To top

Category: Success Principles

2 Feb

“Do Not Fear the Work.”

    Has it ever occurred to you that your dream is too big? The task feels so monumental, the job so impossible that you begin to wonder if the one thing God got wrong in all eternity was calling you to do it?    King Solomon certainly wondered.    Prequel: King David had always wanted to build a temple for the Lord, but God told David that he would not be the one to build it; rather his son Solomon would build it. Not surprisingly, Solomon was somewhat intimidated by the importance and scope of the task, but it's at this point that David tells Solomon: “’Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the...
Continue reading
24 Nov

The Most Important Vision You’ll Ever Have

   What do you call a man who, when asked for food and drink by an army of 400 warriors, deliberately refuses them and then insults them? 

   How about “fool”?

   Coincidently, that was the meaning of the name of Abigail’s husband, Nabal. Backstory (I Sam. 25): David and his mighty men, hungry and thirsty, had come upon Nabal’s men shearing his hundreds of sheep (Nabal was rich) and asked them for food and drink.  Since David and his men had often

1 Sep

The Myth of the Weed-Eating Vegetable

   

   Wouldn’t it be great if you could rub a little circle of wax on the hood of your car—and it spread to whole the rest of your car? Wouldn’t it be great if you could plant a few squash plants in the corner of your yard—and they choked out all the weeds on the whole rest of the property? Wouldn’t it be great if you never exercised ever—and your body just atrophied into rock-solid muscle?

   Not going to happen.  

21 Jul

Grace—The Fire Power of God

`There was a time in my life when I went to confession, having been told by the good nuns (and they were good), that I would receive “grace” for going and that the more I went to confession, the more grace I would get. That was all fine and good – except that I didn’t really have any idea what grace was.

For the most part, I reasoned that grace was synonymous with mercy. Makes sense, right? I mean, you confess your sins and you have to receive mercy in order to be forgiven. The only problem was, I couldn’t understand how you could get “more” mercy; either you had it or you didn’t have it; either your sins were forgiven—or they weren’t. How could they be more forgiven or less forgiven?

23 Jun

Bitterness vs. Destiny

   When I was a kid, I had a habit of skinning my knees, after which the same routine ensued: I would cry, mom would wash the wound, smother it in mercurochrome and put a bandage on it. But then somehow the bandage would come off (I have no idea how). From there, you guessed it—I would get the wound dirty and it would get infected and fester.

   Did you know that can happen to our souls?

12 May

The Myth of the Mid-Life Crisis

   What happens when we finally get what we’ve been working for during our 20s, 30s and into our 40s: The college degree or training is earned, the career success is launched, the college loans paid off, we have the marriage, the kids, the house, the car—it’s all happened. And we’re happy, right? The kids may have moved on, the house has been upgraded, the career promotions have happened, and there might even be money in the bank.

   But then what?

9 May

The Big, Bad Competition—and Other Scary Stuff

   I’ve always wanted be in business for myself (although this discussion could apply to any dream). I’ve worked a couple of businesses through the years helping others and I’ve learned the business-end ropes of the ropes, so to speak. However, while I’m exploring my options in the direction I want to head (in addition to writing), I’m finding one thing consistently: the competition is fierce. And honestly, that’s a little intimidating. Can I succeed in a market with businesses already up and established in my industry? How do I break in? Do I have enough money? What if I invest but can’t penetrate the market?    What if I fail?     Now I can cite the standard “not trying is...
Continue reading
20 Mar

Killer Deal

     How would you like to start a business and have an immediate 100 clients? Maybe you’d like a quick trip from the high school locker room to the NFL? What about going from being weekend news anchor at your local station to anchoring the nightly national network news? Or graduating from college at 22 and stepping right into the directorship of a daycare center responsible for the care and feeding of fifty toddlers every day?  What if Uncle Harry suddenly left you a cool million?      Killer deal, right?      Absolutely killer. Lethal even.      You know where I’m going with this. There’s a great deal to be said for gradual promotion, for hugging the learning curve, for “working...
Continue reading