Facebook fail - 10 things Christians should avoid posting on line...

1 Your grievances with someone, leaving out their name, with a description that makes it clear to everyone who you are talking about. 2 Your grievances with someone, including their name, that makes it clear to everyone who you are talking about. 3 Your grievances and your strong opinions about things that upset you using the words RANT OVER! Because clearly its not over if you leave it on your timeline for the rant to live on with the same intensity it began. 4 Mindlessly reposing strong statements about people you don't know and cant verify. As Christians we have a responsibility to truth not hear say. 5 Conspiracy theories because 99.9 present of the time they are outrageously untrue. 6 Viral causes, as often there can be a back story that comes to light much slower than these viral causes travel...Christian have inadvertently been caught up in moral questions that come to light after their participation. 7 Negative criticisms of political leaders, personal assaults and media driven untruths or half truths. On moral and biblical issues I believe we can make comment though, making certain it is confirmed by multiple independent sources given with respect. 8 Open ended questions in an attempt to get people questioning faith, moral, ethical or biblical issues. You never know who's watching and what conclusions they are determining without anyone to assist them come to peace on a subject. We are held responsible if others stumble because of our actions. 9 Expressing negative opinion of the Church often these conclude sweeping generalisations and misrepresent the incredible nature of the church and the amazing generous spirit invested by these pastors, leaders and volunteers. These people give there lives away daily for the cause of Christ and most are deserving of our respect. The church is Christ's work and his bride. Take it easy and don't touch what is precious to God. Its not perfect but that is already stated in God's word anyway. Christ is perfecting Her, She is not perfect yet but neither are you. He without sin comes to mind! 10 Any kind of division, "don't leave online". Don't announce your breakup with a friend, partner, employer or church. Don't leave and inform all your face book friends of you action, reasons and grievances in the heat of the moment. Remember God is not in favor of division. If you have something against your brother go to them personally in love and in private. If you cant do that just forget it and forgive it.

Stay Positive

It’s so important to be positive at all times - the lives of so many in our world depend on it. Creating a positive environment, not a negative one, is the only way to return the positive results I’m sure we all seek. We need to be willing to watch the way we view the world, to watch the way we speak and interact with the world in which we live. Negativity destroys our ability to view the world in a positive light, as it alters the perspective through which we view it.

A motto I want to live by in 2012 is “say no to negativity.” because if you can do that you’ll experience a much more positive year.

I believe negativity to be the single most destructive force in society today. But here’s the problem - sometimes unfortunately, we the church, are not exempt from this reality.

As Christians “our product” is the Good News. Yet at times we misrepresent this amazing message of life by frustration, carrying hurt and unforgiveness, sometimes misunderstanding, we struggle to believe.

We call ourselves believers but our attitude and demeanour or dementia as I like to call it, causes us to forget to demonstrate that we are BELIEVERS, people who actually represent the nature of the message we say we confess. Our lives should be defined more by what we believe in than what we DON’T believe in.

The problem is our attitude will leech out and affect everything else in our world…in other words you can’t say you love “that person” when you hate ”that person”. Your lack of love “there” will affect your ability to love “here” Lack of belief “here” affects your ability to believe “there”.

It’s important that you “fine-tune” the environment that surrounds you because a positive outcome can never be produced from a negative outlook. The two will never flow from the same source. James 3: 9 .. We cannot with the same tongue praise God, and with it then curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth comes praise and cursing and this should not be so. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

What’s happening at work is about what’s happening in you. If you have a bad day at work, bad reactions can often leech out at home. If you have a difficult relationship with one partner that ends badly, sometimes those same dynamics can follow you into the next relationship. We say things like "care factor zero" and so zero is exactly what we get back. The Bible says “Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath”. Have you ever had a curry or a marinated meal and had left overs? After sitting in the fridge overnight sometimes the left overs can taste stronger the next day. Negativity, hurt and pain are a little the same. Time may not in fact heal all wounds as the statement suggests, it may in fact make them stronger. Sometimes we feel we have the right to harbor negativity and we use justifications like…if you knew what I’m going through you’d understand why I’m feeling so hurt. Or, one of my personal favorites, sometimes we call it realism - “being real” - and it’s just an excuse, not for being “real” but being “real nasty.”

Or when we are negative we can sometimes come to terms with it, then include it as part of our identity and say, it’s just the way I am. Don’t define yourself by a season you're going through or the season could in fact define you. If you’re going through hell don’t stop! If life throws you a curved ball, don’t catch it. Here’s what happens, like the curry, it intensifies the longer we hold on to it. If we don’t get rid of it, it will be stronger the next day, month, year. Here’s what you do with rubbish, you take out the trash. Ever seen one of those houses where for years no one has ever removed any rubbish and now the inhabitants are living in squalour and filth. If we don’t deal with negativity it remains in us rotting away and creating a toxic environment that eventually poisons us. Don’t expect favor and and don’t expect blessing if you constantly view life though the lens of negativity.

This is the objective view of God, even sin now (since Jesus) is seen through the perfect sinless and sacrificial life of Jesus Christ, so when God looks at sin He views it through the positive perspective of Jesus. His view of humanity with all its failure, fault and inconsistency is that none should perish - a motto used in the movie, “The Guardian”. In this movie, the life-saving force would rescue distressed boats trapped in mountainous seas. Nothing would deter them, even at the expense of their own lives, they refused to see the conditions, the huge winds and gigantic waves. All they saw was the lives they were about to save. Great things are achieved only when we refuse to look at the negative and focus on the possibilities. It’s all about perspective, what you refuse to look at. So believing is “NOT SEEING.” Faith is the evidence of things we “CAN’T SEE.” God states in His word that, I will do over and above what you imagine or “EVEN SEE.” Then this “EYE HAS NOT SEEN,” ear has not heard what God has prepared for those who love Him……

