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Jan 1, 2011    |       3 comments

2011 — 10 Fresh Start Questions

I promised Parkway Church I would post these 10 questions. Here they are. I owe thanks to Perry Noble for originally writing them out. When it was time to create some great questions for my message it became clear that I didn’t need to be original, just effective. They are good questions to help us create a fresh start. As it is January 1st, 2011 it is a great time for a fresh start. As you answer these and read the scriptures, be transparent and real with yourself. When you write down the answer to each question…the real hard part is proactively being the solution. Go for it. If I can help in anyway, then let me know. I’ll try my best to help you! Happy New Year! 2011 will be what you make of it.

#1 – Am I reading my Bible for information or transformation? (James 1:22-25)

#2 – Am I allowing people or circumstances to steal the joy that Jesus promised to me? (John 10:10)

#3 – Is there anything in my life that God is consistently dealing with that I am trying to ignore? (Ezekiel 14:1-5)

#4 – Who are the people in my life that God has placed around me for the purpose of me sharing Christ with them and/or inviting them to church? (II Corinthians 5:16-21)

#5 – Is there anyone I need to apologize to? (Ephesians 4:25:27)

#6 – Is there anyone I need to forgive? (Ephesians 4:32)

#7 – Is there a sin I need to confess to others and ask for help? (James 5:16)

#8 – Am I fully utilizing the gifts and abilities that God has blessed me with…or am I simply choosing to waste my life? (I Peter 4:10)

#9 – Do I know more lines from the movies that I love than verse from the Bible that I read? (Psalm 119:11)

#10 – Is there anything going on in my life privately that, if it became public, would cause me and/or the body of Christ to be embarrassed? (I John 1:9, James 5:16)

Remember this…no matter what happens to you…2011 will be what you make of it!

Go for it! Don’t let another year go by without a positive change.

Trent

Dec 15, 2010    |       4 comments

There is no competition…

Have you ever been in the presence of something or someone and heard them say, “I have no competition!” The odds are you haven’t. Its got to be a rare thing to say or hear.
I heard it first hand this morning. I am tempted to not mention any names, but if someone says they have no competition then they have nothing to worry about…right?
So I’m at Starbucks this morning and I hear a Barista talking to a customer in front of me. The discussion was focused on why the customer was by himself and didn’t have his usual business partner with him for the daily morning ritual of satisfying the coffee monster that lives within so many of us. The customer replied that the new Dunkin Donuts had opened and the person was trying it out instead of Starbucks. I was intrigued to hear what the Barista had to say about that! The Barista replied, “Oh, that’s okay…Starbucks has no competition that can even come close to us and it will always be that way…he’ll be back soon.”

I have to admit, I love confidence. We must admit that Starbucks is amazing. They have earned the reputation of Champion status.

Just like…
Goliath.
The Roman Empire.
and
The Titanic.

Its not that the defeaters of the Champions are greater. David was so small.
Nothing compared to the size of the Roman Empire.
The iceberg was nothing the size of the ship.

So what brought the “champions” down?
What will bring Starbucks down?
What will bring you to your knees?

Of course I have my opinions….
But…
I would love yours
Please share…

Dec 4, 2010    |       6 comments

Hey Boss!

