Trying to live by the motto, “Everything I learn goes into everything I do.” Sometimes I get it. Many times I don’t. Anyway, here are 3 things I can say I learned from the events of 2010:

1. Comparison Cripples.

Every once in a while I get lazy. I let my defenses down and start looking around me. I see others who seem to be getting more attention. I see others seem to be arriving where I want to arrive. Take blogging for example. I blog. Many of my social media friends blog. Bloggers want comments. It’s like an unwritten sign of blog success. So when I compare my blog comments to other blogs that have more comments, I can let it get to me. This cripples my creativity. I must not compare.

2. Prayer Provides.

If you’re like me, life events tend to take over your intentions. I want a daily quiet time just listening to God by myself in solitude. I see the value of it. I love growing in intimacy with Him. But there are days (and sometimes strings of days) when I neglect this discipline. The result is scarcity instead of abundance. I am quick to become irritable, lose my faith, and increase my worrying. I must pray more.

3. Struggle Streamlines. 

2010 was a year of pruning. Some change is easy… but good. Other change is difficult… but better. The change I experienced last year was excruciating… and best. I was forced to figure out how to do things differently – to do more in less time. My old paradigm of time management went out the window. There is a new normal. But looking back on it all, I’m amazed at how much I grew and learned. I have more focus. I must embrace the struggles.

So, what did you learn in 2010?

The confetti of yesterday lies dormant on the pathway of memories. The sun has risen. A new day, a new year, has dawned. Today.

What are you going to do with today? What’s changing? What’s staying the same?

Stagnant water grows thick with bad odor. Moving water provides oxygen to fish and soothes the human spirit. Are you moving today? Or are you stagnant?

In this rare clip from 1972, legendary psychiatrist and Holocaust-survivor Viktor Frankl delivers a powerful message about the human search for meaning — and the most important gift we can give others. As you watch this 4-minute video, think of the people you lead/serve in your current assignment. Then answer the questions below.

What keeps you from believing in someone’s capability?

What are ways we can give the greatest gift (as Frankl says) to others?

I hear a frequent comment from pastors I know. It goes something like this:

“I have to admit that when I read personally that it is hard to not say – ‘hmm, this passage will really preach!’ I struggle with that at times…”

Big problems result when sermon prep squeezes out time alone with God. Fellowship with Christ suffers. The Bible morphs into a mere ”idea book” for the delivery of a product to a defined audience. Meanwhile, the Pastor’s spirit withers on the vine. This is just the environment burnout feeds on.

Pastor: We need to hear from you. Here are a couple questions:

1) Do you struggle with this? If so, how frequently?

2) How do you keep personal one-on-one time with God from turning into sermon prep?

3) Is personal study and sermon prep an either/or proposition or both/and?

Warmth.

It emanates from the wood burner as I think about this post. Heat generated by solid logs. Solid, that is, until they’ve done their duty. Now, as the job is done, they turn to ash. Soft, useless ash. After a season of fires I will clean out the ash pan. I will gather the ashes in a bucket and take them out back where I will dump them, never to be thought of again.

Logs – once solid wood, now worthless ash. A non-renewable energy source. May we never emulate the log in ministry leadership. Starting out solid, fresh out of training, heading to the fire. Then, over the years, getting soft and worthless. There’s a name for this solid-to-soft slide: burnout.

I propose another alternative: renewable energy. How? Frequent conversation with the God who called you to begin with. Frequent conversation with a small group of trusted friends who will hold a mirror to you. Little decisions, made daily, to check up on how your spiritual pulse is. These are all examples of a renewable kind of energy. There’s a word for this: burn.

How do you renew your energy in your ministry life?

What habits can turn us to soft, useless ash?

This was originally posted in October of this year. I want to re-post it for anyone who may be using the holiday season to think about all the potential conferences to attend in 2011.

Today:

“Boy, isn’t this a tremendous conference? The speakers are so charismatic. The material is life-changing. The music is incredible. I can’t believe how everything seems to speak directly to me. I’m gobbling up everything I hear. I’m taking notes in the conference book they gave me. This is a great experience!”

Ten Months Later:

“I remember it was a great conference, but I wonder where that conference book went. Did I leave it in the trunk of my car? Maybe it’s on the bookshelf in my basement… or maybe at my office. Oh well, there’s always next year’s conference.”

Sound familiar? Conferences come and conferences go. Great content. Great and gifted speakers. But somehow, we tend to gravitate back to the familiar – what we know – what we are comfortable with. Don’t get me wrong. There are some conferences when the great “AHA!” moment happens are our life changes forever. But by and large, I bet the vast majority of us have conference binders collecting dust somewhere.

Weave the learning into the fabric of your life

Instead of going to all the conferences that sound cool, why not take some time to first design a master plan of personal growth? Then pick and choose which conferences speak into that plan. Then attend those conferences looking for specific growth points. Then go home with your notes and pick out three things you will implement that fit your growth plan. Then ask a life coach or accountability partner to meet with you at regular intervals to gauge your growth.

Sounds like a little personal growth evolution, doesn’t it?

How do you make the most of the conferences you attend?

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