Podcasts + Posts

I always thought Jesus was just comparing what He tells us to seek, as opposed to what most people seek- we seek the Kingdom; they seek stuff. Remarkably, though, it's not just the “object" of that search which He’s suggesting should be different; it's also the manner of “seeking.”

Follow me for a second... 

I’ve learned that one of the biggest hindrances to walking with a healthy soul is striving, straining, and seeking to achieve things in our own strength. That is, it’s not just “doing bad” things that knock us off course. Many times, we can do “good,” but do it from a sense of obligation instead of overflow… 

There’s a great line in the Sermon on the Mount that speaks to this…

Matthew records Jesus’ admonition: “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). 

He tells us that if we do this- if we seek His Kingdom first AND seek HIs...

In a sitcom that played in the last decade, Bernie Mac's wife, Wanda, wanted a renovation job performed on their house. And she wanted it done “good, fast, and cheap.” That is... 

• She wanted it done with excellence,
• She wanted it done yesterday, and...
• She didn't want to pay a lot for it to be done

Bernie told her that you can choose 2 of the 3- no more. He proceeded to sketch a triangle, telling her that each of these three options (good, fast, cheap) were at opposite corners. Unfortunately, she could only have 2 of them...

"You'll have to make a choice," he said. "Because what you're wanting is impossible."

Side note: I know, no lady reading this has ever heard her husband say that; no husband has ever thought it :-)

Here’s how he described it to her (and how I apply it to virtually anything you do):

First, you've got to be invested in the project

Bernie Mac first said something like this: You can build fast and cheap, but it...

Sometimes, it's confusing to know what things we SHOULD do and what things we shouldn't even mess with when we get into time management, scheduling, and planning. Here's why in a nutshell: The most important things don't beg for your attention.

The important things-

• They don't text you
• They don't chime on social media
• They don't constantly remind you that they need you NOW!

You have to intentionally set aside time- and stick to the commitment- if you're going to see progress. The most important things in life is that, well... they don't usually beg for your attention.

Stephen Covey writes about a concept he calls the four quadrants in his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. He argues that all opportunities are not equal. Some things are more important than others. Really, we all know he's right. 

To categorize important things from unimportant things, he uses four quadrants. Every activity you do fits in one of the four. No exceptions, no...