Saying Grace in Public Places: Leading Your Family by Doing the Right Thing and Sharing a Powerful Testimony of Faith

Posted on September 26, 2011 by admin
Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

Since young children often say what they think, they can be great reminders when we as parents stray from our practices.  We have a custom at home of praying prior to our meals to pause to recognize God’s grace as our provider and give thanks for His blessing.  One time we were out with our young children at a restaurant and the wait staff brought our food to the table.  After the food was placed before us I began to eat and all three of our children were quick to notice that a prayer was not said and were not bashful to speak up and remind me that I had forgotten to bless our food.  I admit that when out at a busy restaurant with a client, vendor, or mixed group that I may not share a prayer or pray to myself.  My children were the first to convict me of my double standards by saying “Daddy you forgot to pray”.  I have also been challenged by another Christian businessman and fellow deacon at our church to never have a meal without a proper blessing regardless of the company you are with.  He encouraged me to simply state that it is my custom to bless the food prior to eating and invite them to share in the blessing.  He said only one man has ever declined the invitation and that following the thousands of prayers offered deeper conversations and relationships have formed because of his courage and openness to share his faith.  I was reminded of this again this week as I have been beginning to study the book of Romans with a group of men.  Romans 1:16 says it all.  “For I am not ashamed of
the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  The good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection to cover our sins and make us right with God is for all men.  I should not be ashamed or bashful to express my thanks to God in a public venue.

Many years have passed since being called out by my children for not praying prior to eating at a public restaurant and we have shared hundreds if not thousands of meals together in public places.  Subway, McDonalds, baseball team parties, the local diner, and occasionally at nice restaurants when sharing a meal together our family always bows our heads to thank God for His provision.  These prayers are brief and do not call attention to ourselves, but they also do not go unnoticed by the wait staff or other patrons.  It doesn’t take much to be a witness and share your testimony by quietly and privately thanking our God for His Grace and His mercy on us.  It is often said that leadership is doing the right thing.  As Christian parents and role models we have a great privilege to lead our family in doing the right thing.  I challenge you regardless of the company you are with to never share a meal with your family without taking a moment to bow your head and express true gratitude for the provision, mercy and saving grace that God has given you.

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Knowing Truth is the Foundation for Teaching Your Family to Make Good Decisions

Posted on September 18, 2011 by admin

Jesus "If you continue in my word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." John 8:31-32

Knowing truth is the foundation upon making good decisions.  However in the world of educated relativity that we live in truth has become accepted as truth interpreted by the wisdom of man.  I believe that God has ordered the world and has made His truth to be universally known.  The apostle Paul tells us Romans 1:18- 23 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.  For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”  And in Psalms 19:1 “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.  Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.”

There are others that do not believe in God and professing to be wise distort, deceive, and dilute the truth to fit their needs and make truth appear to be something debatable.  Truth is not up for debate and does not change with society or time.  Our society may not like truth, but that does not make truth less true.  As parents we have the privilege of communicating and living out truth that God has given to us through his Word in the lives of our families.  As leaders in our businesses we have the responsibility for making right decisions governed by God’s truth.  We use truth to recognize lies and we testify to the great wisdom and blessings that are the fruit of trusting in and following the truth.  Paul also says to the church of Colossae in the letter to Colossians 2:8 “See to it that not one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.”

Men and women, parents, and leaders of organizations God has revealed truth to us and this truth does not change.  Standing on this truth, making decisions according to truth, teaching truth, and leading our families, co-workers, and organizations in truth is our great privilege and responsibility.  Do not let your heart and mind be taken captive.  Worship the God who established truth, read His word, sharpen your mind, fellowship with others, and prepare your minds to discern and defend the truth.

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Room Improvements Make Great Dad and Daughter Memories

Posted on September 11, 2011 by admin

Dads and sons have many natural opportunities through sports, outdoors, and hobbies to find opportunities to spend time together.  It is often more difficult to find opportunities for Dads to spend time sharing an activity with their daughters.  Let me give you an idea.  Girls love to make their rooms their little nest or private retreat, but are not that adept at building and heavy lifting.  Helping your daughter re-arrange, decorate or update their rooms is a great opportunity for dads and daughters to spend quality time sharing their vision and working together to make it a reality.

My daughter, Summer, is 10 years old and she has a vision for decorating her own room.  We have been moving furniture, painting, and hanging accessories.  After looking all over for a desk, I found all the furniture to expensive, made of cheap pressboard, and poorly made.  I suggested we find a nice used desk and paint it ourselves.  No it was not the most convenient path, but it has been the most rewarding.

