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The Price of Being a Sheep

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I love this piece by Hugh MacLeod, as it seems so relative—especially in the world of ministries.

It’s easy to follow the crowd. To imitate what everyone else is doing. To want a website/logo/outreach program/fill-in-the-blank just like Big Name Ministry has.
(Side note: If I see one more website—or get one more request—for a website that looks just like Hillsong’s, I’m going to poke my eyes out with pencils)

But I believe the price of being a sheep is much steeper than mere boredom.
We’re robbing the world of what it is we’re uniquely wired to offer.

Don’t get me wrong. I love getting inspired by others who’ve gone before me and look for ways to build upon those ideas to make them my own. But as my friend Mark Batterson has so eloquently put it, “When inspiration stops short & becomes imitation, it’s suicide.”

Discovering your purpose and braving new trails is hard. It takes work, and yes, it can be very lonely. But I think the reward is worth it.

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Shift: Uncovering New Opportunities for Growth :: WFX 2017

This is my first year speaking at WFX and I couldn’t be more excited to be here. THANK YOU to everyone who participated in the session. In an effort to save as many trees as possible (my planet-protecting daughter thanks you)….

**Here you can find the notes version of today’s session**

If you have additional questions, or if I can serve your ministry in some capacity, please feel free to email me: Dnicole@AspireOne.com

 

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New Therapy Group

Last night was been difficult. And the truth is, I’m still struggling.

Not just with the fact my phone has been stolen but realizing the degree to which I became completely unhinged upon learning it was taken. My hands were shaking, I couldn’t focus or think. I called my husband sobbing, asking him to help me use the “Find My iPhone” utility I had installed somewhere but had no idea how to actually use. (The irony of that last part is just hilarious)

I had literally fallen in love with that thing.

As I crawled into bed, exhausted and still an emotional wreck, I needed to give myself a hard slap in the form of a reality check.

My husband still loves me and is safe.

My kids are healthy and still safe.

The world has, in fact, not come to an end.

I’m embarrassed to admit how horrifically out of balance my priorities had become. Yes, it is a cool phone but it’s still just a phone. And as much as I hated my Blackberry, it’s still capable of performing basic functions it’ll do until we can afford another iPhone.

I’d love to start a support group for those of us who’ve either lost or had our phones taken. Perhaps some sort of 12-step recovery program to help get our lives back on track. (And former Blackberry users would get extra therapy since we’ve been exposed to the knowledge phones can actually do more than dial and receive email)

Feel free to share coping strategies…