Nicholas Cage starred in a film a couple of years ago about a magician that could see 2 seconds into the future. Because of some mysterious quirk, he can perceive things beyond the moment that he was in.
This quality of ’seeing beyond the moment‘ is a quality we all need.
Many mistakes have occurred because decisions were based on ‘this moment’ and not the next moment. When we become too closely attached to this moment’s reality we lose perspective.
We begin to make blanket statements like, “…it will never change”, or “it will always be this way!”
We begin to believe that there is no ‘Next’.
Without an eye toward ‘Next’, we live today as if there is no tommorrow, and we live tomorrow just like today.
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” -Matthew 5:13
Everytime we go through a drive-thru, Tiffany makes sure that we order fries ‘NO SALT’.
Every time.
Requesting fries this way seems to change the whole order of things. The workers get a pained look. The fries take much longer. You must park in a special place while the ‘NO SALT’ fries cook.
Maybe it is punishment for ordering ‘NO SALT‘ fries.
Finally after what seems to be a very long time, someone brings the ‘NO SALT’ fries to the car.
When fries are saltless, the fast food universe can’t seem to function properly.
And as crazy as it sounds, when we are ’saltless’ everything is out of order too.
When the followers of Jesus are ’saltless’, people of no distinction, no cause, no uniqueness, then we are of no use to the world around us.
Someone sent me an e-mail with the phrase, “Incredible odds open the door for God to do incredible miracles”.
I loved it because it is true, but realize that is hard. As in hard to grasp. Hard to grasp because it is much easier to believe when we don’t need Him to do anything.
Easy to believe for food when the refrigerator is full.
Easy to believe for money when the savings account is growing and we just got paid.
Easy to believe for clothing when we are strolling through the mall.
Easy to believe for breakthrough when our present and future doesn’t depend on it.
Most of what we call ‘faith’ isn’t really faith at all. It is what we can do, or think we can do to help God out in answering our request or fulfilling our needs.
Our ‘faith’ really isn’t in God, it is in ourselves.
A few years ago I was having a discussion with my three daughters one night in the kitchen. It was about fashion. They were trying to convince their father that ‘belly-button shirts’(clothing that exposes their midriff) was the way to go. They saw someone on television or somewhere where a young lady was wearing one. They thought it was cool and believed that Dad should purchase these types of shirts for them.
I refused, letting them know that no girl is our family would be caught anywhere in public with their stomach exposed like that.
Then they asked if they could dress like that after they turned 18.
I told them that they couldn’t dress like that until they were in their sixties. And even then they would have to ask permission.
After saying this, I asked them if they wanted to play a game. My girls enthusiastically nodded yes. They loved to play games. I told them that we were going to play a game of catch.
I reached inside the cabinet and grabbed 2 or 3 plastic cups and positioned the girls on the one side of the kitchen. After walking to the other side, I tossed the plastic cups across the kitchen to them. Then they tossed them back.
Some cups were caught, while many others bounced onto the hardwood floor.
After doing this for a while I decided to up the ante.
“Ok girls. This has been pretty fun. But I REALLY want to have fun! Do you REALLY want to have fun?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes! We REALLY want to have fun!”
“Alright, good. We are going to keep playing catch, but we are not going to use cups anymore.”
I placed the cup that I had in my hand on the counter, and told them to do the same. Then I got on my tiptoes and reached up to the highest cabinet in the kitchen. With my little girls watching, I pulled out a large rectangular box.
The rectangular box contained Mom’s MOST special crystal glasses. These glasses were only used on the most special of occasions. Christmas. Easter. Thanksgiving. Beyond these holidays, only Mom had the power to decree a day special enough for the crystal glasses to be used.
Opening the heavy box, I pulled out the weighted glass.
“Now we are really going to play a game of catch!”
The girls were stunned.
They gasped in complete shock and horror.
I held the glass high, bringing it down in a great swooping motion like a softball pitcher preparing to throw a strike.
They cried out in disbelief.
“No! No! Daddy! You can’t do that! You can’t throw that!”
They frantically grabbed at my arms, determined to stop me from launching the crystal glass into the air.
Pushing them back I called out, “I want to play catch! I just want to play catch! We played catch before! I wanted to play catch now!”
“You can’t play catch, Dad! You can’t play catch with those glasses! They will break! It will get everywhere! You can’t do it!”
“Why can’t I do it? We played catch before! I want to play catch now!”
They grabbed at me with even more urgency.
“No daddy no! Please don’t throw the glasses! The crystals are not the same as the cups!”
Then I stopped.
“The crystals are not the same the cups? Is that right?”
Three little heads nodded.
“So you are saying I have to treat the crystal different than the cups? Is it because they are valuable and have more meaning?”
They nodded again.
“You know what?” I went on, ” I agree with you. Crystals ARE much different than cups. They are prettier, more expensive, and more special. You have to treat them a certain way. And the truth is, Daddy is trying to tell you girls something.