We bought the desk from a friend whose daughter had left for college and hauled it home.  It is a nice solid wood desk with solid wood drawers and very well made.  Summer and I sanded, primed, and painted the desk over the labor day weekend and finished it up the following weekend.  I probably have 10 – 12 hours into the desk and Summer joined me for at least half of the time.  She learned to use the orbital sander and was very patient in applying the primer and paint.  We listened to the radio, talked, and had hours together working on her project.  She recognized and appreciated the effort to do a good job and will have the perfect desk for her new room.  This morning I touched up a few last spots, replaced the hardware, and installed the new drawer pulls she picked out from Pottery Barn.  She was so excited to see the finished product and was not only proud of the work she did, but gave me a big hug as she connected the love I have for her with the time and effort to make it just right.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Our lives are packed full of responsibilities and activities, but simply taking the time to do a project together the old fashioned way is a memory and treasure never forgotten.  I expect she will spend many hours at this desk and it will be a special place for her where she can remember the work she did to restore it, the time we shared together, and the love I have for her.  What projects do you have?

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Learning to Finish What You Start Even When The Project Doesn’t Work Out

Posted on August 28, 2011 by admin

Learning to Finish What You Start

This summer my son wanted to earn some money to purchase video editing software which cost about $300.  I told him that I would match any money he earned so that he could purchase the software.  We found a project to clean the scale from our neighbor’s pool.  The pool has several water features that over spray and mist left large white patches of scale on the wall.  My son bid the project and provided an estimate of $208 to remove the scale.  He used an acid to dissolve the calcium and a wire brush to scrub the
surface.  To our dismay after several hours over 2 -3 days, the surfaces of the pool actually looked worse than when we began the project.  We could not figure out why it looked so bad and did not feel comfortable continuing with the project.  We decided it may be time to bring in a professional pool repair technician to review the project and
offer his input.  My friend Shane who owns Moosehead Pools stopped by and reviewed the work.  He suggested that the surface was not natural stone, but a cast aggregate made to look like stone.  He also thought the chalky white material covering the surface was dirt, pollution and other materials that we released from the surface while cleaning and we should pressure wash the surface to see what we were really dealing with.

 My son was over his head and really would have preferred to back out of the project.  My neighbor and I discussed the situation and recognizing this was as much about teaching a life lesson to my son as it was about fixing the problem thought it would be good to push through the problem and work toward a satisfactory solution.  Knowing this would involve renting pressure washing equipment my neighbor offered to pay additional if we expanded the service from cleaning the scale to include pressure washing of all of the pool surfaces.  I certainly did not want to get this involved in the project, but knew my son needed help and would learn a great lesson if we could overcome the problem.
So off we went to Home Depot to rent a 3,500 psi pressure washer and to our
delight the chalky white residue came off.   However, much of the stone surfaces still had the original white stains remaining.  When we applied acid, there was no reaction confirming that it was not calcium.  So we had removed the calcium, pressure washed
the surfaces, and still had areas that were not going to be acceptable to the customer.  We came back with a pumice stone and wire brush and worked for several more hours seeing some improvement, but still not to all or our satisfaction.

I wish I could say that the project ended with everyone happy, but we came to a natural end where we had invested $150 in equipment rental and supplies, 11 hours of work, removed the calcium, put in many hours of additional scrubbing, but did not get all the white materials from the pool.  My son came back and presented an invoice of $294.99.  Our neighbor again used the opportunity to discuss the project and work on negotiation skills with my son.  It was uncomfortable for him as he was asked to defend the amount of the invoice.  My neighbor suggested that we all agree that the project did not turn out as we all had hoped and offered to split the difference between the original estimate of $210 and the ending invoice of $294.99.  My son promptly accepted which my neighbor pointed out the negotiation was too easy.  At this point my son needed some help so I
jumped in and explained that we felt my son had done what he was asked to do and expanded the project to include the pressure washing.  However, he wanted the customer to feel that it was a fair transaction and said he would accept this compromise if he felt good about it.  We agreed and called the project complete.

Many lessons were learned on this project that my son will take with him into life.

