Baseball, hotdogs and apple pie – staples for summertime in America. But the boys of summer have lost some luster the last few years. The time is being referred to as the “steroid era” - Who used and who didn’t – who knows? A-Rod is the most recent athlete caught up in the mess. The game that is all about history and statistics has cracks in its structure. Men from this era with Hall of Fame numbers are automatically suspect. Some suggest that an asterisk be put by their names if they are admitted to the Hall. Others say to not admit them regardless of the numbers because they “cheated”. Still others say the system, the road to the major leagues is so demanding that any athlete at times has to feel he is a fool to try and compete without enhancement. The noise that is the steroid era is tainting what the game was meant to be. The t-shirt reads, Baseball is Life. Since the Big Inning, noise that is sin in man’s life has tainted the life the Lord meant for us. The challenge before us today is to navigate through the noise and stay under the influence of the right stuff. Read on ...
Fields of study have been discussed. A few schools were chosen. Applications were completed. Acceptances were received. Decisions were made. Registration is in process. The first round of (many) funds have been forwarded. The car is packed. Are you forgetting anything?
Do not forget to arm your student specifically for the next step – read more ...
When an athlete is asked to reflect upon his best performance, often times he will comment on his ability to slow the game down. The game did not change but his mind clicked in, discerning between the surrounding noise and what required his attention. In Seven Days in Utopia, David Cook writes that it is important for a golfer to “keep the game in front of him.” In other words, don’t just react to the situation. Slow down and think ahead. Like the athlete, my days go better when I am able to slow life down. Read more ...
THE EYES HAVE IT – We men are visual so where our eyes go, our mind is quick to follow. The pornography industry has keyed off this fact for decades. The self-help industry has as well by encouraging men to put a picture of the house or car desired on a wall where it will be seen several times a day to help keep the eyes focused on the goal. This fit right in with the commitment I made to live above the poverty line that I grew up below. At a relatively young age my eyes began to focus in on making money, the next step on the career ladder and collecting stuff – my eyes were fixed in the world. Some success was realized but the collateral damage on the relational front was costly – very limited friendships and a family about to give up on me. Read on ...
Vishal Mangalwadi, in his book, The Book That Made Your World writes of a family that let their little girl die because, in the clutches of poverty the child was too much a liability. They already had a girl. A second girl would require a second dowry for marriage and the burden would not stop there. Her family did not see another way out. Vishal goes on to explore the notions of human dignity and rights embraced by the West through the Bible and the Christian faith. Read more...
LEADING– Even in these days of group think and team projects, leadership in the corporate world, small business, the school system and even churches is still paramount to an organization’s effectiveness. General Norman Schwarzkopf, known as “Stormin’ Norman” for the Desert Storm campaign in the early ’90’s, once said “leadership is about stepping up when given the opportunity and taking charge. When tough decisions need to be made, a leader does what is right.” I think Stormin’ Norman had read the book of Joshua. Read more ...
July 4th, Independence Day – We are celebrating the birth of this one nation under God, independence from the British throne. The founding fathers in turn wrote a remarkable plan of government in 1787, the United States Constitution. The great work not only gave the United States status as a nation, it established the supreme law of the land. Interestingly, John Adams, the second president of these United States put that great work in perspective by saying, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” There is the supreme law of the land and then there is the Law that undergirds that law. Read more...
As a kid, I had a VISION in the form of a prayer for my life – that I would have a happy and healthful marriage & family I did not know growing up and I envisioned a family that would live above the poverty line that I grew up below. The Lord enabled that vision to be realized.
In Andre Agassi’s biography, OPEN, he shares that his father cast a vision for him from the time he was in the crib – to win Wimbledon and be the number one tennis player in the world. That vision was realized as well.
Vision is powerful in business and in life. Read more
We have NO EXCUSES - Hiking through the San Juan Wilderness in SW Colorado the past couple of weeks, first with fathers & daughters and second with fathers & sons, I experienced Romans 1:20. There are
NO EXCUSES for not recognizing the Almighty's Hand in the creation. The expectation that follows recognition of God is to also recognize His Son and walk under the influence of the Holy Spirit as godly, righteous men. As we do, a godly and righteous generation will follow. Read more...
1. Prioritize your physical presence in the home and with family. 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning ... The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.' - John 1:1-2, 14. Just as God provided a connection with Him through the physical presence of His Son, a father provides a connection to the Father by being present and accounted for in family. Read more
