Having Sight but No Vision

Helen Keller, the early twentieth century societal leader for individuals with vision and hearing challenges, once remarked that, "The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision." If for some reason you are not familiar with the work and advocacy that Ms. Keller accomplished during her life, let me just say one word, amazing. As a young toddler, Helen Keller lost both her sight and hearing while recovering from a traumatic childhood sickness. Over the next several years, Helen lived in total darkness and silence. I cannot even begin to imagine what that trapped existence must have felt like. Fortunately for Helen, Anne Sullivan came into her life and eventually broke the chains of silence and solitude which had kept Keller captive a great deal of her early childhood. Sullivan, her teacher and lifelong companion figuratively opened her senses to the world through sign language and life experiences. Based on the quote above, I wonder if Helen Keller may have had better vision than the majority of sighted folks?

 

Do we attempt to see what our lives should be, or are we comfortable seeing only the parts that we want to see? We need to be cautiously aware that having sight does not guarantee we can "see" the true purpose of this life we have been given. Let's look a little deeper at the difference between sight and vision that Helen Keller shared. 

 

How do you look at people that are "different" from yourself? Do you see skin color variations? Do you look at how someone dresses, customs they observe, or possibly even the religion they worship and make a judgement call about that person as a human being? If we only see the surface layer of a person's outward appearance, do we actually have vision? Vision sees beyond what is visible, vision allows us to see the potential in something, or in this case, someone that has worth and value to family, friends, and society. We demonstrate blindness when we don't look beyond what is on the surface of a person's physical appearance (Matthew 7:1-2).  

 

As leaders of our homes and families what direction are we leading? We can't see the future, yet we know that there is an eternal destination we are all striving towards if only we believe and seek His will for this life we have been given to live. It is way too simple to allow life to happen without us being involved in the decision-making process or goal setting for the future. We have to have a vision of what is most important and then just as aptly important is setting a course for how to arrive at each person's individual goals in life. Too often, our vision is stuck on how am I going to survive the day or week, instead of focusing on the end goal or destination. Having a vision of what is in store definitely shifts the purpose and vision of the life we are living. 

 

The foundational difference between seeing what is going on, and having a vision for what the goal for something is transfers to pretty much any aspect of your life. I challenge each of you to step back, slow down, and do a little self-reflection about whether you just see what is visible, or if you have a vision for the long-range purpose or plan in each aspect of your life. Don't be blinded by the interference of your daily grind, things do not happen by coincidence, you have a purpose and your life's purpose will impact others and ultimately the future. What is your vision for the future you will impact?           

  "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keeps the law, happy is he."                      Proverbs 29:18

Coach Carter

Choosing Your Roommate

Play along with for a minute. Let's say that you need a college roommate to split the cost of your new housing arrangement off campus. You share your "Roommate Needed" post on social media and receive several messages of interest. After narrowing down the electronic applications, you decide to set up in person interviews with two individuals. Applicant #1 arrives five minutes early for the interview, has a list of references to provide, and upon further discussion you find that Applicant one has several similar values and characteristics in line with your own. Applicant #1 suggests that whether the roommate possibility works out, or not, the two of you should grab a bite sometime and provides a firm and reassuring handshake. Later that afternoon, you receive a text message from Applicant #2, stating that they will be a few minutes late due to all the slow, stupid drivers that are causing them to be delayed. Disheveled and grumpy upon arrival, Applicant #2 complains about the apartment being on the second floor of the complex and that it really was tough making it up those steps. The analysis continued as Applicant #2 remarks that "there are too many windows (which equals more windows to keep clean)", "the color scheme is a little bright don't you think?", and tops off the meeting with an inquiry about whether their two cats, one dog, and Burmese python would be permitted in the apartment. By the end of this visit, you realize that you have absolutely nothing in common with Applicant #2 and you breathe a sigh of relief when you close the door behind Applicant #2. Which applicant would you choose? Not even a decision to be made I would guess. Ten out of ten times Applicant #1 would be your choice. Wouldn't life be much easier to make decisions and choices if everything was as black and white as the above scenario? 

Let's look at the options for our choice regarding life perspective. In my devotion this morning the subject was Paul and how he always saw the good in the bad, and how he turned what on the surface appeared to be a terrible situation into a victory for God. The devotion proceeded to suggest that when Paul was tortured and cast into prison and then shackled to the prison guard, Paul's perspective most likely wasn't that Paul had been cuffed to a prison guard in terrible circumstances, but instead that the prison guard had been chained to Paul so that he could share the Gospel with this prison guard. (Acts 16:26-34) Paul had a choice to make, he could wallow in self-pity and ask God "Why?" or Paul could look at the opportunity to witness to a lost soul that couldn't get away from him, because they had been cuffed together, which was all a part of God's plan and purpose for Paul's life. Which perspective do you tend to adhere to? I hope you do realize it is a choice? You have the option and you get to choose your mind's roommate. 