You’ve got to see past what you see with your eyes, what you feel with your emotions what you hear with your ears. All great things come from this ability to see what cant be seen, to believe what is unbelievable…to know what is unknowable. Peter only attempted to walk on water because he looked past the negative data. When he refused to consider what he believed he could not do, preferring to believe what Jesus said he could do, then he could walk on water.
But the moment he returns to looking at what’s happing around him, to see the situation through the view finder of the natural, the wind and waves, he immediately sank. That’s why much of the great things achieved actually occur in the closet first. Away from public scrutiny, away from the distractions, things that seek to steal your attention.
Spiritually often we are preconditioned to think .. I’ll believe it when I see it. If we make the mistake of doing this, we cut off faith, disable belief and anything positive doesn’t stand a chance.
Jesus pointed to very few people having qualities He could promote as Godly. Strong faith or belief was one of them….
A woman who argued with Him for a miracle, a centurion soldier who believed all Jesus had to do was speak a word for his servant to be healed.
A woman who washed His feet out of complete thankfulness, without one thought for the fact she shouldn’t have even been there. Yet in Luke 7:50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” In contrast Simon could not see past the prostitute to see the saint. Sometimes we live in the world (we see)… Jabez changed his perspective refusing to see himself as a pain any longer but blessed. We live in a trashy world so often only because we refuse to take the trash OUT, we refuse to “SAY NO TO NEGATIVITY” Jesus only came to give life, the devil only comes to bring death. Don’t live in that negative world, don’t even walk down that street or live at that address.

Negativity is like a little grain of sand that gets into a bearing joint and slowly grinds away at all that works until it no longer does.
Negativity is a little like cancer, it produces rapidly after its own like at a rate healthy cells can't, eventually killing all that is healthy if not removed totally. Here’s the real problem with negative words: they will travel far more extensively than you ever intended them to. Prov 26:2 Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse (negative words) will not come to rest. Send out negativity it will never find rest it will flutter around trying to find a place to roost but never will. They will flutter back to haunt you for years. But in contrast Prov says…A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. Jaybez believed….he said NO to negativity, in the midst of adversity rejection and humiliation he remained positive.
“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. You will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word you have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Jeremiah 42:16 Says "the sword you fear will overtake you, the famine you dread will follow you" Negativity will not rest till it tracks you down and overtakes you.

No matter what you SEE of the circumstances, the point is no matter what they show Stay positive, say No to negativity.
There’s a guy named Nick Vujicic who was born with No legs and no arms, he tours the world preaching a positive message that is inspiring. His motto says it all, No legs No arms No Worries.
Stay positive.

The green thing

The modern version of “green” is so tame. When it comes to recycling material, living without disposable goods, and leaving a smaller carbon footprint, the real experts are the long lived people who’ve been there, done that, they did it so much better, so long ago.

I saw this on a friend's status, and thought it was brilliant reminded me of growing up in the 60's Thanks Peter Pilt for reposting it.

Checking out at the grocery store recently, the young cashier suggested I should bring my own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment. I apologized and explained, ..."We didn't have this green thing back in my day." The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations." She was right about one thing -- our generation didn't have the green thing in “Our” day. So what did we have back then…? After some reflection and soul-searching on "Our" day here's what I remembered we did have.... Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles repeatedly. So they really were recycled. But we didn't have the green thing back in our day. We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day. Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throw- away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me- down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that young lady is right. We didn't have the green thing back in our day. Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she's right. We didn't have the green thing back then. We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn't have the green thing back then. Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus, and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24- hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint. But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

I can personally remember that we didn't have phones; we wound up our watches and alarm clocks. We drank water from the garden hose, walked across the city to get to a friend's house and to school every day. I can remember being woken at the crack of dawn as a child by the sound of a horse and buggy going up our street to deliver the milk to our door. I can remember our bread was delivered and we had to leave a bread tin at the door because the bread had no packaging, our fridge was powered by a block of ice again delivered to the door. Most of my pocket money was earned by collecting bottles and getting the 5 cents or less back for them. I often wondered why we went away from that system it seemed to be so simple and efficient. I often mowed our huge yard with a hand mower. If our parents needed to find us for dinner they would yell over the back fence and that neighbour would do the same until someone knew which house we were at and yell back, “Ashley, dinner's ready” but yes we didn’t have the green thing back then. Oh and we used cloth nappies...Can you still buy them?

I'm not sure I would want to go back to that era, I like my big screen TV, but it may be a good idea not to judge people till you have walked a mile or so in their shoes.

Dog or Cat?

Life is often divided into 2 camps, one must decide which side they favor and live with the consequences...

The Dog's Diary

8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!

9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!

9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!

10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!

12:00 pm - Milk bones! My favorite thing!

1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!

3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!

5:00 pm - Dinner! My favorite thing!

7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!

8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!

11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!


The Cat's Diary - Day 983 of my captivity...


My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength.

The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again throw up on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates my capabilities. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am. SAVAGES!

There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of "allergies." I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow, but at the top of the stairs.

I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released, and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded. The bird must be an informant. I observe him communicate with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now ...

Jesus v Religion... What would Jesus really do?

It was not Jesus intention to abolish religion. Jesus did deal with wrong motives in the hearts of hypocritical people. For example he taught, don't pray just to be seen, or in Luke 11:42 he said it IS right to tithe but not without neglecting justice and love....In Matthew 5:17 He says,

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.”

Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees as hypocrites because they lived in contradiction to the belief system they said they practised.

In Matthew 23:3 Jesus told the disciples to live according to the way the scribes and Pharisees told them to.

"practise and observe whatever they tell you, but not what they do; for they preach, but do not practise”

To judge a group of people unrighteously because you’re a Jesus follower disqualifies you from being the follower you say you are. Proverbs 11:1 says, "an unbalanced judgment is an abomination to the lord." God says, "don’t say you love me if you refuse to love your brother."

DON'T judge what Jesus is not judging, DON'T make sweeping statements... who hasn’t been caught in others' judgments, that don’t reflect your real intention.

There are a lot of great religious people who have achieved great things....and pleased the heart of Jesus.

RELIGION is a Noun... The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, or a personal God.
Synonyms: are faith - belief - creed

Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power regarded as creator and governor of the universe.

