The Secret to a Happy New Year

Just about everyone starts off the New Year by making a few, well-thought out New Year’s resolutions. In fact, I would venture to guess that most of us reason that if we will remain true to our vision of a better “you” and will commit ourselves to the fulfillment of our resolutions…we will enjoy a truly HAPPY New Year. The sad fact of the matter is that RARELY EVER HAPPENS.

So, in order to insure that you and my other faithful reader enjoy a blissful and extremely HAPPY New Year, I have decided to share my secret with you; although in truth, it really belongs to the apostle Paul. He wrote in Philippians 4:11-12 the following, “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound. In any and EVERY circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.”

And there it is, my friend….in a few simple sentences, the great apostle Paul tells us the secret to happiness….for life, health, wealth and everything else. We need to learn contentment….whether in good times or bad, whether happy or sad, in want or abundance; we need the following mindset...LEARN TO BE CONTENT AND YOU WILL BE HAPPY!

 Now, I know that sounds almost too simplistic and as you stand there scratching your head, think on this….We learn contentment when we abandon comparison….It is the constant use of comparison that leads to discontentment. If we buy a new car that meets our needs, we have reason to be happy…. until we compare our ride to that of our boss or neighbor or anyone else who has a newer, sleeker model. The bloom of comparison leads to the seeds of discontent and there goes the joy and happiness that was once ours.

Time after time after time, when we compare what others have with what we don’t have, we tear down our foundation to happiness. We need to see what we have as sufficient for our needs…as God’s measured blessing to insure our happiness and to keep us focused on doing His will. Whenever you trade your contentment for discontentment, you become myopic in your vision for the Lord’s work and in His will for your life. You become so self-centered in looking at what you don’t have that you are rarely thankful for what God has given….this is more than just seeing the glass as half-empty or half-full….it is a greater truth that speaks to the heart of who you are and who you want to be in Jesus Christ.

Contentment is a learned response to the actions of a loving God….you can choose to be happy with little or with much…with great wealth or abject poverty….with exceptional wellness or poor health….the list is inexhaustible ….but the choice is always yours ….and the correct choice will lead to contentment and happiness that is often inexplicable to those who view your life from outside the faith. So, learn this invaluable lesson that Paul sought to teach each of us….in EVERY SITUATION, in EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE….don’t look around to see if others have more or less than you…learn to be content in your situation….then you will be able to live in the fullness of verse 13 in Philippians 4 that says, “I can do all things through Him that gives me strength.”

Choose today to be a person that lives with a flexible cup that is always ready to expand or contract  based on the Lord’s provisions…it is a mindset that will lead to contentment and one step closer to living a life that will honor your Heavenly Father….get started today; and oh, by the way, this is a secret that is okay to share with those you love….I know that’s what I intend to do.

Go On…..Make it a Happy New Year,

WPQ

 

Poem for the day:

Every year about this time,
The calendar begins to shrink...
And we are left to wonder,
To ponder and to think.
 
Am I happy with what I have
Or am I a discontent...
That squanders all my blessings
Wondering where my money went?
 
For when I trust in the things I have
I'm left feeling empty and wanting more.
My joy and happiness come and go
Like living life in a revolving door.
 
But when I give my all to my Master;
My Savior...My Lord...My King!!!!
My heart is overflowing and
My soul will shout and sing...
 
Hosannas to HIM in the highest
I'm thankful for whatever comes my way.
I'm always blessed beyond measure
And thankful for each new day!
 
Make this new year your BEST ever...and give your Heavenly
Father the praise and adoration that He is due!
 
 
WPQ © Dec 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Letting God's GPS Direct You in 2025

This is a reprint of a former post...May You Be Richly Blessed in 2025!

GPS for the New Year…It was Christmas a year ago that my wife gave me a Garmin GPS system. Now, as any red-blooded American male would do, I thanked her profusely for her unselfish gift and thought to myself, “I don’t need some computer gizmo giving me directions…I can find where I need to go and how to get there ON MY OWN!”

Well! Here it is a year later and boy, was I ever wrong….this thing has been great. Over the first three months of 2019, I had a new job calling on businesses in the greater Greenville, SC area …going, or trying to go, to places I had never been before; some, in fact, probably did not even showing up on a map. I was intrigued that every time I typed an address into the GPS, it gave me turn by turn directions to that specific location. This was nirvana for a manly man such as me….getting directions without having to ask someone.