The reality of life is that all lives are going to have good and not so good occurrences and circumstances that exist each day. Even in lives that things are going well in, there are times when not so welcome circumstances take place and we have to make the decision on what our perspective is going to be. In the roommate example above, it was overtly apparent who the right choice would be for a new roommate. The majority of us would not want to invite Negative Nancy to become our new roommate and the uplifting smile and friendly gestures of Applicant #1 definitely made that decision simple. So why would we choose to look at the bad in every situation or circumstance? The opposite is just as available and the cost associated with choosing a positive outlook over a negative perspective is identical. It doesn't cost us a penny more to take the positive outlook on life, and actually it pays dividends to have a positive attitude, because it starts rubbing off on others that you interact with each day. 

Paul chose to look at his circumstances and make the best out of the situation God had placed him in at that moment of his life. Today, you have that same option which roommate will you choose? One that complains about everything and can't see the forest for the trees? Or, will you look at every circumstance and ask God what He wants you to accomplish in each situation and at this exact moment in time? "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:11-13

You will choose your soul's roommate each day that you live, choose wisely!

 

Coach Carter

Waltzing with God

 

I have a goal for Missy and I to enroll in a ballroom dancing class. Healthy exercise, and an opportunity to learn an art form that is highly entertaining. Honestly, it is almost magical to watch as two individuals move synchronously around the ballroom floor twisting, twirling, and dipping all in perfect time with the orchestra's accompaniment. Even a mere spectator understands that so much time and practice is required for this syncopation to occur, training that begins with the decision of who will be leading and who will be following that lead. It would seem to be a no-brainer, but who leads and who follows in life is a question that traverses more than the ballroom dance floor. In life we have to decide who is in charge, who or in many cases what is calling the shots, directing the steps, and creating the plans by which we will live out the life we have been given to live. 

 

The names Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers are two that are commonly recognized as outstanding examples of ballroom dancing partners. This dynamic duo entertained audiences on the big screen for years in the early stages of cinematography with their seamless promenades and pivots back and forth around the dance floor. At its best, it is a challenge to discern who was leading the dance when Fred and Ginger floated across the stage, yet inevitably there had to be one partner leading and one following the other's lead to ensure toes were not getting stepped on and unintentional collisions were avoided. Sit back and really watch a pair of ballroom dancers and attempt to ascertain who is leading and who is following, challenging may be an understatement. That is when dancing is on display at its finest. In your dance with God is it obvious who is leading and who is following? And how do you know the steps of the dance he has choregraphed for the life you were created to live?

 

So many times, we speak of our "walk" with Christ, referring to our relationship with our Creator. When we dance with Christ, it is taking our walk and moving it up a notch to the level of a choreographed masterpiece. Think about our Fred and Ginger example. Floating around the room, beaming smiles, and an energy level that can be felt by even the most inexperienced observer. But how did Fred and Ginger get to that level of two becoming one on the dance floor? Practice, time spent together studying, mapping out the steps, and yes coming to a consensus of who would lead and who would follow. That's what happens when two become one. The union of marriage is an example of this union of two becoming one, and much like a dance the two participants learn that there is a certain sense of dependence that is created when you truly are one flowing body on life's dance floor. 

 

How can you be a better dance partner in your relationship with God? Spending time in His Word, meditating on His will for your life, practicing the principles that are given to us through countless examples both in the Bible and throughout history. We work on the dance steps daily through prayer and our works that share God with those that are watching our syncopation through our daily dance. There is nothing routine about our dance with God. If you don't have a relationship with God, you are pretty much just out on the dance floor moving around. There is no rhythm to our choices and there is no coordination to our plans. We are just bouncing around hoping a partner, some partner will become the lead that we can follow. Addiction, depression, and disappointment are potential partners when we don't head to the ballroom of life with a partner that will lead us upward in every aspect of our lives. 

"You shall walk/dance* in all the way which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live, and that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land which you shall possess." Deuteronomy 5:33 *my addition.

 

Who is leading your dance of life? Are you going to the dance alone? There is a partner that will lead you in His paths of righteousness a dance partner that won't let you fall and who will dance through life with you for eternity! Care to dance?

