• Don’t let your ministry, workplace, and life go faster than your resources.
• When you’re growing faster than you’ve got money, you’re about to have problems

The simple ramifications are massive. Broke churches, non-profits and business cannot lead well or fulfill their vision. Yet, few people want to deal with this reality. It takes money to live and stay on mission.

Later today I head down to Atlanta.  I had scheduled some meetings for H.E.L.P. a while back, in Atlanta, without realizing Catalyst was at the same time.  H.E.L.P.’s team member Scott Wade is doing photog for Catalyst, and H.E.L.P.’s Africa Director,  Steven, will be there (he and his family head back to Cape Town on Sunday) and one of our advisory members Charles Lee will be in Atlanta.  Of course, many others friends from around the country will be present too. This is definitely a win!

Moving forward…

• I’m not a big conference kind-of-person, they make me nervous.  But, I love to learn and I think it will be beneficial for me to sit and listen.  I can only go one day, but that one day is jammed packed.
• I went to Catalyst once, roughly 10 years ago; It’s kind of surreal to return a decade later… Time flies!
• I love connecting, hearing stories and learning from practitioners.  These are men and women who get up daily and make things happen!
• Partnerships are forged when God’s people come together.  In my opinion, this is the critical piece to why I feel conferences are worth investing in.
• Moments of solidarity are vital.  We all need those moments when we realize we’re not the only ones struggling, we don’t have all the right answers, and we don’t make all the right decisions, yet God still uses us through His grace and mercy!
• We will laugh also.  Again, this is a beautiful thing.

Thoughts on progress and pace.

• Sometimes, the slower you go…the more productive you are. Speed can be an enemy of longevity! Pace is vital.
• Learn who you are (strengths), what you’re called to do (passion/vocation) and who you are called to do it with (community/team). Then show up everyday and work hard.
• If you love what you do, then everything else becomes easier. If you don’t love what you do…you need to create a bridge from your present reality, to where you want to go in the future.
• Most people never create that bridge… They fear risk and failure.
• Creating that bridge is HARD. Usually, it means great sacrifice for a short season; Early morning or late nights.
• Work on creating that bridge on your down times. Yes, that stinks for a season. But trust me, it’s not has bad as hating your current job for life.
• Non-profits: This is why we need a great volunteer system in place. We can help create that bridge for people, and they can help us accomplish our mission in the short-term!
• Here’s a thought: If you feel overwhelmed ALL the time. Then you’re probably doing too much. If you wake up in the morning and your confused on where to start, you’re probably doing too much.
• No matter how much you love or hate your job, no matter how passionate you are… Most everyone will have moments where they want to quit. It’ s easy to get lost in the chaos and not see a way forward. It takes both courage and wisdom not to quit.
• Quitters usually quit, because they failed to do one of two things: 1) Make progress. 2) Find a sustainable pace.

The Haitian Sky

I’m driven. Probably a workaholic. I want everything to work well. I spend much of my attention on what needs to be “fixed” with H.E.L.P.!  This week has been taxing. I’m exhausted!

Very rare do I pause and take a moment to appreciate all the amazing things God has done through the H.E.L.P. tribe.

• Tonight many Haitian families will go to bed in their own home, not a tent.
• 30 orphans will sleep in a safe home tonight, and not under a tarp.
• Tomorrow hundreds of kids will attend school in Haiti and Africa because of our support.
• Hundreds of kids will go to sleep tonight with full stomachs, good health-care and a loving community.
• Communities will wake up in the morning and have access to clean water.
• Tomorrow many people will wake up and go to work and provide for their family through our projects.
• This Sunday churches will gather, worship, and celebrate.
• Young entrepreneurs will soon be launching businesses.
• Pastors are bring trained.
• Non-profits, churches and denominations are collaborating together and serving each other.

Monday is here. I hope I have the energy this week to be productive and focused. Lots to do after being in Haiti last week.