When you three are talking about wearing ‘belly-button” shirts and everything else, you are reducing yourself to the level of cups. Cups can be thrown around, tossed here are there. Doesn’t really matter what you do. They are cheap and don’t cost very much.
But you girls are not cups, you are precious crystals. And because you are crystals, you have to be treated a certain way. Treated with class, respected and honored, handled with care.
Cups can sometimes be thrown away like trash, but crystals are something to truly treasure. That is how Mommy and Daddy see you. You 3 girls are princesses and precious crystals. You are priceless gifts to the world”
Since that evening in the kitchen, I can’t recall a conversation we have had about ‘belly-button’ shirts again. Occasionally the conversation about appropriate dress or behavior does come up.
Tomorrow, on April 5th we are going to officially change the name of Foothill Community Church to Renaissance Church. We are going to launch this with a celebration of the past, along with a challenge to inspire us to embrace the new future.
Our youth dance team, worship team, will help set the day off and get us started. A cool video chronicling the 80 year history of our church, will also be on the list. I will be sharing a message called ‘Generation Renaissance’ in the first day of this new era.
What happens when the answer is NO?
What happens when you knock on the door of opportunity and it doesn’t open?
How do we act when we DON’T get what we want?
Our response when things do not turn out the way we expected communicates a great deal about who we are.
It is one thing to be gracious when you win.
It is quite another when you don’t.
Posted in Leadership | No Comments »
What is your dream?
What do you dream of?
Some people dream of big houses and big cars.
Others dream of money in stacks and bills that are paid.
Some dream of fame and a great name.
They dream of being celebrated stars, with magazine covers, and breathless paparazzi.
Some dream of the glory that comes with achievement, and the gleam that accompanies success.
But I don’t dream about any of those things.
I dream of a revolution of kindness.
I dream of renaissance of good.
I dream of love that breaks all barriers.
I dream of an uprising of hope .
I dream of a people free to believe.
I dream of a world awakened to God.
I dare to dream a different dream.
Do You?
Posted in The Future, Leadership, Dream Awake, Transformation | 2 Comments »
It takes courage to be who we have been created to be.
Circumstance tries to trap us. Past mistakes attempt to haunt us.
Every day messengers of mediocrity do their best to intimidate us into living a small life.
The question is, do we have the courage to be us anyway?
Posted in Leadership, Dream Awake | 1 Comment »
Too often we have been so focused on survival, that we have forgotten how to live.
Barely existing and truly being alive are very different things.
We can’t be afraid to live.
Live.
Posted in The Future, Leadership, Dream Awake | 1 Comment »
You can’t work on your jump shot when the game has started.
You must get ready before game-time.
Your moment is coming.
Get ready.
Posted in Leadership, Sports | No Comments »
Who will speak at your funeral?
Will it be a family member, a pastor, or a co-worker?
Who will speak of your life? What you stood for? What you believed?
The good news is that I already know the answer.
I know who is going to speak at your funeral.
I know who is going to speak of and summarize your life.
I know who going to talk about your convictions and beliefs.
You are.
You are the only one that will speak at your funeral.
There may be different voices that speak the words, but the speaker will be you.
How you live your life, will determine what is spoken on that day.
There will only be one speaker at your funeral.
You.
Posted in Relationships, The Future, Family | 2 Comments »
Nicholas Cage starred in a film a couple of years ago about a magician that could see 2 seconds into the future. Because of some mysterious quirk, he can perceive things beyond the moment that he was in.
This quality of ’seeing beyond the moment‘ is a quality we all need.
Many mistakes have occurred because decisions were based on ‘this moment’ and not the next moment. When we become too closely attached to this moment’s reality we lose perspective.
We begin to make blanket statements like, “…it will never change”, or “it will always be this way!”
We begin to believe that there is no ‘Next’.
Without an eye toward ‘Next’, we live today as if there is no tommorrow, and we live tomorrow just like today.
Posted in Leadership | No Comments »
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” -Matthew 5:13
Everytime we go through a drive-thru, Tiffany makes sure that we order fries ‘NO SALT’.
Every time.
Requesting fries this way seems to change the whole order of things. The workers get a pained look. The fries take much longer. You must park in a special place while the ‘NO SALT’ fries cook.
Maybe it is punishment for ordering ‘NO SALT‘ fries.
Finally after what seems to be a very long time, someone brings the ‘NO SALT’ fries to the car.
When fries are saltless, the fast food universe can’t seem to function properly.
And as crazy as it sounds, when we are ’saltless’ everything is out of order too.
When the followers of Jesus are ’saltless’, people of no distinction, no cause, no uniqueness, then we are of no use to the world around us.
Our passion, our faith, our actions constitute our ’salt’.
NO SALT=NO MEANING.
Posted in The Church, Media/Culture | 2 Comments »
Someone sent me an e-mail with the phrase, “Incredible odds open the door for God to do incredible miracles”.
