Tomorrow Is Not the Gift

    
Tomorrow is a gift, but it is not "the" gift. Today is the gift. Today is the only day that we have been given that we are assured. If you really stop and think about it we have no guarantees about tomorrow. Not to be a depressing thought, just a call to action. Not a doomsday thinker, just a realist that realizes that when we put off things till later, later does not have to come just because we still have to get that thing done. In I Thessalonians 5:2 Paul posed this question to the church of Thessalonica, "You know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night". Why is it that we think we can always put things off until tomorrow? 
     It isn't that we are all compulsive procrastinators, it's just some things are out of our comfort zones, some things that we are destined to do are tough to do, or even some things that we were created uniquely to do are just down right challenging. Even Moses tried to talk God out of being His spokesperson to the Egyptians and the children of Israel because he stumbled over his words and wasn't a public speaker.  Moses wasn't let off the hook, but because he was faithful, Aaron his brother was allowed to speak for Moses. It comes down to faith and trust. When we have something to do and we have the urge to put it off until a better time, that is our lack of faith and trust. We are called to action not to complacency. If you need to do something, you need to do it today!
     Why today? Well what if you are needing to tell someone that you are sorry for a wrong in your relationship and that someone never wakes up tomorrow? What if you need to tell someone you love them, and a calamity strikes you or your home, leaving you with no tomorrow? What if you are tasked with telling someone about God's love. I mean you feel it in your gut, an urge to tell them about what God did for you and for them, and you just don't want to risk being rejected or ridiculed so you are struggling with moving on what you were created to do right now at this moment in time. Tomorrow is not always going to be the option. Jesus also spoke about a thief in Matthew 24:43 which also speaks to this sense of urgency that we should all feel, “Understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into,”. I'm pretty certain if we had a calendar of events that showed when our last day was, we would get a great number of things done today if the next day on our calendar was our last. That's the crux of the matter, we do not have that guarantee of tomorrow.
    There are many things that I want to get done, projects, plans, and places to see. I have a laundry list and a bucket list that seem to never go empty and I work hard to reach the bottom of those lists each day, but there is one thing that I NEED to do each today that I am given. I need to share what God did for me and what He will do for you today. I not only fail those I love or those God has placed in my life when I do not respond to what I have been called to do, but in essence I fail the One that has provided me with these opportunities in the first place. So here it goes. I am tasked with sharing this message with each of you on this Easter Sunday. John 3:16 tells us that God so loved us, each of us, yes you too, so much that He sent His son, Jesus, to be born of a virgin, to live, to teach, to preach, to heal, and to prepare others to carry His message forward. His life here on earth had a purpose beyond that though, and through His life and His death we are given the opportunity to gain an eternal life with Him. Jesus was born to die for our sins, and so He did. Persecuted and wrongly convicted, beaten and ridiculed, He was sent to die on a criminal's cross. But His death was not Jesus's purpose, His purpose was to be a sacrifice for our sins, a sacrifice in death so that we might have the chance to live, forgiven and made new. The story doesn't end with death, but with life, just as we are celebrating the life of Jesus today. Jesus arose from the grave to ascend into Heaven where He sits by His Father's right hand today. Why did this all take place? So that You and I could experience this same opportunity to live eternally in Heaven with our Lord and Savior. If you have accepted Jesus as your personal savior then you have a job to do today, it is the same job we all have been given to do today, share His good news. If you do not know Jesus as your savior then you can do so today. To know Him is to acknowledge Him, confess your sins to Him, and then to ask Him into your heart to guide you for the rest of your "todays". There is someone that cares for you and He is always there for you. In the midst of your sorrow or pain He is there to lead you and to comfort you. Call on him today and do not put off till tomorrow what needs to be done today! It is my prayer that you will find Him today because He is always there waiting on you. May God bless you and yours on this Easter Sunday! I am blessed beyond anything I deserve and I am thankful for the gift of today.
Coach Carter

Life is Short I Want to Live It Well

Live It Well, 
by Switchfoot

Take the burden from my arms
Take the anchors off my lungs
Take me broken and make me one
Break the silence and make it a song