• Another great week in Haiti. I was able to blog about it here, here, and here. 
• We had a great team. Humble, hard-working and passionate.  Thankful for our partners from NewSong Church, Millwood  Baptist Church and folks like Adam Maass and Bailey Cordero.
• Thankful for Dan King, who led our social media initiative when we were in Haiti. He did a phenomenal job!
• Love hanging with Troy Livesay and Junior Bataille. Haiti is blessed to have these two men and their families on her side.
• It took me 20 hours to get from Port au Prince to Raleigh last Friday. Travel agent mistake and American Airline delays!
• FYI: We had some “big vision” conversations in Haiti with one of our partners. I feel so inadequate as we try to flesh out development work. If we do this right, we will help 60,000 Haitians get access to proper healthcare.  I just keep trusting God and praying for provision and wisdom and take it one step at a time. Change comes inch by inch.
• When I leave for a week, two things happen: 1) I get behind on work. 2) I create more work. #sigh
• This week, everything changes. Fall is starting to emerge slowly. Cooler mornings…football is on TV and kids head back to school. Which means I now officially have a child in middle school. Unbelievable! That said, I’m ready for Fall rhythms to return!
• I love my family. I don’t think people know how much they have sacrificed these past two years as we’ve launched H.E.L.P.
• I started reading Guy Kawasaki’s book Enchantment. Some really good, practical wisdom in that book.
• If you’re exhausted or feeling burned-out, watch this quick clip by Rob Bell. Even if you don’t like or agree with Rob, he throws down some good wisdom.
• So grateful for leaders like John Maxwell, Rick Warren and Bill Hybles.  In my early Christian years, I read everything by these leaders. Then, I became critical of their ministries for a season in my life. I’m thankful that God showed me grace. This video clip truly reflects the character and capability of Bill Hybles as he dealt with the recent controversy at the Leadership Summit. These three men truly mentored me through their life, writings and teachings. The impact they have made is beyond my understanding. Here is what I truly love: It seems that they’re all going to finish stronger as men and leaders. Longevity counts!
• Grace is truly amazing. Please friends, ALWAYS try to find the best in people. The world is cruel, the church most show deep love, even when we disagree.
• I good friend recently asked me to endorse their book. That is a true blessing. Sometimes I still feel like the kid who grew up fatherless, in a trailer park in East Stockton, California. God saved me, and the local church restored me and provided community, shelter, family and direction! Never stop believing in the power of the local church.

• Six Ways to Supercharge Your Writing by Copyblogger: Very good article. First point is what makes or breaks a writer/blogger.
• 10% Rule of Life: This is really important. I fail at it often!
• Seth Godin video on the lizard brian: Love Seth’s thoughts. Fear drives most of us to stay complacent and comfortable.
• Do you suck at presentations? Here’s why! 
• If you’re an intern, here’s some good wisdom! 
• We Have to Fix E-Mail: I’m desperate to rethink email. This article helps!
• Pray for Haiti today!
• Great story on what Evangelicals do around the world.

• {Video} Simon Sinek: If You Don’t Understand People, You Don’t Understand Business.
• 25 Ways to Engage Your Neighbor: Josh Reeves guests posts on my friend Jonathan Dodson’s blog.
• Amen Pastor Rick: The Church is the worlds most powerful weapon against Aids! 
• Thanks Tom Ward  for sending me this article: 9 Things Successful People Do Differently.
• CNN: 3 Voices: How to end modern-day Slavery. Our friend Rob Morris gives some great thoughts.
• AMAZING Video: Ocean Sky!
• Evernote Geeks, this is amazing.
• Some great thoughts on fundraising.
• Leadership = Humility!
• The Creative Process. 

Photo: Taken w/ iPhone: My Friday Workspace.

Finishing Well.

Missional people, in general, thrive to take advantage of time. The Bible tells us to number our days. God has given you and me a mission to accomplish, a calling to live out and gifts and passions to move forward and see fruit through our actions.The question is this: How does our calling become tangible; living, and real? When I first started  H.E.L.P. I use to agonize over this. For MANY months I had little tangible evidence of God working. I was focused on the stateside operations: funding, legal, etc.  I wanted desperately to H.E.L.P. our friends in Zimbabwe who we’re suffering deeply. That was the reason we started H.E.L.P.

