Ben Pettit

What is Wednesday you ask?

I grew up in a minister’s family. Half of my life my Dad was bi-vocational, what does that mean you say? It means he did a full time job with part time pay. We never had money, so what? What does money matter anyway? I mean sure, everyone wants nice things, even me. BUT, how often do we let it consume us?

My prayer for myself and you the reader is this… That we would become consumed with giving every thing we have away.

Rick Warren from his enormous books sales has paid back his salary from Saddleback for the past 25 years and established 3 foundations. He now gives away 90% of his income and lives off of 10%. You would never hear about that in our liberal media though. You would rather hear slanders about pastors or hit and miss TV evangelist who are filthy rich.

So all that to say: You don’t have to have a lot of money, to do a lot of good. Sure Rick Warren has done some great stuff with his money, but who cares? What I mean is, good, good for him. Now what can we do better? It’s Wednesday, what can you do today, Wednesday, to better someone’s life? How can you love better? How can you give more? Who and how can you pour into people, today, Wednesday?

Here is a short list of some random ideas off the top of my head this morning:

• Take someone out to lunch and encourage them.
• Buy someone’s cup of coffee and have a meaningful conversation.
• Send your wife or girl friend flowers just to say this: It’s Wednesday and I love you.
• Buy or even better make, your husband or boy friends favorite dinner tonight.
• Visit the grandparents that you have been putting off seeing.
• Mow someone’s lawn for them.
• Grab the coffee pot at work on your break. Walk around cube world offer some coffee and an encouraging word.

Feel free to add any thoughts or ideas of your own as comments. I’d love to hear them.

Lord, I pray that we would put ourselves last. That we would fully become your servant so that others would see your love and compassion screaming through our bones. Lord let us constantly be advancing your Kingdom. We want to be vessels of your truth. Give us a hunger for your word like we have never felt before. The words of your mouth sustain us today. It’s Wednesday, today, Wednesday, speak through us, work through us, let us walk away from Wednesday changed.

UPDATE: I didn’t listen to Point of Grace’s country  song “How You Live” before I wrote this, but if you haven’t heard it, it makes for a nice invitational hymn.

Well yesterday I posted about what success is in my opinion. Here are my TOP 5 things success is NOT.

1. Success is NOT making a lot of money. Even marketers believe this. Enjoy where you are, at every moment. If your not happy making 35k a year. You won’t be happy making 70k or a 100k a year. Money buys things, it does not buy happiness. As a college student I was lucky enough to have incredible college jobs all 5 years. I always had money. It was what drove me. I thought having a lot of money would make me super happy. It didn’t. I remember sitting in my apartment one night lonely as can be, thinking, what is all this for any way?
2. Success is NOT being well known. I’m a net worker by heart. I haven’t always been able to do it, but these days I feel right at home with a room full of people that I don’t know. Although at the same time, I’ve remembered days in my life where my contact list was completely full yet I had no one I thought I could talk to. So I just sat there, bored and lonely. Make meaningful relationships and have meaningful conversations.
3. Success is NOT boastful. We often think because of our idea was the one chosen that we are just “the man”. So far from the truth. If your idea is chosen at work, great job, good for you! But, the true success is having your idea chosen, making a big sale, getting a raise… and then staying humble.
4. Success is NOT built overnight. I’ll let you follow the link and think to yourself about this one.
5. Success does NOT complain. I’m not even going to elaborate on this one but I will tell you a story. I have a friend who’s father bought her a brand new car. She didn’t have to pay a dime and instantly the car, title, and all was hers. The car cost about $20k. She then proceeded to complain that the car did not have the highest luxury package and she did not even want it.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

- Winston Churchill