Jun 6, 2016
If you were raised in the Thompson home, then you would be well acquainted with my father’s idioms. You know, those sayings that sometimes make sense, other times leave you quizzically scratching your head, and sometimes (more often than not) bring illumination and understanding into the maturation process of living.
While some of his idioms are a distant memory, there are others that have left an indelible impression upon me and continue to serve me well. One in particular has remained with me to this present day. (Preparation + Opportunity = Success.)
The truth that this adage possesses cannot be adequately revealed in this post, however, I hope that seeds are planted in the heart of each reader to embrace and apply this to every area of your life.
Every day we make decisions that impact the outcome of our lives. We choose what we say and don’t say. What we do and don’t do. How we behave and misbehave.
Did it ever occur to you that every day of your life you make choices that dramatically and irrevocably alter how things turn out for you? Let that sink in for a moment!
The question you should ask yourself is this: Are the choices I’m making today – right now – changing the outcome for better or worse?
Don’t take that question lightly. Be transparent and allow this moment to facilitate accurate and telling self-examination.
A number of people aren’t where they’re supposed to be when it comes time for God to promote them. Why? Because they haven’t committed to the process of preparation. The result, unfulfilled potential and once inspiring dreams that are now haunting them.
The truth is, preparation is never easy. It is always hard. But the hardest part of the preparation process is choosing to commit to it. Remember, before you can take a short cut to any destination, you must master the route through diligent preparation.
The opportunities will come! That’s inevitable! Perhaps, for some of you the opportunities are imminent. Are you ready to succeed?
Success is never an accident. It is a result of choosing to prepare, right where you are.
Don’t despise your small beginnings, rather ferociously prepare for what He has in store for you.
… we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us (Romans 5:3-5).
#GoBeyondReason
May 16, 2016
I am on a journey to become an organizational and technological ninja!
In the early 90s, it was the Day-Timer. You know, that dinosaur that we tried to convince everyone was our wallet. Well, at least I was guilty of such weak attempts. It kept all of our information like contacts and calendars organized, and it allowed us to take notes on the fly as long as we weren’t driving. Okay, at least I was never bold enough to attempt to drive and write at the same time. Then we evolved into an electronic version: the PDA.
When they were functional and believe it or not – fashionable, I had several PDAs. You know, that electronic device that functioned as a calendar, address book, notepad, etc. My favorite feature was Voice Pad. It was fierce! The PDA was my hero because my right arm was no longer as strong as my left due to lugging around that huge Day-Timer. Now I had a device on my hip that helped me manage life.
Raise your hand if you have a PDA now. As a matter fact, raise your hand if you have a Day-Timer. On second thought, you better not.
For the last several years, we have had these pocket wonders called smartphones, which possess every great invention known to mankind. Think about it, it has a phone, calendar, camera, recorder, computer, internet, iPod, radio, remote, and text messaging. The list goes on and on. And now, smartphones are killing off separate products–several of the aforementioned things are at the top of its list. “Smartphones are now being used like a digital ‘Swiss Army Knife’, replacing possessions like watches, cameras, books and even laptops,” said David Johnson, general manager of devices for O2 in the UK. Come to think of it, the camera and the “landline” telephone are on the verge of extinction as well because, the smart phone is in the process of choking the life out of their twitching bodies.
Ladies and gentleman, convergence is the word of the day. Many things are being replaced by one thing.
And as people, we too have come to this road of convergence as well. Leaders, executives, ministers, stay-at-home moms, and a host of others, are trying desperately to do all things. We cannot do all things well. So stop trying to. Do one thing!
I was going somewhere with this thought this morning: Are you accomplishing or achieving your purpose? Are you seeing results? Are you growing? Is there laser-like focus in your life?
If you are frustrated in life, which we have all been at some point or another, it’s probably because you’re distracted by many things rather than being focused on one thing.
You need to distill everything in life down to that one thing. What is that one thing that makes you tick? What is that one thing that makes life worth it all? What is that one thing that causes you to stop looking at the clock? Find that one thing and allow that to absorb you.
