Skip to main content

What To Do First to Make a Profit

The PF Women Team at our Annual Team Retreat  ~ 2018 Today on Seth Godin's blog, he said: It's tempting to decide to make a profit first, then invest in training, people, facilities, promotion, customer service and most of all, doing important work. In general, though, it goes the other way. Yes, it does. If you are waiting to make a profit before you do these things, in my experience you're  not going to make a profit. So many organizations, ministries and churches are struggling with financial issues. I know your pain. As anyone who follows our story knows, our ministry was in a ton of debt four years ago when I came on as director.  Since that time, we've gotten out of debt and turned a profit every year.  God has done amazing things through out team, for which we give Him the glory! I find that what Seth is saying here is absolutely true, with one disclaimer. For Christian leaders, spiritual disciplines must always be first. Before we started inve

"Look Momma, you will not run out..."


I love it when I come home to a clean house. Perhaps there is nothing more glorious. When I walk into a clean house, I feel the power of the Holy Ghost. Yesterday Jordan cleaned the house...I mean really cleaned it and when we walked in the house from work, my whole being just went, "ahhhhhhhhhh..."

Then he led me over to the fridge and said, "Look Momma! I made you something!" Upon looking inside I found he had made me five pitchers of iced tea. He said, "here's more than enough Momma...you will not run out!" Indeed. There's at least enough here to last me til' I leave Saturday for Houston.

He really is the sweetest boy on earth when he wants to be. Moments like that make up for all the times I have wanted to wring his neck. :-)

After work, Larry made dinner. (I know what you're thinking...I hit the jackpot! Yes, it was a great night.) He made turkey tacos. (yum!) While Larry made dinner, Dustin wanted me to watch Kid Nation with him. He tivo'd it yesterday. We watched it and I really enjoyed it. I think this is a show I'll watch the entire season with the kids.

After dinner the boys and Larry and I watched Last Comic Standing finale which we had also tivo'd. It was hysterical!!! This one comic said, "I had a lot more props, but O.J. stole them from my hotel room..." ha ha! (By the way, I'm going to blog about O.J. soon...so just stay tuned.) Larry and I walked around the neighborhood later at night and spend some quality time talking. I always enjoy our walks. We try to walk at least a few nights a week. We really do have the perfect development for it.

We are both doing good back OP (on program). In the past two weeks I've lost almost 5 lbs. It's amazing how when you stick strictly OP and go to meetings, what will happen. I have a 12 week goal (2 weeks already done) and in the next 10 weeks, there should be a significant difference. There WILL be a significant difference. I am DETERMINED and nothing will break me. One thing it amounts to for me is putting the same stubbornness toward health and weight loss as I have for other challenges. As our friend Randy says, all it takes to make something happen is to tell Deanna she won't be able to make it happen and that pretty much seals the deal that it's happening!"

I am renewed in my focus of utilizing certain ones of the Weight Watcher Ten Tools for Living. I would say when I lost weight for the very first time my most used tool was what they call "anchoring." Now I'm using reframing a lot, empowering beliefs and winning outcomes. (Those of you in WW know what I'm talking about. If you don't and you are the least bit overweight, I suggest you go to WW and you'll learn all about it. :-) I'm a great believer in the WW program. If you ever want to know anything about it, just ask me! By the way, "the meetings are the magic!" as they say.

I am still getting used to my new WW leader. I really like her, it's just a matter of getting used to her style. I am cognizant of the fact that I can't blame her or take it out on her that I don't have my old leader. It has nothing to do with her whatsoever, and she's a really good leader besides all that.

It's cooling off here in Tampa and we're not living in the (what I considered) unbearable heat we were enduring this summer. For some reason it was hotter this year than others. Now it's getting breezy and I'm loving it! Time to get out on the patio again at night and read my Bible. Oh how I have missed the comfort of being out there. This morning when I came out it was cool out there. (For months it's been hot even early in the morning.) This morning it was breezy and there were three ducks on the pond when I let Geena out. Ah yes, I'm loving it.

