Today is…
A new day.
A new beginning.
Another opportunity.
You’ve been given…
A new lease on life.
Another at bat.
A second (insert any number) chance.
So…
Re-rack ‘em and let’s go.
Hit the reset button.
Take another whack at it.
Feel free to…
Have another go.
Start over.
Make another run at it.
No matter what’s happened, Jesus has…
Wiped your slate clean.
Cleared your record.
Given you a fresh start.
________
What are you waiting for?
Get going.
After achieving a goal / reaching a new level the question “What’s Next?” is often asked.
We do our best to answer it in this seven minute version of the podcast.
DJ and I also have a top five list that includes:
Can you guess what we’re talking about?
[haiku url=”http://andyjoneslive.com/audio/andyjoneslive6-21-12.mp3″ title=”What’s Next”]
Listen, enjoy & share.
Would you be friends with someone who only brushed their teeth when food was visibly wedged between their teeth?
They’d only wash their hands when black smudges followed behind when they touched stuff?
How bout if they only showered when there was green steam emanating from their body?
I don’t think I could.
That behavior seems odd and downright disgusting to me.
What about in your own life?
Do you only weed your yard once a year and leave the rest to chance?
Only mow it once figuring it will make up for the other times when your lawn is nasty and overgrown?
Do you pay your bills occasionally and only when you feel like it?
Let me clarify, you have the money, you simply figured the companies would appreciate it more if you made them wait between payments.
After all, if you paid monthly they’d get used to it.
You want them to really appreciate your money.
Of course that would be nonsensical.
You couldn’t go through life that way.
Some things need to be done routinely.
Personal hygiene, caring for your home and paying bills are done best when done regularly.
Complimenting, encouraging and building others up is also done best when done regularly.
Unfortunately, many have bought into the idea that only doing this occasionally will increase our effectiveness.
We make the mistake of thinking a compliment on a rare occasion will have more impact.
I’ve personally thought this: I don’t want to heap too much praise; after all, I don’t want them to get a big ego.
That’s not for me to decide.
My job is to encourage. To build up. To believe the best.
So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you’ll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind. I know you’re already doing this; just keep on doing it. (1 Thessalonians 5.11, MSG)
Make complimenting, encouraging and building others up part of your daily routine.
NWLife’s Matriarch joins me today on the podcast.
[haiku url=”http://andyjoneslive.com/audio/andyjoneslive6-19-12.mp3″ title=”Elizabeth”]
Together we talk about all things birds.
Her knowledge will impress you.
Mine will make you roll your eyes.
Listen and enjoy.
Early on in youth ministry I had a great team around me.
People who loved and cared about teens.
People who were dedicated to making a difference in young peoples lives.
There was only one problem.
I had nothing for them to do.
I was doing everything.
I didn’t want to overwork them, because after all, they were volunteers and I was the “paid professional” (uproarious laughter).
A healthy understanding of Ephesians chapter four has helped me grow into a leader of leaders.
Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.
Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. (Ephesians 4.11-12, NLT)
In short my job is to create jobs for our volunteers to do.
I can trust others to lead us forward.
My job is to BUILD a team and RELEASE them to do the work of the ministry.
I’m not perfect.
I’m still working at it.
But ministry has been a lot more fun since it became about empowering others.