this blog entry is inspired by a talk i heard yesterday by phil pringle.

“ask god to give you a vision, and then think of yourself from that future.  don’t think it’s just going to happen, get organised.  and get strategy.”

this morning i was journalling and some visions i had that really spoke to me came to mind.

there have been many times i’ve been inspired by that vision or image that god gives me, get excited… but then don’t do much else with it.  and then get reminded of that vision a while later.

however, taking the simple next few steps of thinking of myself from that future.. and then coming up with strategy to get from where i am now to the vision that god has given me has given me clarity with what i do with my time now.   i realised earlier this week that what i do with my time doesn’t make sense to some people, but that’s ok.  at least for now!  it’s ok cos’ i know the visions god has given me, the burdens he’s placed on my heart, the gifts he’s given me and what i am to do with them.  i can see certain areas clearer than others, and that’s ok too.

for now, i have had a passion in the area of wealth and money…  and am investing time reading books and online resources on this topic from all sorts of view points.  the book i’m reading now that i’ve mentioned previously is by kris vallotton called poverty, riches and wealth.  this morning, i read kris’ viewpoint on the difference between riches and wealth and it certainly challenged me!  i’m not 100% clear where the future will lead, but i’m taking one step at a time learning more about this, putting it into practice through investing in shares and property.  and one of the things i most look forward to is coaching and helping others in that area!

for those of you who don’t have visions of your future, spend time asking our creator god for a vision.

and for those who have visions, ask god for strategy on what the next steps are.

and it doesn’t matter how small that next step is… i learning that small steps create habits, and habits set you up for a future!

have an awesome day everyone!

this is one word i’ve deliberately emitted out of my vocabulary.

nowadays, busy is a word used almost like an award to indicate that what you’re doing is significant, like something to brag about.  that if you live a busy life, you must be important.

according to dictionary.com, it also means you are not accessible.

don’t get me wrong. i live a full life.. but it’s intentionally filled with people i want to hang out with, things i want to do and actually, it’s full with space.

space to think, breathe, relax, sleep, recharge, read, have fun, surf, ski, play

space to spend with friends, space to spend time with God

and space for emergencies

joel a’bell had an interesting take on the old testament law of harvesting (e.g. deuteronomy 24:19), where the israelites were told not to reap the harvest of their land right to the very edges of their field… but to leave some for the poor and the alien.  so that they are able to glean from our harvest.

joel commented that some people have maxed out their time, energy, space, mentality, emotion… and as a result have nothing left for others.   i’ve experienced this when i’ve met up with some people and there have been many times where i might have wanted to share something deep with them and needed their friendship in particular times.. but as they just didn’t have time.. and over a period of time, i’ve lost touch with these people.   i don’t want to miss that opportunity to help someone.  i used to pack my schedule one after the other, but now, if i’m meeting with friends, i’ll deliberately leave space after so if our catchup goes over time for whatever reason, my schedule has allowed for that buffer.  whilst the old testament might have described the poor and needy as financially poor, i think today, there are a lot of people poor of emotional support.

 “if i harvest right to our time and emotional boundaries, than i’m not interruptible and people who need help can’t glean from me” – joel a’bell