Archive for the ‘Leadership’ Category

A New Year… A New Beginning?

Posted: January 9, 2012 in Leadership, Life, Seasonal
Tags: , , , ,
0

2012.

Welcome to a New Year, which brings with it the sense of opportunity, change and new beginnings. Don’t you just love the opportunity for a new start!?

But to be honest, as a Christian I often find it a challenge to not just set goals and New Year’s resolutions, but to truly hear from God in a way that not only inspires, but literally catapults me and others into the next season of destiny. Resolutions and goals are great, but a “now” message from God’s Word empowers us to move forward with confidence and resolve.

Here is a scripture we believe God has spoken to our family for the new year:

Psalm 37: 3-5

Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord, trust Him, and He will help you.  

What an incredibly empowering message for us all to take into the New Year:

Trust…

Sounds so easy, but in the midst of everyday life, I often struggle with simply TRUSTING God. How about you?  I need to constantly be reminded that God promises in His word that if we will just Trust Him… we will prosper!

Delight…

to take pleasure in the One who made us, Loves us, and gave His life for us.  When we simply worship God and meditate on His goodness and love for us, He takes the dreams He placed in our hearts and brings them to fruition!  The one who gives the dreams is the one who grants those dreams through the ones who delight in Him!

Commit…

sometimes I just want to “hang out” with God or visit Him at my convenience.  Commit seems like such a “BIG” word!  It seems so complete, so final.  Sometimes I’m afraid of full and complete commitment, because it will cost me! Because I’ve been hurt.  Because I’ve been disappointed. Anyone else ever feel this way?  But, who better to commit to than God Himself? He knows us better than we know ourselves. Our commitment to Him invites His help in any and every situation in our lives!  I sure need that kind of divine intervention in my life.

So… 2012… it’s here.

And my resolutions are simple, because they are not just goals.  They are promises from the One who keeps His promises.  I will TRUST, DELIGHT and COMMIT to the God of the universe, my Savior and my King. That’s it. Pure and simple.

Can I ask you to please pray for me that I will keep these three simple “resolutions with promise” throughout this year?  I will commit to do the same for you as we all seek God’s will in 2012!

God Bless and have a great year!

Snow Well!

Posted: March 2, 2011 in Leadership, Life
Tags: , , ,
0

Living in western NY, I have grown accustomed to snow. It snows here, and then… it snows some more. After that, when spring has come and the season of snow has ended, it snows again!

We have reached that point of the season where, honestly… I am done with snow and ready for spring. So, last week I looked out the window and could not believe what I was seeing. More snow. As I began to complain, my six-year-old son interrupted me in mid-complaint. Right when I was voicing my snow grievance, he says with childlike exuberance, “Dad! Snow is like a dream come true! It makes everything white and pure!”

Wow

I was speechless.

The perspective through the eyes of my six-year-old, presented me with an alternate point of view. With one brief childlike expression of honesty, I was challenged, corrected and received an attitude adjustment. Thank you Josiah! This momentary encounter got me thinking. There are many areas in life where it seems like “seasons of snow” just will not end. As humans, we do not like hardships, or trials or testings of any kind. I know I don’t! I like sunny days without rain. I like days where everything goes well. Days where I get my way, where I am right, where I get to do what I want to do and nothing gets in my way. I like days where every traffic light is green, and I get a raise and a bonus just for showing up.

Ok, let’s be REALLY honest!

In my humanness, I want money without work. I want to be paid to sleep in. I want to do what I want, when I want without anyone telling me what to do, how to do it, and why. I want to be in control! I want, I want, I want…. And I want it all without any cost! That’s me… just being human. But, when I look at things through the eyes of my six-year-old, I realize something. Snow ain’t all that bad! There are many seasons in my life I would like to forget or erase or get a “do over”. However, those seasons have led me to where I am. They have assisted in making me the person I am.

We read in James 1:2-4

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

Another version reads like this: James 1:2-4

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

Remember, after the snow, comes the spring. After spring, comes the summer, where – even here in Western New York State – it gets hot. Then, comes the temptation to complain about the squelching heat! Every season in life has it’s challenges. I just need to remember the lesson learned from my little son Josiah. Perspective is everything!

The outcomes of life seasons are primarily determined by the attitude of the person living them.

Well, I think it’s snowing again, so excuse me while I go enjoy the end of a season.

I Almost Lost It

Posted: May 25, 2010 in Family, Leadership, Life
Tags: , , , , , ,
3

Last week was a very busy week for me.  I had something scheduled every single day. It seemed like I had something scheduled every hour.

I went home for a brief moment to clean up, change clothes and prepare to return to the regularly scheduled programming of my busy life. As I went to leave, I realized I had misplaced my phone.  I began the frantic search to find it.  I looked everywhere. Under the couch. In the bedroom.  In the bathroom. On the stairs.  On the kitchen table.  I even looked in the refrigerator.  Hey…you never know!

