Check out this new ad:

Temptation is real…

Temptation always appeals to the vulnerable part of your heart.  The taste will be palatable, persistent and powerful.

Don’t believe me, ask Adam & Eve:

“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Genesis 3:6)

Temptation is…

1. Enticing - It appeals to your hopes and desires (I plan to use the iPad to preach & teach…yea right).
2. Enjoyable - It promises you immense pleasure (I can see myself smiling as I use my iPad).
3. Evasive - It evades the truth with excuses (My heart is telling my head to find a reason to justify the purchase).
4. Escalating - It multiplies your appetite for more (If I don’t control it now, my desire for more will increase…darn it).

Ok, so did I talk myself out of purchasing one…to be continued

Do you plan to purchase an iPad?  If so, why?  If not, why?

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

— Kent M. Keith, Speaker and Writer
Often attributed to Mother Teresa
because she posted them on her wall

© 2010, Michael S. Hyatt. All rights reserved. Originally published at http://michaelhyatt.com/category/resources

Previously, pastors would celebrate their pastoral anniversary by having a banquet at a hotel or banquet hall. This year we decided to change the game and hold my 10th Anniversary aboard The Spirit of Chicago.  We had an AWESOME time! I want to thank Mary Taylor, our staff, and our members for making this a memorable occasion.

Enjoy the video!

Much like the National Baseball Hall of Fame for Major League baseball players, each participant, upon induction, receives the coveted American Youth Baseball Hall of Fame ring and officially becomes one of the Cooperstown Dreams Park Little Majors.  The Kodak photo of each player with his teammates is affixed to the Commemorative Induction Plaque for future enshrinement on the walls of the American Youth Baseball Hall of Fame.  Our family will cherish this moment for the rest of our lives!

(Congratulations to Indians for finishing 10th out of 104 teams)

While away, I had a chance to reflect on life in general and the Lord revealed several foundational shattering truths that I plan to share in subsequent blog posts.  These truths challenged me to think about life in a different way and challenged long held beliefs that have become TRADITIONS.

I use to believe that life is a series of peaks and valleys – you go through a dark time and then you go to the mountaintop – criss-crossing back and forth.  Our African-American Baptist tradition supports this view and encourages believers to praise God while you’re on the mountain and double your praise if you’re in the valley.  We often hear a familiar colloquialism of the faith: “YOUR BREAKTHROUGH IS ON THE WAY.”

I NO LONGER BELIEVE THAT & HERE’S WHY…

The good that happens in life and the bad that happens run on parallel tracks. At all times you either have something good AND something bad in your life – BOTH OCCURING SIMULTANEOUSLY!

In case you haven’t figured it out, life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one.   The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; He’s more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.  We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that’s not the goal of life.  The goal is to grow in character, in Christ-likeness.  Sometimes it takes bad situations to make that happen.

What’s your take?

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