Does your elevator go all the way to the top floor?

February 8, 2012 in Questions, Re-creation with 0 Comments

The doors open and you step inside. As you look for the button to signal the floor you want you notice one button has a key slot next to it. With your choice already selected and the doors sliding closed you wonder what could be on the floor that is secured by a key.

If you are in an office building the directory in the lobby might list the name of the top floor business. Are they your competitors? Do they offer better service or product than the company you are in the building to see? How do they expect to get customers if access is under lock and key? How do you get to be one of their customers? Just what are they selling up there?

Maybe it’s a residential building or a hotel you are visiting on vacation. Wouldn’t you just love to get a glimpse of how “the other half live”? If it’s your building maybe you’ve ridden in the elevator many times with the upstairs neighbor. After all they would have to go past your floor on the way down to get out of the building. How tempted are you to push the button just on the off-chance it would take you straight to the top?

Arriving at your floor you double-check to see if you have locked your keys in the car. No, there they are. You will be able to get on with your day. You have the keys to your life securely in hand. Funny how you never figured out what the key was on the fob your grandfather gave you. Never made sense to you that it has the single letter P engraved in it. Makes a nice memento of the old guy though.

The doors slide open and as you walk down the hall you wonder if the P could stand for Possibilities.

You already have the key. Does your elevator go all the way to the top floor?

Are you a good friend?

February 7, 2012 in Questions, Relation Ships with 0 Comments

This may seem like a no brainer. You may quickly think, “Of course I am”.

But are you really?

Do you call your friends to talk or to listen?

Do you trust them with what matters to your heart?

Do you let them help you with the big stuff?

Can they tell you the truth? No, really tell you the truth?

Can people trust you with their heart?

On my worst day can you still

see the best in me?

When you hurt my feelings does it

break your heart?

Social media has taken the

meaning out of the word friend.

It’s turned it into a tally mark in a

cyber popularity contest.

I found this poem today and thought it was worth sharing.

A True Friend

A true friend is the one who picks you up when you fall

A true friend is one that won’t lie

A true friend is there when you call

A true friend is there when you want to die

A true friend knows just what to say

A true friend won’t care what other people think

A true friend will help you find your way

A true friend will make sure you don’t sink

A true friend will help you choose your path

A true friend will know when something is wrong

A true friend has to sometimes face your wrath

A true friend makes you feel like you belong

A true friend

by Ashley Reese

So take a long look in the mirror. Are you a good friend?

What are you drinking?

February 7, 2012 in Questions, Reverence with 0 Comments

This morning I realized I have beverages that go with certain activities. When I first wake up in the morning and when I am working in my office, a large cup of coffee is close at hand. When I am reading or journaling or writing, a hot cup of tea is close by. It often gets cold before it gets finished because I get so wrapped up in what I’m focused on. Dinner is often accompanied by a glass of good wine. I find it slows down the whole dinner time and the focus shifts from eating to dinning. Fast food gets washed down with a Diet Coke. Diet Pepsi if I have the choice.

But…when I fire up my Logos program and

dig into the Word it is water.

A large wine glass full of

clear cold water that I want.

As a deer pants for water….

What are you doing today?

What are you drinking?

What are you longing for?

3 Questions from God

February 5, 2012 in Questions, Response Ability with 1 Comment

I’ve been teaching Genesis again. This is my 5th or 6th time through. Each time I learn more and see more of the heart of God. This time the questions have jumped off the page at me. There are three from God that are very direct and show so much of His heart. Today I wonder how you would answer the questions.

The first two come coupled together. An unmarried pregnant woman running from the life of slavery and two pillars of faith who treated her badly is asked “Where have you come from and where are you going?” (Gen 16:8) Now, I’m pretty confident God knew exactly where Hagar was coming from and had a pretty good idea where she would be going. But so often, when we are in the midst of crisis, it’s critical to get our bearings. Knowing where we’ve come from is vital to deciding where to go and what to do next. If we don’t know how we got where we are how are we to move forward?

“Where are you going?” takes our focus off the road behind us and helps us realize we have choices to make. I have never accepted the excuse “I had no choice” as valid. There are always choices. Joshua broke it down to the most basic, choose life or death. Everyday, we make choices that determine where we are going.

The third may come as a shock. After explaining to God the horrible circumstances she was fleeing from and her plan to keep fleeing, God sent her back to the same circumstances with two things, His name, El Roi and His promise, her son would be the father of nations. So when she finds herself sixteen years later sitting in despair again the question, “What is the matter with you?” may sound a little harsh. Her circumstances didn’t improve during the 16 years she had the name and the promise, but it didn’t change the heart of God, His name or the promise. The same God who protected her for 16 years, who saw her not only in the desert but in the camp, who gave her His promise hadn’t changed.