Life is short; I wanna live it well
One life, one story to tell
Life is short; I wanna live it well
And you're the one I'm living for
Awaken all my soul
Every breath that you take is a miracle
Life is short; I wanna live it well, yeah

I wanna sing with all my heart a lifelong song
Even if some notes come out right and some come out wrong
'Cause I can't take none of that through the door
Yeah, I'm living for more than just a funeral
I wanna burn brighter than the dawn

Life is short; I wanna live it well
One life, one story to tell
Life is short; I wanna live it well

The lyrics of the hit Christian song, "Live It Well" by Switchfoot got stuck in my head this morning, which turned out being the inspiration for today's Flat Tire Ministries Thought of the Week. It's so true you've got one life to live, and you are the only one that decides how you live it, what kind of impact you make with it and the legacy you leave from it.

It all starts with a choice. Do you want to live your life running the rat race, chasing what? Money, "things", fame, or whatever material happiness that just keeps alluding you? In the song the writer wants to make sure you understand that "you get one story to tell". The story that many of us are recording is one of chasing the dollar, squandering our time, or seeking some type of name for ourselves that will make us memorable and "happy".  If happiness was the end result of this type of lifestyle, then news about the lifestyles of the rich and famous wouldn't be filled with stories of multiple divorces, drug addictions, and broken lives. Not sure if that story is the one you want to have shared about your life. How about one filled with discontent or unfulfilled dreams and plans. Stepping back and talking about what you should've done, or could have done, makes for a tragic life story of a life that never really got "lived". What about a life of envy or anger? What story are you going to share to your grandchildren if that is the life you live? Oh yeah, what about the story line of I didn't do anything except sleep in every chance I get, and I watched my TV or updated my wall every free moment in my waking hours. I didn't make a difference where I work, and I watched the clock until it said 5:00, time to leave! My dear friends, you get one life, it is short, you better live it well!
What does that look like? What does it mean to live a life "well"? It's going to look different for everyone, but I can guarantee if you live a life that is based more on others than yourself, at the end of your life, you will be at peace and the message you will receive is "His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." Matthew 25:21. Being faithful over a few things like the ruler was complimenting  his servant in the parable Jesus was sharing, can be compared to taking what you have been given in life, regardless of how much you have been given and living that life to the fullest. What does living life to the fullest look like you ask? Well here's a short list that you can glean from or add to when you are making your own bucket list of ways to live your life well! Give more than you get, work harder than you are expected, be the first to get there wherever "there" is, and be the last to leave every once in a while. Do something for lots of someones that you don't expect to get anything back in return. Donate you time not your money, laugh, splash, get dirty, look up at the stars, take the side road not the frequently driven road. Make something that helps someone, inspire lots of someones, love more than you deserve to be loved, because YOU are loved more than you deserve. Wake up early, turn off the TV, computer, phone, or tablet. Spend time being creative and artistic, enjoy and take care of nature, walk more, talk more, laugh more, and cry ever once in awhile when it is needed. Eat less junk, exercise more, and read books about people that can inspire you. Don't argue, worry, or stress, because every person on this earth has an opinion and they are entitled to it. Smile. Develop your faith, deepen your relationships, share your faith, and don't judge others faith. Be a friend that you would like to have, and don't forget... 
"Life is short, you've got to live it well!"

Link to "Live It Well" video 
 https://youtu.be/Ov_lnXy7tkQ

"The Mind is It's Own Place"

