Raise the Bar

Some of us think that hospitality is reserved for grandmothers who love to bake pies. Others think it’s just something we’re obligated to do once a year around the holidays when we invite family and friends over for dinner. But none of this comes close to how God defines hospitality.

"Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:9-10

We have each been given a gift. It may be speaking, teaching, baking, organizing, engineering – you name it, the list is endless. Hospitality is using whatever gift God has given you to help meet the needs of someone else. But hospitality is not just reserved for our family or close friends. If we see a need that we can meet, we have an obligation to help meet that need so we can be a part of sharing God’s grace.

There is someone in your life right now who needs to be shown some hospitality. Don’t let your gift go to waste.

Escape!

"For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice." James 3:16

Have you heard of a “gateway drug”? The idea is that some drugs lead to other, more harmful and deadly drugs. Before the person knows it, the drug they started with opens them up to a whole new world of drugs they never thought they would do.

James is warning us that envy and selfish ambition are gateway behaviors to much worse things. We might think being envious is no big deal and selfishness is a personal problem, that it only affects our lives and that we can control it. But eventually, our envy will reach out and begin to affect the lives of those around us. When we become consumed with our own desires, we elevate our wants above the needs of others. And ultimately, you’ll no longer care if you hurt others, as long as you get what you want.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that a little envy or selfish ambition is good motivation for advancing your career or financial status. Those thoughts will always lead to disorder and open the gateway to even more destructive behaviors. Instead of being consumed by your own desires, ask God to show you how to help meet the needs of others rather than doing whatever it takes to meet your own.

Escape the Ordinary!

God of This City!

Check out this video and tell me what you think!

Impossible Is Nothing

"Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." Galatians 5:25

If you are a Christian, there was a time before your relationship with Christ that you thought you called the shots. And most of your decisions were based on what the world said you should desire.

Then came your encounter with Christ. And the selfish, destructive nature that once controlled you was replaced by the righteous freedom that Christ offers. Because of that, the foundation for making decisions has been redesigned. But that doesn’t mean you are perfect.

As you strive to keep in step with Christ, you will face obstacles and sometimes turmoil. Why? To keep in step with Christ is to step where He has stepped and to follow His lead. These steps sometimes lead us up a road that is wonderful with nothing but happiness and everything goes as planned. And sometimes these footprints lead us down a lonely road filled with hardship and pain. Neither road is very long, but they both serve the same purpose - to draw us closer to Christ!

Impossible is nothing!

Spiritual Proclamation

What does it mean to be a Christ-Follower?

Majorities of young people in America describe modern-day Christianity as judgmental, hypocritical and anti-gay. What's more, many Christians don't even want to call themselves "Christian" because of the baggage that accompanies the label. The findings were based on surveys of a sample of 867 young people between the ages of 16-29 by the Barna Research Group.

One in four non-Christians said that modern-day Christianity was no longer like Jesus.

Dr. Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church and author of The Purpose Driven Life recently said, "For some time now, the hands and feet of the body of Christ have been amputated, and we've been pretty much reduced to a big mouth."

Something is really, really wrong with popular American Christianity.

How do we change the tide? How do we reach those between the ages of 16-29 that feel a disconnect with the church? How can we reveal to them the genuine love of God?

38 Things!

I am 38 years old and there are 38 things that I wish people would have told me when I was 18. Someone probably did tell me, but I wasn’t paying attention. Re:Imagine what life would be like if we learned from the mistakes of others. We won't live long enough to make them all ourselves...

Here is the list of 38 things:

