Day 235 - A Fork In The Road

"I am taking the encouragement road right now instead of the chastening road."

When leading it is good to have a process by which you motivate others to head in the direction you are leading. Leaders should always lead by example and be all in on what they are encouraging others to do. 

The process is simple. Tell others what you want them to do, encourage them, correct them if they get off track and then praise them when they get it right. 

There is more to this when dealing with people who are more than just followers. If they carry the title member or staff (children...) or whatever your organization calls them whether they have been hired or signed on. For these individuals it must be clear expectations with follow up and follow through. 

When these individuals know what they are to do and don't do it then there is a motivation problem. Start with encouragement. Share a story or set a goal. It doesn't have to be ridiculous it just has to be real. People will go as far as you encourage them. 

If they continue to not do what they should be doing then it is time to discipline. There needs to be a real process for discipline and it should be clearly understood and held to. Just like when we were kids and our parents had rules that if we broke them there were consequences there should be in any organization a set of consequences for wrong behavior. 

When we encourage and properly discipline it makes life better. People will feel empowered and it will set a wonderful atmosphere. These principles work at home, church, or even in business. 

How do you encourage? Is there a right or wrong way to discipline? 

Day 171 - The Disciplines

"I find a need to preach on the disciplines."

Such a necessary word is also such a lost and hated word in our society...discipline. It has sparked debates and caused division. We need it. Desperately. 

I wrote this after talking with people who are Christians and yet still don't have the basic disciplines down in their lives. How life would be different if we not only knew the abc's of our faith but were disciplined to apply them to our lives. 

The difference between good a great is discipline. The difference between average and excellent is discipline. It makes a difference in life. 

We kick against it because it isn't easy. Lazy is easy. Lazy feels nice. We can even justify lazy if we want to. I'm too busy or need a break. I have too much discipline and doesn't Christ set me free? All excuses that won't make us any better. 

Let's stop it. Let's say no to lazy and get after the disciplines (faith, prayer, study of the Bible, Church attendance, praise and consecration to name a few). 

Are there any disciplines you know of that I didn't list? How have the disciplines helped you? 

Day 136 - Passionate Prayer

"A passion to pray came over me at the end of my prayer and I could feel that I was getting somewhere in the spirit." 

There is prayer and there is passionate prayer. I can talk with God and then I can have a deep passionate communion and fervent faith filled prayer time. I pray every day but much to my dismay I don't have this passionate prayer every day. 

That is partly due to my struggle with the flesh or lack of taking real time to get into prayer and is partly due to the necessity of this type of prayer. The book of Ephesians describes different types of prayer. In fact we are to pray always with all kinds of prayer. We should employ a passionate prayer with our heart every time we pray. It will be fight to get there but we can make. When we do the results are awesome. 

Nothing gets done on the earth without prayer. Everything is started in prayer, sustained by prayer and is finished in prayer. If we are going to get the job done in life we have to first get the job done in prayer. 

What are some hindrances to a real passionate prayer? How can we overcome these hindrances? 

Day 26 - 'Un' rest

"I had a beautiful nap this afternoon which I woke from and barked at everyone to let me be. How could such chaos come out of such peace in the same man?!"

We call this waking the bear. I guess the root of all this is selfishness. I wouldn't be yelling at the kids for being kids if I wasn't valuing my personal comfort more than being with people who love me enough to want to be with me. 

Lots of fights have started, friendships, relationships and even marriages have been seperated, all because of selfishness. There is no rest for the selfish. 

I constantly have to crucify the flesh. Every day I commit myself to the service of the Lord and declare that I love Him enough to lay down my life, take up my cross and follow Him. I also commit to love those He loves and give of myself for the good of others. 

Have you had any moments like these that we're humorous because of what you did? How do you crucify the flesh? 

Day 2 - Appetites

"It is amazing how our appetites are always speaking and it takes a fast to recognize it."

I wrote this thought on the second day of a fast that would last thirty days. We were ready then for the fast to be over when we had just started. Our appetites are constantly speaking to us. We don't always hear them or we ignore them while at the same time feeding them. Just like a mom whose children are asking her for soda and candy and while she talks on the phone quietly gives in to their desires opening cans and unwrapping lolypops that will eventually cause her children to be selfish and unhealthy. Today, one year later, I recognize that appetites not only speak but want to rule me. They come in many forms and have many voices. Some voices are physical, like my stomach, others are mental and come to the mind. We will either rule or be ruled. We will either submit to God or submit to the flesh. Fasting eventually silences that voice so we can hear the voice of God and obey His commands.

A Yearlong Endeavor

A Yearlong Endeavor

Last year around this time I was in a bit of a slump. In fact I was disappointed and needed to refocus on the year that was ahead. With that in mind this idea for a yearlong blog with a post every day came to mind. It would force me to do a few things; journal, get organized, reflect, and be disciplined. So I downloaded a journaling app and in 2014 I didn't go to bed until I had written something about the day. Some days I had tons to say. Others I had nothing to say. I can recall entries that made me laugh and others that I didn't want to write at all. Many of these entries were written at the eleventh hour (I do my best mental work at night).
So I invite you on January 1st through December 31st of 2015 to read each day some of my thoughts from last year and my current opinion of myself, the events, and the outcomes as seen one year later. Hindsight is 20/20 so I am interested to see clearer what I may or may not have seen then.
I know that if you decide to take this journey with me you too will remember and reflect on your last year and, hopefully, we will be better for it in our future years.
Do you remember how you felt last year around this time? How do you feel about last year in general?