We all at times say things we shouldn�t say. Recently, while talking to someone that was recently offended by awkward questions about her life, I was reminded that there is a few questions that, while probably well-meaning or just conversational questions, are better left unasked unless you know the other person well. Some questions are simply not good conversational questions and they are actually more hurtful than helpful.
An annual tradition my family has observed since my boys were old enough to write has been setting aside some time Thanksgiving weekend to share the “Top 10†things we were thankful for that year. I must confess that this past year, while I did compile my list (I posted it HERE on this blog), we never found time to sit together and share them.
I was tempted to say, “No, we just work that one hour (in our case three hours) and then we are doneâ€, but I remembered that typical cliché’ joke aggravates me and this was guy was not trying to be funny. He simply didn’t know.
For those that do not know me, I would not normally be considered a “soft†man. (No joking allowed here from our staff…Remember I have power!) I am not into many things considered “girlyâ€. Cheryl and I often joke that she could have chosen romantic or comedic. Well…at least I keep her laughing! Still, depending on the place we are visiting, this man often prefers to stay in a bed and breakfast to a hotel.
The story of Abraham and his oldest servant is a great picture of the leadership style Abraham must have exhibited. As Abraham was dying, he called his oldest servant to him and asked for his help carrying out his final wishes. Read the servant’s response in the passage here:
I am a self-admitted checklist guy…
However, I’ve learned not to stress as much if not every item is checked at the end of a day or week…
According to my official survey, the all time favorite Sesame Street character is:
I usually find a place to hide out of the office on Wednesdays so I can study without interruption. While I was diligently working on my message for this Sunday today my office was ravaged at the hand of our children’s pastor. Here is proof of how abusive a church staff can be towards its pastor. Please pray for me as I deal with this trauma.
Tweet Are you planning yet for a better year? Now is a great time to start evaluating the year and planning for a better new year. I don’t know about…
A couple times a year we do an extended weekend retreat. This weekend we are headed to Nashville for an all staff planning retreat. An added twist is that our spouses will join us on Friday night for fellowship and then on Saturday morning for a special brainstorming session. (We think they may have better ideas than we do!)
It started like this. Years ago I was explaining to a friend that I was at one of those “trying to discover God’s will†points in my life. I have been there many times before and will be again. His advice was something like, “Maybe you need to start with a blank piece of paper and give God ample space to plan out the rest of your life. Make yourself completely available to Him.†That made a lot of sense. I left our meeting, however, with a very probing question for myself. Did I really have blank piece of paper?
On November 10, 2009, the longest running children’s television show will be 40 years old. You can read more about it HERE. The fictional neighborhood characters have been engaging and teaching children most of my life. I was 5 years old when Sesame Street hit our black and white, rabbit-eared television for the first time.
I was honored this week when Jesse Phillips with CatalystSpace blog called me a “seasoned leaderâ€. I feel I still have more to learn than I have learned, but it did cause me to reflect on some of the experiences I have had and people that have influenced me in my leadership ability.
