The Power of Adversity

I’m taking a little “Nana” moment to celebrate my grandson’s winning 1st Place in his Original Oratory Speech at the NCFCA National Championships this weekend. Out of 1000s of students from 45 states, competing in 65 preliminary tournaments, 500 students made it to Nationals. Payton's win is truly a tribute to his diligence, hard work, and relentless attitude. The win comes with scholarships offered and afforded him the opportunity to deliver the speech after the competition to over 1,500 people. I was blessed to be able to watch it LIVE, thanks to technology! I am always a proud Nana of my grandchildren, and this just added another notch on my “pride and joy” belt. Beyond the pride, however, was the speech he gave that truly described his own story of overcoming adversity and helping others to realize that adversity can be a friend to those who recognize God’s way of building our character and our ability to overcome and come out as a conqueror.

“The Power of Adversity” was the topic of this speech. In it, Payton talked about the tension and adversity that we encounter and the more we experience, the better the trajectory of the potential of success in our future. He used the analogy of his Toys R Us bow and suction-cup arrow, as a child, which did well to kill his “refrigerator bad guy”, but it paled in comparison to the real bow and arrow that his dad bought him, set the tension to Payton’s ability and he soon learned this arrow could fly three times further because of that tension.

He went on to point out world changers and history makers like Thomas Edison whose teachers said he was too stupid to learn anything. And, Abraham Lincoln who failed in business, marriage, politics and suffered the loss of his two sons before becoming the President of the United States. Every adversity these leaders experienced increased their patience, their knowledge and their ability to create history. Payton quoted Walt Disney “All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me. You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”

Payton went into his own story of adversity. In the same year: his Papa died from cancer, his dog died, and he was being bullied at school. He said, as he pointed out his thin body, “I’m not the most athletic kid but I sure wanted to play football and fit in with the other guys.” Instead of helping him, they bullied him and the abuse only got worse and the verbal hatred got louder. The words spoken over him replayed like a broken record in his mind – “too skinny, you’ll never amount to anything, you’ll never be good at anything”. With many hilarious, self-deprecating moments throughout his speech, his message was clear: "When adversity comes, like the storm that came up while Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat, let it be that storm that takes you to the other side”.

Payton’s speech resonated with me too. We all have defining moments that either make or break us. Whatever those moments are, God will use them for our good. Our destiny and purpose are wrapped up in each and every adversity that comes our way. It's that "stuff" that causes the aha moments -- those moments that seemed like the worst of worst times but were actually the turbo boost to propel us to where we were meant to be. The times of adversity either make us stronger and cause us to have the "warrior mentality" or we succumb to the pressure and throw in the towel and have the "pull-the-blanket-over-the-head mentality". One makes us stronger and leads to success and the other causes us to quit and leads to failure stories. They're either stories that said "I pushed through to victory" or "I gave up and quit. IF ONLY....I had persisted." From Abraham Lincoln to Thomas Edison to Payton Wallace, great leaders and achievers push themselves beyond the point of failure and take a step back to re-evaluate why they started the journey in the first place. Even when their body or mind told them to quit, they dug deep and pushed through the adversity.

My parting paragraph is Payton’s final words from his speech. I pray these words to speak to your heart:

“I don’t know what you’re going through today. Maybe you’re facing financial adversity, a broken relationship, or even if you’re just like me….you look in the mirror and you feel inferior and worthless. Jesus is in the back of the boat with you. He has a way of using every adversity and every difficulty to propel you to the other side of your breakthrough. Now, personally, I’ve grown to fight greater enemies than my refrigerator and I know that God uses every adversity in my life to prepare me and propel me to become a leader worth following. The same is true for each and every one of you. Adversity is not your enemy. Tension is not your foe. Instead, embrace it. Peace isn’t the absence of adversity. Peace is the confidence in knowing that all things – even the seemingly worst things -- work together for good when you put your faith and trust in God.”

On Your Mark -- Get Set...GO! It's Black Friday!! Let the Christmas Season Begin!

Thanksgiving day was everything I had hoped it would be -- worshiping God, hearing a beautiful message on "Instead of just Thanksgiving -- make it Thanks-Living" and then being able to serve blessed communion at church early morning. I headed home to go into hyper-speed mode to get the turkey cooking with all the fixin's for my family here in Frisco and my family coming in from Austin. It is so worth all the prep for the joys. This year I asked each family member to express their gratitude for one minute. Well, most of the adults couldn't keep to the one minute rule -- there's just too much to be thankful for. I loved the grandchildren and their precious words.

