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I spent some time reading some of my past blogs......and boy oh boy.....did I get inspired!
I'm tempted to repost one of them today.....but I've got something else brewing....
What's your dream job? Some people say there is no such thing. Others will tell you that it really is "out there" somewhere. The search goes on for many.....
Someone once said, "Do something you love and you'll never work a day in your life."
Ummmmm.....that sounds good....but...not sure that's accurate.....
I LOVE what I do. I LOVE to write and to preach and teach. I really, really LOVE IT.....but there are days I don't want to sit at my computer to work on articles and books and devotionals....Some days I have absolutely no idea what to type on the keys....and I pray that God will just "take over" my fingers and do it without any involvement on my part....yea.....like every week when it's time to write this blog! This is work.
I LOVE preaching....but when I get a ministry date, I have to spend a whole lot of time....a whole lot....praying and studying and writing and rewriting and praying some more and even practicing....and then praying some more so as not to depend on MY efforts, but on the Holy Spirit...it's a delicate and sometimes daunting balance..... That is work.
So....what's your dream job? Have you identified it? Have you found it?
One article I read said that finding your dream job was like finding your spouse. Sure, there will be a "honeymoon" period when everything is all hunky-dory, but one day, the hard truth will hit you that your perfect job has some warts....you know....stuff you just don't want to deal with....reports and papers and meetings and office procedures and unreasonable bosses and difficult employees or clients....need I go on?
One website listed some dream jobs that most people don't know exist....for example....
Being a professional snuggler......yes, that's SNUGGLER....with an "N"....not "smuggler"....
The article stated that this is a new enterprise in Japan....you can be hired to snuggle.....
That may sound like a dream job...but think of all the problems that could ensue....I don't think I need to list them here....but really? EWWWWWW.....
The jobs listed as "dream jobs" seemed to appeal to a desire to be....well....lazy! Snuggling, ice cream tasting, mattress testing.....none of those jobs require much physical or mental investment...
While doing practically nothing (snuggling....eating ice cream....sleeping) may sound appealing for a job, most people really want to make a difference in what they do.
The reason I love what I do isn't because I make a lot of money at it....I love what I do because I know that when I write something or preach something that changes a life for the better, I have made a difference....sometimes an ETERNAL difference.
The first time I preached on H.O.P.E.-Having Only Positive Expectations-a gentleman came up to me after the service and said that when he came into the church that day he was planning on committing suicide, but the Word of God that was ministered that morning set him free and he left there with HOPE! The work I did to prepare and present that message made a difference....for him...for his family...for generations to come!
Don't you want to make a difference?
Do you want to do something that will keep contributing beyond your lifetime?
Do you want your work to effect generations to come?
Then help a parent.
Parents have the biggest, most important, most difficult job in the world.
Yet for the last several decades, parenting has been maligned as nothing more than a distraction to "important careers." There is nothing more important than raising the next generation of adults. NOTHING. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.
Pundits wonder why society has become so heartless, so hateful, and so hurtful.
Why do we see teenagers recording brutal attacks and posting them on the internet? Because they haven't been parented. They haven't been taught to be compassionate, caring, thoughtful individuals who honor and respect other people.
- The violence we see on our news feed on a daily basis could be greatly decreased if parents would begin to hold their children accountable for their actions.
Parents need help!
- Every race and hatred issue could be eradicated in one generation if only the parents would teach their children to honor and respect other people regardless of their differences.
- Many are struggling just to pay the bills. Financial worries create stress in the home. Mom and/or dad can't focus on the kids because they are so consumed with the pressure of paying rent and putting food on the table.
- Most parents don't have any idea how to deal with their children. They raise their children the way they were raised. That could be good....or not.... Their motto is, "It was good enough for me, so it's good enough for my kids."
- Parents are getting mixed messages about effective parenting. Intrinsically they know that there are moral absolutes in life. Yet higher education, the media, and pop psychology has told them that there is no such thing as moral absolutes. What may be right for one person may not be right for another. Whatever feels right to you is right....so....the teenager who mercilessly beats another student because he doesn't like the way he looks is just acting on what he feels is right.
- Parents are tired of being judged by everyone else. If their child is throwing a tantrum in the store, they are judged for being too lax if they don't deal with it. If they discipline the child, the parent is judged as being an abuser.
Years ago, the extended family was close at hand....in the same city, same neighborhood, maybe even the same house....grandparents, aunts, uncles, and older cousins were around to set examples for the kids. They were available to teach the young ones certain skills that perhaps their parents lacked, and to give the parents a break. The kids could run over to uncle and auntie's house for a few hours and learn how to bait a line or sew a hem, giving mom and/or dad a few moments to at least gather their thoughts and maybe get off their feet.....for just a moment!
- Many parents...ESPECIALLY single parents....are just....plain....exhausted.
Today's transient society leaves many, if not most parents on their own. Parents could get some support from their church, if they would just get the kids up and out of bed and go. Having a children's pastor or youth pastor who will back mom and/or dad up on moral and behavioral issues has made a difference in many children's lives....if only mom/dad would get them to church!
I love parents. I admire parents. They have a real DREAM JOB...whether they realize it or not...
Their job makes a difference in the world.
Some mom and/or dad right now is raising the next Steve Jobs or Mother Theresa or Billy Graham or Condoleza Rice or T. D. Jakes.
HELP THEM!
- The very least you can do is encourage the parents that you know. Tell them they can do it. Smile at that parent in the grocery store with the cart full of kids, even if one of them is acting up. Speak kindly to parents who are trying their best to wrangle their children in public. Acknowledge that the work they do is important!
- HELP THEM FINANCIALLY! Give them something! If you see a family out to eat....if you can afford to....pay their bill. Slip that young mother a $20 or $50 or $100 bill. Have a case of diapers shipped to that new mom. Give them gift cards for groceries or gas! Help pay a kid's way to church camp!
- Do something for them! Can you sit with the kids for an hour while mom and dad go to get something to eat...alone...together? Can you offer to change the oil in the family car? Can you at least help that mom with her arms full of kids and diaper bags at least get from her car to the church door?
- Volunteer! Volunteer to help in your church's Kids' Ministry!
I love parents, and I just released a book to help them. It's called, "How to Never Fail for Parents." You can order it at this link: www.createspace.com/5407452
This book is not about how to organize the toys or how to plan great meals. It's about an overriding attitude and philosophy....from the famous "love chapter" of the Bible that can be applied to any style of parenting....Please get it for a parent you love...or for yourself!
The book is simple and very easy to read. It has questions at the end of each chapter that could be used personally or for small group discussions. You may not agree with everything in it, but it is the philosophy that I used in raising my two children, both of whom are serving God, love God, love their families...and still love their mom! Their parents were far from perfect. Their lives encountered many challenges. Life wasn't a "flowery bed of ease" for my kids......The book doesn't take a rose colored view of life.
You may not apply everything to parenting the way I did, but I promise you that it will give you clarity on what really matters....
Parents have the dream job...whether they know it or not....they are able to make a real difference in this world by raising the next generation! It can be a most overwhelming task, but it is possible to know that parents will succeed......
In that famous "love chapter" of the Bible, God promised that love never fails.
Parents, love your kids.
Everybody else....love a parent!
"Love never fails." (1 Corinthians 13:8)
If this blog encouraged you or gave you some insight, please share it...and love a parent today!