A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.

A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.

Some will try and state that in the original it means "to bind" in an attempt to make you think it's bad, but really "to bind" in the original means "to bind you to" or to connect you to something. It's a little like Paul saying I'm in chains to the gospel. Religion seems ok to me...just dont use it to mask hidden motives like strong unbalanced judgments.

Religion is not the enemy Sin is...lets stop fighting the wrong battles
Just sayin

Top 10 New Years Resolution Ideas

1 BE POSITIVE ABOUT OTHERS...Richard Steele said, "Fire and swords are slow engines of destruction, compared to the tongue of a Gossip. It’s so important to be positive at all times, about all people and encourage others to do the same by speaking up against Gossip, you'll have a much more positive year if you do!

2 FORGIVE QUICKLY...Develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. So forgive people quickly even if they haven't asked you 2

3 WATCH THE WAY YOU SPEAK...It's been said that harsh words don't break bones but they often break hearts. So be nice! Strong words stir up strife but a kind word turns away anger.

4 LOVE UNCONDITIONALLY... Mother Teresa Said. Intense love does not measure it just gives...Love people without expectation, It’s the power of sowing and reaping. Only what you give out can come back to you!

5 LEARN TO TRUST...Trust men and they will be true to you; treat them greatly and they will show themselves great. Ralph Waldo Emerson. One of the great failures of modern society is our unwillingness to trust believing that trust must be earned, this is contrary to God’s value who first loved us. Trust is an investment not a dividend.

6 DEVELOP WISDOM...A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination. Nelson Mandela People often value their own opinion over an ability to grow and learn from others. We’ll take encouragement but recoil from taking advice. This is never wise and will rob us of developing wisdom. To have a good heart you actually need a good head.

7 REACH PEOPLE "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can." -John Wesley God’s intention is that his heart for people is delivered by your hands. Reach People with a benevolent heart and the message of life we have been given in Christ.

8 BELIEVE FOR FAVOUR...Jabez cried - bless me, and enlarge my territory, let your hand be with me, keep me from evil' And God granted that request." Favor is asked for. God tells us we have not because we ask not. Jabez was not satisfied with his position in life and asked for more. Ask God for his favor to rest on you.

9 DEVELOP UN-NEGOTIABLE FAITH..."If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." Isaiah 7:9 When it comes to life and the great needs our world faces everyday, people need us to believe with a faith that will not quit. Good intentions don't help anyone out of their need but faith does. Without faith its impossible to please God. Why His intentions for humanity are great and are only unlocked by great faith.

10 STAY FAITHFUL...Edwin Louis Cole said Your faithfulness makes you trustworthy to God. Faithfulness is the final standard by which we will be judged. You’ve been faithful with what you have, now I will make you lord over much. It's those who endure till the end that will be saved.

God Bless, have a great 2012

The size of greatness

When it comes to achieving greater things in our lives ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL! Many people stirred on by the motivational industry or some warped spirituality look for quick pathways to complex destinies. The universe will cause my destiny to just come to me if I think positive thoughts, that’s “the secret” they say.
The scripture says, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with the little things; Now I will put you in charge of many things.
The size of greatness is firstly size Small.
We all can sing that song "From little things big things grow".
The final reward is produced by attention to detail the process of meticulously applying ourselves to the little things.
Saving regularly - consistently thinking of others rather than ourselves.
Ruth in a desperate situation, simply followed after the reapers in a field, picking up the food they dropped…this attention to detail caught the attention of the field owner who arranged for them to leave more behind for her to pick up… he ultimately married her and she was given ownership of these same fields.
A university degree is achieved, one assignment at a time.
A share portfolio grows one investment at a time.
A loving relationship is built one act of giving, one statement of love at a time.
To write a book you have to arrange the letters to form a particular word, the words are then placed together logically to form sentences. The sentences are arranged to ensure that a thought is expressed and the paragraphs contain about one or two ideas. When the paragraphs are then read together they will form the sum total of the subject you desire to communicate.
To translate ideas into understanding you have to engage in a tedious and often painfully slow process without excluding even the simplest attention to detail.
The big accomplishments therefore are the fruit of diligence and a laborious process of faith, hope and a commitment to a final product.
It’s this daily belief that keeps us progressing toward a greater goal but it’s the regularity of the doing that maintains the pathway to that higher goal.
They say you must say 7 positive things to counteract just one negative, so before anything encouraging even finds its way to the starting line, you must make sure you have lived a life in the positive so that it outweighs this life in the negative we all seem to be a little addicted to.
A sportsperson is a perfect example of how little things add up to reflect major accomplishments.
Kenya and Ethiopia produce the most of world class, middle and long distance runners.
They attribute this success to the fact that most of them come out of poverty and had to run the long distances as children to get to school.
Wilma Rudolph the First American woman Runner to win three gold medals at a single Olympics said “My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to". The problem was first she had to conquer the painful challenge of learning to walk, a step at at a time without using braces. You see Wilma was born prematurely at 4.5 lbs, the 20th of 21 other brothers and sisters, she caught infantile paralysis (caused by the polio virus) so her left leg and foot had become deformed as a result. She would travel long distances with her family to seek painful medical intervention to straighten her twisted leg.
Never underestimate the power of the diligence we dedicate to the little things. What small things can you be doing consistently - that will bring greater blessing into your world.
What "well dones" can God attribute to your world, that will cause greatness to grow as a result?
The second size of greatness is Large.
Abraham had to have the big picture before he could ever navigate this subjective challenge asked of him. Abraham was only able to offer Isaac on the altar because he knew the big picture. That this boy was part of the greater plan of God. This stabilised his heart as he navigated what seemed so inconceivable to him.
Only by having a clear understanding of “the big picture” can we run with the daily challenges asked of us. Hab 2 instructs us to make the vision clear so we will be able to run with it.
Over the years our resolve is slowly diminished by the relentless challenge of the little things - that’s why you need the big things in your life in clear focus to keep you accountable to the little things.
For the Joy set before him, Jesus was able to endure the shame and agony of the cross.
Jesus suffered in a garden - this way is far too hard, is there another way - yet quickly focused on the bigger call, saying nevertheless not my will but yours be done.