1. Life is short. Make every day count for God’s glory.
2. Life is short. Don’t take it too seriously.
3. Ministry is a marathon, not a sprint.
4. Jesus cares more about the church than you do.
5. You can’t please everyone…so why try?
6. People will criticize you. Quit whining. Get used to it.
7. Three months from now, you won’t even remember most of the things that are bothering you today.
8. You can’t do it all. Stop trying.
9. God called you because He is good, not because you are.
10. If you blame yourself for the bad results in life or ministry, you’ll likely also take credit for the good results.
11. Your kids will be grown before you know it. Don’t sacrifice them on the altar of ministry.
12. Your ministry isn’t your god. God is your God!
13. You know how to give and how to minister to others. If you don’t learn how to receive, you’ll burn out and/or die.
14. Studying for sermons doesn’t replace your personal time with God and in His word.
15. Err on the side of generosity.
16. Believe in people that others overlook.
17. If you’re going to reach people that others aren’t, you’ll have to do things that others won’t.
18. Your integrity matters more than you can imagine.
19. Hire staff members that you like.
20. When you have a tough decision to make, but you know it’s right, make it immediately. (Like pulling off a Band-Aid: do it fast, and all at once.)
21. Hire slowly. Fire quickly.
22. You can’t change people. Only God can.
23. Don’t criticize others’ ministries. Yours isn’t nearly as perfect as you think it is.
24. Take care of yourself. Eat right. Rest. Exercise. Take time off. No one else can do that for you.
25. If you don’t take much time off, it’s because you’re proud, and you think you’re more necessary than you really are.
26. Don’t just delegate responsibility. Delegate authority.
27. Laugh frequently.
28. People will leave your church. People you love and trust will leave your church. Don’t take it personally.
29. When you suffer and hurt because of ministry, worship Jesus all the more.
30. Talk about Jesus every time you preach.
31. Be careful what you say. You’re being watched.
32. Don’t return emails when you’re angry.
33. Double-Check to make sure your microphone is turned off before you use the bathroom.
34. Double-Check to make sure your zipper is zipped every time before you preach.
35. Love your wife more than you love the church. The church is Jesus’ bride, not yours.
36. Always be caught speaking well of others.
37. Compliment, encourage, and build up your staff and volunteers.
38. Smile and look people in the eyes when you talk to them.

Re:Imagine and start now...

Do any of these apply to you as well? Do you resonate with many of the thoughts? What do you think?

break free

"A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones."
Proverbs 14:30

You know it’s not right, but you feel powerless to stop it. Thoughts creep into your mind and take over. You try to rationalize your feelings, but can’t shake the effect they have. As you stand admiring the blessings of others, that aching sensation deep within you grows stronger. It is the dangerous game of envy.

“Why doesn’t something like that ever happen to me?”

“They don’t deserve that as much as I do!”

The torment of these thoughts can cause you to lose sleep, lose focus and lose your sense of contentment. And the worst part is that it can cause you to lose your trust in God and disregard the awsome stuff He is doing in your life.

Don’t let envy become an uncontrollable force in your life. Instead, rely on God to give you the strength to overcome it. Every time you feel envy start to well up inside of you, identify it for what it is. Rather than focusing on what you don’t have, take a moment to thank God for what you do have.

Then you will discover what it means to truly break free and experience the peace that only God can provide!

"Do not use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them." Ephesians 4:29 NLT

With only a few words, we can give someone a smile that could last for days, or a broken heart that could last them a lifetime. Words have the power to heal or harm, mend or destroy. Words can be our worst enemy, or our best friend. Yet it's so easy for us to forget the power of a spoken word.

God knew when he created us that we would be impulsive creatures. He knew that we would need some direction with how to use our ability to speak. And he tells us that we should only communicate those words that will benefit others.

Because words are so powerful, we must monitor everything that comes out of our mouths. Not only to our spouse and children, but also to everyone we come in contact with throughout our day.

Before any harsh and impulsive words have a chance to leave your mouth, take some time to consider others. Remember the power that your words possess. And develop the habit of only using words that are helpful for building others up.

Leave a comment and tell me what you think...oh, and be nice about it--:o)

Life Can Be Crazy!

Consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another. Hebrews 10:24-25a

Life can be chaotic and crazy at times. And when it is, it's easy for us to become hyper-focused on ourselves. We convince ourselves that we simply don't have time to be concerned about other people or their needs. "After all," we think, "look at everything I have to deal with!"

But by living with an "it's all about me" mindset, we're actually more susceptible to negativity. And that can generate a bitter and lonely lifestyle that distracts us from fulfilling God's purpose.

God created all of us to be social beings. So the next time you feel overwhelmed with the schedule of your calendar or the pace of life, don't shut people out. Instead, consider others. Look for ways to reach out to others. Find a way to encourage someone else by meeting a need they have.

As you do this, you will discover that by encouraging someone else, God will bring others to encourage you. And that is one of the best ways to keep negativity out of your life.

We know we can not change much about what goes on - on the outside, but can we change what goes on inside of us? Tell me what you think.

Challenged and Inspired!

Too many people are moaning about the lack of commitment and discipline in todays church as we respond to polls taken by various organizations. I don’t put a lot of stock in polls. I try to listen to the people I am
talking to and ministering to every day.

