Most people reading that headline will shiver at the thought of network marketing and some of you will quit reading at this sentence just because of the word. For those of you that have braced yourselves for rest of the story, I thank you and promise there will be no opportunity being pitched for you to buy into the next big thing in this post. You see my experience with network marketing was probably similar to many of you.  I remember going with my mother as a kid to go pick up her Amway orders from the local distributor who also happened to be a long time family friend across town.  I knew nothing about the business model itself, all I knew is all the products in the house from laundry detergent to deodorant and toothpaste all had the same  packaging and were not the name brands everyone else was using. Many, many years later I was introduced to another product that contained a bunch of juices blended together and well I drank the Kool-Aid and was sold.  I learned everything I could from the people who were successful in network marketing.  For several years I was that guy that everyone ran from when they saw me coming because I had something new to sell them.  The funny thing was I was not a people person but yet if I believed in a product I could sell it to my grandmother without blinking an eye.

A night of worship has proven to be more of a blessing than every anticipated. As a music aficionado I am particular as to the concerts that I choose to attend and usually will try to get VIP, early access seats when possible as I don’t enjoy long lines and they tend to make the event more memorable. So was the case this weekend as I had procured VIP meet and greet early access tickets to see The Rhett Walker Band in concert.  I had tickets for both myself and my wife and we had planned to attend.  Apparently there were some different decisions being made as my bride fell ill and was unable to attend.  Out of the kindness of her heart and against the resistance of mine she convinced me to attend the show on my own. “I won’t be caged to the status quo. I’m not afraid to stand and say what people won’t.” -Rhett Walker Click To Tweet I am one of those married men that do not have many other male friends and I do not usually go anywhere social without my wife in tow, I mean by my side. However this evening I decided to go anyway, and figured I would just give away her ticket to someone and bless them in kind.  After calling everyone I thought might enjoy a  night out I ended up going to the show by myself with two tickets in hand. The evening started out as any normal show, I arrived at the […]

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As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. – Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpens iron is a common phrase when looked at in the natural sense can be misleading.  Iron as it exists cannot truly sharpen other iron as they are of the same consistency and strength. Before you all stop reading and run me out on a rail let me continue… When iron is of the same density, just like any other substance it will not wear down or sharpen its counterpart.  Therefore, and as is intended in the scripture, there would need to be differing levels of density,strength and texture for iron to sharpen iron. The same is in the case of men, we can sharpen each other in these ways: Mentoring Spiritual guidance Sharing experience Learning from mistakes Being a sounding board Trust confidant All of these and more can be accomplished without diminishing our character or causing one to be superior or inferior to the other.  As men, if we are strong enough to admit our own shortcomings, we provide ourselves with the opportunity to learn and grow with others. The challenges we face today is that many men were raised with the idea of asking for help is just not what we do.  The men that gave us this advice however were of a different generation. This generation was already unknowingly sharpening each others character in the form of things like the military, all boys schools, discipline in the home and at school, church communities, rotary and other men […]

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