Navigation by a simple compass can sometimes be difficult. In early November my compass needle changed direction and it has been an interesting path with  a few needle position changes in a rather short period of time. Last Monday that needle changed direction yet again. The great thing is I am not in charge of the needle. God is in charge of my needle and ultimately the direction in which I travel.

This past week my career was helped along with widening of path and a more finite vision of that path, both short and long term. I began with what I believe could be my final employer – Lowe’s. I never pictured myself in a retail environment, but after the first two days of orientation I know I am a perfect fit. The position is a seasonal employee working in the Inside Lawn and Garden Department but there is definitely a career path opportunity available to me with a long term vision for growth.

The second happened yesterday. I know that I simply could not meet my financial obligations with a part time seasonal position. I was going to simply move full speed ahead with what I had however. Then after an meeting over coffee a good Christian friend who recently purchased a business offered me a position in marketing. I believe that the short term aspect is now taken care of. The company is Unique Marketing Concepts and they focus on golf course marketing with scoreboard and tee marker sponsorship opportunities in partnership with several of the local courses. My love for the game of golf has come into play once again. Having previously co-hosting a weekly golf radio program for several years I am completely in tune to the golfing community. Again another fit for me.

I am glad that I do not control the needle of my compass because the direction probably would not have presented these opportunities and the direction I will now travel.

Remember your first concert? Where you sat, who you were with or who it was? For me it was Alice Cooper 1979 San Antonio Texas. Wow that hurt – 31 years ago I was only 17 years old and I had a blast! I think my ears are still ringing for standing right next to the speaker near the front rows. Okay, so I’m a classic rocker! Back in the day going to a concert was EVERYTHING! I must tell you that in my teens and twenties I attended many.

I went to see Travis Tritt a few days ago and it stirred up memories of concerts past. I have to say I was impressed with his musical talents, but not with his stage presence as I thought he was high on something. Having been to hundreds of concerts I tend to critique and even predict the next move of the artist or band performing. I can usually tell you if the artist is on their way up or down by the venue, I can predict the number of songs they will play or what time the set will end or how long an encore performance will last usually with 90% or better accuracy.

Trivial stuff really the behind the scenes look into a concert. I’ve had the privilege of meeting most of the Country acts that you would know from George Strait, Rascal Flatts, Keith Urban, Brooks and Dunn and everything in between. Having been a Country DeeJay for the last 13 years had it’s privileges. In fact the Travis Tritt concert is one of about four or five concerts during this period that I actually opened up my wallet for. It will take some getting used to – the whole paying for a concert concept.

Just standing at The Knitting Factory waiting for Travis to take the stage took me through a full line of memories of concerts past. I am truly blessed and grateful to have the opportunity for so many years to see so many Live and in Concert.

I once heard a local motivational speaker say “How can we ask our children to clean their rooms if our garage is a mess?” Well I’ve been to my garage and it’s definitely a mess. What does your garage look like?  I personally believe that most of the mess is caused from having an excess of stuff. Not me or you per say but our generation, one which grew up with nothing is now providing an abundance for our children.

We grew up in a generation of having less and making due and somewhere along the way we decided to change that with our children. I can remember actually playing in the dirt and enjoying it. When is the last time your kids played in the dirt? Our kids play on the computer, gameboy, cube, wii or whatever. In my household it’s all three plus a PC and a laptop upstairs in the “Game Room”.

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In the Bible it reads in John 14:10 (KJV) “Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” It’s words vs. works. In the secular perspective it’s “actions speak louder than words.”

We’ve heard that a thousand times. How you act speaks volumes to who you are and what you represent. I have always believed the Bible is the road map to life and it never stops reminding me of that fact. I attended a new church today, well actually it’s not new but  it’s newly re-named. The Summit (formerly Second Baptist) has been around for fifty or so years and they are reaching deeper into the community and changing their views a bit. In the literal and spiritual sense.

I have been contemplating  and talking about leaving New Heights Christian Fellowship and finding a new church home. Not because of what NHCF has, but because of what they do not have. I enjoy Pastor Doug’s writing and his preaching style, I just feel I am in need of greater actions from myself and less verbiage. I want a church home that feeds your needs through a greater education process. Having an adult Sunday School  class is important to me and I have missed it over the last two years while attending NHCF. Read the rest of this entry »

In our lives we are often given second chances. My second chance came fifteen years ago. I had recently been promoted to Regional Market Manager for the Mountain Region which is a damn big title so my business cards had no title at all. The reality was in Montana (Mountain Region), if I was the only one in the office and a delivery truck arrived with product, I was The Warehouseman. And if I walked through the office and a trash can was full, I was The Janitor. Or if the phone rang, I was The Receptionist. You get the point. In reality, the geographic aspect of the operation was huge, and the staff size was about fifteen to twenty.

Randy, one of the sales reps, asked if I played softball and invited me to join his church league team. This particular event turned out to be my second chance at life. He informed me that it was a Baptist church team, “But you don’t have to actually GO to the church to play on the team.” Well, I grew up Baptist and I did decide to begin attending the church. As it turned out, I liked it and attended regularly during the period I lived in Billings.

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