Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce. Then he will fill your barns with grain, and your vats will overflow with good wine. Proverbs 3:9-10, NLT My family has a competitive personality. We love games and contests. One of our family slogans goes like this: If you’re not first, you’re last. It’s also the name of our football fantasy league. There’s nothing like the first place! We appreciate your effort, and we applaud achievements. Isn’t this the essence of what the ancients are trying to convey in the above proverb? If there is a God who is responsible for giving you life, why wouldn’t you want to offer him your best? Your best efforts, your best designs, your best creations, and the best of everything. Why wouldn’t you want to steward your life toward the highest good? Faith-Based Excellence: Honoring God in

Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor with both God and people, and you will earn a good reputation. – Proverbs 3:3-4, NLT Marriage, family, friends, neighbors, team members, and partnerships have written, implied, or assumed allegiances. As citizens, we actively pledge loyalty to our country. As Christians, we commit to follow the way of Christ. We offer loyalty and kindness as the glue that keeps us together. It builds trust, confidence, and productivity. Loyalty is not always easy but it is a virtue admired by heaven and earth. How to Become a Loyal Person and Build Loyalty in Relationships Think Relationship, not Transaction. Relationships require work and patience. Transactions give something in exchange for something else. Relationships require dialogue, clarifications, and room for imperfect people and disagreements. They require forgiveness.

Wise choices will watch over you. Proverbs 2:11, NLT If you like sports, you hear it all the time. “We are going to approach this season one game at a time.” If you listen to the coaches, it’s all about becoming excellent in the basics – blocking and tackling. Practice the fundamentals of the game. One pitch at a time. If you play golf, it’s the same thing. One shot at a time. These are common in sports phraseology. They seem simple and obvious but those who do them best usually experience a high level of success. How do these phrases apply to your life? How do they apply to your work? Your leadership? And why are they considered wise? Making Wiser Choices Slow Down. We make better decisions when we slow life down. Do you have a morning routine or do you stay up too late and rush out

Such is the fate of all who are greedy for money; it robs them of life. Proverbs 1:19, NLT I know people who are really good at making money, I know generous people, I know frugal people. I know greedy people and I bet you do too. Making money is a skill. In some cases, it seems to be a talent. Generosity is the same. Some have developed it through discipline and principle. Some have a gift of giving. Frugality is sometimes wise and sometimes foolish. Many spend too much and some miss out on profit because of it. Greed on the other hand is something completely different. Greed is the source of excessive debt. We want more than we can afford and the thirst just cannot be quenched. Greed hordes money and resources even when releasing it can help so many people. It loves praise but lacks the ability

Their purpose [Proverbs of Solomon] is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help do what is right, just, and fair. Proverbs 1:3, NLT Leaders seek wisdom. They work to transform busyness into effectiveness. Activity into production. Fog into focus. Bad into good. Good into great. Transformation does not happen overnight. It takes time and discipline. Too many underestimate what it takes to live healthy lives and to lead others. To serve as an effective leader and to sustain long-term success requires discipline – a lot of it. Anything I want to improve in my life and leadership requires more discipline. If there is a secret surrounding success, it’s discipline. It’s not a popular headline. It’s never the title of a best-selling book or movie. There is no success without discipline. What is a successful life?  Doing what is right, just, and fair. When you look back

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬ Do you sometimes struggle with worry and anxiety? Me too. However, the proverb above challenges us to shift our focus and pursuits. It encourages us to take a moment to examine what truly matters. We are called to seek the right counsel and consider what is important. The final difference between one leader and another is often determined by how much pressure they can endure. When a leader is strong, their presence radiates calm, confidence, and courage. But where can we find such strength? Isn’t it through faith? Yet, faith in what? The strength and usefulness of our faith are only as powerful as the object in which we place it. You place faith in the

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:3-5 There are six points I discuss when speaking to young leaders. The sixth is TRUST GOD FOR THE LONG TERM.  This exhortation is not just for young leaders, is it? Whenever I am tempted to believe in my strength or the maturity of my faith, I get knocked off my horse. What knocks you off yours? Where are you most vulnerable to fear and anxiousness? Is it financial? Family? Health? Global unrest? Your job? Economic decline? Your business? Unfaithfulness? Betrayal? A false witness? A dispute with a neighbor or customer or employee? A partner?  My greatest place of vulnerability is with my family. If any of

I’ve been reading and meditating through the book of Genesis. I’ve probably read this text more than all the others (other than Proverbs). This morning, I journeyed back to the time when Rebekah and her son Jacob deceived their beloved Issac and Esau. Isaac, the aged husband, and father. Esau is the older twin brother of Jacob. There’s plenty of family dysfunction laying the foundation for this terrible event. There’s competition, jealousy, favoritism, greed, and deception – not the recipe for success. Mother and son literally stole what belonged to the other son. How it grieved the dying father and the swindled son. You can read the details for yourself in Genesis 27. Truth and Deception After reading and contemplating this event, I immediately brought my wife into the conversation. She was very familiar with the story. This event happened around 4000 years ago and we still mourn it today.

