That being said, I’m working at a job that I don’t particularly love. It’s easy to ponder on all the negatives about it and how I cannot wait to do something I can be passionate about.

No one has said I have to love my job…but what about liking it for what it is?

I’ve been reading Jon Acuff’s book, Quitter, and it has really opened my eyes to seeing my current job in a new light. He says that we don’t have to love our jobs but what’s stopping us from liking it? We are there for a reason. What positives can we get from it?

Here’s a list of 5 reasons I appreciate my job,

1. It allows me to have a beautiful home with the luxuries of heating and air conditioning.
2. I have healthy food in my house and the ability to occasionally eat at nice restaurants.
3. It allows me to play music without worrying if I’ll get paid or not for the gig.
4. When problems arise (health issues, car maintenance, house upkeep) I have the ability to address them.
5. It continues to teach me to be productive, innovative, skillful, wise with my time, a better leader, and a better follower.

What are 5 things your current job does for you?

I admit, I have my fair share of complaints. It’s easier to see the negative in life. Searching out the positive takes effort and truth be told, many of us are too lazy for that.

What if we did work at seeing the beauty in life? What could we accomplish?

Benjamin Franklin once said,

“Any fool can criticize,condemn and complain and most fools do”

I, for one, do not wish to be a fool.

Take Winston Churchill for example. He was constantly criticized for his decisions during his time in the British government. However, his actions were found to have greatly helped Britain, especially during both World Wars. He could have given up and given in to his critics. Instead, he preserved and became one of history’s greatest leaders.

Churchill, and others like him, don’t let negativity and complaining become the order of the day. They know to search out opportunity in times of crisis and failure. They are the ones who “stay away from complaining and arguing” (Philippians 2:14). They don’t shift blame to others when a situation goes wrong.

They are the DOERS and get the job done while others let life pass them by.

Are you a fool or a doer?

“Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” -Acts 12:23

Herod is the person who was “eaten by worms” in this passage. He decided to receive the glory his people gave him without recognizing it actually belonged to the Lord. The people even said his voice was like a gods (Acts 12:22).

It feels nice when people praise you for good work or for your talent or if you are physically attractive. I know I have a hard time when someone compliments me on my playing bass guitar for worship. I struggle with what to say and have to fight the natural tendency of taking pride in my talent. How should we respond when people try to give us glory?

First of all, be courteous and thank them. However, you should immediately point to Jesus and give him credit for anything you are able to do. Take for example Peter’s reaction in Acts 10:25,26; he made sure to let Cornelius know that he was nothing special and that all of the honor needed to be placed on God and God alone.

In what area of life do you need to give God the glory?

I’m more guilty of this than I’d like to admit. I criticize those in power. I complain about how situations are handled.

One problem is that our culture embraces the rebel outlook. It’s cool to disobey our leaders. What if we are wrong though? What if we are called to submit to our bosses, parents, teachers, and the government?

“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities.

For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist

have been instituted by God”

Romans 13:1

Since becoming a Christian, I’ve learned to submit (sort of) to my “godly” authorities in the church. However, I’ve treated the not-so-godly authorities as my enemy and as though I’m not subject to their rule. WRONG! Scripture plainly states that all authority is placed by God and we are to submit.

We don’t get to decide who we are in subjection to. To rebel against earthly authority is actually to rebel against God. Satan thought he could do God’s job and we all know how that turned out.

That’s hard to swallow. What about all of the horrible decisions our leaders make? Doesn’t seem fair does it?

The reality is that God doesn’t honor those who rebel against his leaders. God will judge them, for they will be held accountable for their acts. That is not our place to judge them.

Even Jesus submitted to authority. He submitted to the Father’s will (Luke 22:42) as well to earthly leaders (Matthew 22:21).

Let us learn from the best Teacher and submit to our authorities. To do anything else is to become an enemy of God.

I’m speaking of when my boss is out, anything that can go wrong, does.

It’s not that my coworkers and I cannot handle running the “ship” in his absence, but random occurrences happen that would not otherwise.

Last week I endured one of those dreaded days. I am never rarely late but this day I just so happened to leave my work keys at home. Perfect. Had to turn around and get them to open up the office.

10 minutes late. Not very late but enough to stress me out.

This started a chain reaction of unfortunate events that continued throughout the day.

One guy called in sick (now two people down since the boss was off of course). Another person was extremely late due to traffic. Plus, to top it off, one worker was “relieved of his duties” (aka FIRED).

All in all, one hectic day!

May seem crazy but God used this day to teach me. I am the type who learns better through experiences. I ask God for patience, strength, wisdom, and leadership skills and I believe these days help develop all of those qualities.

It reminds me of how David learned to be a great king through dealing with Saul’s spears and Absolom’s rebellion (my situation is certainly not as dire).

Reflecting back on a day like this gives me perspective on how God is transforming and molding me for the better.

I wonder if I will ever be as good as David at avoided spears?

I sometimes wake up stressed. It’s an awful way to start the day. When I try to pinpoint the cause of the stress it’s often rooted in the feeling that I have too much to do and not enough time.

