Excel Still More

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Where do you draw the line when it comes to sinful behavior? Is it your goal to do everything everyone else gets to do so long as you don't take that last step? Sometimes we strive for this in a very weird form of American Christianity. We want almost all of what our culture has to offer, with just a few things off limits. Sometimes this is how we raise our kids - to get all the fun stuff, the good stuff, the acceptable stuff that everyone else gets, but go to church on Sunday and don't sleep around. I think we can do better. I think we must do better. Maybe we need to talk about "No" Lines when it comes to morality and holiness.

Here is the content of the card that was handed out recently at the Lindale church. Note that it specifically speaks to challenges our teens are facing: dancing, parties and entertainment. But the passage provided and the five questions should have a broader sense of application. In order to be pure and to live like Christ would have me live, how far before the final step should I be drawing the line?

Shall We Dance/Party/View?

"The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make NO provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts" Romans 13:12-14.

1) Will this promote or encourage drinking, unholy behavior, or compromising circumstances?
2) Will this open the door to, or make more accessible, sexual sin, fornication or adultery?
3) Will this place immodesty, indecent movements, or questionable contact right in front of me?
4) Will this become an unnecessary situation where I may send a confusing message about living in Christ?
5) Will this be something I feel safe about, but that I openly admit would be dangerous for others?

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We live in a "yes" world. There is so much to do, and as mostly middle class Americans, we are in a position to say yes to so many things. And for the most part, we seem to try to. After all, we don't want to miss out! No, I don't mean sinful things. But sometimes it feels like we are trying to indulge in and experience pretty much everything else. 

I wonder if a first century Christian could even fathom a life like that. I doubt most of them would be interested in it at all. They were very clear on their identity and it showed. Are you? Am I? 

Next week we will look at dangerous spiritual decisions, and what has to happen for you to say no to them. But in some ways today's topic is harder. It is about more normal, daily decisions:  how you use your time or money. What you pursue as a passion and what you have to ignore in order to get that done. Do you say "no"? And what I the filter system, the identity system, you use to get to a point to decline something that seems great?  Let's get uncomfortable and explore!

- Does your life seem overly full of "good" things that distract from "great" things?

- Do you, like me, struggle to say no to opportunities?

- Do you have the FOMO problem in a world where there is so much to do?

- By what metric do you say NO to things? I mean things that are not even morally wrong?

- Does your identity as a Christian have a heavy influence on what you choose to do with your time, money and life?

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The 4 Disciplines of Execution: Achieving Your Wildly Important Goals

Excel Still More Journal

Okay, my new friend Rich Howe, from Richmond TX, has turned me on to a great new book. It is designed for business and company leaders, but it includes timeless principles. I see application for the individual, the family, the church, and business.

All that is required of you going in is an Excel Still More mentality. You just have to desire to see better. And you have to be open to a better way of getting there. The proven wisdom of these four principles is repeated all over. But will it's next success story be yours? 

- What is a wildly important goal and how do you focus on it?

- What are lead measures and how do I confidently identify them?

- How do you construct and keep a compelling scoreboard along the way?

- How can a cadence of accountability keep you moving straight to your goal?

- What is one area of your life where you will implement these strategies today?

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Read this!

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentle spirit be known to all people. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 As for the things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Okay, let's talk about how powerfully this can shape your day and life. 

Then... Read this!

2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord. 3 Indeed, true companion, I ask you also, help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement as well as the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

This came before our reading. What if Phil. 4:4-9 is the method by which conflict should be resolved among fellow believers? Have you ever seen it in that light? Let's do that together.

Sometime that still means confrontation and even time apart. But are we doing that for the right reasons? Is that about Christ and the Mission, or ourselves. The thing is - when it's about Christ and the Gospel, that will draw us back together! Let's get on mission!

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You gotta love Nick Saban. He says it like it is and asks you what you are gonna do about it! This straight talk can make us uncomfortable but it can also call us to needed change. Today, we look at a quote from him, one he'd actually recently heard from and NFL coach and is using with his guys. I hope you will find it useful as well.

Note - I mentioned the passing of my friend, Tony Mauck. If you can take a moment to pray for his wife and kids, and the Decker Prairie church where he worked, I know it would mean a lot to them and for them. 

I would love for you to make a list of the most important things you do in your life. We could talk about why they are important. We could talk about what God has done to make them possible. It would be great. Then, beside those things I'd love for you to rate how you are doing 1-5, where 1 is bad, 2 is average, 3 is good, 4 is excellent and 5 is elite. 

Did you notice that average isn't in the middle? Average is below average. Good is the baseline, the starting point, the place where God sets you free to do your work. With family, faith, finances, and even work and fitness, what are you doing with those investments God has made in you? 

Today we look at how important assessment is. We also look at how sub categorizing into more specific questions can give you needed direction. Thanks for listening!

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Question: Do you want to live to be 100? I feel like if you and I were chatting you might not give a resounding yes. We've seen a lot of disease and decay and death, and the idea of being here then might invoke a picture of sorrow and pain. But did you know there are people in their 90's and older still living rewarding and enjoyable lives? As you'll hear today, there are some great stories from Japan. But even here in Lindale, TX, there are several in their 90's still drawing joy out of active, service filled lives.

