Pizza...

I hope you enjoy this post that I wrote a while ago...


Pizza and the rain...

Overwhelmed...

Have you ever been at a point in life, where whichever way you turned, you had something else that went wrong, or you realized there was something else you forgot to do, or there was another burden that you heard about that needed to be considered? That may be the longest question I've ever written, but do you ever feel like you're maxed out in every way? What do you do when you get there? Do you give up? Do you sit back and cry? Do you pray? Do you get angry? Do you try to hide from it? Do you do a little of all of these? We all get to this spot in life sometimes, but there are two great things to consider. Others all go through it too, and some of them are in a rougher spot than you are. Encourage them and your tough times will seem lighter. God knows all the current and future details of your issues, concerns, burdens, worries and overwhelming stress. You can trust him. Today's thought is short. It's too simple not to be short. 


Lessons Learned: trust the Lord through your overwhelming times. 


Thoughts: What trial are you going through right now?

What’s in a word?

So, I’ve been thinking a lot about the word “word.” It’s a short word, and in fact, it’s a four letter word. The word “word” is a very powerful word that can get its user in trouble, if they don’t use the word “word” correctly. “Word” is not just a word, it’s a character trait and I think we use the word “word” too much sometimes, in life.

I know that was a little wordy...pun intended…

So, what do I mean by all this wordiness?

I think it deals with the truth of using the word. In days gone by, a handshake and your word were all that was necessary for a commitment. It didn’t take a contract, or having things in writing, or making sure lawyers put down items with legalese, so that there are ways to get out or your word. Most people’s word means next to nothing these days, no matter how firmly it’s given to you. People’s word just doesn’t have the commitment it had before. 

We shouldn't even have to say “I give you my word.” or “I’m a man of my word.” or “When I say something, I mean it.”

We should just do what we say or not say it all.

Examples:

When I say I’m going to pay someone, I should pay them.

When I call a medical office and indicate I will pay a certain amount each month, I should do it.

When I say I will show up at a certain time, I should be there at that time (early is good too).

When I promise to take my kids to Taco Bell, I should take them there.

When I say that I’ll help someone with a task, I should show up and help them.

When I say I will pray for someone, I should pray for them.

When I state I will work a job, I should work it.

When I discuss taking someone out to lunch, I should set the plan and do it.

When I commit to marriage, I should stay married and work on my role as husband or wife.

When I say I will get back to someone, at a certain time, I should get back to them prior to that time.

When I say I will change my life, because of a message, I heard, I should change it.

When I suggest to one person, that I will encourage someone else, I should make sure I encourage that person.

When I tell one of my children that I will play ball with them, I should go out and play ball with them.

You get the point of this list.  When we say something, our word should be enough. It shouldn't take pressure or demands from others. It shouldn't take a contract. It shouldn't take any kind of paper. Our word should be our word.

Lessons Learned: Keeping our word shouldn't have to be wordy. It should just be what we say.

Thoughts: How’s your word?

#failalot

I wish I was a bird…

Wait - should that be "I wish I were a bird?" 


When I go through a day that has challenges beyond what I like or a time where I have a lot on my mind or my heart, I look at the birds.

I know I talked about birds about a week ago, but I couldn't get this thought out of my mind…

Birds don’t have any worries, in fact, the Bible reminds us to look at the birds, more that once, and how they just keep going without worries.

Birds do the following…

They fly - they go above, around, or sometimes, even through the issues of life. We tend to mull around in what we have going on and struggle through it. 

Why can’t we fly like a bird?

They chirp - they’re happy most all the time and live in joy. We let the little things pile up on us or we have our joy stolen by the big issues in life. 

Why can’t we just chirp like a bird?

They focus on their family - we have a couple of birds that have built nests at our house this Spring. One under our deck and one in a - wait for it - a bird house we have on our deck. I’ve had the chance to watch these birds and they are constantly working on their homes and nests. 

Why can’t we focus on our families like the birds?

They don’t worry - they just keep doing what they were made to do. They don’t focus on the needs of the future, they just do what they’re supposed to now. We get to worrying about every little thing that comes to our mind and all of the things down the road. 