Coach Carter

Lightbulbs

 

I recently ordered a copy of author Richard Rohr's, timely book "Falling Upward", a journey of the realization of the two halves of one's life. I won't elaborate too much at this point, as I am just getting started, but for our purpose today the overarching theme of Rohr's book is that our lives are separated into two distinct parts. The first part is living our life for ourselves, learning, growing, falling down, and getting back up. The second part of life's journey isn't necessarily a given that everyone will attain this new adventure in life. If we reach the "further journey" that Rohr describes, our lives no longer are impacted by what happens to us, but more so, what happens through us that impacts the lives of those we share life with each day in our homes, on the job site, or in many cases the encounters and acquaintances we happen upon throughout our day. In attaining this new journey in life, Rohr shares a truthism that Desmond Tutu shared with him on a visit to South Africa with the anti-apartheid leader, "We are only the light bulbs, and our job is to just stay screwed in." Wherever you are in your journey of this life you have been given to live out, you are a light bulb. Plain and simple, you are a light bulb. What do light bulbs do? Well that depends. 

 

Some light bulbs are still in the box. Their potential is obvious because the label on the box informs us of what wattage the bulb is and what type of light is capped inside of the tiny filament of the bulb. A bulb in the box may very easily live out its existence stuck in a box, never gaining an opportunity to share its light with anyone. For some of us we are living that style of life. We have potential good to share, we have skills that God gave us and yet we either hold back from sharing our light because we don't want the extra work load or we may fear the possibility that we might fail in our endeavors and thus appear to be a failure. People who live their life in the light bulb box may be very successful in life, their family is growing, their jobs are secure, and they appear to be doing all the right things and checking all the right boxes at just the right time, but something is missing. Their true potential is not being reached, because light bulbs are only beneficial when they are screwed in to the source of their energy which will then illuminate their lives for the true purpose they were created, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.” (Ephesians 2:8-10). 

 

Other light bulbs are screwed in to the socket and have seen how their light can illuminate a room, but for some reason their power button has been turned off. A light bulb in a socket has the potential to impact the room in which they are situated, but with no power running through the bulb, there is no light available. In the lives of way too many people this is the case. You attend church, you pray for those in your life that are sick or hurting, and you give your tithe each week, but when the rubber hits the road, you aren't shedding light in the darkness of the world in which you live. God has more in store for us, we just have to be willing and ready to turn the switch on and start fulfilling God's purpose for our lives.

 

Finally, there are the light bulbs that are out of the box, screwed into the power source, and are illuminating their world. There is nothing more fulfilling than sharing the light that has been given to you. Light bulbs were not invented to keep their energy and light to themselves. Jesus commented on this in Matthew 5:15 "No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house." Light bulbs that shine their light are bright and their sense of purpose is fulfilled. Their light beams out and provides guidance and awakening to those in need. A light bulb that is turned on for God shares the energy that God has placed in their life into the lives of others thus creating a new source of potential light from that person's life well lived. The only potential pitfall for us here is that we, as Tutu warned, must stay screwed in to the source of our light. 

 

Personally, I have not reached the second half of my life's journey yet. There is so much potential energy locked up inside of this life, and I am ever so eager to connect my potential light with the true energy source from which each one of us receives our strength to boldly move onward and upward. The light I have to share is not mine to keep and place under a basket, but instead, God has placed the light that He wants me to share inside of this life I have been given and there is no better time to allow that light to shine. Oh, the fear of not living out my life in a manner that illuminates what God has done for me, and how that same light is available to anyone that wants to turn on their own life's light bulb. "We are only light bulbs", what we choose to do with the potential inside our life is a matter of what we do with that light God has given us. Will you stay in the box and never use what God gave you to share with others? Have you been screwed into the source of your power, but failed to turn the switch on, thus stifling the potential light you have to share? Or, are you a light sitting on a hilltop beaming out the light that God placed inside of you? If you are not that light bulb, you can be. Use what God gave you today, begin the journey that God intended you to traverse. "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

Shine on!

Coach Carter

Nothing Impedes Progress Like Procrastination

 There is an old Chinese proverb that goes something like this, "The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the next best time to plant a tree is today." Fully the call to action is both evident and challenging. In my own life I have procrastinated and made excuses about a project I have felt drawn to undertake for close to seven or eight years now. The idea of not putting off today what should have been done yesterday doesn't even come close to the reluctance to launch that I have carried around ever since this great idea was birthed in my mind and then off and on in my thoughts over the years. The bad part about it is, every time I have shared my idea, people love it and ask what I'm waiting on, and in almost every case I don't have a sufficient explanation to provide. The easiest thing to say would be that I am procrastinating. So if today's Flat Tire Ministries Thought for the Week doesn't resonate with anyone out there, don't worry, I may just be writing this one to myself!

