One of the good things about having a high schooler in track is that we get to travel all over Central IL in the family truckster.

Last night on the way home, there was a beautiful sunset and we got to see a few farmers out working late to get the ground ready for planting.

Every year I’m reminded on how much faith it takes to be a farmer.

You have to have faith in the seed, soil, rain, sunshine, weather, etc.

It could all get ruined in a tornado or hailed on or eaten by bugs or too hot or too cold or too wet or too dry. So many things could go wrong.

But overall, most of the time, if you put the in effort to try to do things the right way, there’s a harvest in the fall.

That’s true of a lot of our lives.

You don’t get tomorrow from exercising today.

You don’t get wealthy today by saving a few pennies.

You don’t build a great marriage by going a great date tonight.

The important values of life must be cultivated, with faith that it will all turn out in the end.

It doesn’t always work out (and almost always takes longer than we’d like), but it probably will.

Make it a great day.

Jake

We must not allow other people’s limited perceptions to define us. – Virginia Satir

How we define ourselves matters.

What we choose to believe about ourselves determines our direction.

The story we tell ourselves about our worth and value shapes our perception of the world around us and our place in it.

We can fall into the trap of limiting ourselves by buying into other people’s limited perceptions of ourselves. We can also fall into the trap of limiting ourselves by buying into the idea that we can determine our own value and worth.

I don’t believe we do.

I believe we’ve all been given worth by our creator and that our direction should be aimed at moving closer and closer to Him. And in so doing we will be moving towards His limitless perception of us.

Make it a great day.

Jake

What is a soul? It’s like electricity – we don’t really know what it is, but it’s a force that can light a room. – Ray Charles

Goal for the week – be the kind of person who lights up the room.

When you enter a room – do people feel better or worse?

When you interact with someone – do they leave feeling uplifted or down?

When you get off a phone call – is that person having a better day or a worse day?

Make it a great day.

Jake

A baby is born with a need to be loved – and never outgrows it. – Frank A. Clark

This quote popped up on a site I was on today so I couldn’t resist sending it out again.

This is one of my favorite quotes. As I get older it rings more and more true.

So many of our idiosyncrasies as people come back to a desire to be loved.

We were born with it and never outgrow it.

Our job is to gently nudge ourselves to be more loving to others around us and to gently nudge ourselves to more lovable behavior.

To be the one to take the risk and love first.

To serve and live with love.

Make it a great day.

Jake

It is difficult to say what is impossible, for the dream of yesterday is the hope of today and the reality of tomorrow. – Robert H. Goddard

So much of how we live today would have seemed impossible just a generation ago.

All of that started as a dream of yesterday but became our reality.

Because someone dared to act on their dreams.

They dared to try to make the world a better place.

It’s easy to see in the big stuff – the technology and big changes.

For most of us though it is the little stuff that we should be working on.

Working on a better marriage.

Working on becoming a better teammate.

Working on being a better parent.

The little stuff is worth dreaming about and working on.

Make it a great day.

Jake

O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind? Percy Bysshe Shelley

Springtime in Illinois means lots of wind. If the forecast is a warm day – that also usually means wind.

The warmth and change of season is generally brought in on the wind.

Life is full of changing winds.

Our health ebbs and flows over time.

Relationships and people grow closer at times and apart at times.

Pay attention to the wind.

Which way are things heading?

Anything important that needs taken in before the wind does some damage?

Make it a great day.

Jake

“Either you run the day or the day runs you.” – Jim Rohn

This one can be a bit of a tough pill to swallow.

To accept responsibility for the days that get out of control and seem too busy.

It’s easier to make excuses and to think that we are a special kind of busy. The kind that can’t be figured out or managed.

This is an email about how I have this figured and “if you’d just send me $29.95 I’ll tell you all my secrets”. I don’t. And you shouldn’t.

But I can tell you that optimizing your day is a worthwhile pursuit.

That a day lived on purpose and with purpose is better than “another day that got away from me”.

What could do today to get a little better handle on your day?

What could you prep tonight to have a better day tomorrow?

What could you say no to today to free up some time in the future?

Make it a great day.

Jake

God loves each of us as if there were only one of us. – Saint Augustine

Easter was yesterday. Easter is the “big day” of the Christian faith. The day when Christians are reminded of the core focal point of their faith.

The Saint Augustine quote above reminded me of this core focal point. That God loved each of us enough to send his son to die on the cross.

Whether you are a Christian or not, there is also a life lesson in there. And this quote spells it out.

Love and serve others as if they were the only one.

Search today for an opportunity to serve someone else as if they were the only one.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/sIaT8Jl2zpI

You say I am loved when I can’t feel a thing

You say I am strong when I think I am weak

And you say I am held when I am falling short

And when I don’t belong, oh You say I am Yours

And I believe (I)

Oh, I believe (I)

What You say of me (I)

I believe

The only thing that matters now is everything You think of me

In You I find my worth, in You I find my identity

Easter is a reminder of what God really thinks of you.

He sent His son to die on the cross to set things right for you.

He looked across time and space and at all of your foibles, mistakes and selfishness and send His son to die for you.

I hope this thought brings you hope, peace and joy this Easter.

I hope that the cares and trials of this world melt away in the face of this awe-inspiring series of events.

I hope that you can let go of your insecurities and anxieties and give them all to your Father in heaven.

Happy Easter.

Jake

PS – I know this one is a bit of a slow tapper – if anyone has an upbeat positive Easter song – send it out!

I sent this email out almost exactly 2 years ago. A lot has changed and transpired since then but the message still resonates and I still need it.

“Jesus’s resurrection is the beginning of God’s new project not to snatch people away from earth to heaven but to colonize earth with the life of heaven. That, after all, is what the Lord’s Prayer is about.” ― N.T. Wright

I don’t know about you, but I think I needed Easter more than usual this year.

It has been a rough start to the year. I had lots to complain about. Things weren’t going my way. Stress levels were out of the normal range.

I’ve been seeking a path to turning the page and trying to look forward with hope the last couple of weeks. Not even really realizing that Easter was on the way.

The first Easter was at the early church’s darkest moment. Their leader had been killed. He was not to become the King they had hoped for. They were sad, scared and hopeless.

Out of that darkness came the resurrection. The bright, shining sun leading the path towards the future, full of hope and joy.

I’m going to work to make Easter that moment for me this year (and would love it if you joined me).

We’ve had a rough start.

We will move forward with faith, hope and joy.

We have a lot to be thankful for.

We can and will lean on each other and work together on a brighter future for all of us.

Who’s with me?

Make it a great day.

Jake