So today, looking at your circumstances, looking at what you know of His heart, how would you answer…

Where have you come from?

Where are you going?

What is the matter with you?

From my Inbox

February 3, 2012 in Questions, Reverence with 0 Comments

The following was an email I received this morning. With the appropriate permissions and notations I am using my blog today to “forward” it to you.

What has God already said yes to that you continue to question? As I pondered this question, I realized that many times I continue to argue my point with God when God has already said yes. So what is He waiting on? Why doesn’t He do what He promises immediately? Could it be that He is waiting for me to believe and to worship?

When the children of Israel were enslaved in Egypt, they cried out to the God of their fathers and the Bible says, “and God knew”. (Exodus 2:24) He knew they wanted to be free. He knew the situation they were in and the oppression they were under, and He knew their deep desire to return to a place where they could serve Him. And His answer was “Yes!” They were in fact seeking the will of God and we know that when we seek the will of God His answer to His will is always yes.

So how did it come to be? God sent them a deliverer. His name was Moses. Although Moses was reluctant to fulfill the call on his life, he went to Egypt anyway and shared God”s plan with the elders of Israel. The people”s response was amazing! The scripture says, “And the peoplebelieved; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel and that He had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped.” (Exodus 4:31) In other words, they hadn”t seen anything change yet. Their circumstances had not changed one bit. They were still slaves in Egypt. But despite the overwhelming odds before them and the very strong opposition that surely awaited them – they choose to believe God and take Him at His word. They confirmed their complete trust in Him by beginning to worship Him for what they knew He would do. In fact, they worshiped as though it was already done.

So I ask again, what has God already said yes to in your life? More importantly, what”s stopping you from believing and worshiping Him?

“And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.” (1 John 5:14-15 emphasis mine)

The time is now beloved. This promise assures us that prayers said in faith according to His will are heard by Him and that we already have what we are requesting. Let”s have confidence to believe Him and to worship Him today. Though we may not see it with our natural eyes yet, by faith we can believe it has already been accomplished in the supernatural. Amen!

Be Blessed!

Mary

Mary Banks

For Speaking Engagements: Contact 281.537.5959
Mary_Banks@wowconsultinggroup.com

Has this Demi E-letter blessed you? Write me and let me know. Better yet, pass it on to those you care about!

3 Things to change today

February 1, 2012 in Questions, Response Ability with 0 Comments

When was the last time you changed your batteries? I mean other than something being totally dead. For months I have walked past our indoor/outdoor thermometer and thought it was broken. This morning I decided to replace the batteries. Low and behold! It works! But this makes me wonder if my carbon monoxide detector and smoke detectors need fresh batteries, too. When was the last time you changed your batteries?

When was the last time you changed your routine? You know, the familiar way you start your morning or end your day. The route you take to and from the same places you’ve always gone. It’s called a routine because you do it the same way over and over. Honestly, can you say what you do the way you do it works for you or is there room for creative improvement?

When was the last time you changed your opinion? I mean really changed your opinion not just changing your mind. We all know how easy it can be to change your mind. “I changed my mind, I’ll have the fish instead of the chicken.” “I’ve changed my mind, I really don’t want to go to that party.” “I’ve changed my mind….” But to change your opinion, well that’s a very different story. That requires admitting on some level that your opinion might not really be as “right” or as accurate as you thought it was. Your evaluation of a person or a situation might have been lacking in information or insight or (gasp) compassion. You might have to make some public statements indicating your opinion has changed, which could open you up to questions and the very real possibility that other people’s opinions could change, too.

You can’t smell carbon monoxide in your home but it can kill you.

You may be comfortable with your routine but if you’re not growing and changing you are dying.

You may have held your opinion for a long time but if you are not willing to reconsider it you may already be dead.

What are you going to change today?

Are you willing to fail to succeed?

January 26, 2012 in Questions, Response Ability with 0 Comments

If it means failing a few times before you succeed are you in? I have written today’s question six different ways so far and the opening few lines have given me a really struggle. But I want to ask this question today and as much as it’s fighting back I think it’s a good one.

How many shots does a marksman take perfecting his aim?

How many miles does a marathoner log before getting to the starting line?

How many unfinished books are saved on millions of computers that are really good?

How many times does a gold medal ice skater fall?

If you knew you would hit the bulls eye, finish the race, make the Times Best Seller list or take home the gold would your day be different today?

Take the shot.

Put on your shoes.

Finish the book.

Reach for the gold.

What Can I Get Started For You Today?

