My Attitude is My Boomerang to the World

I was recently reading something powerful from Lee Colan about attitude.

Here are some of the thoughts:

Your attitude toward life is the most important choice you make.

Your attitude reflects your past, describes your present, and predicts your future.

Your attitude is something you can always control. You are the conductor of your own attitude! Nobody else can compose your thoughts for you.

The pursuit of excellence requires you to control your own attitude. If you do, you will create a powerful ripple effect that can have a positive impact on many people and miles away. Your attitude is your personal boomerang to the world.

The right attitude is the root to success. It enables us to stand strong and prevail.

"An optimist sees an opportunity in every calamity; a pessimist a calamity in every opportunity." - Winston Churchill

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind." - William James

"There's very little difference in people. But that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The BIG DIFFERENCE is whether it is positive or negative." - W. Clement Stone

"Ask yourself a question: Is my attitude worth catching?" - Zig Ziglar

"Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul." - Samuel Ullman

Men Never Learn - Part 4

Here is part 4 of a great series of media clips highlighting the brilliance of men.

See you this Friday night, gents, @ Blokes in a Shed - Krypton Place, Carole Park.

Thanks Ken for the use of the "Hilton of sheds!"

Blokes in a Shed - This Friday Night

I am really looking forward to this Friday Night with the Westlife Men.

The blokes are meeting in Ken’s Krypton Street, Carole Park super-shed with barrel fire stacks, South African “damper”, surprises and the “Flywheel” movie on the BIG screen.

Bring a chair and nibblies and a friend.

Contact Coenraad Mulder on 0433 950 725 / coenraad.mulder@westlife.org.au

or Bevan Smith 0422 372 532

Click here to watch the Flywheel movie trailer and get some more info..

The Mid-Week Menu - Q3

If you are connected with Westlife, there are a lot of options to help you grow and build a great life in the months July, Aug and Sept (Q3 2009)

Here is a picture (below) of the “menu” – it has appeared in the PULSE before. It will help you get organised.

It has been printed on special card and a copy is available for you at the Connect Table this Sunday at Westlife.

So please sign up, grab a card, put it on the fridge, mark your diary, tell the dog to remind you....
... and keep on growing, learning and connecting with others.

Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:19 (MSG)

These options with help you "feed" your spiritual life.

Special thanks to Lourdes for the artwork.

Men Never Learn - Part 3

Men Never Learn - Part 2

In honour of the men this week here is the second of a series of media clips.... "men never learn."

Watch it below and enjoy.

Men Never Learn - Part 1

We have Blokes in the Shed this Friday night at 7pm. Really looking forward to it.

In honour of the men this week here is the first of a series of media clips.... "men never learn."

Thanks Alan Goode for the contribution.

Is This Like Your Workplace? - Part 2

Is this a bit like where you work?

We showed this media clip at Westlife this morning as part of the "My Work Matters" series.

Check it out again here.

My Work Matters - Part 1 Summary Quotes

If you have been following this blog recently you would have heard about the new "My Work Matters" series at Westlife Church on Sunday mornings 10am.

I'll explain the purpose of this powerful series in another post, but here are some highlights for me from part 1 with Tracy Skellern-Smith.

Servants, do what you're told by your earthly masters. And don't just do the minimum that will get you by. Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you'll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you're serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held responsible. Being Christian doesn't cover up bad work. And masters, treat your servants considerately. Be fair with them. Don't forget for a minute that you, too, serve a Master--God in heaven. (Col 3:22-4:1)

There are 5 levels of leadership:
1. The first level of leadership is from your position.
2. The second level of leadership is leadership is from respect.
3. The third level of leadership is production.
4. The fourth level of leadership is people development.
5. The fifth level of influence is the personhood level.

Influence takes more than a day.

Rick Warren said “Many Christians don't make the connection between Sunday and Monday. They compartmentalize their life. They think, "Well, I've got a spiritual life and I've got a secular life. My spiritual life is when I read the Bible, when I pray, when I go to church, when I do good things for others. That's my spiritual life." And that's over in one compartment. So then, they think, over in another compartment: "This is my secular life. That's my work, my job, my career, my business decisions, my finances, my pension plan; all these things are my secular life." The word secular isn't in the Bible. It all matters to God; everything in your life – including your work - is important to God. God is as interested in your work as He is in your prayers.