    
     In "Paradise Lost", the seventeenth century author John Milton included the following revelation, "the mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heav'n of Hell, a Hell of Heav'n." How true that statement is, in our lives we make a choice each day, it is either storming and gloomy outside or the weather is simply replenishing the nourishment necessary for all living things to grow and prosper. It's a mindset shift. As Milton so aptly put it, your mind makes the call, is today going to be a blessing or a curse? Will you see storm clouds or will you embrace the power and awesomeness of God's thunder and lightning? In the morning will you complain that you have to get up and go to work, or will you realize how fortunate you are to be able to get up and that you have a job to go to that provides you with the bed that you are getting out? It's all about perspective when it comes down to it and your personal mindset is the tool that will allow you to see the glass half full if you will only look at that glass with the right set of eyes.
     Is it easy to shift your mindset to the realm of looking on the bright side? Well I would tell you that it can be an overwhelming task if you don't have someone in your corner that can coach you and support you with that ever-present umbrella when the storm clouds are moving in at a rapid pace. For some people those storm clouds seem to have their GPS locked in directly over their heads. For others, it's not even storm clouds, it's more like a permanent environment of despair. Health, medical situations, life events that are dehumanizing or tragic in scope, financial, social, or any other personal calamity can create scenarios that allow us to say, "Yeah that's easy for you to say, but my situation is different". It's Easy for me to sit here and say "You can do it! You've just got to put your mind to it!" You're right, I don't know your life situations and I haven't "walked a mile in your shoes" as the saying goes, but I have overcome adversities in my own life that could have spiraled me downward into the pits of a personal Hell as Milton described in his novel.
     My situations and your situations will absolutely be different, there is no doubt about it, but isn't that the way we are constructed physically and mentally? No person has the exact DNA in comparison to yours, so you are unique, thus your situations in life are unique to you. Make sense? You were given the set of circumstances that you were dealt because you were wired in such a manner that you can handle it! You were not created with a lack of substance that would not see you through whatever hardship or tragedy you are facing in life. No, instead you were given the exact tools that you will need to overcome anything and everything that comes before you in life. It's all about whether you have the right perspective to face it no matter what.
      Many times, you may be told that "God won't give you more than you can handle" referring to I Corinthians 10:13 where Paul encourages the church in Corinth that God will be there with them and see them through whatever they are facing. That is the key. You on your own can't overcome the adversities in your life. The trials, tribulations, and tragedies that you face are too much to overcome on your own. That is why so many people are living in despair, broken, and hopeless. It is in your DNA to overcome life's obstacles, you just have to have your coach in your corner re-framing the storm clouds you are facing, and picking you up when you fall down.
     When we allow our mind to frame our situation it may seem insurmountable, a realistic "Hell of Heav'n" situation. You have to be strong and that strength my friend comes not from human sources, but instead from "Heavenly" sources. Having the mindset that the "Hell" you are living through is just the pathway to the "Heav'n" you are headed towards is what it takes to survive and thrive through the storms of life with the right perspective. Knowing that you do not have to travel that journey alone and that you have a comforter alongside you as you walk life's pathway makes it all doable. I personally realize that without the support of my Heavenly Father I would not be able to face the obstacles set before me and I most definitely will not survive the storms of life that will eventually be headed my way. For me I John 4:4 says it best, "For greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world." 
     If you can't see anything but despair in front of you each day, I challenge you to change your perspective. How? Well you won't do it on your own, you have to have a positive message permeating your mind each step along the way. How do you get that positive message? Well it is readily available for each of us. We just have to ask Him to be with us, to support us, and to change our mindset to one of seeing the opportunity in all of life's challenges. You were made just the way you are for a purpose, you just have to be willing to allow life's Coach to see you through to the other side of where your mind currently resides. It's a choice, you can make a bad situation out of the "Hell" you are living through, or with the help of our Lord and Savior, you can walk through the "valley of the shadow of death" and realize that whatever the world intended to be bad, God has a purpose with good intentions for anything I may be going through. The journey may or may not be for my benefit, but most definitely, it is for the benefit of someone else that you will encounter in your life's journey. I will gladly walk through the storm because I know the path I walk is not solely for my benefit, and I know that I am not walking alone! I have chosen to control my mind and use where I am to help me get to where I want to be! That you will join me is my prayer.
Coach Carter

