You become like the people you hang out with. They either lower or raise you to their “temperature.” This has always been true. In Acts 3:13 Peter healed a man and it says people “could tell he had been with Jesus.” You become like the people you hang out with.

So, who are you hanging out with?

In the past six months I’ve twice been asked to join Mastermind groups. My first question is always “Who else is in the group?” I want to know whether they are people stronger and better than me, or lesser. I only want to hang out with people who are more knowledgeable, better leaders, wealthier, and more successful. Why? Because that’s how I can increase my knowledge, leadership, wealth and success.

This brings to mind the question:  What kinds of people are you hanging out with?

In my next post I’ll talk about investing time in people who have achieved less than you have.

My mentor (now from across the eternity chasm) Fred Smith said this marvelously well.

“Our forefathers understood the need to separate church and state —- the bureaucracies of both.  But, they were very public in voicing their dependence on God.  They didn’t legislate against God.

In their writings, memorials, statues, and public utterances, their deepest thought literally emerged from their faith.  Were they hypocritical in their support of this separation?  No, I think not. 

We have confused the issue of religion in politics with the separation of church and state.  These are very different concepts which the media, and unknowledgeable, biased people treat as synonymous.

The basic foundation of separation of church and state is keeping the two bureaucracies of each from uniting and thereby combing treason and heresy under the same authority.  If a person offended the “powers that be,” he could be declared a traitor or a heretic.  It was a death grip on differing opinions.

The union of church and state refused freedom for denominationalism.  I am convinced this would be extremely unhealthy.  I personally know and respect many of the current religious leaders.  But, I do not know one I would risk heading the whole church.  One of the blessings of denominationalism is the dispersion of church leadership.

Unfortunately, when human leaders face the choice between the visible power of politics and money or the invisible power of God, the visible too often is the option.  He believes he can control the visible, but fails to bow to the invisible which controls him.

I appreciate the effort to spiritually revitalize America.  However, I am afraid of leaders who promise revival under their leadership — and theirs alone.  Quoting verses of scripture can hardly deliver God.  If God were through with us, no elections would return him.  Heaven forbid that we have come to that point.

I am searching to be on God’s side, not promising He is on mine.  I am searching for His leadership, not promising that mine will save.

Am I saying religion should not enter into political decisions?  Certainly not!  To say a man’s religious convictions should be kept out of his decisions is to suggest he become schizoid.  We need more acceptance of our dependence on the eternal, not less.

What we need is the original, Consitutional wisdom to keep the bureaucracy of religion and politics separate so we can practice out individual faith without the fear of state-imposed religion.

We must correct the erroneous believe that religion in politics and public life is “persona non grata” under the separation of church and state.  Separation is for protection, not exclusion.”

I’ve had a hard several days in a row,  just the generic difficulties that sometimes comprise life. In their midst I find myself grateful for two members of my team who sit with me and talk through things at length, repeatedly, from different perspectives, over and over again, until we’ve got it worked out. Thanks Nola and Jay. What wonderful friends you are. I love you!

And then, there is laughter. One of my friends from Texas sent me a somewhat sarcastic email today and it made me laugh. I noticed the laugh. And, I enjoyed it.  And then when I got home from work as I pulled through the gate I looked up the hill into pasture #5 and there staring at me…nothing but legs and ears was a new baby llama. And I laughed. And it felt good. If you’ve ever seen a new baby llama with a neck as long as its legs, and erect ears sticking straight up, wide-eyed with that “what’s that?” look, and a gait that indicates it doesn’t really know what to do with those long legs then you know why I laughed. It’s the goofiest, gangliest thing. It was fun to see, and it was fun to laugh.

Proverbs 17:32 says “A merry heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.” It made all the difference for me today.

May you be blessed with laughter.

My teacher Dan Sullivan says “All progress starts by telling the truth.” Yet I’ve noticed that truth isn’t something people are really interested in. Lie to me and make me feel good about myself is a far more popular mantra.

When you do tell someone the truth I find that they are frequently offended and it often creates a breach in the relationship. Does that mean that we should shrink back from truth telling?

Do you ever find yourself being defensive when someone tells you something that is uncomfortable to hear? Is there any truth to what they’ve said? Is there any chance that feelings of defensiveness are actually an internal mechanism that God gave us (or that we’ve developed) which indicates that we are not in alignment with the truth?

I’ve often found that when someone attacks me and I am fully in the right, it causes me to laugh. However, when I recognize grains of truth in their statements, I feel defensive. So, could it be that defensiveness indicates that we aren’t in congruity with the truth?

I’d be interested in knowing what you think about it.