Manage your words well at work. Joyce Meyer calls them “capsules of power.” There is life and death in the power of the tongue. If you manage your thoughts – probably have more success in managing your words. If you have something worthwhile to say – say it briefly and well.

"My Work Matters" Series - Part 1 Summary - Tracy Skellern-Smith

I have been really enjoying the new "My Work Matters" series at Westlife.

It kicked off last Sunday AM with Tracy Skellern-Smith talking about Leadership in My Work Matters.
Tracy has done 3 posts on her blog that summarise the teaching from part 1. They are well worth checking out!

1. My Work Matters - click here.
2. Me - A Leader? - click here.
3. Influence at a New Level - click here.

I'll outline a couple of my highlights in another post.

So keep a watch out!

God’s 5 Purposes and Prayer

God’s 5 purposes for each of us are

1. celebrate
2. connect
3. grow
4. serve
5. reach

“It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for.
Long before we first heard of Christ…..he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.”

Ephesians 1:11 (Msg)

1. We were planned for God’s pleasure - so our 1st purpose is to experience real worship - to celebrate God

Prayer - that we will learn to celebrate God more completely

2. We were formed for God’s family –so our 2nd purpose is to enjoy real fellowship - to be connected to Jesus and those in His family

Prayer - that people will connect with God and we will connect more intimately with other believers

3. We were created to become like Christ – so our 3rd purpose is to learn real discipleship - to grow

Prayer - that we will grow more like Christ

4. We were shaped for serving God- so our 4th purpose is to practice real ministry - to serve God and others

Prayer - that we will serve humbly in ministry

5. We were made for a mission – so our 5th purpose is to live out real evangelism - to reach others and make a difference

Prayer - that we will reach a hurting world by sharing our faith.

Please pray with me using this as a prayer-template - and by faith we will see the 5 purposes evident in our life... and in our church!

Powerful Monthly Prayer - This Sunday 5.58pm

I am looking forward to this Sunday night - we get to pray as a church family.


Powerful Stuff!

“prayer is breathing the air of heaven….”

"The key to effectiveness is prayer…"

”prayer is the place of power”

Biblical prayer is impertinent, persistent, shameless, indecorous. It is more like haggling in an outdoor bazaar than the polite monologues of the church - Walter Wink

When a doctoral student at Princeton asked, “What is there left in the world for original dissertation research?” Albert Einstein replied, “Find out about prayer. Somebody must find out about prayer.”

Prayer is the power by which that comes to pass which otherwise would not take place. - Andrew Murray

Prayer is the main channel in which God continues the partnership today - Julian of Norwich

"Poverty stricken as the church is today in many things, she is most stricken here, in the place of prayer. We have many organizers, but few agonizers; many players and payers, but few prayers; many singers but few lingerers; lots of pastors but few wrestlers; many fears, few tears; much fashion, but little passion; many interferers, but few intercessors; many writers, but few fighters. Failing here, we fail everywhere." - Leonard Ravenhill (mid-20th century preacher on revival)

God does nothing but in answer to prayer - William Carey

Prayer is not getting man's will done in heaven. It's getting God's will done on earth.' - Robert Law

Prayer is the key that unlocks all the storehouses of God's infinite grace and power. - R.A. Torrey

Prayer is a summit meeting in the very throne room of the Universe - Ralph Herring

One might estimate the weight of the world, tell the size of the celestial city, count the stars of heaven, measure the speed of lightening, tell the time of the rising and setting of the sun - but you cannot estimate the power of prayer. Prayer is as vast as God is, because God is behind it. Prayer is as mighty as God is because He has committed Himself to answer it - Leonard Ravenhill

How Successful People Think

If you have been following my blog for a bit now you will note I regularly mention the importance and power of our thinking.

One of the posts is here - it's called "Choose Your View."

And here is a powerful thought from the Bible....

Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
Proverbs 4:23 (TEV).

Here is the start of a great blog post that Dr John Maxwell did recently - it is very powerful!

What’s a successful person’s greatest resource in difficult times?
Good thinking!
Good thinkers are always in demand. A person who knows how may always have a job, but the person who knows why will always be his boss.