Here's a better question: would you like to live a longer, happier, more productive life with your family that would have happened otherwise with just a few changes? Is there enough life and hope and growth in your life that you'd like to see it happen for the longest time possible? I think most of us would say yes. Well, it's possible. At the very least, a few personal and communal adjustments can make things better for longer. And I know we all want that.

2/3 of all people die from avoidable diseases. In other words, they went out sooner than their bodies were designed to go. Can we do something about that. We can. Let's look at the lives of people who are succeeding in their families and community and learn from them.

-- NOTE -- Link to "Island of Ikaria"

- Are you happy with your life? Are you living with peace and purpose?

- Do you wake up with a mission? Is part of that bringing joy to others?

- How are you being disciplined to improve your quality of life?

- What is the purpose of food in your life? Do you make meals work for your good?

- How can involvement with Christ and His people improve and energize your life?

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The ESM Podcast has largely been built for individual application and growth. For one thing, that's a whole lot easier to talk about and accomplish in comparison to collective behavior. You can change you. But changing others... that's a whole lot tougher. Changing the direction of an entire family, church, or culture... that seems impossible.

But Scripture challenges us over and over again to think more societally. Even the story of Nehemiah was not about a guy who rebuilt his life. It was about a guy who left his life to help his people rebuild their security! What would that look like in your life? By that I mean, in the lives of others because you are a part of it?

Today we will look at Paul's shipwreck story in Acts 27. Except, it's not really Paul's story. It is the story of 276 people, suffering the consequences of poor leadership, finding safety as Paul helped them all honor God. Now that's what I'm talking about! How could God use you for something like that? Let's explore that idea today!

- How is Nehemiah's story really about "Us" and not "Me"?

- Have you noticed how often Jesus uses plural pronouns in His teachings?

- Is Paul's shipwreck about one man helping himself or helping a bunch of people?

- Where is God positioning you to be a factor for rebuilding in your church?

- Working on yourself is good. But have you explored the real reason God is blessing that?

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Sadly, I was in my mid-20's before I first learned about the story of Nehemiah. It was taught to me beforehand, and I REALLY could have used it in may teenage years, but it wasn't until I was in full time ministry work that this story took root in my heart.

It is a story of passion, hope, hard work, belief in God, courage, discipline, and total life change. It warns us of what can happen if we fail to start doing what matters. An entire lifetime can pass stuck in a place of fear and doubt. But with resolve, everything can change, and fast. In fact, in less than two months you can position yourself to be more focused, with better hope, and direction than at any time in your life. 

I want you to make personal, direct, individual application today. I'll give you examples in three areas: Scripture, Diet, and Addiction to Social Media. I hope you are able to apply the principles to the broken walls in your own life.

But at the end, I want to begin to introduce the social idea - the idea that the real application of this story isn't you, but us. Not me, but we. The best work is familial, collective, and done together. More on that next week!

- What are some things you want to change that could plague you your whole life?

- Why have you convinced yourself those goals are beyond or behind you?

- Have you ever embraced the transformative power of the "52 Day Challenge"?

- Okay, so now you have. Where are you excited to start?

- Why is personal discipline in your life important to people you know and love?

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Seven Social Sins demands that we match up social responsibility with internal character development. It is worth the effort! To help you follow along today, let me include all FOUR of the lists we will feature today:

Seven Things God Hates:
Pride, Lying, Murder, Wicked Plans, Rushing to Evil, Lying about Others, Creating Strife

Seven Deadly Sins:
Pride, Greed, Wrath, Envy, Lust, Gluttony, Sloth

Seven Social Sins:
1) Politics without Principle
2) Wealth without Work Ethic
3) Pleasure without Conscience
4) Knowledge without Character
5) Business without Morality
6) Science without Humanity
7) Worship without Sacrifice

Notice these demand two important things:
- My actions, which may be amoral of themselves, affect other people - society.
- My heart, my internals, determine what that will become and how it affects others.

- What changes about all my choices when I think in terms of society?

- How does "love my neighbor" shape the way I make personal choices?

- What makes a decision good or evil, especially things like job choice or politics?

- How does working on my heart and conscience affect my impact on others?

- Will you do the private work to prepare yourself to be a light in all that you do?

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As our youth prepare to head back to school, let's talk a bit about standards and rules that they will face. If you are a student, are you the kind of person that puts your best effort into excelling under rules, or do they no apply to you? Should they be changed to accommodate you? Let's talk about what happens when try to widen the plate.

Speaking of plates, this is a baseball episode! Nolan Ryan is in this thing. I love baseball. It is a game of set rules. People who work them, and grow to follow them well, excel. People who don't want to conform don't last long. Let's talk about how those mentalities apply to godliness and life.

Parents. Teachers. Authority figures. The bar you set for yourself and the youth says a lot about you now and a lot about who those youth will grow up to become. Balance is difficult. Sometimes we are too lenient. Sometimes we are too harsh. But God has shown us how challenging and hopeful balance can be... if we accept the rules. And if we continue to put our best effort to follow then. Perfection is unattainable. Thankful God never demanded that of his pitchers... I mean, people. 

- How wide is a baseball home plate?

- Should it be widened for people who are struggling to throw strikes?

- How do people on both end of the authority spectrum sometimes make this mistake?

- If perfection isn't possible, why don't all pitchers just give up. Did Nolan give up?

- How is God's grace, even while giving us rules, a great template for all our lives?