Even if you’re not self-employed, your boss is you. You manage your career, your day, your responses, your faith. You manage how you sell your services and your education and the way you talk to yourself, the way you pray.
How’s your boss doing?
If you had a manager that talked to you the way you talk to yourself…what would you do? If you had a boss that wasted your time like you might waste your own time…would that boss be fired. If an organization developed its employees as poorly as you might be developing yourself, would that Org. soon go under? If your church treated your faith like you treat your own faith…would that Church survive?
I’m amazed at how often people choose to fail when they find that right church that encourages one to set their own agenda and manage and spiritually grow themselves. Faced with the freedom to excel in their faith, they falter and hesitate and stall and ultimately punt.
Are you surprised when someone self-directed/self led arrives on the scene? Someone who figures out a way to work out their faith and then turns that into a life-long journey, Bible in hand, as they impact their neighborhood/work/and church. Most people are shocked that someone uses evenings and weekends and their vacation to do a mission trip, or start a useful new ministry that helps bring fortune to the less fortunate. Are you envious when you encounter someone who has managed to bootstrap themselves out of depression and nasty circumstances into hope, faith and happiness, as if that’s rare or even uncalled for.
There are few good books on being a good manager, a good boss, a good Christian. Fewer books still on managing yourself and your faith…there really is just the Bible…the Bible doesn’t need you to read more books from Rick Warren, Andy Stanley, Francis Chan, Billy Graham, Joel Osteen, Mark Driscoll…God…the list is endless. What the Bible wants? The Bible wants your Boss to get out of his/her spiritual bed, and be self led and self fed. Become whole, someone who figures out the solutions…drives with work ethic to complete-ness. The Bible wants your Boss to be the best boss you’ve ever had.
You are your own Boss.
What must your boss begin to do?

Nov 24, 2010    |      1 comment

Thanksgiving

102 “Pilgrims” awaited to hear from an exploring party that went ashore at Plymouth on December 21, 1620.

As they heard back that the land was as good they would find for now they unloaded the Mayflower and started to establish the land and live.

Of the 102 Mayflower passengers, only half remained alive within four months. Cold, sickness and disease claimed their lives. What a huge sacrifice. Was it worth it? You exist today and have the quality of life you live today because of their sacrifice! To see the names of the Mayflower Pilgrims and see if you carry their name, check out this web page www.pilgrimhall.org/mayfpass.htm

History says that about 90 Native American Indians and 53 Pilgrims enjoyed the fruits of Thanksgiving together. To see the list of names and check if your last name was one at that first Thanksgiving feast, check out this web page, www.pilgrimhall.org/1stthnks.htm

These men and women risked it all. They are the founders of our great United States of America. They were in pursuit of religious freedom and fleeing control and tyranny. I am so thankful for their adventurous spirits and sacrificial actions.

Today our American culture seems to be missing the sacrificial spirit. I think its still exists in the hearts of some but it has been buried by layers of self help, self glory and entitlement. Oh, you are entitled to freedom and pursuit of happiness, but do not forget that freedom is truly being free. If in pursuit of your own freedom you actually harm and enslave others then you are not free either. Freedom is sacrifice. Freedom is contentment. Freedom is hard work. Freedom is “complete-ness.” Freedom will cost you something. What must you give to be free?

This thanksgiving let us DRIP with Gratitude and Grace.
The echoes of our Pilgrims past are calling out to you and me to keep the freedom ringing. Their price was high and their souls are witnessing our actions, so let us shake off all the holds us back and enslaves us and continue the great drive of the Pilgrims. How will you start your Pilgrimage today?

Nov 23, 2010    |      Comments Off on Twenty One Days…

Twenty One Days…

The last 21 days are a blur of information and events that will take me the rest of the year to sort through and make clear. These days have led me to meet young couples who are risking everything they have to plant Churches that will some day be 100 year old churches. These days have led me to the most ancient of places on the face of the earth where civilizations have come and gone for 10 millenniums. Airplanes, Taxi Cabs, Hotels, Villages, community parks, ancient ruins. They all “said” one thing to me. WE ARE ALL THE SAME. Created Beings in pursuit of purpose and connection with our Creator. The same created beings with different inheritances, different colors, different sizes, different cultures, different beliefs all wanting the same thing. They, We…want Purpose and connection with the creator. Our Creator is Creative and this is evident in what I’ve seen in the last 21 days. Be creative. Be different. Be you. Others do not have to be like you. If we are all the same, the art wouldn’t be as beautiful. Celebrate our differences…Love our similarities and lets work together in unity in pursuit of our strongest desires of seeking purpose and enjoying the pursuit of our creator. “We” can do this together…better.
Trent

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