Growin' Up Gregory

If I could sum up my status for 2019, it would be that I am truly blessed.  I am fortunate to have so many of the things that money can't buy - a loving immediate and extended family, health for myself and family, security, joy, and the list could go on.   And while I'm extremely grateful for where I am in life at this point, I know that there are areas that I need to improve in.  So for 2020, I want to be more intentional in focusing on certain aspects of my life and the lives of those around me.  That's actually a start - last night I asked Britt what goals she wanted for the year or what her plans were for the family and she mentioned that some people focus on a single word instead of a list of goals.  Looks like I can check "listen to my wife better" off my list now right?!? So here are some of my thoughts, plans, and goals heading into this next decade (in no particular order). 1.  Read 15+ books.  Let me be honest, I didn't start reading for th

I recently finished reading "Praying Circles Around Your Marriage" by Joel & Nina Schmidgall.  I heard them on a podcast talking about the book and knew that my marriage was something I wanted to focus on improving in 2020 and years to come so I did exactly what I ask my wife not to do - I got online and made an impulse buy.  Wait, it gets even better - I got two books for the price of two because they had a bundle special!  I probably would have fussed at her (see the reason for needing the book) for buying something on a whim like this but I'm trusting that the return on investment will be worth it...and I saved by doing the bundle LOL! Anyway, before I bore everyone, let me share a little about the book so you can decide for yourself if you should go get you a copy.  They offer seven 'circles' you can surround your marriage with to make you a better spouse, couple, and family (if that happens too).   P.S. - If you're dating, engaged, married, o

One thing I've noticed about successful people, "The Great Ones" as I like to call them, is that they are undaunted by other people's successes.  I've noticed it with authors, speakers, musicians, and others.  Authors who each have books they need to sell write forewords and recommendations of each other.  Musicians collaborate and partner on songs. Speakers endorse each other and often refer a trusted (and talented) "competitor" if they are unable to do a requested engagement. Think about that.  Here you have authors recommending someone else's book, musicians promoting someone else while they have CDs to sell, and speakers finding an equally comparable replacement instead of making it work or just saying no. This stems from a Win-Win and Abundance mentality.  Not everyone has it and we all likely struggle with it at times.  Once you begin to realize that you don't need EVERY sale, EVERY loan, EVERY deal

I get it, really I do.  We all want to spend time with our loved ones at Christmas.  We want to slow down to enjoy the moments without whirling haphazardly from one destination to the next.  We all know we should be more concerned with presence than presents.  But for some of us, it's hard.  And in my case - it's not you, it's me. With a recent tragedy in our family, I took time to reflect and several memories that came to mind were Christmas and other family gatherings.  This concept really sank in the other day when someone asked me if I still had my grandparents.  When I had to respond to their question with, "I don't," it got me a little deeper than I anticipated. Actually, I never had many grandparents at all.  My dad's parents passed away before I was born.  My grandpa died when I was 6.  I remember being sad.  I remember crying.  But I didn't fully understand death and luckily I was spared from it for many years.  But when my grandma (Mama)

Most of us have seen a movie or commercial where a child stumbles through the house on Christmas Eve and discovers Santa Claus carefully placing presents under their Christmas tree.  Upon this shocking discovery, the child becomes fully enlightened by Santa's existence and exclaims, "You do exist!"  The child has heard the stories and seen the presents before, but prior to having this proof for himself, he didn't quite believe.  But now, he knows that Santa is real. If you know God, think back to before you knew who He was.  You likely had heard stories about creation, burning bushes, floods, and many other miracles.  But until you saw the proof and the facts really got into your head and your heart, they likely still didn't seem real.  It's almost like that little boy before he saw Santa - you had heard about him, you had seen some evidence, but you didn't really believe. Thankfully, God has given us significant proof that He does exist.  Psalm 19 p

No, I didn't let one of the kids title this post.  That's "Happy Thanksgiving!" backwards, unless I made a mistake that obviously spellcheck couldn't pick up on.  If you grew up in church, and possibly even if you didn't, you have likely heard these few verses numerous times throughout the year and especially around Thanksgiving: "Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in everything; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 While I truly believe that our actions (outside) come from our heart (inside), sometimes we have to train our heart how to feel and subsequently act.  If we simply turn these verses around and work from 18 to 16, would that have a different impact?  Let's see... Give thanks in everything . This does not mean that we are thankful for everything, rather that we are thankful in everything.  As children (immature beings), most of us were taught to express thanks for items we

