by

Discipline Can Be Very Elusive At Times

 

There are certain situations or places that trigger a lapse in discipline … and I’m in one of those places right now.

discipline can be very elusive at times

Creating a habit or trying to form a pattern in life takes discipline – lots of it, in many cases.

For instance, if you are trying to get fit or lose weight or just eat healthier, you have to work at it. No one drops 20 pounds by not making some sacrifices. No one gives up pizza twice a week or pop every day of the week without some effort.

Well, for the past 6 or 7 months I’ve been making a real effort to stay fit.

Now that I’m retired I’ve let my work go, but I don’t want to let my body go as well. I’ve needed to be disciplined at exercising every day and eating at the right times.

Through the winter, exercising came easily. I played hockey 4 or 5 times a week and on the off days worked out in my home gym.

Eating was not as easy, but I decided to keep my food intake to between 9 am and 6 pm (which I didn’t realize at the time was a form of intermittent fasting). 

I haven’t followed any meal plan or diet of any kind. I only eat food in that window, don’t eat junk food at night and keep snacks down to a very small amount. 

Things were going well – I mean, pretty well. The biggest hurdle was finishing dinner by 6 pm. … It should have been easy but I haven’t been able to convince Lily that we need to be done dinner by 6 pm. 

She controls my evening meal because, though I’m an excellent breakfast maker and micro waver, I’m not much of a cook. To be honest I’m not a cook. I can make a grill cheese sandwich and soup but that’s a lunch meal. I can also make spaghetti, but I can’t eat that every night. 

Let’s just say, for the most part, I have been disciplined and things were going really well.

Then summer happened. I spent more time at the cottage. And along with the change in environment came a dip in my discipline. 

For some strange reason being at the cottage means snacking at night, eating out more often, extending my meal window by sometimes a few hours and not exercising every day.

I was having no problem at home, but that same discipline I had a home didn’t get packed in the trunk to take to the cottage.

Oh, and it doesn’t help that there is a candy store and three ice cream shops in town. With only having my bike for exercise up there, I don’t have a means to exercise on rainy days.

I know when I’m home I will have my discipline back, but right now my discipline is lapsing. 

Here’s the thing: Discipline can also be an issue for spending time with God. You may have a well-disciplined time with God at home, but when you are on the road that can all change. Your schedule is different and you don’t have the same set up or place to meet with Him. One thing I do is always make my time with God the first thing I do in the day. Then the rest of my day gets adjusted from that.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to get back to being disciplined about? Leave your comments or questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email each week.

by

Do Something You Have Been Meaning To Do

Sometimes you just can’t get yourself to do something you want to do.

Do something you have been meaning to do

… You can call it procrastination or lack of motivation, and maybe it is a bit of both. I like to call it “ready to move on”. 

Often something new has grabbed my attention or interest and, as much as I want to do that first thing, I also want to get on to the next thing.

Back in the spring I shot some video with my drone and GoPro camera of me biking at our cottage. It was early spring so the leaves on the trees weren’t fully developed and last year’s leaves were still covering much of the trailers. 

After getting all the shots I wanted, I was looking forward to putting the video together. It was going to require a fair bit of editing but I was good at that. In my editing programs, I selected the clips I wanted and started to cut them down and put them in order. 

I still needed to add music and make sure the colouring was similar between the cameras’ footage. But while I was still working on all that, I shot more video and got kind of excited about putting those shots together. 

I wanted to finish my first video but I was now drawn to the next project.  

It’s like the kids who are in the cottage next to us. They have every toy you can imagine … and most of them are displayed all over their lawn. 

Some of those toys just sit there and don’t move for days or weeks, not because the kids don’t like them any more. They just have so many toys that some get neglected. 

Those kids are excited about their newest toy or another toy that has caught their attention. The toys on the lawn just have to take a number and wait before they will get used again.

Well, that was the same with my video. It’s now the middle of the summer and I still haven’t finished it. … So yesterday I forced myself back to editing. 

I started when it was light out and when I looked up I was in darkness except for the glow of light coming off my computer monitor. I had gotten right back into this video that I wanted to make like it was the only thing I wanted to do. 

After getting back at it, I wasn’t ready to move on; I was ready to complete the project. 

