Do. Intentionally.

“Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what is.”

Steve Jobs

One of the most difficult things to accomplish is taking what dream and vision you have on your heart and mind, and give it wheels. How do you do it?

Building a business, leading in ministry, raising a family, learning a skill – almost anything you have on your radar needs one thing. Intentionality.

in·ten·tion·al·i·ty

/inˌten(t)SHəˈnalədē/

noun

the fact of being deliberate or purposive.

(thanks Google)

You know what this is. It’s not some new-fangled word that guru Adam came down from the mountain with. It’s familiar. Yet, can become distant. We lose sight on the things we want to pursue, either out of boredom, difficulty, fatigue, or pain. Sometimes we get overwhelmed or life gets away from us. Sure. It happens to all of us.

It’s rare to have things happen well by accident. As a guy who likes to cut to the meat and potatoes, getting intentional is a verb. It’s an action. It’s what moves the needle yet provides clarity. Being intentional on one of your big items means you are squaring up, making time, and designing plans. It means saying no to others. Let your “yes” mean yes and your “no” mean no so you can streamline and focus your efforts.

Are you living intentionally or are your dreams and projects floating by? What needs that attention in your life?

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This article is from Righteous Co.’s weekly newsletter, The Climb. If you want to see content like this and more, subscribe here to get The Climb right in your email box, every Righteous Wednesday. You can also follow along on Instagram @righteousco.

Make That Vacation Time!

“The end of labor is to gain leisure.”

Aristotle

I started my vacation time on Monday. I’ve got two weeks off from ministry and totally need the break – mentally, spiritually, and physically. But I don’t think there is anyone who appreciates this break more than my wife Ani, the rockstar who makes it all work at home. She gets the break too. 

I’m not great at the vacation thing in this season of life, maybe you can relate. There’s so much to do and two weeks doesn’t seem like a lot of time to do it. I have plenty of run-over from work on my mind. I’ll have finished vacation time by the time my head realizes I’m on it.

Taking a break is so important. Our minds need to take a step back to get a better field of view. To recharge. To refresh. Lord knows I need a recharge. 

While I love traveling, we’re not doing too much of that with the little ones right now. So we’re making the most out of local stops and the outdoors. It doesn’t have to be big and grandiose to get the same results. Whether you have a big budget or a little one, a lot of time or a little; make the most out of the break.

Be intentional! If you go into the vacation with questions about the next steps on your heart, give some time to pray and contemplate it. Let the aim of your vacation have a start and a finish to it, how do you want to feel when it comes to an end? What will you have to do to achieve that?

Put it on the calendar, give it a plan and a purpose, include who you want (or don’t), and set your budget. 

So when are you going on vacation next and why?

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This article is from Righteous Co.’s weekly newsletter, The Climb. If you want to see content like this and more, subscribe here to get The Climb right in your email box, every Righteous Wednesday. You can also follow along on Instagram @righteousco.

Dreams & Dinosaurs

“Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs.”

Farrah Gray

Because the new Jurassic World trailer is out and fresh in mind, it brings me to when I was a kid. Loved Dinosaurs (really still do). They’re fascinating. This immense amount of time before us was filled with a world we wouldn’t recognize today. We often sweep it all together in two time-blocks, “here-and-now”, and then the “past”. It’s crazy to think that the time between us and T-Rex is about the same time between T-Rex and Stegosaurus. 

When I was a kid I dreamt of being a paleontologist. I wanted to dig up and study dinosaurs. I was seven or eight when I was digging for fossils in our driveway with some friends and felt so strongly about it that I stopped and called them together and poured out my heart, “Guys, if I go to dig up dinosaurs, will you come with me too?” 

I never did become a paleontologist. My friends never came with me. That’s ok!

While I still enjoy paleontology, it wasn’t a dream I couldn’t make use of in a big way. As I’ve grown, bigger dreams became clear through prayer – like getting married, raising a family, and serving others.

My kids now like dinosaurs and we have fun with them but not all dreams are created equal – prayer and discernment are essential for getting your dreams ordered. Moving a dream to crafting a vision and building a roadmap of goals requires planning and hard work. What has the Lord put on your heart to dig into and separate dirt from bone?

Go dream it, then do it. 

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This article is from Righteous Co.’s weekly newsletter, The Climb. If you want to see content like this and more, subscribe here to get The Climb right in your email box, every Righteous Wednesday. You can also follow along on Instagram @righteousco.

80 Days to Iron

“Anyone who seeks truth seeks God, whether or not he realizes it.” 

St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross

Summer is a couple of weeks away and as I write this, we’re eighty days from Iron Ore: ADK Men’s Retreat. As the season transitions, it’s a great moment to spotlight it. Our second in the series of being in the Adirondack high peaks – we’ll be venturing onto and up Algonquin Peak, the second-highest in NY. After conquering the third-highest with Whiteface last year, we’re ready for the next step up with 5,114 ft of tough incline and trail.

It’s not just about the physical challenge of course. We’re spiritual and mental creatures too. This retreat is designed for the man looking to climb the mountains in their life. We’re going to have an incredible group of intentional men who need to make space for clarity of what’s being asked of them in life. Everyone comes from a different discipline or vocation but we share the common thread of being a man formed by God with purpose. 

Jesus leads by example by retreating and recharging in the wilderness. There is grace to be found in God’s country and the crisp mountain air brings the soul to life. As men, we have designs and purposes set on our hearts – vocations and dreams to climb. As we let our Maker form us physically on the mountain we amplify the spiritual and mental parts of our being.

The retreat isn’t for everyone. It’ll be hard. You’ll be tired. We might have a storm chase us off. 

But.

You’ll feel alive and charged up. You’ll come down from the mountain with greater clarity on the heart. We’ll cheer in invigorated fellowship over good bourbon when we get back to the bottom. You’ll have an encounter with the One who made you.  

This is the Iron Ore experience and I want you to prayerfully consider it. Registration is open. Want to see more information, click here. Questions, call me.

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This article is from Righteous Co.’s weekly newsletter, The Climb. If you want to see content like this and more, subscribe here to get The Climb right in your email box, every Righteous Wednesday. You can also follow along on Instagram @righteousco.