"Do you persevere when a problem is chasing you?"

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I really love bluebirds. I’m constantly looking for new places to put boxes for them to nest in. (Go to http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/ for more info.)

I noticed a pair of bluebirds building in one box in early spring. I also saw a mockingbird hanging around, chasing the bluebirds away from the box; even sitting on top of the box. But the bluebirds kept building anyway.

I became concerned that if the bluebirds hatched their young while the mockingbird was around, that he’d kill the babies. So I ripped out the nest, in hopes the bluebirds would stop building for a few days; just long enough for the mockingbird to lose interest, then start building again.

And that’s exactly what happened. The mockingbird moved on and the bluebirds came back, hatching four more to join the growing numbers on our farm.

Sometimes in life, as with nest-building, you have to start over. You have to back up and try again to be successful. When a problem starts chasing you today, catch your breath for a little while, then persevere with God’s help as you make a life, not just a living.

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"Do you go with the pitch?"

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My wife and I have a nephew, Dan Uggla, who starts at second base for the Florida Marlins. (Go to http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=462564 to read more.)

Recently I read an interview with Daniel in which he talked about what he is learning from his hitting coach. He hits the ball really well, breaking the home run total for a rookie second baseman last season, but is constantly striving to learn more. His coach is teaching him to not try to pull every pitch, i.e., as a right-handed batter trying to hit every pitch to left field. Instead, Dan’s learning to hit an outside pitch to right field, and that’s known as going with the pitch. He’s not trying to force his preconceived notion of where he should hit everything on each pitch, but instead adapting to each pitch. It’s working because his average is way up.

Instead of trying to do the same thing in your preferred way every time today, adapt to the pitches life throws you. Look at the merits of each situation. Then go with the pitch, with the flow of what life gives you as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living today.

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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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"Are you unique?"

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A friend of mine does a morning talk show and has me on a lot to coach his listeners about how to listen to life and make a life, not just a living. Recently I did an interview with him about how to Stay Married Forever, www.StayMarriedForever.org.

He mentioned a gift of some jewelry he had given his wife. She always loved getting jewelry, but this particular gift was especially nice. The jeweler he chose had several designers on staff. My friend met with one of the designers and they talked about what his wife preferred in jewelry. The designer got a good idea of what my friend wanted and designed something that was just perfect.

In fact, several people she’s been with since she received the jewelry wanted to know where she got it and said they wanted one. But this particular designer creates only one of each design—an original, not to be copied.

When your Designer God created you, you were made an original, not to be copied, unique from over 6 billion. So celebrate you today as you make a life.

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"What do you understand?"

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A second grader came home from school and said to her mother, "Mom, guess what? We learned how to make babies today."

You can imagine that the mother was more than a little bit surprised, thinking that she should have signed some sort of paper stating the teacher could start offering such information. And she thought, "Isn’t second grade a little early?" But she kept her cool anyway.

"That's interesting," she said to her little girl, "How do you make babies?"

"It’s simple," the little girl said. "You just change ‘y’ to ‘i’ and add ‘es’."

Amazing, isn’t it, how you think you know what someone is talking about and you don’t? That’s why listening to life today for what God has to say is so important in your spiritual growth. That’s why listening to life and making a life, not just a living is so critical to your joy. You assume you know what someone means, even God, and oftentimes don’t.

So as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living today, listen with an open heart. God may mean something different than what you’re thinking.

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