So Monday It Is

So it’s Monday. I won’t lie. I enjoy my weekends. The relaxation, the re-creation with my family, and the time off. We had a good weekend. Did some shopping. Had lots of fun with the girls at the park on Sunday. And hung out with a friend later in the afternoon. Perhaps many of us enjoyed the weekend.

Now it’s Monday. Time for a transition in mindset. The girls get prepped for school and dropped off ready to start their week of adventuresome learning. I still have a few hours to chill and take care of some things around the house. Then off to work until pretty late tonight. I won’t lie, I’d rather be off just another Sunday.

Yet I’m grateful. Many are still searching for work. Many wake today with a little sense of dread not knowing what direction or angle to try next. I felt it. I understand. Rough seasons like these simple hurt. Making one wonder when will their break come. If you have a job or career today, say thank you! If you don’t yet, keep your head up! Remember, you were looking for a job when you found the last one. You’ll find a new one again.

Life is tough sometimes. Perspective is an amazing thing. Find what you can be grateful for, and build a skyscraper on it.

Kameron Lombard © 2012

Will You Help

After dropping my two amazing girls off at school this morning I stopped off at the local Valero. It was packed with people, yet one car stuck out in my mind. A little silver two-door with a young couple inside with the passenger door open. Both of them kept craning their heads this way and that as the young man talked into a cell phone.

I finished with my purchase and walked back to the car, both of them still sitting there in the parking lot. I considered seeing if they might need some help and almost shrugged it off. Yet just this morning I had read the verse in Proverbs 19:17 which says; “If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord and he will repay you.” Now I didn’t view them as poor by any standard. However, I’ve found that on any given day each of us may find ourselves in a poor situation.

I decided to drive by and ask if they needed a jump-start. As generally that’s what I find a stuck car happens to need. The young woman came from the car and said they had sputtered into the station and realized they had no cash for gas and were waiting on someone they had called to come and help. It doesn’t matter what got them there. What mattered was that it was within my means to help and the question was, would I? I reached into my wallet and gave her enough to give them about a half a tank.

Now the cynic in me wondered if that’s what they really needed or if I had been fed a line. I’ve learned however that it’s often not how it’s used, but rather are we willing to give. So I really didn’t care. I was happy to help. She asked for my phone number, perhaps to repay, but I told her; we all have days, I’m happy to help.” As I pulled out I checked my rear-view mirror just to see if they would head off or pull to the pump. What I viewed was them back up to the pump and her walk in with the cash to pay for the gas.

We never know what people’s situations are. When it is in our power to help someone we ought to be willing to do it. We never know when it may be us needing the help. The Bible says; “He who waters others, will himself be watered.” (Kameron Paraphrase.) Look out for opportunities to help those you see in need. Having been a person who has had much need at many times in my life, I wonder if the seeds sown in similar small situations haven’t paved the way for me to receive when I have been in need. Giving is contagious. It brings joy to both the giver and the recipient. It lightens the day. It spreads tangible love in a tough world. It makes the world just a little better. If we all lived in such a way, many people’s days would be seen with a much greater sense of joy and peace, simply because someone made the choice to care.

Have a great Tuesday,

Kameron Lombard. © 2012

Worry Much?

How often do we stop to think about how we think? As I’ve entered a new season with a new role in a new company I was pondering back over the process it took to get me there. The process was fairly lengthy and there were many hurdles I had to jump over to get the new job. I wish I could say that I was full of faith through the entire process but I wasn’t.

There was a lot of worry throughout it all. Worry comes naturally. Faith must be exercised. After each hurdle I would wonder. Will I get this job? Will I pass this next step? Do I need to keep looking? And the list goes on and on. Finally after getting the call that I was vetted and could start just the day before I began work, my heart relaxed.

As I look back on it now, the reality is that worrying over it added absolutely nothing to my life except a lot of misery and useless wasted thinking. If I had just trusted the process and believed, all of it would have worked out the same and I could have chosen to remain at peace.