What are the big ticket items for you? What is God seriously asking of you? ”
Earl Nightingale said “The more intensely we feel about an idea or a goal, the more assuredly the idea, buried deep in our subconscious, will direct us along the path to its fulfilment.”
You’ll never navigate the challenging road to greatness without a vision of something greater that you actually believe you’re meant to achieve.
That’s why so many never actually achieve anything with their lives they start out ready to take on the world and end up readily taking on the worries of their world.

Greatness is not only measured by size small or size large,there’s also a third size Medium.
The things in the middle that define you.
Prov says, "Search me oh God see if there’s any variation inside of me".
You must define the values at the core of your life in the middle before they actually define you.
You see in between the small things that we must do consistently and the big things we are pressing toward, there are these things in the middle.
On the way to family or domestic success or personal fulfillment in life, there’s a thing called the middle life.
For example the commander of an Army battalion can walk across a base and have hundreds of men snap to attention, while his marriage is falling apart at home, while his children may have no respect for him. This is because he has paid less attention to certain values his life should have been based on.
Yet at the same time the perfect nuclear family, may command the admiration of everyone in the family but be missing a true cause to live by.
Opportunity, the big things, longevity, the little things are sometimes defined by these middle things, a set of values you live by.
What are these middle values, can you describe these things you will not negotiate?
For me it's to build God’s house and a general desire to build my life relationally.
The bible says, "and Samson took hold of the 2 middle pillars on which the entire house was borne up and he took out the entire house, he took hold of one with his right hand, and the other with his left. So the damage he brought on his enemy that day was more than he has inflicted in his entire life".
The middle pillars can be things like, our health, it stands in the middle of all I do and I won't achieve everything I want to, if I don’t stand in the middle of my life and manage this well.
A friend in ministry made a DVD series on Family Values. The series was costly to produce and really needed to be sold to help pay for its production. Soon after making it he was asked by a church he knew, in a community experiencing serious family and youth problems, if he had any resource on the subject. The community had asked this church to assist and this represented a significant opportunity to affect this city positively. When this friend understood what it was being used for, he offered to make it available free of charge and for it to be used in any way they saw fit, even to rebrand it or change it in any way. He did this because it was one of these middle values, something at the centre of his life that was a driving motivation.
In the building of anything great you will discover these 3 aspects.
1/ the small things 2/ the big things, but holding these 2 together will always be the middle pillars, these things we hold dear.

I recently read this on Wikipedia something I believe reflects this so well….I feel like I’m living the first line of my obituary. I don’t think there will be anything else that I do in my life as important as what I do now for Wikipedia. We’re not just building an encyclopaedia; we’re working to make people free. When we have access to free knowledge, we are better people. We understand the world is bigger than us, and we become infected with tolerance and understanding. Wikipedia is the 5th most visited website in the world. I work at the small non-profit that keeps it on the web. We don’t run ads because doing so would sacrifice our independence. The site is not and should never be a propaganda tool. I work at the Wikimedia Foundation because everything in my soul tells me it’s the right thing to do. I’ve worked at huge tech companies, doing some job to build some useless thing that’s designed to steal money from a kid who doesn’t know any better. I would come home from work crushed.
You might not know this, but the Wikimedia Foundation operates with a very small staff. Most other top-ten sites have tens of thousands of people and massive budgets. But they produce a fraction of what we pull off with sticks and wire.
When you give to Wikipedia, you’re supporting free knowledge around the world. You’re not only leaving a legacy for your children and for their children, you’re elevating people around the world who have access to this treasure. You’re assuring that one day everyone else will too. Thank you, Brandon Harris
Programmer, Wikimedia Foundation.

America has actually written out these values in the declaration of independence…. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

What is your declaration of independence? What are the values that motivate the little moments and drive your big vision? Try these 3 on for size and you’ll find your future will fit well.

The 10-second rule

Growing up my mother would always say, never put off till tomorrow what you can do today - I think it had something to do with schoolwork I was falling behind on or something like that.

I believe we are addicted to procrastination in a lot of areas of our lives. This also affects our Christian lives and the claims of Christ and the wonderful privilege we have of the leading of His spirit. I believe this procrastination leads to ineffectiveness. When we disobey God's will and intention for our lives it can produce real consequences in the big decisions we make. It can also create just as many undesirable results when it comes to the little things that could be happening in our every day lives. I read this Blog post and loved it. It's called the 10-second rule and it challenged me and I hope it challenges you as well.

(It’s a simple rule for a revolutionary life!)
What does it actually mean to follow Jesus? Simply put, it means to believe Jesus’ message and obey it. So, why is it we don’t obey more often than we do?

Years ago I noticed that during the course of my day I’d have an impression from the Holy Spirit to do something I was reasonably certain Jesus wanted me to do. It would be an impression to either do something good for someone or refrain from doing something wrong. It might be to stop for a car broken down on the highway, speak to a co-worker about Jesus, or simply turn off my computer before I ended up at a site where no Christian should go.

Almost simultaneously I would sense another voice whispering to discourage me. “You don’t have time to do that – helping that person could get messy – you can’t afford to help them right now – stand up for your rights – you deserve it – it’s okay, once more won’t kill you.” If I listened to this other voice and thought about it long enough, the moment for obedience would pass, often to my relief. It finally dawned on me that by procrastinating on being obedient to Jesus, I was unintentionally teaching myself the habit of disobedience. Why is that?

Why did I hesitate? Because I knew that most decisions to obey would cost me something – time, money, embarrassment, inconvenience, or a momentary pleasure denied. By choosing not to obey Jesus, I avoided all of that! So the reason I wasn’t more obedient to God? Without hardly thinking about it, I automatically counted the cost and the price seemed too high for me.

Then a decade ago a lay pastor from China taught me a simple rule that could break that cycle:

The 10 Second Rule:
“Just do the next thing you’re reasonably certain Jesus wants you to do.”
(and do it immediately before you change your mind!)

