9 STEPS TO AN UNBALANCED LIFE - By Heidi McLaughlin

A balanced life is over-rated. Before you call me a fanatic and burn me at the Time Management whiteboard I want to ask you. “So how is time management” working for you?”

Over the past ten years we have been saturated with “how to” steps for managing our most precious commodity-time. I was the day I threw my palm pilot into the garbage that I realized I had become a slave to time management. With all the information on how to de-clutter, time management workshops, fat day timers, computer and i-Pad calendars and every piece of technology known to mankind to help us with our 24 hour days, we are still rushing, sighing and feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.

A balanced life sounds like a wise, wonderful concept; but what happens when our finely tuned “one hour increments” in our day timer fall behind and we fall apart? In a question and answer period at one my conferences someone asked me the question, “So Heidi, how do you manage your time?” It had been a long time since I looked at my daily life and this question evoked some serious evaluation. I became acutely aware that I am so blessed to be a mom and grandmother; able to still work four days a week, write books, speak across the country and mentor younger women. It made me realize that I am able to describe my life the way my youngest granddaughter’s face lights up when she is delighted about something and exclaims: “That’s yummie!”

I am deeply passionate about leaving my fingerprint on the earth in a meaningful and powerful way.  The bible inspires me with this truth: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12 NIV).  Here is what those words mean to me:

1.    Say “Yes” to Yummie.  God has given all of us gifts and passions to make our lives, and this world a better place to live.  Ask yourself this question, “What makes my heart pound? What keeps me awake at night dreaming, thinking planning? What do other people say I am good at?” Those are gifts God has given each of us. How dare we not use them?

2.    Say “No” to clutter and useless, meaningless tasks.  Why do we feel it necessary to fill our days with things that have no value; meaningless tasks that rob us of our passions and smiles?

3.    Pray and ask God for His wisdom how to live each day. Do this before you create another calendar event into your i-phone and the two alerts to keep you on track..

4.    No, we are not responsible for everything that happens in everyone’s life.

5.    Get proper rest. Fatigue makes cowards out of us. It makes us vulnerable and before we know it, we are caving in and signing up for another thing that will rob us of more energy.

6.    Realize there are seasons of being totally out of balance. I just finished a difficult season of caring for my mother before she died; challenging disruptions at work and speaking at many conferences.  My life has been totally out of balance for a few months, but my heart is still pounding with passion and purpose.

7       7. Realize this life is about relationships and not process. The bible reminds me of this in such a powerful way: “You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath” (Psalm 39:5 NIV). The breath of God within each of us is more important that the petty little tasks that consume our hours. 

8.    If you don’t know your gifts or passions, ask God to reveal them to you. He will gladly do it. ^“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5 NIV).

9.    Create your own “magical trash can” and get rid of all the “shoulds” that are robbing your joy.

God has given you and me the “breath of life” on this planet to make a beautiful and powerful impact on mankind. I don’t believe God ever meant for us to be chained to a time machine. As energetic, smart people, God fearing people living in this 21^st century, we must take the time to discover our strongest gifts, passion and the purpose that God has given us. Having clarity about our daily purpose will fill our life with pure pleasure and satisfaction. It’s time to stop, smile and say “yes to the yummie.”

 Heidi McLaughlin lives in the beautiful vineyards of the Okanagan Valley in Kelowna, British Columbia. She is married to Pastor Jack and they have a wonderful, eclectic blended family of 5 children and 9 grandchildren. When Heidi is not working, she loves to curl up with a great book, or golf and laugh with her husband and special friends. You can reach her at: www.heartconnection.ca

In Communications: from Military to Ministry (Peter Black)

The Berlin Wall hadn’t yet fallen and the Cold War was still in effect, and his military role wasn’t something he could talk about. However, I know he was in communications and learned to speak Russian and that he spent some time each year at the Canadian Forces Station at Alert, in the Arctic. This is the world’s northernmost permanently inhabited place – although the population is mostly comprised of rotating military and scientific personnel.

My wife and I came to know Levi Samson Beardy, an Aboriginal Canadian, in the early 1980s during our time in Kingston, Ontario. He was newly posted at the Canadian Forces Base there.  He and his family fitted right in, from the first service they attended at our church.

Eager to learn and willing to participate, it soon became evident that Levi was the ‘real deal.’  His commitment to his family, to Jesus Christ and our church fellowship proved solid, and he took on significant roles, such as teaching an adult Bible class, leading segments in worship services, serving on the church board and occasionally filling in for me in preaching.

What brought Levi and his family to mind today was that May recently came across an old photo featuring him with me and two other men from the congregation. She posted it on Facebook; Levi saw it on a mutual friend’s Facebook wall and connected with May.

Perhaps you have certain internet social networking connections that you’d rather be without, while others you appreciate and enjoy. Levi’s one we are glad to have. He has updated us on what he’s doing nowadays. Since his retirement from the armed forces he studied at Bible college and seminary.

For several years he taught at an aboriginal college, and then in 2008 he became co-founder and President of North American Aboriginal Bible College (NAABC) – a role he still fulfils. He is also a co-pastor at an Aboriginal church in Toronto.

NAABC is “an interdenominational Bible College with the mission of preparing Aboriginal (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) people and non-Aboriginal people for ministry.” Levi is an equipper – training others and helping them succeed. He understands authority, for his military training taught him how authority structures operate. He knows that in order to develop strong and equitable, honest and balanced leadership, one must be given responsibilities incrementally, with accountability.

