“Many men are in a state of massive despair because they have forgotten their future – their inheritance, their calling, their horizon. They only see the present and the bleakness of the present seeps into their hearts, the shadow of despair robs life of its possibilities.” Jon Tyson in Fighting Shadows. This week we will discuss what it takes to fight successfully against the shadow of despair. We will learn from King David about how he fought against his despair while…
(Audio Transcription Below) This is my very favorite video. It’s about how a small introduction, few in number, changes everything in the ecosystem. The reason I like it is that men, coming in and living in the right way, change the ecosystem of the world. Romans 8:19 says, “For the creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” Much like the wolves have this downstream effect on the rivers themselves, men coming into the world’s…
The wise writer of Proverbs states, “All wisdom comes from the LORD and so do common sense and understanding”( Proverbs 2:6) This reminds us that there is a way to live our life “along the grain” of the way God has structured the universe. Common sense and understanding might be found through various means, but all true wisdom comes from the LORD. This summer I read Discipline is Destiny by Ryan Holiday and found the author’s thinking and storytelling helpful…
The wiseman who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes makes a series of observations about the futility of life. Listen to what he says in Chapter 6:7-12: “All a man’s work is for his mouth…yet this appetite is never satisfied.” You work all your life to feed the beast – your family, your ego, opinions of other people. Yet those appetites are never quite satisfied, so without the correct perspective it can feel like futility. “There are many words which only…
“Farewell to Shadowlands” is the title of the last chapter of C.S. Lewis’ book The Last Battle, the last book in The Chronicles of Narnia series. Lewis used the word “Shadowlands” to refer to life on Earth, and in the last chapter, time in the “Shadowlands” comes to an end. He writes, “The term is over, the holidays have begun…this is the morning.” This is an excellent way to describe our time on Earth. Shadows are created when light is…
(Audio transcription below) This morning I am going to use the sermon from the smart man in Ecclesiastes, who we think is Solomon, and then I’m going to show a video called Between Days which captures the ending mood of the preacher. The video is titled Between Days and is about Abdulah and Sehaveta Kadenic, a Bosnian couple displaced from their home in the 1990’s by war. They moved to Norway for 12 years, but Sehaveta had a series of…
(Audio transcription below) Today we’re going to talk about our connection to our children. If you don’t have any children, or even if you do, I think there are a lot of parallels here just as leaders leading other people. If there’s anybody in your down line at your business, there’s a lot of overlay here, how you as a boss work with employees or how you as a dad are with your sons and daughters. I’m going to use…
Leadership takes real courage. So often you are ready to jump into your next leadership challenge and immediately encounter resistance! You certainly need to use wisdom on when to jump into your next challenge, but there will always be threats. Err on the side of courage, not fear! Randy Alcorn offers a good reminder about our work Roger Whitney hosts an excellent podcast on all things retirement. If you are over 55, this will help you. If you are younger,…
(Audio transcription below) I’m going to try to unfold some of the reasons why marriage is important, but my main goal today is to give you guys an action plan. I really hope everybody leaves with a training plan for the marriage you have now or the marriage you’d like to have one day or maybe even to fix something going on in your marriage right now. Think about that as we go. Is anyone in here a Nascar fan?…
This week our focus will be on marriage. As the video above reminds us, it can be quite a challenge for most men, because we are wired to fix things. Below is some helpful information that you can read or watch. Growing in your marriage is one of the most important investments you can make. Look forward to talking more about this Friday! Paul Tripp: Your Biggest Problem in Marriage The Secret to a Good Marriage John Piper sermon for…