#119 - Avoid the TRAP!

Good morning! Actually... good afternoon! We had a wonderful weekend. Celebrated Mama's 90th Birthday in Georgia, and had the Ewing Christmas party! (Tyler's mom's side of the family) It was fun. We actually stayed in a 2-bedroom hotel suite with a full kitchen. That was nice. It allowed us to be close to the parties, but also allowed Mama to do some baking! Apple pie, pumpkin pie & mashed potatoes was my contribution to the Christmas Party. They did get good reviews, so I was happy about that! Thank you Grandma for your pie crust recipe that continues to live on! Love you Grandma! 


Well... let's get started... 

Proverbs 20:25 - It is a snare to a man to utter a vow [of consecration] rashly and [not until] afterward inquire [whether he can fulfill it]. 

Proverbs 31:16 - She considers a [new] field before she buys or accepts it [expanding prudently and not courting neglect of her present duties by assuming other duties]; with her savings [of time and strength] she plants fruitful vines in her vineyard. 

I think this is a very appropriate topic with New Year's around the corner. I'm sure you have been thinking about what you want to change for your 2011. How do you want to improve? Who do you want to be? What projects to you want to start & finish? Pounds that you want to shed. It's that time of year when we think about CHANGE. IMPROVEMENT. 


Well, as it says in Proverbs 20:25 & 31:16, I want to CAUTION you when deciding upon your upcoming goals or changes you want to make. Picture the YELLOW FLASHING sign that reads, CAUTION. Look at the warning in Proverbs 20:25, and look at how the Proverbs 31 woman applies this verse to her life! In Proverbs 20:25 we could read it this way, An impulsive vow is a trap (The Message Bible) or Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God and only later counting the cost. (NLT) A VOW is more than a promise. It is a SOLEMN promise. It is a pledge. It is serious. 


Let me tell you a story about that. I have been taking two groups of people through a program called New Way New You. On a weekly basis I meet weekly and teach/coach each of these classes. One in person, one via conference call. The program involves proper nutrition, exercise, supplementation, weekly goal setting and changing one's mentality about themselves. It's a FULL program that encompasses everything that leads to Optimal Health. It's been a very eye opening experience for me as I have watched people who were very excited when we started and wouldn't you know it, week by week, many of them have disappeared. Sure, I know sometimes life gets in the way, other obligations come up and maybe some did not fully "commit" from the beginning. 


Personally, when I am looking to add something to my plate, the Holy Spirit and I have to have a serious talk. I don't want to add something in "vain." I don't want to add something that I cannot see through, or be committed too. I definitely do not want to do something if I am not suppose to do it because then it would definitely be TOIL! What is toil? The dictionary defines it as: to move or travel with difficulty, weariness, or pain. That is NOT my idea of a good time. When you commit to something on your OWN without the direction or approval of the Holy Spirit, it begins the series of disappointment. Let's just take a fitness goal. When you make a commitment or goal and then do not see it through, what does it do to you? It takes a hit at your self-image. And each day as you do not do that "thing", whatever it is, your self-image takes another hit. You go to bed thinking, "Oh dang it. I didn't do it again. I'm going to bed another night and I did not complete my goal. Arghhhh. I feel terrible. Dang it." Some people may have this battle in their head of thinking they are a loser. All of it could have been avoided had they not made a commitment on their OWN. By making a vow or promise that you are not suppose to make Proverbs says that you are setting a TRAP for yourself. You set the trap, and you walk into it. 


I recently had a really great opportunity. An opportunity that could have been VERY VERY profitable. As I was asking the Holy Spirit about it, I continued to have a lack of peace about moving forward. The Holy Spirit continued to tell me, "You will not have time for it. You will not have time. It is to great of an obligation to take on. I have other things for you that will be better." I continued to question him because it did sound like such a great opportunity, but peace never came. So... for now, it is something that I am passing on. 


The Proverbs 31 woman expands PRUDENTLY. She expands, yes. But, she does not expand before it is taken into careful consideration. Does she have the time to do it? Will the other obligations REALISTICALLY still be able to get done? Does she have the energy to do it? Does she have the resources? The faith? I would anticipate many things come into play when she is CONSIDERING expanding.... taking another thing on.... adding one more thing to her already full but productive plate/time. 


As you go into this New Year. CONSIDER what your promises are. Consider what goals you should set. Set yourself up for VICTORY not for FAILURE. Be realistic about your goals. If you are not working out at ALL right now, maybe you shouldn't set a goal to work out 6 days a week. Maybe your goal should be 3 days/week. That is AFTER you have asked the Holy Spirit about it. 


Avoid the trap of over-committing to the wrong things or even overcommitting to the RIGHT things, but at the wrong time! Set yourself up to win in 2011 & every year that follows!

#83 - AGGRESSIVELY LISTEN

Man! Are you ready! I have so many good things that are just wanting to LEAP out of my head onto the keyboard and your computer screen! Before even getting started I want to give you a few starting, foundational quotes that will correspond with today's Word. 

• Open-mindedness is essential for belief. Closed minds do not inspire faith, courage and belief.
• A burning desire to be and to do is the starting point from which the dreamer must take off. Dreams are not born of indifference, laziness or lack of ambition.    
• No one ever is defeated until defeat has been accepted as a reality.
• Every person who wins in any undertaking must be willing to burn his ships and cut all sources of retreat. 