There is profit in hard work, but mere talk leads to poverty. Proverbs 14:23 I’m sure there is a good reason for the phrase “Work-Life Balance” but I fail to see what the fuss is all about. Forgive me HR professionals or perhaps agree with what I am about to say. Whenever I hear someone say they’re looking for a job that provides a work-life balance, I have an instant reaction of confusion as if the person’s opening statement was “One plus one equals two”. Did they really need to say that? Who doesn’t want to enjoy their life? But never in my life have I worried about having balance.  The Myth of Work-Life Balance If I don’t have it, it’s probably because I am pursuing something of greater significance than balance. If I don’t have balance, and I need it, and I can create it, I do just that.

We all experience disappointment. It’s personal. It’s emotional. It drains you of energy and discourages your optimism. In fact, it’s a force that can erode your dreams, and even your values. Maybe it’s a goal not achieved or a hope not realized. Maybe it was a promise unfulfilled, an agreement broken, or the typical over-promise and under-deliver pledge lived out before your eyes. Disappointment can cause you to pull back from relationships and give less than your best. The truth is clear: Most disappointments are tangled up in relationships. The familiar feeling can be summarized in the phrase, “He let me down.” Leaders experience disappointment too. Sitting in the leader’s chair is a very difficult reality to describe. It’s a constant, never-ending, existence of demands. Your team looks to you for direction, answers, justice, and understanding. And you cannot accomplish the vision without them. You’re all in it together. Dealing

An Overview of 1 Timothy 6 Generosity in Leadership I’m surprised how few leadership talks address the issues surrounding money. I’m not talking about how to make more money. Plenty of talk about that. I’m not talking about investing money. Plenty of talk about that. I’m not talking about spending money. Plenty of talk about that. I’m talking about being generous with money. Popular Studies Reveal Multiple Outcomes and Benefits of Generosity Enhanced Well-Being Improved Physical Health Stronger Social Connections Reduced Stress and Improved Mental Health Positive Impact On Others Increased Sense Of Purpose And Meaning We shouldn’t give, to get, but that’s how it works. And every honest leader knows the difference between giving and giving generously. Generously is a big word. It’s not always a big number but it is always big to the person who gives generously. It’s never about equal gifts, it’s about equal sacrifice. How

AN OVERVIEW OF 1 TIMOTHY 5 There’s a lot of effort, work, and talk about culture within organizations. Peter Drucker has been credited with the statement, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast, every day”.  I believe that. I am also amazed how Scripture emphasizes the same… dating almost 2000 years ago. Consider how the Apostle Paul was working to shape culture in the early church through the pastor’s leadership and three clear community values: honor, care, and protection. Three Culture-Building Values 1st culture-building value: Honor “Never speak harshly to an older man, but appeal to him respectfully as you would to your own father. Talk to younger men as you would to your own brothers. 2 Treat older women as you would your mother, and treat younger women with all purity as you would your own sisters.” 1 Timothy 5:1-2, NLT The teachings of the church aim to create a model

Maybe I am wrong but it feels like our world is more divided than at any other time in my life. It seems the line that is being drawn between conservatives and liberals, religious and non-religious, one generation and the next, one nation and another, is more like the walls of Jericho than an imaginary line.  Jericho Archeologists have uncovered a couple of interesting facts about Jerico’s wall. It appears there were two walls. One was built on top of a retaining structure due to a steep embankment. This means the outer wall might have been over twenty feet high. The second wall, located on higher ground provided additional protection from enemies and must have presented itself just as daunting. These walls were used for military purposes. To protect the people of the city and its natural resources. What Will It Take? The biblical account of Jericho comes down to

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise. Wise Achievers are wired differently. Most of them use to-do lists. Lists are helpful if you’re going shopping and you don’t want to forget certain items. Nothing is helpful if you go grocery shopping when you’re hungry, list or no list. You’ll spend twice the money because everything looks so good!  Productivity Wisdom for Achievers Generally, I do not recommend to-do lists for achievers. Why? Achievers typically have a high response trait. What is a high response rate? On the positive side, people with a high response rate get crap done and get it done fast. They don’t like disorganization, loose ends, unread emails, pending items, and broken promises. They work fast. On the not-so-positive front, they tend to be tactical more than strategic. They are often busy but not always moving toward the most important milestones and

The Power of Music: Nostalgia, Influence, and Faith You’ve heard the term, “That’s Music to My Ears”. It implies a happy response to good news. But more than that, it hints at the power of music—its ability to touch hearts, shift moods, and trigger memories instantly. Music isn’t just sound; it’s emotion, memory, and message all wrapped into melody. Nostalgia and reminiscing through music Whenever I listen to one of those surfing Beach Boys songs, I wanna throw on the board shorts, roll down the convertible top, and hit the beach even if it’s 40 degrees outside! When I listen to Classic Rock, I get this strange rush of rebellion and courage even though I don’t know what to do with it. When I listen to Classical music, I feel underdressed if I’m not in a tuxedo.  Whenever I hear Motown, I look to see if my girl is in