What's Your Personal Growth Plan?

I constantly hear people talking about how they want to become a leader or perhaps grow as a leader. But when it comes down to it, there must be more than just talk or a desire. Those who become good leaders do so because they have a plan and a strategy. Our HITC students just got done watching a powerful DVD by John Maxwell on developing leaders. I've read and watched lots of Maxwell, but this is one of his best. One of the things he stressed was having a personal growth plan. This plan is one of the main things that separates those who want to be leaders and those actually become leaders. Do you have a personal growth plan? Something that sets the course for you to develop and grow as a leader? If you do, great! If not, it's never too late to get one :) If someone believes that they've arrived as a leader, they're really only kidding themselves. A leader can always find areas to grow in and improve. Personal growth plans can be simple or a little more detailed, but the important thing is having something that works for you and succeeds in its goal. A couple of things in my plan to help me grow as a leader include: reading a book a month, listening to or watching a CD or DVD every other week, meeting with someone I look up or that I would consider successful monthly, and writing frequently to help my writing skills. As I've been faithful to do these things I've seen continued growth in my own personal life. If you don't have a personal growth plan, now is the perfect time to get one and begin to see the fruit of your labors :)

When Starbucks is a Luxury...

Before you read the rest of this post, you must know that I only chose Starbucks because it was a place that I used to visit frequently. However, it could easily refer to any coffee shop for that matter. In the past year my Starbucks visits have declined significantly. I do love the atmosphere and environment, but unfortunately when your personal financial belt is a little tighter, things like Starbucks become the first to go. I've seen recent statistics on Starbucks drinkers showing things such as how much people spend and how often they go in a week. It's as if their coffee shop visit is what they're supposed to do. For the last year now I've probably only visited Starbucks once every few weeks. And even then it's for my favorite grande Earl Grey tea with cream and raw sugar, which dings me $2.28. But the thing I have learned over this past year when it comes to Starbucks has been such a valuable lesson for me. In years past I may have visited Starbucks up to three times a week. It was what I did. Instead of being something special, it became the norm. It's funny how your perspective can change over time. Now when I go to Starbucks I view it as being a luxury. Have fun when you visit your local coffee shop today :)

Pranks Are Fun Till...

Pranking is everywhere and everyone loves a good laugh from them. But when can a prank go too far? When can a prank be too much? When people play a prank on someone, the purpose is fun. However, more and more I'm seeing pranks go wrong. In other words, the negative side of pranking. I remember a story about a person who had some friends play a prank on them as they entered their own home. Not realizing it was a prank, the person drew a gun they were carrying and shot dead one of their friends. Or recently, the two Australian DJ's who played a prank by calling the hospital where Princess Kate Middleton was staying due to her severe morning sickness. Sadly, the nurse who took the call and fell for the prank, Jacintha Saldanha, committed suicide the next day. Nobody ever expects something like this to happen when they plan it, but pranks do go bad, and probably more often than we realize. Feelings can be easily hurt,  not to mention personal property, and occasionally injury and even death. In Proverbs 26:19 the Message is very clear, "People who shrug off deliberate deceptions, saying, “I didn’t mean it, I was only joking,” Are worse than careless campers who walk away from smoldering campfires." We can definitely learn from these words of wisdom. Am I against having fun? Absolutely not! Those of you who know me know I love having fun and joking around. But with pranks there's a fine line we must all be aware of. Please take a moment to think before doing something you'll regret at the expense of another. Something that may cause something you never expected.

How to Treat Others

How others treat you is how you should treat them, right? If someone is mean to you, then you can be mean to them. If someone hurts you, then you can hurt them. If someone steals from you, then you can steal from them. Unfortunately, this is how too many people think. They believe that whatever someone does to them, that they now also have the right to do back to them. But is this really how we should live? Is that the heart and attitude that will make a real difference in our culture? I don't think so! When it comes to treating others there's no better verse than Luke 6:31, "Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them!" (Message). For some people this may be a complete change in thinking as it really does contradict what our culture says. It certainly did when Jesus said it. If you want others to treat you a certain way, then start treating them the way you would like them to treat you. If you want people to be kind to you, then you start by being kind to them. Don't wait for them to be kind, but you start and take the initiative. Too often we won't do nice things to others till they first do it for us, but how about you be the one to start? Today why don't you put the Golden Rule into practice and treat those around you how you yourself want them to treat you :)

A Downside to Social Media?

Jovan Belcher was an NFL football player with the Kansas City Chiefs. This past weekend he ended his girlfriend's life and then drove to his team's facilities and took his own life. Their deaths left a 3 month old girl to grow up with no parents. People have asked how a tragedy like this could have happened or even been avoided. Belcher was surrounded by teammates and others daily, yet why was no-one aware of the inner struggles he was experiencing. As you're fully aware, we are now living in an electronic and social networking culture. Texts, Facebook, Twitter, emails, etc, serve their purpose, but they don't allow you to look into the heart and soul of a person. It produces mainly surface communication that prevents anyone from knowing the struggles and battles that may actually be going on in a person's life. Social media has its purpose, but never allow it to replace personal verbal communication. There's lots of things I'd like to add to this post, however, one of Belcher's teammates, Brady Quinn, hits the nail on the head. I encourage you to listen to this man's heart as he shares something that seems to be so easily forgotten and overlooked in our culture. Please take a moment to watch this 60 second clip here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e938bu3wEr8.

Yet Another Bizarre Twist to Kindness and Generosity

I appreciate all the views and comments about my blog post yesterday. Yes, I thought it was a sad ending to a wonderful act of kindness and generosity. But now this story has taken yet another bizarre twist. The homeless man, identified as Jeffrey Hillman, seems to have added to his story a little. Yes, he still feels he should have a piece of the pie of his story with it being flashed about just about every media outlet around the nation. But he has now explained why he isn't wearing the boots he was given by that NYPD officer's kindness and generosity. And in my view, his reasoning again points to the sad place our nation is becoming at times. Essentially it's two-fold. Firstly, he isn't wearing them because he's hid them. As a homeless man wearing new boots he was afraid for his life, saying someone might kill him for them. Secondly, he said he's stated he's already sold them or thinking of selling them. It's a sad place when someone feels threatened by the gift of another. Perhaps it shows how primal things can be when Biblical values are ignored. And also, it can also cause those who desire to do something special and purposeful, like the NYPD officer, to choose not to do it, out of concern for someone's safety or motives (selling the gift).

A Sad Follow Up to Kindness & Generosity

Well today I'm shocked! I have to write a sad follow up to my last blog post about the generosity of a NYPD officer buying a pair of boots for a barefooted homeless man last week. You can take a look at it here http://hitcpastor.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-power-and-impact-of-kindness.html. To me it was an incredible act of kindness and generosity. However, today I read that the homeless man is no longer wearing the $100 boots for one simple reason. He wants a piece of the pie when it comes to all the media and attention he's been getting. The photo and story created a media frenzy and the homeless man at the center of the story feels like he should be gaining something from all of it. If I wrote my last blog on kindness, how could I not talk about greed and discontentment in this one. It's hard for me to even fathom. Instead of appreciating the $100 boots and socks, someone who had nothing now wants even more than he started with. Is this what America is really coming to? Many of us have done random acts of kindness or have been recipients of it, yet there's never a cry to want more or even credit for what's been done. Has our nation become one where all we can focus on is wanting more? Where has contentment gone? Contentment is a place very few people now find themselves. Will you choose to be content with all you've been blessed with today? Or will greed try to work its way into your life? Tonight a man's feet will be freezing in New York because of his greed (and stupidity).