what’s in your path?

When you dream about the future, do you think about your past?

The journey you’ve already traveled?

The experiences that have shaped you?

The mistakes you’ve already made?

Your path was woven with a purpose, and we believe that God works all things – good and bad – together for good.

So embrace who you are. Cherish the experiences you have had – they are what make you unique. Understand that your mistakes have shaped the character, strength and message of your life.

And that while your past does not direct where you are going, it might shape how you get there.

clamoring

Every day when you drive there are businesses and billboards clamoring for your time, attention and (ultimately) money.

It’s not hard to meet an entrepreneur  or MLM person who wants your dedication.

Hospitals, universities and churches all need your volunteerism and financial support.

Then there are causes: water, human trafficking and shoes – all of which need your voice to spread the word and commitment to make a difference.

Oh yeah, and don’t forget cookies, popcorn and candy bars sold by little kids whose clubs need a few extra bucks.

Nothing above is (in and of itself) bad.

But the world wont prioritize itself for you. And if you spend your life serving the voice that clamors loudest you will never experience the freedom of dedicating yourself to what God created you to do.

So plan wisely. Figure out what your heart was created to do – and pour your time, money and energy into those things.

Then the clamor isn’t overpowering.

And you can dedicate your life to what really matters.

positive intent

It’s easy to talk about balance. Equality. Treating others better than yourself.

But when we come in contact with someone that balances us, it’s easier to be polarized than balanced.

Take politics.

The beauty of the American system is the balance two parties collaborating together brings. They balance each other out.

Somehow the political landscape was turned into a story of winning an losing. And things get dirty quick. People who are both fighting for good (in different ways) get cast as evil, and the mudslinging starts.

Or theology.

There is a lot to a God as big as the one who created the heavens and earth. He’s multifaceted. But a lot of theological camps back themselves into a sliver of beliefs and dismiss anyone who doesn’t agree with every nuance of their system.

The beauty and texture of God is lost in myopathy and unity is destroyed for the sake of being correct in a fabricated argument.

We’ve lost positive intent.

The foundational assumption that the other person is a human, struggling to understand and do what is right.

That when it comes to how their country is run, they want what’s best for themselves and their family.

That when it comes to what they believe about God, they want to understand and follow Him and that their beliefs are still being shaped.

That we are all in this together.

Positive intent demands humility. It demands that I think of others as better than myself. That I die to always having to be right.

It’s a resurrected way of living in a world that is dying in an inability to embrace diversity.

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