Category Archives: Inspiration

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What Are You Doing Today to Insure Success Tomorrow?

Over the course of a lifetime there are many opportunities for parents to learn lessons from their children. Our son, Ben, is an Entertainment Industries Studies student at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. He has become pretty intent recently on having a real go at the music industry as a singer/songwriter and leader of a band called My Red and Blue. It’s a tough industry, and he knows it.

Knowing that, he spends most every day doing things that will hopefully help him defy the odds and actually make a living as a musician and entrepreneur. Here are some of the things he’s been doing:

  • Helping other people. He doesn’t do it just so that favors get returned. He does it because he’s genuinely interested in people, and in helping them succeed.
  • Setting goals. He has a clear vision in his mind of where he’d like to go, and where he’d like to one day be. With that before him he has road to take and a path to pursue. There’s no floundering. It’s a very real plan.
  • Networking. This week I had the opportunity to attend a show that Ben and his band played along with a couple of other acts. Wisely, after the show, he stuck around to speak with people who had attended, and to find Nashville and industry connections that just might provide future opportunities.
  • Working hard. When you’re doing something you love, working hard on it is actually fun…not “work.” So every chance he gets he co-writes songs with other songwriters, spends time on his own writing, or jots down notes that may one day turn into a full-blown idea.
  • Relying on people who know. Ben’s a good listener. Whenever he can he picks the brain — and listens — to people who have been there, who know what they’re talking about, who have experience. Instead of making mistakes, it’s always wise to learn from someone else’s…and from their successes.

This all isn’t to say that Ben has done everything right. Some opportunities have slipped by. He could be better at getting things finished right now instead of “putting them off until tomorrow.” If he had done some things months ago, he’d be well on his way to things that will help him in the days and months ahead.

But Ben has taught me (or reminded me) to:

  • Help other people.
  • Set goals.
  • Network.
  • Work hard.
  • Rely on people who know.
…And maybe not to procrastinate so much.

While they are no guarantee, doing these things today will lead to a much better chance for success tomorrow. That’s a lesson I’m gladly learning from my son.

What are you doing today to insure success tomorrow?

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Why Weddings are Both Weird and Wonderful

Weddings are both weird and wonderful. The weird part comes from a conglomeration of people who have never been together before — and never will be again — joining to celebrate the union of two people with whom they somehow have a relationship. There are two families and two sets of friends. It makes for a mishmash at the reception that leads to interesting discussions, long lost friends being found, and serendipitous meetings. I’ve even known couples who have met at weddings that eventually themselves get married.

The wonderful part happens at the most unexpected times. Our niece was married this past weekend. We love her and her new husband. They are fun, faithful, and a fantastic couple. They proved it, when at the rehearsal dinner, they both spoke eloquently, thanking their parents for bringing them to this point in time.

Their informal speeches were filled with quiet passion, emotion, and a strong dose of their Christian faith. In short, they were wonderful.

There we were in the party room of a dimly decorated place  near downtown St. Louis. The room was quieted, and the two began to speak. The speech our niece gave was formed around the phrase: “When I think of you, I think of…” She made a list for each of her parents, recalling many of the things they had each done to bring her to this point in time, and make her who she is. She recalled the ways they helped create her competitive spirit, her love of art, and instill in her the Christian faith.

It was masterful. The words she spoke were so much from the bottom of her heart, that they welled up in her and made her cry. They were tears of love. And tears of love are the sweetest of all tears.

Those tears were not at all weird. They were wonderful.

But the love didn’t end there. It kept flowing the next day as we all came together in the Lord’s house to see right before our eyes a picture of Christ and His bride, the church.

In a wonderful way, as vows were said, we were reminded that as a husband gives of himself for his wife, Christ gave His life for the church. Given the opportunity, a husband ought to do no less.We were reminded that as a wife loves and serves her husband, so the church loves and serves her husband, Jesus. Given the opportunity, a wife, and the church, ought to do no less.

The weird thing is that Christ did what nobody really expected. Though He was God, He became man and gave His life for His bride, the church.

The wonderful thing is that the church (though sinful and often self-centered) willingly and lovingly serves her husband, Jesus. Though she is frail and fails, the bride finds joy in serving and service.

Weird and wonderful. It’s strange to think that this will all culminate in the ultimate wedding feast at the marriage feast of the Lamb in the kingdom that will have no end.

I imagine it will be a wonderfully weird conglomeration of people on that day. There will be passion, emotion, and tears of joy that will be eternally wiped dry.