I wish I could say I did complete the video, but I’m not quite satisfied with the music. I’m going to have to take another crack at it before I’m ready to move on. It’s close though, so maybe I can start my new project tomorrow.

That reminds me, I need to get out and shoot more video which may delay my next video edits. 

At least I’ll be ready.

Here’s the thing: There’s no end to things that can stand in the way of us doing what we want to do, like getting to know God more or exploring who He is. We might have a desire to discover more about God, but there are always other things we want to do and so we may never get to it. You just have to be intentional about discovering God. Once you start, you will find you get right into it. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is something you need to force yourself back into? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email each week. 

by

Consistent Effort Reaps A Harvest Of Achievement

Being consistent is a major key to achieving what you want.You don’t necessarily have to be the best at something to achieve; you just need to be consistent. 

consistent effort reaps a harvest of achievement

Those who try things for a while and then stop will usually fall short of achieving what they want. 

For instance, I’ve played the guitar for 37 years. You would think that someone who’s been playing the guitar that long has got to be pretty good. Well, I’m sad to say that I’m not a very good guitarist. 

As much as I complain that I have a disconnect between my brain and my fingers, the real problem is consistency.

I don’t see progress as fast as I would like so I get discouraged and put my guitar away for a while. When I finally get excited to play again, I’m not really building on my skill, but actually starting back at the basics that I mastered when I first learned.

I’m not progressing; I’m more like staying the same as I have been for many, many years. 

I don’t think I’d ever be a Jimi Hendrix or Eric Clapton on the guitar, but if I could get over my discouragement in my progress and just play and practice, I would definitely get better. 

Sure, some people pick things up quicker that others. Some may have more of an aptitude, which in turn produces faster progress that leads to greater satisfaction and more motivation to keep going. 

However, if people could just be consistent with something, in the long run they would see achievement. 

We came up to our cottage the other week; we hadn’t been up for a while. When we pulled into the driveway, the grass was green, lush and long – really long.

Our cottage is in a very sandy place. The name of the town is Sauble Beach, with “beach” being the operative word. Grass doesn’t just grow on its own very easily there. It takes work and, more that that, it takes water. 

Our grass had been failing for years and we wanted to turn it around. But, with only being at the cottage for very short stints, interrupted by weeks of being away, it was difficult to get any grass growing. So I installed a few underground sprinklers hooked up to a timer. No matter how infrequent we were at the cottage, the grass could still get watered.

The last couple of years though, I’ve been discouraged because, even with the sprinkler regularly scheduled to water the grass, the lawn kept getting worse. 

About two months ago I discovered that the timer was working, but not communicating to the sprinklers. The lawn wasn’t getting any water. 

So off to the hardware store I went. I got a new timer, threw some grass seed down and we left for home. 

A week and a half later, after consistent watering every night, we have a jungle. 

Consistency works. If you want to achieve something, just keep at it and don’t stop.

Here’s the thing: About 26 years ago I decided that I would read through the Bible during the year. I’ve done that every year since. It’s not a great feat; it only means reading about four chapters a day. But over those years, among other things, I got a better understanding of what God thinks of us and His plan for each one of us. Let me encourage you to consistently read God’s word and you will achieve a greater understanding of God’s role in your life and this world. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to be more consistent at right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive weekly posts like this one to your email.

by

Experiences Can Happen When We Least Expect Them

We should always be prepared for experiences that are out of season. Most of the time, it is easy to tell when things are out of season. 

experiences can happen when you least expect them

You know when you bite a Macintosh apple in the middle of July that you are having a not-in-season fruit.

In Canada apples ripen in the fall. So if you are eating apples in the summer, those apples were probably picked in October of the previous year. 

Now, with trade partners and global shipping, today we can often get fruit that might be produced in season somewhere else in the world.

Although grapefruit ripen and are picked in the summer months, I eat them right through the winter. I eat half a grapefruit every morning because, for much of the year, the grapefruits I eat come from Israel.

That’s an example of an out-of-season experience. 

But we have these experiences in other areas of life as well. 

The best sales usually come when a product is at its end or out-of-season. Whether it is clothes, BBQs or snowblowers, we look for those out-of-season sales.

When we lived in Alberta, we had a pastors’ conference every fall. In those days it was always held in Banff – a picturesque spot definitely worth seeing, but it is a tourist place. 

