3Cords

Three Definitions of Trust

Administrator — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 04:15:00 GMT

My blog, Daily Concerns, has moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/Experience/blogs/dailyconcerns/default.aspx

My latest blog entry, Three Definitions of Trust, is available at the new location. Come check it out!

God bless,

csimmons

My blog is on the move

Administrator — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

My blog, Connections, has moved to a new location and merged with the Intelligent Design blog. Please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/intelligentdesign/default.aspx

The latest blog entry, Innovating with MVC in ASP.NET, is available at the new location. Come check us out!

- FT Product Development Team

Voluntary Selfishness

Administrator — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:51:00 GMT

My blog, Stand! And be Moved by God, has been renamed to Engaging Talent and moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/emotionalmastery/default.aspx

My latest blog entry, Voluntary Selfishness, is available at the new location. Come check it out!

- tpolk

Willow Creek Thoughts

Administrator — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:47:00 GMT

Our blog, Delivering Change, has moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/deliveringchange/default.aspx

Our latest blog entry, Willow Creek Thoughts, is available at the new location. Come check us out!

- FT Delivery Team

Don’t Pay Too Much for Your Software

Administrator — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:43:00 GMT

My blog, Notes from the Trenches, has moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/technicallyspeaking/default.aspx

My latest blog entry, Don’t Pay Too Much for Your Software, is available at the new location. Come check it out!

- jventry

What stops a church from fully Experiencing Fellowship One?

Administrator — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:37:00 GMT

My blog, Accelerating the Dynamic Church, has moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/dynamic_church/default.aspx

My latest blog entry, What stops a church from fully Experiencing Fellowship One?, is available at the new location.

- jhook

Innovating with MVC in ASP.NET

Administrator — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:28:00 GMT

Our blog, Intelligent Design, has moved to a new location, please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

The new location is http://experience.fellowshipone.com/blogs/intelligentdesign/default.aspx

Our latest blog entry, Innovating with MVC in ASP.NET, is available at the new location. Come check us out!

- FT Product Development Team

2 new post

Matt McKee — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 16:11:00 GMT

2 new post can be found at http://www.mckeelive.com .

Thanks for stopping by.

Thoughts from All Access in Anderson, SC

Matt McKee — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 12:13:00 GMT

Read at mckeelive.com.

The Big News: mckeelive.com

Matt McKee — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 20:44:00 GMT

Ladies and Gentlemen. I have a big announcement. After one year and 121 post this blog is moving to www.mckeelive.com . My current host, 3cords.org, is shutting down on October 31st. 3cords has been very good to me and my blog. They have given me readers that I would have never gotten and an easy platform in which to write. So many thanks to the guys behind 3cords.org.

Now onto McKeelive.com. I am in the process of taking all the content that I have on this blog and moving it over to the new one. I am just over half way there. It will be up and running with all post by October 31st. You can go check it out tell me what you think. It is going to look totally different that my current blog.

Please up date all of you links to this blog and point them to McKeelive.com. I would appreciate that very much.

Now why Matt McKee Live and not the Remix of Children's Ministry? Matt McKee Live is much easier to remember. It allows me to post more about things other than Children's Ministry even though Children's Ministry will be my main focus. I also plan on doing more with video on my new site. I can't wait to expand to new things. So please continue to join me at www.mckeelive.com.

Sign Wednesday: Signspotting

Matt McKee — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 19:33:00 GMT

Last week I received a book in the mail. The book is called "Signspotting". As you may well know, I am a sign geek. My wife, Jessica, says that I am taking it to extremes, but I think I am just starting. Anyway, this book is incredible if you like signs. I showed it to the student ministry team today and they cracked up. The were laughing out loud. Now I could scan in my favorites and post them here but I would get into trouble. So here is what you can do. Go to their website here, or buy the book here. Here is the cover of the book:

Go ahead, take a minute our of your day and laugh. To many times we take ourselves to seriously. Ministry, business, and even life is serious but have fun while you do it.

The Modern Day Fall

tpolk — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 13:13:00 GMT

Last night my husband and I were picking up our son from a friend’s house, it was dusk and a large Texas-sized snake was crossing the road. After passing it and shrieking in amazement Derrell decided he would back up and run over it. I thought this was a good teaching moment so I said no wait I want to get out and see it so come on Zach let’s go see one of God’s creations. I jumped out of the car all excited and got a bit too close to the snake for Derrell’s comfort. As he sat in the car and he screamed “don’t get too close and definitely don’t let Zach get close!” But, when, really have I ever listened to Derrell when it involved animals? He has an aversion to animals of all kinds, birds, dogs, cats, prairie dogs, horses, fish, you name it he would prefer he never had to encounter it!

