Run Your Race & Encourage Others

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama!

 

This week’s Happy Friday is going to be short and sweet – one piece of encouragement and one friendly reminder.

 

The Encouragement

I simply want to encourage you, Friend, to run your race. Whatever the purpose is for your life, do that to the very best of your ability, and I pray you will do so in service of others. Your race is your race; run it boldly and confidently. Your race is your race; don’t wish you were someone else or that you had a different calling – honor your life, your calling. There is greatness within you, a purpose that is in desperate need of fulfilling, and it will only be accomplished by you running your race. Run, Friend, run!!!

 

Hebrews 12:1-3

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

 

“God gave you your own race to run; stop comparing yourself to other people. They have their race and you have yours. Run hard and don’t quit.” – LeCrae

 

The Reminder

Everyone needs encouragement! This one is easy for me as I was placed on this earth to encourage, empower, and equip all others to fulfill their potential. Even if it doesn’t come easy or natural to you, I want to assure you, everyone needs it.

 

This past weekend I had the privilege of meeting one of the greats in his field of endeavor. What was on my heart, though, was not to talk to him about what he does professionally. No, my heart was to tell him we shared a faith and values. And how much I appreciated what he stood for as a man, husband, and father, as evidenced by the fact that he was where he was to support his son, though he has big things happening in his own professional life. As I stated to him when I started, “You don’t need me to validate you.” However, my spirit was convicting me to share what I shared, so I did. And how did this giant respond? As my wife and I were walking away, after already saying our goodbyes, he said, “Hey!” I turned and looked. He said, “Thank you for the encouragement.” I was dumbfounded. It never crossed my mind that he needed to hear the words that my spirit convicted me to share with him. Everyone needs encouragement!

 

1 Thessalonians 5:11

11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

 

“How do you know if someone needs encouragement? If they are breathing!” - S. Truett Cathy

 

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

 

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend! Please cherish your precious family, be kind, and please stay well!

 

Kev

A Few Things to Ponder

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama!

 

Let’s go!!! It is finally here!!! We have college football this weekend!!! Time to Raise the Roar!!!

 

This week I want to share a few things for you to think about. Two of them come from sermons at our church over the past couple of weeks, and the other comes from something I heard on Christian radio this week.

 

The first one I want to share is from 2 Corinthians 4:4. It says:

(New Living Translation)

“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”

 

Please read and think about that scripture. No, I am not talking about the “Satan, who is the God of this world” part, though that certainly could be a Happy Friday. It is the “blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see…” If we know they are unable, not unwilling, would we maybe think about them, talk to them, and treat them differently? I know for me, it makes me think very differently about it all. And right now, my Spirit reminds me that we are called to love all people, not just those who share our beliefs.

 

The second thing I want to offer this morning came from our sermon this past Sunday. Pastor Steve Huskey talked about “functional unbelievers,” whom he defined as those who talk about it but don’t do it. He went on to say that we are functional unbelievers until we put our full faith in God. Makes sense, right? He used the analogy of a suspension bridge. The difference between a talker and a doer: the talker will sit there and tell you all about the bridge. The doer will actually put their full weight on the bridge. Still make sense? Still feeling comfortable? So let me ask you a question I have asked myself several times in the past week: Are you putting your full weight on Jesus? Are you fully trusting Him with your life? Are you fully trusting Him with your marriage? Are you fully trusting Him with your kids? Are you fully trusting Him with your career? Ok, ok, I will stop. I am getting restless too! Something for us all to think about. And I must share the quote from Pastor Craig Groeschel, “the things we worry about the most are the hints we trust God with the least.”

 

Finally, I want to encourage us all to be a light. I was listening to the radio, and the speaker asked, "Have you ever been in a completely dark room?" He went on to say he once was; someone lit a match, and he was amazed by how much that little light lit up the whole room. He said the same is true of you and me as we move about this world. Yes, it can be dark, very dark. We, however, are called to be a light. And a reminder that a dear friend shared with me several years ago: light only shines in the darkness. Think about it…

 

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

 

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend. Please cherish your precious family, be kind, and stay well!

 

Kev

Always Have a Quarter in Your Pocket

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in My Sweet Home, Alabama!

One week until the college football season is here! Let's go!!!

What a treat and blessing! Earlier this week, my Beautiful Bride, Kathy, walked up to me and said, "I have this week's Happy Friday." There was only one appropriate response: "Yes ma'am." You all are going to enjoy this great message and the wisdom within it.

Always Have a Quarter in Your Pocket

When my boys were little, I felt so overwhelmed at times, and most of the time my answer was “no.” Then one day I had a strong conviction. We were at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, and there stood this gigantic bubblegum machine. As my youngest stood there, with his tender, big blue eyes dancing, he looked up to me, and of course, asked for a quarter. I had none, and at times I just said, "You don’t need one." His sweet face dropped, his smile faded, and he moved on to the next thing. At that moment, getting a piece of bubble gum was everything to him. Just like the things that are everything to me when my eyes would dance at new shoes, new clothes, new jewelry, etc. This is when I made a vow to always have a quarter for the bubble gum machine for any of my three boys. Even to this day, he is grown now, whenever we see a bubble gum machine, he looks at me and smiles. It has just become a great memory for both of us.

 

It is so easy, as moms, for “no” to become our default response instead of a thoughtful one. We carry the responsibility. At times, we say “no” for good reason: to protect, to guide, to teach. Or “no,” not now. No, that’s not good for you. At times, no’s are necessary, but don’t let them become a habit. Our children need joy, laughter, and reassurance, and to be seen and cherished, not just discipline and structure.

 

Sometimes the important things, the small things in life, are sometimes the biggest things in life. As a mom of young children, I sometimes found it easier to say no, but I want to encourage you to choose connection over convenience. To this day, my youngest and I are connected all because of a simple coin, a quarter.

 

Guess what? The requests for bubble gum are gone; my house is quiet; no more car rides. I do not remember every rule I enforced, but I sure do remember the times we laughed together, the lunch dates, getting bubble gum, and all the smiles it brought to his face. I miss those days.

 

There is something small about a quarter. It's just loose change, but in the eyes of a child, that quarter can feel like a treasure. It can mean a moment of joy as you look into a bubble gum machine at a bright blue piece of gum.

 

At times, I wish I had paused more while raising my boys and asked, “Is this a moment that really needs a no or a chance to say yes?”

 

A quarter for a piece of bubble gum isn’t about too much sugar or saying you don’t need that. It's about being present in the moment of what's important in your child's life. It shows us to slow down. It's about recognizing that my boy's childhood was made up of tiny, spontaneous moments. These moments may be insignificant to us as parents, but they become the stories our children carry with them for a lifetime.

 

Our Father in Heaven has the heart of a good, patient Father. He delights in giving His children good gifts. Not out of obligation, but out of love. As parents, we need to strive to reflect that same heart.

 

We get so busy raising our children, making sure homework is done, baths are taken, etc. I did this. God reminds me every day that love is often found in the small things, and the most meaningful lessons are wrapped in the simplest moments. Or a wrapped piece of bubble gum. A simple yes might just be the best yes, you can give to your child.

 

So, to wrap this up, always have a quarter ready. Not just in your pocket but in your heart. This taught me to have more patience, to have more grace, to take more time to know what's important to my child. Did I always get this right? Absolutely not. Choose the memory, not the no. It might just change your world.

 

“Life is not measured by the number of breaths that you take, but the moments that take your breath away.” – Maya Angelou

 

“It's not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” – Abraham Lincoln

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend. Please cherish your precious family, be kind, and stay well!

Kev