Summer in Banff is beautiful and an awesome place to go hiking, camping, etc. In the winter, it is a true winter wonderland with skiing, snowshoeing and shopping. Banff is as beautiful in the winter as it is in the summer. 

But there are bumper seasons in Banff. You could call them out-of-season times, when the weather is not as warm as in summer, but there is not enough snow to ski. 

That’s when we held our pastors’ conference. We could get hotel accommodations for several hundred people at a fraction of the cost of what it would be in season. 

Those conferences and experiences in Banff were simply due to the out-of-season time we met. 

This week I had some out-of-season experiences: I played hockey in July. 

I could have easily decided to go biking instead of playing hockey, but I don’t often get that out-of-season experience so I made good on it. 

And I’m sure glad I did.

There’s nothing like showing up to the rink with your equipment bag slung over your shoulder, hockey stick in hand, wearing shorts and sandals. And there’s nothing like coming out of a cold arena into the hot sun after sweating it out on the ice in about 4° Celsius.

I haven’t played hockey in the summer for many years. I just haven’t had the opportunity. So there was no way I was going to miss getting in on some out-of-season experiences this past week. 

You just have to be ready to play any time anywhere.

Here’s the thing: There is a verse in the Bible that says “be ready in season and out of season”. It is a charge to a pastor by his mentor. But we should all be ready to speak about Christ, who He is and what He’s done for us any time an opportunity presents itself. Experiences in sharing what we believe can present themselves at any time; we just need to be ready.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: Would you say you are ready in season and out? What would it take to be ready?  Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.

by

Being Present Is Not As Easy As You Might Think

It should be a no-brainer, but when you are present, you should be present. 

being present is not as easy as you might think

We know that though we can be physically present, our minds can be somewhere completely different. We often call this daydreaming or being distracted.

Not being present can take many forms … like when my kids were little and wanted me to play with them, but I was watching a sporting event on TV.

With my eyes on the TV, watching the game, they’d be diving off the couch onto my back. I managed to wrestle and play while I had one and a half eyes glued to the television.  

It took talent to pull that off, but it’s an example of not being present. 

My wife, Lily, has also caught me not being present … not in wrestling but in conversations.  

Many times she has tried to communicate something important to me over the phone while I have been working on my computer. I guess I’m not good at talking and focussing on a screen at the same time. 

She has asked me something, followed either by a long pause or me asking her to repeat the few words she had just spoken.

She would know I was distracted by something and would often say, “Are you working on your computer?”

Busted again! I would have to take my hands off the keyboard and sit back in my chair to be present in the conversation. 

The same thing happened many times in high school. I remember sitting in the back of history class as the teacher went on about the political climate in the world just before World War I … while I was writing out the lyrics to Elton John songs for my buddy sitting next to me. 

There was no question that I would be marked present for attending history class, but really I was not present at all.

I think it’s a matter of discipline to force ourselves to be attentive and present in the space we are in. 

One might think that this should get easier as we get older, but it doesn’t. 

The other day I was sitting on the sofa at my cottage reading. Yet while I was reading, I found myself thinking about other things.

My thoughts went in a completely different direction from the topic I was looking at with my eyes. In fact, I was thinking about doing three things that had nothing to do with what I was reading. 

I was not present with that book. 

We need discipline to get back to being present. … I picked up a pen and paper and wrote those three things down. 

The simple act of acknowledging those thoughts by writing them down gives your mind the confidence that you will not forget them.

You can get to them later so you can focus on what you are doing now. That’s being present. 

Here’s the thing: This distraction from being present often plagues me when I am spending time with God. I get thoughts of what I need to do that day, or thoughts of projects I’d like to be doing. To get back to being present with God, I write them down to relieve my mind of them and to get back to being attentive to the conversation I am having with the Lord. Try it, it works. 

That’s Life! 

Paul

Question: When do you find being present the hardest? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.

by

Something Outstanding Still Needs Evaluation

When you find something that is truly outstanding, you’re tempted to go all in with it. But that’s not always your best move. 

something outstanding still needs evaluation

For years I’ve had a love relationship with Dr. Pepper. 

You could stack any number of beverages in front of me and I would pick DP every time. 

