Morning Cup of Joe

“Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.”
                                                                                                – Romans 12:11-12

The smell of coffee in the morning.  HMMMMMMMM…..Ahhhhhh.  There is just something about that rich smell that brings a smile to my face, a joy in my heart and a lift to my spirit.  Now, mind you, I don’t drink coffee; unless you count the chocolate, sweet cream, foo-foo Starbucks White Chocolate Mocha, but that’s not really coffee, is it?  Anyway, I just love the smell and I reckon most of you do to.

Have you ever thought about coffee from a biblical point of view?
Say you have a bag of coffee beans, not grounds, but beans.  Hard right, almost unbreakable.  When you want a cup of coffee, what must you first do with those beans?  Go to the cupboard, pull out your coffee grinder, pour in a cup of beans and wait for it to do it’s magic.  Got it, but what if you don’t have a grinder?  Go to the garage, grab your hammer, put the beans in a plastic bag, and after stepping out onto the porch start hammering away until the beans are crushed.  This is not going to get you fine grounds of coffee, but it will probably work in a jam.  The best way, in my opinion, is to take a sauce pan and fill it 2/3rds full of water, drop in a dozen or so coffee beans, bring the water to a boil.  Suddenly that oh so sweet smell starts filling the air around you.  Sure it takes longer, but the coffee is so much better (so I’m told).

The coffee beans change the water around them, rather than being changed by the boiling water.  They make the water better (for those who like coffee) after spending time submerged in it.  This chemical change, this improvement is evidenced when you pour out that first cup and taste of it’s richness and flavor.  It’s harder work than stopping at Starbucks, turning on your Keurig or Mr. Coffee brew machine in the morning.  It takes intent and patience to get that perfect cup, but it’s worth it.

Very much like that perfect cup of coffee, your work has the opportunity to influence those around you for good or for bad.  You are that coffee bean and your attitude, your words, your joy has an impact on everyone around you in the office, in the school, on the plane, or wherever your day takes you.  Working hard demonstrates your commitment to the work at hand you are demonstrating to those around you that we are to give 100% in all things.  We are paid for our work, it is actually stealing from your employer to give them anything less than 100% while they are paying you.  This is right and represents high integrity, which are righteous characteristics that others will see.

Let others see your dedication to the Lord through your work and in your work environment.  Do not be ashamed of the joy the Lord has placed upon your heart, and look for those opportunities to share it with others around you.  Living righteously, serving God and working for man is a strong testimony to influence those around you for the better.  Like the coffee bean, let the scent of the Lord fill the room around you, to increase their desire to likewise partake.

Be Blessed,

Rich

 

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Do Something Amazing

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“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” – Colossians 3:17

Why do you do what you do?  Why do you work so hard?  What exactly is it that you believe you are accomplishing that will be remembered 20 years from now, 50 years or even 100 years from now?  When will you be finished, and what will you do when you are done?

Every breath you take is given to you from the Lord above.  Certainly your lungs are drawing the oxygen into your body and exhaling the CO₂ without your thought, your consciousness or effort.  Your neurological system and pulmonary system work perfectly in synch with one another to sustain life.  Little things that go unnoticed in your daily life, ensure you will see another day.

When you walk into a room, do you tell your left foot to rise and fall, and alternate with telling your right foot to do the same?  Do you tell your hand to reach for the light switch, or to pick up the newspaper off the table?  Of course not, yet as soon as your brain thinks about wanting to walk or wanting to pick something up, your body re-acts.  Your muscular and skeletal system are intricately connected to your brain through your neurological system, and it just works.  Little things that go unnoticed in your daily life, make life so much simpler.