Why can’t we stop worrying like the birds?

I know this one’s a little short today, but it’s one of my simple thoughts and I wish I were more like a bird somedays…

Lessons Learned: Birds have it made, but we have it made just like them, if we chose to.

Thoughts: Do you act like a bird?

#failalot

How to be an octopus…

I think that an octopus is an extremely cool creature...a little dark and scary, but way beyond some of the other odd creatures I’ve seen on Animal Planet or one of those other channels.  

For goodness sake, it has eight arms and ink...just how cool would that be?

The octopus has skills too…

It can fit into a Coke bottle and turn around and stare at you.

It can ink you if you try to scare it, or maybe it inks you when you scare it...not sure, but that’s still a cool skill.

It can grab many things at one time and concentrate on all of them individually.

It has suction cups that each have their own little brain-like responses to where they are.

It can bite with a beak (this just got me to thinking - it’s not a bird, but it has a beak - I’m so glad it can’t fly - wouldn't that be the scariest thing ever, to have an octopus swoop down and bite you or slap you with it’s tentacles - my word!).

It can change colors all at once, with just a portion of it’s body at a time or be like a rainbow.

It can crush it’s prey with it’s powerful arms.

It can see in the dark.

It can glide through the water like an aerodynamic dart.

I could go on and on…

So how can we be like the octopus?

Coke bottle - We can lose weight to look like a Coke bottle...no really, we can look for the best way to protect by using what’s around us appropriately. Sometimes, we need to be ready to take cover from an attack. The best way for this, to me, is to pray and trust the Lord.

Ink - We cannot let our fears take over, but overcome our fears with ink…not ink, but faith would be better. Keep relying on the Lord.

Arms - We can multitask with the abilities that God has given us and handle more than we thought we could. Life has to have a balance, but we can often manage more than we think, with the Lord’s grace and help.

Suction cups - We can use the sense that God gave us to make decisions kinda like the octopus does with it’s suction cups.

Beak - I don’t think we need to bite, but we can use our mouths for the purposes God gave them to us, instead of gossiping, back-biting and hurting. We can encourage, promote and pray.

Color change - We can adapt to the challenges that life presents to us so that we become less rigid and more flexible to what comes our way. We often want to stand out and be tough, when sometimes we should just blend in and be calm.

Crush - We can only crush the enemy through prayer and proper responses. We don’t have personal strength, but we have God’s strength.

Dark - we get the privilege of trusting in the dark times of life and not knowing what God will do. We get to trust His plan - better than an octopus.

Glide - we get to ride above the storms like eagles and watch the storms from God’s hands.

Lessons Learned: An octopus is way cool - we are way cooler because we get to trust the Lord.

Thoughts: What has God overcome for you lately? Did you trust in Him?

#failalot

Wouldn't it be cool!

I have got to get one of these...

There are lots of times in life that I say this…

When I’m watching a show with a really fast car…

When I’m watching someone shooting a gun that’s really powerful…

When I hear about a great job opportunity…

When I watch “Myth Busters” and think about having that career…

When I see a bus that has a jet engine on the back of it, like the picture today…

Really courageous…

So, I had the opportunity to watch the movie “Courageous” this week and I’m glad I did. I know that it’s a movie and there’s a script and they memorize and practice the script to perfection over months. I know that it’s not a real story and that they are actors. I know that Father’s should improve in life. I know that we live in a hard world and we all mess up. 

Knowing all that, I still needed to be reminded that I need to be a better dad and husband. I’ve written a few times about being a better dad - look here, here and here...

Pick from the past Saturday...

All of the posts below, were written when I first started blogging, and have only been viewed a few times. 


I think they may help you...


Pick one or two and enjoy...


Waiting and the patience curve...


Inbound the ball...


Failing big in Texas... (My very first post!)


Admit your mistakes...


Demand and supply...bad economics...


Have a great Saturday!


Which one was best? Or worst? Or was this a crazy idea?


Thanks for reading!

Birds and trucks…

These birds were outside my front door - look carefully in the first picture...