Normally, I identify as a person that moves from ideas to action with little time in between. Being a leader that is something that we do, make things happen. (Quick reminder, we are all leaders. You are either leading someone up or pushing someone down, it may be one person, doubtful, or it may be a whole corporation, but you are a leader in some capacity somewhere.) So, as a leader it is our responsibility to move the needle in the right direction. See a problem and find a solution. Plan for the future and then get the plan from paper to motion. At the end of the day, it is the leader that either evaluates his or her progress or society chimes in and moves forward with you or moves along after you are gone. Leadership is a privilege and making positive progress is what leaders are tasked to do. If that is what leaders are supposed to be doing, then why is it that procrastination even exists and what are the liabilities of not moving forward with the plans we have been given?

Whether it is a plan that will impact your family, or if it is a business decision that will move your company forward, the consequences of not doing anything, or even putting off starting until that illusive tomorrow arrives, we need to understand that progress is the expectation. Solomon was the wisest man to have ever lived and in the Book of Ecclesiastes he reminds us that there is a time to plant and a time to harvest, a time to build and time to tear down, and most relevant to our lives is the fact that there is a time to live and a time to die. (Ecclesiastes 3) So, if we are supposed to be leading and there is something that we should be doing, but we aren't getting it done then we risk the possibility that time might just pass us by and somebody else will have to step up and do what we didn't have what it takes to get it done! Are you going to be the one that gets it done, or are you the one that God will call to clean up the procrastinated mess that a reluctant leader left behind in the wake of his/her indecisiveness?

So what if we just put it off till tomorrow? "I'm too busy right now to do that, I'll start on it tomorrow" has been my standby response for my own initiative, but that one doesn't stand the test either when you read what Solomon had to say about procrastinating. "Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom." Ecclesiastes 9:10. In other words, whatever you are given to do, do it well and do it now, because after you die it is too late! 

Does that mean it won't get done if you don't do it? No way. What it does mean is that since you procrastinated and didn't do what God created you uniquely to do, someone else or a bunch of someone else's will have to carry your responsibilities through to action. That has implications for those you love and share life with because your actions impact the lives of others. Thus, your inaction also carries with it the consequences that indirectly and directly impact the lives of our family and friends. I don't want my inaction and procrastination to negatively impact my family's trajectory, so I have to be accountable to get the ball rolling and finish what hasn't started yet, but most definitely needs to start now!

What is holding you back? Most likely it isn't outside forces, those are just fuel for the excuses we make for not starting. Is it lack of time? Yet one more excuse to comfort us in our procrastination. We make time for everything else on our calendars, why can't we make time to accomplish what we were built to accomplish? When you stand before the judgement throne with God, what excuse will you be able to come up with which God would look back at you, and say "Oh, okay I didn't know you were that busy, come on in my mistake." More likely is the response that Jesus spoke of in the parable of the talents. The third servant had procrastinated about investing the one talent that his master had given him to keep while the investor was out of town because he didn't want to take a chance on losing that one talent. On his return the master was angered that this servant didn't even put the money in the bank to at least create a small amount of interest on the investment. (Matthew 25:14-30).

You have things that need to get done. You have goals to be reached and outcomes to achieve. You can start on your list today, or you can procrastinate until tomorrow if that day ever comes! We all have a purpose, don't allow "you" to get in the way of you completing what God created you to do today! Trees won't be planted, inventions won't be created, bridges won't be built, and relationships won't be restored unless someone moves to see those things accomplished. I pray that you will be moved by God's calling and that you will not procrastinate until tomorrow to start! Today is the day that we have been given, make the most of it! (Psalm 118:24)

Coach Carter

    

What is Holding You Back?

Dams are actually pretty impressive structures. This past week, on my return home commute from a workday in Nashville, I drove by the J. Percy Priest Dam which was generating at the time I passed. I have driven by this dam and glanced over at it numerous times over the years, the gigantic, concrete wall holding back millions of gallons of water assuring the safety of the general population in the Cumberland Valley. A passing glance offers just that, a huge wall of concrete, nothing too fancy, but if we give a little "deeper" consideration to the purpose of a dam our perspective may change a bit. 

Dams were created to help control flooding, but with the advent of hydroelectric power creating man-made lakes out of small tributary rivers such as the Stones River that eventually flows into the much larger Cumberland River in Nashville was a smart economic decision as well. 

