Overload

     For those of us in the education world schedules are about to get turned upside down! Summer vacation is winding down, a thought that brings with it a mixed set of emotions. For the educators, sleeping in late, loose schedules, poolside afternoons, and staying up late watching movies and eating popcorn is about to come to a screeching halt. Students would tell you they aren't excited about starting back, but reconnecting with friends and the beginning of a new school year offers new classmates and new classes which puts a tingle in their minds as they prepare for their first day back. For parents, on the other hand, the party is just about to begin, the kids are finally going back to school! All kidding aside, as we transition back into a new school year, life will change dramatically for all involved in this business we call education pretty darn quick. Early morning showers, last minute papers to be signed or submitted, time lines, deadlines, and "I need this yesterday"requests will welcome our teachers back to the "real world".
      If you aren't in the education profession, you are probably reading this thinking, "Well suck it up buttercup we don't get summer vacation", because you still have the same deadlines and time lines to deal with in your own profession. It isn't just at work where we can feel like its all on us, at home as a parent, a spouse, a sibling, or even as a neighbor you may be the one that everybody depends on to get things done. Maybe you are that person that doesn't have the word "No" in your vocabulary, or maybe you are just the person that everyone looks to because they know that you know how to get things done. Whatever the case may be, I believe it is safe to assume that we all feel a little overwhelmed at one time or another. Normal? Well if you are living life it is highly likely that you will reach overload status at some point. The real question isn't whether you are or will experience an overload at some point in your life, but instead it is more about how do you handle the mental and physical overloads when they rear their heads in our lives?
      For an answer to the above question, I would point you to the plight of the disciples and a situation they found themselves back in Matthew 14:13-21. You may be familiar with the story of Jesus, the crowd of five thousand, and the five loaves of bread and the two fish, but what I want to draw to your attention is how the disciples first reacted and then how the situation turned out during their own overloaded circumstance. When Jesus spoke people listened, in this case more than 5,000 people had gathered in a remote area to listen to their teacher and they had stayed until way late in the day. The disciples knew that the crowd had to be hungry and went to Jesus to have Him send the crowd away to go get food in the nearby towns. They were at overload status, here's this huge crowd, they have been with Jesus all day with no breaks, and now their stomachs were starting to rumble and so were their voices. So when they asked Jesus to send them away they did so because they knew they couldn't take care of the crowd. Guess what? They were right, on their own they couldn't feed a crowd this size, especially after they did an inventory check and could only come up with five loaves of stale bread and two little bittie fishys! They couldn't take care of their overloaded situation just like you can't take care of your overloaded circumstance by yourself. Unbeknownst to the disciples the very person they went to in hopes of dismissing the crowd actually gave them the solution to their dilemma and it wasn't to send the crowd away. As Matthew shares the rest of the story we know Jesus blessed the loaves and fish and then told the disciples to feed the crowd. By the time everyone had eaten as much as they could there was still enough leftover to fill twelve baskets with food.
     What man cannot do, God can. What we see as impossible, God makes all things possible (Matthew 19:26). When our schedule is at maximum overload and we feel like we can't carry on, God says give me your load, I'll be with you and I'll actually carry that load for you! (Matthew 11:30) As we conclude today's FTM let's make sure we are clear on one thing. When the disciples asked Jesus to remove their situation overload, He didn't. Instead when they came to Jesus asking for His help, He gave them the tools they needed to take care of their situation. He is there to do the same thing for each of us. No promises that all of a sudden your problems are going to disappear this year just because you pray for help. I think it is clear that that isn't necessarily how it all works. When you come seeking help rest assured you will receive the help you need, it just may not be a miracle, but instead it might just be some tartar sauce and cheese for your fish sandwich!
For those going back to school, remember you are not in this alone! For anyone else reading this message today, the same holds true for you as well!
Coach Carter

Would You Rather Sleep on a Pillow or a Rock?

