Posted by Addis Andy on Jun 26, 2009 in
Spiritual Growth Just got back from an incredible trip overseas and I have more to communicate than I could ever hope to pour out in a single sermon, blog or conversation. So, whoever shows up at church this weekend… God help them.
One of the great parts of this recent road trip was the opportunity to visit the ancient ruins of Ephesus and actually stand where the Apostle Paul stood. You know, to not guess, but to whip out the old Holy Bible and read the chapter and verse and quote what he said standing on the very spot he said it.
Kinda cool. Felt a little like a time machine with the flux capacitor kicked into high gear.
So, here I am this morning trying to reintegrate/catch up on the week we missed and I decided to reread some of the passages connected to the places I’d just seen.
Right out of Acts 19 while Paul was visiting Ephesus is this crazy, funny story:
Tags: Acts 19, Bible, Ephesus, Failure, maturity, obedience, Spiritual Growth, trust
Posted by Addis Andy on May 5, 2009 in
Philosophical Ramblings I am not a natural optimist. In fact, my natural propensity for fear, tends to lead me the…er, other way.
So, trying to have a positive expectation is not the norm for me. If I am getting ready for travel then I think about every nightmarish movie scene of plane, train and automobile disasters I have ever seen and simply overlay my face into the scenery… fun!
If I get a mysterious phone call and need an urgent reply, then I am sure that the person on the other end of the phone message has had their life completely unraveled or hates me… or their life has completely unraveled because they hate me… super fun!
If I have a soar throat, it’s never sinus drainage, it’s always some precursor to cancer, a rare disease in its final stages that will only be discovered in my autopsy, or the final mutation of the swine flu that has evolved to its pristine killer form within me… uber fun!
Tags: Bible, Chiari Malformation, fear, hope, inspiration, Psalms, trust
Posted by Addis Andy on Mar 12, 2009 in
Leadership Journals So what are you afraid of?
Financial issues, health concerns, family matters, ending opening sentences with prepositions…
The only people who really have anything to worry about as it relates to their fears are the ones who say they aren’t afraid of anything. Take it from me, I’m an expert in fear as one who is afraid of a multitude of things (not a positive, of course, just a statement of fact)… everyone is afraid of something.
The problem is our fears tend to camouflage themselves. We see the obvious ones:
· “I’m afraid of dogs” – Well, you were probably bitten as a child
· “I’m afraid of getting pulled over by the police” – Well, slow down genius
· “I’m afraid of tornados” – Well, you’re not an idiot
· “I’m afraid of those creepy sounds downstairs in my house at night” – Well… Well, actually, I agree. Do you mind going down to check? Thanks.
The obvious fears we get. They are easy to spot, label and either accept or deny. The problem is many leaders are leaders because they have learned to wrestle these obvious fears to the ground and knock’em out with the classic sleeper hold!
Tags: Bible, courage, family, fear, Great Wolf Lodge, leadership, risk, trust
