Posts tagged as:

Perspective

The Courage-Giving Leader

by Andy Wood on January 18, 2012

in Executing Your Plan,Five LV Laws,Hoarders,Leadership,Life Currency,LV Alter-egos,LV Cycle,Pleasers,Principle of Abundance

Quick Question:  What do the people you lead (and you do lead somebody) do when trouble shows up?

Quick Answer:  They do what you lead them to do.

More Thoughtful Question:  Do the people you lead (and you do lead somebody) run for the hills or cower in fear at the first sign of trouble, or do they courageously rise up to the challenge?

More Thoughtful Answer:  They do what you lead them to do.  Not necessarily what tell them to do or manipulate them to do.  What you lead them to do.

That reminds me of a story.  True story.  About a guy named Eli.  Now Eli was a soldier, and being a soldier, he had a Commander-in-Chief.  And the reason Eli’s Commander-in-Chief was the Commander-in-Chief was because he was the biggest dude in all the land.

You know what the problem is with making the biggest dude in all the land the Commander-in-Chief?  Sooner or later he’s gonna run into a bigger dude.  And that’s what happened.  Eli’s boss went quaking in his boots to the rear of the line because he was staring down the barrel of an overwhelming challenge.

So you know what Eli did?  He quaked in his boots too.  I’m talking, Give up now.  Better fled than dead.

One day later – one day! – that’s Eli with his shield up, his sword drawn, charging headlong into the enemy’s camp and taking no prisoners.  What made the difference? [click to continue…]

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Run to the Battle!

by Andy Wood on January 16, 2012

in Ability,Five LV Laws,Following Your Passion,Hoarders,Life Currency,LV Alter-egos,LV Cycle,Principle of Increase

If you intend to be successful in any area of life, sooner or later you are going to have to have to fight for it.  I wish I could tell you that being intentional (a popular darling word) was enough.  But it isn’t.

I wish I could prove to you that some simple formula – here a step, there a technique, everywhere a quick-and-easy procedure – would guarantee the fulfillment of your fondest hopes.  Can’t do it.

I wish I could assure you that if it was really hard, or lonely, or dangerous, that the idea was certainly not God’s will.  If that were true, the Almighty’s got some ‘slpainin’ to do with some people who are now in heaven.

But the truth is, sooner or later, you’re going to have to fight for your family.  Or for your testimony.  Or for your walk with God.  Sooner or later you’re going to have to fight for answered prayer.  Yes, answered prayer!  Or the advancement of the gospel.  Or the safety of one of the world’s most endangered species – American children.

Sometimes when you run to the battlefield you may discover that you are the only one standing there.  You may find that you’re surrounded by taunting enemies, and for backup you have a bunch of gossips, critics and spectators – but nobody willing to draw a sword or raise a shield with you.

Still think that cause is worth the fight?  David did.

In the familiar story of David and Goliath, the young man after God’s own heart – newly empowered and anointed by the Spirit of God – brought a giant to his knees while the army of the living God looked on in disbelief.  What was the difference between David and the rest of the army of Israel?  Didn’t they have the same power available to them?  Yes.  Didn’t they have the same God?  Yes.  So what did David have that they didn’t?

In the life of David, there was a difference in: [click to continue…]

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The Gratitude Tour

by Andy Wood on November 28, 2011

in Enlarging Your Capacity,Five LV Laws,Insight,Life Currency,LV Cycle,Principle of Abundance

Hey.  Glad you’re here for the tour.  I have something I want to show you.  Well, actually, lots of things I want to show you.  And it’s a little weird because you know more about this stuff than I do.  You see, this building – and all the rooms in it – is actually your life.

That explains why the upper floors are still under construction.

It also explains why many of the lower floors are being renovated.

Yes, it explains why some of the floor and rooms are dark, dark, dark – and why many others are very bright and festive.

Now before we begin the walk-through, I have some things for you to keep with you at all times.  First up – your hard hat.  Hey, it’s a construction zone.  Hard hats are required.  Sure, you can call it the “helmet of salvation” if you want.  I don’t care what you call it – just wear it.

Safety glasses are also a must.  It’s important that you protect your eyes, and also that you see clearly.  Some people say these are a rose-colored.  I like to think of them as shades of grace.

Also, keep this little container with you.  You’ll see why later.  Inside you’ll find some bread (unleavened, of course) and wine.

One more thing to notice is the inscription on your container.  After all, this is the Gratitude Tour…

always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father (Ephesians 5:20).

Finally, I have a bonus surprise for you. [click to continue…]

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Lessons from the Rooftop

by Andy Wood on October 26, 2011

in Uncategorized

Perspective is important, and it’s very helpful to change it every once in a while.  Just remember, a different perspective doesn’t always mean a better one.

People in certain parts of the world have their own built-in (literally) perspective changers – they live in houses with flat roofs.  That includes people in the Bible.

I’m just thinking how cool it would have been to hear my mother say, “Go to your roof!”  She had her own ways of changing my perspective, though.  Whew!

Anyway, you can find a lot of action on the rooftops of certain biblical houses.  And some lessons along the way.  Here are some quick idea generators for you to learn from the perspective and example of others. [click to continue…]

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Yeast Feast: Seven More Half-Baked Ideas I’m Still Working On

by Andy Wood on July 4, 2011

in Half-baked Ideas

Grace is not a loan to be repaid with interest.  It is a gift to be received with gratitude.

