"Unguarded Moments"

At any given time any one of us can experience an "unguarded moment". These are the times when doubt about who we can become is overshadowed by who we are today. For some reason on those days our mistakes, mess ups, downfalls, and worries seem to be magnified. We just can not seem to get anything to go our way, am I right or has this only happened to me?

In these "unguarded moments" we tend not to stand on the promise in which God has given and planned for us (For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11). We tend to not view ourselves as the mighty warriors God has declared us to be. We MUST understand this very important fact that we as Christians are certainly not exempt from those times (unguarded moments) when life's pressure brings out our rawest form of emotion but in saying that we must not use that as an excuse to throw our destiny away and certainly not let it ruin your testimony!!!

FLEAS

There was an interesting study done at a college where students put some fleas into a jar and sealed it with a lid. After several days of the fleas hitting themselves on the lid from trying to jump out of the jar the students notice something. The fleas began to jump only to a certain height, right under the lid. The students then removed the lid but here is the crazy part, the fleas would not jump past the point right underneath the where the lid use to be.

Wheather it was due to fear or the fact that the fleas had conformed to their surrondings, they lost their desire to escape from the jar. They got their eyes of the prize.

Now here's where we come into the picture. We can't allow the surroundings of this world to affect or distract or even discourage us from reaching our inmost desires. Our surrondings can include the high rising gas and food prices which i'm sure you all are aware of the amount of stress those two things can easily bring. We may not reach our dreams on the first couple of tries just as the fleas didn't escape the jar immediately but if you (we) can persevere past the lids that hold us back and not conform to what this world has to offer, there is no telling how far we can go!

Success By Associaton

I call it "Success By Associaton" and it has to do with the company you surround yourself with. If we are known by the company we keep then the company we keep ought to encourage, inspire and invigorate us to greatness, always pushing us to be at our best. So now that you have read this, here is the question: Are you being strengthened by your company?

Try to really take an inventory of your close friends (a person you know well and regard with affection and trust) and then those who you would just call acquaintances (a person acquired by a relationship less intimate than friendship). And now ask yourself if those who you hold close are fulfilling their role in your life. They have, what you could almost call a job or requirement to help build you in the process of becoming who you need to be. Close friends have a higher level of standards they should live up to compared to someone who is just an acquaintance yet they both have major significance in the role they play in your life.

I've stressed many times the importances of pouring into lives but in the very same way, others should be pouring into you, especially if you consider them to be a close friend. In a small way I hope that I've been able to pour into your life, even challenge you to be better, wheather you consider me to be a close friend or just an acquaintance.

--PREVIEWS--

Have you ever seen great previews to a movie, then when the movie
came out, it turned out it was really lame?

Lets use that as an example in life, check this out. Those great
previews are much like the temptation this world offers us. The
world only wants you to see the glamorous part, the fun part. But
just like the lame movie that follows, you won't see the real stuff until you've had to pay for it. By then it's too late.

At least the movie will finish in an hour or two, but the pain and
heartache after paying for the temptation from this world could
easily end up in years of bondage.

--MATURITY--

A true sign of maturity is being others-centered rather then just being self-centered. Here is a good example; you begin to see growth when your prayer time becomes more about others instead of always about me,me,me.

We make a living by what we get but we make lives by what we give!!! It might be more important to enrich others rather then to just be rich.

HIGH WIRE

Ever seen a high wire act? You know, where there is a person walking on a thin wire suspened high in the air and the only thing between them and the ground is a safety net. Sometimes they even do it without the net, how crazy is that?

Well I got to thinking about how that reflects life in a way. I mean just think about it for a moment. The walk on the thin wire can represent our walk in life cause you know as well as I do, life can feel just like that at times. It's a complete blancing act, with family, work, school, friends and the list can go on and on.

But here is where it gets real interesting, the safety net can easily represent God. When life becomes so overwhelming to where we can no longer balance and we fall off the wire, God is there to catch us before we hit the ground. The sad part about this whole thing is that so many are walking on the wire of life without a safety net, without GOD.