    
Today's title for our FTM is a question that sounds pretty much like a simple one to answer, when given the choice the answer would be a pillow of course! Seems like one of those no-brainer type questions huh? You would think so, matter of fact I don't believe I know one person that has a rock lying on their bed just waiting on them for tonight's restful sleep. I mean that would be ludicrous, wouldn't it? Who in their right mind would ever choose a rock over a nice goose down pillow? Well if my question seems a little simplistic to answer then let me change things up a little and let's see how simple the choices are. What if I changed my question to would you rather breathe like your lungs will never fill enough with clean, fresh oxygen, or would you prefer to gasp for a breath to the point that you feel like you are going to suffocate? Easy question again? Yes but if so, why do men and women around the world pay over $5.00 for a pack of cigarettes? It's pretty safe to assume that people who choose to smoke don't want to end up gasping for each breath, but it is also a common understanding that smoking leads to emphysema, lung cancer, and at best shortness of breath due to damage to your lungs. How about heart attacks? How many of us would choose to have a major heart attack over a healthy heart that beats strong and pumps blood easily through our veins and arteries? I'm guessing there again that not too many would choose major heart surgery for blocked arteries. So if that's the case why do so many of us spend our mornings, days, and evenings piling on excessive calories that end up blocking our arteries and making us prime candidates for heart attacks. Why are not only our food choices bad, but we complicate our situation by choosing to come home from work and plopping down on the couch instead of making efforts to be active and stay physically fit, helping ensure that our hearts are getting the exercise it needs to remain healthy and fit? Well like I said if life's decisions were as easy to maintain as choosing between a rock or a pillow to sleep on I don't think we would have quite the number of people suffering from health matters which to a great extent are the product of our own personal choices.
     In life the very choices that appear to be the easiest to make are often the very same choices that send us spiraling down into a hole that we many times can't seem to crawl out of regardless of our want or desire. Hard to believe, but many people are asked each day pillow or rock, and they consciously choose the rock. Not just any rock, I'm talking craggily, pointed, hard as a rock, rocks. We're not talking nice, smooth river rocks here my friend. Why? Why would anyone choose a rock over a pillow? Why would anyone choose to smoke and increase their chances of cancer over being smoke-free and maintaining a quality standard of health? Why would anyone choose to do drugs, steal something that doesn't belong to them, or make the decision to end a relationship just because it is getting a little tough and the bumps in the road are getting a little bumpier? This list could go on and on, but it all boils down to this. We make our choices based on what we believe is going to be the best for us at the present moment in time.
     Nobody would choose a rock over a pillow because more than likely they wouldn't sleep at all tonight. In that same mindset, if you knew that the decision to smoke a cigarette would cause you to get cancer tonight, then not too many of us would make that decision at all. If we knew that the recyclables we are throwing in the trash today would lead to water and land that we would be unable to use tomorrow, I would imagine the number of people recycling would pick up tremendously. And if we knew that the life we are living today could wind up costing us our lives for eternity then.... Oh wait we do have an insight here! Jesus shared this forewarning with His disciples in Matthew 24:43 "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. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." The answer is we don't know when our time here on earth will expire, so we have to be ready every day. We have to choose the pillow over the rock today, tomorrow, and each and every day of our lives. We have to choose to serve, give, lead, submit, sacrifice, and then give, serve, lead, submit, and sacrifice again each day. You make the choices in your life, do you choose the pillow of everlasting love or the rock of strife and contradiction?
Coach Carter

 
    

Is Your Glass Half Empty or Half Full?

