Counting on the Wrong Thing

Give us aid against the enemy, for human help is worthless.- Psalm 108:12 (NIV)

Let's put this in perspective.

If you have a legitimate problem, then you are in need of some real help.

What some folks have to offer just isn't real help.  It is worthless.

The plea within this psalm is for help or aid against an enemy or foe.  Actually, it is a plea for help from a specific enemy.  The psalm says the enemy.  Thus, the enemy must be known by both the victim and rescuer.

We realize in the midst of our own turmoil and struggles how useless some types of help amounts to when weighed against what we are going through at the time.  

TALK IS CHEAP

Talk is cheap when you need to spring into action.  Mere words offer little consolation when you are in the heat of a major conflict that needs immediate resolutions.

MONEY ISN'T ALWAYS THE ANSWER

Money can do a lot, but it doesn't solve everything.  In all honesty, some of the "true riches" that the Lord spoke of were the things that stood out in life despite how much money one had accumulated.

FRIENDS AND FAMILY CAN DO MORE HARM THAN HELP

If someone is going to stab you in your back, they have to get close to you.  The attack is in close proximity to you.  No one can get any closer to you than family, even some friends.  Beware that it often hurts our hearts more that it someone we cared for and loved than the actual damage caused by the gossip, innuendo  and smear campaigns.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in humans. - Psalm 118:8 (NIV)

Get your help from the right source.  Know that your real help comes from on high.  Tap into the Lord's powerful ability and availability.  Let Him know your troubles.  Give them over to Him in sincere, consecrated prayer.  Allow Him to empower you with the Spirit of God that embodies every believer.

Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.- Psalm 146:3 (NIV)

If you tell Him, trust Him.  If you trust Him, take every ounce of what He offers to you in faith and with joy, knowing that He gives us what we do not deserve (grace) and that He spares us of what we truly deserve (mercy).

You can count on Him.

Daily Deliverance

22Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

23They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness

Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV)

God offers His children new mercies morning by morning.

That should satisfy us.
New mercies "every morning" mean that we can experience God's love with a daily newness.  We do not have to do anything but accept His gracious love and mercy for us.

That should sustain us. 
We are "not consumed" because of what He offers us and does for us.  He makes it possible for us to remain here due to His faithfulness, love and compassion.

That should strengthen us.
His preserving us with new mercies daily should give us strength.  We should become strengthened due to what God has to offer.

Passion or Purpose

What's driving your pursuits?
Passion?
Purpose?
Which is it?

Passion is simply defined as "a powerful emotion." That is usually enough to get things started or to spark something spontaneous, but it may not be enough to keep things going.  You may need more than just the power of emotion driving you into action.  You very well need something beyond passion.

The definition of purpose is "the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists." Purpose gives a reason for actions.  Purpose does more than fuel and drive the person into action.  Purpose causes the person to continue to pursue his or her goals through the ups and downs of the various periods of life.

Perhaps, given the definition of purpose, that is why Rick Warren sold so many copies of The Purpose Driven Life.  With that in mind, perhaps it makes sense when we come across so many people who are trying to find their purpose in their lives. 

You do not discover your own purpose moving to Calcutta to be the next Mother Theresa.  That was her calling and purpose, not  necessarily yours.  Oddly enough, that makes a world of sense when you listen to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.  It was his dream, not each and every other person's dream.  It was his dream.  Too many people are chasing after other people's dreams and purposes, never looking at themselves and their own pathway.

Let your purpose drive you into pursuits that you can become passionate about in this life.  Let such a purpose force you to grab hold of a vision and not let loose until you have accomplished more than you ever imagined possible.

 

"Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible." ~St. Francis of Assisi

E is for Expressive

Every single entrepreneur should be expressive.  Each one has to share about his or her wares with others.  Otherwise, who will know that they are even in business?

