July 25th, 2011
All my life I have been attending Christian conventions that have a tendency to affect a person’s life in an amazing and profound way. This is something that has occurred to and for me often; so often in fact that I tend to maybe not realize the significance of these happenings. Well here we are at the end of July 2011 and yesterday something was shared so profoundly amazing that I believe my life is never going to be the same again. I have a friend who is often sending thoughts into the universe and then watching as they materialize. This is amazing and while I appreciate this, I have a somewhat different view as I am often grateful after the fact when thoughts and wants I have projected don’t come to pass. I guess this is part of the wisdom of knowing what to ask for… not always sure I know what that is. Anyhow what follows is a snap shot of my current situation, written down in part so that a year from now if I want to analyze what has transpired I will have a point of reference to analyze it from. I have tried to include what is, what I would make it if I chose… and then of course next year I will analyze this to see what actually comes to be.
First a brief analysis of my situation as it currently stands:
a) Currently in a very rocky and rough relationship. Some day’s the waves are close to swamping the boat and it’s only by bailing like crazy that it stays afloat. (Hey I know this is nothing special… many face similar or worse but it is my reality)
b) I am working hard at work but results are hard to come by! My work relationship with my bosses is much the same as my marriage. It may be more responsive to a change in attitude however.
c) Cash flow is extremely tight… changes in the first two items however could change this significantly.
d) Kelsey is fifteen starting high school in the fall, Liam is thirteen. Both are good kids with Kelsey being the most grounded of the two currently. Sometimes her level of maturity amazes me. Liam has a heart of gold and I hope like crazy he can find his passion and enjoy a measure of his sisters’ success. Both spent some time with me in the last few days just us two and it was nice and profitable. Currently both of my children strive to serve God in the way I subscribe to and believe. This is a incredible blessing to me and makes me feel very blessed.
e) We so far have only had bits and pieces of convention. This was super spectacular and tons of treasure… however this doesn’t replace the process that a whole convention brings it is still a priority for me to get a full convention sometime in the next little while.
f) I am driving a worn-out Charger on which I owe more than it’s worth. Currently in need of a cleaning! Why do I mention this? Well for me my car is a big deal. A lot of how I see myself is tied into the vehicle I drive. A lot of my stress with the work I do is connected to issues revolving around my vehicle.
g) I weigh in at about 300 lbs … not sure if this will change or not… currently committed to working on this with some co-workers starting in a week. The support behind making this shift is growing as word gets out amongst my co-workers that I have committed to doing this. Funny I have all the tools, have had for a while, they are currently collecting dust in the basement of the house so it will be interesting to see if this does indeed change come August first.
h) Kelsey doesn’t have a sponsor and I am currently scrambling to keep up with horse bills on my own. Again as work succeeds so will this however it would be a incredible relief to my outlook and the pressures I am feeling if this somehow were to finally become a reality.
i) Also I am going to insert here the hypothetical view of what from my current limited vantage point I see as perfect.
j) If I could live in what I would see as a perfect world for me right now I would live the following: I would resign my position with my current employer so that I could work fulltime at managing the career of my daughter and other riders finding them sponsorship, horses and other opportunities. We would be in the process of buying or setting up a breeding facility and we would be planning and scheduling the next years show season. Now to be fair much of this in a limited scope is something I am doing already with limited resources and in conjunction with activities currently with Riqueza and their program and long term goals. To be fair some amazing things have happened and I really want to stay focused so that I don’t miss these because it hasn’t happened exactly as I have envisioned it!
I am going to try and implement the secret of success that was shared yesterday and am writing this all down so that twelve months from now we will have an accurate measure of:
i) how well I have implemented the activities and
ii) if I have succeeded what the results are!
So here is the lesson, first the famous story often shared and re-shared: (Yes I have heard it before and yes I should have gotten this before today… however what matters most is I am getting it now!) So here is the storey:
The Rocks in a Jar Storey:
A high school science teacher wanted to demonstrate a concept to his students. He takes a large-mouth jar and places several large rocks in it. He then asks the class, "Is it full?
"Unanimously, the class reply, "Yes!"
The teacher then takes a bucket of gravel and pours it into the jar. The small rocks settle into the spaces between the big rocks.
He then asks the class, "Is it full?"
