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Who’s Fooling Whom?

My friend Tracy couldn’t believe his eyes. There before him was a twelve foot tall mountain of undigested… vitamins!  The idea of “One a Day” took on a whole new meaning at that moment (sorry, couldn’t resist the beg for a pun). This was just seven day’s worth of vitamins the good people of Omaha had ‘deposited.’

The understanding with all vitamin ingest-ors is simple.
- ‘I invest in my health by adding supplements to my diet’
- ‘Supplements are vital’
- ‘These supplements, though expensive, and a bit inconvenient, will pay off in the long run…’

Maybe. Then again, probably not.

There are a lot of undigested things put into our systems today - things we have decided are good for us or our people.  Again, maybe yes, maybe no.  The pressing question - “Is the healthy stuff being assimilated into lives?” OR “Are people going through the motions for whatever reason…”

Religion we all say we are against is often being conveyed though we miss when it happens just like the unuseful vitamins.  Information without life change produces cocooning.  Cocooning separates people from the presence of the change God’s Spirit desires to bring.

Want to see change take effect? Dismantle the mountain of complexity - operate by the power that has the ability to change lives for good.

Take James’ words to heart:
Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. James 4:10, The Message

There are a lot of smart and hard-working people out there.  Some are both.

Have you noticed that power and influence most often seem to only be in the hands of a few who use this influence for personal gain or the destruction of others? There is a smaller percentage of influencers who genuinely seek the betterment of others.  These are “Ideators” - a simple word to capture the strengths of these inspired influencers.

Ideators are those who realize that the world is really all about ideas being lived out (not just put on paper or talked about around a big table). 

One challenge is that many ideas are simply “brain burps” that aren’t very inspired (“inspired” is an idea we’ll dig into more soon).  Also, some inspired ideas are left on the whiteboard or the cutting room floor – they aren’t lived out.  The further this age is lived out the more common this occurrence becomes.

Ideators know that good intentions aren’t worth much and so they strive to bridge the gap between intention and application.  These are the leaders who move the world and actually change things. 

If you ask me, seek to become the most rare of whatever potential that Jesus has put within you. Go with that potential strength. Develop that profoundly with all your might. Ideators - we need many.  Here’s to all who can chew gum and bounce a basketball at the same time!

When We Fake It We Look Goofy - Even Freakish

My grandma from Paris, Texas was full of colorful expressions.  She didn’t so much speak English - she communicated in one metaphor after another.  One of my favorites was:

Nana instilled in me a respect for authenticity and skepticism for the fake. 

There is a bit of fake in you, me, all of us (fake = aspiring to define ourselves by something / someone we are not). (Thus far, all the people I have met on the planet are of those offspring - if you meet someone beyond that please call me at once - I’ll figure out a way to get there immediately … I really need to interview them.) 

To be a ‘cat standing on its hind legs’ is a site to imagine. 

Mainly she told me this ditty was in reference to people trying to behave properly when they were not wired that way deep down.  That is, one way inside, but trying to behave the opposite on the outside.  Life just doesn’t swing that way - at least not for long, for any of us. 

The prayer of former walking cats:

"Here I am God. Love through me - the real me. Ignite me - the real me. Invite many through me - the real me. Thank you for your invitation to me that I am - as I am!"

Let the filters fall.

Notice what is going on through me … I cease hesitating, I engage with you - let the world change. 

Yes Gerald, it really is that untangled … thank you for asking!