InvestMyTalents.com

What are your talents?  Are you using them for God?

The parable of the talents is most definitely referring to to money, but I believe God has called us to invest our gifts as well.

Gifts and talents are meant for God’s glory.  Even if they go unrecognized by human eyes, He knows if they have been “invested” to their full potential.

My idea for this blog came from my personal experience.  I believed God had given  me certain talents and abilities and I wasn’t necessarily using their full potential for Him. My goal is to hopefully encourage you to step out and use your gifts, and possibly give a nudge to actually do something that’s been on your heart and mind for a while.

You will also find several practical post here, dealing with financial, and personal issues.  I am so tired of all of the “bait and switch” and false hope sites out there, that I feel compelled to share some of the true lessons I’ve learned. My hope is that you find this site helpful and straightforward, without hidden agendas.

I have a lot of stuff to read and suggestions of things to do. The content is simply just my opinions and such, so if you ever feel you don’t agree with it or feel it is contrary to God’s word, or His will, please don’t follow it.  My intention is to help, but if ever fail to meet that criteria, you know what’s more important.

Otherwise, I hope you enjoy!

Sporto

Update: This is a “Sticky Post” that will always stay as the first post, the newest content will always be directly below this post.

Every once in a while I come across something that really alters the way I think.  While I was attending a conference, I picked up the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan, and it immediately had an impact.  Francis has a way of using scripture, and the words of Jesus, to convict you of your everyday life.

One of the things that struck me from this book is that I have way too many “thorns and weeds” in my life that choke out what my true life purpose is.  I was convicted that I often compare myself with others to feel “more holy” than comparing myself with the true standard of Holiness.

I found the book organized and easy enough to read,  but at the same time spiritually challenging.

From a new Christian to one that is old in their faith, I highly recommend this Crazy Love.

If  your looking for a couple of Christian alternatives to some of the popular websites out there check these out:

Tangle.com a Christian “Facebook” type application.  It definitely needs some time to be even close to Facebook, but somewhat interesting.

GospelScoop.com a Christian contemporary of Digg.com

In my younger years, I was always a little confused by the concept of fearing God. Wasn’t He kind and loving?  Should I make sure I’m always afraid of Him?

There is a mental activity I do, that maybe some of you do as well.  I think of my worst fears, and how I would react to them, and if my view of God would change if they came to be.

Cancer, poverty, death of a close one, blindness?  The list can be endless.  In my mind, I believe I would not lose faith, but grow closer to Him.  Though, that can seem trite, until I truly experience the reality of the pain.

I know some who believe that if we live good lives, we should be spared the devastation of sorrow and pain.  Others still, are controlled by their fears, holding them back from truly experiencing life.

On one hand, I can see the term “fear” referring to respecting and obeying God. Like when someone might say to fear your parents.  But I also think, that if we truly fear God, all other fears become meaningless.  If I really fear what God will say when I meet Him face to face, my own worries and fears will seem trivial in comparison to living a life for Him.  Not only that, but if God is the most important focus in my life, whatever “bad” thing that could possibly happen, should only bring me closer to Him.

It says in the Bible that perfect love casts out all fear.  God has just such a love for us.  I believe  He doesn’t want us to live in fear, but live in freedom.  Paul was a perfect example of freedom.  Although he was often imprisoned, there was nothing that he feared. Anything bad that people could do to him would only be for the glory of Jesus.  The only fear he had seemed to be the fear of God.  What a enlightening thought, if our life is truly just for God, we have nothing to fear.  Any occurrence can only bring us closer to God and bring Him glory.

In my experience, fear often holds me back.  I really want to be able to trust God more, and use my own selfish caution less.  Amen?

I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for infomercials. Not that I always fall for the pitch and buy everything, but that I’m fascinated by the way that they’re presented.  Some products seem to solve so many problems I didn’t know I had.  I also enjoy watching how  ”total strangers” react excitedly to the product.

There have been thousands of exercise related infomercials, most of them reeking of gimmickry.  A handful appear to have potential, Soloflex, and Bowflex come to mind.

One of the latest ones, I have found myself watching more than once, is P90x.  It didn’t appear over-hyped, and seemed to have the allure of simplicity as well as results.  You didn’t need a bulky machine, just some dumbbells and a DVD player. After looking into it a bit, I decided to give it a try.

I’ve just completed my first week, and I thought I’d share my thoughts so far.

Equipment wise, I would suggest you get a couple different dumbbell weights, I only had 20 pounders, which were a bit heavy for some of the exercises.  You’ll have a better idea after the first week what weights will work best for you.  I also bought a chin up bar that fits in the door frame which has worked nicely.

I consider myself fairly active.  I have a pretty physical daily job, as well as playing sports about 2 times a week.  P90x immediately squashed any notions that I was in supreme physical shape.  The first week has been hard.  Some of the workouts I could not finish completely, and I have been fairly sore.  From what I’ve researched, this is quite normal, but humbling just the same.  If you’re thinking of trying P90x, and want to get a smoother starting week, I’d recommend getting used to doing pull ups, push ups, and crunches. If you don’t have a pull up bar yet, you can always go to the local playground and use the monkey bars.  After doing this once, you’ll probably be humiliated enough to buy a proper pull up bar.

As a Christian, there are a few areas that could be of concern with p90X.  First, there is some mild language in some of the DVD’s.  Second, there is the element of yoga.  I’m not an expert on yoga, but I believe it has some eastern mystic philosophies as it’s origin.  I don’t buy into the philosophy, but I know there is good value in stretching.  If you don’t feel comfortable with the yoga stretching, there is a regular X-stretch DVD that you can use in it’s place.   Some of the other DVD’s have a couple of opening stretches that are based on yoga as well. I think it’s a matter of personal preference, and what you think is the right thing to do.

Overall, I’m pretty impressed with the program. P90x is a pretty good motivator, as well as being simple enough to do every day.  I will keep you all up to date, as my progress continues.