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Success / Failure

What's your view on success or failure? I feel most would say they are afraid to fail but if you got to thinkin about it, probably just as many would say they are afraid of success just as much. The reason behind that is, it's a lot harder to succeed rather then it is to fail. It takes just a little more of you if you wanna make it over the hump. What it boils down to is success is measured by the amount love you pour into others and failure is merely a second chance to get it right. So don't fear success or failure, both will fine tune you into what you need to become.

--Hijacked--

Our minds have so much control on how our day will unfold. It is a must that we not let our minds be hijacked by the negativity this world continues to throw at us. Pick attitude over circumstance!

PIE ANYONE?

A lot of things in this world taste great but one thing that's really hard to swallow is humble pie. You may not like it but if you can acquire a taste for it, life begins to have so much more purpose!

--Team Work--

Life is about opportunities! Have you ever heard of the saying "Where there's A will there's A way"? Well I bet you are wondering why I capitalized the letter a, here is why.

Having a will or purpose to do something is great, don't get me wrong, but if it's just you by yourself driving this will or purpose then you put a limit to the doors or opportunties you could have.

If you can achieve your dream by yourself then i'm sorry to say but the dream wasn't big enough. Nobody in history ever achieved something great on thier own. Even Christ had His twelve decipiles and us to carry out His mission.

The importance of a good team (family,friends and other contacts) will equal this saying "Where there's a team there's more then just one way".

Greatness?

If you had the chance to be great, if only for one moment, would you take it? Or would the fear of the unknown be to strong to overcome? I've learned that greatness is achieved by just ordinary people doing extra ordinary things...and of course a little help from the Man upstairs never hurt either,lol.

GRACE and LOVE

GRACE and LOVE: While we know Paul (from the Bible) was the greatest evangelist in history, he knew that, left to himself, he was the worst sinner. God chose him because of his weakness, so that the Lord could display His patience and greace in him. It's a great thing to know that we need not be perfect for God to love us or even use us.

Paul, who was mightly used by God, considered himself the cheif or the worst of sinners. I know without a doubt in my mind that many have felt that same way at least one point in our life time. We beat ourselves up so much when we fail but it's seems like that is when God displays His love the most. And through that love, we can and should love others for the wrongs done to us.

1Timothy 1:15,16; Jesus came into the world to save sinners-of whom i'm the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Jesus might display His unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on Him and receive eternal life.

--Let Go and Let God--

The story about Jonah and the whale is a perfect example of releasing and cutting people out of your life. In the story a huge storm came and the men on the ship knew that is was cause Jonah was aboard the boat. Now the men didn't want to throw him over but they knew it was a must to calm the storm. The thing was, it was also a must for Jonah cause little did he know that God had a plan for him already. See God had a whale ready to swallow him cause it was the only way he would listen.

The point I'm trying to make is that there will be people in your life that you MUST cut out not only for your sake but for theirs also. You must trust that God will take care of them beyond you. Trust that He has a plan ready for them just like He does for you. So many times it's not people holding us back but it's us not letting go. Sometimes letting go is the only way for you AND others to move foward!!!

--The Real Thing--

An officer who worked at the U.S. Treasurey was asked how he detected a counterfiet dollar bill from the real ones. His answer was quite simple. He said that they are trained so many hours a day handling the real thing, so when it comes to a fake dollar bill, it's quite easy to detect.

The same goes with the voice of God, many times we can't decern if its His voice speaking to us or not. I hear it so often asked, How do you know what Gods voice sounds like? The only way I can explain it to you is the same way they detect a counterfiet dollar bill. The one way you can decern Gods voice from a fake is to spend time with Him. We must get a "feel for the real". The more time you spend in prayer, the more you begin to hear what He says and how He says it.

God speaks to each of us in different ways but just like a close friend or brother, when they speak, you just know it. The same goes with God, when He speaks, you'll just know it! Build that relationship with Him, it's vital!!!