    
The other day I was listening to a sermon from Chip Ingram on the subject of focus and his introduction to that topic was as profound as it was simple, and it really stuck with me. So much that I'd like to share it with you in our Flat Tire Ministries Thought today. Understanding that I was listening to this sermon as Essie and I were on one of our early morning walks is important because when Pastor Chip showed this visual aid to his congregation I could not see it, but oh how clearly did I see it in my mind after my AHA! moment occurred.
      To introduce his sermon on focus Chip had a pitcher of water that was, yes you guessed right, filled halfway with water. We all know what's getting ready to happen, the preacher asked the proverbial question, "Is this pitcher half empty or half full?" We all know that question is a loaded one as the response is all dependent on whether you are a half empty pessimist or a half full optimist. The argument could go on forever and likely never come to an agreeable outcome. But, here is what Pastor Ingram said that stopped me in my tracks. After the initial pause that follows a rhetorical question, Ingram provided this simple response, " .... the answer is yes." Yes, the pitcher is half empty and yes, the pitcher is half full. Wow, what a way to negotiate a truce huh? No, he was exactly right it doesn't matter which side of the attitude fence you land either statement "holds water" in its substance, we as individuals just choose to label it one way or the other. That's where the pastor made his point for the sermon that day. Half empty, half full, tomato/too-mat-toe, potato/ po-taa-toe it doesn't really matter, what does matter is where do you place your focus. Are you going to spend your life on the fact that half of the water is gone in your pitcher of life, or are you going to spend your days being thankful for the amount of water regardless of the quantity remaining in that same container? Where is your focus?
     Regardless of your circumstances, regardless of your current status in life, or the condition of your mental, physical, or emotional status in life we all have to make a decision about where we will focus our attention. Two men stand at the base of a mountain, the first says "you mean I have to climb that mountain to get to where I am going?" While the second man looks at the mountain and says, "This mountain is going to be tough to climb, but I am thankful that I am healthy, thankful I have two strong legs to carry me over this mountain, two good eyes to see where I need to step, and thankful I have been given a map to show me how to get across this mountain so I won't get lost." Same mountain two different foci. You can apply this same focus mentality to any situation you have going on in your own life, it works the same because where you place your focus is going to be where you live. Work matters? Absolutely, "My job is so hard and I am not appreciated for the work I do" or "I wake up each morning and say thank you that I have a job and I have the opportunity to make a difference through the work I do". Your health, your family, your relationships, your automobile, or the home you live in are all areas that how you perceive them and where you place your focus will determine how well you thrive in your circumstances.
     Paul is one person in the Bible who could have been a person that focused on his glass being half empty, but listen to what Paul wrote from a prison cell to the church in Philippi, "So let’s keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you’ll see it yet! Now that we’re on the right track, let’s stay on it." Philippians 3:15-16 (The Message Bible). Beaten, tortured, tried as a criminal for his faith, and faced with the possibility of being put to death, this is the response that Paul gave to these followers of Christ. Paul is our example of keeping the focus on the half full portion of that pitcher of water. We will make a plethora of choices today, tomorrow, even perpetually would be a sufficient statement, where will you place your focus in the choices you make? Will you choose a course of action based on the half empty mentality of why me? or will you stand tall and realize that you have been chosen for the task that lies in front of you because you are the one that God has chosen to complete the task at hand? Where will your focus be in all matters big and small? What legacy of focus will you pass along to your sons and daughters, your co-workers and colleagues? I choose to focus on what I have been given, the health that I am blessed to have, and opportunities I have been provided to make a difference in the lives of others each and every day. Focus, it is a choice. I leave you with a question to answer, where will your focus be, half empty or half full? You will be right either way, but which way will have more of an impact on others in the manner that you want to impact their lives? You only have one life, live it well!
Coach Carter

Faith, Hope, and __________

       When you read today's Flat Tire title most of us quickly filled in the blank with the word love. If the word charity came to mind to finish off this scripture from I Corinthians 13:13 then you would also be correct. The actual scripture reads like this "And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." So what if we go with the idea that love and charity are interchangeable, what does that do to the core meaning of this word love that we throw around so casually? Well, one definition of the word charity is, "generosity and helpfulness especially toward the needy or suffering" which is the one I want to focus on in our time together.
      From a Christian stance, if we are truly seeking to be more like our Father in Heaven then we need not look any further than the life of caring for the needy and suffering that Jesus provided. As you read through the New Testament in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John there is a constant theme of Jesus reaching out to and meeting the needs of the sick, the blind, the deaf, the lame, and the poor. His actions were true visual definitions of the word charity and provide us with an example for our own lives today. 
     Paul talks in great detail about what his life would be like without love in this 13th chapter of I Corinthians. He basically says his life would be without meaning if not for love. Earlier in what is often called the love chapter of the Bible, Paul goes deep in the details of what love is and how it should look in our lives. Paul says that "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." So, how does all of this relate to the word charity? How should we be showing charity today in the world in which we live? 
     The charity my Bible talks about is a love that gives from the heart, not just from our billfolds. We can give to charities, we can offer our assistance to a non-profit organization, but at the end of the day if we don't do these things with compassion for our fellow man then the Word says we might as well be sounding off like a big gong or cymbal. We will make a great deal of noise and people will look at us, but after the sound fades will our efforts have truly made a difference if love wasn't at the core of our decision to give? Love is colorblind. Love doesn't only take care of those that look just like you do. Love is given because it was first given to us. If we only received love or charity because of some criteria man creates then I am afraid we would not be able to qualify for that same type of love from our Father if He chose to use our list of criteria. 
     We are loved even though we do not deserve the type of love that was given to us. May we reflect on how our heart demonstrates charity and ask ourselves do we truly love or do we only love when and where it is convenient? My prayer is that the same love that God gave you with the life and death of His Son Jesus for our sins is the love that will drive you to charity for all of His children. Amen.
Coach Carter

 

Where's the 1?

