O coffee, coffee, how sweet the brew!
Caffeine to me, oh thus you imbue.
It brightens me on the way to church,
Your sweet bitters, I do always search.
Happy National Coffee Day! I plan to celebrate with friends in children’s ministry and the lobby this morning. As my cartoon demonstrates, it is better to share it with friends and coworkers than all by your self.
Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life.
Proverbs 19:20 NLT
We live in an age where we have access to instant information. If we have a question, we can always Google it on our phones. Libraries have buildings and online version. We have access to online universities, podcasts, and audiobooks. We can communicate with experts on the other side of the world. The opportunities to learn are endless.
At the same time, technology had made knowledge advance at lightning speed. Are you still relying on what you learned in school? That knowledge was probably obsolete by the time you graduated. Even if you are an expert in a field, choosing not to learn more can make you a dinosaur within a few years.
Whether you are just starting in your career, or have been working for decades, there is always something to learn. The old can learn from the young as well as the young from the old.
It is a great time to be a learner. Choose to learn something new every day!
www.dropbox.com/s/2hyvgr8j6r1l2fl/Spear 4146.jpg
My grandfather was a minister. My dad made his career in insurance. You can imagine the discussions they would have about faith, the church and liability!
I’ve been at both the child side and the counselor side of church camps. I’ve seen boys perform feats of skill that defy gravity and all logic. It is a wonder the ambulance wasn’t on twenty-four standby at the camp!
So now that summer is waning, let us rejoice that the kids are back in school and insurance adjusters for churches and church camps can breathe a sigh of relief.
I drew this cartoon for the August, 2019 CHOGnews Newsletter.
I used to believe that hard work was the only thing that makes a person or business prosper. While I believe it is still key, I have observed that hard work is only part of the formula.
Hard work can only get a person so far if they are not kind and empathetic towards coworkers and clients. A person can do superior work, but nobody wants to do business with them because they are a bear to be around. Our emotional intelligence, or EQ, is as important as our IQ.
Hard work doesn’t mean much if a person is working hard at the wrong things. Anyone can work hard at digging a hole, but is the hole good for anything? Does it have a purpose? Is the action in line with the company’s goals?
Hard, good work is essential. It is the fuel that powers creation. It creates value. But hard work without vital relationships and purposeful focus is like the Myth of Sisyphus. A person can roll that boulder up a hill, only to see it roll down and repeat the action.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:6-7
The kind of love the Apostle Paul talked about in 1 Corinthians 13 is in short supply but so needed in the world. It reminds me of a Burt Bacharach song. It’s the kind of love every person hopes they find, but can be so difficult to show to others.
It’s the kind of love that is the only hope for humanity. It takes humility and a higher power to give. Every time I feel selfish, disgruntled and entitled, I know I have fallen short and need a heaping dose of it to I can give it out once again.
It is why I will be in a house of worship this morning. Because I need to feel it in order to give it away.