"Does life always turn out the way you think it will?"

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A guy is walking past a big wooden fence that surrounds a preschool playground. He hears all of the preschoolers chanting, “Thirteen! Thirteen! Thirteen!” in their cute little voices. He figures they’re learning to count and that some creative teacher has taken them outside and using a novel technique. He’s wishing his preschool teacher had done that instead of making him sit at his desk and learn to count.

Well, just then he notices a hole in the fence. It’s just big enough to allow him to look over onto the playground and see what the kids are doing. So he stops, stoops down, and puts his eye up to the hole to look in. Someone pokes him in the eye. And then all the children start chanting, “Fourteen! Fourteen! Fourteen!”

Life doesn’t always turn out the way you think it will, does it? Even when you’re innocent and your motives are pure!

Today when something you didn’t see coming happens to you, step back, take a breath, and ask God for help.

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"What kind of parent are you?"

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A woman who’s part of our Listen to Life community on-line at www.listentolife.org emailed me about an awesome experience she had recently.

Her daughter sent flowers to her office with a personal note that read something like, “Thank you for being such a good role model for me so that I can be a good mother, too.” Well, you know the effect that had on her—eyes full of tears, wiping those tears. “You never know for sure,” she said, “because you know you’re not the perfect parent.”

The next time she was with her daughter she thanked her for the flowers and the sentiment and told her about not being the perfect parent. “Mom,” she said, “none of us ever lives up to what God expects. But God blessed me with parents who loved and cared about me.”

She’s right, you know! There’s not a one of us, parent or otherwise, who gets life right every time. But you can keep on loving and caring about the people God places around you and just know that that is enough for today as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living.

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"Are you making memories of today?"

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I coach a lot of people who think of themselves as human doings, not human beings; folks whose spirits are dry, who’ve run out of energy and excitement. I coach them to listen to their lives and make a life, not just a living, and that yes, they can do that and no, their business is probably not going to help them do it. I coach them to make memories of today.

Here’s an example. I received an email from a friend recently who graduated from high school about 50 years ago. There was a young man from Finland, an exchange student, in her graduating class. The two of them had written and talked over the years, but not seen each other since graduation…

…until last month. She and her husband left their business in good hands and went to Finland to visit her classmate.

They had a great time, enjoying being with him and seeing the gorgeous Baltic Sea and other Finnish wonders.Life is way too short for you to sell your soul to the company store. Starting now, listen to your life and make a life, not just a living…please.

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"Do you keep an “ought to” list or a “want to” list?"

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So what kind of lists do you keep? Not just the ones you write down, but the ones running around in your head—what do you call those lists?

Do you keep an “ought to” list in mind? You know, I “ought to” do this. I “ought to” do that. I guess most of us do. I’m not exactly sure where we get these lists.

What about a “want to” list? Do you keep one of those in mind? The kind where you list your heart’s desires, your soul’s longings, your spirit’s passion.

Which list gets more of your daily attention?

If you discovered today that you’ll die around 8PM, which list would you go to—the “ought to” or the “want to”?

Yea, I thought so. Your “want to” list is a part of your spiritual DNA that God put in you. Your “ought to” list was installed by someone else.

Today, remember that you’re free to choose which list to live from. Use your freedom wisely and choose God’s list, okay?

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"Is it hot where you live?"

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It was one of the first hot summer days of the year. I was working outside on our farm. I don’t know about you, but it takes me a few times of working outside in the heat for my body to adjust. Since this was one of the first hot days, my body had not adjusted yet. So I was feeling pretty hot, sweaty, and tired out there working away.

I stopped to take my hat off and wipe my brow and in doing so looked up. And what to my wandering eyes should appear? Vultures. That’s right, three or four vultures were circling over me. And I thought to myself, “I must be feeling worse than I know.” I stood there and watched them for a few moments as they circled and circled me, eyeing me to see whether I would make it or not. The good news is they passed on over to somewhere else.

Often times in life, it seems like something ominous is circling you—rising interest rates or rumors of layoffs or a loved one has a terminal disease. In those times, remind yourself that it isn’t as bad as it seems. That’ll it pass…and that God is with you in the heat of your life.

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