By now you all know about that crazy guy named Harold Camping, and his theory that the world was going to end this past Saturday. You may have heard that he ruined peoples lives who believed so strongly in his ideas that they also left their jobs, euthanized their pets, and invested their life savings into a mass advertising campaign warning others that the end of days was upon us. You may also know about the one simple bit of scripture that foiled everything they were promoting:
“But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come.” — Mark 13:32-33
Sure, the guy was truly misled. He allowed faith and Christianity to be the butt of a lot of jokes, and his math was completely unsound and unbiblical. BUT crazy dude aside… a lot of people had to ponder this past week (even if it was just for a moment) if there is an end, and if that day was near – would I be ready?
I was with a great group of friends last night, and together we developed a new exercise. Miss Lauren Lankford was kind enough to guest-write an introduction.
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Open Word, TextEdit, or grab a scrap of paper and write down 10 things that make your life fantastic. No really, this is worth it.
Because I’ll tell you what isn’t worth it.
Turning 31 and having no idea what has validated thirty long, hard years of keeping your head above water. Working twice as much as you’ve slept this week, and realizing your long sought after job hasn’t raised your standard of living, it’s detracted from it. Having a close friend walk out of your life because you never acknowledged or thanked them for their sacrificial love.
You’ve heard it before: The problem with life is that it’s just so daily.
So stop. Stop the day and find what isn’t daily. Find what’s fantastic. [...]
Last week I asked: what did you want to be when you grew up, and why?
I’ve always found this to be an interesting subject. It’s rare for people to set and vocalize a specific dream, yet this is one that everyone seems to have and remember… and from a very young age. It made me curious to see if there’s a direct connection between what we said we wanted to be and the path that we’re currently on.
This week I wanted to pose a follow-up question [...]
This is a two-part exploration…
Think back to when you were little. What did you want to be when you grew up, and why?
Last week was the start of a new experiment. The challenge was pretty straightforward: take one step towards a big goal or big dream that you’ve been putting off.
My follow-up question is pretty straightforward as well…
Did you do it?! [...]
Here is another experiment. I wonder what would happen if we all identified a big goal or a big dream (the one we’ve been avoiding) and took a step towards it. Just one step.
I know my tendency is to freeze up right before step number one. The dream is too big, the task is too hard, the plan isn’t perfect, or quite simply “I didn’t have time.” When it’s a personal goal or a personal dream it’s easy to put it off for a day, put it off for a week, put it off for a year. Nobody else knows about it, nobody else is relying on you to follow through.
Well you haven’t done it yet, and today is your day.
So here’s the experiment: [...]