  1. Sometimes projects don’t go as we planned
  2. Keeping the lines of communication open with the customer is always good and especially when things are not meeting expectations
  3. It is OK to stop and ask for help from an expert
  4. Finish what you start even when it is not easy
  5. Be prepared to support your pricing, but make sure that the customer feels
    that they received a fair deal.
  6. Hard work does pay off

I am proud of the way that my son handled the situation and am glad that I got to support him and share in this learning experience.  On the way home, I was sure to tell him that I was proud of him and that I would make up the difference in the negotiated
amount and his quoted amount.  I know he will value his new software and the memory that we created that will last a lifetime.  In closing I am reminded of a saying my dad taught me and his dad taught him.  I guess I have now passed it on to the next generation.

“Once a task once begun, don’tleave it until you’re done.  If the task is great or small do it well or not at all.”

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How Can A Young Man Keep His Way Pure?

Posted on August 21, 2011 by admin

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

As fathers, mothers, and leaders of our family it is our responsibility to train our children to make good choices and know truth.  At Baylor University I pledged a fraternity where each member had a page of information about them that we were to memorize.  It included their hometown, major, fraternity family tree, and anything else that they wanted us to know.  We were constantly quizzed on these pages and had to know every word on every members page.  It so happened that most of the members also listed their favorite Bible verses and I learned more than 100 verses during my pledgeship.  What I found was these verses stuck.  They were at the front of my mind and impacted my thoughts, my decisions, and my actions every day.  Following my pledgeship I wrote my favorite verses into a notebook, added the many new verses that I had learned, and added new verses that I was finding each day that impacted me.  I began reviewing and repeating these to myself each morning so that they stayed in my mind.  Of all the things I learned during my pledgeship, memorizing scripture changed my life and continues to make a difference today.  As a member I had new pledges memorize Psalms 119:9 and verse 11.  Psalms 119:9 says “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to your word.”  Verse 11 says “Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against you.”  As I met with pledges I would encourage them to use this opportunity to allow God’s word to penetrate their minds and change their lives. 

As parents we should model and encourage the same with our children.  There are many programs that your churches offer to help in this area.  I was particularly impressed with the Awana’s programs at our church and was amazed at the number of Bible verses our children knew before they even went to school.  We also had a verse for the day that we could simply read and review with our kids before bed.  As part of our rites of passage along with our families vision, mission and core values, I have our children memorize verses that led to these statements of direction and truth.  These are examples of a few ways that you can help your children to treasure God’s word.  These practices and not just for kids, but are even more important for us.  We need our minds to be saturated in God’s word to encourage, inspire, convict, and guide us in truth as we lead our lives in our businesses, community and families.  We must first attend to and protect our own minds so that we can lead our family. 

How can a young man keep his way pure?  Thy word I have treasured in my heart so that I may not sin against thee. Psalms 119 – 9,11

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How To Destroy a Nation

Posted on August 14, 2011 by admin
2 Chronicles 7:14 My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

In recent weeks we continue to experience the result of unchecked greed, poor policy, and inability to manage our finances as a nation.  This combined with a moral decline and diverging social culture have challenged America’s leadership position.  We only need to look across the Atlantic to England to see the future, yet we continue in our ways.  Last week I went to Rick Perry’s event, The Response.  It was well done and the content was presented well.  I was glad to see Rick Perry take a personal stand and am proud of him for that stand even though I recognize his role as Governor and representative of all in the state that may confuse his personal stand with the position of the State of Texas.  The real “elephant in the room” was the fact that half of the stadium was blocked off and the other half was only 60 – 70% full.  This tells me that as bad as it may be, our churches, cities and state are not mentally ready for change.  There is a remnant that is charged and ready to repent and turn toward God, but only a few.   If there was a genuine desire for change the stadium would have overflowed and been directed to overflow venues to accommodate all desperate for a change.  Unfortunately, most of us remain content to stay at home.

Over lunch this week I had the privilege of discussing the state of America with my boss who is 85 years old and is one of the Great Generation that fought to protect our nation and was responsible for building this great nation.  How quickly their efforts fade away.  The following are a few observations and points discussed that have lead our nation
to this point in history.  They are also a formula repeated in history as to how to destroy a nation.