“If you love me, you will obey what I command.”
-John 14:15

So, I intentionally committed myself to become more sensitive to the leading of God, and to practising simple, spontaneous obedience. As I did, I began developing the habit of obedience. I actually began looking for ways to follow Jesus daily, even hourly. As a result, obedience became an adventure rather than a duty.

Christian experience over the centuries has proven that godly character is most powerfully shaped by the cumulative effect of thousands of small obedient decisions. And these small decisions prepare us to be even more faithful when major, crisis-of-faith challenges come our way.

Here is the true power behind The 10 Second Rule: Even though every Christian knows we can never obey Jesus perfectly all of the time, that’s no longer an excuse. We do know this: we can do the next thing we’re reasonably certain Jesus wants us to do.

This is obedience you can do – obedience you’ll want to do!

The point of doing The Rule is to help you develop the habit of simple obedience so you are prepared to be more faithful to Jesus than you ever imagined you could!

My prayer is that try living by The Rule for the next 30 days. See for yourself how deeply satisfying it is to be led by Jesus, moment by moment and day by day.
(or even in the next 10 seconds!)

Clare De Graaf
Author of, The 10 Second Rule™

One Thing

A great message from one of my favorite Churches, Edge Church in Adelaide.

The man said, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? I have kept the commandments since my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” - Mark 10:17, 20-21.

There is a drive in our humanity for wholeness and completeness. It’s the feeling of dissatisfaction and desire that keeps us looking for a new solution, a new answer to our problems. Some people will buy the latest fun gadget and be entertained by it for a while, but it's just a temporary remedy. Some people will hear a song and emotionally respond to it, and for a while the feelings of the song will satisfy that urge for completeness. But temporary solutions don’t stop the gnawing in their soul.

The man in this story felt that drive and desperately sought Jesus to ask him about it. Jesus' response went straight to the heart of the issue and shocked the man. After all, this man was perfect. He kept Israel's holy commandments. He was an upstanding member of the community, a role model for society. Even in the wild times of his youth he had obeyed the commandments. But Jesus identified the ‘one thing’ that was missing in this man’s life. And without mincing His words Jesus told the man to give his wealth to poor people and then follow Him.

The man had been living a perfect, holy life according to all standards, but his entire focus was on himself. The one thing he lacked was not something that he could buy or own. Instead, he had to put his attention on other people. Instead of being righteous for himself and expecting God to be generous and merciful to him, he had to be righteous towards others and be generous and merciful to them. And then, instead of following his own desires and whims, he had to follow Jesus. Jesus' message is the same for us. Our pursuit of God must be expressed in our outward focus, being generous and merciful to those in need.

Aim for the Stars

I once heard a statement I’ve never forgotten and always attempted to live by, Aim for the stars hit the treetops aim for the treetops hit the ground. In Philippians 3:14 The apostle Paul said something similar, also something I’ve attempted to live by. He said “reaching forward to those things which are before me, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
When the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great, but when all the reward is taken away, no one will try or want to succeed. I recently came across this story that illustrates it so well.
An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before, but had recently failed an entire class. That class had insisted that the best world to live in was a world where no one would be poor and no one would be rich, this would be a great equaliser they thought.

The professor said, "OK then, lets have an experiment in this class on that plan". All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so no one will fail and no one will receive an A.... substituting grades for dollars - something closer to home and more readily understood by all.

After the first test, the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy. As the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride too so they studied little.

The second test average was a D! No one was happy.

When the 3rd test rolled around, the average was an F.

As the tests proceeded, the scores never increased as bickering, blame and name-calling all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of anyone else.

To their great surprise, ALL FAILED and the professor told them that their well meaning idea would also ultimately fail them because when the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great, but when all the reward is taken away, no one will try or want to succeed. It could not be any simpler than that. Aim for the stars.

The leadership factor

Ive been thinking about leadership lately, here are some of my thoughts, some of the factors that go into making great leaders.

1 The self factor – Self leadership, how you manage your personal world

2 The team factor - leadership must maintain and manage a team culture.

3 The effect factor - leadership has an effect. It must produce something, change something for the better. Leadership produces outcomes.

4 The Talent factor – Leadership harnesses and understands the strength and weaknesses of its potential or gift set and helps others do the same.

5 The Communication factor - your speech affects everything you're trying to achieve, you must say it and display it clearly.

6 The Conflict factor – how conflict is resolved, kills or gives longevity to all potential

7 The Influence factor – Leadership IS influence, we persuade others by our preaching conversation, actions and integrity.

8 The People factor – if influence doesn’t affect people it's not leadership at all, people must always be the reason we do what we do.

9 The diversity factor – Embracing diversity, everyone will differ in gifting and gifting develops constantly, manage this change and growth.

10 The Creativity & Innovation factor – the gifts you do have are from heaven, designed by God to enrich the Kingdom not yours to use simply for personal gain.

11 The R factor – Resilience, leadership is for life, Relationships are the fuel & Respect releases its strength

12 The fire factor - Releasing the fire, maintaining PASSION, stir up the gift

13 The Revelation factor - Rhema in Ephesians 6 is the weapon we use, the revealed word of God, alive in you.

14 The Risk factor – Gideon had to go from hiding, to doing something that would have national significance. Leadership is always about risk.

15 The opinion factor – crafting or shaping your point of view. Paul said that we all think the same thing

16 The rapport factor - Building rapport is affecting people deeply.

17 The emotion factor - Maintain composure at all times, present yourself in a way that builds confidence in others.

18 The Openness factor – always look for feedback , love it and seek it out

19 The surrender factor - Let go, surrender to God daily

20 The Calling factor – You will never last in any form of leadership until you know it’s what you're supposed to do, not just what you want to do.

Grace is free, never cheap.

