Who hasn't seen American Idol at least once?  I'd say pretty much all American's teenage and older have at least heard about it.  I like the show.   I find it entertaining and the singers are amazing.  

The name of the show really got me thinking this morning.   I am reading in Isaiah 44 and it's talking about "All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless".

Before I even go any further, this is not a slam on American Idol at all.   I do like the show and the entertainment value it provides. 

The word "Idol" though has got me thinking.

What do you think of when you hear the word "Idol"?  Is it:

• A person?
• A god?
• A statue?

I grew up watching the Brady Bunch.   Do you remember that episode when they went to Hawaii?  Remember that tiki idol statue that Bobby found and gave it to Greg to wear as good luck in the surfing competition?   Remember what happened to Greg?   He crashed and they all started to think that the statue was bad luck.   They thought it caused the tarantula spider to come as well.

I bet most people think of this type of little statue when they think about what an Idol is.  

An Idol can be so much more than that, and it can be so much more subtle than that too.

This is from the study notes in my Bible:

Isaiah tell us, "Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing?"  We think of idols as statues of wood or stone, but in reality an idol is anything natural that is given sacred value and power. 

Idols can be:

• Money
• Power
• Food
• Exercise
• Sex
• Another Person
• The list could go on and on....

Essentially, an Idol is anything that we put first in our life above our relationship with God. 

I need to check myself every so often on this matter.  Many times for me, it's my business and work that I put on the throne of my life.   I get too consumed with it and thinking about it.   I bet for a lot of guys this is true.   We do get consumed with work many times.

What about for you?   Do you have any Idols you need to vote off of your life's show?

Here are a few questions again from my study Bible and if your answer to any of these is anything or anyone other than God, you may need to check out who or what you're worshipping:

• Who created me?
• Whom do I ultimately trust?
• Whom do I look to for ultimate truth?
• Whom do I look to for security and happiness?
• Who is in charge of my future?

Many times I could answer some of those questions with "myself".   That's not good, but I'm trying.   How about you?

Last week at my Truth At Work meeting, we were looking at Matthew 20 where Jesus comes across these two blind guys.  It says that these guys cried out to Jesus to have "mercy" on them.  It says that they cried out twice and then Jesus stopped and called out to them "What do you want me to do for you?" 

The thing that gets me here is that Jesus knew what they wanted.    Why did He ask them what they wanted?  It's because He wanted them to speak it out loud.

"Lord, " they answered, "we want our sight."

He wanted them to verbalized it and say it out loud.   There is great power in speaking out loud our wants and desires. 

Jesus had compassion on these two guys and healed them. 

The next time you're dealing with a problem or have a need or are just trying to figure something out, I'd encourage you to speak it out loud.  Verbalize it.

The title of this post probably makes you think I know it all.   So not true.  I'm hoping this post can be used as a discussion starter for guys, specifically husbands, that want to be more intentional in their marriage.

I was talking with a friend the other day and this topic came up and we both were scratching our heads.  Sure, we came up with a few ideas, but overall I don't have any good answers. 

Been thinking about these two verses recently.  These are pretty standard "do this" type of messages guys hear:

Ephesians 5:25 -- Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

1 Peter 3:7 -- Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

The question is:  How do you do this?   What does this look like for you?

The one thing that really stood out to me was the part about "so that nothing will hinder your prayers".   That verse is telling us if we're not intentional about our marriage and our relationship with our wife, that are prayers will be hindered.   I don't know about you, but I don't want my prayers hindered.  I think this shows us how important the marriage relationship is to God and that it is something we must constantly be intentional about.

So how are you doing at this?   Make an effort to start being more intentional today.  I know I'm going to try.  Anybody want to get a discussion going? 

Today is March 20.  It's a very special day for me.    Nine years ago today, I quit my full-time job and started my own business.   I was young and clueless, but had a dream and a passion and I was going to make it work.    At the time, B-to-B auctions and trading exchanges were the hot thing.  My plan was to build a web-based software suite, get some clients and then sell the business and walk away.    I had a business plan and I wanted to raise $1M.   I was so clueless, but that desire inside of me didn't stop.  Well, I never did raise any money on my own, but I did meet some other guys and we partnered up to form a company.   My current business partner was part of that original company.  While that company doesn't exist anymore, my business partner and I are still together to this day in a new company we started.

