iWork4Him PowerThought

iWork4Him, iWork4Him, iWork4Him, this is the mantra we've been speaking into your life for the last 11 years. It's what we needed to learn. It's the reality we needed to be in touch with. We needed to understand that our work matters to God. We need to understand that our workplace is our place of ministry. We need to understand that our workplace is our mission field, full of lost and hopeless people who need to meet Jesus. It's time to take it to the next level. New Year, new challenge. God wants you to go so much deeper with Him. So we need to switch from iWork4Him to i work with Him. God & you are involved in the details of your daily work life. But we have to invite Him in. It's no longer going to work for Him; it's going to work with Him, right where He is involved in the people's lives around you. Don't miss the uniqueness of this calling.

2024 is bound to be filled with awesome adventures with the Lord. There are so many things to look forward to. What is it that the Lord has placed on your heart to look forward to? I have been praying for years that I could just hear my heavenly father's voice in my daily interactions and my transactions so that no matter what I'm doing, I'm doing it with him. I spent many years working for God, but in 2024, I want to complete the transition to working with God, to seeing where he is at work And working with him at what he is trying to accomplish. I want to notice people before they notice me. I want to love the least of these and be an example for others of what it means to be a great husband, father, and son. Set your sites on 2024 and what God has in store for you. Happy New Year.

What am I looking forward to in 2024? More adventure, more challenges, more time with my kids and grandkids. More time crafting and more time in my garden. I want more time with my mom and maybe some vacation time with Jim. What I know that I'll get in 2024 is more stretching by my heavenly father. I know I will get More time with him because that's what I need. I want 2024 to be the year where I shift my thinking from always completing a to-do list as iWork4Him to resting and abiding in him and listening for his still, small voice as I learn to work with him. What about you? What is your goal for 2024? Will you learn to work with him this next year? Happy New Year!

Coming to the end of 2023, do I have any regrets? No. I learned in 2023 that regrets or shame cannot define my life. Regrets and shame come from the enemy, and that's not how my heavenly father wants me to view my life. Did I make some mistakes? Absolutely. Did I screw up many things? Absolutely. Did I love my wife like Christ loves the church every day? Nope, but I wanted to. Did I love every person God brought before me? Nope, but I wanted to. Did I live my life in a way that pointed people to Jesus? Most of the time. That, to me, is a victory. 2023 will go down in the annals of "Jim's history" as a year where God showed himself not in my activity but in my obedience. Happy New Year!

As I look back on 2023, I see that God used adversity in my life to take me from who I am to who he can use more effectively. He taught me how to wait, he taught me how to abide, and he kept reminding me that I needed to do more resting. I struggle with all these things as Jim and I tried to learn them together, but 2023 will always go down in our lives as a year when we learned just to be with God. When you look back on 2023, what will it remind you of? What was the one thing God was trying to work on in your life all year long? Whatever it is, make sure you learn it so 2024 can be a whole new adventure. Happy New Year!

We are coming up to the new year. Which means we're coming to the end of another year. Are we going to celebrate both or just one or the other? I think we need to do both this week. Today, I want to focus on how God has done amazing things in my life this year. He loved me too much to leave me as I was. He stretched me, he taught me, he loved me, and he guided me. As I come to the end of 2023, I recognize that I'll never be the same guy I was in 2022. I love my Heavenly Father for that, and I can't wait to see what he has for me in 2024. What about you? Are you grateful for 2023 and looking forward to 2024? I know I am. Happy New Year.

It's the last workday before Christmas, and all through the house are Christmas presents wrapped and hidden in closets, hanging out with a mouse. Did you know that some people won't have gifts this Christmas? Not only will they not have presents but they'll also be alone on Christmas day. As you consider your Christmas plans, do they include someone new? Before leaving your workplace today, make sure that nobody you work with will be alone on Christmas day. If you find out somebody will be alone, would you invite them over for Christmas dinner? It could be the most impactful thing you do for 2023. The greatest gift you can give this year to a co-worker may be the gift of your friendship. Wrap that up with a bow and give someone a very Merry Christmas.