Good thinkers solve problems, they never lack ideas for building an organization, and they always have hope for a better future.
Good thinkers rarely find themselves at the mercy of ruthless people who would take advantage of them or try to deceive them, people like Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, who once boasted, “What luck for rulers that men do not think.”

Those who develop the process of good thinking can rule themselves – even while under an oppressive ruler or in other difficult circumstances. In short, good thinkers are successful.

I’ve studied successful people for forty years, and though the diversity you find among them is astounding, I’ve found that they are all alike in one way: how they think!

That is the one thing that separates successful people from unsuccessful ones. And here’s the good news. How successful people think can be learned.

If you change your thinking, you can change your life!

HOW TO BECOME A BETTER THINKER
Do you want to master the process of good thinking?
Do you want to be a better thinker tomorrow than you are today?

Then you need to engage in an ongoing process that improves your thinking.

I recommend you do the following:

1. Expose Yourself to Good Input
Good thinkers always prime the pump of ideas. They always look for things to get the thinking process started, because what you put in always impacts what comes out.
Read books, review trade magazines, listen to CDs, and spend time with good thinkers. And when something intrigues you-whether it’s someone else’s idea or the seed of an idea that you’ve come up with yourself-keep it in front of you. Put it in writing and keep it somewhere in a favorite place to stimulate your thinking.

2. Expose Yourself to Good Thinkers
All of the people in my life whom I consider to be close friends or colleagues are good thinkers. Now, I love all people. I try to be kind to everyone I meet, and I desire to add value to as many people as I can through conferences, books, audio lessons, etc. But the people I seek out and choose to spend time with all challenge me with their thinking and their actions. They are constantly trying to grow and learn.
The writer of Proverbs observed that sharp people sharpen one another, just as iron sharpens iron. If you want to be a sharp thinker, be around sharp people.

3. Choose to Think Good Thoughts
To become a good thinker, you must become intentional about the thinking process. Regularly put yourself in the right place to think, shape, stretch, and land your thoughts. Make it a priority. Thinking is a discipline.

Recently I had breakfast with Dan Cathy, the president of Chick-fil-A, a fast food restaurant chain headquartered in the Atlanta area. I told him that I was working on this book and I asked him if he made thinking time a high priority. Not only did he say yes, but he told me about what he calls his “thinking schedule.” It helps him to fight the hectic pace of life that discourages intentional thinking. Dan says he sets aside time just to think for half a day every two weeks, for one whole day every month, and for two or three full days every year. Dan explains, “This helps me ‘keep the main thing, the main thing,’ since I am so easily distracted.”

You may want to do something similar, or you can develop a schedule and method of your own. No matter what you choose to do, go to a special thinking place, take paper and pen, and make sure you capture your ideas in writing.

4. Act on Your Good Thoughts
Ideas have a short shelf life. You must act on them before the expiration date. World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker said it all when he remarked, “I can give you a six-word formula for success: Think things through-then follow through.”

5. Allow Your Emotions to Create Another Good Thought
To start the thinking process, you cannot rely on your feelings. In Failing Forward, I wrote that you can act your way into feeling long before you can feel your way into action. If you wait until you feel like doing something, you will likely never accomplish it. The same is true for thinking. You cannot wait until you feel like thinking to do it. However, I’ve found that once you engage in the process of good thinking, you can use your emotions to feed the process and create mental momentum.
Try it for yourself. After you go through the disciplined process of thinking and enjoy some success, allow yourself to savor the moment and try riding the mental energy of that success. If you’re like me, it’s likely to spur additional thoughts and productive ideas.

6. Repeat the Process
One good thought does not make a good life. The people who have one good thought and try to ride it for an entire career often end up unhappy or destitute. They are the one-hit wonders, the one-book authors, the one-message speakers, the one-time inventors who spend their life struggling to protect or promote their single idea. Success comes to those who have an entire mountain of gold that they continually mine, not those who find one nugget and try to live on it for fifty years. To become someone who can mine a lot of gold, you need to keep repeating the process of good thinking.