You do the things you do in life because you hope that they will make a difference.  But is that difference meaningful to anyone but you.  Are you making the world a better place for your children, their children and so on; or are you simply making your life easier?  God gave you the deepest desires of your heart, and your soul to do amazing things in this world in His name.  You have to choose to pursue those things though, and in doing so use the gifts and talents that He has blessed you with.  You can make a difference in the world, regardless of how small it seems on the surface, that will have a lasting impression on those around you, including your children, and theirs.  Do not allow this world to suck the life from you, stand up for the belief that God put you here to do amazing things and then get up and go do it.  Start now, share it with a friend.
             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2013
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Use Your Time Wisely

I apologize for the lack of posts over the last 2 weeks.  I was on a trip in Asia and unable to access this Blogspot web-site because of censorship laws there.  Please keep the people of China in your prayers as they continue to grow in the Lord, and strengthen their resolve to serve Him. 

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 “The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps" – Proverbs 16:9

Do you really know where it is you are going each day?  I’m not talking about to work, school or the store.  I’m referring to life.  Where are your steps today taking you?  One step closer to tomorrow, or are you stuck in the mud and mire of today’s circumstance and problems? 

The Lord gives you a sunrise each and every morning as a reminder that all things are new once again.  Today is only defined by the hour hand on the clock, but your life is defined by the moments and memories within each day.  For the next 24 hours, you will have the opportunity to do great things for other people and to expand His Kingdom on this earth.  Certainly, you will have responsibilities along the way, such as your job, your bills, your kids, your friends and family; but you purpose for getting out of bed today was placed in your heart by your Creator.

Serving His purpose is the plan for the day.  Are you in a place in life where you can actually serve Him wherever He might call you to serve?  What would happen if you were led to help those people in the “Inner city” find shelter today?  How much of your planned life would you give up to help another person?  What if a child needed to be cared for, so the mother could look for a job?  What if your neighbor fell on hard times and needed help financially to make it through the month?  What if that friend from so many years ago was on the verge of doing something terrible because of a battle with depression raging inside of them?

We are one in the Lord.  We are a community of brothers and sisters, sworn to love, cherish and serve those around us.  You plan may take you to the office or classroom or grocery store today.  Let it.  Let your daily walk proceed in a manner that achieves it’s end purpose, but at the same time, let the Lord work in and through you to touch those you come in contact with.  Despite your belief and your desire, you are not here on this earth for your joy and happiness.  You are here to serve the One and Only God of the Universe, because He placed His loving trust in you, and called you to follow Him. 

When the sun sets on this beautiful day, you can sit in soft reflection on the walk you took with the Lord today.  Contemplate the opportunities that came and went, and your use of those to bring glory to your King.  After all, that is why you get out of bed each morning, and that is the purpose you are on this earth.  Think about the eternal plan of life, death and heaven, and you will realize that you are here at this time, in this place for a purpose that has nothing to do with you.  You are only living this life to bring those around you to a better understanding and relationship with their Creator; and then your days will come to an end. 

My request for you today, is to think bigger about what you are doing with the moments you have between sunrise and sunset each and every day.  Use them wisely, for once they have passed, they are no longer yours to control.  Be blessed my friends, and seek His way today.

             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2013
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De-stressing in the New Year

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“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” – 2 Timothy 2:15

I wake in the morning refreshed and ready to take on whatever lies before me with the strength and courage provided by God to endure the challenges and temptations.  Generally by 10AM I have already stepped outside of His guidance 2 or 3 times, and by noon I’m trying to conquer the world on my own.  By mid-afternoon, my stress level has gone through the roof and I’m struggling to get back on track, and by the end of the work day I’m typically frustrated and looking around for someone to blame.  The drive home allows me an hour of quality time to beat myself up over the mistakes made throughout the day and to belittle myself for not accomplishing the things that needed to get done.  Guilt and shame set in, and I question my ability to achieve what is expected of me.

How can a man go from filled with the courage of the Lord to feeling miserable in a 12 hour span of time, only to wake up the next morning and repeat the process.  This is not what God has designed for our life.  I can attest to the fact that when I wander from God’s presence in my day, I am going to quickly fall into a mode of struggling to keep up, feeling overwhelmed and incapable of achieving the goals I have set.  The problems that come across my desk each day are not for the weak at heart, and the expectation is that these problems are brought to conclusion leveraging the resources available to me on any given day.  The problem I have is that I find myself trying to solve the problems without God more frequently than with Him.