At the heat of the search, my five year old son kept trying to talk to me.  “Daddy, I want to tell you something.”

He interrupted me numerous times.  He was following me from room to room.  Trying to talk to me, trying to get my attention.

However, his dad had more important things to do, had places to be, had people to see…his dad did not have time to talk.  Couldn’t he understand?

Then, after searching for my phone for almost thirty minutes, I gave up because I had to leave.

As I left, my son met me at the door and looked up at me with his big brown eyes and said, “Dad, I just wanted to tell you something… I found your phone…here.”

Wow…

There are so many things I could say right here.  But I will just say this.  Do not let the busyness of life rob you of the importance of life.  Because, in our busyness it is possible to miss the fact that what we are searching for may be right in front of our face.

I Choose…

Posted: May 11, 2010 in Leadership, Life
Tags: , , , ,
0

I was thinking about yesterday.  Actually, I was thinking about many yesterdays. I have lived long enough to have built up quite a collection. 

There are many things stored in my yesterdays: Good memories; Bad memories; Painful memories; Joyful memories.  And within each memory, there are multiple emotions waiting to be relived: joy, sadness, anger, hope, anxiety, love, remorse, happiness.

Then I thought about tomorrow.  Tomorrow is powerful. Tomorrow simultaneously brings the hope of new beginnings and the dread of problems or the pain of bad situations that never seem to change.  Sometimes tomorrow looks promising; sometimes it worries me and fills my heart with dread.

When I look at yesterday, I often want to go back in time and fix things I messed up.  Or, go back and relive joyful moments I never want to forget. When I look at tomorrow, I want to leap ahead and see what is about to happen.  I want to see the future so I can prepare for the worst or make sure I don’t miss something good that is about to take place.

And when I am done reminiscing about yesterday and dreaming about tomorrow, I realize where I am. I am here. Not in yesterday. Not in tomorrow. But I am here…in the moment of today.  And it is then I begin to live. 

For while yesterday holds the power of memories gone by and tomorrow possesses the attraction of the unknown moments ahead, it is today which wins the contest for my attention. 

Yesterday you are powerful; you can hold me back or propel me forward. Tomorrow, you are strong with your ability to infuse me with hope or weigh me down with worry. But today, only in you can I actually live. 

So thank you yesterday for the memories. Thank you tomorrow for the promise of new beginnings.  But, I choose today, because only you are the gift from God that gives me the opportunity to live.

I have instructed you TODAY…so that your confidence may be in the Lord. Proverbs 22:19

That’s What He Said!

Posted: May 5, 2010 in Leadership, Life
Tags: , , ,
6

I confess.  I am a collector.  You might even call me a hoarder.  What is it that I hoard you may ask. Well, there is one thing of which I just cannot get enough: words…quotes to be exact.

I love quotes.  I read them; I think about them; I collect them.

So please, allow me if you will to share a brief sample of my collection.  Enjoy!

“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.” Chinese Proverb.

Sometimes the result is not as important as the obedience.  Pastor R. L. Smith

It’s better to inch your way toward the right finish line than to finish first place in the wrong race. Steven Furtick

“No man ever listened himself out of a job.” -Calvin Coolidge

Prayer is a means of bringing us into conformity with God’s will, not a magic mantra that ensures God’s conformity to ours. (unknown)

“Anyone can give up, it’s the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that’s true strength.” – Anon

In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock. -Thomas Jefferson

I won’t let worry about my future or regrets of my past rob me of present possibilities. Steven Furtick

Good things come to those who wait, but great things come to those who are proactive. (unknown)

Cowardice asks: Is it safe? Consensus asks: Is it popular? Character asks: Is it right? -Martin Luther King Jr

When we automatically assume the worse about people then we cannot effectively lead them! -Perry Noble

Don’t bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself. Faulkner

Do not let what you can’t do, hinder what you can do. (unknown)

“The greatest day in your life and mine is when we take total responsibility for our attitudes. That’s the day we truly grow up.” John Maxwell

“Where there is no hope in the future, there is no power in the present.” John Maxwell

A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader; a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves. (Unknown)

Any man who can drive safely while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the kiss the attention it deserves.  Albert Einstein

Good leadership is about developing a rhythm of life, not an equation.  Nancy Ortberg

Our ability to love is reflected in our capacity to forgive. ~ Nancy Ortberg

An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it. Jeff Mallett

People learn more from your admission of weaknesses than faking strengths. It builds hope that God could use them too.  RickWarren

God will purify our motives as we walk out our Godly ambitions.  Derek Levendusky

“True greatness, true leadership, is found in giving yourself in service to others, not in coaxing or inducing others to serve you. True service is never without cost” – J. Oswald Sanders

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Jesus Christ

Again, like I said, I am a collector. So, feel free to comment and leave some of your own.  I would love to add them to my collection.