This morning was one of the more emotional worship services I've been a part of in recent memory.  It's hard to quietly explain to a newly turned 6 year old that sometimes, everything's okay when people are crying.  I could venture guesses as to why this day was special, but really want to share the thoughts that came to mind as many different things seemed to come together today. Our Sunday school lesson was on Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.  I'll keep drawing on this story so if you want more depth, read John 11.  If not, the super short cliff notes version is this:  Lazarus's sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick.  Jesus eventually made his way to their home, but He was too late.  Lazarus was dead.  Then Jesus did what the Son of God does, He raised the dead! I was super excited about this lesson for several reasons.  One, it was good lesson with a lot more to it than I had previously noticed.  Two, I heard a sermon during the week that

By no means am I an expert in this field.  Though, if you would like the name of someone who is, I can give you the info for someone who has taught me a lot over the years and I still learn something new every time she speaks...10+ years later.  She's a true professional and could write a book (or three) on personal and professional etiquette.  These are merely my 'dumb country boy' thoughts from interactions and observations I've had over the years in no particular order. Appointments Everyone that I work with has heard me talk about how much I absolutely love appointments.  Think about it, we make them all the time - for a haircut, the dentist, the groomer, a fancy restaurant, or any other number of activities.  Appointments help give our schedules some sense of structure.  Yes, emergencies happen, like when Britt had to cancel the kids' dentist appointment when her water broke.  But that's not the norm.  However, when we are able to schedule something, it

"We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." - Aristotle Are your habits driving you towards excellence or mediocrity?  Our habits can be defined as the things that we have the knowledge, skill, and desire to do. Since I don't know how to sew, I can't have the habit of knitting scarves or clothes.  I can attempt to learn about it and develop a knowledge of sewing.  But that requires gaining new knowledge and developing a new habit. If I don't have the skill to throw a football like Tom Brady or hit a golf ball like Brooks Koepka, then throwing a football or playing golf are not a habits of mine.  I may have enough skill to consider them hobbies, but not habits. If I don't have the desire to fold clothes or wash dishes, it's not a habit either.  These may be tasks that I do regularly and become routines.  But they are born out of a desire to have an orderly home, not to perform the act itself. Ask yourself today,

Reading the instructions - it's not what most men are known for.  It's also not what I expected to take over my prayers this week.  Our opening question for this week's Sunday school lesson is, "When have you really needed clear instructions?"  Over the past 6 days, my answer has gone from needing the specifics I need from my wife when caring for our children her way (she's the way better parent of us by the way) to truly asking God for specifics about upcoming opportunities in my life. Look, prayer works.  Forgive me for not earlier sharing this observation - "When I pray, things just go smoother."  Try it.  Maybe things actually work themselves out better.  Or maybe I just have a greater sense of peace because I'm more in line with God.  Either way, I'll take it.  Back to my original point. Like the writer of the lesson, I am not the most 'handy' or 'craftsman' inclined guy in the room.  If you laid a pile of wood, metal

I don't know if anyone else has ever had a car where your tires weren't properly aligned.  But if you have, you probably noticed that the car had a tendency to veer off course without constant attention to the steering wheel to make necessary adjustments.  You also likely noticed that even if you forced the car to take the path you had chosen, the misalignment of those tires caused extra, and often uneven, wear and tear on your vehicle's tires.  I'll be honest, I didn't notice that part until after it happened when the problem got expensive and time consuming in having to buy new tires and pull away from other duties to stop and have them replaced. But how often in our lives, do we spends weeks, months, or even years living in our will instead of God's?  We decide where we want to go to college.  We decide who we want to marry.  We decide what career path we want to take.  We decide what house to buy.  We make these major decisions without consulting some

Who all remembers the Facebook status, "It's Complicated?"  Man, I used to rock that status during my single days.  It could be used to show someone that you at least considered them more than a friend but weren't quite ready to make things FB official.  And it kept doors open to other relationships because they knew you weren't completely happy where you were. But there comes a point in life where we get tired of complicated relationships - dating, friends, and work included.  Often if we can simplify these important relationships, we are able to find more happiness and inner peace. Paul gives us seven quick-hitting points in 1 Thessalonians 4:3-12 to help us simplify our relationships, and subsequently, our lives.  You're smart people so you can look the verses up, I won't belabor this by writing them again here.  "For this is God's will, your sanctification" (v3).  Honestly, if we got a good understanding of sanctification, we could