When I was in college I would often go to the local convenience store and get a Super Big Gulp sized cup of the nectar. If I had a paper due or needed to study late, I would suck that back till the wee hours of the night and then fall fast asleep. 

I know there is caffeine in Dr. Pepper, but it never had an effect on me. I slept like a baby.

But after years indulging with the Doctor, it started to negatively impact my health. 

I had to learn that a good thing isn’t a good thing all the time. You have to show restraint. You must have discipline. It’s not best to dive into something without holding something back. 

In poker when a player goes “all in”, others think that player has an outstanding hand. He puts in all his chips; he goes all in. He risks all his chips without holding back.

Several months ago, going through the check out at Costco, I noticed they sold ice cream cones. This wasn’t something new. I’m sure I’d seen the signs before, but this time I felt like having some ice cream. 

For the first time I decided to get a cone. They’re a good size too. You get about a pound of soft ice cream on a waffle cone, all for the price of around $3.00 after tax.

It’s a great deal! 

But as good a deal as it is, if the ice cream is not that good, who cares how much there is or how cheap it is. 

Anyway, I was juggling a couple of packages I had purchased when the lady handed me the cone. I took one lick … and almost dropped my packages.

It was the best soft ice cream I had ever tasted! It was not made from ice milk – more like 45% cream. 

.. Let me tell you, Dairy Queen would do well to find the formula Costco is using for their ice cream because it is truly outstanding. 

I was hooked. 

The next time I went to Costco I was with Lily. Naturally I had to get another cone so she could taste how good it was. To be honest, I didn’t like sharing it with her and it is still a sore spot between us. 

I then went to Costco another day just to get an ice cream cone. That’s when I realized I needed to show some restraint. 

You can’t go all in just because something is truly outstanding. If I did I would put on about 100 pounds and my arteries would be solid white … soft white, but definitely white. 

It’s the best soft ice cream out there, but I discipline myself now so that I will be around long enough to enjoy a cone once in a while.

Here’s the thing: Going all in on something truly outstanding needs evaluation. But you can go all in with God and be confident you won’t have to hold anything back. He is the only one who will not lead you down a path that can have negative results. Don’t be afraid to follow Him completely. Pursue Him hard, with all you’ve got.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How can you follow God more closely? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.

by

Instructions – Are They Really For Everyone?

When assembling anything, following instructions is optional for some people and not for others.

instructions - are they really for everyone

I personally am one who likes to follow the instructions. 

I don’t want to be that guy who puts something together and has a handful of nuts and bolts left over. It looks like it’s finished, but will it work or will it fall apart? 

There are the companies that just use pictures for a manual and leave you a little confused. 

More than once while building a “KALLAX” or a “BILLY” from IKEA I had to take something apart because I had put the wrong piece in place.

I, for one, just want clear easy-to-follow instructions that guide me to the assembled product. 

Then there are those who you expect to be able to do things without instructions, like the person who maybe had built that product a hundred times and can do it in the dark, blindfolded with only one wrench. That guy is the expert.

We don’t expect the expert to follow the instructions. We expect him to just go at it and get the job done. 

I remember watching a friend do the Rubik’s cube back when it first came out. The guy could solve it in a matter of seconds. His hands flew as he spun the cube and made little adjustments. Then, all of a sudden, each side was all one colour. 

I was fascinated at his skill and knowledge. I had complete confidence in him to solve the cube in any state of mess.

We figure the experts know what they are doing and can do it without having to follow the instruction manual step by step. 

Well, this week we had to get a new stove for the cottage. It runs on propane and the range we got had to be converted from natural gas to propane.

I watched a bunch of YouTube instruction videos on how to make the conversion. But I decided that I didn’t want to take the chance of blowing Lily up while she was cooking spaghetti or something. 

I called in an expert, someone who is trained in working with gas. However, I think this person may not have done too many stove conversions before. 

I got a little nervous when she opened the manual and started reading it like I would have done. 

To be honest, I was not confident that she would be able to do the job until right near the end. 

But the expert was able to finish the job … even though it cost me more than it should have in labour. 

If she wasn’t an expert before, she is now. I guess it was a good thing we had the instructions for her to follow.

