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

When People Pressure You To Give Up
What You Love for What You Loathe


Are you stuck doing stuff you hate, and there's no way out right now?

Today I want to speak a word of life to you about that.

In my book, JUGGLE, I say:
 "Some things are not a matter of dreams and goals - they are necessities. Rare to almost non-existent is the person who has the luxury of waking up each day and exclusively doing the things they dream of doing...I've also observed that many people appear to be so overwhelmed by their have-to-do's, they seldom get to their want-to-do's."
There have been seasons in my life, ministry and career where I have been forced to do things I didn't want to do. Of course I could have said no. Nobody was holding a gun to my head. But if I said no I probably would have ended up unemployed, homeless, bankrupt, divorced, or well...you get the picture. 
During the seasons of bearing heavy loads of things I didn't expect but were required, it has angered me when well meaning people have suggested giving up the things I love in order to better handle the things I loathe. "Maybe in this season you need to back away from such and such..." If I've heard it once I've heard it a million times. I've been told to just give up writing, and things would be easier to handle. People have literally said to me, "Just don't blog, and you'll have time to do ________________." 

Or, "why do you have to write a book right now? Is that really necessary?"  I've resisted drop-kicking them

I've been advised to give up teaching,something I've done for 27+ years.  It's something that I love and can't imagine myself not doing. They say if I just gave up teaching, imagine all the extra time I'd have to do more...things that I loathe. Joy, joy, joy
Maybe I'm the only one who has ever experienced this kind of "why-don't-you-give-up-what-you-love-to-do-more-of-what-you-loathe advice, but my gut feeling tells me a lot of people understand and have experienced this. 

It's so demoralizing.  
Through these times of being pressed to give up things I love for the things I loathe, I taught myself to juggle. This was essential if I didn't want to make this ugly trade of giving up love for loathe. Because that kind of trade is what drives people to suicide. It's a trade that makes you physically and mentally ill. Perhaps you think that sounds kind of dramatic but let me put it to you this way -- anybody who wakes up each day hating everything on their agenda is going to encounter depression. We're not built to wake up everyday and completely loathe our to-do list.  God gifted each of us to use our giftings in areas of passion, not just wake up every day doing stuff we can't stand to do.
Not only did I learn to "juggle" well so I could do my want-to's and not just my have-to's but earlier this year I decided it was time to go to the next level in bringing purpose out of the pain.It was the difficulty of bearing the weight of some of those have-to's that fueled me to write JUGGLE. One day I woke up said, "I didn't go through this for nothing! Something MORE is coming!!" 

God always has MORE.

You were meant for more, and your struggle helps you get there!!

There was suddenly a fire lit inside of me to help other people who might feel hopeless in managing stuff. So I started writing about it.  JUGGLE flowed out of me onto the page and once published, reached people's hearts. Now they are juggling and realizing that they don't have to just manage stuff they loathe, they can spend some time doing what they love every day. Maybe not exclusively doing what they love, but definitely spending some time doing what they love each day. 
I'm not sure what's going on in your life, but know this -- whatever it is that you're going through today that's unfair, crazy, or the furthest thing you ever imagined yourself dealing with -- know this -- God wants to redeem it. 
So my friend, take that thing, and turn it around!
Use it for material for your next level!
Encourage somebody.
Teach somebody.
Share with somebody.

Reach out to somebody!
Think about how you can take your situation and spin it in your favor!

Maybe you're thinking, "Deanna...my situation could never be spun in my favor. It just sucks. That's all there is to it. There's nothing good about what I'm dealing with."
Okay so maybe there's nothing good about it right this second, but you have the potential to spin it somehow to help people and make good come out. You do. Really.
Believe me.
There's a blog inside you.
There's a Facebook page inside you.
There's a book inside you.
There's a support group inside you.
There's a new business inside you.
There's a ministry inside you.
There's a ____________________ inside you. 
 You just don't see it yet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This weekend I have the opportunity to teach a lot of people about JUGGLE. In addition to teaching about prayer, I'm doing two sessions on this topic at the Experience Conference.  I'm excited about encouraging people that their time can be redeemed for His glory. 
Thanks for stopping by my blog today. I take the time to write it because I care, and I thank you for taking the time to read it. 
My prayer is with you today that every single obstacle in your life will be spun in your favor! 
What's inside you will soon be shared with the world, to impact other lives. I just know it.

Write to me and tell me how you are going to start reaching out to others with what's inside you.
 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

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

What Verbal Abuse is Really Like, and Why We Must Care
Guest Post: Terri von Wood

In my speaking travels, I meet the most amazing people. Some are connections that go beyond just a night or a weekend of preac hing. One day on my journey, I met Terri von Wood, and we immediately clicked and have been friends ever since.  Just a reminder that all of our guest bloggers this week are available to chat with you in the comment section here on the blog or on my facebook page where the blog is also published.   *** People who have never suffered through or witnessed abuse (including pastors) often don't know how to help women in abusive situations. Knowledge is power and it is my belief that if the church understood the prevalence of abuse, help would be made available.  First, we must acknowledge that the divorce rate is the same  in the church as in the world.  Second, we must understand that the 50% divorce rate does not include all the women who are abused but stay because they do not know what else to do or do not have anyone to turn to.  If those women we

Excellent teaching on Criticism

My friend Pastor Leanne posted this today on her Myspace blog and I thought it was excellent and so timely. It's a blog post from Pastor Perry Noble , about criticism. I think it's perfect for the pastors at Relevant Church right now, as well as any other person going through this. I would like to note that when he says, "when God begins to move" it wouldn't necessarily just pertain to your church but to your life, your family, your marriage, anything that concerns you. I have found that the greater God does things in my life and the more He blessed me the more I should expect it. This teaching is good, so good I was almost wavin' a hanky in my office. Okay, here we go... You Will Be Criticized When God Begins To Move–Expect It And Get Over It. (Pastor Perry Noble at http://www.perrynoble.com/ ) I've never met a devil worshiper–to my knowledge that is. When I first became a Christian I was convinced that I needed to do all that I could to be ready to comba