I lost sleep, worried and felt guilty.  But, I realized something along the way….

Change happens through focused work that is concise and intentional. The ONE thing we all share in this world is time, we all draw from the same bucket, no one has an advantage.  How we leverage our time to fulfill our callings is determined by our willingness to steward our time well. And if we do, we will see the life-altering fruit from our daily actions and work ethics.

Focused, intentional work has a snow-ball-like effect. The best decision you may ever make is to realize the power of showing up each day and working hard. This is what separates the doers from the dreamers.

I really enjoyed Brad’s recent blog post, so many nuggets in there. We all have to finish. We have to complete and “ship” work.

Write, edit and post = work done on this blog post.
Pray, study and preach = work done and lives impacted.
Storyboard, design, code, publish = work done and a website that is live.

And this is the importance of Friday. If we only have five days of work,  we need to ensure that each Friday we finish strong, we focus hard and we work well.

On Friday’s, it’s easy to think about the weekend, it’s easy to begin to slack-off, it’s easy to push things to Monday. But, when it’s all said and done, it’s better to finish strong and then rest deeply on the weekends.

Every Friday we get a chance to practice the discipline of finishing. So today, let’s finish strong!

• Getting business from Speeches: If you speak for a living, here’s some good advice!
• How to use Google  +: Some great tips on how to get started. You can find me on google plus here. 
• Turning Ideas Into Reality: I may have shared this before, but it’s worth reading it again.
• Without Systems Your Vision is Just a Dream: If you have a vision, you need to have systems to support your vision.
• The Creative Loop: Movement: Creatives or “doers” need to read this.
• Once again, Brad  is speaking my love language. Be a Finisher. 
• Clarity vs. Peace: Good words by Mark Batterson.
• My friend Mike Rusch has a great post on POTSC. Go check it out.
• Are world-changers burning out? Good thoughts by Seth Haines.

This weekend I took my family to the Outer Banks for a quick trip. We had a blast and created many wonderful memories.

One of my main roles in life, one of the key areas of mission that I have to focus on is my family.
Yes, it seems so simple…but it’s not. Reality is this: It’s quite easy to take your family for granted…to just assume they will be around, that they’re okay.

Families fall apart because of this attitude and never achieve their true missional potential.

As a husband, it’s my job to lead and nurture my family. It’s easy to ignore this and to focus on all the other things that we must do. We all have demands that can distract us from this mission.

I’m also convinced that the best way we can change our world and make it a place that reflects Jesus’ more and more is by focusing on raising healthy missional families. Both nuclear and extended.

Here are some practical thoughts:

• Be intentional: Focus on “doing” the work that needs to be done, to create the culture that is needed to raise a healthy family.
• Time: You can never spend too much time with your family.
• Memories: Create memories, always. Big ones, small ones.
• Forgive often: Missional families will always be ready to apologize, and accept an apology.
• Let the Kingdom create your values, not dominate culture. Culture is NOT creating healthy families, so don’t play by it’s rules. Lead with a “gospel lens” instead!
• Be a cheerleader: Always encourage your family. They get “beat-down” enough by society.
• Home is a place of peace: We all need a place to rest, relax, recharge and find comfort.
• Home is a place of mission: We also need to use our home as a way to serve others. Don’t ever underestimate the power of the table and community. Missional families do life with others – always!
• Good times and bad times: Don’t panic, life has ups and downs. Create a culture that understands this fact, and adjust along the way.
• Have fun: Lot’s and lots of fun. Smile, laugh, play, pray.

The Marlow’s spent three months in NW Arkansas this past Spring. We saw many dear friends who are raising amazing families who are on mission together. It was truly beautiful to see and experience these families, first hand.

Let’s do the world a favor, and raise families that will live on mission, care for each other and also give back to our world.