If you continue to dissipate your focus on “manyness,” you will in turn continue to frustrate yourself and possibly extinguish your fire for living. Stop blowing out the flame and begin to fan the flame by doing that one thing!
One of the most important features that frustrates me the most about cloud based solutions is synchronization. Trying to get the same information on all my devices sometimes fails. When that happens, it drives me crazy! In those moments when my information doesn’t sync, I feel as if I am in limbo. Appointments, commitments, tasks, reminders, and important data are not with me. Talk about the blind leading the blind. I feel lost. I feel out of sorts.
The same sorts of feelings grip us when we’re not syncing our lives to our one thing. #LetThatSinkIn
Every day we need to give much thought to the choices we have made that day. Since we are the sum of our choices, we must make sure that our choices sync with our one thing. We must sync our “being” and “doing”; that is, we must make sure our choices align with what God has called us to do.
It will take some time, but it’s easy to imagine the smartphone completely replacing the laptop for mobile use. We can listen to music, watch video, use the internet, and video chat. One day, desktop computers will be a relic–just like the typewriter.
Here is the irony of it all: These future phones will abandon the one thing that gave them their name to begin with, a phone.
Don’t become a relic, but continue to re-invent yourself by being relevant and making sure you are syncing to your one thing!
Share your thoughts with me. How do you stay connected to the one thing you knock out of the park?
#GoBeyondReason
May 9, 2016
We are all creatures of habit. Habits help us through our days and tend to be those things that do not require an extraordinary amount of mental or physical energy because of the degree of familiarity.
We have hundreds of habits! Many of which, we are totally unaware. There are good habits. Of course, there are bad habits.
Well, for everyone that is on a mission to make the most out of your life, I humbly submit that you consider developing another habit. I am sharing a weekly Monday practice with you, in hopes that it’ll add some value to you and yours.
Doing these things every Monday has helped me tremendously and it only takes 5 minutes tops!
- Once-over your tasklist. Whether you a full-time pastor, support pastoral staff, entrepreneur, volunteer soccer coach, stay-at-home parent, student, or corporate employee a tasklist brings organization to your life. Prioritize the things that must get done this week. You may need to purge some outstanding items that have already been completed or are no longer necessary. This is a great opportunity to empower someone else via delegation too.
- Calendar. What does your week look like? What appointments do you have this week? Any conferences coming up within the next month? When is your vacation? When is your family dinner? What about your personal devotion? All of this should be on your calendar.
- Goals. I realize we have life goals, however, these life goals are accomplished on a daily basis. Don’t forget about your short-term goals too. Goals are fulfilled in one simple word- grind! For those that are not well-versed in millennial lingo, you can substitute ground with the word discipline. Grind daily and you will fulfill your goals! Take time to figure out what goals you need to work on this week. Make sure that you are realistic and taking into consideration the season of life that you are in.
- Create. You know that great idea that you jotted down on that Starbucks napkin? C’mon, you remember the jolt of inspiration that coursed through your veins born from this revolutionary concept. It is time for that idea to get some traction, leaving the world of the abstract, entering the material realm. Schedule some time to work on this idea.
- Review. Take time out to assess what you’ve accomplished and what you’ve learned from the prior week. You may discover that you missed something.
Check out some suggested APPS for task management via APP Advice here. For quite some time, I used a white screen and a blinking cursor to manage my task list, however, for the past year I’ve used Apple’s Reminders and Evernote with much pleasure.
What APPS do you use for task management?
#GoBeyondReason
May 2, 2016
Risk! All of us are innately enamored and captured over the notion of abandoning all for the sake of a particular cause. The allure of conquering the unknown or fulfilling a dream is so intoxicating, that subsequent feelings of soaring ensue because we all want to accomplish our dream!
Surely, there are a number of things that can provoke risk taking, however, none impel risk taking like another four letter word. That word is love!