I approached the snake with little regard for the fact that I was in any danger. The snake stopped and looked at me. I said “It’s ok I'm not going to hurt you and I won’t let Derrell run over you” (I felt a little like Harry Potter). The snake appeared to look right through me at this point straight back to my son standing behind me. Zach said “I won’t hurt you either” and with a nod of his head, he slithered away up the curb, onto the sidewalk and into the field. Zach and I followed the snake as it slithered all the way up a tree. I was amazed at how that snake drew me in and how my husband stayed as far away from it as he could!

I could only imagine it was like the fall of Adam and Eve. Adam stayed on the other side of the garden as Eve was amazed and drawn to the power of the snake. God warned her, Adam warned her but still she did not listen. She was more easily deceived than Adam, hence…the fall. At that moment, the power struggles between men and women began. We all suffer from that moment, when she too talked to the snake, then watched it slither up the tree but finally, she believed the snake. Every day women around the world are locked in power struggles with men because Eve did not listen to her husband.

There is good news though, as a woman of God, you don’t have to continue the cycle of sin that Eve created. You can use your influence to persuade others rather than manipulating them. You can use your willingness to cooperate to turn others to the truth. You can use a gentle and kind tone to make a point. How can we as women do what we were designed to do, which is to serve God and be a helpmate to our husbands or the men God has placed in authority over us? It all starts with our attitude to be willing to cooperate, humbly. Dare I take “willingness to cooperate” to the next level, it is voluntary selflessness! How much better of a wife or an employee will you be if you are in a constant state of voluntary selflessness? Well that’s a whole ‘nuther blog!

Don’t follow any snakes today, they can be deceiving! Tam

In case you didn't hear...

Matt McKee — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 20:12:00 GMT

The University of Kentucky upset Louisiana State University in FOOTBALL. That's right. The many of us Big Blue basketball fans are glad to see there is a football team. Congrats to the 4 seniors that could have gone to the NFL last year but stayed to make this season special.

All Access at NewSpring Community Church

Matt McKee — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 18:25:00 GMT

This coming Saturday I leave for Anderson, S.C. Anderson is a little town of 26,000 people and the home of NewSpring Community Church. Do you know about NewSpring? If you don't you should. Their senior pastor is Perry Noble, who loves to blog here, and they have this guy called Tony Morgan who loves to blog here. Both of these guys are some of my favorite bloggers. I also can't wait to meet Pudge Huckaby, the Children's Pastor. Anybody with the name of Pudge has to be cool. He blogs here but is currently on a break. What makes NewSpring so great is that they average around 7,000 people in a town of 26,000. Now that is what I call a Community Church that is reaching the people around them for God. It is not all fluff. It is the get your hands, hair, and heart dirty type of ministry. Last month they baptized 562 people. God is working through them and they are being obedient. I can't wait to go to this conference/backstage look at NewSpring. Paul Tate our Creative Arts/Programming Pastor will be going with me. It will be great to hang out with him and not to experience this alone. I hope I can nudge him into starting a blog on this trip. It would be benefit many of us out there. He is very creative.

There are 2 major goals I have for this All Access event.

#1- For God to move me to rethink, renew, and remix my ministry.

#2- Hug Tony Morgan (he will hate this but I want to see the look on his face).

I will be keeping you up-to-date on what happens while at NewSpring. I am sure it will be incredible.

Stay Tuned...

Matt McKee — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 00:45:00 GMT

Big news is coming about this blog. I will announce it as soon as I can. Thank you so much for coming back often and sending me encouragement over the last couple weeks when I haven't posted very much. Please stay tuned.

The Great Balancing Act

tpolk — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 19:03:00 GMT

People always talk about how you should balance work and family but they can never tell you how to do it. How do you measure whether you are balancing work and family appropriately? Especially when you are in the moment. The reality is, you probably won’t be able to truely measure it until your kids are grown and they call you to tell you how great of a parent you were or you celebrate your 50^th wedding anniversary. But I think there are some things that you can do today to foster that response 20 years from now…

1. Work a set amount of hours and then let work go. When you are at work, work. When you are at home, be at home not with work on your mind. I work from 6:45–4:00 every day. That is 9 hours and 15 minutes. I do eat lunch at my desk about 3 days a week (and it only takes me 7 minutes to eat a lot of food, too!) and I go out to lunch with co-workers or friends or my husband 2 days a week. Which helps me stay connected to people I really enjoy. So Fellowship Technologies gets about 62 hours of my time at the office each week, plus I do work about 2-4 hours each week at night and on the weekend depending on what is happening in my world of work. So let’s say they get 66 hours a week of me. My co-workers respect my time and know I leave at 4. They schedule meetings around me and work with me, which makes me 100% more engaged at work since they support my need to be with my kids.

