Speed It Up

When I was working in athletic training there was always a lot of pressure to get athletes back on the playing field as soon as possible. This was a shared desire among coaches, athletes, parents, administration, and even the athletic training staff. One of the most common questions was, "What can you do to speed up the healing process?" The truth is that you can't speed up the natural process of healing. What you can do is create optimal conditions for the body to heal itself. You can work to remove obstacles that slow down the natural process and in turn set the athlete's body up for success. 

When we suffer emotional, mental, or spiritual damage the same principle applies. We want to be healed from this trauma right away, but there is always a process we must go through. 

What should we do to remove obstacles to healing? 

• Work actively towards forgiveness
• Practice persistent & consistent prayer
• Have accountability with people we trust
• Immerse ourselves in Scripture
• Confess & repent our sins

While we can't necessarily speed up healing, we can work to eliminate things that will impede our forward progress.

Top Rated

It's national signing day for college football programs and the debate over which school has the best recruiting class is in full swing. Experts (both paid & amateur) have been analyzing the talents of young men and their potential impact and future success. I admit to reading the reviews of the programs and their new players (especially in regards to my beloved Gators who have either the 1st or 2nd rated class depending on who you believe.) It is a time of year that brings increased hope to some programs and lowers expectations for others.

The truth is that no games are won in the recruiting wars. Just because a young man had great stats in high school football doesn't mean that he will succeed at the next level. Opposing teams are not going to automatically forfeit just because their opposition had a higher recruiting rating either. The game must be played within the same set of rules for each team and the team with better preparation and execution will win most contests. The success these recruits have had in their past only serve as part of the preparation for the future, but don't guarantee a win alone. 

The same principle applies to leadership. Our past success does not guarantee future gain, but provides a foundation to build on. We have to continue to be diligent in our preparation, execution, and protection of our integrity to experience the victories we are working towards.

Back in Time

What would my 41 (almost 42) year old self like to say to my 20 year old self?

• Don't spend so much time at work--go home & be with your family
• Not everybody is thinking about you--don't take everything so personally
• Develop a better exercise plan now--you'll develop a pattern of health that you can stick with instead of yo-yoing back & forth with your weight
• Credit cards are not an opportunity to spend just because they have a high credit limit and no, the minimum payment won't pay things off
• Buy stock in Apple and Disney.
• Have the hard conversations with people early in the conflict process. Waiting months (or years) won't make it better on its own--it really just makes it worse.
• Assume the best about people and not the worst--don't be stupid with your trust in others, but give them a chance.
• You don't have all the answers so stop acting like you do. Be humble enough to listen to people with different & more experience. Not everything they share with you will be "gold" but you'll gain enough to be a better person if you pay attention.
• Don't pass up opportunities to show kindness to people--those close to you & those who can't do anything for you. You'll feel better about it and so will they.
• Do the right thing as a parent when your children are young & you won't have to work so hard to correct your mistakes when they are older.
• Make room for God in your daily life & don't just keep Him for the weekends. You'll find much more satisfaction in your relationship this way.
• Don't be such a jerk when people disagree with you. It's a really unattractive quality.
• Protect your mind. You might think it doesn't matter, but it will later lead to actions you will regret if you don't.

Setting the Pace

We are in Florida visiting my family for a couple of days--it's always good to have a full house & spend time with each other. I got up early this morning & spent some time reading and drinking coffee (as I usually do) before heading down to their exercise room. After biking I was sitting outside cooling off and was reflecting on the idea of establishing a healthy rhythm. It's something that is not always easy to do, but I am convinced is essential for health and productivity.

This isn't just about finding regularity in your routines. I firmly believe it's a matter of operating within your strengths to maximize fulfillment in your life. It's the discipline of creating time for your family to thrive, engaging in physical activity to increase health, developing spiritual devotion, and investing time in growing our natural abilities for true fulfillment. It's a conscious effort to rearrange our lives around the most healthy rhythm for growth.

Make a Wish

Discontent is found in "I wish" statements. They represent our interpretation of a present or past circumstance and the desire to create a change. This isn't necessarily a negative thing depending on the resulting action, but it usually isn't properly focused. 

We can allow our "wish" statement to cause us to pursue material things as we search to fulfill deep longings that cannot be filled with temporary objects. This leads to brief periods of satisfaction with promotions, new technology, bigger homes, shopping, and saving. This type of discontent can only be alleviated for short periods of time however as we always end up searching for the next, newest, big thing.

We do have the choice of utilizing our discontent as an impetus for change as we transform our personal relationships and actively work to improve the world around us. The truth is that we are all wired to be discontent--to search for something bigger and better, but too often fail to realize what we really should be looking for. Aligning our hearts with God will shift the source of our wishfulness so that we care about the things He does. This change of perspective will certainly lead to a change in our actions.

Always Good

God isn't like the parent who gives praises to a child only when they make good decisions and then blasts them when they mess up. If that was the case, I'd be in God's doghouse (much) more often than I would be out of it. Fortunately, God's goodness is not determined by my obedience. He is slow to anger, abounding in love, and continues to share good things with His children even if we haven't done anything to deserve such blessings. This doesn't negate the need for me to follow His commands, but it reinforces the perfection of His Holiness. He is the God of all good things and is willing to dispense them liberally to His children.

Make It Count

We had another family dinner tonight--me, my gorgeous wife, and our three beautiful daughters. It was a delicious meal filled with laughter, talking over each other, and interrupting one story to begin another one. We read Scripture and talked about what it means to each of us as a part of our nightly family devotional. There were movie quotes, improvisational songs, random humor, and love shared all around. We even almost had a drink spit across the table in laughter.

I was cleaning up the kitchen when the thought occurred to me: we now had one less family dinner together than two hours ago. It wasn't a depressing thought (maybe a little) but it did reinforce to me the need to value every experience we have together now. We need to make sure to take advantage of every chance we have to laugh, love, teach, encourage, hug, and eat together. It's a reminder to all of us to soak up every experience we have with the people we care about because this particular moment can't be repeated or saved for the future.