I’m grateful to God for the small role our lay leaders and I were privileged to play in allowing this fine man’s natural and spiritual gifts for Christian leadership and teaching to grow and flourish. These abilities are still being used to elevate lives and bless North American Aboriginal communities with faith and hope and love, through the grace of our Lord Jesus.

My thanks is due those leaders who, in my youth, allowed me to share talents and spiritual gifts with others, and entrusted me with levels of responsibility, even when I felt inadequate to bear them. They took risks, and I made mistakes, but they were patient and helped me grow through them.

Levi expressed that his time in our Kingston congregation was a period of growth personally and for the church. With his military career far behind him, he continues “in communications,” teaching and investing in the lives of young leaders who will help others come to know the love and peace of God.

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Peter A. Black is a freelance writer in Southwestern Ontario, and is author of “Parables from the Pond” – a children's / family book (mildly educational, inspirational in orientation, character reinforcing).

(Finalist -- Word Alive Press ISBN 1897373-21-X)

His inspirational column, P-Pep! appears weekly in The Guide-Advocate. His articles have appeared in 50 Plus Contact and testimony, and several newspapers in Ontario. Peter’s current book project comprises a collection of 52 column articles.  The post above has been slightly modified from a P-Pep! column article, published Sep. 19, 2013.

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THE THREE R'S - Ayotte

For those of you who have been have read some of my background information you already know that I am a former elementary school teacher, During my teaching years, I spent a great deal of time teaching the three R’s of education, reading, riting and rithmetic as they were so fondly called in those days.

Today we are utilizing many other words that start with R such as recycle, reuse and restore in an effort to be energy conscious and to help protect and sustain our environment.

Although, I left the classroom many years ago, the classroom has never left me. Once a teacher, always a teacher! It’s in my blood. In fact, my book “I’m Not Perfect And It’s Okay” is what I consider to be a teaching tool. In my opinion, you can take the teacher out of the classroom but it is very difficult, perhaps impossible, to take the classroom out of the teacher. My blog site falls into the same teaching category as my book. My posts are not meant to offend but rather to educate.

The reason I have chosen to discuss the three R’s of education is because other than the ones I have already mentioned in the first two paragraphs, there are many more equally important words starting with R.

A few of these are responsibility, respect, and reciprocity/relationship. When people hold themselves accountable for their actions they demonstrate a sense of responsibility. When they become more accountable and accept responsibility, they develop self-respect and in turn earn the respect of others. When they earn the respect of others, this eventually results in a mutually respectful relationship, which is what I refer to as the beginnings of a reciprocal connection or affinity. Whether positive or negative, people eventually become the reflection of each other.

In other words, those around you will be a reflection of yourself and your values.

Previously posted on my Blog Site (May 24, 2010)

Do We Have Heroes in Canada?

First, a little self-promotion. My column on Canadian history runs for the first time in The Christian Herald, scheduled to be out November 9th. If you live in Southern Ontario, I hope you will pick up a copy of The Christian Herald and let the editor know what you think. Don't forget to email me your comments, too!

Thank you fellow Word Guilder, Denyse O'Leary, for encouraging me to write the proposal and to send it out to an editor, instead of 'wishing' someone would swoop down and offer me an opportunity. Thank you Fazal Karim, editor at The Christian Herald, for believing in the proposal and publishing my column.

Thank you everyone who has read my writing and said, "I didn't know Canada had stories like that." You inspire me, even when you send me back to the archives looking for answers to your questions.

A few days ago, a young Canadian emailed me with a challenge. "Can you find me any heroes in Canada? I didn't think we had any," he said.

I have to say, this saddened me quite a lot because the young man is university educated and has a great thirst for knowledge. Yet, he thought this country offered him no examples of great Christian leaders. How could we have failed to make him proud of his heritage?

It excited me too, because it is clear that he really wanted to learn about his own history. So, I typed off a list of names including General Currie, Laura Secord, Bishop John Strachan and about a dozen more. I'm still digging and sending him names when they pop into my mind. (I may have a write a whole book to answer his question because Canadian heroes don't often have monuments dedicated to them and, in my mind, that makes them even more heroic.)

Canada has more than her share of heroes, living and dead. Some of them are rich, famous, and politically powerful. Many eschew adulation.

Too often, we look at other countries longingly and wish we had their heritage, their political leaders, their wealth. (The wealth thing baffles me, because we are often wealthier and have less debt than the countries we look toward.)

It is good to admire and learn from people in other countries. If we can't do that, we become insular and backward in our thinking. But not knowing that we have our own heritage of faith and bravery and, instead, wishing we had leaders who were more like foreigners we see only on television screens is deeply ungrateful to our forebears. It is deeply unfair to our children, who need to be inspired to do great things. And it allows us to think that we can rely on other countries to 'carry the gospel, heal the sick, and bring justice to oppressed.'

Jane Harris Zsovan writes in both mainstream in Canadian publications about faith, business, arts, and contemporary Canada. She is the author of Stars Appearing: The Galts' Vision of Canada. She contributed "Jessie's Generation: Canada's Firebrands of Mercy and Justice" to Hot Apple Cider: Stories to Warm the Heart and Stir the Soul. Jane writes Vision of Canada Blog, on contemporary and historical Canada.