Do what you know to do

We are what we repeatedly do.

—Aristotle

Our family, like thousands of others in our area, spent the last week on spring break. I even took some vacation days to relax and spend with my favorite people. But unlike what seemed like 95% of said families—at least, according to my facebook feed—we did not head to the beach but stayed home. A “staycation” some call it.

It was a much needed spell of relaxed schedules and free time and I would not go back and change it. But I found myself reflecting on the value of daily habits yesterday.

In the sermon at church the statement was made that Christ is never satisfied with where I am, but wants me to take the next step. That rings true with me. I feel like I’m always looking for the next step, sometimes in big ways, sometimes in small ways. And especially now that Jenni will be starting her senior year of high school in the fall dual-enrolled at Kennesaw State University, I’ve been thinking about her next steps as well as Cheryl’s as we enter a new season in our family.

But as I contemplated all this, I felt God speaking to me something very important: Rather than being consumed with seeking the next step in my life and in the life of our family, right now we need to do what we know God has called us to do. And many of the things God has called us to do involve steady progress involving small daily habits.

Let me explain with an example.

I know without a doubt that God wants us to be healthy and in shape. (And yes, round is a shape, but that’s not the kind of shape I mean.) I also know that getting there involves the daily habits of exercising and eating healthily. I’ve found in the past that I can get on the treadmill Monday morning easily. Tuesday morning’s not so hard either. Wednesday is my off day right now because I lead a 7:00am men’s group. Thursday…well, that’s much harder. And then it’s the weekend and It all goes to hell in a handbasket.

My intentions of exercising six days a week on the treadmill don’t match the reality of two days a week.

And yes, two days are better than none. But real progress comes from daily habits.

There are many other examples of this. I may post tomorrow on the daily habits I’m working to cultivate. Stay tuned.

What daily habits do you need to cultivate?

Thought for today for the week of 04/03/16

Every day I post a thought for the day on facebook and twitter. This past week’s quotes were about failure, irrelevance, faith, and more.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Failure isn’t a necessary evil. In fact, it isn’t evil at all. It is a necessary consequence of doing something new.

—Ed Catmull

HT: Michael Hyatt

Monday, April 4, 2016

Irrelevance comes from always doing the things you know how to do in the way you’ve always done them.

—Tom Peters

HT: Mark Howell

Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. Faith is the belief that God will do what is right.

—Max Lucado

HT: Hebrews (Life Lessons series) by Max Lucado

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

The hardness of God is kinder than the softness of men.

—C.S. Lewis

HT: The Gospel of Mark Bible Study Book: The Jesus We’re Aching For by Lisa Harper

Thursday, April 7, 2016

It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life, that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

HT: Creative Followership

Friday, April 8, 2016

If you really want to be a rebel, read your Bible, because no one’s doing that. That’s rebellion. That’s the only rebellion left.

—Lecrae

HT: Lifeway

Note: I’m told this is actually a quote from Mark Driscoll that is quoted on Lecrae’s song, to be exact.

Saturday, April 9, 2016

Your attitude, more than your aptitude, will determine your altitude.

—John C. Maxwell

HT: Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success by John C. Maxwell

Punch Fear in the Face and Escape Average! [Reading Challenge 2016]

Do you have a dream? Do you want to do work that matters? Do you want to escape average and live in the world of awesome?

To do it, you need to do one thing: just START!

Last night my Reading Challenge group met to discuss the March book: Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average, Do Work That Matters by Jon Acuff (Brentwood, Tennessee: Lampo Press, 2013).

This book fit perfectly into our group’s theme for the year: Courage.

It’s easy to think about a dream, to plan it, to talk it to death. But it takes great courage to just start.

And many times starting is not about doing something incredible, like performing on stage for the first time at a huge concert venue. But it’s something small and mundane, like scheduling 30 minutes a day to practice guitar.

Want to be paid for speaking in front of thousands? Maybe it starts with speaking in front of ten, or joining a speech club. Want to get ripped? Maybe it starts by joining a gym and getting up earlier. Want to be an expert on Guatemalan tree frogs? Maybe it starts by checking some books out of the library.

Do not despise the day of small beginnings (Zechariah 4:10).

Maybe your first step is to read Start. Practically everyone in the group said that this was not the type of book they would have picked up on their own. But they all got a lot out of this book and were encouraged to not let their dreams be dreams.

I highly recommend this book, whether you are looking to start something new, or just want to be better at what you do. You will be encouraged and challenged by it.

By the way, our group’s next book for the month of April is Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brené Brown. We will meet on April 27 at NorthStar Church to discuss the book. Let me know if you want to join us! Email me at randy dot elster at northstarchurch dot org.