Happy Anniversary…to me...

Today is one year since I started blogging…

I’m amazed that I’ve kept this up, and amazed at how much I’ve enjoyed writing, and posted many different thoughts.

I’m also thankful to you that have read and commented over the year and the encouragement that many of you have given to me.

I’m now at a crossroads...you know, the point at which you decide which direction is the right direction and what’s the best use of your time, energy and influence. 

Should I keep blogging?

Should I say toodaloo?

What is the direction to go?

Am I actually helping people?

Is my blog influencing others?

Do I focus on another form of expression or help?

Does quitting make me a failure?

Is blogging a lifelong commitment?

What’s cool about this, is that we all have choices in life and we all come to crossroads.

Maybe about a job?

Maybe about ministry?

Maybe about a friend?

Who knows what crossroad you are dealing with right now, but I know we all come to them.

My simple thoughts are all to do with the concept of failure.

Make your choice. If it’s wrong, learn from it and make another choice. If that one’s wrong, make a new choice. Just keep doing something...doing nothing is a failure that can never help anyone else...

Thoughtful Thursday...#10re

"Instead of focusing on the things that cause you to complain, focus on the people that you can help!"

I came up with this thought this week, afer I heard a lot  of complaining from several different people, and I was reminded how people are hurting around us and need help. 

Don't complain - just help...

Milestones…

I love milestones.

Some people don’t like them, but I think they’re cool.

Milestones are targets that you've hit.

Who doesn’t want to hit a target that they put in front of them?

They create memories

We all love to remember the time when…

We enjoy recounting what it took to get where we are.

They are completed goals

Setting a goal is one thing, reaching it is another, altogether!

When you reach the summit, it’s an amazing feeling.

They give us new lines to cross

You got to this milestone, now what?

Set a new goal…

Lessons Learned: Milestones are a positive.

Thoughts: What milestone have you reached?

#failalot

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Tuesday Tourist...#10

Hope you enjoy this post about setting good family goals...

Jon Acuff

3-D…

I saw this poster the other day, and it made me think…

Joy class...

This is a great name for a Sunday school class...

I hope your Sunday is full of joy and that you don't have to go to class to learn how to be joyful. Let the Lord give you the joy you need today!

Smile...

Friday...

Friday…

Think about these words this Friday…

Family…

Relax…

Inspire…

Deliver...

Attitude...

Yeah!!!

Thoughtful Thursday...#9

Quote of the day...

"Many marriages would be better if the husband and the wife clearly understood that they are on the same side." Zig Ziglar

Intimidation and Inspiration…

I once had a boss that couldn't lead.

He would try, but he just wasn’t cut out for it.

No one respected him.

He would try harder, but he would fail worse, not better.

He decided to lead by intimidation…

Tourist Tuesday...#9

Enjoy and have excellence...

Improve... 

Mondays…

M - Make it a great day! Don’t go in with a bad attitude - choose to make the day great.

O - Overachiever! Go beyond what your boss expects. Cause excellence in your office.

N - Never give up! Even if the day is tough, keep going. You can make it through a hard Monday.

D - Desire! Have the desire to do something different. Set an attainable goal to meet today.

A - Altitude! If your attitude is good, you may just increase your altitude. People notice good attitudes.

Y - Yell! If the day goes poorly, just get in your car and yell on the way home - not at your coworkers.

Lessons Learned: You can choose to make Mondays great.

Thoughts: What ways are you making Mondays great?

#failalot

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Sunday verse...

Today I'm just sharing a verse...

One of my favorites...

"This is the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes." Psalm 118:23

So many times, we have excitement and happiness, when we see God answer a prayer, or we have some good go on in our lives, but that's not the only time to marvel at God's greatness and what He is doing.

We have bad times and bad things occur during our lives, and we need to marvel at who God is during those times too. 

He is the one who provides...

Strength

Wisdom

Grace

Encouragement

...and everything else we need during a tough time.

Don't forget to marvel at what God does for you during a trial.

Saturday funny...

Hope you enjoy the humor today...

A blonde, wanting to earn some money, decided to hire herself out as a handyman-type and started canvassing a wealthy neighborhood. She went to the front door of the first house and asked the owner if he had any jobs for her to do.

"Well, you can paint my porch. How much will you charge?"
The blonde said, "How about 50 dollars?" The man agreed and told her that the paint and ladders that she might need were in the garage. The man's wife, inside the house, heard the conversation and said to her husband, "Does she realize that the porch goes all the way around the house?"
The man replied, "She should. She was standing on the porch."

A short time later, the blonde came to the door to collect her money.
"You're finished already?" he asked. "Yes," the blonde answered, "and I had paint left over, so I gave it two coats. "Impressed, the man reached in his pocket for the $50. "And by the way," the blonde added, "that's not a Porch, it's a Ferrari."

Failure Friday...

Why do I have this picture? Why did I take this picture?

Time to understand that the week is done and any failures that occurred are no longer an issue.

I know that you may be dealing with consequences of a failure, but the failure is over.

Pick up the pieces and move forward...

