#191 - YOUR WORK IS WORTH IT

Though the stress has been high
Though the hours have been long
Though the sacrifices have been many…

Persist. Your work is worth it.

I know your friends doubt you.
I know your critics slander you.
I know your competition hates you.

Endure. Your work is worth it.

In spite of your frustrating time constraints
In spite of your various resource challenges
In spite of your obvious financial deficiencies…

Overcome. Your work is worth it.

Today you must persist.
Today you must endure.
Today you must overcome.

Your work is worth it.

#190 - I HAVE A REASON TO CELEBRATE

Today was a great day.

I boarded a plane at 9:00am.
I flew down to Los Angeles.
I gave a one hour “inspirational talk” at a corporate meeting.
I was invited to dinner, with the company, at Black Angus.
I was compensated rather nicely for my services.
I boarded a plane back to the Bay Area at 9:00pm.

I am blessed.

To have a very successful, multi-billion dollar, international company fly me in to inspire their employees and compensate me well for doing it is a dream come true!

Now, have I reached all of my goals as a inspirational speaker?

Definitely not.

Have I made progress towards what I want to accomplish as an insprational speaker?

Absolutely.

Therefore with that said, today…

I have a reason to celebrate.

The Big Idea:

Progress deserves celebration.

Celebrate your accomplishments.
Celebrate your completed tasks.
Celebrate your victories.

Celebrate the forward progress you are making on your journey towards fulfilling the purposes for which you were created.

You deserve it.

#189 - HOW TO CREATE CHANGE

Do you want to see positive change take place in your life?

You’ve gotta’ have faith.

Faith that your health can be improved.
Faith that your relationships can be restored.
Faith that your financial situation can be turned around.

Faith is where it all begins.

Faith for a better life.
Faith for a greater impact.
Faith for a new opportunity.

Faith stimulates positive change.

Faith activates hope.
Faith motivates action.
Faith sustains effort.

Faith is the ultimate catalyst for turning things around.

Now I know you know this already.

But the question I’d like to ask you on this day is…

In what areas of your life have you stopped believing?

I implore you to…

Re-examine your faith.
Renew your faith.
Resurrect your faith.

The change you desire to see will not happen without it.

#188 - WHY SEARCHING DOESN'T WORK

Which of the two do you make your priority?

Searching for your happiness or becoming content?
Searching for your dream job or becoming the ideal employee?
Searching for your perfect spouse or becoming the perfect spouse?
Searching for your purpose or becoming purposeful in everything you do?
Searching for your followers or becoming someone worthy of being followed?
Searching for your next opportunity or becoming a person to whom opportunities come?

When you focus on searching, you rarely become.

But…

When you focus on becoming, you often times find what you’re searching for.

Therefore, become.

Become kind.
Become patient.
Become faithful.
Become committed.
Become courageous.
Become hard working.

Become. Become. Become.

Everything you’ve been searching for will follow.

#187 - HOW TO DEVELOP GENIUS

Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.
– Albert Einstein

This week, go to work.

You have enough inspiration.
You have enough motivation.
You have enough determination.

Now go to work.

No more thinking.
No more discussing.
No more brainstorming.

Start working.

Your resources are sufficient.
Your plans are well thought out.
Your time is now.

Go.

Create. Labor. Develop.
Make it. Write it. Produce it.
Build it. Design it. Release it.
Try. Attempt. Risk.

Just work.

Your genius is waiting. 

#186 - THAT SOMEONE

I doubted myself.

I questioned my motives.
I figured I was in over my head.
I assumed I was desiring too much.

I was paralyzed by fear.

I hesitated moving forward with my plans.
I worried about what people would think of me.
I wondered if I could really do what I believed I was created to do.

And then one day everything changed.

I met someone who believed in me.

I met someone who said I could.
I met someone who said I should.
I met someone who said I would.

And now, because of that someone…

I will.

#185 - SOME HAVE IT HARDER THAN YOU

I know it’s hard to endure various obstacles.
I know it’s hard to manage certain relationships.
I know it’s hard to juggle so many responsibilities.
I know it’s hard to fulfill such significant commitments.
I know it’s hard to navigate through tough circumstances.
I know it’s hard to believe for particular miracles to take place.

I know it’s hard to remain true to the purpose for which you have been created.

Life is not easy.

Life is hard.

But on some days it is not only encouraging but it is also very important to remember that, though your life may be hard…

Some have it harder than you.

An elementary thought I know.

But it is a thought for which you should be thankful.

Don’t you agree?

#184 - THE TRUTH ABOUT COMMITMENT

Commitment is completing.
Commitment is overcoming.
Commitment is persevering.

Commitment is doing what you said you would do, long after the feeling you had when you said it is gone.