Philippians 4:6-7 says; “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” 

What I’ve found to be true at least for me is that often we know what the best way to believe is. However, there is a disconnect when it comes to the actual practice of the right belief. We often know what positive thoughts should be reinforced, yet we so often rehearse the negative as if practicing for a role in an upcoming movie. These negative thoughts are the villains in the movie of our lives, and the only fruit they will ever yield quite simply tastes like crap.

Rather than spend time worrying over the various aspects that life may be in at the MOMENT, spend time in the land of HOPE. There is a great future ahead. Our thinking determines our vision. Most often our vision becomes our reality.

Kameron Lombard © 2012

Hurt Feelings…

Hurt Feelings….

A great quick blog from Ron Corzine

Life Changes

It is said in life that the only constant is change. Change is an inevitability that all of us will face all throughout the days of our lives. Some of them planned and expected. Others are thrust upon us through circumstance or demand. Either way we must all look at change as an opportunity to grow right where we are at in whatever season we are in.

Some changes take place after a dream comes into realization bringing with it the new challenges of things desired. Others come simply through necessity and equally have their challenges. Anything worth doing will have areas within it that are difficult to learn and develop in it. New skill sets may be taken on, old mindsets may have to be put to rest while new ones must be born. The great thing is found in often finding that there is more to us than we thought was on the inside. More strength, more capabilities, and more potential for personal growth come along with such enlightenment to the changes we face.

Embrace the changes as they come. Keep a great attitude through the process. Become flexible in the new season. Gain all the knowledge and ability you must possess for the new arena of life that you find yourself in. Nothing is too big for any of us to conquer. God made us to be resilient. To pass through storms with strength. To embark on new adventures with our head held high, and our strength made stronger through his grace.

Whatever change you or I may be experiencing, God always has a plan through it. Rather than ask why, ask what. What am I meant to become through this change. What am I meant to learn in this stage of a new game. How am I meant to grow. Change is a reality. Embrace it! And grow through it. Because as sure as you will get comfortable in it another change will occur. Based on the former one, you will be stronger and more prepared for the next.

Kameron Lombard © 2012

Boxer In The Ring

Having lived a life filled with many mistakes, some victories too, but many mistakes, I haven’t questioned whether I believe in a loving and merciful God. I have for most of my life believed that his love for me was unending and thankfully that his mercy was new for me every day of my world. Yet another aspect of faith has in my heart eluded me for some time. Perhaps it’s the guy in me who wants to make it on my own, or more likely it is simply a wrong belief.

That belief is that while God loves me; “YES”, I must fight through this life for myself. Yet recently I’ve had a change of view. Not meaning we don’t have a part to play, but rather the viewpoint of whose the fighter in all of it. Who stands in the place of the champion boxer who will go round after round for the life that we live, ensuring that victory is the outcome.

I was having a conversation with my sister Kristi recently regarding some areas of life that I fight with, and she showed me that very likely since my childhood I have believed that God loved me, yet didn’t believe that he would fight for me. I had never consciously thought of it before I guess. Yet when she said it, it was like one of those; ” ding ding ding bells went off in my head. It was true. I had always lived my life believing it was me that had to fight all the battles that I had to face. And looking back, I hadn’t done a great job of winning them, to say the least.

Over the last few days I’m realizing that I don’t have to fight anymore. Not meaning I just sit around and do nothing of course. Rather that the source I look to in a battle no longer needs to be me. Instead it is God who will do the fighting for me. I just need to trust that he can do it and stay out of his way, and go in the directions he has for me to travel in. I’m sure this is such simple understanding for most. Even when I heard it at first I said to myself; “Ya, I know that!” However, when I examined my history I recognized that for the most part I would give God control for a little while, then pull it back to me when I saw fit to do so. Yet as it says in Exodus 14:14  (NLT) “The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” Examining the many weights I carry on my shoulders and knots that have built up to hold them, I see that the vast majority of them need not be there. One by one I can hear him saying; “That’s not your fight!”

In Matthew 6:33 Jesus said;  ”Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” (NLT) That’s our part to play. To know him more. To seek his face more than just his handouts. He takes care of the battles, and all the other aspects of life we need as well.