You know, I'm not a very good listener. I mean to be a good listener, but I get distracted pretty easily. I find that when I'm not being a very good listener to my wife Martha, she gets frustrated. She would like me to be a good listener all the time. And I would like to be a good listener all the time. I am working on it, but it sure doesn't come easy. Do you know why? Cause I like to TALK! Did you know that being a good listener can be a great gift to somebody? Every day, we work alongside people who are hurting. Some of them are lost and hopeless, too. When we ask them how they're doing, one of the greatest gifts we can give them is to listen to their answer. You can give this gift all year long, but start this week by being a good listener at work. Merry Christmas.

One of the greatest gifts we can give others, is to be present with them. Not give them presents, although everybody loves to get gifts, but to be present with them. So often, we're so busy this time of year; We are too busy for conversations. We're too busy to sit down with people. We spend so much time looking for presents for them that we miss the opportunity to be present with them. Jesus taught us to be present with them. That is the gift they need. Take time to sit down over a cup of coffee, hot chocolate, or, in Jim's case, maybe an eggnog. Being present with people could be one of the greatest Christmas gifts they get this year. Find a way to be present with somebody from work this week, and Merry Christmas.

Christmas is an incredibly influential season in our country. People ramp up and get prepared for Christmas months in advance. But when it comes right down to it, and we're cramming through the malls to do our shopping, people aren't always very kind. As a believer in the workplace, can you be exceptionally kind to those you work with? Not everybody is nice this time of year, but we have everything to be excited about as believers. Christmas represents the beginning of God's rescue plan—sending his son to earth. We have everything to be grateful for and have every reason to be kind to those we work alongside. What does kindness look like in your workplace? Sometimes it's just a smile. It may be an encouraging word or some kind of other action. Be kind to those you work with. It says a lot. Merry Christmas!

This Christmas season, we, as believers in the workplace, need to be a gift to the people around us. Today, I want to talk about Love. It's hard to love everybody, but Jesus told us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. So Jesus knew it was hard to love, but He commanded us to do it anyway. Be a gift to those that you work around by loving on them. Some days, it means you might not like them, but if you pray for them, it'll be much easier for you to love them. Christmas is a celebration of an incredible demonstration of love. The least we can do is love those we work alongside. You shouldn't have to work too hard to find someone to love on at work. Merry Christmas.

Jesus said that our unity would attract others to Christ because our unity would show that Jesus came from our heavenly father. In other words, when we walk as one in the marketplace, our neighborhoods, our communities, and our country, the message is loud and clear: Jesus has transformed the lives of all these people, and they walk as one in love. It's so important that we, as workplace believers, display our love for Jesus in unity, to attract others into conversations and, eventually, a relationship with Him. Our unity is attractive. That was Jesus's idea all along. For the remainder of this year, look for ways to walk in unity with your brothers and sisters in Christ to solve your community's problems and bring Jesus-sized solutions to those who need it.

Almost 2000 years have passed since Jesus returned to heaven. In the last 500 years, denominational segregation has plagued the body of Christ. We all go to different churches on Sunday. We live in a town of about 2000 people with 15 different churches and 15 different denominations. Very little ministry is coordinated for the ministry to this small town by the leaders of those churches. There is hope because marketplace and political leaders are unifying in Christ to bring flourishing to this town. When we are unified as followers of Jesus, outside our denominational hold, we can impact our cities and communities for good. When we face the problems together, we are so much stronger and more powerful. When Christ followers unite, no weapon of the enemy can stand against us. Those weapons may be poverty, drug addiction, broken families, et cetera. Let's unite as Jesus followers and bring good to our cities.

Do you know what's great about believers? We all experience God differently. I know this because we're all different. Not one of us is the same. Jim and I got to sit down with some friends here in our small town in Missouri just the other day. We go to different churches on Sunday, yet we share a sweet fellowship in Christ. They shared some of their traditions surrounding the giving and taking of communion. While their traditions are very different than ours, the commonality is the communion. As believers in Jesus let us work hard at focusing on the things we have in common despite the efforts of denominations to split us, and focus on the things that the Bible teaches us clearly. The power of a unified church cannot be overcome. Let's find unity by celebrating the diversity of how others worship Jesus.