You know, I’m not one to love loud noises. It seems to me that most of them are unneeded and just catch me off guard and bug me...

Broken Tooth…

This is not my tooth, but I did this once too - it's a molar this time...

You know I like to talk about broken things - look at these two posts (Broken Turtles and Broken Seagulls) and you’ll see two of my more popular blogs. I don’t always like the broken things, but I do like to talk about them. 

I broke my tooth about a week ago and some thoughts came to mind…

Hailstones and rainbows…

It was actually a double rainbow...

I love to watch storms. I may have said this before, but I think it’s extremely cool to see the power of a storm and the impact that it has...

Funny happens…

One thing I notice, in life, a lot, is that funny happens, all the time. 

One thing I notice, in life, a lot, is that people miss seeing the funny things, all the time.

First of all, my comma placement just rocked in those two sentences (wait, did I just sound like my college english teacher - someone please help me).

Now to the important thought, that, I think, I have for you today.

Microwaves times…

Notice how clean the microwave window is...

I think microwaves are an awesome invention and I don’t mean the tiny little waves that you can’t see, I mean the devices we use to “nuke” our food. They’re so quick and easy to use. What a great idea someone had.

I do wonder…

Storm chasers…

Saw this in Chattanooga on a trip once - it's from the actual TV show!

I live in an area that is considered part of “Tornado Alley” and we see our fair share of storms each spring, and sometimes we see crazy storms at other times of the year too. 

This year March came in like the lion it often does, and we saw several storms come through in a 24 hour period with tornados popping up all over the south and in Tennessee. It was quite a wild time and we hate to see the damage that occurred and the lives that were impacted. 

I saw a few of things that I hand’t thought about before this way…

The perfect gift…

What a beautiful picture!

I really dislike shopping. I am typical of most males and only enjoy shopping when I’m after a specific item and know where it is. I like to act like a spy and sneak into stores, hiding behind clothing racks, or poles, slipping into sections of the store in stealth combat gear and getting to the item I need (or want) without anyone ever seeing me. I quickly pay for the item and leave - no questions, no answers. I don’t like being asked about what I am looking for or being pushed into a pair of shoes that I don’t like or want. I like to get the mission accomplished and get back to my house or job.  

Middle quitter…

The snow adds that little extra touch...

Have you ever started a project and then quit in the middle of it? 

Have you ever had a dream or goal and didn’t complete it?

Have you ever quit in the middle?

I call this being a middle quitter…

Are you having a bad day?

The house pictured is a few miles from where I live and it’s been sitting like this for at least a year. I don’t know if a storm blew the tree over or if it was just old, top heavy and finally gave in. I hope no-one was living there when it happened and that no-one was hurt. I think it was abandoned when it happened, but that still had to be a bad day for the owners, when they saw this. Someone’s memories of living there are now destroyed and they can’t even go in to view what’s left. Truly, these folks had a bad day.

We all have bad days. 

We all have times of disappointment and hurt.

We all have minor and major catastrophes that happen to us.

We all struggle with our reaction to these tough times.

Crazy delicious dreams…

I have posted posts (that sounded redundant, wait, huh?) about dreams and goals, but they have been about the dreams we look at as goals or plans in life only. You can look at them here, here, here or there. I think they will help you, if you have a moment to read them. The post today is about actual dreams...I think?

Have you ever had a dream so real that you could actually smell it? Or taste it? Or feel it? Or you just couldn't get over how real it was, even when you woke up?

I’m positive…

Funny thoughts in this pic, but I still want to be the optimist. 

Some that know me, realize that I’m a half glass full to full glass kind of guy. I most always look at the positive side of life and realize that the bad side of life is for a purpose. Life is not fair and I don’t like it sometimes, but I really believe that there is a purpose for the tough times and bad things that occur in life, even if they are my fault.

I’ve had a lot of things running around in my head lately, so here are some things that I’m positive about…

My name is spelled C-R-A-I-G (Craig)…

I don’t think I have a really unusual name. I think it’s rather a normal mundane simple name with a standard spelling. I don’t really know many other ways to spell my name. I did see one person from Scottland spell it with a “K” instead of a “C”, but just once. I have never see it any other way, otherwise. There are other ways, but I would say that the standard way that I spell it is the most common.

