Every year my wife and I attend an annual conference at Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas. The speakers are always exceptional and the worship is otherworldly. The time is refreshing and inspiring. The speakers this year included Robert Morris, Brian Houston and Jimmy Evans. Here is a sampling of the truths imparted during the conference.

“Start living your life aware of the God given possibilities that are around you every day.”
“Complacency destroys potential.”
“Today’s acceptance becomes tomorrow’s standard.”
“Stop tolerating what you have been tolerating!”
“Don’t let what God has called you to do distract you from what God has called you to do.”
“Embrace your need. Great things are born out of need. It is out of our need that greater dependency on God comes.”
“Stop making fear based decisions and start making faith based decisions.”
“Leaders should have the steadiest hand on deck.”
“Fear is always an accusation against God.”
“Giants are God’s insurance policy that holds the Promised Land for the people of faith.”

Never stop growing. Never stop learning. God has greater things in store for you. Your future is bright.

Be Inspired,
Carl

Major James Nesmith has an inspiring story. He spent seven years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. During his grueling imprisonment, he was restricted to no physical activity. Isolated and confined to inhuman living conditions, he discovered a survival strategy that kept him sane. Major Nesmith figured he would practice his golf game in order to pass the time. Naturally, he didn’t have access to a literal golf course, as he subsisted in a five-by-five cage. Yet, his mind wasn’t fettered. The Major could generate the perfect golf course in his mind’s eye. In his own mind he imagined himself playing 18 holes of golf each and every day of his captivity. He would design the most beautiful course imaginable, down to the smallest detail, including the fragrance of freshly cut grass. He was methodical and visualized every hole, every shot. He would imagine how far the shot was, what club he needed, what kind of lie he had, and even the time it took him to complete the course, three to four hours each day. Since it was his course and his game he never missed a shot. The funny thing is before Major Nesmeth joined the army, and left for Vietnam, he was a three-digit player almost never breaking 100. Amazingly, after his release the first day he stepped on an actual golf course he shot a 74, dropped a full 20 strokes off his game. This story speaks of the power of vision. The phrase that jumped into my heart, as I was reflecting on this story: The picture you hold in your mind will be the reality you find. If you can see it, you can seize it. You can program your mind to see a certain outcome and then subconsciously it goes to work to create that reality. You see the brain does not know the difference between an imagined image and a real image. Maybe this is why Scriptures teach, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Or “Without a vision the people perish.” This is not some metaphysical mumbo jumbo visualization stuff. This is the power of having a God inspired, Spirit directed and Word of God induced vision about your life that can become your new reality if you dare.

“The picture you hold in your mind will be the reality you find.”

Be Inspired,
Carl