This article is an excerpt from the introduction to my latest book, How Successful People Think. Available now from booksellers in the United States, it’s derived from my book, Thinking for a Change.
Edited and distilled down to the bare essentials, this book is designed to help you expand your thinking and achieve your dreams with the following…

11 keys to successful thinking:
1. Cultivate Big-Picture Thinking
2. Engage in Focused Thinking
3. Harness Creative Thinking
4. Employ Realistic Thinking
5. Utilize Strategic Thinking
6. Explore Possibility Thinking
7. Learn from Reflective Thinking
8. Question Popular Thinking
9. Benefit from Shared Thinking
10. Practice Unselfish Thinking
11. Rely on Bottom-Line Thinking

Thanks John!

Vault Gone Wrong

I really feel sorry for this guy.

He has really put himself "out there" and the aparatus failed.

Check out this media clip below:

Ever been in a situation where you really put yourself out there and your full energy and effort worked against you?

Please feel free to comment!

IT - What a Book!

I have been reading the Craig Groeschell book, "IT," since the weekend. What a book!

I also heard him speak at Hillsong Brisbane last Friday Night.

We all can name churches that have “IT,” churches that had “IT” and lost “IT,” and many churches that don’t have “IT.”

So what is “IT?” I don’t know.

I believe that God makes “IT” happen. It is by Him and for Him, and we can’t create it, manufacture it, put it in the bottle and study it. Someone can bring it, and another could kill it.

It’s not a system or a model. It’s not a “seeker-sensitive” deal or a “purpose-driven” deal.

“IT” attracts critics. If you have “IT”, people will shoot at “IT”. You could say “IT” happens…but often “IT” doesn’t. Bad news is, if you have “IT,” that doesn’t mean that you can’t lose “IT.” If you don’t have “IT,” that doesn’t mean that you can’t get “IT.”

The early church had “IT.” Cf. Acts 2:42-47

Here were some of the key quotes from the book:

“We can’t create it. We can’t reproduce it, We can’t manufacture it. It is not a model, a system or a program. You can copy it. It can’t be taught, but it can be caught.”

“Your greatest innovation could come from your greatest limitation- if you have a sincere passion to reach and care for people.”

“When you try something new in ministry, most people will tell you that your idea will never work. Innovation by definiton will not be accepted at first.”

“If you’re not failing every now and again, it’s a sure sign that you’re not trying anything very innovative.”

“You have more in you then you realize. God has put more in you than anyone knows.”

“In order to reach people that no one is reaching, you’ll have to do things that no one is doing. But, in order to do things that no one is doing, you can’t do what everyone else is doing.”

Hillsong Conference 09 is on this week. Ps Steve Penny is there and wrote this blog today about IT and Craig Groeschell and Hillsong.

Here is the start:
Last night we experienced with awe the opening night of Hillsong Conference 2009. The amazing light and sound show that started the night was indescribable. It was sheerly amazing. However the best was yet to come. The worship was electric and the sense of God’s presence in the place was tangible.

Then Craig Groeschel preached a message on the “IT” factor in our lives. That intangible blessing of God that makes the difference between winning and losing. The messsage brought an amazing response from everyone present and was a life changing moment for us all.

I cant help but be challenged by the Hillsong miracle, which keeps happening year after year, and I have many times tried to see what makes this great church continue to go forward in the grace of God.

Let me suggest a few things that I think are in the mix of the Hillsong “IT”.....

(click here to read the rest of Steve's post) Well done, Steve.

Even though I am not at Hillsong Conference this week I still feel like I am in the "revelation zone."

A New BBQ

Check out this new BBQ design!

On Holidays

I am currently on holidays.

I love the change and the new perspective on some mundane things.

This is why my blogging has been a bit erratic lately.... and some of the posts were done almost 2 weeks ago... in advance.

I'll get my blogosphere rhythm back soon.......

Classic Tweets

I am really enjoying Twitter for so many reasons.

One of them is the humour... another is powerful "live" reflections and thought.

Here are a few that I can recall from recent times.

Twitter on!!!

What is your latest favourite Twitter?

Is This Like Your Workplace?

Is what goes on in this clip a bit like what goes on in your workplace?

If so, you may need a good dose of laughter and hope.

Why not get along this Sunday at 10am for the launch of the new series, My Work Matters.

Tracy Skellern-Smith is powerhitting the launch of part 1.

The Surging Sea - Fingal Head (Live)

This is posted directly from my iPhone... in real time.