So here is what I’ve learned. As leaders, we often whine and gripe way too much about what people won’t do or haven’t done. We fail to understand that most Christians in America who aren't what we would call fully-devoted followers of Jesus don’t have a problem with commitment - They want to be challenged.

Where is the challenge going to church week after week, hearing an irrelevant message and singing songs that have no connection emotionally or spiritually? Where is the challenge when they hear sermons berating them as well as their sins from people who are asking so much from them to the point that they feel judged and demoralized?

Here is my point. We ask way too little of people. But we demand way too much. Here is the difference: a command, or to be demanding is to try to manipulate people into a response. It’s telling people to do something without showing them the reason or the benefit. We ask way too little!

Asking someone to do something in a way that gets them to respond positively puts the burden back on me. It means I have to be inspiring. I have to show the reason why this is important and why they should use their valuable time and give their tithe and offering to support it. Basically it means I have to challenge them. And we know through surveys that people in American churches want to be challenged. I talk to people every day who are going to churches where they are under-challenged and over-stimulated. America goes to church week after week, and come away fired up, with little application for the real world.

So let’s stop demanding and let’s start asking. Let’s stop hanging people over the lake of fire if they don’t come to church every week and tithe and serve. Let’s challenge them. Let’s show the benefit of tithing, of church attendance, and of serving. Let’s inspire them, move them, and motivate them.

You can’t demand anything anyway. Try to demand it of your children and see what happens. Men, demand that your wife submit and see what happens to you. But asking, challenging, inspiring; that’s where it really is. And that’s what everyone wants - to be challenged and inspired!

That’s what Jesus did. Jesus told stories that challenged and inspired His listeners. These stories got people excited and involved.

Let's do a poll right now. Would you rather:

Leave a church service feeling judged and condemned for not being perfect?

or

Leave a church service inspired and motivated to be what Christ created you to become?

Looking in!

Who Will You See Today?

If you’re like me, each and every day, countless numbers of people come in and out of your sight-path. I see lots of people. But today, stop and ask yourself this question: What do you see when you really see the people around you?

Do you see a husband who’s lost his wife to cancer, or a man deep in the throes of shame over an affair?

Do you see a young single mother struggling to raise her child on restaurant wages? Do you see that executive worried that his name will be the last one mentioned in the next round of lay-offs?

Here’s one of the amazing things about Jesus. When Jesus saw people, he saw into them. He didn’t stop at the outward, he looked into their eyes. And while you aren’t Jesus and neither am I, you’d be amazed at what you can tell about a person if you look into their eyes, their facial expression. You can see people who are hurting, or wounded; who are tired and troubled on the inside. And today maybe it’s your turn to go just beyond what you see, down deep into what you really see – the hurt, or the pain. Maybe you’re the person to give a word of kindness and encouragement to lift that person up.

I am a Christian and as a follower of Jesus, I am interested in this worldwide movement to turn the entire world into Jesus followers. But really, let’s be honest. God can do all that without us. He was doing fine before we got here, and He’ll be doing great when we’re gone.

The question is this: What am I supposed to be doing today that only I can do? Answer? Be in the moment and truly see into the hearts of those around you.

Grow...Worship...Serve

"When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened. (check this part out) But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry."
Jonah 3:10-4:1

Selfishness is not a trait that we have to learn. As a child, the word 'mine' usually comes right after learning the word 'no.' But selfishness doesn't end with childhood.

In fact, our selfishness tends to grow with us!

For example, you and a coworker are up for the same promotion. You've worked there longer and have a squeaky clean record. Your competition, however, had a shaky start and hasn't been there long. You think you have it in the bag. But then the other person gets the promotion. What is your response?

We know in our heads that God provides mercy to those that give their lives to him. We give thanks and celebrate God's grace when we are the recipient. But what happens when the Lord's compassion is given to others that do not serve Him as Savior?

If you are faced with a situation where you feel selfishness welling up, remember that God may have a different plan in mind. And his plan includes forgiveness and compassion — for everyone! Don't become displeased and angry. Instead, thank God for his grace and mercy and forgiveness toward you. And do what you can to extend that to others.

There are many other ways we can grow, worship, and serve and never forget, we only have one life. How will you be remembered?

Is Your Leadership Role Dragging You Down?

7 Signs You’re Not a Leader

With all the titles given these days that promise leadership, there seems to be too few leaders. And the question is, are you a leader? Here are the seven signs you might not be a leader, and if you’re not a leader, why you’re so miserable trying to lead.

