StillwatersIowa

Do you enjoy what you do? Are you good at it? What are your strengths and talents? Are strengths and talents the same thing? I think talent is God given and strength is something you build on and try and improve at. When you look in the mirror what do you see? Do you see someone that is adventurous, energetic, driven, and outgoing? Or do you see yourself as more levelheaded, focused, loyal, and responsible? When others observe you what do they see? Do they see you as kind, caring, and giving? Do they see you as using your strengths and talents just for yourself or for others as well? How does God see you? He sees you in a positive light, with a purpose, and lots of potential, because He made you what you are and He doesn't make junk. There are days when our work looks like a mountain and the jobs we thought we were good at feels like we're pulling a load of corn uphill.   Then there are days when it feels like we just got on a new set of tracks and ...

As we travel through life we see the necessity of leadership at home, at school, at church, in business, in our communities, and in our country. A leader has a set of values making him or her who they are. A leader creates a vision and has the ability to share that vision with others. Accomplishing that vision starts with setting goals.   Leaders have the ability to handle conflict. They tackle the issue in an open and positive way. They genuinely listen. They have wisdom. Wisdom is different than knowledge. Knowledge is acquired and is an accumulation of facts. Wisdom is God given and is the ability to use those facts in an appropriate way. An important characteristic of a good leader is humility. A good leader will gladly help with the mundane and dirty jobs behind the scenes without recognition. Humility is not inability or weakness. Humility is idling horsepower. Christ was a perfect example of humility when He was ...

You have heard folks say "Time changes things". I have said many times "You can either take change by the hand or it will take you by the throat". We get comfortable with the way things are. We get in a rut. It's like our feet are stuck in a Foosball table. Sometimes we can't even remember why we were on the Foosball table to start with. Many things we can't change even if we wanted to, like the weather. Worrying about things we can't change is a waste of time. Our weekend rain is a welcome change and a huge blessing. There are things we can change. Change is beneficial if it helps accomplish our purpose. We change the way we do things to make them more efficient and productive. My friend Todd runs a tire shop. We talked about how times have changed. He said gov't regulations won't allow him to hire young kids that want to work. He said by the time the gov't says they are old enough they either don't know how or don...

As harvest wraps up here in southern Iowa most all of our crops are under roof. This picture of over two million bushels of soybeans piled outside was taken at a grain elevator in North Dakota. With the rain patterns shifting farther north the northern part of the midwest has been able to grow more soybeans than their storage can handle. This "hill of beans" would be worth over thirty million dollars. I have heard folks say, "What I do doesn't amount to a hill of beans." Although I have heard that "amount to a hill of beans" since I was a kid I have no idea why we use that comment to describe something of little value. Most folks are not distinguished by great accomplishments. Rather they are measured by all the small things they do on a continual basis. Success is not defined by how much a person does. Success is defined by how well and how willing that person takes advantage of the opportunities God has given him. You don't have ...