I'm sure most of us have used the phrase that something is "just like riding a bike" to describe activities that come natural or seem really easy to do.  But do you remember learning how to ride a bike?  Or have you had to kiss 'boo-boos' and put band-aids on cuts and scrapes while teaching your kids to ride?  It turns out that learning to ride a bike is not just like riding a bike.  It takes time, effort, and consistent practice with some bumps and bruises along the way. I have been listening to a number of talks lately that focus on mastery - the absolute mastering of your skill or trade to become one of the best in the world.  How do you do that?  The plan is simple, but not easy. Think back to riding a bike, throwing a football, or catching a pop fly.  Anyone who's ever played sports would consider these activities second nature.  But the first time you did, it was probably a train wreck.  When our son throws a football, it looks more like an asteroi

Sunday night at our church Bible study, we pondered questions surrounding "original sin."  I'm not smart enough to fully elaborate but I'll share a couple points I took away and how they apply to our lives today. 1.  Why did Adam & Eve succumb to Satan's temptation?  If we're honest, I think it's for the same reason many of us take foolish or unnecessary risks - we think the grass is greener on the other side.  Eve knew that God had plainly instructed them NOT to eat from this tree.  But when presented with the notion that they could be better, or more like God, she bit, literally and figuratively. I remember when we had horses and my dad would always fed them all from the same green bucket.  But there was one feisty little pony that always wanted the other horses feed.  If he had paid attention, he would have realized that all of it was the same and in pretty equal proportions.  But all he could see was someone else enjoying something and he had t

Have you ever been invited to a meeting with a vague topic and no idea of who else was going to be there?  Like, you literally are wondering to yourself the whole time if they got the right phone number or email address when you were sent the invite?  That was the case for me the other day.  I want to share a little about the meeting and discussions (hopefully that will be allowed or I may not be invited back) and more about what's really driving us. I was invited to a planning meeting for Union County.  I may have the official name wrong but that was the topic.  This was not a specific board or group.  There were people from many different fields - government, education, medical, business, faith-based, and I'm probably leaving some out.  Now you see why I was somewhat anxious about the meeting - this was not the kiddie table. The primary topics were Opportunities and Threats facing Union County - essentially the 'goods' and 'bads' that we could stand to imp

Have you ever noticed that some of the best things in life feel a little silly the first time we try them? This has hit me in several ways. Some of my funny firsts include: Iced Coffee: The 1st time I ever tasted it, Britt gave me a sip of hers, and it was really, really good. But one day when I hit a pothole and the ice in my cup shook, Thomas asked what that sound was - and I literally began laughing at myself when I had to say that it was the ice in my coffee. I still drink it pretty much daily and tell myself that I'm getting extra-hydrated from the ice! Yoga: The 1st time I did it, I was embarrassed for myself, my yoga mat, and everybody else in the room (no, I did not wear yoga pants). But I do consistently tell people about the health benefits of yoga and stretch regularly. Selfies: As you can see from the pic, I'm still not good at them. And I don't like taking pictures of myself for the main fact that they destroy the misconception I have in my mind of wha

Last year leading up to the NBA draft, pretty much everyone in the world knew that Zion Williamson would be the #1 overall pick. It had been a foregone conclusion since the start of the college basketball season (exploding shoe situation aside). Essentially, all he had to do was play games and stay healthy and he was a lock to become a multi-millionaire and be headed to the NBA. The only mystery left to the situation was which team would wind up with the #1 pick. Another story for a talented athlete didn't turn out so well (athletically speaking). Inky Johnson (if you haven't heard of him, look him up as soon as you finish this article) had overcome numerous obstacles in his life to become a standout defensive back at the University of Tennessee. Heading into his final season, his coaches received a letter projecting him to be a 1st round pick in the NFL. Like Zion, this would make him a professional athlete on the greatest stage and a multi-millionaire. All he had to d

As a young child - well, really as an older kid, a teenager, a young adult, a middle-aged adult, or even a senior citizen - there are a few things like the joy of feeling that tug on the line when you're reeling in a good fish. Any time we're at the lake (or any other body of water) my son and nephews always say that they want to fish. But based on my observations, they truly aren't very interested in fishing - what they really want to do is reel fish in, that's it. But you see, there's a lot more to fishing than merely catching fish. Before you ever wet a hook, someone has to purchase the right equipment - rods, reels, hooks, bait, etc. and then do the part that no child seems to comprehend and probably the reason some grownups require adult beverages while fishing - setting up the rods and reels with the necessary equipment. Once you've got a hook tied on, now things get messy - bait! If you're using live bait, the mud and dirt from worms, cricket juice, f