Good productivity takes incredible intentionality.  I find that while variety and spontinatiy might be included in the spices of life, the meat of the dish takes hard and pre-planned work.

 Our family was blessed by my in-laws and enjoyed an incredible time visiting all the parks in the world that Walt Disney imagined.  My creativity comes alive when I’m in a place like Disney as boundaries are pushed, dreams become reality and the Etch-A-Sketch is continually shaken.

For a dream to have sustainability, there must be a sense of personal responsibility.
In other words, for most of my personal dreams or goals or ideas to awaken from sleep to reality, there has to be a strong sense of personal obligation.  It’s not up to the economy or my past or my this or that..etc,etc.  I have to see the dream come into fruition by working at it.  Hard.  Constantly.

For Christians, I think there is often a critical misunderstanding when it comes to working hard.  I’m not suggesting you work hard for your salvation; that would be heresy.  I am however, suggesting you work hard BECAUSE of your salvation…which for some ears is still a bit heretical but your faith without works results in a barren existence.  It is what it is.

Ask any business owner, community leader or successful church planter.  They didn’t just wake up one day and head a large organization making change on a global scale.  They WORKED at it. And worked at it some more.  And chances are while you’re reading this, they’re working at it still.
What dreams are YOU going to take personal responsibility for?  A sense of responsibility will equal sustainability which equals change.  And that’s a dream worth waking up for…getabsorbed…n

The sun rises on 2009…a year of endless possibilities.  

Dreams that have lain dormant and ideas that have been tucked away for another year are now finding the light of day.  Couple of thoughts rattling around in my head this morning as it pertains to 2009….

1. 2008 was a great year of learning.  Human beings are fickle folk…I oughta know, I am one, but you can learn a ton through the people around you.  You can pretty much learn how to do some things and more importantly how to avoid walking down destructive paths.  I want continue that through observing well and listening more intently.  I find, through observation:), that most people are poor listeners simply because they live in a society that values ignorant speech and useless information over silent and intentional observation.  I observe people (often myself included) mindlessly checking their emails or Facebooks even in the middle of a conversation!  Sad.  If that’s you, you gotta get a handle on it.  Trust me, you’re not that popular…just bored with reality.  Observe well and listen more intently…especially to the things right around you and watch the world come alive.

2. There’s such a great push to do everything.  With technology at my fingertips and the globe becoming smaller, I’m going to have to fight the temptation to do more by focusing on the few.  Here’s the deal:  you and I are probably good at a number of things, great at a few.  Why not focus on the few and actually make an impact in the world around you?  I can count on one hand the number of professional athletes who have succeeded in being great in multiple sports.  What makes you think you’re any different?  Focus on the few and avoid the trap of the many.  Your only held accountable for what’s given to you…

3.  God has really challenged our family in the area of generosity.  There are amazing people that God has placed in our life to teach us how to live with open hands.  At some point this year, Lord willing, we’ll welcome a little Filipino girl into our home through international adoption.  Why?  Cause God broke our heart.  It’s been an emotionally and financially expensive endeavor but it’s radically changed the trajectory of our attitude toward life.  We’ve given away things when it didn’t make logical sense and we’ve been on the receiving end of someone else’s generosity.  I don’t own anything but I can steward everything well and be prepared to give it away to whoever needs it.  I want to live an open handed life, model it to my kids and share it with the world.

4.  Years ago, I wept as I walked the streets of Indianapolis.  God was placing a burden in my heart for this people and a dream in my soul to see this city exalted and this nation elevated for His Honor.  I had to make a decision; did I want to exist comfortable or live Kingdom?  Existing was somewhat known and safe.  The Kingdom was  potentially dangerous, completely unknown and risky.  I decided this wasn’t a career, this was a calling because the dream wouldn’t go away.   In November of 2008 I walked away from all I knew and in March of 2009, that dream becomes a reality as City Community Church launches in the Central Library auditorium in downtown Indianapolis.  With a heart to make Christ accessible to humanity and interact with the city of Indianapolis, my close friend Erik Cooper and I “imagined a place” and decided to invest our lives bringing the hope of Christ to four problems:

    a.  People are far from God
    b. Injustices permeate our world 
    c. People are relationally fractured
    d. Churches are often painfully irrelevant 

Along with a growing, dynamic group that decided comfortable wasn’t Kingdom, we at City Community Church pray that 2009 marks the beginning of the most amazing Adventure in Indy.  God bless this year that He has given us.  May it become the talk of generations…getabsorbed…n