You Did It So Own It

    
In one of my devotional times this week I was reading a selection by the Reverend Charles Stanley which centered on Adam and Eve's story from the Garden of Eden. The title of the devotional was something like "The Blame Game", and the gist of the message was that when a person does something wrong in life we need to be more accountable, yet dating back to the beginning of time passing the buck has apparently been the common modus of operandi for a large percentage of people in the world.
     In Genesis chapter 3 we find Adam crunching on the apple from the Tree of Knowledge when suddenly God enters the scene looking to have a check-in with the pair. Realizing they had been duped and disobeyed the rules that God had laid out nicely for them, they hid in the bushes hiding their nakedness in shame. Well as the story goes when God asked Adam why he had eaten from the only tree that He had instructed the couple to not eat from, Adam did what most people today do when they mess up, blame it on someone else! That's right Adam told God that Eve had convinced him to eat the apple. That gets Adam off the hook, right? Wrong. We'll get back to that in a minute. Well not to accept the responsibility of causing Adam to fall, Eve went about the business of pointing the blame in another direction away from herself. Eve proceeded to explain to God that the serpent told her that it would be okay to eat from the tree and thus the serpent was the one that should really get the blame for Eve, and also Adam eating from the Tree of Knowledge. I guess my question is who did the serpent blame? I mean really, I guess the serpent (Satan) probably would tell us that it was actually God's fault that he convinced Adam and Eve to eat from the tree because he had got kicked out of heaven and didn't want to end up alone in the dismal pits of hell. I don't know, but I'm pretty certain that the serpent didn't and still doesn't want to assume responsibility for the evil of this world.
     Well as I read Reverend Stanley's devotion my mind just couldn't quit thinking about how the situation that Adam and Eve found themselves in is relative to the same situations we find ourselves in today and we still, just like Adam and Eve don't want to take the ownership of our choices and decisions either. I mean really Adam and Eve both admitted to God that they ate the apples. Guilty. End of story, bottom line, stop. If we mess up we need to stand up and say I messed up, period. Ownership isn't saying "I did it, but they made me do it". That's not ownership, that's called passing the buck. The reality of it is Adam ate the apple, he was instructed to not eat the apple, but he chose to eat it anyway. Why he did it is of no significance. Own it Adam. And that is the message I want to convey today in our brief time together.
     Do we actually think we are getting away with something just because we blame it on someone else? In our mind, we may be able to justify "why" we messed up and did what we did in life, but ultimately nobody else is going to be held accountable for the actions you take and the decisions you make. You got to own that my friend! In society today, it appears that nobody is responsible for their own actions and choices. It's always going to be somebody else that should be held accountable for our actions. That's wrong. Who are we kidding? But oh, so real today. We see it in school, it's shouted out on the playing field, we hear it at work, and it is spread all over the world through our TVs and social media outlets. Nobody wants to stand up and take responsibility. I guess my question is who do we think we are fooling? To whom does it matter the most whether we sin or not and if we confess our sins or not? That's right God knows not only our actions, but our thoughts as well. Matthew 5:28 tells us that even when we sin in our minds God knows it and it is sin in the making. I believe sometimes many people feel that as long as they blame someone else for their mistakes that they actually are off the hook. Let's go back to our original forefather Adam. Adam ate the apple, he is guilty. He can blame it on whoever he wants to shift the blame, but it was his hand that lifted the apple to his mouth, and it was his mouth that took the first bite and ate everything but the stem! So, who should Adam blame for eating the apple, Eve? No, Adam needed to step up and accept that he chose to eat the apple, even though he knew better, he ate the apple. He had a choice to make and he made it plain and simple. Own it Adam.
     Why is it so hard for us to own up to the choices we make in society today?  We can deny our responsibility all day long and we can blame everything or everyone else for our actions, but when it comes down to, who is it that we will have to answer to anyway? We can push the blame in any direction that we like but Romans 14:12 reminds us that " each one of us will give an account of himself to God." That's right, we can shift the blame anywhere we like, but the one person that knows our hearts, minds, and souls, knows what we do and why we did it even if we convince the world that it was someone else that was to blame. If this is true then why is it so hard for us to take ownership of our own choices and decisions?
      The thought of being or doing wrong equals failure in our minds. Failure is not desirable, but as Winston Churchill said it isn't fatal either. Society today equates messing up, failing, with defeat which is completely out of line with reality. Find me someone that has never made a mistake or made a wrong choice, you can’t, man wasn't made that way so unless you have met Jesus you won't be able to find someone that hasn't made a wrong decision which ultimately led to a failure. The good news is just as Churchill said failure is not fatal. I John 1:9 tells us that "if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness." People may not forgive us when we mess up, but God is faithful and will forgive us. That's the message that we are missing. We are all too worried about what man will think about us and we don't give any thought to the fact that God knows everything about us and he is still willing to forgive us if only we will ask Him to forgive us! To do that you've got to own it. In my mind, I can't say "Please Lord forgive me for my sin, because it wasn’t my fault anyway that I did what I did!" That's not asking for forgiveness, that's making excuses. And we don't get forgiveness for making excuses! 
     Realize you are not perfect, realize you will mess up, and realize it may hurt to own up to it, but that is all part of the process of forgiveness. Owning up and taking responsibility is a trait that we all should be modeling to our children, our students, and the world we live. You can be forgiven and you will be forgiven by the One that matters, but first you have to be able to say "I did it so I am responsible for it!" Raise the bar on the accountability chart in your life. Live it, model it, and teach it every day!
Coach Carter

