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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...

I don't like stuff that hurts


Well today is my day off.  I decided to zip over and get a nail fill. I told Larry I wouldn't be long, only a few minutes. Wrong.

Upon taking the polish off my nail girl tells me, "uh! you've got a fungus..." (this just happened in the last two weeks since my last fill before I went on vacation.) So she chastises me about waiting so long to get a new set. "I know, I know" I tell her... hanging my head in shame. She says something to the tech next to her in their language and I know she's probably saying, "Deanna is crazy for waiting this long to do this and we've told her this before..." but she thinks I'm clueless and I think she's just talking about the latest OPI color or something. NO, NO, NO. She's talking about me for sure. I'm not paranoid or anything but truly it is foolish to wait six months in between sets and I'm sure they are commenting on the stupidity of that.

It's like this. I put off getting a fresh set as long as I possibly can because I don't like the discomfort of getting them off. I don't care how much they soak them it still is very uncomfortable. So...I keep getting fills every other week, and just...wait until I HAVE to get a new set. I drag this on as long as possible to keep from the dreaded day when they pull and scrape the old nails off. But this is what I get for my procrastinaton. A fungus. Disgusting!

So she rips all the nails off with my grimacing the whole time and actually sweating profusely. (I know, I know - you are thinking, "how did she ever manage to have 3 kids?) Then she put the medication on, followed by a whole new set and an admonition..."change this set every three months or this same thing is going to happen again!!! Do you understand?" Yes mam...

This is like a few years ago my dentist gave me this big lecture about not flossing. I just brushed the heck out of my teeth a few times and day and figured that was enough. But it wasn't. "It's gross" I retorted. "I don't like it. It's uncomfortable and bloody." The dentist says, 'well it wouldn't be if you did it all the time." So I started doing it all the time. Now I'm used to it. But I have to admit I still don't like it. It's uncomfortable sticking a string between my teeth and pulling it up and down and I just do not care for it. Surely somebody else has to feel this way except me but I never hear anyone actually say it. Everyone else seems to be happy flossers.

Sometimes in life we just have to do things we would rather not do, things that make us uncomfortable, things that even HURT! Nobody gets a free pass. The truth is, pain is inevitable, but misery is optional.

Larry says, "what do you want to do tonight?" I want to take it easy. I want to go to blockbuster and get a movie or rent a pay per view. I want to eat take out. I want to get in the jacuzzi before bedtime. I want to take it easy. Getting all my fingernails ripped off today was not fun. So why keep doing it? 

Because I like my hands to look great. I touch a lot of people in my line of work. (Get your mind out of the gutter, please...I'm a pastor) I hold people's hand in a prayer circle. I give them a reassuring pat on the back. I reach a hand out and pray for them. While I am talking or teaching I use my hands a lot. So this my friends...THIS is why I go through this pain and agony.

Please pray for me because in three months I have to do this again. Hey, it's for the sake of the ministry. :-)

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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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