Mike Henderson

Friday's Five

  It's time to get ready for Halloween tonight.  Actually for me that usually means grab a good book, sit upstairs and read, and wait for the one or two kids who may show up.  For many that my not sound very exciting.  But for an introverted guy like me who absolutely loves to read it's a pretty good deal.  Carol likes to be where the action is so she will be the one leaving with Gabe, our youngest, to a more populated area.  You just don't get much candy in a neighborhood of five houses.

  Speaking of candy, let me give you five treats to celebrate Halloween.

* This week's link is a daily devotional that is worth pasting in your browser.

* The Speed of Trust by Steven M.R. Covey is a fascinating read.  The lack of trust has unseen costs in business, destroys relationships, and slows everything down from creativity to productivity.  Inside this book he will give you 13 behaviors that can build or restore trust.

* "The biggest problem with communication is the assumption that it has taken place." Pat MacMillan

* Job 1:8   Do our lives 'exceed' expectations?

*  Let's think about excess for a moment.  After all, it is halloween, and it's about filling our bags or pillow cases up with candy, going home, dumping it out, and heading out for more.  In the daily devotional link above it's about being excessive in asking God for what we want.  In the book by Covey it's about excessive trust, that is, being trusted and extending trust whereby a level of performance is unleashed which had never been experienced before. In the quote, it's about being excessive in our communication to make sure it takes place.  The verse from Job talks about exceeding in our walk with God to the extent He holds us up as a role model. 

  So why not go out and be excessive?  You may wind up being the 'treat' that causes God to smile upon your life.

Friday's Five

  Another week has quickly gone by.  A big weekend in college football as Penn State goes against Ohio State.  If Penn State wins I believe they will be in the BCS National Championship game in January.  Can't wait to speak on the subject of Procrastination.  The link will be up by Tuesday afternoon.  This week I have finally gotten around to a few things that I was procrastinating on.  One of the fascinating things about preaching is that usually the message speaks to me first and then I deliver it knowing how relevant and life-changing it can be.  Here's my five things for this week:

*  With the election just days away you need to watch Ed Young's message on voting.  Every Christ-follower should cast his vote and have Scripture to support it.

*  You Were Made for More by Jim Cymbala.  Just got this book this week from Amazon and read it in one sitting.

*  "If you're big enough for your dream, your dream isn't big enough for you." Erwin McManus   Digest that thought for awhile.  Maybe you need to rethink your dreams.

*  Jeremiah 10:23.  So why do we act as if our life is our own?

* Why do we often allow differences to divide or frustrate us?  It's been said that "opposites attract and then opposites attack."  Recently I read a comment from Jenny Craig about her recently deceased husband.  She and Sid Craig built the Jenny Craig weight-loss chain which Nestle acquired for $600 million in 2006.  She said 'He was an idea man and a genius at advertising and marketing...Me on the other hand: I have always been a detail person.  So that worked well for us.  In our 30-year marriage, I don't think we had two disagreements."  The point is being different is helpful not hurtful.  So let's be a little more careful that hurtful attitudes and actions are not rising up due to our differences.

Friday's Five

  As I look forward to another weekend full of yard work, soccer, football, and services at New Hope I am reminded that it is so easy not to schedule the important things.  I got to do something this week that I have put off for some time.  I'll post in the near future about scheduling along with some time management thoughts.  For now though, let me give you this week's five hits.

*  Ever feel like quitting.

*  the dip by Seth Godin.  Since I just gave you a link on quitting why not give you a book.  It's a quick read, a little book that teaches you when to quit (and when to stick).  I bet the Red Sox are glad they didn't quit when down by seven runs in the seventh inning.  They came back and won 8-7.

*  People settle.  They settle for less than they are capable of.  Organizations settle too.  For 'good enough' instead of 'best in the world.'  Seth Godin

*  Proverbs 9:9 "Teach a wise man, and he will be the wiser; teach a good man, and he will learn more."  Can you put a finger on one or two things you need to learn?  Are you willing for someone to give you some feedback or input?  Or do you want to simply remain as you are?

*  Quit comparing.  One reason we want to quit is we feel that we don't measure up.  One reason we don't learn from others is because we think we know more than they do.  While golfing this week I was reminded that there will always be someone with a better game.  Mine is not that good.  But there will also be others with a game worse than mine (I just can't seem to find them, but I hear they are out there).  So I may as well keep playing and enjoy the game.

Friday's Five

This post is coming on Saturday as I was out of town at the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta.  It was an incredible three days with over 12,000 in attendance.  Next year I plan to go again with a team of perhaps eight people.  Even though that is one year away they have already begun registration.  Anyway here are my quick five for this week.

* Before execution comes planning. Click here for some good thoughts on planning.

* The Starbucks Experience.  What are the experience strategies inside one of the great success stories in business? 

* "Every successful person is someone who failed, yet never regarded himself as a failure."  John Maxwell

* 1 Kings 18:43-45.  Is there something you are looking for God to do in your life that you cannot yet see?  Will you quit looking or will you keep pressing on?

* There is incredible life-changing power in just one sentence.  Or perhaps maybe that is just the way I am wired.  I can listen to an entire message, enjoy the whole thing, but it was just one line, one thought that impacted me and stays with me.  One the speaker has my attention which I expect to happen in the first couple of minutes I do not want to miss ONE sentence.  I fear missing the one thing God has for me, the one principle that will change my thinking, the one thought that God will use to draw me closer to Him, or the one thing God wants me to do.

Friday's Five

Here are my five quick hits for the week.  One link, one book, one quote, one verse, and one life lesson.

* For a fast read regarding all the political debates check out Perry Noble's comments.

* IT: One of the best books I have read in the last five years, and I read a lot of books (about 50-75 a year)

* "You can accomplish anything in life, provided that you do not mind who gets the credit."  Harry S. Truman

* 1 Samuel 14:6: now that you have read it what will you do about it.

* Talent is great to have.  But it comes down to execution.  I've watched inferior teams beat superior teams over the last several days in College Football and the NFL.  Oregon State demolished USC who was ranked #1 in the country.  Ole Miss went into Florida and pulled off a huge upset there.  And then I watched the Washington-Dallas game with several guys from New Hope.  Now I know all the Dallas fans were expecting a fairly easy win.  But Washington beat them in Dallas by a score of 26-24.
  I am reminded that while we have some incredible people at New Hope, at the end of the day, at every service, we must execute, even the small things.

Friday's Five

It's Friday and I'm getting excited about the weekend.  USC has already gone down.  Great football on Saturday.  I'm sure Perry will be watching Clemson, Gary will be rooting for Georgia, and Tadd will be keeping an eye on North Carolina.
Then on Sunday is the highlight of the week as I get to serve alongside some awesome volunteers at New Hope.
Here's what caught my attention this week:

*  Good stuff on being remarkable.
*  Love it when people talk about the nuts and bolts of ministry. 
*  Want to get more done? 
* Political posturing seems to be behind some giving, not a heart of compassion.
*  Passion can be fragile.  Perry will fire you up.