LIVE WELL and BE REMEMBERED as the HERO you already are.

I'm currently reading (listening to) Finish, Give Yourself the Gift of Done by Jon Acuff.  Stacey Brown Randall recommended it.  (That's Stacey with an "e".)  It is such a great book. So often, our Perfectionism is the enemy to our achieving our goals.  For example, I have been trying to blog for a while now.  Everything has gotten in the way.  So often, if I can't get it perfect, I don't even take a step toward getting it done. How often does that happen to you?  How many more goals could you finish if you just started?  How successful would you be if you just took a step? I remember the day when someone in my family said "You see, we are Perfectionists."  It was explained to me like it was a good thing.  Now I know it's simply the enemy to progress.  In that same period in my life, I can remember trying to play baseball.  I remember standing over home plate and trying to make the perfect swing at the perfect pitch.  What happened?  The perfect

    The first chapter of the New Testament book of John is interesting .   The chapter starts out with John describing who Jesus is . John tells us the true identity of Jesus.   The chapter then transitions and ends with Jesus telling us who his earliest followers were.  Specifically, He even changing the name of one of his followers from Simon to Peter, which meant "Rock", so that Peter's earthly name better suited his Heavenly identity. Jesus is still doing this today.   He continues to proclaim our identity over us .  I believe this identity is tied to our natural gifts.  Those are the things that we are naturally gifted to do and enjoy. All too often the World around us is the one trying to tell us who we are or who we ought to be.    It is constantly urging us to be someone we are not. Jesus rejoices in who we actually are. I encourage you today to embrace your God-given Identity and natural talents.  If you don't know what your identity is, go on a journey

Rick Denley recently wrote Reinventing Yourself .   That's what I've been doing since March!  My guidance has been under the tutoring of guys like Darrel Amy , Larry Levine and Mike Garrison .  I appreciate each one of them.  Recently Rick was interviewed by Darrell and Larry on the Selling From the Heart podcast. I really resonated with the discussion.  I highly recommend you check it out . For me, COVID has been all about reinventing myself.  This has come from better utilizing what I already have and equipping myself with modern tools to thrive in modern times. One of the greatest lines of the most recent podcast was: You're smarter than you think. You're braver than you believe.   And much more courageous than you ever thought. Rick Denley That's fantastic! I encourage you to get the book .  I encourage you to check out the podcasts: Selling from the Heart and Revenue Growth Engine . If you have not already started the process, start Reinventing Yourself t

If we aren’t careful, MATERIALISM can be a great weight upon our souls. In Ron Blue's God Owns It All workbook he has a great quote from an African pastor ✝️. It goes something like this: Materialism isn’t about having a lot and wanting more. Instead, it’s defined by worshiping what you have and what you want. It’s a belief that having more things can bring contentment and joy.  It’s a sickness that is present in all corners of the world, 🌎 and it’s just as prevalent among the poor as among the rich 💰. We all struggle with materialism in one form or another, and it’s a direct violation of a right belief in who God is and what He has done for us. Matt 6:24 tells us that we can’t serve two gods. We can’t serve both Yahweh (God) and the god Mammon. My encouragement to you is to GIVE. Live GENEROUSLY.  Do not let wealth, wealth preservation and prosperity be your god. You can plan, but that does not mean you obsess or live in fear of loss.  Why? Because in the immortal words o

The toxic people in our lives are ALWAYS difficult to deal with.  While we are exposed to these people in every facet of our lives, encountering those in our families is often the hardest. Toxic people are ABUSIVE.  Often, emotional abuse can be MORE damaging to us than physical abuse .  This is easy to excuse away and even blame ourselves for it.  Unfortunately, if we are going to live a joyous life, we have to make the hard decision to deal with them. I seem to find myself giving the same advice over and over again to people dealing with the toxicity in their lives.  Here goes: Work on your own "stuff".   I am a big fan of personal growth.  We all have issues to work through.  It's simply unfair to address the toxic person's issues, when you are not addressing yours.   Get a good counselor .   Regardless of what happens, you need a counselor to aid you through this.   Read helpful books.   Two of my favorites in this situation are Codependent No More and Boundaries

  I am a big believer in each of us taking our own journey of inner healing .  Life throws trauma at us.  Often we receive the greatest trauma in childhood .   This disconnects us with our original self.   This disconnects us from who we were created to be.  It derails creation into something else. Miserable with your profession? Often this is because you are not doing what you were created to do .  When you do what you were created to do, it resonates with your passion and ignites your heart.   How do you reconnect with original self?   I can tell you how this healing came for me. First , I had to allow for a greater connection with God the Father.   I believe that the Holy Trinity is the one true God.  I had knowledge of God the Father, but not much of a relationship.  That had to change.  One of the greatest lessons in that is that my IDENTITY is in Him .  He created it because I am his unique creation .  This means that I do not have to strive to be significant , I already am.