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Sunday, May 31, 2015

Stuff That Works

 Greetings Friends,

I have many projects in the works, so I have not been blogging as much as I used to. I wanted to take the opportunity to share one of my recent works with you all this week. As many of you know, I have been working with youth and young adults for most of the last 10 years. I recently put together a book of my most successful activities into a 12-week course called, "Stuff That Works." My goal was to put together a program that new youth workers could implement with a group of any size and without a huge a budget.

I still use the activities in my book, some as recently as a few weeks ago. I know they work, and they work across multiple denominations. Personally, I have used these activities with Catholics, Pentecostals, Methodists, Non-Denominational, and even Non-Christians. Now, I would like to share this others. I'm just not sure where to begin. I'm not even sure how much interest there is in something like this.

So, I am making a sample copy available on this page. The sample copy contains an introduction and the first two activities. I am eager to hear what others think about this book. I hope it will reach people who could really use this curriculum. I'm trying to find out if there is a need for this, or if there is any interest at all. Please leave a comment or contact me. Let me know what you all think. The link to a pdf sample copy is in the title of the book above. I will also leave a second link below. Thank you! And have a wonderful week!

Stuff That Works: A 12 Week Program to Get Youth Groups Started 

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Chase your dreams, but don't chase everyone away

Greetings, Friends! It's been a while - I know. I'm still out in the world chasing dreams and helping other people chase theirs. I still believe everyone can and should chase their dreams. However, lately I've been talking with a few folks that are going about this all wrong.

Let me be blunt here: Chasing your dreams should not come at the cost of the most important people in your life. If chasing your dreams comes at the cost of your spouse, your closest friends, or your children, you are doing it wrong. You may find some success this way, but you will never find true success. What you are doing is not chasing your dreams.

The people closest to you should want you to achieve your dreams. They should be supportive. They will want to celebrate with you when you do accomplish your dreams. People who love you want you to be successful. I completely believe this to be true. Let me be clear: The problem I am seeing in the folks who have been coming to speak to me about this is NOT people close to them discouraging them from chasing their dreams.

The problem is they are not chasing dreams, they are chasing money. Chasing money is not the same thing. Chasing money will never lead you to where you want to be. What good is it to gain the whole world but lose everything else in the process? I know many folks who believe money is the answer to all of their problems, but it is not. You will simply have different problems.

Do not be a money chaser. Money chasers often lose everything in their pursuit of money. In most cases, they will not see the error of their ways until it is too late. Moreover, money will not fix the problems you create if you abandon your spouse, children, or anyone close to you. Money cannot buy the happiness and sense of accomplishment that dream chasers experience.

Believe me, I know, I have been both in this lifetime. Living the dream feels a heck of a lot better than having money and nothing else. Chase your dreams, my friends. I wish you all the success in the world. But do not mistake chasing money for the same thing. Do not lose everyone closest to you, or even worse, lose yourself for the sake of making a few dollars. People are worth more than money. Making a difference means more than making a dollar. And no amount of money is worth your heart and soul.

Blessings to you all, my friends! And have a wonderful week!