  1. Become prosperous.  For many who have reaped the benefits of hard
    work and financial rewards, success leads to a growing appetite for more.  I am reminded of John D Rockefeller’s famous quote when asked “How much is enough?”  He replied “Just a little bit more.”  We get sucked into a life that craves the next deal and indulges in work to refuel on the self-satisfaction and pride that comes with success.  The priorities of life become out of balance and relationships suffer.  For our family we justify our choices by trading time with our family for the responsibility of providing for our family.  If we are really successful we are pleased leave our children without a need to work.  This privilege is often wasted and destruction is soon to follow.
  2. Destroy the family.  If you cut off the head the body will die.  There are many ways to “cut off the head or remove the father as the head of the family.” The pursuit of success keeps him at work and is easily justified because he thinks he is meeting his families’ needs. Let him realize financial success and distract his attention to enjoy travel, golf, pursue hobbies, or chase the lusts of the flesh.  Give him easy access to drugs, alcohol, and pornography to provide a temporary escape on a path that is a slippery slope to a tragic addiction.  Confuse his role and responsibility as the leader of the family.  Make it easy and socially acceptable to abdicate his responsibility as spiritual leader, moral compass, and role model to others.  (media, culture, celebrity, athletes, school/government)
  3. Eliminate religion and moral standards.  Convince the society that there are no moral absolutes and that free thinking and expression is to be valued above all else.  No one person’s ideas or morals are above another’s.  The result is a society that lacks self-governance and requires more laws and justifies more government involvement to determine what is socially acceptable.
  4. Educate to the lowest common denominator.  We cannot leave any child behind so we will slow down the progress and restrict the learning of all to accommodate those that are the slowest.
  5. Remove the incentive to work.  Convince the society that it is only fair
    that all men shall have a equal standard of living and it is acceptable to take
    from those with more to give to those with less. Creating a society that penalizes
    hard work and entitles the masses to accept a mediocre security over the risk
    of failure in striving to achieve higher aspirations. Once you have removed the
    incentive to work, hope of a better future will disappear, creativity will die
    with hope, and financial ruin will soon follow.

If the first 5 have not ruined your country then leave the borders open and let foreign languages and cultures blend in with your own and call it diversity.  Simply forget or take for granted the sacrifice that our forefathers made to win and defend our homeland.

Sound familiar?  Certainly there are too many factors to list contributing to the fall of a nation, but this is a pretty good list and history has proven these to be true.  It was interesting to hear Britain’s prime minister’s comments regarding the recent riots in London.  He said “I have said before that there is a major problem in our society with
children growing up not knowing the difference between right and wrong.  This is not about poverty, it’s about culture. A culture that glorifies violence, shows disrespect to authority, and says everything about rights but nothing about responsibilities.”

So what are we to do?  Don’t give up.  There is too much at stake.  This took a couple of
generations to get to this point and can be corrected.  Seek the mercy, grace, direction, and blessing of the almighty God in prayer.  As leaders of your family and community take personal responsibility for standing up for truth and teaching truth to your children. Consider and write down a vision or picture of  what a successful family and community look like and begin making decisions and taking the actions to lead your family and
community to that vision.  Fathers take back the responsibility and commitment to lead your family and much of the rest will follow.  The enemy set his sights on the family and has targeted fathers.  It is the fathers that can restore peace and unity to the family.  It is the fathers of our families that can teach right from wrong and lead a community, city, state, and country.  We can learn from many nations before us that once America blesses God by obeying His instruction, God’s blessing will be on our land. So what are you to do?  Start today.  Get yourself on the right course and turn from your old ways, seek God and His truth.  Then begin being the leader that God called you to be at home.

2 Chronicles 7:14  “My people who are called by My name humble
themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I
will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

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Using Unmet Desires to Teach Your Kids Patience, Creativity, Work, and the Value of a Dollar

Posted on August 6, 2011 by admin

Teaching Kids the Value of Work and a Dollar

In the age of easy credit we live in a culture that has the ability to get whatever they want whenever they want it.  What happened to the old fashioned piggy bank where you saved your nickels, dimes, and quarters when you found something you really wanted.  It may take weeks or months to finally save up enough money to buy that “thing”.  I remember finding the frame of a go-cart in the buffalo bayou.  I had always wanted a go-cart, but could not afford one.  I remember cleaning it up, making a few parts, and scraping together what money I could earn to buy the parts I needed.  Following months of piecing the go-cart together I remember I needed a centrifugal clutch and chain to complete the project and it cost $30.00.  Without transportation I not only had to save up the money, but find a time where my parents could take me across town to the lawnmower shop where I purchased the clutch. 