2. Parent on Purpose. This schedule allows me to spend about 4 ½ hours each week night with my kids, not much time in the scheme of life when I am supposed to be teaching them about life, love and God. But when I am home, I am home. They get my full attention and I am not on office calls or email or even looking at my phone. I am their mom, supporting homework, playing football, playing on Webkins, cooking a meal together and just hanging out watching Sponge Bob. They do not have to compete with my work, they know they come first. It is never a question, I would always choose them over a work. They are secure and self-assured that I protect our time together.

3. Support your Spouse. I happen to be the helpmate in the relationship but I am also the bread-winner which makes our situation a little unique. I get to walk in the shoes of many of my male counterparts. Derrell and I get about 3 hours each night to foster a strong marriage. Fortunately we are skilled communicators so we get really good quality time in that 3 hours unless a football game is on, but we have even worked that out. I get a massage on Monday nights while he watches football. But we are both always looking for ways to serve each other and I am blessed to have him.

4. Get with God. I do my quiet times a little different than the biblically prescribed method of morning. I get to work, work a while and then read my Proverbs 31 woman devotion that was sent via email. I also study God’s word at night after my children have gone to bed. Right now I am studying the Excellent Wife. Hopefully some of it will sink in! It is living in obedience and God’s Word that I find He either makes more hours in the day for me or He creates a peace about all the chaos in my day.

5. Take Mini Vacations with your family. I love an adventure and love to travel. I plan a mini-family vacation for my family once a quarter (can you tell I am a corporate girl). That gives me something to look forward to without breaking the budget. I need an escape from my daily routines and life in general about once every 3 months to reconnect with my family away from my house. And I am sure my co-workers need a break from me as well (I am a bit much). It may only be a four day weekend but it is a great solution to my need for adventure and it does wonders for the attitude.

6. Say No. Saying no to what is good to do something great is always hard, but practice makes perfect. My dad always says you can do what you want when your kids are grown, now is the time to spend with them. If you want to be a missionary do it when they are gone. Right now, your mission is your children. And that does not mean having them in 400 different activities. That means one sport per season and spending time getting to know your children. Show them balance by providing them with balance. We are striving for well rounded kids that can adapt to any situation. We are accomplishing this. They travel, they experience diverse situations, they can play sports but they are not consumed by them, they know education is a number one priority, they are social but not obsessed, they are comfortable in their own skin because they have a safe environment at home and they welcome change.

7. Let go of the Superwoman/Superman Concept. It is ok if your yard has a few weeds, it is ok if the dishes stay in the sink overnight, it’s ok if the car has some dirt on it. Cleanliness is not next to Godliness! Nowhere in the bible does it tell me to make sure everyone on my block thinks I have the cleanest house, nicest car or well groomed yard. It does tell me to take care of things God has placed under me but it does not mean being obsessed by the stuff.

8. Live by 10.10.80. Tithe 10%, Save 10% and Enjoy 80%. People get into so much trouble when they live outside of their means. God has blessed you with a certain wage. He wants to know if you can manage the wage he has given you so He can give you more. If you can’t manage what he has entrusted to you, He might not give you more. The bible is very specific about being a good steward. Don’t forget to ENJOY the 80%. That is they money you can do what you want with. When you are living within your means you are free to enjoy it, which causes less “issues” between you and your spouse.

Learning to set boundaries with work and family is the best thing you can do to help you stay engaged and satisfied on your job.

You can enjoy both. Tam

Sign Wednesday: Bathroom Blitz

Matt McKee — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 12:49:00 GMT

One way to judge a restaurant is by going in the bathroom. I actually had an idea of a restaurant that was all about the bathroom. You know the barstools would like like but not function as toilets and the booths would be divided by shower curtins. Of course that is not the point of this post. The point is to bring you a collection of random bathroom signs. This week I want you to pay attention to all of the sings in bathrooms. There are tons of them and here are some of my favorite.