I loved it because it is true, but realize that is hard. As in hard to grasp. Hard to grasp because it is much easier to believe when we don’t need Him to do anything.
Easy to believe for food when the refrigerator is full.
Easy to believe for money when the savings account is growing and we just got paid.
Easy to believe for clothing when we are strolling through the mall.
Easy to believe for breakthrough when our present and future doesn’t depend on it.
Most of what we call ‘faith’ isn’t really faith at all. It is what we can do, or think we can do to help God out in answering our request or fulfilling our needs.
Our ‘faith’ really isn’t in God, it is in ourselves.
And that isn’t really faith at all.
Posted in The Future, Leadership | No Comments »
A few years ago I was having a discussion with my three daughters one night in the kitchen. It was about fashion. They were trying to convince their father that ‘belly-button shirts’ (clothing that exposes their midriff) was the way to go. They saw someone on television or somewhere where a young lady was wearing one. They thought it was cool and believed that Dad should purchase these types of shirts for them.
I refused, letting them know that no girl is our family would be caught anywhere in public with their stomach exposed like that.
Then they asked if they could dress like that after they turned 18.
I told them that they couldn’t dress like that until they were in their sixties. And even then they would have to ask permission.
After saying this, I asked them if they wanted to play a game. My girls enthusiastically nodded yes. They loved to play games. I told them that we were going to play a game of catch.
I reached inside the cabinet and grabbed 2 or 3 plastic cups and positioned the girls on the one side of the kitchen. After walking to the other side, I tossed the plastic cups across the kitchen to them. Then they tossed them back.
Some cups were caught, while many others bounced onto the hardwood floor.
After doing this for a while I decided to up the ante.
“Ok girls. This has been pretty fun. But I REALLY want to have fun! Do you REALLY want to have fun?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes! We REALLY want to have fun!”
“Alright, good. We are going to keep playing catch, but we are not going to use cups anymore.”
I placed the cup that I had in my hand on the counter, and told them to do the same. Then I got on my tiptoes and reached up to the highest cabinet in the kitchen. With my little girls watching, I pulled out a large rectangular box.
The rectangular box contained Mom’s MOST special crystal glasses. These glasses were only used on the most special of occasions. Christmas. Easter. Thanksgiving. Beyond these holidays, only Mom had the power to decree a day special enough for the crystal glasses to be used.
Opening the heavy box, I pulled out the weighted glass.
“Now we are really going to play a game of catch!”
The girls were stunned.
They gasped in complete shock and horror.
I held the glass high, bringing it down in a great swooping motion like a softball pitcher preparing to throw a strike.
They cried out in disbelief.
“No! No! Daddy! You can’t do that! You can’t throw that!”
They frantically grabbed at my arms, determined to stop me from launching the crystal glass into the air.
Pushing them back I called out, “I want to play catch! I just want to play catch! We played catch before! I wanted to play catch now!”
“You can’t play catch, Dad! You can’t play catch with those glasses! They will break! It will get everywhere! You can’t do it!”
“Why can’t I do it? We played catch before! I want to play catch now!”
They grabbed at me with even more urgency.
“No daddy no! Please don’t throw the glasses! The crystals are not the same as the cups!”
Then I stopped.
“The crystals are not the same the cups? Is that right?”
Three little heads nodded.
“So you are saying I have to treat the crystal different than the cups? Is it because they are valuable and have more meaning?”
They nodded again.
“You know what?” I went on, ” I agree with you. Crystals ARE much different than cups. They are prettier, more expensive, and more special. You have to treat them a certain way. And the truth is, Daddy is trying to tell you girls something.
When you three are talking about wearing ‘belly-button” shirts and everything else, you are reducing yourself to the level of cups. Cups can be thrown around, tossed here are there. Doesn’t really matter what you do. They are cheap and don’t cost very much.
But you girls are not cups, you are precious crystals. And because you are crystals, you have to be treated a certain way. Treated with class, respected and honored, handled with care.
Cups can sometimes be thrown away like trash, but crystals are something to truly treasure. That is how Mommy and Daddy see you. You 3 girls are princesses and precious crystals. You are priceless gifts to the world”
Since that evening in the kitchen, I can’t recall a conversation we have had about ‘belly-button’ shirts again. Occasionally the conversation about appropriate dress or behavior does come up.
Often I will respond with a simple question:
Are you a Cup or a Crystal?
Posted in Relationships, The Future, Family | 6 Comments »
Tomorrow, on April 5th we are going to officially change the name of Foothill Community Church to Renaissance Church. We are going to launch this with a celebration of the past, along with a challenge to inspire us to embrace the new future.
Our youth dance team, worship team, will help set the day off and get us started. A cool video chronicling the 80 year history of our church, will also be on the list. I will be sharing a message called ‘Generation Renaissance’ in the first day of this new era.
If you are in town, come check us out.
Posted in The Church, The Future, Dream Awake, Transformation | No Comments »