What do you find weird and wonderful about the picture we are given of Christ and His bride, the church?

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How a Dental Exam Made Me Spiritually Uncomfortable

Today I saw things I didn’t want to see. I made my first trip to the dentist here in Florida, and had an experience that I had never had at my dentist back in Milwaukee. As I sat in the chair, the dental assistant pulled a TV screen down in front of my, placed a wand in my mouth, and one by one showed me each of my teeth, larger than life and in living color.

Not really the way I wanted to start my day.

I saw my kingly crowns. I noticed a couple of old silver cavities. I cringed at the thought of a repaired tooth. I’m just not into seeing every detail of the inside of my mouth.

It’s even more uncomfortable when that little camera called God’s Law scans its way across my life and points out all my flaws:

  • My failure to help others in need
  • My secrets that should never be known
  • My outbursts of unjustified anger
  • My hatred of those I shouldn’t hate
  • My impatience
  • My lack of giving 100%
  • My frustration with things that ought to be considered blessings

I just want to turn my eyes away from that little camera. But sometimes I need to fix my eyes on that screen. I need to see the ugliness of my sin so that I note well the terror of its consequences.

The teeth of the Law have done their job when I begin to feel the jaws chomp down and I do my best to wiggle away.

But I cannot wiggle away. I am trapped. The jaws of death will not let go.

I need rescue and release. And there is only One who can take the camera of the Law off of me, and turn it on Himself. He took the trap upon Himself so that I am free. Baptism makes me clean, washes away all the ugliness of sin, and releases me from the trap of my own awful self.

When the little camera of God’s Law is turned upon Jesus, it scans its way across His life and points out His perfection:

  • Always helping others in need
  • Having no secrets that need hiding
  • Never an outburst of unjustified anger
  • Loving those others would hate
  • Perfect patience
  • Giving all, even to the point of death
  • Being the perfect blessing to the world

Because of Him, I get to see things I should have never seen.

What reminds you of the incredible gift of forgiveness?

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Funny As a Heart Attack

One of my very best friends had a heart attack the other day. And that’s not funny. In fact, it was about as serious a life event as one could ever go through. You’ve heard the saying, “I’m serious as a heart attack.” Well, this was serious.

Some said the heart attack was “minor.” A heart attack is only “minor” if it’s not happening to you. It’s serious.

Having said that, when I visited my friend in the hospital, we laughed.  And laughed. And laughed. Following his procedure, he was feeling better than he had in months. He almost couldn’t contain his excitement. The day he had the heart attack just happened to be his birthday. He said that his new lease on life was the best birthday present he could have received. He said and did things that made the three of us in the room with him laugh extremely hard. As a pastor, I’ve been in many, many hospital rooms over the years. I have never laughed in a hospital room as hard as I did that day.

It was a funny couple of hours. 

But there was something that made the day poignant, as well. What impressed me more than anything else was that my friend, having just had a heart attack and gone through a cardiac catheterization, was seemingly more concerned about other people than he was about himself. He got on the phone there in his hospital bed planning, making arrangements, and feeling badly for people who would be negatively impacted by his inability to do certain things over the next few days and weeks.

Attack or not, the guy has a heart. He lives the Christian life. He knows that loving and serving God means loving and serving people right here on earth. He doesn’t just say it. He lives it.

His is a forgiven heart (as are yours and mine). And a forgiven heart is a giving heart. Forgiveness fuels hearts to do what God calls and enables them to do.

A heart attack is nothing to joke about. But when the heart of a giving person attacks others with love, the world is changed. That’s the kind of heart attack that can bring smiles, joy, and laughter.

When have you seen someone make the best of a difficult situation and show great heart?

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The Sentence of Our Generation

When Neil Armstrong died last week I was reminded of his famous words when he set foot on the moon. The words he uttered became one of the most famous sentences of all time. He said,

“One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”

This sentence has defined my generation. As young children we sat and watched our black and white TV’s as Neil Armstrong took that famous step. Now we make giant leaps of our own, holding tiny computers in our hands. Just last week my best friend in San Francisco took me on a tour of his house as I watched on my iPhone. He was 2800 miles away. He could see me and I could see him. I felt like Dick Tracy.

Our children barely know what it’s like not to have a cell phone. Now they wonder how technology will impact their children. I can only imagine.

It seems as though giant leaps are made almost daily. But far too often those leaps are made by others. While our own hopes and dreams remain just that — hopes and dreams — others are working to make their hopes realities. They are persistent. They show up. They make the best use of their time.