What has amazed me most in the last 11 years is the incredible unity in the body of Christ out in the marketplace. On Sunday, we are the most segregated, separated people on the planet. But on Monday morning, when we go to work, nobody cares about Denominations. All they care about is, "I want to hang out with and do business with people who love Jesus. I don't care that you may show your love for Jesus in a different way than I do or sing different songs on Sunday than I do. All I care is that you love Jesus." Jesus prayed for us in John 17. He prayed that we as believers would be one so that through that oneness, the world would know that God sent Jesus. In the marketplace, I see this unity. For the sake of the people in our communities, let's lay down our denominational swords and walk in Unity as we minister to their needs in the name of Jesus.

Have you ever wondered where all of the denominations in Christianity come from? I mean really, 2000 years ago, there were the Jews and the Gentiles. Today, we have 43,000 "Christian" denominations around the world. What happened? I'll tell you what happened. People. Instead of focusing on the unity Christ talked about in John 17, Christ followers throughout the centuries have focused on differences in traditions and interpretations that broke Christianity into 43,000 pieces. On Sunday morning, the church is segregated and separated. But denominations have no place in the marketplace, so it's easy to unify on the message of Jesus. Don't let your denominational commitment on Sunday get in the way of you forming solid relationships with other believers in the marketplace on Monday.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that. How do you love the Lord your God with all your strength if you spend too much time on the internet looking and experiencing things that sap your strength? That fills you with filth, that plagues you with guilt and shame. Living in this world makes it impossible to Love God to the fullest. The enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy; Jesus came to bring life so we can live it to the fullest. Does your internet surfing lead to life or death? Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your strength.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that. We are called to love the Lord our God with all our soul. What's creeping around in your soul? Is it scripture, or is it what you watched on TV last night? Is it the latest sermon you read or the pornographic videos you ingested over lunch? Is it your weekly bible study topic, or is it your deep desire to place a bet on the next race at the track? Your soul is a precious place, and our eyes are the windows to our soul. What are they seeing? Choose to protect your soul and those you work with and live with. Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your soul.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that. We are called to love the Lord our God with all our mind. Are you? What do you fill your mind with? It is so easy with the internet everywhere, both in public and private, to fill our minds with EVERYTHING but God and His Love. We stream TV at levels like never before. Because we can binge-watch anything, we fill our minds with murder, horror, and sex. Without being careful, our minds can become a playground for evil. At work and home, protect your mind so you can fill it with HIM and His word. Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your mind.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that. We are called to love the Lord our God with our hearts, but when our hearts are distracted by the evils of the internet, God can't find a place. Do you know if your heart is safe whenever you surf the web? What about your kids, your spouse, or your grandkids when they visit? At work, are the people you work with struggling with a heart addiction to internet sins like pornography and gambling? What are you doing to help protect their hearts? Are there guardrails in place to keep the internet a healthy place at work? Stop ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your heart.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that. Every day, we use the internet to do our jobs, complete our shopping, and study our bible. However, if we are not careful, the internet can lead us to pornography, inappropriate relationships, gambling addictions, and more. We think we have the willpower to resist all the daily temptations on the internet, but statistics now prove we do not. Huge percentages of men and women, teens, and children have been exposed to pornography on the internet and find themselves driven to view more and more of it. Create a work and home environment where God can heal and stop this destruction. Put some digital armor in place, because the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Every year, people are elected to the local boards of education in your area. How many of them are believers? Less than 10%. Getting on the local school Board of Education does not require a degree; it requires a willingness and obedience to a call from God. As believers, we have walked away from the public school system for far too long, and it is time to take a stand and get involved where possible. The kids of this next public school generation need you. We celebrate you believers who are on your local school Board of Education. You are not alone, but there are far too few of you. Please consider running for your local school Board of Education and serve on a mission field that desperately needs an intervention from God.

