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Showing posts with the label Depression

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 i...
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How to Handle a Bad Day

"Depression hung over me like a black cloud...and it was hard to find my way out at the time..." These were my words during a sermon a few years ago and afterwards a lady rushed up to me and said, "you mean YOU were actually depressed? Because I can't even imagine that. You seem so...together... " Truth be told, all of us go through hard times. And all of us have rotten days. Me included. I happen to be having a good day today. But a while back I was having an absolutely horrible day. And because so many people seem to think people like me never have bad days like they do, I got the brilliant idea, "I'm going to video record my bad day!!!" Yes, I know that's kind of bizarre but I have a passion to share transparently with people.That's why this blog is about transparently leading and relating from a faith perspective. So I did what was for me, a courageous thing. I recorded scenes during 24 hours...even waking up in the morni...
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When You're Waiting For Something To Be Restored

Are you waiting for something to be restored? I understand. I'm waiting too. I heard the story of a preacher who was awakened one night by the enemy. Evidently a few demons were trying to mess with him and they started shaking the bed and actually moved it across the room. He commanded them to stop in the name of Jesus and they did. But after thinking about it a moment he said, "Hold on...first, PUT IT BACK in the name of Jesus!!" The demons put the bed back in it's original position, and left. Then satisfied that things were restored to their rightful place, the preacher went to sleep. For a while now I've been saying to the enemy PUT IT BACK IN THE NAME OF JESUS. Permission to be perfectly honest here? Sometimes I struggle between saying put it back, and the fact that some people say it may be time to accept a new normal. There are people who would counsel people in this situation to grieve the past, accept the loss, and move on. If moving on...
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What's The Secret To Overcoming a Disappointment?

Are you disappointed? Feeling like you don't know if you can handle one more let down? Permission to encourage? Truth:  I get disappointed every day. Really. In some way, I get let down every single day. Today I counted twice, once on a small issue, another time on a big one. Sometimes I think people read blogs or watch people from afar and they think they lead relatively disappointment-free lives. I was preaching one time and in giving an illustration said, "One day when I was feeling depressed..." and went on to tell a story. At the close of the message a woman came running up and said, "You get depressed? I never imagined that..." Reality is that every person including myself faces disappointments. Nobody is exempt. What's my secret? I keep going. This week I was telling one of my career coaching clients the importance of going forward. He said, "Ummmmm...what choice do I have?" I told him, "Well, to be honest, I'...
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4 Steps to Freedom

  1)     Define the emotion. What am I feeling? Why do I feel this way? 2)     Recognize the source. When did I first feel this way? When have I felt this way before? 3)     Uncover the lie What feels true about this?          What do I believe about myself? 4)       Embrace the truth Jesus, bring truth and light to this place. Lord, what is it that You want me to see, hear and know? Jesus, come into this place of pain. I take time to write out everything (for my eyes only) about any situation I'm feeling an overwhelming negative emotions about.  Maybe you have some things like that too. When you uncover the lie, you are pinpointing anything you've come to believe about a past situation that is not in line with God's Word.   When you embrace the truth, you are zeroing in on what God tells you about the situation , versus the lie you have believed....
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WHY the thing you're upset about TODAY is really about YESTERDAY

When people disappoint us we can experience all sorts of negative emotions. As I shared in yesterday's post , I recently had a life-changing encounter with a licensed professional counselor. Our time together began with her telling me that she rarely if ever gets angry. And, she used to be a person who had a serious anger problem! Now that got my attention! I "manage" my anger well but as far as eradicating it...well, attempts on that have not been totally successful.  She shared with me is that in the majority of cases when someone is overcome with a negative emotion, it is a trigger for something they experienced in the past. (To clarify, this doesn't refer to things you aren't sure happened or digging up repressed memories, etc. What she was talking about are painful things you can actually recall that took place at an earlier time.) In other words, the issue is not the issue. There's something deeper going on. When someone hurts you now, it'...
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WHY other people's failures have nothing to do with YOU

Recently a counselor shared with me something incredibly liberating. "Everyone is messed up."  And... "Their issues have nothing to do with you." As simple as it sounds, this set me free, especially as a leader.  I had a counseling session recently that changed my life. And, I'm not afraid to tell you that. I'm going to unpack the thoughts shared with me by this licensed Christian counselor in a few posts to come. Their words absolutely liberated me. I hope they have the same affect on you if you are struggling in any way. Last week I saw a Facebook status update from a pastor who was discouraged that 67 people showed up for Sunday service. He was so down. He said that 67 people on a Sunday morning was totally opposite of everything he dreamed for himself years ago in Bible College. I know 67 would be a dream for some people, and for others a nightmare. That's another post for another day. The truth is, the unfaithfulness of others has ...
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Should we really thank God in EVERYTHING?

    “The gift list is thinking upon His goodness–and this, this please him most.” ~ Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts  I hopped off of my bike to take this photo through the trees last night. The sun was setting and moon was coming out, and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. I breathed in the night air, snapped the photo, and thanked God aloud. Silly? Maybe to some. It's just what I do. I had the privilege of biking twice in the morning, and again at sunset yesterday.  That always makes for a perfect day for me.  One of my greatest gifts that I enjoy daily is riding the cruiser bike that Larry got me a few years ago for my birthday . It's pink and perfect and gives me a lot of joy. He gave it to me during a season where I was really having a hard time .  Well, more than a hard time, a deep depression . Many pastors' wives and women in ministry will understand where I'm coming from with that. Thankfully, a breakthrough came.   This bike ...
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