They take the first step.

Sometimes just a small step is actually a giant leap:

  • Taking an idea and writing it down.
  • Planning the next step.
  • Building a model.
  • Having a meeting.
  • Following up.
  • Doing something uncomfortable.
  • Taking the risk by telling someone else.

Neil Armstrong could never have landed on the moon had someone not done the above things. Your goal may not be to land on the moon, but it could be something just as significant or life-changing.

Today I want to nudge you to bring forward idea you have in the back of your mind and take the first step toward making it a reality. Write it down. Plan. Tell someone else. Ask them to hold you accountable and follow up.

Take a risk and take a small step that just might be the giant leap this world…or maybe just your small corner of the world…really needs.

It may just be the impetus for the sentence that will define this next generation.

Go. Now. Do it.

What small step have you taken that, in the end, became a giant leap?

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If He Can Do It, I Can Do It

While you were watching the Olympics this summer, did you see the Nike commercial? You know…the one with the overweight kid “running” toward the camera? Well, really not running…more like shuffling. He barely puts one foot in front of the other while a voice talks about “greatness.” The commercial ends with the words: “We’re all capable of (greatness). All of us.”

That. Commercial. Motivated. Me. It wasn’t so much the words. In fact, I don’t think I even paid attention to the words any of the 83 times I saw the commercial. What I said to myself every time I saw that commercial was: “If he can do that, I can do that.”

I have been a sporadic “runner” off and on for many years now…more “on” than “off.” But over the past year or so it’s been very easy for me to find one excuse or another: “I’ll never be able to run again like I used to.” “I have this ‘fatigue’ that the doctors can’t figure out so I might as well give in to it.” “It’s too cold.” “It’s too hot.” “It won’t help me lose weight, anyway.”

So my running has been more sporadic than ever. But then I saw the kid on the Nike commercial. If he can do it, I can do it. Over the past couple of weeks, more often than not, I have been getting up, slipping on the running shoes, beating the heat with an early morning venture into the misty air, and putting one foot in front of the other. If you saw me “running” you’d see that it’s really not unlike the kid on the commercial.

But if he can do it, I can do it.

You know what? It’s really just about showing up. Making it a pattern. Creating a habit.

I haven’t noticed any big improvement, or that it’s becoming any easier. In fact, I wish I’d see at least some improvement. But I just. keep. thinking. about. that. kid.

If he can do it, I can do it. 

Nike says that it’s about “greatness.” I’d say that

  • It’s more about a competitive spirit and not giving up.
  • It’s about showing up.
  • It’s about making helpful habits.
  • It’s about using whatever it takes to motivate oneself.
  • It’s about lacing up the shoes and getting out there: hot or cold, rain or shine, energetic or tired.

If he can do it, I can do it.

And so can you.

What is motivating you today to move forward?

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Don’t Wish Your Life Away

Yesterday I realized that I’ve still got a whole suitcase full of clothes that I haven’t even opened since I’ve been here in Florida. Half of the clothes that I’m wearing right now are either in the dresser that I call “the floor” or in another suitcase. It’s definitely evidence that we are living temporarily.

We’re using furniture that’s not our own, silverware that isn’t ours, and are living a small apartment that we are only renting for (hopefully) a short period of time. It’s not easy. Have you ever just really wanted to use your own “stuff”: golf clubs, cook ware, a bike, or your computer? It just makes you feel a bit “out of sorts.” We’re waiting for our house to be built and the process is painfully slow. A watched pot boils faster.

But it’s all sort of like planting seeds in the ground and waiting for them to grow. You know that eventually something wonderful is going to pop out of the ground. You simply have to be patient until that day arrives.

As my wife’s grandmother used to say: “Don’t wish your life away.” There is plenty to be excited about for today. What is happening under the soil as a seed takes root is all about:

  • building strength
  • laying a foundation
  • measured growth
  • daily nurture
  • preparing for next stages

I only wrote that last paragraph because I have to remind myself of that principle. I am, by nature, an impatient person. But in my heart of hearts I know that this time of transition is for me

  • building strength
  • laying a foundation
  • measured growth
  • daily nurture
  • preparing me for upcoming stages in my life

I was reminded of all this by one of my favorite bloggers, Allison Vesterfelt, who recently wrote that life “never feels dreamy while you’re living it,” and “dreams come true while you’re taking out the trash, or doing dishes.” Jesus said, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:33-34).