     
     Today's FTM title is a reference to a parable Jesus shared in Luke 15:1-7. The cliff note version of the parable goes something like this. What shepherd would not leave his 99 sheep to find the one lamb that was lost from the flock? Of course the underlying theme of the parable is we are all worthy and God cares for each of us individually, not just collectively as a nation or as part of the human species. Each one of us is important and each life matters. This is an underlying principle that should guide each of us each day as we work, engage, and interact with others regardless of your occupation or status in life that you happen to exist currently. We should always be hunting for that next "lost sheep" in our lives.
     In most businesses and professions a great deal of success stems from the numbers or percentages that indicate how effective the company’s business plan is working. Unfortunately, this same principle holds true in medical practices, political policy making, and educational decisions in our schools across America. Success is indicated by a percentage of positive outcomes by a larger group then a similar group that did not achieve the same "growth". We, as a society, rest on the laurels of our successes and we tout the percentages of those that have been impacted by the positive outcomes of our efforts. My fear is as the old saying goes, "If you sit on your laurels, you will only crush them." Our efforts should not be on partial success for the majority, but instead a constant move towards reaching the goal of all 100 sheep being in the fold.
    I am not suggesting that we shouldn't celebrate our successes and I certainly do want to give credit where it is due for such types of success, but what I want to really focus on is erasing the complacency that is created when we stand on the percent found instead of the one that was lost and is still out there searching for home. If our goal in life is only to have more in than out then I would suggest that failure has already found a seat beside you in your life's journey. If you feel comfortable with a 3 out of 4 ratio then you have learned to settle for less than the best possible. If you have gotten to a place where 80% is outstanding and your job is complete, then you are missing out on your true purpose in life. I'll say it again; your life is not about you!
     I want my life's story to be more about the one miss in the 3 out of 4 ratio, and I want my life's ambition to be found in helping the 20% that missed the mark, but still have worth and value. May your life be filled with a sense of urgency to seek out the hurt, the lost, and the one that is searching for you and his flock.
There was a man standing on the beach tossing sand dollars back into the ocean as they became stranded from the rolling tide. A second man observing the actions of the first commented to the first, "Surely you realize you can't save all of them." To which the first replied as he tossed another sand dollar back into the sea, "Saved that one."
Dear God, may our lives not be spent in complacency and false pride over our incomplete accomplishments. We are thankful for success and give thanks to you for that success, but Oh God may our hearts burn with a desire to not be satisfied with our successes, but instead be driven by the knowledge that there exists that one lost sheep that we must continue to seek out and find. In Your name we pray, Amen. 
Coach Carter

Swimming pools vs Swimming in the Ocean

     

