I was in southern Colombia at an orphanage in the Amazon. A little girl, about the age of my daughter at the time, was walking with her Bible through the yard, and I asked about her favorite verse. She smiled, opened the worn Bible with pen marks throughout and went to the underlined chapter of…
But, the speed of life and the worries of the world cause us to miss the seasons, and, because of that, we miss what should be the priority of life. A couple of season examples at different ends of this spectrum. I was on a late night plane trip a few weeks ago. As a…
A bumped into a good friend yesterday. Over the last, call it 10 years, he had been running hard. Now, he had reached a brief season where the sea was still. Life had slowed down a bit. Work was in a great place. His family was good. But, nevertheless, he felt that something was a…
Moses, arguably the greatest leader that ever lived, was in the desert when he was famously called by God to lead the one million plus Israelites out of slavery. To the unbelieving man, God said that he would give Moses a future sign that He was with him. “I will be with you. And this…
The goal is to speed to the desired outcome. The desire is the fast, maybe the easy, route. And, the speed increases with the pressure of competing with others. Make the video, get the followers, rise to fame. Move to the leadership position fast. Get playing time immediately or move until it happens. When obstacles…
I was watching Running Wild with Bear Grylls, as he was traveling with Matthew McConaughey. They were in Norway in the midst of tremendous mountains, difficult terrain. As they were walking, McConaughey said that he needed to “shake the city off” and talked about how the Norway terrain made him feel small. He said that…
Joseph had been through an unimaginable life journey, from being sold into slavery by his brothers to imprisoned in Egypt to reaching the pinnacle as the key leader of Egypt behind Pharaoh. Reflecting on his life, he recognizes that it was all meant for good. God had a greater purpose through his life. It wasn’t…
Relationships cannot exist without forgiveness. Justin Whitmel Earley, Made for People Calendar overload. Those “I just need 30 minutes” meetings actually take an hour plus of brain power. The meeting causes interruption of thinking. And, while the meeting is going on, the cup is filling. A steady stream of tasks and fires are flooding your…
How would you describe your heart? Would you talk about what you love? Maybe your passions. “I have a heart for blank.” Maybe toward a person. “My heart is with blank.” Or, maybe you would tie that question to Scripture. “My heart is deceitfully wicked.” When you think about your heart, you feel guilty. Maybe,…
Nothing impacts others more than your words. In fact, the most powerful, effective tool in your arsenal today is your words. How many conversations or interactions will you have today? More than 100? Before I leave my house, I have impacted four people with my words. At a brief stop at my coffee shop, there…