This time there are some students holding back, but most reply, "Yes!"
The teacher then produces a large can of sand and proceeds to pour it into the jar. The sand fills up the spaces between the gravel.
For the third time, the teacher asks, "Is it full?
"Now most of the students are wary of answering, but again, many reply, "Yes!"
Then the teacher brings out a pitcher of water and pours it into the jar. The water saturates the sand. At this point the teacher asks the class, "What is the point of this demonstration?"
One bright young student raises his hand and then responds, "No matter how full one's schedule is in life, he can always squeeze in more things!"
"No," replies the teacher, "The point is that unless you first place the big rocks into the jar, you are never going to get them in. The big rocks are the important things in your life ...your family, your friends, your personal growth. If you fill your life with small things, as demonstrated by the gravel, the sand, and the water...you will never have the time for the important things.
So, what are the "Big Rocks" in your life? Spending time with your children, your parents or your spouse? Taking the seminar or class to get the information and perspective you need to succeed? Making the time to set goals, plan or evaluate your progress? When you are hassled because there is no time, remember the story about the Big Rocks and the Jar!
Now the story wasn’t shared in this depth yesterday ( it wasn’t necessary as most of us are familiar with it.) but it was used to start the lesson. Then the following was stated: KEEP FIRST THINGS FIRST.
1) Keep the Kingdom First: oh so easy to say… maybe not so easy to do! Earlier this year I actually happened on a app that put the bible on my phone. I thought what could be easier, my phone is always with me and always on so no problem I will always start my day first with reading and then with catching up on my messages and email.s. Nope didn’t work and for a long time now it hasn’t been even opened so that this morning when I went to open it the first thing I had to do was update it! I did this and next will be ensuring that it gets used daily before anything else. Easy for me to pray at night…usually because the weight of the day presses me into it, not so easy to start my day this way. Day will now start with that first even before I get out of bed. This will be followed by a verse or two… before I check the emails or messages or news headlines. I am going to log this daily to see how I do. Not a big deal but easily measured so easily tracked.
2) The second first is like onto the first… (This is sorta a trend you will see.) Choose things that will help you accomplish item one! In everything you do remember that choices you make affect the kingdom. Is God part of your choices, do you run all of life’s decisions by Him? If not the time to start doing this is now. Let Him make all your choices and you will see amazing results. Some of us now live with choices we made without Him, that’s part of life however now is not too late to start getting Him involved in the future!
3) The world is full of spirits and even good spirits. However the responsibility lies with you to try the spirits and determine the ones that are from God. This is pretty simple really as a Godly Spirit will only point you inline with what Jesus taught. If what the spirit is presenting you is not inline with Jesus, then its not a spirit from God, it’s just that simple.
4) From time to time you might think you see something in your brethren that isn’t inline with the Will of God. If you do, before you say or do anything do the following:
a. First examine yourself to ensure that you are not guilty of the samething in some way.
b. Pray about it desperately entreating God on behalf of your brethren or what you perceive to be the issue.
c. Finally if and only if it involves you personally would you ever say anything and then only from your own position and conviction and how it is affecting you, not anything ahout your brethren’s relationship with God.
5) The next thing is make sure that you always put others friend and foe before yourself. If what you are doing requires you putting yourself before someone else then there is something that must be addressed. The spirit of Christ and God is not me first! Our nature thrives and pushes for me first! It is encouraging to know that as you succeed with item #1 then item #5 will become more and more natural to you! There are a few little things you have to get first and when you do it will benefit you more than you have ever thought possible. As we work at the items #1 through #4 then the more naturally item #5 will become for us.
6) (I believe there were more things for the first things first list however time had run out so the final was as follows.) Bring Peace everywhere you go. You can’t bring Peace if you don’t have it. So therefore when you are putting first things first one of the things you will be praying desperately for is for Peace so that as you go from place to place you will have this to leave! Funny isn’t it how this whole list ties together and how every item builds to this one.
So there you have it… lets just see what change in the year ahead? Lets see what changes in me? Lets see what changes in my relationship at home with my spouse and my kids?
Its funny one of the other thoughts shared was that was that life is full of troubles, there always will be troubles however the fact that a Child of God can live in a world of troubles and not be overcome by these same troubles is a charecteristic and confirmation that he/she is a child of God!