The seven signs are:
1. You’re not a leader if you’re lazy. Leadership is hard work. It takes a lot of energy. It is definitely not a nine-to-five job. If you like to put in the minimum and get home to your hobbies or other distractions, you’re definitely not a leader.

2. You’re not a leader if you don’t like to read. I love the old saying that leaders are readers. Leaders constantly have to grow. Their skill sets are constantly improved by the latest information, and latest insights. They are constantly reading books, either on their iPod, hard copies, or their Kindle. Leaders are readers.

3. You’re not a leader if you don’t like people. Leadership is not a position. It’s not a corner office or a salary. It’s about people. It’s about interacting with people. It’s about trying to get selfish, self-centered, hurting, broken, wounded people to work together for a cause, for a goal, for a purpose. It’s the challenge to get them to set aside their own agendas and adopt a single agenda. To do this it means you must like people. People make things happen. They are the reason we do what we do. And if you fundamentally don’t like to work with people, you’re never going to be able to lead them.

4. You’re not a leader if you have a thin address book. By that I mean, leaders are people who collect people to connect to people. We love meeting people, exchanging business cards and knowing what makes them tick. We love putting people together in order to help them be successful. We collect large address books with connections. If your address book isn’t growing by a factor of 200-300 a year, you might not be a leader.

5. You’re not a leader if you avoid confrontation. I didn’t say that leaders like confrontation; the only people who like confrontation are bullies. Leaders don’t like confrontation. Good people, compassionate people, people who like people, who have something worth offering are uncomfortable with confrontation. But it doesn’t mean they avoid it. They realize that confrontation is a frontline skill-set for any leader. When you avoid confrontation, disease sets in to any organization no matter how long it has been established.

6. You’re not a leader if you hate change. Enough said.

7. You’re not a leader if you’re debilitated by criticism. I’ve heard it often said that praise and criticism is like chewing gum. It’s great to chew on it but you never swallow it. If you’re going to be a leader, you’re going to be criticized. Your motives, your practices, your policies are going to be held up for scrutiny. People are going to talk about you behind your back. And if that debilitates you, I didn’t say you have to like it; no one does. But if that debilitates you, you’re probably not a leader.

After reading these seven signs, one of the best things that you might do for yourself is to recognize that you’re not a leader. You need to go to the people you work with and tell them, “Give me a great task to do and I’ll do it to the best of my ability. But the leading thing is not for me.”

If you are a leader, lead! If you are not, then be the best follower you can be! It takes both.

Look up!

Diseases start with one germ that spreads quickly to infect an entire body. It's true in the medical world; it's also true in the relational world. One negative person can spread a virus of negativity in the workplace, around the dinner table or throughout an entire social circle.

When we keep our heads down, we can easily get consumed with "earthly things" — finances, family quarrels, office disputes and even those negative people. It's then that the virus, which started with one negative germ, begins to take over. Soon, negativity becomes part of who we are. And without even knowing it, we begin to spread the epidemic.

But we don't have to become infected just because we've been exposed to it. We have a vaccine. And it's as simple as looking up.

When we focus on God and the "things above," we combat the negativity of the world that tries to pull us down.

So when you are faced with negativity, don't contribute to the problem. Instead, be part of the cure. Make 'looking up' a part of your daily routine and discover how God can prevent the spread of the disease.

Success

Consider this verse.
"...Do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." Matthew 10:19b-20

Success is defined in many ways. But regardless of how we define it, we want a reminder, something to show for that success. In business, it's framing that first dollar of profit. When fishing, it's the picture of that trophy catch displayed on the wall. And spiritually, it's the memory of that first person we are able to lead to Christ.

We can dream about success all day long, but we've got to take action in order to achieve it. The entrepreneur can have the most genius business plan in the world. But if no action is taken to work that plan, it'll never be a success.

The fisherman can have the best boat, the most up-to-date tracking devices, and the most tricked out lures and baits. But if he never casts his line, he'll never make that trophy catch.

The same is true in our spiritual journey. We have the greatest Spokesperson in the world on our side, ready to speak through us to people who need to know Christ. But if we never open our mouths to tell our story, we won't be able to experience the ultimate joy of seeing them step over the line of faith.

Don't worry. You don't have to say the perfect words. And it doesn't matter if you can't quote Scripture verbatim or deliver a mini-sermon on the spot. You only need to trust that when the opportunity presents itself, God will be true to his promise and use your vocal cords to speak through you.