But today is the day AFTER Thanksgiving. Shopping is in full force this morning -- well, actually, it was in full force at 5 pm yesterday. Why is the day after Thanksgiving called "Black Friday"? I did a little research. Originally it was Black Friday because so many people went out to shop and it caused traffic accidents and sometimes even violence. The Philadelphia Police Department coined the phrase to describe the mayhem surrounding the congestion of pedestrian and auto traffic in the downtown area.

No wonder retailers wanted to make the name "Black Friday" mean something positive. So they did. They used the name to reflect their success. Accountants use black to signify profit when recording each day's book entries. Red is used to mean loss. Therefore, Black Friday means PROFITABLE FRIDAY to retailing and to the economy.

Now you know a little more about BLACK FRIDAY. Indeed, it seems a bit negative to me because I see it as the ending of thanksgiving and gratitude, and the beginning of bedlam, hustle and bustle and all the joy of this new joyful season getting lost in the midst of the chaos. Clearly, the Thanksgiving holiday is over for another year. Yes, we'll be watching out for Christmas sales now. After all -- Christmas is only one month away and in the words of John Wayne, "Slap some bacon on a biscuit and let's go! We're burnin' daylight!"

But, as I posted earlier this week, Thanksgiving doesn't have to end when Black Friday indicates the start of the Christmas season. Christmas is too big for just one day and Thanksgiving is too important to only be reserved for one day. Thank God that President Lincoln in 1863 signed a proclamation calling for "a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwells in the Heavens…..." And, I’ll take that one step further, one day is just not enough to offer enough thanksgiving and praise to Almighty God for his goodness and mercy to us. Just think, if we carried over Thanksgiving right into the Christmas season and if we purposely live with an “attitude of gratitude”, maybe those frenzied shoppers wouldn't bug us so much when they almost run us over to get that "special".

God tells us to "enter His gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise" (Psalms 100:4). Gratitude is that gate and doorway to God’s joy and peace, and praise is the key to His presence. Being aware of His presence may just be the key to having one of the best Christmas seasons EVER. Instead of today being "Black Friday" to us.....we could turn it into a "Good Friday", that becomes the doorway to the beautiful season of Advent which begins this Sunday -- that sacred, focused and deliberate time when we ponder the coming of our Lord from His heavenly throne to earth to become one of us. It really was a time of HEAVEN ON EARTH. Unlike the innkeeper who said, "No room in the inn", may we cross over from the hustle, bustle, stress and mess that can accompany this season and do our best to make room for Him..May this Black Friday become a Good Friday to YOU today!

What Kind of Influencer Are You?

A few days ago my daughter told me about an unfortunate incident at the tennis courts in their community. A young man was "hogging" one of the courts and refused to allow other residents in the area to play. Typically, there is a one-hour game play, and when others are waiting for the court, the players let others take their place after an hour. Not in the case of this young man. He was adamant that he didn't have to quit, and his nasty attitude was seen by many people wanting to play. Before long, the father of that young man showed up and, likewise, his attitude was even more offensive than the son's. Obviously, the young man was influenced by his disagreeable father. Like father -- like son.

Let's think about what kind of an INFLUENCER we are to those around us. Do we influence others to be better, act better and live better lives by the way they see us living ours?

Here's a way we can measure: We go throughout our day and people get to know us and they see how we treat those around us....from our children, to our spouse, to our co-workers, to the cashier at a store -- we're being watched in how we act (and react) in situations of calm, as well as those of stress. Do we act entitled or are we kind, generous and compassionate, whether we focus on THEM and give them our undivided attention (put down those cell phones!), or not. And also....if we're meeting someone for a lunch or appointment, are we showing up on time? Do we respect the time of others? All of that life example matters.....and it speaks volumes.
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Abraham Lincoln noted that "actions speak louder than words." Even his words, among the most eloquent in political history, would not have been effective if his life had contradicted his words. We don't have to be high profile, in the spotlight, or in a noteworthy position, but we do have to live in such a way that our life illustrates our faith. And our faith is best spoken by our actions.