Christ-following Principals, Vice Principals, Guidance Counselors, and office staff within the public school system serve in a massive mission field. So many in their profession have been misguided and deceived to believe that God has no place in the public schools and that in fact, He does not exist. The religion taught in our public schools today is humanism – a religion as old as Noah. We celebrate those believers who venture off to their public school administrative jobs today. Take heart, you are not alone, and God has not been kicked out of the public schools because YOU ARE THERE, and He is there in YOU. Maybe you are listening today and feel called to join your brothers and sisters in this challenging mission field. Great. You are desperately needed on the mission field of the public school system. Never underestimate the power of obedience in a believer's heart to respond to God's call.

We often think of missionaries as people who have graduated from college or seminary and being sent off overseas. I define the word missionary as someone who is a follower of Jesus who has been sent into a field of people who are lost and hopeless and need to meet Jesus. The public school system is such a mission field. Our students who know and love Jesus are the missionaries sent behind enemy lines to bring Jesus to their fellow students. We celebrate these students today and pray for them because their workplace is the education place. Their workplace involves desks and learning and studying. Their mission field surrounds them in every classroom, at every lunch table, and in every gym class. Can you take time today to Encourage a local student missionary?

I know that many of you have been told that in order to serve as a missionary, you need to go overseas. No way. The mission field of the public school system is monstrous. Teachers who enter the classroom every day serve as missionaries and representatives of God at every education level in America. This mission field is under attack. And it's been under attack for over 60 years. Maybe More. There is a desperate need for more believers to set aside their comfort and become public school teachers willingly. Your faith is needed in classrooms of every type and subject. We celebrate those believers who serve as teachers in the public school system today, but we recognize they need more backup. Please consider joining the missionary team at a public school near you. The public school students in your community need to meet Jesus, and you may be their only hope.

What's the definition of a mission field? It is a place where lost and hopeless people live and work. The public school system is one massive mission field. Some incredible believers are teachers, aids, and administrators throughout the public school system, but we need more. God and the Bible have been weaseled out of every corner of our education system. But take heart: those of you serving in the mission field of the public school system are being prayed for today. Don't give up. The fields are ripe for harvest. More of you are desperately needed there to serve as teachers, aides, school board members, and administrators. So please pray for those serving in this battleground mission field and consider joining them in the fight for the souls of our public school students.

We go to work so we have money. We need money to pay our bills and to buy things. Where I spend my money matters to God, especially if I know that those companies are supporting things that are actually anti-God. We work with Inspire Investing to ensure our investments are biblically responsible. We chose a mobile carrier, Patriot Mobile, because they are pro-God, pro-family, and pro-country. We select our retailers, ensuring our dollars are not being spent to support the things we fight against every day. That may mean that sometimes we must go out of our way shopping. It also may mean that sometimes we just don't buy. Christ calls on us to be good stewards. Good stewards of our time. Good stewards of our work. And good stewards of our money. Steward it all well.

In our family, I spend most of the money at retail stores. Jim spends most of the money online. When we have the choice, we choose retailers that we know are either pro-god, pro-family, pro-country, or at least neutral on these subjects. Finding neutral companies is very difficult. Our country is polarized even in our retail environment. Years ago, we took a bullseye to a certain retailer and stopped shopping there because they supported the abortion industry. Today, they are one of the largest retail supporters of alternative lifestyles. When our money walks, our money talks. Recently, a large beverage retailer made a huge marketing blunder. It cost them billions of dollars because they didn't know who their customers were. Those customers walked, and those dollars talked. As a Jesus follower, we can make sure our money is walking and talking to a place that supports our biblical worldview.