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The greatest benefit of perseverance is not the prize you attain, but the person you become in the process. [click to continue…]

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The Circle’s End

by Andy Wood on March 29, 2011

in Insight,Life Currency,Tense Truths

Phillip’s down, and he thinks he’s out.

Life hasn’t been kind to the 33-year-old; in fact, life has been brutally unfair.  In just one calendar year, Phillip left his friends due to a job transfer, lost the job that transferred him due to downsizing, suffered an excruciating ankle break in a pick-up basketball game, and separated from his wife of seven years, though they are working on things.

Phillip tries to be hopeful when everything around him feels fatal.  But he can’t mask the confusion.  How can a year that started with such promise and confidence leave him feeling so lost and broken?  How can a life driven with such expectancy just a few months ago feel so aimless now?

But what Phillip can’t see because he’s in too deep is how close he is to the Circle’s End.

Karen can’t believe her eyes, but there’s no mistaking that little “plus” sign.  After months and months of futility, what she has dreamed of all her life is finally happening.  She’s going to have a baby.   That’s a much better explanation for that morning nausea than “stomach flu.”

The enchantment she and her husband are feeling is surely a precursor of things to come.  The family they both have dreamed of.  The joy and delights of holding that little one for the first time.  The expectancy that life has made a turn for the better, and there is nowhere to go but forward.

And she’s right… to a point.  But just as tides ebb and flow, Karen will eventually reach the Circle’s End.

However you would classify your circumstances, one thing is certain – they’re anything but still. [click to continue…]

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Things Get a Little Easier – Once You Understand

by Andy Wood on January 17, 2011

in Turning Points

(A Turning Point Story)

On Highway 43 North in Jackson, Alabama, the  Joe C. McCorquodale, Jr. Bridge crosses the Tombigbee River and lands at the base of a mile-long bluff or hill that probably has some name I don’t know.  All I knew at the time was that Ed’s Drive-In (formerly Troy’s) was at the top of it, and that’s where we stopped for a couple of cokes for the road.  Next stop:  Mobile.  A hospital visit or two was surely on the agenda.  Most likely a stop by Bel Air Mall or the Baptist Bookstore as well.

We turned south and started down the monstrous hill.  Highway 43 is a nice, wide, divided highway, and the view south toward the river is really nice.

And long.

Which explains how ridiculous it was that just as I approached the Highway 69 intersection, a lady pulled out in the left lane, right in front of me.

Good.  Stinkin’.  Grief. [click to continue…]

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Changing Seasons, Changing Lives

by Andy Wood on November 27, 2010

in Insight,Life Currency,LV Cycle,Waiting

Years ago a Persian king wanted to discourage his sons from making rash judgments.  He sent the oldest son on a winter journey to see a mango tree.  Spring came and the second oldest went on the same trip.  Summer followed and the third son went.  When the youngest boy returned from his autumn visit, the king called them together to describe the tree. 

The first said, “It looks like a burnt old stump.”  The second described it as lovely and green; the third declared its blossoms as beautiful as the rose.  The fourth said all were wrong.  “Its fruit is like a pear.” 

“Each is right,” the king said.  “You just saw the same tree in a different season.”  

Before you evaluate other people, make sure you have seen them in all their seasons.  No one is always anything.  [click to continue…]

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Batter Splatter: Seven More Half-Baked Ideas I’m Working On

by Andy Wood on October 15, 2010

in Half-baked Ideas

Here are seven more ideas, thoughts, or “wish I’d said thats” baking in my mental oven lately. How about you?  Do you have any half-baked ideas you’d like to share?  Drop it in the comment box below. 

Want to see more?  Try here, here, or here.

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“God is a violent pursuer of a wayward soul.” – Brandon Gilbert

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“Even when we fail to validate the gospel, the way we respond to failure can validate the gospel.”  -Nathan Ables [click to continue…]

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Do You See What He Sees?

by Andy Wood on October 1, 2010

in Five LV Laws,Following Your Passion,Insight,Life Currency,LV Cycle,Principle of Eternity

“There is nothing heavier than compassion. Not even one’s own pain weighs so heavy as the pain one feels for someone, pain intensified by the imagination and prolonged by a hundred echoes.”(Milan Kundera) 

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Ever read about the double-pump miracle Jesus performed?  Fascinating story, about a blind man in Bethsaida.  Jesus led him outside the village and spit on his eyes.

“Do you see anything”? He asked.

He looked up and said, “I see people; they look like trees walking around.”

So Jesus double-clutched.  Once more, he put his hands on the man’s eyes. This time he saw everything clearly.

It doesn’t bother me that it took two rounds with the Son of God for a blind man to see clearly again.  It does bother me that many believers, myself included, have gone many rounds with Jesus, and we still don’t see clearly at times.

He saw people that looked like trees.  We see people that look like other things – jobs, economic status, social labels, racial stereotypes, gender.  Jesus saw something else entirely.  You can too, but it doesn’t come naturally. 

“I see people; they look like trees.” 

What do you see?  Butcher, baker, candlestick maker?  Hot babe, geek, hero, freak? 

They may as well be Klingons, unless we learn to see from Jesus’ perspective.  We talk a lot about pursuing our own passions, but you can never fulfill your deepest passion unless you first embrace his.  Take a look: [click to continue…]

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