My Monday Map to Success

Making Every Moment Count

Tara sauntered into the bank as she talked on her cell phone. She was chatting with her friend Lucy who just got back from a trip to Paris. Her friend talked on and on about all the places and people she had seen. It was a trip that her dad took her on for her 18^th birthday.

    When Tara walked in there was a long line for the teller. She was annoyed and got into line with an attitude. As she stood in line, she looked around at the different people that stood restlessly in line. Everyone was in a bad mood, couldn't wait to get through the line, and get on with their day.

    Suddenly a shot rang out and everyone in the bank jumped. A man's voice rang out in the bank saying, "Get down!"

    Tara and the rest of the bank customers obeyed and got down on the floor. The bank robbers went to the tellers and demanded all the money. The tellers cooperated and placed the money into the big black trash bags the robbers shoved into their faces.

    Next to Tara was a young girl about 12 or 13. She was shaking and whimpering uncontrollably. On the other side of Tara was an older woman who looked about 80. She was turned toward Tara and tears rolled down her face.

    The young girl who laid next to her grabbed Tara's hand and whispered, "I don't want to die."

    Tara looked at the girl with fear in her eyes. She hadn't even thought about dying. Could this turn deadly? There are so many things that she wanted to do like finishing college or just declaring a major.

    The girl closed her eyes and began to whimper. Tara quietly told the girl, "Shhhh. We need to stay quiet." She squeezed the girls hand firmly and said, "It's going to be okay."

    Tara didn't know if the girl believed her, but she opened her eyes and looked at Tara. She was even able to nod at Tara and give her a little smile.

    As Tara laid on the floor and held the young girls hand, she thought about her mom, Jen, and her dad, Ed. They didn't always get along, but she wanted to spend more time with them. Lately, she was so obsessed with her friends and parties that she didn't spend enough time with them.

    Her parents were two extremely successful people. Her mom was a pediatrician and had her own practice. She worked hard as a pediatrician, but she always encouraged and spent time with Tara when she was growing away.

    Tara's dad was also successful. He was an architect that built the most expensive buildings in the city. His father recently went back to school to get a doctorate. He, along with her mother, nagged Tara about school and getting a good education. They wanted her to take her life seriously and make something of herself.

    Instead of listening to her parents, Tara goofed off with friends shopping and going to parties. She lived the good life with the money her parents worked hard to make. The truth was that she didn't deserve the good life and took advantage of her parents. Now, she didn't know if she would ever get a chance to tell them how much she appreciated them and all they did for her or tell them how much she loved them.

    One of the bank robbers interrupted her thoughts. He yelled out to the customers, "Count to one hundred and then get up!" With that the bank robbers left. Tara looked up and saw three figures running out of the bank. She could only hear her heart pounding inside of her chest.

    A man in a tacky Hawaiian shirt got up slowly off the floor and said in a shaky voice, "I think they are gone."

    Everyone started to get up slowly. Tara got up and turned to help the young girl up. She then turned to the older lady and helped her get up. The older lady's legs were trembling, but she was able to get up off the floor. Tara led her to a chair where she could sit down while she telephoned her daughter to come pick her up. She didn't want to go home alone.

    Tara watched as police men streamed into the bank with guns. The security officer put his hands up and explained to the officers that the robbers were gone. They put their guns away and started to investigate the robbery. After a while the police led all the bank customers out of the bank.

    Once Tara was out of the bank, she called her mom and found out that both her mom and dad were at work. She called a cab and went straight to her parent's home. Although they weren't there, she wanted be there when they came home.

Tara did what most of us do. She didn't make the most of her life. When she had a chance to advance her career, develop stronger ties with her family and friends, or give back to the community, she did something fun or for herself, instead. Although it is okay to have fun, it is important that we discover the purpose for our life through personal development and education.

    Tara has struggled with feelings of uselessness. People have warned Tara about wasting her life, and they encouraged her to make something great of herself. As she laid on the floor during the bank robbery, she got it. All of a sudden she understood what she needed to do. She didn't want to die without accomplishing something important, and that didn't include going from one party to the next.

    After her parents got home from work, Tara told them about her experience at the bank. They were happy to know that she was alright, but there was something that had changed about their daughter. She was talking about declaring a major, and she wanted to volunteer at the community center. At the community center, she wanted to tutor the students in the after school program.

    Of course, we do not have to wait until a bank robbery to learn this same lesson. Making our life count means that we find out what our purpose is and create goals that will help us create our dream life. Sometimes, we need to make small changes that move us toward our purpose, or sometimes we need to make bigger changes. If you can't quite your job, you can still work on moving toward a new career by researching the new career or taking college or community classes that will expose you to that career. In Tara's case, she simply needed to declare her major and start working on her career. Little changes in our lives can add up to big changes in the end.