Each one of you has a workplace that is your ministry place. A mission field full of lost and hopeless people who need to meet Jesus. The people you work with and for may be blinded to all of the destruction around them to the family and to our country. Yet they may be funding it inadvertently. Many companies support organizations whose sole aim is to destroy the family or our country because of pressure from the outside. Suppose they knew there was pressure from the inside to stop supporting those organizations; that could make a difference. Ask questions. Find out how the owners, shareholders, and stockholders are asking for your company's profits to be spent. Make sure that those in charge know how impactful those dollars can be. Be a proactive voice within your organization, helping them choose places to invest their dollars within the community that supports God, the family, and our country.

How do we know if our company is pro-Christianity, pro-God, pro-family, or pro-US of A? Is it even important for us to know these things? I think it is. Almost every organization has excess dollars that they are investing in other organizations with an agenda. What is the agenda that your company or organization is supporting? Are they supporting your values, neutral on them or working against them? What we are warning about today is making sure you're not supporting companies fighting against the very things that we know and love: God, family, and country. I hope it doesn't surprise you, but there are thousands of companies and organizations in this great country that hate your biblical morality and want to destroy your family. Find out who you really work for.

It's important to know who we work for. I don't mean the name of your boss or the name of your company. I mean, who is your company? What do they stand for? What do they support with their profits? We need to know everything about the company where we invest 40 to 50 hours weekly. I'm just saying you need to be aware of the company you're working for to make sure that they're not taking your hard-earned hours and turning them into a campaign to destroy the biblical worldview that this great country was founded upon. Who do you work for, really? It is a really important question to ask. If you are already in a job with a company that does not honor God, see how you can make a difference. But if you're searching for work, choose wisely because you were called to be a good steward, including where you invest your work time.

What does a normal Thanksgiving dinner look like for you and your family? Does it have all the fixings and smell just like grandma's house when you were growing up? Is it always exclusive to family? There are people you work with and people you live around that will be alone this year; why don't you mess up your normal Thanksgiving and invite some of them to join you? Jim and I would like to challenge you to have your last normal Thanksgiving last year. May last year be the final year when your Thanksgiving celebration didn't include your neighbors. This year we challenge you to invite people into your life and into your Thanksgiving celebration that would otherwise be home alone, probably not even celebrating Thanksgiving. What does a normal Thanksgiving look like? It looks like the power of neighboring in action.

This whole idea of practicing the power of neighboring at Thanksgiving can cause some strife at home. Not everyone wants to open up their Thanksgiving table to strangers, or people that just aren't family. I know in my family growing up we never had anybody who wasn't family over for Thanksgiving. It just wasn't done. But at Martha's house, her parents were great at inviting people who would be alone at Thanksgiving and having them join us for a family Thanksgiving celebration. Gather your family around you and share this idea with them. Share the idea that you want to solve somebody's loneliness at Thanksgiving this year and you need their help. Once you explain this to your family, I can't imagine that they won't be on board. Maybe they can even think of some people that need to be invited. Together you can change somebody's life this Thanksgiving.

What does loneliness look like? Does it have a face? Does it always look the same? You and I have the ability to solve someone's loneliness problem at Thanksgiving this year. All around us are people, our neighbors, who don't have anywhere to go for Thanksgiving. They are either too far away from family or don't have family or they've been alienated. Can you imagine being alone at Thanksgiving? It's just a big fat bummer. Look around you. As you leave your neighborhood this morning or drive through your neighborhood this afternoon, think about all the people that you know. Are any of them going to be alone at Thanksgiving? As you walk between the cubicles or sit down for lunch, are any of those people going to be alone at Thanksgiving? Solve loneliness today by inviting a neighbor for Thanksgiving.

The power of neighboring at Thanksgiving looks like this. It begins with compassion, and it continues with intentionality. We all have neighbors, whether they are at work or in our neighborhood. They could even be in the pews sitting near us at church. But how many of those neighbors will be alone at Thanksgiving time? In my opinion, there is nothing worse than being alone during the holidays. My challenge to you today is to institute the power of neighboring right where you live and right where you work. Find out if anyone you know and care about will be alone on Thanksgiving. And then invite them for dinner. You may already have a crowded dinner table, and you may have to cook some more food, but by inviting them to be part of your celebration of Thanksgiving, you could change their life.