Kameron Lombard © 2012  work in progress

My Girls

So often my daughters help keep me sane. This is a bit of a tribute to them. I once thought that I wanted boys. Yet when my girls arrived, I was melted beyond recognition. They have me through and through. They are simply amazing. I can come home from a hard day of uncertainty, and see their shining faces and all the concerns of the day simply fade away.

It is said that children are a blessing of the Lord. They are angels sent in disguise to change our world for the better. Are they always perfect, of course not. But they are perfectly mine. I adore everyday that I get to spend with them. They are a great source that exudes joy into many spheres of my world.

Coupled with an amazing wife, who lights up my day when I get home to see her. She is amazing. I am truly grateful to have ALL of my girls in my life. My two princesses, and my queen. I love my family.

Kameron L. 

Life Maps

Life happens. Are you ready? We often have the illusion that success is supposed to be an upward trajectory towards our greatness of purpose. That there is this line of success that when we make the decision, begins to move upward with a constant moving flow. Yet, in my YOUNG age of 34, yes I like to still think of myself as very young, I realize that real success looks nothing like a continual upward trajectory.

The reality is often that life is a flat line that runs across through time. It moves upward as we make choices to guide us in such directions that better ourselves, our families, and those around us. Then sometimes something happens that we didn’t expect. A hick-up of sorts comes and there is a choice. At times these are quick phases, or at others such disturbances last for a longer season.

It is at these hick-ups that we have choices to make once again. Like a fork in the road with no sure GPS to give us our next destination a decision must be made. The decisions we make will either take us upward, flat-line us for a while, or send us a little downward. What I’ve seen in my own world is that these hick-ups are sometimes avoidable, while others are un-avoidable. Unfortunately we live in a world where negative things happen and that is part of life. Yet the valleys help us also enjoy the peaks. Yet we should remember that we must climb a mountain to enjoy the expanse the summit allows us to see.

Our maps in life sometimes have to change. What worked in a previous season may not work in the season we live in now. What we thought was going to last for the entirety of our lives, we may find has ended and a new drawing must be created. This is sometimes a hard reality to face. Whether it be in relationships, career, or otherwise, the re-drawing of our life map takes time, discipline, and a lot of hope.

Yet chapters are written and finished. New chapters are meant to be born. We ought not be afraid of the new maps that must be drawn at times in our lives. It is a chance to re-invent ourselves. To see life and direction in a new way that can be exciting and full of great adventure. So when we find ourselves in such seasons. Don’t worry. Pick up the pen, and begin to draw a new map for this wonderful gift called life.

Kameron Lombard © 2012

 

Merry Christmas

Just a quick post… I want to wish everyone a great Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope you all have had a great year and wish for you an even greater year in 2012.

Kameron L 

No Comparison

We all want to be somebody, but sometimes don’t want to be just ourselves. We look at others and compare ourselves with damaging effects, rather than find out who we were meant to be and live in the now of such a life. We will never be anyone but us no matter how hard we try. The beauty is that no one can be “US” either.

In America it’s a struggle at least, and perhaps in other countries as well, to not compare with those around you. It’s easy to see someone doing just a little better, having a little more, or being a little further along. Hard is it to find balance and peace in just being… and enjoying where we are.

The other day I made it a grateful one. I just looked at all I was grateful for. As the day went on, the list grew long. Too long for me to compare myself with someone else, as I saw so much goodness in my own. Perspective has an amazing power in our lives. Someone always has more, but someone always has less. Yet it’s not about that anyway.

Can we find happiness in the world we live, for it is the world in which we’ve been given. We can change certain aspects of it and respect the place of the others we can’t, in its sphere. We make the most of where we are, and as time moves forward, we find ourselves in new places. The day-to-day becomes months to months, and destinations to destinations.

I had a great memory the other day and realized life is made up of such things. We remember the memories. What amazing memories are we creating in our world?

Life is more than comparison. Life is our living! Living it to the fullest of the dreams in which we possess. In such a way to not live in the disappointment of present realities, but rather present gratefulness. Because life changes, so also will our circumstances. From good to bad. From bad to good. Over and over again. The valleys help us grow. The valleys help us appreciate the peaks.

Smile. Enjoy your season.

Kameron Lombard © 2011