Our family recently took a vacation to Navarre Beach, Florida down in the panhandle and it was actually just what the doctor ordered. Number one, spending time with family is just about my favorite thing to do, and second, listening to the waves, burying my toes in the sand, and playing around with our grandchildren from sun up till late in the evening leaves all of your worries in the rolling ocean tide. Well our one granddaughter, Ivy Ann wanted to spend more time in the pool area while I wanted to be down in the ocean most of the time, simply because as I explained to Ivy, if all we wanted to do was swim in a pool we could have done that without driving 10 hours to the beach. That worked with an eight-year old about like me explaining why it’s important to eat leafy green vegetables instead of chicken nuggets! That whole back and forth with Ivy did make me think quite a bit about the paradox of swimming in a pool or swimming in an ocean such as the Gulf of Mexico, and that led to today's Flat Tire Ministries thought for the week.
     For me, the choice was a no-brainer. I love snorkeling, diving into the waves, and trying not to get overtaken by the "Big Kahuna". There is nothing like laying in a chair under an umbrella watching and listening to the waves as they crash and then roll almost right up to your feet. To see the expansiveness of the ocean and realize that even beyond the horizon the ocean’s waters can carry us around the world is a day dreamer’s paradise.  For Ivy, on the other hand, I guess the pool offers a certain level of comfort and safety that she didn't feel while she was out in the ocean. The likelihood of a wave knocking you over and rolling you up on the beach, the inability to see the bottom of the ocean, and the fact that critters such as jellyfish and sharks live there can make for a certain degree of reluctance and hesitation when interacting with the ocean. A swimming pool has boundaries, offers clear visibility where you are swimming, and markers on the side walls of a swimming pool offer information about how deep the water you are getting ready to swim is. I can see where pools would probably be more appealing to a child, it’s just to me pools offer a limited amount of opportunities to challenge yourself and the opportunity to explore and experience a new wave almost constantly doesn't exist in a swimming pool.      
      We face this same choice in life. We can choose to stay safe and swim around in the pool knowing where we are going, or even more so limiting ourselves with boundaries that keep us in a "safe zone". In our life's swimming pool we like to be able to see where the bottom of the pool is and to have signs on the side that warn us with "No Diving" and "No Lifeguard on Duty". Pools keep us safe with chemicals to balance the condition of the water and in some cases pools even have heaters that control the temperature of the water making it more comfortable and inviting. No wonder Ivy wanted to stay in the pool all day!
     Life is safe in the pool, if we aren't good swimmers we stay in the shallow end and ladders or steps are easily accessible if we want to get out of the pool, but life wasn't meant to be so measured and "safe". We make progress by challenging ourselves out in the waves of life. When we don't know exactly where the bottom is and we have to exert extra effort to keep from going under that is where we get stronger and we learn to swim a little better or else. Sure it’s safe to swim in life's wading pool, but we weren't created to swim inside a four-cornered watery box.
     I'll have to admit when I would finally agree to head up to our property's swimming pool it was quite a bit easier to supervise Ivy. I didn't really have to worry about her getting carried off with the tide or Jaws surfacing at any moment so I could almost nod off a little while she played in the end of the pool that wasn't over her head. But, that's swimming, not life. I don't want to live a life that has set parameters that keep me from moving on to bigger and better waves. I want to swim out to the place that's over my head and then ride that Big Kahuna in to the beach. Where’s your Big Kahuna? Are you swimming in the kiddie pool of life and limiting yourself and your capabilities? If you need some swimming lessons on how to challenge yourself and to move on out of that box you are doing laps in then make the move to get out of the pool and in to the ocean that is waiting for you to make the dive! You are not alone, our Heavenly Lifeguard is always with us. "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10
   Going deep! Coach Carter     

 

Father's Day Gift

     I am thankful for my children and so appreciative of the gifts and presents that they have given me over the years. Drawings, homemade cards, and other crafty items have always been favorites, but more than anything I value the time I get to spend with Rae, Ethan, and Bogi doing life together. Today being Father's Day, it is common practice that our children share gifts with dear old dad, but of significance to today's FTM, I'm a little more focused on the gift's that we dads give our children each and every day.
     Gifts come in varied sizes ranging from teddy bear size all the way up to 6 cylinder automatic level, but I'm actually thinking about the gifts we as dads give our children that will stay with our kids long after the wheels have rusted on those shiny new rims. As fathers we are responsible for teaching our children right from wrong, how to treat others like we would want to be treated, to be honest, to save more than we spend, to love when it might be easier to not, and to provide them with a work ethic that they can exemplify as they grow and mature into adulthood. If we give those gifts in abundance to our children not only will our legacy live on way after we are gone, but our children will have those gifts to call on each day as they face their own challenges and adversity in life. Proverbs 22:6 states it like this, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." An awesome responsibility for those of us that carry the title of "Dad". 
      As most things in life for every positive there is a negative and here in lies the warning to today's Flat Tire thought. We have the opportunity to train up a child in the way that he/she should go, but we must be careful because just as easy as it is to pass on positive qualities such as work ethic and placing others before self, it is just as easy to be the example of dishonesty, disrespect, or a self-centered mindset. Dads transfer both positive and negative attributes intentionally or in many cases unintentionally, but regardless they pass them down to their children. So, the point of today's message is not to remind the children to make dad a card or take him out to eat, but instead it is a warning to all dads that the gift you give to your children is a precious one and a critically important one for your children's future.
     Unfortunately, we lost our father back in 1994. But, that has helped me realize that our dad didn't leave us when his earthly body had to go, that event just opened the door to my understanding that he left us all three gifts that have made us into the adults we are today. When we die it just brings to the forefront the fact that our legacy, our imprint on our children's lives will guide them, shape them, and help determine whether they will be a quitter in life or if they will persevere regardless of what life throws their way. Thank you Joe E. Carter, for the gifts you gave me on Father's Day and every day that you lived your life.
Coach Carter