Jesus loved people, He didn’t patronise them. One of the greatest acts of love is to lead people to truth not just tranquility, to assist them to change not stay the way they are. Change in people is not just an act of the Holy Spirit, it's the highest calling of the Gospel. Jesus said "make disciples" (Learners) The first thing Peter said after Pentecost was repent (change your moral stance) and then you will receive the Holy Spirit. Always remember it's only truth that sets people free! It's my belief that grace is not a license to live in our old nature "anyway we want" but a doorway out of the prison of sin, and a pathway into the freedom of abundant life. Our love must always have as an outcome to see people live in the potential of their salvation not bound by the limits of their life. Jesus not only said to the woman caught in the act of adultery, "I don't condem you" he also said "Go and sin no more!" The first is only beautiful in light of the latter.

Birthday Story

Cool birthday story ... I was at the Coffee Club with Ali on my birthday when a very vocal group at the top of their voices began 2 sing Happy Birthday 2 U...I said to Alison oh thank you very much, pretending they where singing to it 2 me. Imagine my surprise when they finished the song by singing HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR ASHLEY HAPPY BIRTHDAY 2 U...What's the chances of that!

Generosity
I think we all understand and would love to live out the principles of Generosity, yet struggle to live within the challenge of the demands it makes on our lives at times. Luke 9 tells the story of feeding 5000 people. This story demonstrates the principle of generosity and graphically displays its power. These people had come a long way to hear Jesus speak. He had been ministering all day so the disciples insist that Jesus send the people away to give them an opportunity to get something to eat. But in response Jesus simply suggests that they come up with the food to feed so many people. Now I’m sure their response would have been, "how in the world…... " and right about then a little boy offers 2 fish and 5 small buns. So they take it to Jesus and say this is all we have. Without hesitation Jesus blessed it, broke it, and put it into the disciple’s hands. Jesus gave back to them, what they gave to Him. Now the pressure would have been on for them to only give a small amount. The limited resource they had in their hand had to go so far, so imagine the disciples' amazement when the bread grew in their hands as they gave it out. The miracle did not happen in Jesus' hands, it happens in the disciples' hands. It’s all about what you do with what He gives you. That’s what we miss all the time, we want Jesus to do it. We want Jesus to multiply our seed but He says plant it first, because it only grows when we give it. What if the disciples had just given it out without giving it to JESUS first? It wouldn’t have multiplied!

If you don’t give what’s in your hand to God your finance will never be blessed. This is the principle demonstrated throughout God's word. There is more spoken of concerning money and its use than of most principles in the Bible. Why is that? Because where your treasure is there will your heart be also. A Christian is made to be generous; it’s the way we work best. We are born selfish but born again generous. When we are not generous we are not being who we are born again to be and missing the blessing we should be living in. Right throughout scripture, that’s the pattern. God is always looking for people He can trust with blessing. Someone He can trust with what He gives them. People who become a channel of blessing who’ll live their life as a conduit for favor. Many of us never live in this zone, we don’t take this powerful principle seriously so we are not living in that place to be blessed by God. Giving is the only thing God said to test Him in. But so many have never put God to this test. Ever had those moments when God says give, we struggle to surrender? Most people rationalise those moments away and sear their conscience when it comes to giving. This causes us to spiral down into a place of lack. You know, God's thinking more about your future than you are. Listen, God knows your address, He knows where to find you, and He wants to bless you more than you want to be blessed. The point is, we are God's children and there is a principle in God’s Word called Generosity - and when we are generous, the Bible says, the generous soul will be made rich. God said to Solomon, ask anything you want. What an amazing promise. This promise was made the day he became King. On this day tradition dictated that the incoming king would sacrifice one Bull as a token offering. Solomon gave 1000 bulls instead of one. In response God promised him, that whatever he asked, God would give him. God responds to extravagant givers. But God’s not going to say that, unless you learn the power of generosity, if God can’t trust you with what you do have, he wont trust you with what you don’t have. The scriptures encourages us with this… "well done you’ve been faithful with little now I will make you lord over much".

RECALL NOTICE

The Maker of all human beings (GOD) is recalling all units manufactured,
regardless of make or year, due to a serious defect in the primary and
central component of the heart.
... ...
This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units code named Adam
and Eve, resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent
units.

This defect has been identified as "Sub sequential Internal Non-morality,"
more commonly known as S.I.N., as it is primarily expressed.

Some of the symptoms include:

1. Loss of direction
2. Foul vocal emissions
3. Amnesia of origin
4. Lack of peace and joy
5. Selfish or violent behavior
6. Confusion and lying
7. Fearfulness
8. Idolatry
9. Rebellion

The Manufacturer, who is neither liable nor at fault for this defect, is
providing factory-authorized repair and service free of charge to correct
this defect.

The Repair Technician, JESUS, has most generously offered to bear the entire
burden of the staggering cost of these repairs. There is no additional fee
required.

The number to call for repair in all areas is: P-R-A-Y-E-R.

Once connected, please upload your burden of SIN through the
REPENTANCE procedure.

Next, download ATONEMENT from the Repair Technician, Jesus, into the heart
component.

No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, Jesus will replace it with:
1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Patience
5. Kindness
6. Goodness
7. Faithfulness
8. Gentleness
9. Self control

Please see the operating manual, the B.I.B.L.E. (BEST Instructions Before
Leaving Earth) for further details on the use of these fixes.

WARNING: Continuing to operate the human being unit without correction voids
any manufacturer warranties, exposing the unit to dangers and problems too
numerous to list, and will result in the human unit being permanently
impounded. For free emergency service, call on Jesus.

DANGER: The human being units not responding to this recall action will have
to be scrapped in the furnace. The SIN defect will not be permitted to enter
Heaven so as to pr event contamination of that facility. Thank you for your
attention!

- GOD

P.S. Please notify others of this important recall notice, and you may
contact the Father any time by 'Knee mail'!

Because HE Lives!

Aurthur Unknown

Funny Girl

I took Alison my wife for her first ride on my bike today... Interesting - we get 200 metres down the road and she is tapping me on the back. So I pull over and say "what's up!" She says "you're going too fast", I say "babe we are doing 56 in a 60 zone!!" She says "It feels too fast!"...funny girl, my wife!