There is nothing better than an unmet desire to teach your kids the value of working for a dollar and patience.  Inspired by YouTube my son downloaded a trial version of video editing software, Aftereffects.  He really enjoyed playing with the editing software, but the trial would soon be over and the price was more than $300.  Wanting to earn money we discussed various projects that he could do to earn the money.  I told him that I would match whatever he earned, but it could not include allowance or birthday money.  I suggested that he put flyers together to clean calcium stains that many of our neighbors have around their swimming pools.  He put a really nice flyer together and offered to do free demonstrations.  While housesitting he noticed the calcium stains on a neighbors tile and took the initiative to clean a small section.  Upon their return he was hired to do the project.  The project will cover more than the value of the software and teach a valuable lesson.   Desire motivated creativity and effort to create work where he could earn money.  There are lots of valuable life lessons here.  Motivation, Creativity, Effort, Work, and Earning money.  Many of the things our kids need to learn. 

I know you love your kids and want to give them their every want.  Next time they have this “thing” they can’t live without resist the temptations to buy and use it as an opportunity to teach them life lessons of patience, creativity, work, and the satisfaction of earning the money to buy that “thing”.

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You Are Building Your Legacy Everyday

Posted on July 30, 2011 by admin

Building Family Memories

What is the legacy that you wish to leave your children?  Is it a good education, a nice home, a good work ethic, a prestigious name, money, or something else?  Have you ever thought to consider the legacy you are building for your children?  There are many legacies that you can leave, but the most powerful and influential will be the accumulated experiences you share together and memories of how you lived your life.  Reflecting on your life and legacy you are building for your children will keep you grounded and is a thought that sometimes scares me.  What am I teaching my kids by leaving our home to exercise at 5:00 a.m. and not returning from work until 6:30 – 7:00 p.m.?  What does that teach them about what is most important to me?  Our kids watch everything we do and in many cases will model or pick up our habits both good and bad.  How many have justified their dedicated pursuit of career success saying that they wanted to provide good things to their families.  How many dads work all week and feel they need to be rewarded by playing golf on Saturday or Sunday leaving the family to their own activities.  Our careers, our debts, our homes, our hobbies, our service activities, and our selfish desires all compete with our family for our attention and affection.  God has given us a very brief period in time to raise our children.  What we do with our time will absolutely set the course for their lives and communicate what is of highest importance to us. 

 What do you want to your kids to think of when they remember you?  Think about where you spend your time and where you spend your money.  As the leaders of our family where we invest our time and money is the foundation of the legacy that we are leaving our children.  For me the most valuable treasures that I can leave our children is lasting family memories.  Memories that are created through daily interaction, focused time, or family vacations.  When my kids were in the 3 to 7 year range Thursday night was “dad night”.  I would do simple activities that lasted 30 minutes to an hour with each of our three children and rotated each week.  We went out for frozen yogurt, a bike ride, roller skating, or Funny Face Pancakes at the I-Hop.  It didn’t really matter what we did, but it was one on one time that each kid got with dad.  We lived in our home for 15 years and still had a plastic slide in our dining room.  Each year we made decisions as to where we were going to spend our money.  Dining room furniture…or…family trip to Disney?  Dining room furniture…or…teach our kids to snow ski in Colorado?  In my book Good to Great Families I ask the reader to list all the adventures, major milestones to celebrate, and memories to create with their family.  Then create a list of years that your kids are in your home and begin to fill in the schedule.  It’s amazing how quickly you fill up the time when planning with a limited budget and limited time.  This simple exercise can help guide your plans to create a legacy of memories and experiences and reveal how short the time we have. 

So, what is the legacy you are leaving with your children?  Don’t put it off and wait until tomorrow to begin creating your legacy.  Make your time reflect the priorities that are truly important to you.  Spend your money on the things that reflect the priorities of your heart.  In the end your family, friends, co-workers and employees will recognize and respect your choices and commitment to the things you hold dear.  There is nothing wrong with working hard and pursuing the rewards that you can share with your family, but remember what they value most is time with you.  Take a moment and think about the legacy you are building.  Make a list of things you want to be remembered for, the adventures you want to share and memories to create, go and create your legacy!

p.s.  I would love to hear from you regarding this or any other post. 

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The Light of the World that Darkness Cannot Overcome

Posted on July 17, 2011 by admin
 

John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men

 

Light is used throughout the Bible to illustrate the characteristics of God and symbolize truth.  Light is used to contrast darkness or evil.  It is used to guide His chosen people and inspire us to become as lights.  In John:1-9, John the Baptist describes Jesus as the “light of all mankind” and as the light shining in the darkness that the darkness does not overcome.  In John 12:46 Jesus says of Himself “I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.”

