Consider this

            “If I just (fill in the blank) then I would be happy!”             That is the way most people think.   They focus on their circumstances and believe that if certain things changed, then they would find happiness.   The problem is that years of research have proven that it is not true.               Those who study such things tell us that only about 10% of your happiness comes from your circumstances.   In other words, some people are rich and happy and others are rich and miserable.    Some are poor and miserable and some are poor and happy.   Happiness levels are about the same no matter what people have or lack.   You know this from your own experience.   Some changes are life-altering (a death for instance), but most things affect us for a little while and then the feeling fades away.   That new car that you wanted so badly eventually becomes just your car.   Moving to a new town may provide a lift, but after a while it is just the place where you live.   In time,

              Every year “Estevan Motor Speedway” closes out its season by hosting an “Enduro race”.   This is where people take old cars, knock the windows out of them, move the gas tank and the battery to a safe place and then race each other for 150 laps or an hour and a half, whichever comes first.   After driving in this race and helping officiate it, I have discovered that there are two basic approaches to this event.             First there are the really aggressive drivers.   Their goal is to go as fast as they can and lead every lap.   They are all over the track and they run into as many other cars as possible.   Their aggressive attitude makes them fun to watch because they are on a mission.               Then there is another group of cars that just circle around the bottom of the track and try to stay out of trouble.   When all the other cars are dented, missing parts and spewing steam from their radiators, these cars look just as good as they did when they rolled off

            “Try this”, my daughter said.   “Look up and stare at a star and then spin around in a circle.   When I say ‘stop’, see if you can run to me.”   You can likely guess how that worked out.   I was so dizzy that I stumbled all over the place and ended up falling over.               Oddly, I have felt that feeling before.   There have been times in my life when things seemed out of balance and like I was just barely stumbling along.   Maybe you know that feeling too.   If so, you may be interested to know that the Bible offers lots of advice to help us “find our footing”.   Here are three of my favorite suggestions.             1.   Avoid other people’s drama.   Some people love to stir up controversy.   In fact, some people are not happy unless they are not happy.   Do not buy into their issues. Titus 3:9 sums it up well when it says, “Avoid foolish controversies… because these are unprofitable and useless”.   Help if you if can, but make sure that you are not just wall

            “Look at the Northern Lights” exclaimed Sara as we walked our dog last night.   They were so bright and beautiful that we ran home, grabbed the kids and headed north of town for a better look.               As we drove past the high school and out into the darkness, it became obvious that we were not the only ones who needed a better view.   All the approaches along the grid road were full of cars. When I checked my phone this morning, several people had posted pictures that they had taken. One of the first questions that I was asked when I went to serve breakfast at Hillcrest School this morning was, “Did you see the Northern Lights?”             In an age that is full of technology and entertainment, I am a little surprised that people still get excited about the Northern Lights.   Anyone can go on the internet at any time and see thousands of pictures of them, but I guess that nothing replaces the real thing.   Also, there is still something to be said for experienc

            An off-handed comment changed John Goddard’s life forever.   At a dinner party, fifteen year old John heard a family friend remark, “I’d give anything to be John’s age again.   I really would do things differently.   I would set out and accomplish more of the dreams of my youth”.   That remark motivated John to create a list of 127 things that he wanted to do before he died.   Some of them were rather common (Number 126: Marry and have children) while others required considerable courage (Number 1: Explore the Nile River.   He fulfilled that one by becoming the first man to kayak from the headwaters of the Nile to the Mediterranean).   By the time of his death in 2013, at the age of 88, John had checked off 111 of his original 127 goals earning him the nickname “The real-life Indiana Jones”.               Goddard’s story made me wonder, “What would a ‘spiritual life goals’ list look like and what would that cause us to do?”    Paul’s prayer for the church in Ephesus may