--Opportunities--

When we pray and ask God for something and don't get it in the way we want, we tend to be shocked. We also tend to think that God's not listening to us or being mean. But this is what i've learned, when we pray for wisdom, God doesn't just give us the wisdom but opportunities to be wise. When we ask for courage, He'll give us opportunities to be courageous.

God wants you to put what He's given you into practice. What good is it if we store away all our gifts and potential? Some of us just need that little push that God is so willing to give us and many times we don't even realize it.

So question; What Are You Doing With Your Opportunities???

--Luv--

Many times we take for granted the ones that love us the most because we're so worried about the ones that love us the least. Why is that? Maybe it's because we feel that we have that automatic love coming from those who love us and we try to work so hard to be loved by those who could just care less. But isn't it also funny how the ones that we love the most, drive us the craziest, yet we can't live without them. We must realize that the love we receive from those closest to us is so very special and even in our times when we mess up,it's those people that give the greatest love of all...UNCONDITIONAL LOVE!!!

I'll put it to you like this. You have those who love you "part-time" and those who love you "full-time". It's the full-timers that will get you through those tough times in life, those are the memory creators in your life. So the question I pose to you is; Are you a "part-timer" or a "full-timer" when it comes to showing love to others?

--Change In Pocket--

As a leader, you will be asked to make some choices. They may be big, they may be small. Some of these choices may have small return, some may have a huge return. The choices you make will also have consequences, whether it be a positive or negative consequence.

The question I want to ask you is, do you have enough change in your pocket? Let me explain, as you make smart and wise choices, you begin to develop change in your pockect. This change represents trust from those who you lead. Even if the choices are small, if they're wise, smart and positive choices, you will gain the change into your pocket. The more change, the more trust.

Also, the more change, the more slack you get when you make a poor choice. So you want to develop as much change as you can. Here's an example; if you're constantly making good choices and developing that change, the moment you make a poor choice, you will have enough change in your pocket to cover the damage. But if you don't have enough change and are constantly making poor, negative choice, you will lose all trust and respect from those around you.

Seconds Anyone?

Most, not realizing it, settle for the first thing they find in life. But "second best" doesn't always come second in life. Aren't some of the better things in life worth waiting for? Be patient and wait for God's very best.

Whether you realize it or not, God has a plan for your life, a direction in which He is leading you. Discovering God's purpose for your life requires a willingness to be open. His plan is unfolding daily but like any great teacher, He may have quite a few lessons to teach you along the way.

LIFE IS BEST LIVED ON AND WITH A PURPOSE!!!

--Failures--

Failure is one of lifes most powerful teachers,how we handle our failures determines whether we're going to simply "get by" or "press on" in life.

One way to look at failures is to view them as Life Lessons. All failure means is that you're trying in life. Most are to afraid to even try.

See I'd rather have 100 failures under my belt and have reached 100% of my potential then 10 failures and only to have reached 10% of my potential.

The most wealthiest place on earth is a graveyard,so many dreams never dreamed,so many books that were never written,so much potential that was never reached because of fear or lack of effort.

Look failure is inevitable,no matter how skilled you might be,no one ever made it to the top without a few bumps in the road so just be ready. BE BLESSED!!!

--Vision Set--

so many time we can never move foward in life because of poor decisions we have made in the past. for some reason those choices can't let us go,or better yet we won't let go of those choices.

in the book of philippians 3:13,14 it says...forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. i press on toward the goal to win the prize which God has called me...

see God has promised you greatness,promised you life and not death,blessings not cursings. but we can't get pass our past.

here's an example:when you get into a car, you have a windshield in front of you. it's big and let's you see where you want to go or anything that might be in your way to harm you. but you also have a much small rear view mirror that shows you everything in the back that you have already passed. the reason why the rear view mirror is smaller then the windshield is because whats in the back is not near as important as whats ahead.

same goes for your future and your past, all that you've done in the past can not compare to what God has prepard for your future. so where is your vision set,on the windshield in front or the rear view mirror towards the back?

we are products of our past but we don't have to be prisoners of it. no matter how bad or stupid our choices have been, God specializes in giving us fresh starts.