Value Added Living
I was recently thinking about the value that group life has added to my life. I grew up in church, a pastors home even. I can remember when I was a child being sick on Sundays and having to go and spend Sunday morning in my father’s office instead of in my bed. Going to church on Sunday is so normal to me that when I’m on vacation I feel guilty if I don't find a church to go to.
That being said, there are huge benefits that I’ve gained in my life over more than a dozen years in structured group life. Benefits that exist, not because of Sunday mornings, but because I’ve chosen to live in close proximity with other believers.
1. Confession: As I have built the relationships within a small group of friends, I have found that trust grows, acceptance flows, and therefore confession is able to happen. I am able to express the things that God is putting his finger on in my life and I find the support and love of friends.
Living Life in the Zone : Book Review
I received a copy of Living Life in the Zone - A 40-Day Spiritual Game Plan for Men by Kyle Rote Jr. & Dr. Joe Pettigrew from Thomas Nelson Publishers as a part of their BookSneeze program.
The authors present their teachings using the analogy of sports, something that men clearly can identify with. The main spheres that they address are; marriage, family, friends, work and the future. Each section is broken down into 7 readings per week with the first week laying the ground work for the remaining days.
In each of the of the main sections, the authors present their hypothesis in a section called "Coach's Corner" followed "The Game Plan" in which they provide a few key points with biblical verses. Each section also contains a section called "Playmakers" that focus on well known sports figures who inspire the readers in the sphere being discussed, each day's reading ends with a "Time Out" of questions that the reader can use for self examination and an Assignment.
This was an easy read and quite practical. Playing off the popular 40 Day model of studies, this book can be a great tool to help establish the personal discipline of reading. Each day's reading takes no more than a few minutes and could be fit into anyone's daily routine; early morning, lunch break or end of the day.
#5 Belief
This is the last in the series regarding my strengths as indicated by Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0 assessment tool.
People who are especially talented in the Belief theme have certain core values that are unchanging. Out of these values emerges a defined purpose for their life.
I believe that my faith in God and the principles that are taught through His Word are the reason that this strength appears in the Top 5. However, I know of mature believers who do not have this rank in their Top 5 and therefore believe it would be a mistake to think my faith is the only determining factor in this strength.
Recently the phrase has been crossing my mind: "The right thing is rarely the easy thing." Over the last few years, I've set aside times to spend evaluating what drives me. As a result, I have more consciously focused on making decisions that are values-driven more than anything else. Whether it is in the workplace, home life or personal journey, making values-driven decisions has not made life easier, but it has definitely made life more satisfying and fulfilling.
#4 Relator
Continuing the results of my Strengths Finder 2.0 evaluation, my fourth strength is that of "Relator."
People who are especially talented in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal.
I have a great love for working on teams. There is incredible potential when people set aside personal agendas and work toward a common goal. John Maxwell used to say that "teamwork makes the dream work." How true it is. In fact, David says in Psa 133:1 that when unity is present, everyone wins. Unity requires that individual preferences and agendas are set aside for the greater good.
To use a very popular phrase: "We are better together!"
#3 Learner
This is Part Three looking at my results from the Strengths Finder assessment by Tom Rath.
My third highest ranked strength is that of "Learner."
People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.
It has been said that when you stop learning, you've started dying. I remember my college graduation like it was a long time ago... maybe 'cause it was! I do remember having the thought, "I'm done with the formal education system. For here on, it's the School of Hard Knocks." In recent years though, the idea of furthering my education has crept into my thinking occasionally. I lay down and it eventually goes away.
I do have a desire to continue to grow. I read books and attend conferences in an effort to learn more. I can count on one hand, and have fingers left over, the number of fiction books I've read in the past couple of decades. I used to read novels all the time, but I made a switch years ago to focus my reading on gaining information with the goal of personal growth.
I remember one of my kid's first grade teachers. She had been teaching for 30 years. I believe that she had taught one year, thirty times. It seemed that she hadn't made any significant shifts in her teaching methods, even some of the decorations she had in the class were yellowed with time.
I don't understand people that want to change for the sake of change, I also don't want to be caught in the 'how did we do it last year' mentality!
Growth requires learning!
What I'm Thinking...
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- If you don't already use Dropbox: Use this link to learn about it and sign up: http://t.co/BwqUBmFc 2 days ago
- You can get an additional 4.5GB of free storage (you'll be beta-testing for them): http://t.co/NRKpWPqK 2 days ago
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