Therefore based on the above definition of commitment, the truth is…

Commitment is hard.
Commitment takes work.
Commitment requires patience.

And because commitment is a difficult character trait to attain…

Commitment is rare.
Commitment is valuable.
Commitment is hard to find.

But if you can develop it, you will find that…

Commitment creates great companies.
Commitment builds healthy relationships.
Commitment leads to ideas becoming reality.
Commitment results in goals being accomplished.

Nothing of value is achieved apart from commitment.

Which begs us to ask the following question of ourselves…

To what things am I truly committed?

#183 - SOME DAYS

Some days you don’t have the energy.
Some days you don’t have the excitement.
Some days you don’t have the enthusiasm.

And that’s ok.

Some days you don’t want to push.
Some days you don’t want to produce.
Some days you don’t want to persevere.

And that’s ok too.

Some days you just need to rest.
Some days you just need to relax.
Some days you just need to recuperate.

And that’s fine.

You are not a robot.
You are not a machine.
You are not a computer.

You are a person.

Therefore some days, you just need to…stop.

And that’s perfectly fine.

#182 - IN THE MEANTIME

The meantime…

is the time following your departure but preceding your arrival.
is the time after you’ve started but before you’ve finished.
is the time between your calling and your completion.

The meantime…

is the journey.
is the process.
is the wilderness.

The meantime…

always seems long.
often times is lonely.
very rarely feels lovely.

But the reality is:

The meantime…is necessary.

We grow in the meantime.
We mature in the meantime.
We develop in the meantime.

The meantime…is profitable.

We’re refined in the meantime.
We’re solidified in the meantime.
We’re beautified in the meantime.

The meantime…is the best time.

Though there is enthusiasm when starting.
Though there is joy when finishing.

Your greatest victories are experienced…in the meantime.

#181 - THE GREAT BENEFIT OF NOT KNOWING

Once again, I don’t know.

Who exactly will join me on my mission?
How will my mission ever be accomplished?
Where exactly will the fulfillment of my mission take place?
Which mentors and models will I choose to guide the completion of my mission?

There is so much I don’t know.

But in all my “not knowing,” this is what I do understand…

Because I don’t know, my faith has to grow.

My faith in God’s love has to grow.
My faith in God’s plan has to grow.
My faith in God’s power has to grow.
My faith in God’s guidance has to grow.
My faith in God’s sovereignty has to grow.

Because I don’t know, my faith in God has to grow.

This is the great benefit of not knowing.

The only question is,

Will both you and I appreciate and embrace this great benefit?

#180 - A FEW WORDS ABOUT WRITING

Writing clarifies your thinking.
Writing processes your thoughts.
Writing organizes your ideas.

Writing is worth it.

Writing develops your creativity.
Writing engages your senses.
Writing grows your vocabulary.

Writing is worth it.

Writing can stir up controversy.
Writing can spread a message.
Writing can start a movement.

Writing is worth it.

Though it requires your time
Though it requires your energy
Though it requires your thinking…

Writing is worth it.

Therefore write.

Today.

#179 - ONE STEP AT A TIME

On stairs.
In recipes.
Following directions.

We all have skipped steps before.

And we all have suffered the consequences of doing so.

Falling.
Not so tasty food.
Things not working properly.

So from skipping steps many times in the past here’s what I’ve learned…

Skipping steps is rarely a beneficial thing to do.

Especially when it comes to fulfilling God’s purpose for your life.

Skipping steps circumvents the process.
Skipping steps undermines the rhythm of the seasons.
Skipping steps disqualifies you from valuable lessons that must be learned.

The solution:

Take one step at a time.

Embrace the fact that…

Each step is required. Each step is progressive. Each step is necessary.

So in regards to the step that is currently in front of you…

Take it.

Your next step will not be revealed until you do.

#178 - THE FIRST THING THEY DID

The disciples saw Him perform miracles.
The disciples saw Him crucified.
The disciples saw Him rise from the dead.
The disciples saw Him ascend into Heaven.

And what happened next?

They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. Acts 1:14

They didn’t start planning.
They didn’t brainstorm.
They didn’t go to work.

They prayed.

The first thing they did was pray.

Prayer preceded three thousand people coming to know Christ in one day.
Prayer preceded the greatest movement that the earth has ever seen.
Prayer preceded the message that over one billion people around the world embrace today.

Simply stated:

Prayer preceded the power.

Don’t you think you and I should give it a try?

#177 - GOD'S RESPONSIBILITY

God takes full responsibility for the life that is wholly devoted to Him. – Charles Stanley

This encourages me.

There are so many days when I ask myself…

How am I going to do it all?
When is it all going to get done?
Why am I doing it in the first place?

