Includes...
Here is this week's Yearly Cycle Update.
I think of February as foundations month, because there were two times when the foundation of the temple was laid in the Old Testament and they were both in the second month. While thinking of foundations Exodus 24:10 came to mind, " And they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness."
Heaven is a very clear place, and Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven is within us. We are supposed to be very clear on the inside. Several years ago, when I started the Abundant Life Blueprint, I was coaching some people one on one through the lessons and learned some very important things. The first was that the order of the lessons mattered. In the beginning I was jumbling up the teachings with one day on health, one day on spiritual, one day on mindset, etc and the results were just ok. But then I changed the order to work from the inside out by doing...
The other day I was listening to some talks on business and the style of business was very high pressure. It really got me thinking about how we create the environment where grace flows, because putting a bunch of pressure on other people is not the way. When grace flows everything is easy, elegant, energizing, fun, and simple. An environment that is not full of grace feels very judgmental, high pressure, with a lot of effort, complex, and it depletes energy.
Today's communion is a time of gratitude for God's grace and we are asking for his help to create the environment where grace flows in our relationship with him, in our purpose, health, family, finances, order, time, and community.
Here are a few things I have learned about how to create this environment...
Order and positioning are very important - I think of staying positioned in the light with humility, forgiveness, love, and gratitude as the first prerequisite.
Take the pressure off of yourself and ot...
Yesterday I was doing the Daily Communion Workout and it was one of those days when I was tired and was just trying to get through the workout. While getting ready to do the set of 8 deadlifts and I was staring at the bar for a few seconds and the feeling of dread came over me like I really don't want to do the deadlifts. And keep in mind I had been using this same exact weight for a few months and been getting all 8 reps fairly easily on most days.
After staring at the bar for a little while I said to myself, "Surely I can do 1 rep. I am just going to do one beautiful rep."
So, I did one beautiful rep and when I set the bar back down, I thought, " I could do one more beautiful rep."
I kept doing just one beautiful rep at a time and in the end, I did all 8 reps easily, on a day when I didn't want to do one.
When we focus on just one rep at a time it causes us to be more present and presence is what I like to call the grace table turner. Presence turns the ta...
Here is the monthly message for February.
February 2022 - Be Ready and Watching for Opportunities
February is the second month and in the Old Testament there were two times when the foundation of the temple was laid. And they were both in the second month. I consider February to be foundations month. A time to make sure we have a solid foundation in place.
In February let's be ready and watching for opportunities. Be ready through consistent daily practice and then be watching for opportunities to do good. There are two parts to this... Consistent preparation and practice paired with high levels of expectation that God is sending opportunities every day. Here are some examples...
Here is today's communion meditation.
When we enjoy times of recreation, we re-create ourselves. When we enjoy times of recreation and play like a kid it re-creates us from the inside out. And I believe times of recreation can be great times of connecting with God. I have found that some of the greatest ideas and revelations come during times of recreation. But to build more recreation into our lives we must be proactive in planning it and making it a priority.
Life needs to have a balance of work and play. And if we can turn our work into times of recreation even better.
Today's communion is a time of gratitude that in God's presence there is fullness of joy. And we are asking for his help to have more fun and to have recreation be part of our lives the way he intended it to be.
Today's Health/Workout Tip
What do you do if something hurts during your workout? Here is the approach that I take... Do what I can do with no pain. Don't do things that hurt. The...
Here is today's communion meditation.
When Jesus sent the twelve disciples out in his name to heal, he told them in Matthew 10:12-15 and Mark 6:10-11...
As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13 If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. Matthew 10:12-15
Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” Mark 6:10-11
Yesterday we talked about dealing with rejection when we are trying to do good, but people won't receive it. In this scripture we see the disciples going out to do good, but Jesus tells them there will be people who reject them and won't receive them. The first thing they must do when they are rejected is let their peace r...
Here is today's communion meditation.
The last couple of days we have been talking about catching and throwing bids. A bid is an attempt to connect with someone. When other people throw bids our way and we don't catch the bid for whatever reason and fail to connect it is very dishonoring for the other person and they may feel rejected. In the same way when we start to throw bids to the important people in our lives there may be times when they also fail to catch the bid. During these times the feeling of rejection may arise. Feeling like you were trying to do good and be a blessing, but the other person wouldn't receive it. It is important to handle these situations with grace.
Think of Jesus... He was rejected by the people in his hometown. Even his own brothers were treating him with contempt. The priests and leaders of the Jewish people who were supposed to be his people rejected him. He is the stone the builders rejected. But he was full of grace and truth a...
Here is today's communion meditation.
Yesterday we talked about catching bids, which means honoring other people's attempts to connect with us. Today we are discussing throwing bids to other people. An important part of connecting with God and the important people in our lives is throwing bids their way in a style that makes them feel cherished and valued and is meaningful to them. They may like to connect in a way that is different from what we like. What do they like, what are they interested in, and what pushes their buttons?
As an example, I have one daughter who likes to bake and another who likes to dance. To one of them spending time baking is meaningful while to the other watching her latest dance moves is meaningful to her. A great way that I have found to get better at throwing bids to other people is to spend a couple of minutes before bed visualizing the upcoming day for the important people in my life. Then looking for opportunities to do something m...
Here is today's communion meditation.
I once read about a concept called "catching bids," in a marriage book called "Cherish," by Gary Thomas.
In the book Thomas says that catching bids is one of the best predictors of marital happiness and divorce. A bid is anytime your spouse tries to connect with you. For example, do they initiate a conversation, ask you to do something with them, try to give you a hug/kiss, or initiate intimacy. Catching the bid would mean that we stop whatever we are doing (even if we think it's more important) and honor their attempt to connect. The best marriages he says catch about 85% of all bids.
I think this concept is important for all of our relationships, because to not catch a bid is dishonoring to others. The last two days we have talked about the Fear of the Lord, being deep honor and respect for God. And God is also throwing bids our way every day, and it's important to stop what we are doing and catch His bids.
Something I ...
Here is this week's Yearly Cycle Update.
There have been studies done where people are dropped off in the middle of nowhere and told to navigate their way out without any navigation tools. During these times the people's default tendency is to walk in circles, because they keep making small decisions that are biased in one direction more than the other. This especially happens when they are faced with obstacles that they have to navigate around. But if the people are given landmarks or tools to tell direction then they can usually find their way out.
In life sometimes we get stuck in vicious cycles and we end up going in circles over and over, despite putting in the effort to move forward. In these times you must have something to navigate with, and I believe God's grace is meant to be the standard that we use to navigate our lives.
To stop going in circles we must do something different and allow his grace to navigate us out. This means we must rely on and tr...
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