Yesterday, during my interesting Day of Rest, finally at the end of the day when Tyler had the boy out and about with him, I got to silently sit and listen. Sit and listen to the Holy Spirit. Listen to His words to me as I sought to find a book that I could really dive into. A book that I would not get a few chapters into to only set it down and pick up another book. I have about 5 unfinished books right now, that have just not kept my interest. I know reading is very important as I remember the quote, "Not all readers are leaders, but there are NO Leaders who are not readers." So, in essence, if I want to be a leader, if I want to have influence in my life, there is no way around reading. I must read to lead. I finally found a book that has been very inspiring and one of the many classics of Napoleon Hill. The quotes above are his and they fall in line with what we are going to talk about today. 


Let's look at today's scripture:

Psalm 42:1b-2a - I pant and long for You, O God. My inner self thirsts for God, for the living God. 

Psalm 73:28a - But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God...

Proverbs 31:30 - Charm and grace are deceptive, and beauty is vain [because it is not lasting], but a woman who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord, she shall be praised! 

During my DOR yesterday, as I sat by lamp light on the couch, I just paused to listen. Sometimes in the past, I would get so 'productive' DOING, that I didn't spend enough time just still and listening. I heard the Holy Spirit tell me to LISTEN AGGRESSIVELY. The more aggressive you are to listening to Me, the quicker you will accomplish your dreams.... your discipline to listen 1st will advance you further than anything. 


Imagine this. (Frank Luntz, from FoxNews was at our business conference this weekend... he said the word 'IMAGINE' is one of the top 20 most powerful words in the English language!) SO, IMAGINE THIS... imagine, you wake up in the morning and you have an open notebook next to your bed. So, you pick up the notebook and begin to read the words written on it. God Himself, wrote down your "TO-DO" list for the day. He wrote down in detail even what time you should go to the grocery store because the person who is going to open the door to THE BIG OPPORTUNITY for you will be in the produce section. He lays out what to do, what direction to drive on your way to work, or to run errands. He writes down who to call on the way and how to spend the most quality moments with your children, while still progressing forward. He lays out just how the whole day is suppose to go. 


Sounds really nice doesn't it! To have hand written instructions from God each day! And you know what, YOU CAN HAVE IT! He wants us ALL to AGGRESSIVELY LISTEN to Him. He knows just what will be successful and what things would be activities in vain. He knows just what to do, who you need to meet, how to do what you need to do for money to come in... HE knows it all. And in HIS way, there is NO TOIL. No Toil. No frustration. No 'wondering' if it will work. With God, there is NO failure. BUT on our part it takes a discipline to AGGRESSIVELY LISTEN. 


Belief. Burning desire. Victory. Moving forward. All the above words in the quotes from Napoleon Hill, ALL of those lead to victory. God wants us to live in VICTORY. He wants us to live a life that will SHOW how great HE IS! He wants our lives to reflect HIS GREATNESS! He wants OUR lives to reflect how GOOD of a Father He is! 


A friend of mine sent me a text message this morning that almost sent me jumping on my bed for joy! She has needed a new vehicle for awhile. She and her husband have been believing God for a new vehicle. I mean, it was so bad that on rainy days, water leaked in from the roof into the back seat. AND, not only that, they have a little girl who rides in a car seat in the back. So, they NEEDED a new vehicle. They consistently and persistently THANKED GOD for providing it for them. They have seen him do other miracles in their lives, and knew God wanted them and their family in a safe vehicle. God wanted to show his goodness. So in the text message my friend told me the amazing news. She received an SUV as a gift this weekend from her in-laws. A GIFT. I was so jacked, I about wanted to cry! What a blessing. Sure, it was a gift from her in-laws, but it was a gift from their FATHER! God used her in-laws to bless them. God used someone to bless them. God took the opportunity to reveal HIS GREATNESS!


Long for. Thirst for. Draw near to God! Like the Proverbs 31 woman lived a life with characteristics that were not in Vain. She developed characteristics that were not in vain. They did not just reflect outside, physical beauty, but she had an inward beauty that lasted. She had an inward resolve that was truth and it was lasting. 


LISTENING AGGRESSIVELY is a trait that is not vain. It is a characteristic that will last. It is a quality, that IF USED consistently will lead to you accomplishing whatever your burning desire is, your dream is. IF USED, if YOU LISTEN AGGRESSIVELY, YOU will see and accomplish the fruit of your prayers... the fruit of the time spent listening. And just wait and watch as God shows out in YOUR LIFE TOO! Will it be an SUV? Maybe. Will it be a house? Maybe. I would bet it will be whatever it is that YOU need. Because MY GOD supplies all MY NEEDS according to HIS riches and glory. And He will supply YOUR NEEDS TOO! We have a very wealthy Father!! He wants to bless you too! Will you LISTEN AGGRESSIVELY? Will you make it a habit today? Take some time, right now... get out your journal, stop and listen. What we "IMAGINED"... the directions, the "To-Do" list, the daily instructions... what we "IMAGINED" can be a reality if we will only AGGRESSIVELY LISTEN.