Can You Handle the Truth?

Truth is truth only if you believe it; or, better put, receive it. The question has been asked, "If a tree were to fall in a forest and no one was there to hear it fall, would there be any sound?" Many people believe the answer to that question to be No, because it's only when the sound waves it creates collide with an ear drum that it produces the sound we hear.

The magazine Scientific American gave the technical answer to this question, when they said "Sound is vibration, transmitted to our senses through the mechanism of the ear, and recognised as sound only at our nerve centres. So the falling of the tree or any other disturbance will produce vibrations in the air. If there is no system to perceive or receive them, translate and interpret these vibrations and relate or communicate them to our brain, there will be no sound."

Is there anything true for your life that you have not had the belief system in place to receive, so that it actually has not become truth for you? The Bible says Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. If you refuse to hear truth then it will never translate into reality for you.

In Joshua 1:3 God says to Joshua, Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given to you, as I said to Moses.

The Hebrew word for the “soul” of the foot is kaph which means the hollow of your hand, a bowl or a dish, the handle of a door, or a spoon.

So this is really talking about your portion, that which you take hold of with your hand. The land they where about to stand upon belonged to other nations; they had to take hold of it with their hand. To do that they had to believe it was theirs and have the strength of mind and will to take it.

Notice “as I said unto Moses” 40 years previously Moses had received the exact same word, yet it had never actualised into truth for him and tragically 3 million people missed living in the truth for their lives. It was the same truth for both Moses and Joshua...but Moses' generation had no mechanism of belief that would cause them to receive that truth as the portion of their lives.

The truth is, there is no end to the personal promise God has made to us but unfortunately some are dull of hearing. Others hear these words but have lost the spiritual nerve centres that trigger the needed faith. This paralyses our ability to act with deliberate resolve to take hold of and realise them. We are often unable to communicate or translate promise into actions or real outcomes that become the truth of our lives.

What truth has God already said to you that you have failed to hear, or heard yet failed to trigger the needed faith to receive?

Red Shirts written by Col Stringer

If the red shirt thing is new to you, read below how it went for one man...

"Last week, while travelling to Brisbane on business, I noticed an army sergeant travelling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we boarded our flight, I turned to the sergeant, who'd been invited to sit in Business Class (across from me), and inquired if he
was heading home.'No. I'm escorting a soldier home.' 'Going to pick him up?'

'No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Afghanistan . I'm taking him home to his family.' The realisation of what he had been asked to do hit me like a rock to the head. It was an honour for him. He told me that, although he didn't know the soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the soldier's family and felt as if he knew them after many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said, 'Thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family and I can do what we do.' He took my hand and said "Thank You "

Upon landing in Brisbane , the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom. 'Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honour of having Sergeant Jamison of the Royal Australian Army join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the forward door to allow Sergeant Jamison to deplane and receive his fellow soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign.' Without a sound, all went as requested.. I noticed the sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realise that I am proud to be an Australian."

So here's a public Thank You to our military Men and Women for what you do so we can live the way we do. Red Fridays Very soon, you will see people wearing Red every Friday. The reason; Australians who support our troops used to be called the
'silent majority.' We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not
organised, boisterous or overbearing.

Many Australians, like you, me and all our friends have sons'daughters, friends or family serving in our armed forces and so we simply want to recognise that the vast majority of Australians supports our troops. Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday and continues
each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that every red-blooded Australian who supports our men and women afar, will wear
something red. By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make Australia every Friday a sea of red much like an AFL Grand final game in the MCG Stands. If
every one of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family, it will not be long before Australia is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the once 'silent' majority is on their side more than ever, certainly more than the media lets on.

Don't let this be like it was for our poor Vietnam Vets The first thing a soldier says when asked 'What can we do to make things better for you?' is 'We need your support and your prayers.' Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example, and wear something red every Friday.

I'm no Superman

People like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther king and Mother Teresa were not necessarily extraordinary people just people committed to extraordinary purpose.

All people are created with extraordinary potential (FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY Made as God puts it) Our responsibility is never to define ourselves within the context of that extraordinary purpose, only shallow celebs do that. The best way to explain it is to imagine any of those people getting up in one of their speeches and saying "I am extraordinary". None of them would have ever considered making such a conceited claim. No, they would have described themselves as ordinary people with an extraordinary purpose or even an ordinary person committed to an ordinary purpose, like in the case of Mother Teresa, just cleaning the wounds of the poor and underprivileged. All these people would never have described themselves as extraordinary, just ordinary people doing something they felt to be extremely important and that is I believe the lesson to be learned in our egocentric world, Don't strive to be great, just do great things.

Building with Excellence

Sakichi Toyoda the founder of Toyota had a unique problem-solving technique. When something goes wrong, he would ask “why?” five times. By asking why, over and over, you eventually get to the root cause. This can also apply to our lives. By taking full responsibility for your life and asking yourself why something went wrong for example, you can even make failure feel like success. You can ask, did I give this my all? Because great effort can be as admirable as great success.
“1 Cor. 3 :9-10 - "We are fellow labourers together with God. So according to the grace of God given to me, as a wise master builder, I laid the foundation, But let every one pay careful attention to how they build on in.”
What are we building with our lives? Are we building with excellence? The Bible says we are a peculiar people, in other words we are designed to stand out. The way we do life, our speech, the ethics by which we live our lives should clearly identify us as Christians not just because we go to church or even offer benevolence, but because we are actually Christ like.
Daniel 5:12 says that Daniel had an excellent spirit,and that knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences and dissolving of doubts were all found in Daniel. In other words he was able to shift the blame or to shelter the blame of hard sentences.
All that stuff was in Daniel. A great question to ask ourselves is, what can be found in us? Ahh a bit of hurt - I well I know how to shift the blame real good to others not away from hard sentences like Daniel. Are we building our lives with the values of excellence, or just building our lives carelessly? Rom 2:18 says we should approve or allow things that are more excellent into our livees.

