The late Christian author Doris Betts was known for her short stories and essays. In one of those stories she tells about driving down the highway in North Carolina and seeing a highway patrolman beside the road. That's not an unusal sight. What he was doing was quite unusual (maybe not for North Carolina!). As Betts got closer to the police officer, she noticed that a truck hauling chickens had veered off the road, the crash causing the back of the truck to come apart. The chickens were running free -- or for their life, whichever way you want to look at it. The driver of the truck was frantically trying to gather the chickens. Some people who had observed the crash were actually trying to steal the chickens. Chicken parts were everywhere. The scene was a mix of horror and humor, and the lone patrolman was trying to bring…
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For some folks, it is hard to prioritize their goals because they feel like all their goals are equally important. Failing to prioritize their goals is one reason why many people fail to achieve their goals – the lack of priorities actually paralyzes you. A seminar leader wanted to make illustrate the power of priorities, so he took a wide-mouth jar and filled it with rocks. “Is the jar full?” he asked. “Yes,” came a reply. “Oh, really?” he said. Then he poured smaller pebbles into the jar to fill the spaces between the rocks. “Is it full now?” “Yes,” said someone else. “Oh, really?” He then filled the remaining spaces between the rocks and stones with sand. “Is it full now?” he asked. “Probably not,” said another, to the amusement of the audience. Then he took a pitcher of water and poured it into the jar. To get everything…
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Success is never accidental. In other words, it won’t just drop in your lap. Having goals in life will give you the purpose and drive to accomplish something truly valuable. Having a goal keeps you on target. As author Bill Copeland says, “Without a goal, you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.” Or, even worse, you’ll hit the wrong target. Matt Emmons won the Olympic gold medal in rifle shooting in 2004. Four years later, he was set to win another gold medal in Athens, Greece. He had a commanding lead going into his final shot. But something went wrong — he hit the target, but he was aiming at the wrong one! That one misplaced shot dropped him from first to fourth place and cost him a medal. In order to achieve your goals, it’s important to write them down so you…
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Although Yogi Berra was a catcher for the New York Yankees for 19 years – 15 of those as an All Star – most people don’t remember Yogi Berra for what he did on the baseball diamond but for what he said off the diamond. Here are just a few examples: “Always go to other people's funerals, otherwise they won't come to yours.” I have to admit – it’s hard to argue with that! When talking about a friend who could use both hands equally well, he said: ““I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous.” He once explained his opposition to encyclopedias this way: “I'm not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.” But when it comes to achieving the life you’ve always wanted and desired, he was spot on: “If you don't know where you are going, you'll end up…
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This past weekend I had the opportunity to guest preach at the Littleton Church of Christ. The Littleton Church is a wonderful group of people who meet only about 10-15 away from Mountainview, the church I'm privileged to serve as senior pastor. Our two churches are both a part of what is known as the American Restoration Movement (Christian Church, Church of Christ, and Disciples of Christ). For several years, the Littleton Church was led by Collin Packer, the son of one of my first friends in ministry - Barry Packer. When I was a very young minister (21!) serving my first church in San Diego, Barry become one of my best ministry friends. I'm still very thankful for the lunches we shared at Fuddruckers in Grossmont Center. Over the last few years, I enjoyed meeting with Collin and hopefully provided him with the same encouragement his dad provided me. My wife…
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