I can't explain this one but it cracks me up.

I wanted to be fair to the ladies who read my blog.

Speaking of men and women.
Magnetic sign that you get to place your own symbol.

Read carefully. They were sued and had to be taken down.

Please use up to 2 font sizes per bathroom sign. This is ridiculous.

So there you have it. This has been toilet talk for the day. Now I must go and see a new sign.

What's in it for Me?

tpolk — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 14:35:00 GMT

For the past 15 years in HR, I have studied and learned the best practices of leaders in many organizations. You know all those top 10 characteristics of a great leader: listens, sets goals, communicates effectively, trustworthy...and the list goes on.

I have seen few really inspirational leaders and I have witnessed first-hand some poor leaders, as I am sure y’all have too! I have even tried to change some leaders, imagine that! Me wanting someone else to change! But, really what else is HR? But to be a change agent! And I thrive on a good challenge!

Fortunately, God has protected me as I boldly tried to change some leaders to become what I thought they should be, for the glory of His Kingdom of course. I went as far as to tell a President of a company that he needed Jesus and until he found Him I was not talking to him anymore! And then I hung up on him. Amazingly, I still kept my job so I guess maybe he might have had an encounter with Jesus or I just got some serious grace! Neither of us spoke of the incident again.

What makes me most excited about my current position is that I get to practice what I have learned over the past 15 years. God is allowing me to use my experiences, my education and my talents to affect change for His Kingdom. What an exciting time to be in HR, in my world anyway! But, interestingly enough, this time, it has nothing to do with me (try to imagine that!) it is about the ways in which God is working on all the hearts of the leaders of Fellowship Technologies and how God is using us to sharpen each other.

We recently went through an internal employee satisfaction survey where the employees got to rate us from 1-5 on 15 different character qualities. After the scores were in, we got to see how the employees thought we were doing on each of the individual character qualities. You know it is always tough, even humiliating when you find out people do not think you are perfect! But God calls us to change our sinful behaviors either by convicting us when we read His Word or by someone else telling us. It’s the “someone else telling us” that I have the biggest problem with!

Amazingly, the more I read God’s Word the more I know when He sends that “someone else to tell me” about myself. I may feel overwhelmed by all that God is showing me regarding my sin and pride but that is exactly where He wants me. He wants me to live in Him and not by my own abilities. You see the essence of God’s grace is that it is a free gift, that it is undeserved and that it is given to the helpless failures like me. It’s a free gift. It’s undeserved. It is given to the helpless. He will give me enough grace each day to manage the changes He has in store for me and me alone. He knows the plans he has for me, plans to prosper me and give me a hope. I just have to be obedient when someone else is the messenger!

Grace and Peace to you and I pray you recognize when God sends someone to tell you about the changes He has in store for you, as coming from God and not the messenger.

Tammy

Update on the iPhone Display

Matt McKee — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 20:32:00 GMT

I know that I can be confusing sometimes and I apologize if the last post was one of those times. The iPhone display below is not just a large black plastic looking iPhone. It is a LCD screen with a plastic cover to make it look like a giant iPhone. On the LCD screen is a video that goes through how to use the phone. It goes through how the web works on the phone. It even goes through how to make a call. It truly is a sign that teaches you how to use the phone. So not only is it very sharp in appearance but it teaches at the same time.

This is the ultimate in the use of a sign. If you can ever get your signs to accomplish fashion and function then you are on the right path.

Sign Wednesday: iPhone Display

Matt McKee — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 18:34:00 GMT

We have an Apple Store in the Kenwood Mall here in Cincinnati. It is an incredible store. I think that if I don't work for Google then Apple would be a nice second. Yesterday I was walking by the store window and saw this:

Now don't get me wrong. This display has been up for a while. And yes that is a giant iPhone. Here is the deal though... The phone is a sign. An every changing sign that teaches you how to use the iPhone. It teaches you how cool it is to own one. I hope you catch this. It is a sign that teaches. I can't say that I have any signs that are this intentional about teaching my kids, students, or parents how to use my ministry. I don't have any sign that teaches how cool my ministry is. Do you? If so I would love to see it.

On a totally different note... I love that this guy is cleaning the sign/phone/teacher. Upkeep is very important and one of the most overlooked aspects of ministry and environments. Of course Apple and other companies do this very well.

Last thing, I still don't have an iPhone. I want one but my church is on the T-Mobile network and a hacked phone I wouldn't trust. I know you have been worrying about what you are going to get me for Christmas, so please don't make it an iPhone unless you give the gift of service with it.