Looking back, there have been many peaks and valleys.    Good times and bad times.    But the passion inside of me never stopped.  I remember in one valley I looked at our personal checking account and we only had $700.   I remember praying right then that God would use me and our business to bless others.  I prayed that He would help and guide me and lead me out of the valley.   Shortly after that time, we landed a few great clients and haven't looked back since.  We currently sell a software suite that helps over 40,000 business owners run and manage their business.  We are a blessing to them.

As I look back to the day that I first started out on my own, I can now see clearly that God was there orchastrating things on my behalf.   Certain things happened and I survived solely because God was in control.   I didn't really know it at the time.  I was a Christian, but I had no real personal relationship with Jesus.   I really gave my heart to Jesus about 3 years into the business.    It's when my head knowledge transferred into my heart.  In those early days, I didn't really pray about the direction or seek God's will.  However, I know He was always there.  John 15:27 says "And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning."    I know God has been with me from the beginning.  Today I constantly seek His will and direction and test everything against His Word, the Bible.

If you're struggling right now, or feel like you've lost your way, contact me.   I would love to talk to you and offer you some encouragement.

Found a cool website tonight.  Great cause with a fun twist.

Here's a snippet from the site:

How Does It Work?

This website is designed to shine a bright light on the very real problem of childhood hunger in America by asking you to pledge to be a part of the solution. For each pledge made via the online form, Tyson will donate 35 lbs of food product (the equivalent of 140 servings). It’s really easy. You can choose to share this website with others, volunteer your service, and/or donate to Share Our Strength.

If the goal of 1,000 people taking the online pledge is reached, a semi-trailer filled with 140,000 meals will arrive at the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas in Austin during the SXSW ’09 Interactive Festival. Can you help spread the word? 

Check it out:  http://www.pledgetoendhunger.com/

I'm still in 1 Thessalonians 5.   In this chapter, Paul has some great words that leaders can study and chew on.    Verses 16-18 say this:

1 Thes 5:16-18 -- "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

Three things listed out that we should do, but three things that in the daily life routine sometimes get overlooked and brushed aside.   In the thick of a client project or when a deadline is looming it's not always easy to be joyful and I know I'm sure not giving thanks at that moment.  I'm stressed out.  Perhaps I'm praying, but sadly even that seems to get side tracked when I'm dealing with a lot of wordly pressures.  

However, when we choose to obey these three things and try to incorporate them into our daily lives, our perspective will change.  We will start to see situations and people in a new light.  I know it's a lot easier to tackle a big issue after I've prayed about it, when I'm joyful about and when I'm thankful for it.

Now, I just need to remember these things and do them everyday.   When I am able to keep the right perspective and incorporate these things into my life, things always go much smoother for me.   I can look back and see that is true.

How about you?   How are you doing on these three things?

What do you think of when you think of a weak person?   Is it a helpless person?  A lazy person?  A child?  A timid person?  I'm still chewing on 1 Thessalonians 5.   Verses 14 and 15 say this:

1 Thes 5:14-15  "And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.  Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else."

I think there's a lot of text here for a leader to think about.   Many times it's easy to encourage and lift up those people that we really like, that we see beaming with potential.  However, it's another thing to lift up and encourage the person that we don't mesh with well, that may be lazy, or may be really timid.   For a leader, these are the type of people that really need our encouragement the most.   Our job as leaders is to lift them up and help them grow into all that they can be.

When I read "make sure nobody pays back wrong for wrong", I think about the idea of "an eye for an eye".   You do something wrong to me, I do something wrong back to you to get even.   However, I think in the context of this passage, this sentence is telling us to not forget about those that are weak or timid.    Let's say you're a leader on a project and you've got a lazy employee.   It would be easy to exclude that employee from key meetings, or not involve that employee in key project discussions, or even gossip about that employee to other leaders.   I think that's a "wrong".    You've been wronged by a lazy employee, but don't pay back the wrong with a wrong.   Use it as an opportunity to get at the heart of the matter and coach the employee along into a more productive person.

The possibilities are endless here.  Try today and make a more determined attempt to lead those that may not totally measure up to your idea of what a leader is.