One day, a religious leader approached Jesus and asked him who's my neighbor? Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan. Now we know who the neighbor was in this parable. The Good Samaritan was a powerful neighbor in the wounded man's life. The power of neighboring lies within each of us—the power to transform somebody's life by loving them as we love ourselves. The power of neighboring requires selfless acts and living on the edge of comfortableness. The power of neighboring started with Jesus, and it continues on in you. You have the ability to impact somebody's life for eternity by loving them. Your neighbors, they are at work, and they are in your neighborhood too. The big question I have for you today is who is your neighbor and will any of your neighbors be alone this Thanksgiving.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work? The final way people feel appreciated at work is through Appropriate Physical Touch. You need to be careful when it comes to touching at work. But expressing appreciation through appropriate physical touch for someone who needs that touch can be as simple as a handshake, a high five, or a pat on the back. In some situations, it might even be a hug of celebration. Any way you look at it, appropriate physical touch must always respect boundaries. Many of those we work alongside have situations that cause them to be very cautious about physical touch. That's why respect is needed. But even hurting people can sometimes appreciate that high five or that meaningful handshake. For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work? The 4th way people feel appreciated at work is through giving tangible gifts. Giving the gift of words, time, or service is meaningful to many people, but some people just like gifts. And a gift at work could be a simple cup of coffee, a candy bar, or a plaque of appreciation. Sometimes, a gift could be some time off or tickets to a baseball game. When somebody's appreciation language is gifts, all you need to do is find out what's important to them and match the gift. Everyone likes to be appreciated. You can hit a home run every time when their appreciation language is gifts. For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work? The number three way people feel appreciated at work is through Acts of Service. One of the greatest ways we can show our appreciation for others is by helping others complete a project. It means so much to them when we help somebody at the end of our shift or at the end of our day to finish what they're doing. And sometimes, it's just cleaning the toilet, vacuuming, or helping unload a car full of supplies. Any way you look at it, helping others out of the goodness of your heart with a little act of service can make a real difference in the life of someone you work with. For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work? The second way people feel appreciated at work is through the gift of Quality Time. Relationships are so important at work. But you can't just build relationships one minute at a time while talking at the water cooler. When you ask somebody how they're doing, mean it. Find out how people are doing. Spend time checking in with them to get to know them. Make sure you have lunch with people and be transparent and authentic with them. If you're a team leader, create time for your team to connect. Make it possible for people to spend time together without a deadline and work hanging over their heads. For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work? The number one way people feel appreciated at work is through words of affirmation. Words that uplift, words that encourage, words that affirm a person's worth. Words of appreciation spoken by a coworker or a boss mean so much. Almost 50% of the population at work feel that words of affirmation are a gift to them. Are words of affirmation important to you? I bet they are. I also bet they're important to the people you work around. Make sure that those you work with know that words of affirmation build you up and keep you going every day at work And that you could use a few more every day. For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've talked about it all week. We love to work, period. It brings exhilaration to our lives. We love the thrill of the kill. The completion of a major project. The landing of a major sale. Work brings satisfaction and appreciation in ways that family life rarely can. However, work is demanding. If we let it, work can take control of our lives. If left unchecked work can destroy the relationships with the people we love, the people that we are working so hard to provide for. If we don't keep work under control, it will control us. Nobody on their deathbed has ever said I wish I had worked more and spent less time with my family. If you were lying on your deathbed today, would your life display a love for your family or a love for your work? Protect those you love and get your work under control today.

There have been times in the 37 years of our marriage when one or both of us needed to work a significant amount of extra time to meet a deadline to keep our jobs. The issue comes when that short term becomes all the time. Jim and I started an insurance agency from scratch. We knew that for the first three years, Jim would need to work three nights a week and 4 1/2 days a week to grow the agency's sustainability. We made a point to ensure that we always had a date night and never worked weekends. We agreed together that the investment of time was necessary. But it had a deadline. If your job never stops asking for more and is hurting your family, it may be time to start looking for a new job.