Seek forgiveness for the wrong done...

Work harder to make the failure a life improvement...

Take the failure and help others learn...

Look at the important lessons that you need to learn today, from the failure...

Fail again...

Fail better...

Thoughtful Thursday...#8

Here's the thought for today...

Oliver Goldsmith, Irish born poet and essayist, wrote, “life is a journey that must be traveled no matter how bad the roads and accommodations.”

So are you going to keep traveling?

Or are you going to give up?

I'm tired...

Have you ever just felt tired and thought you needed a break?

Have you ever felt that the day wouldn't end?

Have you ever felt like hitting the snooze button...for the 11th time?

Have you ever felt that you couldn't keep going at the pace you are?

Have you ever given up on what you were doing?

Well, today is hump day - the middle of the week - the time when you know you can make it to the weekend. Don't give up now - keep going and keep giving your best. 

You will make it! 

Really, you will make it!

Think of all those that are counting on you...

Your family...

Your Boss...

Your schoolmates...

Your coworkers...

Your friends...

Your church family...

Lessons Learned: If you give up, you may impact someone the wrong way.

Thoughts: Have you ever felt this way?

Tourist Tuesday...#8

Enjoy...

Encourage...

Strangely together…

I saw this at my office.

I couldn't make sense of the mix, but somebody ate this for lunch that day.

To me it seemed strange…

Honestly, it didn’t matter what I thought. Someone likely enjoyed this lunch and obviously didn’t ask me or care about what I thought. I wouldn't necessarily enjoy it, but I wasn’t the one eating it.

It made me think about the strange things that come together in life.

We’ve all seen that couple that didn’t match, yet had great joy together.

We’ve seen partnerships with the entrepreneur and the accountant, that had success.

We’ve seen the crazy friends that seem to get along, even though their personalities are completely different.

It reminds me that we are not the same.  

We are different and differences are good. We get the opportunity to grow, and change, and learn, all because we’re different. 

I work on a team, and none of us are the same. We all have strengths and weaknesses, but we make a great team, because some do things that others cannot and visa versa. If we were all the same, we wouldn't be able to get anything done. We would sit with the same strengths and the same weaknesses, frustrated about our tasks.

It’s so important to admire the differences in life, even if you don’t like them, because those differences are often a help to you, when your weakness needs filling with their strengths.

Lessons Learned: Don’t mock the differences, learn from them.

Thoughts: Are you enjoying the differences, in life?

#failalot

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Sunday sermon…

Do you put your hand up, when someone tries to help you?

I’ll bet that most of you immediately rolled your eyes and thought a negative thought of some sort.

We tend to think negatively about sermons, because we have that engrained in us.

Our Mom sits us down to talk to us and it’s a mini-sermon…

Our teacher takes us out of class and sermonizes a rule…

A friend’s sermon about how you treated them…

We look at sermons wrong…

Sleep in Saturday...

Seriously...why are you up? Get some rest, but enjoy your last day of the week!

Got gas?

Some of you likely thought of your mexican lunch and maybe chucked a bit, at the title.

It’s Friday and most everyone loves Friday, because the weekend is here. We like it because, we get a little break from our regular routine and spend time with family, friends and go to our churches.

It’s a good thing…

So, when you go to work today, and feel that empty feeling because you worked hard all week, and the fuel light is on, stop on the way home, and fill up.

Make sure that you’re full so that you can impact your family, friends, and church family over the weekend.

You may feel overwhelmed by your hectic week, but those that are most important to you, need you over the weekend.

Monday will come again and you’ll have plenty of time to deal with the worries of the workweek. You’ll have another five days to deal with all that stuff.

Your tank needs to be full this weekend.

Lessons Learned: Don’t run on empty - you can’t change a life without fuel.

Thoughts: Are you impacting others?

#failalot

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Thoughtful Thursday...#7

Simple quote from Zig Ziglar...

"You cannot climb the ladder of success dressed in the costume of failure."

Don't plan to fail!

Wednesday Wandering...

Normally, I don't use Wednesday's to share something that's been posted by someone else, but Seth Godin shared this about a year ago, and I love the concept...

Bar gymnastics

"Some people I know work hard to lower the bar at work.

That was my strategy at gym class in high school. Not only did I do the minimum amount permitted, I worked hard to do just a little bit less than that. By the time the semester was over, the teacher was relieved if I even bothered to show up at all.

Most people seek to meet the bar. They figure out what's expected, and do that.

A few people, very few, work to relentlessly raise the bar. She's the one who overdelivers on projects, shows up ahead of schedule, instigates, suggests and pushes.

Raising the bar is exhausting, no doubt about it. I'm not sure the people who engage in this apparently reckless behavior would have it any other way, though. They get to experience a fundamentally different day, a different journey and a different reputation than everyone else."

Lessons Learned: Don't do the minimum - work hard at all you do, giving your best!

Thoughts: Have you underperformed on purpose?

Tourist Tuesday...#7

Enjoy today's post from Michael Hyatt...

5 Things...

Have a nice day!