The more this week goes on, the more I am glad to be traveling this weekend. I know, I had a good evening at home last night. I'm very grateful for that. But it was a challenging week otherwise. And when I go away and minister somewhere it's almost magical. Not that I'm the magic, not by far! I just really enjoy ministering in a fresh environment, meeting new people, and the fact that I am there to reach out and love, and pour out of myself, yet I am not called to pastor those folks. I am just there to reach out in love while I'm there and uplift their pastors and point them to their pastors...and then leave again, hopefully having the people very blessed by our time together and what God did in our midst. That's the beauty of it.

I realize it's hard for a full time evangelist these days - unless you are basically a "star" they can't make a living at it! Few who aren't famous can stay on the road and keep eating and paying a car payment. But for a pastor like me, it's the greatest thing going! Because my livelihood is here in Tampa - at our church. And traveling is just something occasionally extra that I do not need to earn an income from. I do not go to bring God's Word for an honorarium. People ask me, "do you charge a fee" and the answer is no. I've gone to little bitty country churches who can't give me a dime. And God sends me to pour out and love them. If someone can bless me in some way, fine. If they can't, that's fine too. I really do just have a love for the Word and for people. That's why I go anywhere - period. And in being able to reach out, love, uplift and then turn them towards their pastors -- now what better thing can there be but that??! I do not have to counsel those folks. I do not have to have them yell at me two weeks later because the air was up to high in the sanctuary. I do not have to put up with any guff. All I gotta do is love and bring God's Word...pray for people and hug a bunch of necks. Their pastor will have to deal with the air in the sanctuary and all the guff. That's one reason I love encouraging pastors. I know the road they walk and just want uplift them. No wonder evangelists who can actually make a living doing this just love it!!! Wow, I'm getting more excited by the moment....it's almost time to go!

Comments

Tara Sloan said…
Yea Jordan! You'll be a GREAT husband one day!

Popular posts from this blog

Some people will never understand this...

And that's okay. Just let us be as we lavish love upon the fur-kids of the world. It doesn't mean we don't care about people. We do care. In fact most of the people I know who are great pet lovers are also the greatest philanthropists. If you're not a dog lover, you might not understand the overwhelming intensity that many of us felt about Tank's reunion this past week. You might think we've lost our marbles. That's okay, we think you've lost your heart. ;)  Before I go on with this post, let me say that we were delighted that CBS 10 posted the video and article about Tank and his Celebration Church reunion yesterday. Click here to watch it. (But then come back!) If you haven't realized it, there is a revolution in America about dogs. Dogs have always been loved and known as the most loyal companions ~ "man's best friend". But things have gone way beyond this. Dogs aren't just dogs or friends anymore. They are family me

Fifty Shades of No Way

This weekend, the Fifty Shades of Grey movie will be released and millions of women are expected to flock to the theat er s.  I will not be one of those women.   As a leader of women , some have asked me about this movie. The following is my thoughtful response. Fifty Shades of Grey has topped best-seller lists around the world. The book series has sold over 100 million copies worldwide, and been translated into 52 languages. It set the record as the fastest-selling paperback of all time.   Is Fifty Shades of Grey just a harmless book or movie? Although n o one seems to be debating this fact, let’s first establish that it’s pornography.  And not just porn, but a genre that is even more dangerous for women. The book glorifies a female character that is controlled and abused by her partner.   Who is excited about this book and mov ie? Hmmmm….you might be surprised. Many women and girls in our churches have read it. Sadly, I am even aware of

Relevant Church doing something...

incredibly RELEVANT!

I just heard some news today that really inspired me. A church here in Tampa, Relevant Church is doing a new thing this month called the "30 Days Sex Challenge." (I've never visited the church but Pastor Trinity - our children's pastor - has visited or has met some people from this church and he was very impressed.) Realizing that this is a major element missing from some marriages (the frequency factor) their lead pastor, Paul Wirth, has issued a challenge for all the married couples to have sex for 30 days in a row. At the same time he has issued a challenge for all unmarrieds to completely abstain from sex. Of course we know the Bible says that those who are unmarried should not have sex in the first place but the point is, a lot of unmarried's aren't obeying the Lord's command to abstain and this is just one pastor's way of trying to get them to see that indeed, there is a better way! (God's way!) At the same time, many married couples are not