Seek His kingdom today. Tomorrow there may just be a shoot sticking out the ground, a branch growing off of a stem, or even a flower blooming at the top of your life’s plant.

What are YOU anticipating, that can just as well be “left until tomorrow”?

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Perfect Olympic Endings

I’ll admit it. I like knowing the results of the Olympic events before they air. I actually search for the results on Twitter and other news outlets. I enjoy knowing how it all turns out. And yet I still watch. I watch in comfort knowing how it ends.

Maybe that’s because in my daily life and work I don’t know how things are going to turn out. In real life things are not always tied up so neatly with a nice little bow and a happy ending. Things aren’t always so tidy. There’s enough suspense in every day life. I don’t need it in my entertainment, too. I like knowing how it all turns out.

Now living in the land of Disney reminds me that, like all Disney movies, there is evil in the world. But it all turns out well in the end. At Disney, there is always a happy ending.

That may seem somewhat simplistic. But I’ve walked out to enough gravesides to know that life is tough. It is often pretty sad. We need all the joy in life we can get, as the Lord allows.

I guess that’s one of the great things about being a Christian. It’s one of the reasons I wish all my friends, neighbors, and acquaintances were.

We know the end of the story. This life is filled with sadness, sorrow, frustration, trouble, and hardship. And, yet, there is also plenty in life to be happy about and in which to rejoice. For that I am thankful.

But I am most thankful that the end of the only story that really matters is a happy ending. Being saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ means that as sad as the end may seem for those left behind, for me the end will only be a new and wildly incredible beginning.

Everything will be new, good, and perfect. There will be no more endings.

It’s fun knowing how it will all end.

Do you like knowing ahead of time how Olympic events, or anything else, ends?

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Are You Wrecked?

Today my acquaintance and friend Jeff Goins releases his first book, Wrecked. I’m sure it won’t be his last.

Wrecked wrecked me. As I read my pre-publication copy I found it be challenging, smart, and yet easy to read. But it’s not easy to translate into real life. Which is a good thing.

This is an extremely important book, and one you should read. You won’t regret it.

According to Goins, to be wrecked means 

to have a transformation that goes beyond mere words — to be introduced to another way of life, to follow in the footsteps of a teacher who is calling you through the eye of a needle. Often it involves being catalyzed by an encounter with pain. The process is horrible and ugly and completely gut-wrenching — and at the same time, beautiful. It is real and hard and true. Most of all it is necessary. (p.32)

The term originally came from missionaries who came back from the field and said they would never be the same. They had been “wrecked.” Wrecked is getting out of the comfort zone. It means experiencing pain and being changed. It’s going through an experience that will permanently set your life in another direction.

If you buy the book (only about $10 at many online outlets) before August 5th you will receive $158 worth of free stuff. Go to goinswriter.com for all the details.

I find myself literally in the middle of being “wrecked,” out of my comfort zone, being daily challenged to do something new, and discovering the needs of a community that’s in the midst of changing me and the people I serve. More of those stories will be forthcoming here on this blog. But for now, check out Jeff’s book and see how it changes you.

How have you recently been wrecked?

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How I’m Learning that the Prayer of the Righteous Availeth Much

I must not be very righteous. “The prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16).

You see, I’ve been praying a great deal recently for one specific thing. No, really. I’ve been praying as I fall asleep at night. When I wake up in the middle of the night. When I wake up in the morning. As I drive my car. As I remember throughout the course of the day.

One specific thing. The way I wanted it to be. …According to the Lord’s will, of course. But, really, the way I wanted it to be.

I knew how I really wanted it to be, the way I wanted it to turn out, according to my own perfect will. I, I, My.

Guess what. It didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to. Completely different. Having an impact on my very life.

I know I’m not “righteous.” And this reminded me.

Not my will, by Thy will be done. It always will be that way…His way…whether I like it or not.

He is righteous and I am not. He created the universe and knit it together, and I did not. He used an old man to create a chosen nation, and I did not. He parted the waters of the Red Sea, and I did not. He had a plan to save the world, executed it (literally!), carried it out, and I did not.

He knows best. And I do not.

But that doesn’t mean I should stop praying. The righteous blood of Jesus covers over me. It is because of the Righteous Man that prayer does, indeed, avail much.

The blood of Jesus means that God Almighty hears my prayer. And He answers it. And He know what’s best. Always.

And I do not.

I have to remind myself of that over and over again.

How has the Lord recently answered your prayers?