There are so many days when I wonder…

Are my motives pure?
Am I in over my head?
Am I doing what God wants me to do?

There are so many days when I feel like…

I never should have started.
I never should have committed.
I never should have left the security of my full time job.

Can you relate?

But it is in these moments that I have to remind myself…

My life is committed to Christ.
My intention is to glorify God in all that I do.
My goal is to complete the work I have been created to do.

This is the truth.

And though it has not always been like this, today I can say with confidence that…

My life is wholly devoted to Him.

And so what exactly does this mean?

My needs are God’s responsibility.
My results are God’s responsibility.
My desires are God’s responsibility.

The way is God’s responsibility.
The plan is God’s responsibility.
The means is God’s responsibility.

Why?

Because…

God takes full responsibility for the life that is wholly devoted to Him. – Charles Stanley

And just in case you needed Scripture to provide the validity of the statement above…

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. – Proverbs 3:5-6

And for someone who, often times, feels shackled by the commitment to fulfill God’s purposes for my life…

These truths free me.

#176 - HOLY DISCONTENT BY BILL HYBELS

One phrase –

Sums it up and says it all.

One phrase –

Explains the motivation and expresses the goal.

One phrase –

Makes it clear.

It is why you should read this book.
It is why you should discover your burden.
It is why you should complete your assignment.

The phrase:

Life that is truly life.

What a goal.
What a concept.
What a purpose.

Life that is truly life.

Is this your aim?
Is this your desire?
Is this your pursuit?

If so, press on.
If not, shouldn’t it be?

Life that is truly life.

Don’t miss out on it. Desire it. Pursue it. 

#175 - ALL YOU HAVE

But I want so bad for my dreams to come true.

I know.
I understand.
I do too.

I’m just as anxious.
I’m just as expectant.
I’m just as desiring.

I long for the day when who I am and who I desire to be is one in the same.

But here’s what I know – All I have is today.

To love.
To pursue.
To make a difference.

All you have is today.

To give your gift.
To develop your discipline.
To share your story.

All you have is today.

To be faithful.
To be persistent.
To be committed.

All you have is today.

Though you won’t get it all done today.
Though every vision for your life will not come true today.
Though every purpose for your life will not be fulfilled today.

You do have today.

And today is enough.

You can act audaciously…today.
You can give generously…today.
You can pursue passionately…today.

And something tells me that…

The day you realize that today is all you have, you will also understand that today is all you need.

Enjoy today.
Embrace today.
Appreciate today.

Your tomorrow will be glad that you did.

#174 - THE LESSON I'M LEARNING

I must be patient.

Though I understand my purpose.
Though I am committed to my dream.
Though I have accepted my assignment.

A process is required.

A process of character development.
A process of intentional preparation.
A process of deeper understanding.

I must be patient.

A process is protection.

From impure motives.
From spiritual immaturity.
From premature success.

I must be patient.

Of this simple principle I must be kept aware:

My level of patience with the process will determine my level of fulfillment through the process.

Will you be patient with your process?

#173 - WHOSE EXAMPLE DO YOU FOLLOW?

This week, I will be in Atlanta, Georgia attending the Drive Conference at North Point Community Church.

Along with 2,500 other church leaders from across the country, I am going to have the opportunity to be encouraged and inspired to be a more effective minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And I am excited!

I have a high level of respect for Andy Stanley (Lead Pastor) and an admiration for how North Point does ministry, and to be able to learn from the best of the best in an up close and personal way is something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time.

But enough about me.

In regards to your profession, vocation or business…

Who do you admire?
Who do you respect?
Who do you learn from?

Whose example do you follow?

Who are your heroes?
Who are your mentors?
Who are your inspirations?

Whose example do you follow?

Which voices influence your work?
Which stories motivate your perseverance?
Which organizations do you aspire to be like?

And what exactly is the motivation behind having a positive example to follow?

To go farther faster.

By learning from your example’s mistakes.
By modeling your example’s strengths.
And by implementing your example’s processes.

You can go farther faster.

So……

Whose example do you follow?

#172 - ONE IS WORTH IT

Write the song.
Execute the plan.
Finish the art piece.
Publish the blog post.
Take action on the idea.
Follow through on the commitment.

Why?

Because one person may be blessed.
Because one person may be encouraged.
Because one person’s life may forever be changed for the better.

Is to impact only one person’s life my goal?

Definitely not.

But every day I am realizing more and more, that…one is worth it.

Though the hours invested are many….one is worth it.
Though I desire to positively impact the masses…one is worth it.
Though some days I just want to give up and call it quits…one is worth it.

Complete the work you know in your heart to do.

One is worth it.