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 inve
This is the next in my series of Spanish-isms that my ladies shared with me in life coaching on Saturday. See the first post about this if you are just hearing about this for the first time.
This Spanish-ism (Llerba mala nunca muere) means, "Bad grass never dies."
What in the world brought this up in my question/answer session on Saturday?
One of the ladies had a very common question. They are struggling with the issue of a family member who has cancer and has not been given much hope. This is such a common struggle, or question...wondering "why?" Why does it seem that "only the good die young"?
The other day I was watching a Billy Joel interview where he shared that he came under attack for his song, "Only the good die young" when it was released. The Catholic Church tried to get the song banned from radio stations. The reason was because they thought it was a slap in the face to God - questioning His sovereignty and blaming Him that He allowed good people to die young. I guess the Catholic church at that time, was afraid to ask the hard questions. They did not realize that God is not scared of us and our questions at all. He is not flustered whatsoever by the fact that our world is rocked when somebody gets sick or dies. On the contrary, we serve a compassionate, loving God who welcomes our questions and does not cast us out for asking them.
I explained to the ladies that I certainly don't have all the answers about suffering, sickness, or death. I told them, there are times somebody's death sends me reeling. No matter how many years I have known the Lord - my love for others and the ache and disappointment in my heart to have to say goodbye to them on earth, is still really, really hard. I don't always understand why, especially when unGodly people outlive really Godly people. The hispanic ladies were quick to say, Pastor Deanna, it's like we say in Spanish, "Llerba mala nunca muere!" or, "Bad grass never dies. " It seems only good grass gets zapped in our yards and we ask ourselves, 'WHY?" Why does the perfectly beautiful St. Augustine grass that we paid so much for in our yards here in Florida, have to die? Why did the beautiful green grass that we "babied" and watered and fertilized...why...why...why did it have to die while the weeds in our yard continued to flourish? (sigh)
James Dobson wrote a great book about this subject called, When God Doesn't Make Sense. I highly recommend it to everyone. I don't understand why the good grass dies, any more than I understand why many times really good people are the ones to get sick and die. I know that the Bible says the rain falls on the just and the unjust. I know that sin brought sickness into the world. However, it still really hurts no matter how you spin it or how many scriptures you read that awesome, God-fearing people sometimes get sick and die.
I told the ladies, no matter what I may experience, I will never stop praying for people, as long as there is life, and breath, there is HOPE. I will never stop believing in healing. I choose to go by the Word of God. I do not elevate my experience over the Word.
I choose to pray.
I choose to believe.
Even even though I've seen a lot of good grass die.
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