In fact, even while I’m attempting to accomplish a task, in the back of my brain I’m thinking about 20 other things I’ve got to do.

This is very nerve-racking.

Often, I will become so overwhelmed with this that I won’t even feel like starting any project out of fear of not completing them.

I’d rather sit in front of the T.V. or computer screen, while my mind turns to RED SLUSHY!

Steven Pressfield calls this feeling of fear the Resistance. It doesn’t want us to finish what we start. It really doesn’t even want us starting. It’s aim is to immobilize us. Pressfield, in The War of Art, uses battle terms to describe how we must defeat this enemy within us.

The solution is quite simple in theory…DO THE WORK!

Stop making excuses, sit down (away from distractions), and start one task and complete it. Repeat.

The hardest part is starting–actually picking up the pen to write, turning on the water to wash the week’s worth of dishes, or applying for that job.

I’ve found that making a list for the day helps tremendously. I organize my tasks by importance–what must should I do today? If I don’t make the list and cross off the items, I get frantic about everything and end up doing nothing.

Do you struggle with stress? Do you make lists? How do you deal with it?

Thank God for MP3 players and Aux hookups in cars!

The only quality item that exists on the radio anymore is NPR news.

It’s as if radio corporations wake up every morning saying, “How can we suck more today?” (This is while they drink their horribly weak Folders coffee.)

RECYCLED MUSIC

I swear, the new hit single by Daughtry or Nickelback is the same unoriginal song they put out six months ago. It has the same melody and song structure but slightly different lyrics.

I have to admit that I was once lost–I used to listen to bands like Creed. I have since been saved from horrible music.

You can argue that the music I listen to is bad…that’s your opinion. However, at least it’s honest, original, heartfelt music…not a formula to make a radio hit, money, or fame.

What band/singer/group are you embarrassed to admit listening to once upon a time?

How do people enjoy that cheap fake entertainment?

The stories are always the same too: The husband cheated on his wife with her sister who is really her brother.

This stuff could actually be true but it seems way too scripted and rehearsed. Of course, the people have to fight on stage and the audience eggs it on by yelling in sync, “Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!”

Why do people feed off this negative stuff? Some are ADDICTED to watching these shows. They live off the hurts of others.

It’s as if they say to themselves, “at least I don’t have it that bad.” They compare their own situations to those stories and are able to justify their own mistakes because someone else has it worse off.

We are guilty of this as Christians too. We try to justify our sins because they aren’t as bad as the other guy’s. But God hates all sin in our lives. We cannot hide our harmless transgressions in a closet.

THEY WILL HURT US

We need to give up those sins at the foot of the cross so we can walk in freedom.

Catch the foxes for us,

the little foxes that spoil the vineyards

-Song of Solomon 2:15

Here we are told to catch the little foxes, or sins, that spoil our lives. We must capture them so they won’t fester and grow into those dark sins that remain hidden deep within our hearts.

What little fox do you need to catch?

Last year was the year I truly fell in love with cycling. Many people don’t understand the obsession until they try it for themselves.

 The freedom of it all. To know you are the power driving this simple machine.

Sadly, many motorists are angered by cyclists on the road. They yell, honk, and drive dangerously close to us.

Some just don’t pay attention because of distractions–cell phones, radios, eating Big Macs, and applying makeup (cannot believe some women do this while driving!).

Unfortunately, when up against thousands of pounds of metal, a cyclist rarely comes out unscathed in a collision.

Every year during bike month (May), an event is held to honor those cyclists who have been killed on the road. It’s called the Ride of Silence. Last year was my first time participating.

I really enjoy the event because so many types of cyclists come together to pay their respects. There are the intense road racers, single-speed hipsters, relaxed beach cruisers, and the normal person who commutes in regular clothes on a reliable bike.

RAISING AWARENESS

Another aspect of the event is to raise awareness of cyclists and our rights as vehicles.

In Charleston this year we had a great police escort to accompany us on our route through the peninsula. I think twice as many people came out compared to last year. Plus, my lovely wife rode as well as my good friend Ryan who recently acquired a sweet ride!

We rode through downtown in silent mode with only the noise of our velos beneath us. Most bystanders stared, wondering what we were doing. A few waved. Some felt the need to yell at us to get off the road. (I really despise ignorance.)

The picture above is of a Ghost Bike in honor of Edwin Gardner who was killed by a motorist last year. It serves as a memory of a fallen comrade and as a sign to warn motorists of what can happen when they drive carelessly.

I’m often amazed at the number of people who choose to sit inside at their desks during their lunch breaks.

They are in front of a computer screen for 8 hours (minus bathroom breaks) but still have no inclination to go outside. That would suffocate me. I need fresh air. Sun. FREEDOM!

That photo was taken on a bicycle ride I had during my lunch hour. Just right down the road from work is a beautiful marina with scenery like this.

Breathing this stuff in makes a job like mine manageable. It takes my mind off the worries and stresses of life. I get to see the great Artist at work.

How do you escape the cubicle?