The back of this truck has a good marketing ploy.

It’s a good idea to tell people to have a nice day.

Why wouldn't you want to tell that to someone?

It’s a kind thing to do…

Smiling Sunday…

This boys life is being changed...

I can’t help but to be smiling on Sundays.

It’s one of my favorite days of the week, because I love to go to my church and be involved in helping with the teens. 

I don’t go to church to sit and hang out. I go to have a blast with the teens while I teach Sunday school...

Simple Saturday...

Word of the day - fun!

Go enjoy your day - have a blast - make it fun!

Seriously - do it...

Unexpected…

I walked into the elevator ready to go home, and found these two friends…

We had a great conversation...they were quietly listening to every word I had to say. 

I told them all about my day and how I enjoyed the challenges that were put before me. 

I talked about the weather and the beautiful day we were having.

I spoke of the drive home and traffic conditions. 

I talked about my family and showed pictures to my new friends.

We talked about the weekend activities coming up. The vacuum was going to a flooring convention and the broom was going to be on the front porch swinging.

I discussed politics - one was a Democrat and the other a Republican - that became a touchy subject, and a little tense, but it ended okay. The broom felt like it would be a sweep in the fall elections and the vacuum thought the election process...wait for it..sucked.

We finished our conversation with discussion about the Yankees making the playoffs - I was amazed to find out they were both fans, even in the south.

Lessons Learned: You never know what will happen in a day, so be ready for anything that could come up.

Thoughts: Have you ever seen something strange in an elevator?

#failalot

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Thoughtful Thursday...#6

"You cannot climb the ladder of success dressed in the costume of failure."

Zig Ziglar

Don't plan on plan - be thinking success - why would you want plan ahead to fail?

Sunny…

I was driving home and had a ton of things on my mind. I made 3-4 business calls on the drive home and had a very busy, but good day. I really enjoy my job and the people I work with, but I’m very, very, very busy, which requires me to be extremely focused - I love that.

Here’s the point…

Tourist Tuesday...#6

My son left the seat tight up to the steering wheel for me...

Being a good Dad (or Mom) is important...some good thoughts, from Michael Hyatt...

Good Dad

Cleaning cars and the rain…

It’s inevitable…

Plan on it…

Just mark it down…

You will have it occur…

Sorry, but a mess is coming…

When you wash your car, it’s going to rain within 24 hours…

Wash?

My oldest teenage son wrote this on the back of my car, as a “helpful reminder” for me to wash my car. I think he enjoyed embarrassing me and adding a little humor too.

The problem is that I couldn't wash my car for a week and I forgot that it was on there all week...thanks a lot, son.

He didn’t mean any harm - just a bit of fun and it wasn’t a big deal, but it gave me some thoughts…

Saturday picture...

Enjoy...

The hawk and basketball…

This is the hawk in today's post...siting on my tree.

Sometimes, in the evening after work, I play a little driveway basketball with my sons. We have a few different games that we play and we have a blast with the competition, while trying to keep the fun part high and the competitive part balanced...you know what I mean…

Thoughtful Thursday...#5

Evening with weather, like this, it can be a good day!

Today's quote...

"Now I only have two kinds of days…good days and great days." ~ Lance Armstrong 

You can think many things about Lance Armstrong, but this quote is a good one.

If you look at your days as either "good" or "great" then you're never going to have a bad day.

Wouldn't it be cool, if you never had a bad day?

I think it's up to us to determine that outcome.  Our attitudes impact everything we do and we can control how we look at our days.

Lessons Learned: I don't want anymore bad days, ever!

Thoughts: Do you want a bad day?

#failalot

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Never forget...

September the 12th is a day that I will always look at as a time for a new start. 

September 11th will always have a meaning that was never intended and that tragedy will always have an impact on our lives. 

For me, I will never forget. I well up whenever I see it or think about the impact on so many people. 

On the other hand...

Tourist Tuesday...#5

One of my favorite quick thoughts about giving your best and going beyond the easy...

Bar Gymnastics...

Thank someone…

This is a reoccurring theme, but we get help and encouragement from lots of people throughout our lives, but we often for get to thank them for their influence on our lives.

They have taken time to sacrifice for us and we either didn’t realize it, or we simply forgot about what they have done for us.

People like…

The second grade teacher that told you that you drew a good picture…

The Youth Pastor who put his arm around you and told you you'd make it…

The friend who reminded you not to make that bad decision…

The coworker that helped you with a project that you wouldn't have finished…

The Pastor that taught you the important teaching from God’s Word…

The Aunt that encouraged you after a loved on died…

The Coach that helped you improve your swing, and grinned at you when you did well…

The Spouse who hugged you when you were discouraged…

The Sunday school teacher that gave the encouraging Sunday school lesson…

The Youth worker that made you laugh when you were hurt…

The list goes on, but have you taken time to thank people?

The thanking takes only a minute, but that minute will change someone else's life.

Lessons Learned: Many people have helped me become who I am today.

Thoughts: Who are you going to contact and thank today?

#failalot

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