So, earlier this week Michael Jackson passed away. I honestly didn’t really listen to much of his music, although I could do a pretty mean “Thriller” dance. The song that I would have to say is my favorite though, is “Man in the Mirror.” The line that gets me every time is, “If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, then make a change!”

So often, we want to change the world, or the way things are around us. BUT, we often place the blame when it doesn’t work out on the circumstances. We make excuses, rather than taking a good, hard look at ourselves. Many times, it’s not the circumstances, it’s us! Sometimes, we are the reason that things don’t work out, but are we willing to admit it? Are we willing to put our pride/ego aside, and admit that sometimes we get in the way of things or even our own success?

I don’t know, but I do agree that if you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, then make a change!

If someone is drowning, don’t ban them from bodies of water, rather… teach them how to swim.

Whether in ministry or in life, sometimes people we know and love, get themselves in a pickle. Lets say someone volunteers for media (not that I’m biased or anything) in your church. They’ve got their heart in the right place, and they really want to volunteer in media, but the pressure gets to them, and they press the wrong slide during the service. The media team gasps, and more often that not, that person tends to be taken off that duty not for the week… but usually for good. Now, I work with volunteers all the time in student ministry who help me out with the media, whether it be lights or the soundboard. These things are tough to learn, and shoot, it took me months! If someone screws up once, I’m not going to shun them from the media booth! Now, while I might be cringing inside when feedback happens, or if Brian’s mic is not on… don’t be hasty and let your anger get the best of you.

Take every mistake, and turn it into a learning opportunity. Teach them to “swim.”

Check out how we do our Beach Baptism at Flamingo Road Church!

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Person 1: “I’m going through this tough time. ”

Person 2: “I’ll pray for you…”

I’m gonna go ahead and call out the big elephant in the room. At one point or another every Christian has said, “I’ll pray for you.” Chances are, you’ve said it multiple times this week! BUT, how often do we say those very words… and never mean it. How often do we say those words and the truth is, we just want an easy way out of the conversation. We really don’t want to hear anymore about the subject, and out of habit say, “I’ll pray for you”… and never actually pray?

I’m guilty of it. Shoot, I still struggle with it on a day to day basis. However, that’s not right! Don’t tell someone you’re gonna pray for them, unless you actually mean it. Don’t take prayer lightly. Don’t take it so light, that it’s your escape button out of a conversation. “I’ll pray for you” should NOT be the easy button out of a conversation!

If you tell someone you’re going to pray for them… actually do it.