So here’s 5 questions to ask about building with excellence
1 - ON what are you building?
Math 7:24 says a wise man builds his house on rock. The stuff you're building is not the problem; what you're building it on is. There must be a solid foundation on which to build your life. But the question is are you building on principles or procrastination, what tools have you actively placed in the tool box of your life to finish the job well? Has your building site been cleared to make way for what God wants to build? Have you let go of your agendas or are you like the little monkey stuck holding on with his hand in the cookie jar? God's idea is this .. I make all things new. God doesn’t remodel or renovate, he only renews.
2 - WHAT are you building?
It’s vital to consult the builder and ask "what do you think would be right to build in my situation?" Sometimes this question may come out sounding a little like this. "What are you doing God??" Not a bad question as long as it’s a real question and not just an accusation. We must come across to God sometimes a little like Barbara from Bank World in the ANZ BANK television ads. (Us) :- when I said I “know” your plans, - ahh that’s wasn’t know with a silent k that was NO “without” a silent K - I NO - your plans (God) :- So what are we going to do with these plans then – (Us) :- not my problem, go away…look God you’re very valuable to me so I’m going to sign you up for something you haven’t even asked for – (God) :- but (Us) :- a a a a 2 late already in the system God. God’s ideals need to be the supervising values in our life. Begin to read the Master’s plan, look over the blue prints, His notes in the margins once in awhile, reconsult the drawing room
3 - For WHOM are you building?
Who is this thing for? What’s this all about? Who is the chief benefactor in all this? When you lose you...you find something altogether new, you discover the power of synergy. A team whose players play predominantly for themselves, can be a good team, but never a great team. This is because they never truly access the power of the game plan or get the power synergy to work for them. Too many buildings reflect the owners' agendas at the expense of the expertise of the designer. One of the greatest mistakes the Sunshine Coast makes continually is to relinquish the initiative to the fear of what we don’t want. I for one am tired of hearing we don’t want to become the Gold Coast. We need to forget what we don’t want to become and decide what we do want to become, because if we don’t, then we actually become something by default, and not by design. Fear, not vision and forward thinking, is shaping what we are becoming. The truth is we “are” becoming something all the time anyway and if we don’t take responsibility for what we are becoming we could become anything. God's Kingdom is never about us - what we are or what we don’t want to become, it’s about design, about what He’s building for the future. We need to influence the future or the future will influence us. If you want the influence and resource of Heaven, get with the design program, let go and let God start building something better and best in you. If it were only about Daniel, he would have just stopped praying in public. If it was just about Abraham he would have been offended when God asked for his only son. If it was just about Moses, he’d have stayed a prince of Egypt and let his people serve him. If it was only about Jesus he would never have left Heaven and would certainly never have left the garden and surrendered to His Father's will. It's never about what we are building, it's never about us, it's about God and His good, better or best plans for our lives.
4 - HOW are you building?
In what manner, is it with grace, favour, love> Or alternatively, intimidation, hurt, baggage, weighted down, unbalanced? Are you just going though the motions attempting to get thought the day while God's got this a huge agenda for your life. Seriously don’t balk at the size of His agenda. You need to get a better view of the size of God. God is extravagant, His love toward us is immeasurable. So don’t fear the unknown, take steps to toward it. Stop attempting to relieve your guilt and excuse yourself of the responsibility to excel in life. Our human potential is close to limitless, our God potential, infinite. It’s overtime for many of us to write ourselves some God sized checks, dream some God sized dreams and believe God for them. The key to touching the infinite is to embrace it. Make a start be a Jabez not a Jonah. Embrace excellence and the opportunity of God, don’t run from it. Get beyond the limits of the ordinary. God doesn’t live there. Paul prayed that we would have the ability to prove those things that are excellence. I Cor. 10:31 .. Do all things to the glory of God". Jesus' standard for us was this, the things I’ve done, you’ll do greater things than this in my Name. God is constantly calling us to live higher, to lift the standard, to believe in miracles
5 – Are you building excellence PROGRESSIVELY
2 Cor. 6:3 .. In all things we are approving ourselves, through much patience.
Don’t become faint doing what is good, what is best what is worthy what is benevolent. Excellence is a measure, you can measure it in your life. Paul said I strive toward a mark, a line, a goal, toward a prize. There is less than what is best. Paul says I strive to win. Well done good and faithful servant, enter into your reward. We at times don’t decide to press toward anything so we can maintain our own personal self-respect. We sometimes throw ourselves a party with nothing to celebrate. Excellence has priorities if there’s best then there’s less than best. If we are going to excel we must prioritise some things over others. A University student must prioritise study over social activity. Someone who is married must prioritise one person over others. A parent must prioritise family over a promotion sometimes. It’s so sad that some people go though their entire journey without any clear sense of heavenly or purposeful intention about their lives driving them forward. Excellence must have a progression to achieve a goal. I think one of the greatest reasons some struggle is because everyone starts out with dreams hopes and aspirations, but setbacks and obstacles make us give up on the journey. 2 Cor. 6:4 says in much endurance we prove those things that are of God. History often only remembers excellence or infamy, what is wonderful or decidedly less than perfect. If you want to leave a mark with your life you must do it in excellence. Animate the good things and make every effort to disable and minimize the worst. Excellence, as Paul says, presses toward a particular mark, it strives toward the goal; it never loses sight of the best. He said I haven’t arrived yet I’m still striving toward the prise. Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther king, Mother Teresa. Were not necessarily extraordinary people just people totally committed to extraordinary goals. Don’t give up or settle for the status quo. Don’t fall for the age-old trick, well I guess this is my lot in life, this is the hand I’ve been dealt. That is just copping out on life, cashing in the chips, hitting the default button on your dreams. We make the mistake of anaesthetising ourselves from the responsibility to excel because it dulls the pain of the long journey. If it’s great then its worthy of greater effort, if it’s God then it’s worth your all, your best, your priority and your sustained pursuit. Goals reached easily bring little satisfaction. Goals laboured over bring incredible fulfillment.
Think about tomorrow today, imagine what you want for your life and start building it today with excellence.