Here are some other spellings that I found:

Candles...and burning others...

‎"Blowing out someone else's candle won't make your's shine any brighter!"

Saw this posted on Facebook a few weeks back and it reminded me of how we treat one another and how we think of ourselves. It was not attributed to anyone, so I’m not sure where the quote came from, but it’s a good one...

Empty Police cars…

It works…

The empty police car studies have shown that people slow down when they see police cars. I know I, at least look down to the speedometer when I see one, or make sure I’m in my lane, signaling, etc.  It’s a strategy for old police cars, and ones that are spares to be used for, to impact people in how they drive. It’s not a bad strategy and it keeps us from getting tickets, so I can handle that. 

The driveway to nowhere…

This driveway got me thinking. I drove past it at least once or twice per week for about 8 weeks, as I took my youngest son to his basketball games and practices. I wondered why it was there and if it was going to be used for any real purpose or had future plans. 

Some things I noticed…

When I was a rodeo clown...

I looked just like this...

So, you have heard about my famous days as Frosty the Snowman and your aware of the notoriety regarding the sock and my toe, but did you know I was a rodeo clown too? I know you are sitting back right now in amazement at the story, that is my life. You’re probably thinking, “How did one person have so many great experiences in life?” 

Well, being a rodeo clown is not all it’s cut out to be, and for the record, I only did it once…

This post carries on with my animal theme this week...look at this one, that one and this other one for examples…or this one here, or finally here too...

The devil cat and the wallpaper…

Telling the truth is always good - maybe…

Once again, notice the animal theme, like the Cow, the Turtle and the Seagull...I sense a trend starting...at least for these days...

Cow accident…

Does that cow look like it's smiling?

Sometimes, the Lord allows strange things in your life and you may or may not know the purpose...ever. Sometimes you see the purpose, in what goes on, right away. Sometimes, it’s a long time down the road. Sometimes, it’s never. It’s okay, no matter which happens, but I generally try to find a reason, because I can learn from it.

(If you read yesterday, you know that I’m including animals in my posts now or something broken, because of the broken turtle and the broken seagull)

The cow accident story starts like this…

Broken Seagull…follow up to Broken Turtle...

The single most popular post that I have written is “Broken Turtles…” I’m not totally sure why it became so popular, but it’s double the number two all-time post and more than numbers 8, 9 and 10 combined. I’m glad people have read it and I hope it was funny and thought provoking, but I’m not fully sure what made it successful. 

As you know already, things like this make me think and question. Here are some thoughts about broken turtles:

Disconnected connections…

Our connectivity creates disconnections sometimes...

We live in a world of many connections and we see our world shrinking almost every day. I meet someone, who knows another person, who knows a person that knows me (did you follow that?). Social media has created a firestorm of making it easy to be in touch with almost anyone else in the world. It used to be difficult to keep in touch with friends from the past and family who live a long way away. Now it’s as simple as it could possibly be…but it will probably get even simpler in the future. Technology is rapidly changing and simplifying.

Two thoughts have come to mind about our connections…

How to name a Street…

When I was driving down the highway between NJ and PA, I saw about 15 signs showing how to get to Street Road. I could not believe that a street had been named Street, or was it a road that was named Street? 

Seriously, couldn't someone have come up with a more original name than that? 

Did the City run out of other names? 

Was there a man named Mr. Street that they named this after?

Did Mr. Street not have a first name they could combine?

Who made the final call on this name?

Did they just give up trying to be creative?

I’m important…

Seriously, let me tell you how important I am…

Do my dreams count?

I didn't start my blog for a very long time. I have never written a book, yet. 


There are times that I didn’t go for a promotion because I felt I didn’t deserve it, before I ever applied or interviewed. 


I often come up with an new and original idea and then let it pass as stupid. 


Sometimes I begin a blog post and stop because I think others will just reject it as a waste of time. 


I’ve never learned how to ride a unicycle. 


I haven’t gone to many foreign countries. I


 have never ____________ - fill in your own blank.