 

To create the hydroelectric power, gates are opened which allow a controlled amount of water to enter generators turning the turbines to eventually create electricity. So, in essence the dam acts as a barrier to untold amounts of force and power. For the Cumberland Valley in Tennessee, that barrier is critically important for the safety of those living below the dam. That same dam also creates affordable energy that provides households and businesses via electricity that is generated by the controlled release of the contained water behind the dam wall. Sounds like a win-win situation wouldn't you say?

 

But what is the purpose of a river like the Stones River in East Nashville? To flow right? If the river completely dries up the environmental impact would be devastating. That is why it is so important that dams allow a certain level of water to constantly flow through, and then as the gates are opened to generate power the excess water rises the river levels below the dam and the additional life flow is easily visible. What once was a meandering vein of water, suddenly takes on the life of a robust river with ripples and dips that create the sounds of life. I love a river, it represents life and the ever-changing flow of life. 

 

So, if we can agree that a river is representative of life then we are faced with the question of what in your life is creating a dam? What is it that is hindering your flow of life that needs to take place? What is holding you back? What should you be doing that you aren't because your energy is being held back by some real or imaginary concrete barrier in your life? Fear? Insecurity? Lack of experience? Lack of resources? Whatever your "dam" is you can't allow it to limit your strength and purpose in life. God created you to fulfill a purpose for His glory, there is no barrier that should be able to keep you from rolling on downstream, touching lives and doing good works as you go! The Apostle Paul challenged the church in Thessalonica with this encouragement, "Do not hold back the work of the Holy Spirit."   

 

It is time for you to be doing what you were called to do! What is holding you back? 

 

Coach Carter

 

Honey in The Rock

 If you haven't heard the song "Honey in the Rock" sung by Brooke Ligertwood and Brandon Lake you might want to check it out, so inspirational and quite the motivation tune as far as I'm concerned. Sometimes a song just speaks to your heart and soul, and in this instance the message was exactly what I needed to move me out of a little self-pity party I was having. At times it is necessary to do a little self-reflection to see that what we are complaining about may be what we need to be embracing instead. 

I have been keeping a pretty busy schedule over the last few weeks and months. New job with a new set of responsibilities for a much broader base of accountability. The new school year has kicked in so that also means fall sports are hitting the field and court, so my supervision and coaching opportunities are revving up as well. That basically equals long days, late evenings, and not a great deal of down time to spend with family, keep up with normal household chores, or rest for that matter. After one particularly long day, I was just laying my head down on the pillow around 11:30PM, knowing that around 4:30AM I was going to need to be up preparing for a Saturday at the football stadium with Pee-Wee Football supervision. I was on the brink of complaining about the lack of rest I was getting when I received a little tap on the shoulder reminding me that I really don't have anything to complain about when it comes right down to it. Here I was just about to lay my head down on a soft, comfortable pillow, on my super comfy king size bed. Crisp, clean sheets and a roof over my head with the air conditioner set at a comfortable temperature assured me that rest will come easy. Not even mentioning the hot shower I had taken after I got home, the ice, cold glass of water I drank after that shower, or the fact that my wife was right there waiting on me when I arrived. I may have wanted more time to sleep, but regardless of the amount of time I had, the comforts of home were going to make my rest relaxing and replenishing. 

On the other hand, a short month or so back we were in downtown Chattanooga and on the evening streets around the downtown area, men and women were taking residence in building entry stoops and even up against a corner of two exterior walls. The scene was both a disgrace on our society, and a heartbreaking memory that I revisit across these United States of America. This should not be the case. We have so much, we have beyond what we need, and in spite of how good we have it, we want to complain because we want more. That is where the message in the song "Honey in the Rock" stopped my complaining and enabled me to see my situation in a little different light. 

In the midst of our adversity and affliction, God provides us with what we need. The method of what we need comes to us in various and sundry ways. For me, my complaining spirit was met with the reality that I don't have anything to be complaining about when compared to the hardships that people in my own community and in communities across our state and country deal with each day that they live. God gives us honey from the rock to feed our souls when we otherwise might very well go hungry and thirsty. If you are experiencing hurts and pain in your feet from standing at work too long, stop and ask the man with no legs how he is doing today. When we complain that our food is "not good", think about the family who will eat tonight because of food donations at a local non-profit pantry. Receiving honey from a rock tells me that God knows what we need and He will not allow us to go hungry whatever our circumstance. "But I would feed you with the finest wheat.  I would satisfy you with wild honey from the rock." Psalm 81:16.

I am grateful for the honey from the rock of Jesus, he gave me hope and a plan to live forever in Him. Our job is to find the Rock and taste the sweetness of the honey only he can provide! Desiring to have a better life is human, realizing that the life you have is all part of the plan God has for you is essential and life-changing. Honey in the rock!

Coach Carter