You know, a lot of us treat God like that….we want to go where He wants us to go; we just don’t want to ask for His directions. Scripture says, “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes (directs) his steps.” Proverbs 16:9  We say that we want to be “in the Father’s will,” but then we set out to follow the desires of our hearts and hope that at some junction along our journey, our will and God’s direction will mesh in perfect harmony. Unfortunately, it hardly ever works out that way

We become lost in life’s journey to serve a risen Lord when we fail to consult His GPS….God’s Placement System…..His Holy Word. God is ready, willing and totally able to direct and establish the roads that He wants us to take if we will only consult Him and read His word. The more we read, the more He directs; the more He establishes the way that is right ….the more we enjoy the journey. Proverbs 3: 5-6, a favorite verse that was given to me as a young man from one of my spiritual mentors says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path (steps).”

So don’t try to make it along life’s highway with just your understanding….tap into God’s GPS and acknowledge that He and He alone knows best. Read, study and ingest His Holy Word … let Him guide you and follow the path that He has set before you. And if, at some point, the directions seem fuzzy or you have gotten off course, do what my GPS does for me each time I make a wrong turn, miss an exit or travel too far down the road past my desired destination…..it screams at me,

RECALCULATING,RECALCULATING!!!!

The start of this New Year is a great time to recalculate where God is directing you in service for Him…or to confirm that you are firmly implanted on the path that He has directed you to travel. Either way, it’s a great time to get into His Word and become a better you. Yes, God’s Holy word is your GPS and it will direct you to where He wants you to go. The question is simple ….Are you too manly (or womanly) to ask the God of Creation for directions? I pray that 2025 will be the best year of your life thus far as God directs your steps and you follow His heavenly directions…..and if you have a moment; from time to time, drop me a line and let me know how goes the journey…..

Traveling Life’s Highway ….Following His Directions,

WPQ

 

 

Poem for the day:

The start of a New Year
Is exciting for most of us;
As long as we're don't become mired
In the hoopla and all the fuss.
 
So set your sights on progress
As you contemplate your road...
And prepare for the journey
By lightening your load.
 
Just trust the Father's guiding hand
So that in his hands, you'll rest...
Spend time with Him in His Holy Word
And let it be your G P S!
 
WPQ  © Jan 2018
 
 

SEVENTEEN INCHES.....The Absolute of Life!

This is a reprint of a article that was sent to me some time ago...perhaps it's even been years; however, it's message still resonates with me EVERY TIME I READ IT... and I pray that it always will! It will take you several minutes to read it in its entirety; but don't miss a word so you will not miss the poignant message it has for everyone of us that mentor young people...or believe that our country is in sorry shape and we want to be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem. The story begins....

In Nashville, Tennessee, during the first week of January, 1996, more than 4,000 baseball coaches descended upon the Opryland Hotel for the 52nd annual ABCA convention. While I waited in line to register with the hotel staff, I heard other more veteran coaches rumbling about the lineup of speakers scheduled to present during the weekend. One name, in particular, kept resurfacing, always with the same sentiment — “John Scolinos is here? Oh man, worth every penny of my airfare.”

Who the heck is John Scolinos, I wondered. Well, in 1996 Coach Scolinos was 78 years old and five years retired from a college coaching career that began in 1948. No matter, I was just happy to be there.

He shuffled to the stage to an impressive standing ovation, wearing dark polyester pants, a light blue shirt, and a string around his neck from which home plate hung — a full-sized, stark-white home plate. Pointed side down. Seriously, I wondered, who in the world is this guy?

After speaking for twenty-five minutes, not once mentioning the prop hanging around his neck, Coach Scolinos appeared to notice the snickering among some of the coaches. Even those who knew Coach Scolinos had to wonder exactly where he was going with this, or if he had simply forgotten about home plate since he’d gotten on stage. Then, finally … “You’re probably all wondering why I’m wearing home plate around my neck. Or maybe you think I escaped from Camarillo State Hospital,” he said, his voice growing irascible. I laughed along with the others, acknowledging the possibility.