Here’s the thing: Most people go through life trying to figure out what their life is all about. Along the way they discover their skills and gifts, their passions and aptitudes. Some try to figure out the purpose of life and their purpose in it. We can try to figure that out on our own, but we have an instruction manual given to us that will guide us to it. It’s called the Bible, God’s instruction manual for us. I encourage you to use it. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How are you at following instructions? Do you welcome them or resist them? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one weekly to your email. 

by

Letting Go And Moving On Isn’t Always Best

When the season changes, letting go of some things and move on to other things is pretty normal.

Letting go and moving on isn't always best

Certainly that’s true with the NHL hockey playoffs. My team is now out and they’re down to four teams. The weather is getting nicer, there are bigger breaks between games and it seems like the playoffs are just dragging on. 

I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before but my daughter was born the night Calgary won the Stanley Cup back in 1989. That was May 25. Now 34 years later we have another month before a team will walk away with the cup.

I’m ready to watch golf Sunday afternoons and not be glued to a TV Saturday nights for the next four weeks.

It’s light outside for longer in the evenings; there is more to do outside in the summer. I’d really be happy if hockey season was over. 

There are so many other things that can take its place – things you can’t do in the winter months.

For me there is golf. I’m looking forward to playing more this season than I have in the past number of years. In fact, I’m playing this weekend which I’m quite excited for.

I’ve also started mountain biking again. I’ve already been out several times. It’s always interesting to bike the trails when the leaves haven’t fully come out yet. You see the trails differently from when everything is lush with colour. I like this transition time.

There are other things as well, like getting to the cottage. 

We spent the last week puttering around Sauble Beach. Though it was too cold to go in the water, it didn’t stop Lily and I from going for a 10 km walk along the beach at sundown. Our first sunset of the season and it certainly didn’t disappoint. 

… I will say our legs were a little rubbery when we got back to the cottage. 

New seasons are for letting some things go while picking new things up. However, this year I’m a little sad to let one thing go. 

Next week will be my last hockey game until fall. Yes, I said I was ready to let hockey go, but I meant watching hockey on TV. 

Other years I was also glad when I stopped playing. This year, however, it’s different. I’m sad it’s coming to an end even though I’ve played more hockey this year than I have in a long, long time. 

From February to the middle of April I played 4 to 5 times a week. Since then I’ve played on average twice a week. You might think I’ve had my fill, but I would still like to play a little in the off-season.

It’s a satisfying feeling showing up to a cold arena in shorts and sandals, hockey bag slung over your shoulder. It’s hard to describe, but the contrasts put a smile on my face.

So this year it will be hard to let go until the seasons change again.

Here’s the thing: I’ve been thinking that sometimes we let go of speaking up for God. The world doesn’t want to hear it; there is pressure to keep silent. But I was reminded in my time with God this morning that every voice matters. Whether it’s a quiet voice to a few people or through a new medium, God wants us to keep speaking up for Him. There are many other voices that seek to drown Him out, but as for me, I want to keep my voice being heard. I don’t want to let go of speaking of God’s love and goodness to us all. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you want to hang on to in this new season of life? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one weekly to your email.

by

The Neediest One In The Family May Be You

It takes a lot of wisdom to deal with the neediest one in the house … and someone can always claim that title.

the neediest one in the the family may be you

When two people get married, the title of “neediest” switches between the couple depending on the situation. 

But when that couple has their first child, that child becomes the neediest person in the family. Period. And that position doesn’t change until another little one enters the family. Then, of course, the new child becomes the neediest. 

There are the diapers, clean ups, feedings – it really doesn’t stop. Just making sure you have everything in the “go bag” is exhausting. 

Babies are dependent on their parents for everything … or, if you’re lucky, on the grandparents sometimes. 

Kids are needy. That’s a fact.

Children pretty much trade needy positions back and forth throughout their growing years.

Even when you reach the stage that they are no longer under your roof, that doesn’t mean one of them won’t be the neediest – one of them will. It just looks a little different and costs more … just kidding, well, maybe I’m not. 

Lily and I have been in this empty nest stage for many years and we have gotten very used to it. Sure, we were there to help our kids set up their first homes, making purchases, packing and unpacking boxes, renting vans, driving long distances.

However, the neediness of the persons in our family has steadily gone down over the years. 