January 25, 2012 in Questions, Response Ability with 0 Comments

Don’t you just love it when someone offers to fix you a cup of coffee? I’m not sure if she’s been instructed to greet customers by asking what she can get started for them or if that is just her way but it is so inviting without being pushy. It says “I see you and am ready to do my part to help you get exactly what you want this morning.” And then she waits for the creativity that each person desires in a cup or maybe from the pastry case. There is no telling what a person may be in the mood for even if they are regular customers with a predictable routine. They just might change it up on her and go totally rouge. When she listens it’s for the details, caff, de-caf, non fat, soy, mocha, cappuccino, latte….the possible combinations are as varied and endless as the parade of people coming in and out of the door from “can’t see” in the morning to “shouldn’t be drinking caffeine” late at night.

Then there’s the hand off. She’s marked the code on the side of a cup and the next person in the process is responsible for taking action based on the what they have received. This is where the whole process hangs in the balance. Missing a notation or thinking they know what it is without really seeing it can result in not only wasted product and delay but the possibility of loosing the trust of the customer. After all, how hard is it to get a cup of coffee right?

You’d be surprised.

Everyday we are faced with hundreds if not thousands of opportunities to customize our little piece of the world. From what you choose to wear or not wear in the morning to what time you crawl into bed at night it’s just one decision after another. The person attempting to fill your cup to your specifications has decisions to make as well. Decisions that affect you. Deciding to show up for work…deciding to pay attention to your request…deciding to take a break instead of filling your order…deciding to thank you for coming in and wishing you a good day as they hand off your creative moment. Each of those decisions impacting in some way your day. After all, you made the decision to stop for that personally crafted cup of whatever. You could have just made it yourself at home and not allowed those people the opportunity to have impact on your day. But you did.

Everyday, in some way, you put yourself at the mercy of the decisions of others and, here’s the scary part, they put themselves at the mercy of the decisions you make. When she asks what she can start for you there is the very real expectation that in a just a few minutes the well thought out process of ordering a cup of coffee with actually produce just the desired result, that all the components will fall into place and without giving it much, if any thought, on your part you will walk out with just such a delightful customized product made just the way you want it. And when you walk out the world is waiting. They are waiting for you. Waiting for your next creative direction. Waiting for you to take the hand off and produce just what was ordered. Waiting for you to decided to show up and fulfill your role.

Everyday you are handed an empty cup. What you decided to fill it with is entirely up to you. But there are those who are waiting to take your order, to get something started for you, to encourage you along your way.

What can I get started for you today?

Is there another word for…

January 24, 2012 in Questions with 0 Comments

Synonym?

Just wondering…

When was the last time you had your eyes checked?

January 23, 2012 in Questions, Relation Ships with 0 Comments

The past week I have been reading a book that has given me new insight and hopefully new “out-sight” as well. I read a lot. Most of my life I have wondered about people who don’t read or who read very little. There seems to be a major shift in the whole area of reading over the past 10 years or so. The advent of electronic media has bolstered distribution and made both writing and reading much more convenient. Just the fact that you are able to read what I’ve written this morning at your leisure on whatever device you selected is a luxury writers and readers have never had to the extent we do now.

But for all our reading and knowledge and insight I wonder if we have forgotten how to really see the world around us and the people in our little part of that ever-changing familiar.

If I were to ask you what color the car parked in front of your neighbor’s house this morning is would you know? If I were to ask you the make of the car you parked next to at work or school this morning, would you know?

Can you tell me how tall your regular mailman is? Age? Male or female? What time is the delivery? Would you know if it was late?

One of the most challenging parts of eye-witness accounts is how much they can vary from person to person and how much point of view changes details remembered. Even more skewing than point of view is the focus or lack of focus the observer has on what is going on around them.

I wear corrective lenses. Sometimes that takes the form of glasses. Other times contact lenses correct my vision. But at my stage in life either solution is sufficient for all my vision needs. If I am wearing my glasses I have to take them off to read. If I am wearing my contacts I have to put on reading glasses to read. Short-sighted or far-sighted. Interesting terms.

So my question today is:

How’s your vision? Are you seeing things clearly? Do you need to put on glasses to see what’s right in front of your face? Or do you need to take them off? Have you stopped looking at the world around you?

Have you stopped looking at the hearts of the people around you because you think you already see them? When was the last time you really looked someone in the eyes? Really saw the woman at church who never speaks to anyone? Looked at the face of the man on the street corner? Saw the hurt or loneliness or forgiveness or fear in the eyes in the mirror?

Maybe, just maybe, it’s time to have your eyes checked. Do you need an appointment?

Page 1 of312 3 »

Lana Vaughan