I can't tell you how many times Martha and I have heard this one phrase in a marriage mentoring session. "I work hard so my family can have the things I didn't have when I was a kid." That's all fine and dandy, but usually, we are given that excuse after the spouse feels neglected. That usually spurns a conversation about not feeling appreciated for how hard one spouse works. It creates an argument about all of the stuff they own, which causes them to work so hard to pay for the stuff they own. It's all a vicious circle. You don't need to create a fairytale experience for your children. They just want you. They don't care about all the stuff. Take a step back today and see if your work is hurting the very ones you want to provide for.

I love to work. I love to jump out of bed, get ready for work, and go to work. I spend all day working and come home, and then after dinner, I like to work some more. Working brings energy to me, and working brings satisfaction. I love to work because I love to see things get accomplished. I love checking things off my list. There's a danger in loving work. It's so easy to get caught up in my work that I don't realize that I'm hurting those around me by working so much. There was a time in my life when my job required me to work 60 hours a week—even time on Sunday. Jim and I had to work through balancing my work life and family life. I love to work, but I also don't want to sacrifice everything I love because I love to work.

I love to work. I love to jump out of bed, get ready for work, and go to work. I spend all day working and come home, and then after dinner, I like to work some more. Working brings energy to me, and working brings satisfaction. I love to work because I love to see things get accomplished. I love checking things off my list. There's a danger in loving work. It's so easy to get caught up in my work that I don't realize that I'm hurting those around me by working so much. There was a time in my life when my job required me to work 60 hours a week—even time on Sunday. Jim and I had to work through balancing my work life and family life. I love to work, but I also don't want to sacrifice everything I love because I love to work.

Retirement can be 30-plus years of unemployment, but what do those 30 years look like? Experts from the Retirement Reformation have determined there are three stages of retirement. The active stage is when you start pursuing life with all your energy. It is a time to be passionate about God's call on your life. Stage 2 is the mentoring stage, where people utilize the experiences and insights they've gained to instruct, inspire, mentor, coach, and impact others. In the final stage of our life, the sharing stage, men and women seek to give their wisdom and their wealth to others around them that they love. I think you can see a commonality throughout all these phases. No matter what we're doing or how healthy our bodies are, we are pouring our lives into others. Start preparing for retirement today by getting used to pouring your life into others.

As we contemplate retirement, the horizon before us is full of immense opportunity. There are so many needs to fulfill and so many things to do; the adventure is exciting. But how do we find out what we're supposed to do in retirement? Well, we need to see where God is working and go and join Him there. There is a dire need for foster grandparents. There's a dire need to be an adoptive grandparent to those families who don't have grandparents around. There's a dire need for mentorship and discipleship for the next generations, using your life experiences and Jesus experiences so that they can learn from you. You are not dead; therefore, you are not done. You are not washed up because you're 65. In fact you are loaded and ready for making an impact without the constraints of working nine to five. Let's get going.

Does your calling retire when you do? Is our calling just for our years from 20 to 65? Does God have a call on all of our lives or just those predetermined working years? It is so important to recognize that the American government created the age 65 milestone. When we were born, we were born with a call on our lives. We were given a unique set of gifts, talents, and abilities that are ours for a lifetime to serve under the direction of our Lord. I understand you may want something different to do after age 65, but just understand this: whatever you do will utilize those gifts, talents, and abilities along with the wisdom and knowledge you've gained. Your calling does not retire when you do.

It's important to recognize that very few of us think about what God wants us to do during our retirement years. We focus our thoughts on our adventures, the vacations we plan, and how many times we can play golf, tennis, or pickleball. But what does God want us to do? When we retire, our callings do not. How do we know what God wants us to do? We ask Him. This is no small task either, as retirement can be 30 years of our lives. We must spend significant time seeking the Lord for what those retirement years look like. I can give you a clue. Your lifelong experiences, wisdom, and knowledge will be used in whatever God calls you to do during your retirement years. God has a purpose for your retirement years and it involves flourishing, fulfillment, and excitement.