Worthy Words

God has uniquely wired you (Psalm 139) and placed you (Acts 17:26-27) with intrinsic abilities and gifts to make a difference at your place of employment. There is an importance in the work you do. You must walk into work with a sense of calling. Knowing that what the Lord has given you to do does matter. It can be worship. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people. (Colossians 3:23-24 GNT) The Bible makes no division between the secular and the sacred. “Slaves, obey your masters here on earth with fear and respect and from a sincere heart, just as you obey Christ. You must do this not only while they are watching you, to please them. With all your heart you must do what God wants as people who are obeying Christ. Do your work with enthusiasm. Work as if you were serving the Lord, not as if you were serving only men and women.” (Ephesians 6:5-8 NCV) Every task we undertake whether paid or unpaid is to be done unto t

We all have days when the wheels fall off and every little thing that can go wrong does go wrong. Often our biggest problems are those little problems that keep adding up to frustrations, irritations and then a very bad attitude. The apostle Paul says dealing with these frustrations is actually and acid test for your Christianity; it is what separates believers and unbelievers in the eyes of others. Philippians 2:14 states, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, ‘children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.’ Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky.” If Jesus isn’t Lord of the little things in your life, then, he’s not really Lord. Your faith isn’t as much determined by what do or how you perform in service to the Lord, but it is how you act on Monday morning. If you’re sinking in the pool of frustration ask yourself first, “Am I to blame?” The Bible declares in Galatians 6:7, “A man reaps what he sows.”

In a few weeks the Dallas Cowboys will begin training camp in preparation for the 2012 NFL season. Every year there is talk about making it to the Super Bowl only to discover for one reason or another they fail in their attempt. I’m not an official sports analyst but if I were I would describe the past sixteen years this way: They have a tendency to play at the level of their opponents. Because of that they find themselves coming up short on the score board in games that make a critical difference in their season. If this doesn’t change I would say that their mediocrity will catch up them and they won't be serious contenders for the Super Bowl this year. That’s my two cents ;( Mediocrity is a curse convincing us that a partial effort — 80 % if necessary, 50% when we can get away with it — is always good enough. Mediocrity does what it can to avoid a bad showing, but rarely concerns itself with an excellent showing. This is a great danger if it is allowed to creep into the church. I

Simply looking at the ratings Jay Leno is at the top of late night TV. Leno has twice as many viewers as Letterman and four times as many as Conan and Jimmy Kimmel. But early on there was a time when it didn’t look so promising for him. It was in 1992 when Jay first took over the job from Johnny Carson. It was at the same time a disappointed David Letterman left to start his own show on CBS. The first couple of years Jay lost in the ratings and there were times when his future at NBC was uncertain. So how did he climb to the top? Bob Wright, CEO of NBC, said "Jay put his head down and wrote three more jokes every night. Talent by itself is not necessarily reliable. He has talent, and he is willing to work long hard hours at it." In an online article from of Fortune Magazine, Leno’s comment was, "Show business is not hard. It’s all just basic Dale Carnegie stuff."  I get motivated when I read stories about success that come from hard work. One reason is that those

Do you remember the witty and talented country/folk singer Roger Miller? He was born January 2, 1936 in Fort Worth and died on October 25, 1992 of lung cancer at the age of 56. He sang such memorable songs like, Chug a Lug, Dang Me, and King of the Road. And who could forget, You Can’t Roller Skate in a Buffalo Herd — here are the words: You can't roller skate in a buffalo herd You can't roller skate in a buffalo herd You can't roller skate in a buffalo herd, BUT YOU CAN BE HAPPY IF YOU'VE A MIND TO. You can't take a shower in a parakeet cage You can't take a shower in a parakeet cage You can't take a shower in a parakeet cage BUT YOU CAN BE HAPPY IF YOU'VE A MIND TO. And the chorus goes... All you gotta do is put your mind to it Knuckle down, buckle down, and do it do it do it.  (Here is a link to the song on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skFWsc_-i14 ) If you were alive in the sixties, chances are