WOW!,  Its been a while.

 

Life's been a little crazy the last few months.  A lot has been crammed into a short period of time and I have slacked on my weekly emails.  Many thanks to a whole heap of individuals that have reached out to let me know they actually miss reading them each week.  Now that life has settled back down a bit, we can get back to some sort of routine.

 

My oldest son's birthday is today.  He is now 10!  Where has the last decade gone???  You may remember an email or two that I shared my feelings/life experiences related to being caught up in the rat race of life and missing all that LIFE truly is.  Well..........this is one of those days that reminds me yet again how important it is to embrace each and every day as if it were your last.  EVERY day should start with the question of what priorities matter in the grand scheme of things.  I just read a wonderful book recently titled: Letters from Dad.  Rather than giving you the cliff note version of the book, I will suggest you read it for yourselves.  It is about leaving a legacy for your kids.  If you were to take the dirt nap today,  how would they remember you?  How would anyone remember you?  What impact are you making each day that TRULY impacts?

 

The last decade has been a blur.  In the last couple of years I have been trying to balance life to make the things that matter, actually matter.  I realize at an early age how many people throw their entire lives away chasing the world.  I have thrown away sooooo many years doing the same, and don't want to make the same mistakes in the future.  Be very careful!  The world, stuff,  selfishness, and comparisons to what the Jones' are up to can sneak in on your lawn like a ninja master.  You wake up with darts in your neck and wander what the heck happened.  Somewhere in the last several months, I've lost sight of that and have been sucked into the challenges and curve balls that life throws at you.  Too many of us have WAY too much on our plates.  We are overworked, overstressed, and simply overloaded.  We fight to knock out the "to do" list, make the next dollar, provide "stuff" for kids that their friends have, attend this practice, that meeting, and say "yes" to far too many task that mean nothing in the scheme of things.  Our time is gone, our health is gone, our patience is gone, our government is gone.... (oh wait, I won't go there in this email, but its true.  Revelation is playing out as we go about our simple little clueless lives.)

 

There is little doubt in my mind that we need to get back to SIMPLE.  We need to embrace our God, our families, our relationships, and our time.  It is precious and you won't get a second of it back.  When its gone, its GONE.  Time to do some pruning.  Cut the branches of your life that aren't producing and care for the ones that will bring sweet fruit that matters.

 

 

Hi all!,

 

Sometimes in life, we don't realize the impact we have on others.  We fail to see through the eyes that watch us, hear through the ears that listen when we don't know anyone is listening, and potentially throw away golden opportunities to be the impact that can forever change someone's life.  Missing those opportunities can also change our own outcomes.  I understand this more and more as I get older.  I was flipping through one of my mom's high school yearbooks yesterday.  I took a good hard look at the faces that had their whole lives in front of them.  I knew a few of the outcomes of their lives based on life choices, but I couldn't help but be curious about the rest.  How many became all they were meant to be?  How many were not still with us?  I instantly craved for the lessons they would all share with current high school seniors.  How many would listen?........... One of the things I've discovered is how HARD and unfair life is.  The unfortunate truth for so many is that we are our own worst enemies and have a tendency to make life MUCH harder than it should be.  As long as I've preached the "simple" life, its much harder to pull off in practice.  We live in an imperfect world with other imperfect people and circumstances completely out of our control.  Life around us gets more complex every single day and the idea of what is "normal" gets totally out of whack.  Other people's influence, the news, garbage on TV, and our own selfish desires can certainly cloud how life was meant to be lived and what we were created for.  One of the best pieces of advice that I wish I could remember is to BE the influence on others rather than to succumbing to others' view of what normal is.  Life CAN be a wonderful journey and great adventure if we could only remember that we have the power to make it so and stay out of the traps of "normal" society. 

 

I, for one, declared that I would only surround myself with positive people, read positive/uplifting/motivating books, watch movies that inspire, and cut off every negative thought before it comes out of my mouth.  I will replace that with a positive one.  I'm going to STOP listening to political talk radio.  haha.....Its making me feel there is no hope in this country and we are far too gone to recover by the time our grand kids are old.  I'm going to focus on each second and make that second the best that it could possibly be.  Maybe if we focus on each second, we will stop worrying about the next and enjoy the moment we are in.  If I can't perfect the new practice, I am at least committed to try.  Be an encourager today.  Be a difference today.  Start living life as if you only had one shot, one body, and one chance to change the world around you for the better.