How to get the Secret Weapon

Matt McKee — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 15:53:00 GMT

The first thing you need to understand about plotters are they are like:

I knew the number one question would be, "How do I afford a $7,000-$20,000 machine?". I am glad you asked, but first I must give you full disclosure. I got the one pictured below from Global Imaging for $3500 with ink included. It was their showroom model and they we getting a new one in. How did I do this? I built a relationship with them when I purchased the Zund for Fellowship Church. Now I didn't even have $3500 for this so I did the following and this is how you are going to get your plotter.

I told you that plotters are like cars. You can pay for them with cash, finance them, or lease them. I don't expect your church or business to have even $7000 to put down on a printer. I do expect your church to have $300 dollars a month over 3 years though. I also don't expect this to just come out of the Children's budget. The Children's department is not going to be the only one to use it. Why should they be the only one to pay for it. You are not the only one who should care about marketing at your church.

How does Horizon do it? We lease the current machine we have. We have a 3 year deal with a $1 buyout. At the end of 3 years, we will pay that $1 and keep it or trade it in for a new/used one. I told you, they are just like cars. Recently HP had a trade in program that would give you $7000-$10,000 for a trade in. We would be making money at that point but we are not to the point of need for a new one yet. We split the monthly expense between the Children's, Jr. High, Sr. High, Programming, and Publicity. We then split the cost of supplies such as paper and ink by who uses it. That means that I pay for the rolls of paper that I use and Programming pays for the ones that they use. Of course we share if needed but this way you know how much you have actually spent for budget reasons.

You see your first buy in is not your Senior Pastor or the boss at the business. Your first buy in is the other pastors and staff of your church or business. Then as a united front you let the Senior Pastor/boss decide if they want the 42", 60" or 96" machine.

These machines are expensive if you look at it as a cash purchase but they are very manageable if you look at it like a car. Now you don't have the excuse of it cost to much. I will continue this conversation later with the other top questions.

Sign Wednesday: The Secret Weapon

Matt McKee — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 15:21:00 GMT

I know what you are thinking. That is not a sign and this is Sign Wednesday. If you thought this then you are correct. This is not a sign but it is the secret weapon to sign making. This is called a plotter or a large format printer. Now that the introduction has been made you don't have to be afraid anymore. The one above is the one sitting in our church office and I use it every week. It prints up to 42 inches wide and I have printed up to 18 feet long images on it. If your church, ministry, or business does not have one you should get one. I mean this with everything in me.

But it is to much, right? I don't know how to use it... What programs do I use? Where do I get supplies? Won't this take me away from real ministry or business? What is the point of having one?

These are all of the standard questions. Believe me when I say that I have heard them all. I have done more research and crunched more numbers than most people in the printing industry. I have been to more print expos than I have Children's Ministry conference. I told you I was a sign geek. I know these machines. I have even walked into a local print shop and showed the owner of the company how to use his new DisplayMaker 98 inch flatbed UV printer. Before I left Fellowship Church I did tons of work to getting this machine pictured below:

This is a Zund UVjet 215 plus. This thing is so cool that it is on the church tour. It will print on anything, wood, glass, metal, paper, foam board, up to 2 inches thick and 7 feet wide. Just for fun I put a piece of corrugated metal through it so that I could say I was the first one to do so. You don't want to know how much this one cost.

So let me go ahead and answer your questions.

1. Where do I start? If you are really considering buying one, and you should be, then start off with a HP printer. They are the standard and will get you use to all of the other printers. Buy one that is a Post Script printer to start off with. This means you can plug it into your network at church or business and print to it like you do right now to your copier. Basically no extra hardware needed. HP is running a deal right now on their 5500 series which has been the best for years because they just came out with a newer, faster model. Either the 5500 or their new Z6100 series is going to be great. Remember this is a start and you will want to upgrade in 3 to 5 years after you see what these will do for you.

2. How much? You can get a refurbished HP 5500 with a one year warranty for $6400. A new Z6100 you can get for $13,000 for the 42 inch and $17,000 for the 60 inch. Inks are going to be about $225 per color and their are 6 colors. The ink last me about 7-8 months and I use mine like crazy. It comes out to be about $0.48 per square foot for ink. The paper, vinyl, polyester, canvas, magnets, and other material will come to you priced per square foot as well. That way you know how much a sign will cost you to print. For example, a 4' X 8' sign printed on paper and mounted to foam board would cost me $485 if I got it at Kinko's or if I printed it on my plotter it would cost me $37. No that is not a misprint. Now you see if you do any printing what so ever you will pay for the printer in no time.