Where love is present, you’ll feel safe. If you know that you are loved, you will risk losing everything you own, because you are loved!
It is a leadership truth, that you will not grow, if you will not change. You will not change, unless you risk something. You will never risk, if you don’t feel loved (affirmed) or safe.
I have a friend, who had two opportunities available to him. In both instances, the position on the pastoral staff was the same. However, he decided to pursue the opportunity where affirmation and love, were obvious. In his words, he knew he would need a lot of attaboys.
Let me translate. He realized that his dreams needed to be in an environment of love (affirmation). This has stretched him greatly, over the last three years. The growth in his life, is almost immeasurable, however, he would’ve never taken certain risks along the way, had he not felt safe (loved).
Make sure that your ecosystem is one of love. If it isn’t, perhaps, it is time for a change.
“Churches where words of kindness and encouragement are plentiful have the aroma of life. I have walked into congregations and felt the health and joy that exist because of their culture of blessing. The opposite is also true.
Congregations and staffs that are filled with criticism, backbiting, and gossip have the stench of death. Wise leaders use their words to build up others and strategically create a culture of affirmation in the church. Although we may be tempted to be critical and negative, the antidote for this behavior is learning to bless.” – Kevin Harney, Leadership From The Inside Out
Isn’t it interesting that love takes place, when someone risks vulnerability?!?
Care to share some of your experiences?
#GoBeyondReason
Apr 25, 2016
I wholeheartedly believe that young adults are the engine of the church. A young adult generation will never have more disposable time and income than they do in this current season of their lives. They’re not lacking in physical energy either! Yes, these tenets and others are why churches should have more 20 somethings on their paid staffs.
These are in no particular order:
Young adults are contagiously energetic. Young adults have boundless energy and that is multiplied when giving the opportunity to fulfill the work of God. This energy will make your office environment, and in particular, your meetings come alive. Their passion and elation will reinvigorate you. Over time, it will rub off on everyone. Lastly, you will find that most young adults will go beyond what is required of them, which will pay HUGE dividends for you and your staff. They’ll do this because they have more disposable time than us in our 30’s & 40’s with young families.
Young adults are imaginative. Young adults can think up some of the craziest things, especially when it comes to ministry ideas. Frankly, their ideas aren’t safe, boring, and lacking risk like many of our ideas. If nothing else, the idea sharing will be a great benefit to you and your team.
Young adults are elastic. Have you seen the movie The Incredibles? If so, do you remember Elastigirl? Mr. Incredible’s wife – Helen, can stretch any part of her body up to 100’ (34 m) and can be 1 mm thin. She can also reshape her body in a variety of ways. In the movie, she becomes a parachute and a rubber boat and has used her arms for swings and a slingshot
If you instill the truth that failure is inevitable and that taking risks are permissible, you will find that most young adults are like Elastigirl. They are adventurous, embrace new principles, and willing to take risks. They embody reinvention and can be a strategic tool in the reinvention of a brand, ministries, local efforts, etc. This elasticity will erode at the rigidity that we all develop as we get older. Well, hopefully!
Young adults are affordable. I wouldn’t go as far as to suggest this is cheap labor, rather, it is certainly more inexpensive than hiring someone with a seasoned career.
Young adults are technologically savvy. This highly mobile and tech savvy generation are digital natives. Technology has shaped their world view and the odds are that everyone else on your staff is a digital immigrant, like me. We grew up with a landline and it was cool to have a pager in high school. Young adults were raised in a Starbucks crazed, smartphone, and mobile world. From APPS, to employing certain strategies, and social media utilization – young adults are leading the way.
Young adults are culturally relevant. Innovative and relevant approaches are necessary if the church is going to continue present His life-changing gospel in ways that the unchurched can understand. Young adults understand the intrinsic dynamics of our culture better than anyone. Even if they are unable to articulate it. This will influence your methods and results.
Have you had any experiences with hiring 20 somethings? If so, share your experiences with us.
#GoBeyondReason
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