Excellence is a biblical imperative: "And you, yourself, must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching." (Titus 2:7)

Little and big eyes are watching us daily. Our lives represent a BOOK of manners, courtesy, honor, integrity and character that others need to see and become. What does your book look like?

Happy Presidents Day! Thanks, Presidents!

I gave considerable thought to Presidents' Day before posting today. In my research, I found this day began as a way of celebrating George Washington's Birthday (our first U.S. president) and now it's a federal holiday that honors all presidents of the U.S. In celebrating this day, do we really acknowledge, with gratitude, what our presidents sacrificed and did for us? Why would anyone, including our current president, desire this position? What is it about the psyche of would-be presidents that makes them wake up in the morning and think it would be gratifying to take on the troubles of the world, to assume responsibility for the lives of 300 million Americans at a time when their lives are so precarious? And particularly now, in this moment of maximum crisis and hostilities -- wars and rumors of wars, health care, people without jobs, the national debt, ISIS, global warming, immigration issues, etc., why would ANYONE step up?

Some would answer that question of "Why do you want to be President?" by responding: ego, fame, fortune (just look at the book deals, speaking fees that follow even after a president has left office), etc. And, of recent campaigning by President Trump, and other candidates who ran for the office, they sincerely believe that they can fix what nobody else can fix. The ambition and drive that propel politicians to high office at a time of tribulation may convince them that deep problems are simply successes waiting to happen. Wonder if they followed Zig Zigar's famous quote "You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want."

But, really, what about the crticism, the idea of living in a glass house where every thing you say and do, what you wear, what your spouse and children wear and do, is so highly scrutinized, having secret service with you 24/7, not being able to live a normal, every-day-run-of-the-mill life, and when you make a decision that you sincerely feel is the right one, backfires on you and your reputation takes another downward spiral of popularlity. And, here's a biggie -- Dr. Michael Roizen holds on to what he's said for a while: That presidents effectively age twice as fast while in office. We've all seen the difference of Day 1 of a new president in office and the day he leaves office. Even in the best of times, the presidency can be an enormous burden. Every American soldier killed abroad, every house foreclosed on at home, every monster storm from the Gulf of Mexico to the Indian Ocean ultimately becomes his responsibility.

Whew! WHY? Somewhere in all that decision-making, every single one of our presidents, whatever party they represented, whatever good or bad decisions they made.....they stepped up to make a difference. I can't fault a single one of them for that. I can only express my appreciation for ALL of those who were willing to put their personal lives on hold for those years they held office and for the good they did....we are still here, thanking God that we live in American.....where, in the words of Lee Greenwood, "at least I know I'm free!"

Abraham Lincoln gets a lot of attention on this day because his birthday was also in mid-February. I remember lessons and activities about the presidents when I was in school, and hearing the faith of President Lincoln still inspires me. It is true that Lincoln never joined a church, although he attended church services regularly while President. The reason he gave for refusing to join a church was that he could "never be satisfied" with all the dogmas and creeds that the denominational churches of his day required. On this subject Lincoln wrote:

"When any church will inscribe over its altar, as its sole qualification for membership, the Savior's condensed statement of the substance of both law and Gospel, 'Thou shalt love the lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and thy neighbor as thyself' that church will I join with all my heart and all my soul."

On this day of celebrating our Presidents, I'd like to say "Thank you" to ALL of those who have been willing to take this huge weight upon their shoulders. I honor them, each and every one.

President Lincoln said, "Let us renew our trust in God and go forward without fear." That is key -- NOT trusting man, but trusting God and when we do that -- we can move forward without fear. Please join me in this prayer: "Forgive us, God, for the ways we have placed our hope in anything or anyone other than You. Forgive us for the times we should have been that rock to others, but instead we have been a source of anxiety as we vented our own fears and frustrations. Forgive us for when we should have been leading and expressing faith, but in expressing our doubt and dismay, we may have caused others to wonder whether You are a God in whom we can trust. And You most assuredly are. Make our faith stronger. Make our focus greater. We look to no man, but we do pray for our President. We pray for those who have the ear of our President, and that those who know You personally will not fear to speak what is true and what represents Your Word and Your heart. Whatever turn is next in the road, or the turn after that, or the turn after that—we pray that our faith would be stronger for what we have seen and endured. Let us love and give and serve and trust and spend ourselves for what really matters. Let us remain prayerful, grateful, and hopeful because of the promises You have given us. We consecrate ourselves, our families, our country, and our future, again, to You. In Christ's name we pray....Amen!

