” Sure, the twist and turns of life are what makes it interesting, but also downright scary sometimes.

Yesterday, I came across a scripture (Exodus 14:13-14) that I have needed to remember many times in my life. Actually, make that two scriptures. The second, was on a sign over my bed at summer camp a few years ago. It was new to me, and one that has given me great comfort in those scary times.

The first: “But Moses told the people, ‘Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today.” Isn’t that amazing? I have often needed God to be on a rescue mission for me and those I love. In fact, as I type this, I have several friends going through pure hell who are in need or rescue. I’m praying this over them right this minute.

The second: “The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” WOW. That is the one that hung over my bed. I walked into the room for night one of camp and while I’m not sure what season I was in on that day, the message sunk deep in my soul. I know I needed to surrender and let Him do the fighting. My human spirit had had enough, and could no longer muster up the strength to take on whatever giant I was trying to take to battle. I needed to surrender.

As you go through this week and connect with others, I hope that you will keep these two front and center. Trust the re-reroute. God has you and those whom you love absolutely covered. When trust is hard – because for me, it always is for some reason – remember that He is fighting for you. Stay calm and watch.

Have a simply beautiful week.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Our thoughts are powerful

Our thoughts have the ability to consume our lives – literally.

Our thoughts keep us up at night, and can cause us to drift off and end up in our driveway without remembering the drive home. Our thoughts can both energize us and make us physically sick. The Bible verse above continues on to say that we must take every thought “obedient to Christ.” The intent, to be sure our thoughts are leading us in the direction God would want us to go.

Lysa Terkeurst, a best-selling author, reminded me recently that “as we think, we eventually act.” That was powerful to me, and perhaps will be to you as well. As most of you know, on Sundays I keep it brief. Today, I am leaving this with you with this very idea…

Let us all be more in tune with our thoughts.

Are they leading you where you know in your heart you are supposed to go or are you unsure? If you are unsure, I would point you to prayer and reading God’s word or seeking the input of someone you know has a strong spiritual life that can come alongside you to help. I am confident they would be happy to! That’s what we are all here for… to help, encourage and elevate.

Have a great week and know that you have an army of people cheering you on and praying for your great success.

Thank you, Dr. King

Please don’t dismiss this week’s celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

If you are a news junkie, no doubt it has been front and center (along with football playoffs and winter) the last few days. Others are avoiding the news, instead gravitating toward anything but the often-negative stories that flood into our homes.

For this week, it is worthwhile to take in the story of his life… again.

If you’d like a simple place, use this. The “I have a dream” video is also worth your 5 minutes.

My friend Gretchen who substitute teaches (lucky kids) told me that she asked her class the other day who today’s heroes are. The collective group couldn’t really come up with any. Maybe some athletes, but overall the exercise provided pause that left everyone asking who deserves such a title today? Who is doing work that addresses the big issues?

Thankfully there are a LOT of heroes in our world. Many who are quietly serving – and some more noteworthy … spending their days working on complex & big issues. But there is always room for more stand-outs who can GALVANIZE our country. People like Dr. King who sacrificed their lives for the good of man and society.

The quote above is my favorite of Dr. King’s. It resonates with me and I hope it does with you. What issues have we been silent about? The definition of silence meaning that you haven’t really done anything to share your concern and take action to help improve the situation. This could be as easy as walking by litter in your own neighborhood, or as complex as taking on the hate that impacts our world.

 (A shout out to my friend Mindy Corporon and family who are working toward improvement in this area via their foundation and their annual week-long event bringing awareness to these issues.) 

Whatever the issue is that you have a passion for, please don’t be silent. It’s a new year and I’m often glad Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is celebrated this month, because this is a month to LAUNCH – to kick off or renew a commitment to what is important in our lives. (If you don’t have anything that stands out, please join Mindy and team.)

While you are at it, if you have children in your life that you can inspire, encourage them this week to identify those issues and begin to step forward as a leader to truly impact our world for the positive. I’m confident that today’s youth have what it takes to continue to make America the greatest country in the world.