Entrepreneurs do not have the luxury of living in a vacuum. The entrepreneur may not be a "people person," but he or she surely needs to develop a way to interact and engage people if he or she plans to stay in business long.  An entrepreneur's survival is dependent upon the ability to sell others on what he or she provides as a service or product.

Learning how to network will go a long way.  I don't mean selling to the point where people duck and dodge you at the local chamber of commerce gatherings every time that you come around.  Salespeople are too pushy in my opinion.  You want to learn how to schmooze with smoothness.  You want to make talking about your business flow naturally in every conversation.

I think back of the famous plays like Porgy and Bess and Fiddler on the Roof.  You learned about what those men did for a living in that fishing town as they sang It take a long pull to get there  in "Porgy and Bess."  The same with the matchmaker as the girls sang in hopes of the matchmaker making them a match and finding them a catch.  When I went to a baseball game last season, I heard the concession vendor calling out to fans and rattling off how he hot dogs and peanuts with a melodic-like tone.  That's what the entrepreneur must do.  The entrepreneur must speak up and express how the product or service will benefit others.  The entrepreneur has to express it with heart and feeling, seeking to win others over to believing it just as much as the entrepreneur does himself.

Promote the Positive

Look at how Norman Vincent Peale breaks down some common challenges for people.

Positive thinking is powerful.  It has both blessings and benefits.  The power of positivity can carry you through some unbelievable storms.  Don't think that bad things don't happen to good people.  We all encounter various challenges day by day.  the difference is made by how we handle those challenges.

Embrace a positive mindset.  Don't let negative thinking invade your mind.  Keep a positive outlook and expect positive outcomes.

Let the Lord and His Word work on you.  Let His Word sink in and enrich you.  Let it take root in your willing soul.

I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.- Philippians 4:13 (NASB)

Simple Start-Up Success

"Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. The act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth. "- Peter Drucker  

 
Too many entrepreneurs believe that they have to build the next big thing.  I always like the concept of piggybacking on the success of others.  You know, that ancient business approach of building a better mouse trap rather than simply trying to replace the mouse trap.

Why?

Let's attack the obvious first. The mouse trap you seek to innovate already has an existing audience.  You don't have to search high and low to find them.  You will need to do some market research in order to reach them with what you have for them.  You will need to identify their wants and needs, especially where what you offer falls on their list of priorities.

Your next move is about accessibility.  How do you get access to your audience? Do you purchase a mailing list or do you cold call everyone in the phone book? Do you need to place ads in areas frequented by those who meet the demographic profile of your audience? Is there a low-cost mechanism that will reach a broad audience? Could you tie in with a human interest story for your local newspaper reporter?

How do you make what you have to offer easily accessible to them? Can they order online and off line? Do you have other sites where your products are available? Are you the sole proprietor and the sole soul serving in every capacity of the business? [Uh-Oh, I think I hit a sore spot.]

Make a list and see where you stand.  You may discover that you are on the right track.  Or, you may find yourself way off course and in need of some immediate changes before you find yourself facing serious issues.  In either case, be sure to take the real answers into consideration and do not get into making assumptions regarding your target audience.  Read Inc and Entrepreneur, even Harvard Business Review.  Be sure to check your competition.  Get ideas from those who have a greater amount of the market within their grasp.  You are not seeking a mother lode.  You just want to get a piece of the action.
I guess that I could put in simple terms by saying that I like Inc's "How to Run a One-Person Business." In addition, their site offers some other valuable resources as well.  Essentially, I believe that such sites offer budding entrepreneurs insights and ideas on how to start and sustain their own business whether they are traditional brick and mortar shops or if they are mobilized and globalized ventures.  Check out the landscape before you go setting up shop.  Do your homework and ensure that you are making the right moves in the right direction.

Children of Darkness or Light

And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light.- Luke 16:8 (NLT)

 
I think about the recent terror scare regarding explosives discovered in packages destined for Jewish houses of worship.  It's sent the world into a new frenzy of terror.  It has TSA and FedEx into a scurry about security along with everyone else from DHL and UPS as well as USPS.
 
