Archive of April 2008.
April 27, 2008
”Do not eat the food of a stingy man, do not crave his delicacies; for he is the kind of man who is always thinking about the cost. “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is not with you.” Proverbs 23:7
Another translation says, ”As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”
I read the other day that the brain and the heart share a direct connection and that the heart has membrane that “thinks.” The Bible certainly points out that the heart is the seat of man, or the control tower so to speak.
I have been around some very wealthy people throughout my life, and I’ve noticed a distinctive difference. A person can be wealthy but their riches do not control their emotions. Others can have riches but are never in control of themselves. They worry and calculate constantly. They can’t enjoy their wealth because they are always budgeting and calculating the costs. They spend a dollar chasing a dime.
One time, Kay and I were invited to have dinner at a wealthy person’s home. When we arrived, although we were invited, it felt like we were intruding. We never felt comfortable. I couldn’t put my finger on it for a long time, then I realized that he was constantly calculating, adding things up in his head. He was so distracted by the costs that he could not enjoy relationship. Although this man had achieved great wealth and success, he could not enjoy it, for the fear of spending it.
During the meal, I noticed that I lost my appetite. I was not hungry for his food. I didn’t want anything that he had. Even now when I think of him, my first thought is not how wealthy he is but how poor his life is.
The word stingy actually means evil, disagreeable, miserable, or malignant.
A stingy person literally has a malignancy in their mind. It distorts their thinking. They cannot see things as reality. Although they have wealth yet they are poor in their mind.
”Create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10
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April 25, 2008
I just finished two days at Trinity Fellowship in Sharpsburg, Georgia. We had a very productive time. I mentored the board, spoke to the church, taught the staff, then conducted a “brain-storming” meeting with the creative team.
The creative process is an amazing exercise. When I was the Executive Pastor at Church on the Move, I learned how valuable it is when leaders begin to “plow” through creativity. It was there that I learned the dynamic work of the Holy Spirit to impart His wisdom in our plans. Proverbs says, ”The ways of a man are deep waters, understanding draws it out.” It takes work to draw out of the deep cisterns of man.
”Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” (Proverbs 15:22)
The reason that most leaders will not use this amazing process is simply because it can be a difficult process if you don’t know how to make it happen.
We ended the afternoon with some very creative thoughts for their local fellowship that will increase their attendance by 20% by the end of the year.
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April 21, 2008
People are starting to feel the pressure of the economy. It can be argued that the pressure is a result of true market indicators or can simply be the result of the media embellishing economic factors. Either way, the result is the same. So, how do we respond. The natural reaction is to horde, coast, or withdraw.
The Bible teaches another principle that we should master, the principle of planting under pressure.
”The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you….Isaac planted crops in the land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.” (Genesis 26)
The Lord’s instruction was the opposite of man’s reaction to a pressured economy. While the economy caused everyone else to flee, the same economy caused Isaac to become extremely wealthy.
Proverbs teaches the principle, ”All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.” (Proverbs 14:23)
The keys to prosper during a bad economy are:
1. Listen to God’s instruction rather than people’s fears.
2. Work the system of sowing and reaping.
3. A crisis is a time to increase!
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April 19, 2008
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. Acts 17:26
Yesterday, Kay, Courtney, and I were driving in Orlando when we saw a sticker on the back of a car. The sticker was a “Celebrate” logo of our second church plant. We recalled the day and the place where I decided on that name. I remember Tom Yandell of Peppermedia designing the perfect logo that coordinated with the Disney theme.
Then our conversation went on to how life “moves” you. How decisions correspond with destiny. How our lives impacted the people in that car - people we have never met before. How the steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord (Proverbs 20:24).
Where are you now? Are you in “step” with God’s plan for your life? Can you recall the decisions that brought you to this place?
Things to remember:
1. Your world is only as big as the trails that you are willing to travel.
2. Place is important - positioning determines the flow of favor in your life.
3. A place can enlarge you.
4. A place is an assignment to people. Elijah bypassed widows to go to a place where a widow was open to receive prophesy. Jesus recognized this fact.
5. You cannot be fully engaged in your present place while you constantly recall where you have been.
6. You will not go further than your willingness to leave a place. Terah, Abraham’s father, was unwilling to leave Haran to experienced the Promised Land. God had to call out to his son, “Leave your father, go to the place that I will show you.”
7. Nostalgia is an obsession for an unattainable past.
8. God has a prepared new place for you.
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April 16, 2008
Due to political and social unrest in Haiti (and the fact that they only have rodents to eat right now), my trip has been postponed. We will go in a few weeks or months.
Since I was going to be working during my daughters spring-break, I booked a vacation at Disney for my wife, Kay and youngest daughter, Courtney. For those who know my wife, know that she is addicted to Disney. It is a thrill for me to see her and Courtney enjoying themselves so much. Of course, it’s not hard for me. I have been playing golf for three days.
Disney’s culture is amazing. I learned a lot about it while I lived here and planted Celebrate Family Church in Celebration. It is remarkable how two opposing influences clash, on the one hand, you have the extreme liberal lifestyles, on the other hand, you have a Christian culture at Disney. Both of the influences are slightly stealth, just under the surface. This campus is a microcosm of the world itself. Every diversity on earth co-mingles here. I said five years ago that living and working here was like seeing a forecast of what we will be facing nationally in just a few years. We are now seeing it. Business as usual is no longer relevant.
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