Since I’ve retired, though, I’ve noticed Lily has become more needy. She somehow needs more help in the kitchen, help with laundry, help with cleaning and on it goes. 

But there is now a new neediest one in our home. And this guy is by far the neediest of them all. 

His name is Martin. You’d think that with a name like Martin he would be an engineer or a doctor or something. Martin is neither; he’s a dog. He’s a nice dog, but man is he needy.

For the last two weeks we have been dog-sitting for our daughter and son-in-law while they’ve been on vacation. 

Martin is a well-behaved dog, but he is also a rescue dog which brings a whole other level of neediness to the situation. 

This guy needs petting and loving 24/7. And we found out early that if you give him all the attention he wants, he becomes demanding about it. 

We’ve had to back off a bit. 

But still, he is by far the neediest one in the family now. 

He’s shedding so much that Lily’s got the vacuum on high alert. He needs walks every day, food and treats. But since he can’t get food out of the cupboard, we even have to set his food down for him.

The little fellow runs like a gazelle and wants to be chased in the backyard every time we let him out. 

Oh, and Martin even needs us to pick up after he does his thing. I didn’t sign up for that part. 

We love the guy, but he sure is needy – the neediest one in the family.

I don’t see it changing any time soon.

Here’s the thing: We all have long lists of things we need and want. I wonder if God has the same thoughts about me as I have about Martin: “I love you, man, but you are the neediest guy I know.” Thankfully, God expects us to depend on Him, to need Him. If we think we don’t need God, then we foolishly have placed ourselves in the position of God in our lives. Since we obviously can not secure our own forgiveness or eternity, being needy is a good position to be in. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to depend on God for? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email inbox weekly.

by

A Purchase Made Without Objection Are Often The Best

Making a purchase is better when you don’t have anyone interjecting negativity.

a purchase made without objection are often the best

Some people call that making a snap purchase, where the mood or the moment hits you and you strike the deal. Others say that emotions and persuasion put the pressure on you to buy.

But none of that is necessarily true. 

We’ve probably all been there, where we have done the research, looked at the purchase from many angles, but then had some voice of reason or restraint nix the desired acquisition.

I remember when my brother and I were little, we had begged our mom to let us go to the store to buy some candy.

In a moment of weakness she said we could. 

John and I immediately trotted off to our bedroom to get our cash. We had little change purses that we started loading up from our piggy banks. We thought they would be easier to carry to the convenience store than our piggy banks. 

The intent was to take every penny – and I literally mean pennies – because you never know how much some candy is going to cost. 

Our mother walked into our bedroom right in the middle of us trying to squeeze the last cent into our little wallets. She said, “No way, boys. You are not going to the store now.” I guess she didn’t like our desires to spend our life savings on candy. 

She was the negative voice … mom would have characterized herself as the voice of reason. 

Sometimes you don’t need that voice. Sometimes you don’t want that voice to impact your decision to buy things. Sometimes you seize a moment when there are no discouraging voices to throw you off your intent. 

One of those times for me was the purchase of a leaf mulcher. I purchased that when Lil had gone on a trip and I needed to collect the leaves in the yard. 

That purchase was researched and thought through and fifteen years later I’m still glad I made that purchase.

Well, I just did it again. 

Lily was away on a business trip and I had recently had a friend speak highly of the FoodSaver vacuum seal machines. Years ago I had thought it might be something we should have, but never got any good vibes from Lily on it. 

With Lily away and a renewed interest in sucking the life out of food products in order to freeze them fresh, I started to research. 

I checked them out at a few different establishments and got an idea of what the average price would be. It didn’t take long. The second store I went to had a great deal that included freezing bags and all. 

Before I could blink, I was in the checkout line at Costco and then walking out with my new FoodSaver machine. 

The first day I froze bread and pizza. … I can hardly wait to freeze chicken wings. 

And when I thawed the frozen bread I packaged with my new purchase, it tasted like it had just come out of the bread maker. 

Another great purchase!

Here’s the thing: There are times when having someone speak into your life is best. There are times when you get a sense of what God wants you to do. It might be a confession you should make or an action you should take. God may give you a path forward on a decision you’ve been contemplating. When He does, take the course He is setting you on and don’t look for negative voices. They will only impede you in doing what you know is best for you. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is it that you just need to follow through on right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email inbox weekly.