    
    

Be a Conduit of Positive Energy

Be a Conduit of Positive Energy
     The students in our Industrial Electricity program are involved in a project to reorganize their workplace area. The goal for Mr. Wes Harbin's class is to have a commercial/industrial area and then also offer some residential electricity opportunities in another section of the room. Without handling any live electrical wires, the students in Mr. Harbin's class are pulling wires through the conduit to provide electrical service in new areas of their classroom. The electrical wires produce the power needed, yet is the conduit that carries it from the source to all the different areas in the classroom.
     In our daily walk, we too are a conduit of awesome power. The energy we carry and share each day has the potential to change lives, redirect attitudes, or create opportunities that others cannot see. Just as electricity offers a tremendous amount of energy that allows us to carry on our lives, that same type of energy in our lives also carries a magnitude of responsibility due to the strength and power that can either provide light and power, or it can adversely present a dangerous, even deadly source of power that can shock or even kill figuratively or literally.
     The issue is not whether you are a conduit or not, if you are breathing you are carrying and sharing some type of energy. What you have to determine is if the energy you are sharing is going to make a positive impact, or in stark contrast, will your conduit deliver bad attitudes, negative energy, or painful memories?
    If you could place an ohm meter on your life would the display read on the positive end of the scale or would it tap out on the negative end of the range? Well, just as our example of electricity being carried from its source to its destination through a conduit, the determining factor of your positive or negative energy also comes from the source to which we are connected.
     The problem is that there is an abundance of negative people and influences in this world. You have to be careful, the time you spend in front of a television can be "shocking". Honestly there isn't much available there that creates positive energy. The news has the potential to turn a bright day into a day filled with storm clouds and rainstorms. The message transferred through a great deal of today's "hit" music falls on the not so good side of creating positive energy. Choose your friends and those you hang out with carefully, they can be a conduit that has a huge impact on us each day. The biggest culprit for spreading negative energy in our lives is the very one that stares back at you when you look in the mirror. Jon Gordon, motivational author and positivity guru, often says "stop listening to yourself and start talking to yourself". We just have to make sure what we are saying is coming from the right source.
     I believe I am overall a positive person. I believe there is a chance to overcome any obstacle as long as I have a beat left in my heart. I trust that "ALL things work out for good" Romans 8:28, and I understand that God's plans and my plans more than likely do not match up, but His plans are all that matter. I know that if we believe and we never give up on hope, then God's love for us will always prevail. Keep in mind our plans and His plans aren't the same. II Peter 3:8-9 reminds us that "with the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day."
     Trust, faith, hope love, grit, resiliency, perseverance, and persistence tell me that I have a reason to be positive in this life. I have an assurance that is found in John 16:33 where Jesus assured His disciples, "I have told you these things so that in me you will have peace. In this world you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart because I have overcome the world." If your conduit isn't carrying this uplifting message then search out the one true source of energy, and connect to the power that never fails!
Coach Carter