1 Timothy 2:1-2 “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."

The Warrior Mentality

We all have defining moments that either make or break us.  Whichever they are -- God will use them for our good.  Our destiny and purpose is wrapped up in each and every one of them.  It's that "stuff" that causes the aha moments -- those moments that seemed like the worst of worst times, but were actually the turbo boost to propel us to where we were meant to be. Most of the time, those defining moments come as adversity.
The times of adversity either make us stronger and cause us to have the "warrior mentality" or we succomb to the pressure and throw in the towel and have the "pull-the-blanket-over-the-head mentality".  One makes us stronger and leads to success and the other causes us to quit and leads to failure stories.   They're either stories that said "I pushed through to victory" or "I gave up and quit.  IF ONLY....I had persisted."    From Abraham Lincoln to Steve Jobs to Michael Jordan, great leaders and achievers push themselves beyond the point of failure and take a step back to re-evaluate why they started the journey in the first place.  Even when their body or mind tells them to quit, they dig deep and push through the adversity.

That's what our annual Unstoppable Summit is all about.  This weekend, once again (8 years in a row), incredible, die-hard leaders from all over the country have come together to re-evaluate, re-focus, re-ignite, re-enforce and re-mind ourselves that we are warriors who are on a daily mission to accomplish everything God assigns us to -- all for the purpose of making the difference in people's lives.    I loved it yesterday morning when we were talking about the "warrior mentality" of strength, courage and determination.  Warriors don't fear combat -- in
fact, it causes them to rise to the challenge.  They are on the front line with their trusted comrades and strongly value both courage AND loyalty.  Warriors are distinctly solid and physical, ready for action.   Today, Staci brought out a sword that had been given to her by her pastor because he said he saw her as a warrior.  She asked Anthony Abron​ to demonstrate his warrior voice.  In his big, booming, boisterous, strong and authoritative voice he belted out his interpretation of a warrior's offensive, protective, determined cry.....AND, it shook the house.  That cry/yell would certainly cause the enemy to run in terror.  And, isn't that what our attitude toward the enemy should be?  Not a wimpy, woe-is-me, pitiful attitude and cry, but one that causes the enemy to flee.

Almost as if on queue, a knock came to Larry & Staci's front door, it was Pastor Keith Craft (their pastor and,(by the way -- a complete surprise to all of us).  He wanted to show us his Team Strike Force's new meanest, baddest, AWESOME F650 truck.   "Now that's a WARRIOR'S machine!" Team Strike Force was founded by Pastor Keith Craft 28 years ago -- with the purpose of conducting school assemblies to motivate and encourage students with doing what's right.  They are Christian bodybuilders who wow crowds with their feats of strength.     That's "Warrior Mentality".  Being tenacious, committed, passionate about doing the right thing and helping young people become warriors who do the right thing too.  

Isn't that the warrior mentality we all should have when it comes to standing up for what's right and doing what's right -- to take all life with passion and purpose and dig in deep to declare war on ANY and EVERYTHING that tries to stop God's assignments?

What Does Your Book of Influence Look Like?

Are you an INFLUENCER to those around you.....and what does that "influence" look like? Does it influence others to be better, act better and live better lives?

Here's a way to measure: We go throughout our day and people get to know us and they see how we treat those around us....from our children, to our spouse, to our co-workers, to the cashier at a store -- we're being watched in how we act (and react) in situations of calm, as well as those of stress. Do we act entitled or are we kind, generous and compassionate, whether we focus on THEM and give them our undivided attention (put down those cell phones!). And also....if we're meeting someone for a lunch or appointment, are we showing up on time? Do we respect the time of others? All of that stuff matters.....and it speaks volumes.

Abraham Lincoln noted that "actions speak louder than words." Even his words, among the most eloquent in political history, would not have been effective if his life had contradicted his words. We don't have to be high profile, in the spotlight, or in a noteworthy position, but we do have to live in such a way that our life illustrates our faith. And our faith is best spoken by our actions.

Excellence is a biblical imperative: "And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching." (Titus 2:7)

Little and big eyes are watching us daily. Our lives represent a BOOK of manners, courtesy, honor, integrity and character that others need to see and become. What does your book look like?