This Week's Challenge: Let every moment of your life count. If you are not doing what you want to do and feel miserable, then start to do the one thing that makes you happy. For example, if you are working retail and you don't life your job, then figure out what would make you happy and fulfilled. It could be that you want to go into advertising. Start researching what you need to do to go into advertising. Next, take classes that would help you to get into the advertisement. When you are doing what makes you happy, you are more likely to have increased confidence and better relationships with friends and families.

The Advice Blog

"… Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom, but a man of understanding walks uprightly.

Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counselors they are established.

A man has joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!..."

Proverbs 15:21-23

 

The picture above was drawn by my daughter. When Brenton and I saw the picture, we knew that we needed to share the picture with others. The concept of taking the counsel of others is vital to our success. There are different kinds of counsel that we all need to seek. We need to seek the advice of God through His Word, pastor or counselor, family, and friends. These advisers cover everyone in your life.

    The one requirement that we must adhere to in receiving advice is that it should come from godly people. This doesn't mean that God doesn't use ungodly people to help you through our life, but He wants you to seek out godly people that have spent time in His Word to give you counsel.

"Hear, my son, your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching; indeed they are a grateful wreath to your head and ornaments about your neck."

Proverbs 1:9

    It is important to listen to our father and mother, but we especially need to listen to their advice when they are intimate with God. If our parents are giving us instruction that goes against God's Word or does not help us get closer to Christ, then we need seek other wisdom or instruction. In the instance that our parents are ungodly, we need to seek spiritual parents who can guide and direct us.

    Of course, as the picture above explains, we can get advice over and over again and not take the advice. Yes, there is some advice that we don't need to take, because it is not God's Will or Purpose. On the other hand, a lot of us let good advice go to waste. Brenton told me, "If we do not adhere to good advice, then it is as if we did not receive advice at all.

This is especially true when it comes to God's counsel. God knows everything, so we need to constantly seek His counsel. The instruction from His Word is there to guide us through our life. We can find scripture for every situation in our life. Through God's Word, we can receive guidance and understanding for a successful life.

"For such as God, our God forever and ever; He will guide us until death."

Psalm 48:14

The Father Blog

During Old Testament days, kings were the most powerful people on earth. They were in charge of their people and their kingdom. They determined the way that people would act and what God they would worship. There are many examples of good and evil kings from this time. The tradition of the times was for the king to be replaced, at his death, by his son. The son would commonly following in his Dad's footsteps. If his father was good he would be good, but if his father was evil then his actions were evil. The fathers set the example for their sons to follow.

 

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. He committed all the sins his father had done before him; his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his forefather had been.

1 King 15:1-3

In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty-one years. His grandmother's name was Maakah daughter of Abishalom. Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David had done.

1 King 15:9-11

We, as fathers, must understand that God expects us to live a righteous life in front of our kids. We are to set the example for our kids to follow. God expects us to live right and will hold our kids responsible for our actions. It says in Exodus 20, that God punishes the children for the sins of the father for up to four generations. But it also says that God will show love to the children of those who love God and keep his commandments. This gives us fathers the opportunity to set a good example for our kids and create a lasting legacy. The future is determined by our actions.

"You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,  but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Exodus 20:4-6

We need to examine the way we act as fathers to our children. The best part about this examination is that if we determine that we have not lived up to the standard set before us by God, we can change. We must understand that we must be lifelong learners in order to be great dads. God wants us to strive to be perfect as a father. We must understand that perfection is hard to obtain. To become perfect we must go to our heavenly father to get what we need to be good fathers. Daily prayer and Bible reading will help you to understand the example that God set for us to follow. God is ready and able to train us to be the best father we can be. If we follow his example, we will set a great example for our children.

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Be like our heavenly father

Matthew 5:48

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17

This Week's Challenge

This week, we challenge all fathers to examine the example they are setting for their family. Fathers need to look the way they act as fathers to their children. They need to make sure that they are living a righteous life in front of their children. They need to follow God's example by reading his word, and praying on a daily basis. They should also seek additional material, like that mentioned below, to become the best father they can be.

Last year, Alex Kendrick and Stephen Kendrick released the film Courageous. This is great film that shows the importance of fathers in their children's lives. In this film, the main character challenges the men around him to take the resolution. This resolution helps us to identify the area that we must work on to become the father and husband that God wants us to be. The resolution for men is a great resource to add to daily prayer, and daily bible reading. Please visit the link below to learn more about the Courageous movie and the Resolution for Men.

http://www.courageousresolutioncertificate.com/resolution-men-book-alex-stephen-kendrick-courageous.html

http://www.courageousthemovie.com/