Are you in a similar position of finding yourself overwhelmed with the stress of your job, school, schedule or family commitments?  It’s not uncommon and so many people today are allowing life to control them, rather than the opposite.  This is your life.  You get to make the choices on how you will get through each day, each hour, each minute.  You will be able to solve some of the problems based on your prior life experiences and knowledge, but unfortunately life doesn’t play by those rules.  New problems will surface every day that need new thinking, new creativity and new disciplines to solve.  Where are you getting that strength from?  Who are you going to turn to for the wisdom, discernment and confidence to take on these new challenges that come up?

God created the world and all that is in it.  You believe this, right?
Then tell me, is there any problem that you are going to face today that He hasn’t already seen?  Is there something that is going to come up in your life that will catch God by surprise, or will cause Him to sit back and say, “Wow, I’ve never seen this before.”  Of course not.  We, are the obstacle to bringing closure to these problems in our life.  I am 48 years old and I’ve been in the professional marketplace for the last 27 years, managing people and projects.  Over that time I have learned a tremendous amount about problem solving and I often fall back on my own wisdom to try to solve the problems of today.  This demonstrates a lack of good judgment on my part, when I know full well that His ways are better than my ways, but I fail to seek His counsel and rush to my solution instead.

With the New Year upon us, one of my resolutions is to seek God’s wisdom and counsel in my daily walk, at work, at home, in the car and at rest.  I am done trying to solve the world’s problems on my own, and I turn it over to God the Creator, and seek how I might use His wisdom, confidence, knowledge and grace in my daily activities.  It is His truth that I want my day to be based upon, rather than listening the excuses of the world.  Perhaps this is something that you will join me in, and can commit to in your daily walk.  Start afresh each day with the Lord at the center of it all, and do not turn from His guidance throughout the day, but rather seek Him over and over again for directions.  I promise you, life will become less stressful and you will find the peace that His word promises.  But, the choice is yours and nobody else is going to make it for you.    

             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com

Break the Chains

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“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” – 1 John 2:16

What is it that separates you from God?
We say all the right words, on the outside we portray the part and make sure that those around us all know we believe in God, but what’s on the inside?  What is in your heart, your soul and filling your mind each and every day?  The essence of walking in the light and living for Christ requires that each of us evaluate our true motives, intent and reason for what we believe in. 

At one point in your life you came to an understanding that God was real, and that He alone held the keys to your eternal existence.  For the average person, overwhelmed by the busyness of life, the very next question would be, “What must I do to secure my place in God’s eternal heaven?”  The motive was right, unfortunately the execution (for most of us) has been unquestionably way off base.  You see, it’s not a checklist that gets you into heaven, nor is it a to do list that you can project manage.  It’s building a relationship, an intimate relationship with the Creator of all things.  It’s putting aside your desires, your dreams and your passion and picking up His. 

We are all addicted to something.  For some it’s money, others it’s sex, or pornography, drugs, alcohol, work, food, material possessions, time and having control.  It’s that thing that draws you away from executing what God has placed on your heart to do with your life.  We read the words of scripture, focus our effort in prayer and quiet time to draw closer to God and then go about the rest of our day as if that is all He requires.  Sitting in a church pew, singing hymns and raising hands, praying earnestly on Sunday and then chasing after our own dreams and life throughout the rest of the week without any consideration for His call is nothing more than a game of charades. 

So what is it that captures your mind on Monday morning through Saturday night that draws you away from God?  What is it that you are lusting after, that is separating you from spending time pursuing His purpose and making an impact for His Kingdom?  This is going to be a week of self evaluation as we start 2013.  It is my hope that we can all draw from this week and grow together as a body of Christ to change.  We need less focus on the world’s offering and more focus on what He has already given us.  We have allowed the world to draw us away from our Father and this is the year, we break that addiction and rekindle our first love.  Please take this opportunity to join me in looking deep inside of yourself and asking the hard questions.  If you know someone who can also benefit, please forward this on and share it with them. 
             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com