“No,” he continued, “I may be old, but I’m not crazy. The reason I stand before you today is to share with you baseball people what I’ve learned in my life, what I’ve learned about home plate in my 78 years.”

Several hands went up when Scolinos asked how many Little League coaches were in the room. “Do you know how wide home plate is in Little League?” After a pause, someone offered, “Seventeen inches,” more question than answer.

“That’s right,” he said. “How about in Babe Ruth? Any Babe Ruth coaches in the house?” Another long pause.

“Seventeen inches? "came a guess from another reluctant coach.

“That’s right,” said Scolinos. “Now, how many high school coaches do we have in the room?” Hundreds of hands shot up, as the pattern began to appear. “How wide is home plate in high school baseball?” “Seventeen inches,” they said, sounding more confident.

“You’re right!” Scolinos barked. “And you college coaches, how wide is home plate in college?” “Seventeen inches!” we said, in unison. "Any Minor League coaches here? How wide is home plate in pro ball?” “Seventeen inches!” And in the Major Leagues, how wide home plate is in the Major Leagues?” "Seventeen inches!”

“SEV-EN-TEEN INCHES!” he confirmed, his voice bellowing off the walls.

“And what do they do with a Big League pitcher who can’t throw the ball over these seventeen inches?” Pause. “They send him to Pocatello!” he hollered, drawing raucous laughter.

“What they don’t do is this: they don’t say, ‘Ah, that’s okay, Bobby. You can’t hit a seventeen-inch target? We’ll make it eighteen inches, or nineteen inches. We’ll make it twenty inches so you have a better chance of throwing the ball over it. If you can’t hit that, let us know so we can make it wider still, say twenty-five inches.’”

“Coaches, let me ask each of you.… what do we do when our best player shows up late to practice? What do we do if he violates curfew? What if he uses drugs? Do we hold him accountable? Or do we change the rules to fit him? Do we widen home plate?

The chuckles gradually faded as four thousand coaches grew quiet, the fog lifting as the old coach’s message began to unfold. Then he turned the plate toward himself and, using a Sharpie, began to draw something. When he turned it toward the crowd, point up, a house was revealed, complete with a freshly drawn door and two windows. “This is the problem in our homes today. With our marriages, with the way we parent our kids. With our discipline. We don’t teach accountability to our kids, and there is no consequence for failing to meet standards. We just widen the plate!”

Pause. Then, to the point at the top of the house he added a small American flag.

“This is the problem in our schools today. The quality of our education is going downhill fast and teachers have been stripped of the tools they need to be successful….to educate and discipline our young people. We are allowing others to widen home plate! Where is that getting us?”

“And this is the problem in the Church, where powerful people in positions of authority have taken advantage of young children, only to have such an atrocity swept under the rug for years. Our church leaders are widening home plate!”

I was amazed. At a baseball convention where I expected to learn something about curveballs and bunting and how to run better practices, I had learned something far more valuable. From an old man with home plate strung around his neck, I had learned something about life, about myself, about my own weaknesses and about my responsibilities as a leader. I had to hold myself and others accountable to that which I knew to be right, lest our families, our faith, and our society continue down an undesirable path.

“If I am lucky,” Coach Scolinos concluded, “you will remember one thing from this old coach today. It is this: if we fail to hold ourselves to a higher standard, a standard of what we know to be right; if we fail to hold our spouses and our children to the same standards, if we are unwilling or unable to provide a consequence when they do not meet the standard; and if our schools and churches and our government fail to hold themselves accountable to those they serve, there is but one thing to look forward to …”With that, he held home plate in front of his chest, turned it around, and revealed its dark black backside....

“… Dark Days Ahead.”

Coach Scolinos died in 2009 at the age of 91, but not before touching the lives of hundreds of players and coaches, including mine. Meeting him at my first ABCA convention kept me returning year after year, looking for similar wisdom and inspiration from other coaches. He is the best clinic speaker the ABCA has ever known because he was so much more than a baseball coach. His message was clear:

Coaches, keep your players — no matter how good they are — your own children, and most of all, keep yourself at seventeen inches. It a measurement that is TRUE for everyone of us!

THANKS FOR READING AND SHARING THIS POIGNANT MESSAGE!

WPQ

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