What is most amazing is that in Matthew 5:14 Jesus tells us as His disciples that “You are the light of the world.”  We, as His disciples, become the representation of the light God and Jesus in the world that we operate.  We are His ambassador and representative to shine in the darkness.  It is we that are charged to work by the power of the Holy Spirit to illuminate the hearts and minds of men.  It is we that, by representing Truth, become the light to the world that overcomes darkness and glorifies our Father in heaven.  We(you and me) are charged to continue the very work of Jesus. 

What a powerful charge and  a w e s o m e  responsibility!  As a follower of Jesus do you recognize the power of the light within you?  When you enter a room, Jesus is there.  When you make contact with a friend or stranger, Jesus is there.  When you pray for the sick, call out evil, or teach of His Truth, Jesus is in you and with you.  If this realization does not inspire you to be a better father, mother, friend, boss, employee, servant or leader nothing will.  Think about the contacts, relationships and opportunities that you have to be light in your family, community or workplace.  Jesus tells his disciples

John 10:7-8 “And as you go, preach, saying, ”The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.  Freely you received, freely give.”   

I am reminded of the WWJD bracelets of years ago and am challenged again to think on What Would Jesus Do because that is EXACTLY what He charges us to do as followers of Him.  Jesus says in Matthew 28:18  “All authority has been given to Me in Heaven and on earth.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations”.  ALL AUTHORITY is given to Jesus and Jesus commands us as His disciple to go, preach, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out demons. 

 If we live to be obedient this command given with “all authority”, how does it change your life?  How does it change your actions as a leader in your family or business?  How does it change your actions as you relate to friends and strangers? 

 May the Light and Love of Christ go with you always.

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Small Adventures To Create Lasting Family Memories

Posted on July 4, 2011 by admin

Teaching Kids To Try New Things

Have you ever been pulled in by one of the mall kiosk vendors to try some miracle product?  Normally I would simply walk past the invitations without eye contact.  However this time I was engaged by Rico, the kiosk salesman offering to heal all my pains.  I couldn’t resist, I stopped and he promptly put an electronic massager on my shoulders and asked me if I had a sore back or other injuries.  According to Rico, this massager could heal anything.  I told him 3 times I was not going to buy the product and before I could escape he cut the price in half and added in a second unit for free and I was hustled  for a gimmicky product that I did not need.  

I have an interest in small businesses and during my visit asked about the kiosk lease, sales, margins, staffing, and challenges to reel in customers.  There was a time I encouraged Drew to practice his street magic at the mall for tips and suggested that Rico add a street magician or have my other son Ben bring his sugar glider come help draw in and hustle mall shoppers.  So with Rico’s invitation and offer to teach my boys the finer art of capturing and hustling mall shoppers Drew packed up his magic, Ben put his sugar glider in his pocket and we were off to the mall.  I don’t know that either Drew or Ben would have done this solo, but as a team they could overcome their nervousness and anxiety of this new experience.  I promised we would not stay more than an hour and that if it was a bomb we could leave early.  So what happened?

Jasper Goes to the Mall

The sugar glider was a hit with the mall shoppers until he glided to the floor and scampered across the mall causing brief terror for those who thought they were watching a rat run at them.  Both men and women screamed and hid for cover in the nearby Express store.  I would have never imagined the scene of a grown man cowering in terror over such a little animal.  After that scare we were careful and could bring in lots of curious mall shoppers by keeping him crawling on our arms and shoulders.  Drew’s magic was a hit with Rico and the surrounding kiosk sales people, but not so much with the mall shoppers as he was not comfortable recruiting them to come watch a trick.  Drew did attempt to do a trick where he puts a cell phone in a balloon for a boy waiting on his father and the trick failed to work the first two times.  He did get it to work on a smaller phone, but the trick was ruined.  Drew was a little embarrassed, but was able to shrug it off.

All in all the trip was a success!  I was so proud to see them try something new, conquer their fears, and create a memory that we will share for a lifetime.  We could have passed another day playing video games or hanging around the house.  Instead we had a fun adventure together, got out of our comfort zone, learned it was not the end of the world when a trick did not work, and found we do not want to be a kiosk vendor in the mall.  Find the everyday opportunities to expose your kids to new adventures and experiences where they can stretch their courage, take a safe risk, and create a memory that all will keep for a lifetime.

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