"Got a new hobby?"

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Can you remember the last time you did something just for fun? Just for the sheer pleasure of it?
All work and no play really do make you dull. And irritable. And impatient. Ever noticed that? If not, I’ll bet your spouse or child or friend has. Just ask them.

Then pick a hobby for fun. Let me give you an example. A friend of mine made me a fly fishing rod and gave me a reel to go with it. He gave it to me several years ago. It’s stood in the corner of my bedroom since then, faithfully waiting for me to take it out fishing.

Now I’ve always wanted to fly fish, but never learned how. My excuse was no equipment. Now I say, "I don’t know how." So I bought a book about how to fly fish and now I’m learning.

Just pick a hobby and get started. And then enjoy yourself. Life is way too short for you not to play. The work will wait. And you’ll be more productive when you return. Enjoy making the life God gives you today!

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"Is it the “same ole, same ole” for you?"

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Do you drive the same route to work each day? And the same route back home? I’ll bet you do. You’re a creature of habit, aren’t you?

Ever noticed what happens while you’re driving? You’re not really paying attention, are you? Your mind is a million miles away. You’ve seen this same scenery along this route every day for how long? Yea, longer than you want to talk about.

Every day it’s the same ole, same ole; just a different day. Blah, blah, blah.

What would happen if you decide to drive a different way to work or back home tomorrow? Okay, it may take you five extra minutes, but you would sit up and pay attention. You would see new things on the way. A new subdivision started. A new location of your favorite store. A horse in a pasture. New and different people as your fellow commuters. You’ll arrive at work or back home much more refreshed and engaged, ready to start your day or see your family.

God’s created a big world. See some more of it as you make a life.

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"Does your finish line keep moving?"

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Our younger daughter runs outdoor track in the spring. I’m at one of these meets and it’s an invitational. Occasionally you’ll go to an invitational and there will be a fun event or something special. At this one, the fun event was the throwers race, i.e., all of the girls who toss the discus or shot formed a team of 4 who ran 100 meters each in a relay. Now understand—these girls aren’t accustomed to running. They are there for their muscle, not their speed.

The team running for our daughter’s school won the event. And afterwards, I congratulated the girl who ran the anchor leg. She was really fast. She said, "Thank you, but you know what? That finish line kept moving. I thought I’d never get there."

Does your finish line keep moving sometimes? At work with your boss who’s demanding? At home with your spouse who can’t be pleased? Pretty frustrating, isn’t it?

Remember, when it comes to God, the finish line doesn’t move away from you. God’s grace moves you forward to your prize as you make a life, not just a living.

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"Are you taking a vacation?"

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I coach a lot of business people across the country, helping them to make a life, and not just a living. When life is all work and no play, it’s just not much fun anymore, is it? So I help business people make life fun again.

One of the things I’ve discovered along the way in coaching business people is how few actually take advantage of all of their vacation days. Many of them ask, "Vacation? What’s that?" when I ask about their plans.

Well, according to a survey done by Expedia.com, last year Americans let more than 438 million vacation days go unused. And most of them are of the "if you don’t use it, you lose it" variety. That’s about 3 lost vacation days per person.

Do yourself a favor. Schedule definite plans for every single vacation day you have this year. God didn’t create you a human doing, but a human being. Gas prices too high for you? The "where" is irrelevant. Stay home and take time to be as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living.

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"Are you focused?"

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I’m sitting outside on our patio, near where a hummingbird feeder is hung, writing stories and basking in the marvelous world God created for me to enjoy.

Soon I hear the familiar "buzz" of a hummingbird coming to the feeder. That buzz is followed quickly by another buzz. There’s another hummingbird coming to the feeder.

I look over and discover one hummingbird sitting on the feeder’s perch. A second hummingbird buzzes the first, trying to get him to move off of the feeder. But the first hummingbird just sits on the perch, drinking. He raises his bill each time his aggressor flies by, just to protect himself. Then he resumes drinking.

The aggressor flies by often, reminding me of a pendulum swinging on a clock. The swings of his fly-by’s get shorter and shorter, but still the first bird keeps drinking, totally focused.

Today, you’ll get buzzed by someone or something, trying to disturb your focus on the nourishing presence of God with you. Just hang on and stay focused, as you listen to life and make a life, not just a living today.

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