Prayer based on Ephesians 2

Lord, I accept your gracious Word. I believe what you have done for me. In humble faith I do now take my seat in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus at your right hand. Teach me how to fulfill this sacred ministry, how to exercise the authority which you have entrusted to me. Train me day by day that i may attain to the full stature of the perfect man in Christ, so that in me your purpose of the ages may be fulfilled. In Jesus name! Amen! 

Life of success

by Cameron Smith

If you ask ten people what their idea of success in life looks like, you will most likely get ten different ideas and versions of success. The world we live in and the environment around us shapes us and we unconsciously  develop an image of what a successful life looks like. From the time we start going to school as kids we start thinking of what success looks like. If we are not mindful, we will live our lives conformed to the image in our mind and strive towards have the successful life we see in our minds. 


Too often we will compare ourselves to people who seem to have more than us and will always be trying to acquire the same in our lives. This is a very dangerous way to live. Yes, it is dangerous. Dangerous because, we can very easily be distracted from what God has called us to do. It is a very subtle thing because we will be busy doing different things but they might not be things that God wants us to work on. 


One of the definitions for the word 'success' is the attainment of popularity or profit. This definition is one that does not line up with the Word of God because a man or women can live a successful life without ever attaining popularity or profit. There are many examples both in the Bible and in the word today. It is not wrong to be popular or to make a profit but it is wrong to evaluate a successful life solely based on popularity and profit. In Genesis 39:2 the Bible tells us that "The Lord, was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian." At that point in his life, Joseph was neither popular nor making a profit. He was at one of the worst stages of his life and yet the Bible says that was successful. He was successful being the plan and purposes of God were being accomplished in his life. 


As Christians we need to evaluate our level of success based on how well we are doing and accomplishing the purpose God has for our lives. It is not wrong to dream big and do great things but the motives need to be judged. Is the dream or desire just to be popular or to look better than another person? Is the dream truly inspired by God and the desire to do great things to glorify God? 


In Mark 8:36, The Bible says, "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?" Gaining the world is not the problem here. The problem is with forfeiting or losing the soul. We will lose our soul when we compare ourselves to others and start running a race that we are not called to run. We need to discipline ourselves to run the race that is set before us and resist the temptation to run someone else's race! (Hebrews 12:1)


A successful life for a christian is one when the person has done all that God wanted done in their life. That is when we will hear the words "Well done. My good and faithful servant." That is undoubtedly a successful life. 

A leadership must!

The one thing that every leader has to do if he wants to lead well is he must lead by example. This is not a new idea in anyway but for some reason I keep running into leaders and even find myself at times trying to lead people without first being a good example!

If you are a leader who leads by example I want to thank you! Keep doing what you are doing! If you are like me and mess up in this area at times, lets use this as a reminder that there is only one way to lead and that is to lead by example!

Untitled: Thoughts on the Creative Process by Blaine Hogan (Book review)

If you are a creative person or work and lead creative people, especially in the context of church, this book is an absolute must read! It is an important book for the creatives because Blaine takes you through the process of creating and the price that needs to be paid for creating. It is also an important book for leaders who lead creatives because it helps them understand what the creatives go through in order to create on a continual basis. I have had the opportunity in the last few years to watch and experience Blaine's creative work on the internet and I have always been moved by his productions and art.

In his book UNTITLED, Blaine writes about the creative process, the work that goes inside the creative, the failures, fears and mistakes that will be made and the price that creatives need to pay to create art. It is a book that is short and to the point. If you have read and like books like Poke the box By Seth Godin or Do the Work by Steven Pressfield you will really enjoy this book.

I have attended thousands of church services in my life. Attended them in several countries and been to various denominational and non-denominational churches. I have seen both very good art and very bad art in them. From my perspective there is very little good art and a lot of bad art currently in the church. Since Blaine has a lot of experience leading and creating in the context of a local church (Willow Creek in Chicago), he is someone who knows what he is talking about. It is not just theory but him actually going through the process of creating over and over again. If you are involved in creating art in the local church, this is a short book that you and your team can read to gain some valuable insights into creativity.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is creating or wants to create meaning art.


Here is a video of Blaine talking about the book! 

Blaine Hogan on Untitled: Thoughts on the Creative Process from Clarkvideos on Vimeo.

You can buy the book here! 

My take on P90X workout!

I have been working out on a regular basis for the past few years. It started with me being 'that guy' at the gym who did not really know how to use the equipment and felt overwhelmed and intimidated by other guys in the place. 

Then I was introduced to P90X by my cousin and things changed after that. It was definitely intimidating just to watch some of the workouts but something in me just wanted to try it and I am really glad i did. So far I have finished the 90 day workout routine several times. My goal was and still is to be strong and healthy not necessarily, a six pack so once I complete the routine I take some time off during Christmas or vacation and get back to it later. 

P90X pushed me and taught me a lot about my body and the basics of working out. I learnt about good form and the importance of including weights, cardio and stretching. Tony Horton, who is the instructor does a good job of motivating people to keep pushing.  

If you are looking into workout programs, I highly recommend this workout. It is absolutely tough but you will definitely see results. I did not follow the meal plan all the way but ate healthy and was able to see results. 

You can get more information here and buy the product here! 

Have you used this program and if so what has your experience been with it? What other workout programs have you worked with?

5 reasons I use Evernote.

I have been using Evernote regularly for more than year now and I am a fan! It is the best tool that I have come across for storing and retrieving information.

Here are 5 reasons why I started using Evernote:

1. Easy to use: Evernote is very easy to use and can be used on several different platforms. You can find a lot of tutorial videos here. I use both application both on my mac and my iPhone.
2. Cloud computing: I really like that I can upload information from various devices and can access the information from various devices. As long as I can find some wifi or cell phone service I can access the information I need from my account. 
3. Store everything: I can store documents in various versions, audio files, pictures, articles etc. There is no limit when it comes to storage space. 
4. Unlimited uses: You can use Evernote in as many ways as your mind can come up with. Users come up with new ideas all the time. 
5. Free: All of this is absolutely free! There is a 'premium' option that you can sign up for once you really like the product but if you decide not to, you can still use the product for free for as long as you like! 

Do you currently use Evernote and if you don't what tools do you use to store your information?http://www.evernote.com/about/learn_more/

What is Google+

A short helpful video for those of you who are still trying to figure Google+ out.

I will let you know my thoughts on Google+ soon!

Random Fridays. July 15th

1. Difference between nutritional doctors and medical doctors, and the need for more nutritional doctors. Good documentary. 
2. Learnt of a great example of leadership from Alexander the great here. 
3. Good panel discussion between Mark Driscoll, Albert Mohler and others about the relationship between seminaries and local churches. You can listen to it here. 
4. Some great resources to help you with creative blocks!
5. Really loving this book right now! Highly recommend it. 

Faith in action

This is a devotional that I recently wrote for Streaming Faith. 

The subject of having faith in God is something that seems very elementary in our walk, but a closer look at faith might change that. Everyone of us who is a christian became one by placing our faith in God. But if we don’t examine ourselves on a continual basis, we will soon find ourselves placing our faith in everything but God.

It all starts with believing. You cannot act on something if you don’t believe. It is important that what you and I believe is in line with the word of God. Believing in God is not the same as having faith in God. Faith requires action. We see this over and over again in the Bible. Every time God..... You can finish reading it here....