Imagine if they weren't Islamic terrorists.  What it they were evangelical extremists? I am talking about some Bible-thumping, gay-bashing, King James-only, moral flag wavers.  What if that was the case?
 
How quiet is it kept that hate crimes can be committed in the name of Christ just like Allah? How much of an uproar is stirred up when Christians blow up abortion clinics or attack others for their "sins?"  Paul said that we are all like "filthy rags."
 
Where is the love?
 
The hate is evident.  It is surely visible.
 
Where is the love?
 
The fruit of the Spirit should be pouring out from us.
 
Think about it and be real honest with yourself.
 
What if the tables were turned?
 
Evangelical extremists? Could there be such a thing?
 
This year Halloween falls on a Sunday.  Don't allow your congregation to fall prey to the subtle idolatry that may slip as "for the kids' sake" or "just having some good, clean fun."

Take on the Task

Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob--appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.- Exodus 3:16 (NIV)



Moses was to gather the people to garner the buy-in.  The burning bush encounter wouldn't be enough to convince the children of Israel that God had spoken through the former prince of Egypt who now returned as a self-proclaimed prophet of God for their deliverance.  God told Moses what He planned to do.  God told Moses how He planned to use him.  It still did not register as enough for Moses.  He even offered Moses the evidence of signs if the people would not hear his voice. 

God offered Moses His divine guidance and support.  God offered Moses signs before his very own eyes.  God gave Moses everything he needed.  How did Moses respond?

But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.”- Ex. 4:16 (ESV)

God answered all of Moses' excuses, even his request for someone else to take on the task.  God asks about Aaron the Levite, the brother of Moses.  He tells Moses that He will use Aaron along with Moses to speak to the people and reveal what God's plan for them to them.  They would even work together with the elders to take their request before the king of Egypt. 

Moses got more than he asked for with this task.  God did not relieve him of the responsibility of the task.  He offered him relief for his fear and reassurance through Aaron his brother being his mouthpiece.  The task was still in the hands of Moses.  He was still to take on the task to lead God's people to deliverance.

28 And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord with which he had sent him to speak, and all the signs that he had commanded him to do. 29 Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the people of Israel.- Ex. 4: 28-29 (ESV)

On Protestants and Denominations

...And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians- Acts 11:26 ESV

As Protestants, we came out of the Church.  The Church, at the time when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses upon the door's of the house of God, was the Roman Catholic Church.  Maybe its the linguist in me, but it seems that protestants have the root word of "protest" in the name. 

Is it any wonder that those who broke away from the Church also had others break away from them? Anabaptists, the forefathers of our modern Baptist denomination, argued against infant baptist still practiced by Lutherans and their leader in the Reformation's early days.  Yet, the Church of God In Christ and the Church of God were both birthed by Baptist preachers who felt a different leading by the Holy Spirit.  Imagine that! Did John Calvin actually come up with the TULIP of "five point Calvinism?"

Are Wesleyans more Methodist than Methodists since they bear the name of the founder of the Methodists?

Read The Trail of Blood and discover how many other Christians were martyred and murdered for their faith, whether at the hands of governments and monarchs or the holy hands of archbishops, papacy and other so-called reformers.  Look at the sacrifices of those who have stood up and spoken out for their faith as "Jesus Freaks." 

I truly believe that we will learn that our real challenge isn't simply learning to love our neighbors and serve the Lord with gladness as we work out our salvation with fearand trembling.  I believe our greatest errors come out of how we process the Word and what we seem to create based upon our individual interpretations and ideas.  I pray that we don't get into a new heaven and new earth, seeking out the section for our particular denominational preference. I believe what we should discover is that there is one Lord, one baptism, one God, and truly one faith.  Truly, the rest is division.

4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. - Ephesians 4:4-6 (ESV)

That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.- 1 Corinthians 12:25 (KJV)