3. Where do I get the printer/supplies? Don't get them from Kinko's. Get them from companies like Global Imaging or Queen City Reprographics. Both are companies I use and highly recommend. No I don't get kick backs.

4. What programs do I use? The easiest programs to use with this machine are Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, or Macromedia Freehand. Believe or not though, one of the guys here in the office uses Microsoft Publisher but I wouldn't recommend it.

5. What about real ministry or business? If you couldn't tell, I believe marketing works. I believe people want real ministries and real businesses to be as professional as possible. What is the best way to convert someone into a customer or tell them about Jesus Christ? That would be one on one conversations. What is the best way to show that what you are doing matters? The way your business or ministry looks and feels. Both are very important.

I know you have more questions. I know you I have talked over your heads on some stuff. Here is the deal. These printers are not hard to use. They will save you money if you are outsourcing your signs right now. If you aren't doing signs now then you will have to spend more money. I want you to care about how your area looks. I want you to care about how other people see your area. I want to stop mediocrity in this area. If you want help you can e-mail me.

Great Ministry Spaces

Matt McKee — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 13:57:00 GMT

I need your help. I am looking for pictures of great ministry spaces. I want the most creative, uniquely decorated, innovative spaces Sr. High, Jr. High, Elementary, Preschool, and Nursery. I have been to many churches but I am horrible at taking pictures. I know that there is one resource out there by Roger Fields that can be found at http://www.coldwatercafe.com/Places2See/1MustSee.htm. Thanks Roger for this but there has to more. You must have a bunch sitting on your computer as well. So here is what I would love for you to do, either send those photos to me by e-mail or post a link to your favorties in the comment section so that we all can find them.

Thanks for your help.

A Roller Coaster Day

Matt McKee — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 03:43:00 GMT

Have you had a day when you go through every emotion? Saturday, September 22nd was one of those days for me. There is a famous speech by Jim Valvano that talks about days like this. I quote:

"To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. And number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special. "

Why was it such a day? My oldest son went through surgery and come out great. I got to baptize 4 kids that are very dear to me. I also saw Kentucky win another football game and start the season 4-0. It was a day in which I cried, I laughed, I hugged, I loved, I cheered, I feared, and most of all I was loved in returned.

I hope that you have days like I did yesterday. They wear you out but life would be empty without them.

Rebellious by Heart

tpolk — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 15:01:00 GMT

Success is not measured by the number of hard problems you have, but by whether you have those same problems a year from now.

Pretty Convicting huh? So what are your hard problems that you are in the midst of solving? Will they be the same problems a year from now? My biggest problem that I seem to have year after year is submitting to authority. God has really been convicting me of this sin lately. It seems everywhere I turn He has people strategically placed to throw this in my face. There isn’t a day that goes by that He doesn’t convict me of it and rightfully so, He is trying to perfect me in His image so I can lead the life He intended for me to lead.

There isn’t a 12 step program for girls like me who were trained at a very young age to be independent, to never be dependent on a man and who were expected to be successful in the eyes of the world. This theory comes in handy when you blow a tire and can fix it yourself or when someone tries to belittle you and you laugh in their face because you are so confident nothing shakes you. However, this theory is completely against you when you read the verse “Wives submit to your husbands, as fitting in the Lord. (Colossians 3:18) Yah right, not on your life! Or in the verse “Christians are commanded to submit to each other” (1 Corin. 16:15) Yah right even when it’s a pushy, annoying boss? The answer is YES, a big FAT YES! And over and over God is convicting me to take my place both in the home and at work. Why? Because He has something great planned for me and He wants to use me to advance His Kingdom but He can’t work through me when ultimately I am not submitting to Him.

In my rebellious state and by not submitting to the men He has placed in authority over me, He has to turn His face from my sin. He thinks all the snotty, independence is rather ugly and He is determined to change me! And He knows only He can change me but I have to the choice to submit! He gave me the personality, the style and the attitude to want to change and to see Him for who He is: my Savior, my Father, my Love, my Trust, my Redeemer, my Healer and the ultimate…the boss of me!

How are you going to submit to the people He has placed over you today? Will you have the same problem again next year? I am convinced through the power of His Spirit and by His grace and mercy I will not have the same problem of submitting to the men He has placed over me next year!

Submitting to Him, Tammy