5 Ways to turn Your Life Upside Down

by Daryl Crouch (@dkcrouch)

We Think we are heading in the right direction only to find out we really don’t know where we are. We are Lost! Jeff Goins in his book Wrecked says this, “Most people don’t know who they are—sounds trite, but it’s true...They’re struggling to find meaning in their lives. They’re floundering, lost in a cloud of insignificance and mediocrity.”

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Is that you? Are you only satisfied with mediocrity. With living a status quo life? Here a 5 ways to turn you life upside down. You will not be the same.

1. Upside Down Start

Oh No! I slept through the alarm! I’m going to be late to my appointment! Sounds familiar? One morning I had an appointment to meet with a couple to regarding a crisis they were facing. I slept in because of a late night church board meeting. As I was driving to meet with the couple it hit me. As a pastor I was dealing with something that is critical to this family. It turned my life upside down. I had to do something different to be effective. I had to try something different.

Try something Different

Instead of jumping up and racing off l find if I spend a moment in quite reflection - I change. This change is accomplished by spending a quite time with God. Reflecting and talking with Him. This helps me to be more effective in dealing especially in a time of crisis.

Prayer is of the utmost importance to the life and attitude of an individual. Begin your quite time by asking God to open your eyes to people you come across. To see, hear, and feel people like Jesus did. Then with compassion reach out and touch a life.

 2. Upside Down Approach

It is easy to be critical about people. I have evaluated someone and when I understood their situation I discovered I was originally way off base. None of us appreciates someone judging us. With an upside down approach we genuinely care for individuals without any strings attached. We accept them at their point in there journey.

Did you know Jesus showed us how to let others know we are His follower? John 13:34-35. I like how the NLT puts it. “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” For further reading on this check out: 1 John 4:7-8, 1 John 4:19-21.

Our life begins to shift when we look differently at people. We begin to stop pursuing our own selfishness.

3. Upside Down Ideas

Try to help alleviate suffering. “To Alleviate is to make something easier to endure.” Try some of these ideas.

Volunteer:

• Food Pantry
• Soup Kitchen
• Mentoring someone else
• Tutoring
• Hospital
• VA
• Homeless Shelter
• Senior Citizen Center

Get involved:

• Get involved with a small group ministry
• Local church
• Start a ministry
• Community projects

4. Upside Down... Forgiveness

This is a hard one. Probably because we don’t understand forgiveness. In Micah 7:18 we see God’s Forgiving Grace. “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.” (Micah 7:18, NIV)

We have a God who delights to extend His mercy and grace to us. No matter what you have done God will forgive you. What about forgiving others? Luke 6:37 gives us three fold guidance. One do not judge others. Condemn ... Second forgives others. The result would be we are forgiven.

Imagine someone has just done something wrong against you. They are expecting you to come unglued. Instead you forgive them. That’s turning your life and their’s upside down.

5. Upside Down End

Close the day as you begin. Spend a quite time with God. Part of my quite time is reflecting on His Word. Read the Bible and applying it to my life.

What are some of the ways your life is turned upside down?

What Happens in a Compassionless Environment

by Daryl Crouch (@crouchdk)

George (fictitious name) was a leader in our church. He was accused of mismanaging the church’s funds by the pastor. It was totally a false accusation. With this scenario there are one of three choice that people could make. First, they could side with the pastor. Second, they could have empathy. Third, they could have compassion.

 Siding with the pastor 

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Let’s role back the clock and give a little background on the pastor and the situation. The pastor shared with me several months before that he wanted me to help him take back control of the church. He felt George was standing in his way of controlling the church. My response was that no one should have control of the church except Jesus. He is the head. We all are here to work together as a team because we are the body.

There were some who sided with the pastor. The problem you have once you start fabricating a lie about someone or something it doesn’t stop there. The pastor set in motion a misrepresentation of George that he could not stop without revealing his own untruthfulness. The lie exploded like dynamite. So now the pastor has created a toxic church environment.

Showing empathy

It is important to have empathy towards others. Empathy gives us the understanding what someone is going through. The dictionary says empathy is, “The ability to understand and share the feelings of another.”

In the situation with George there were some who showed genuine empathy. During this time George and his family needed more than empathy. Some people at church really felt bad for George. Despite the injustice these members were so comfortable with the status quo at church that they did not want to rock the boat. It was bad enough that myself and George had to take a stand and simply walked out of the church not to return. This group did not understand why. They thought it is was a bad situation but church should go on as normal.

By their lack of action they began to live a lie. This church was being transforming into a dangerously toxic church. You cannot live a lie for long without becoming deadly. Sin is sin and has to be dealt with. Read Matthew 18:15-17.

Showing Compassion

George and his family needed people who genuinely cared. It is good to have empathy toward others. It is essential for empathy to be transformed into compassion. Matthew 14:14 says, “He had compassion on them”. You see with compassion there is an action that takes place. The scripture goes to say He “healed their sick”. What would have happen if Jesus had empathy instead? Then scripture would have said, “He had [empathy for] them” then instead of the healing it would have said, ‘He walked on by.”

Philana Crouch (@prcrouch) shared with me-“compassion is empathy with action.” The word compassion simply means to be along side of someone in their suffering or passion. So in this scenario what George needed was people to be along side of him and help along the way.

I like how Jeff Goins puts it in his book Wrecked. “If you’re really helping someone in pain—if you’re really experiencing compassion—you can’t help but hurt, too.” We live in a world that is broken. The only way to fix it is to allow Christ to reach through us. Change comes one person at a time.

Jeff Goins goes on to in his book Wrecked and says, “And if you are going to change something, you are going to have to enter into the brokenness and experience some of the pain therein. The only escape from this reality is to live only for yourself. And we all know what that gets us: exactly what we already have.”

It’s sad but this church has dwindled down from a growing church to only a small handful of people. Christ calls us not only to empathize but to show compassion to those around us.

How do you show compassion? How have you experienced compassion? Share a moment you have shown or experienced compassion.

Bold Prayers

This is a short 9:53 video clip by Greg Groeschel.

Watch the entire message here: http://www.lifechurch.tv/watch/bold/2

We have a choice. We can play it safe or we can seize the life God has in mind for us. What's it going to be? Come explore what can happen when we become Bold.