Measured Words (Ecclesiastes 5:2)

Am I wise enough to limit what I say to what I really know?

Being a high school teacher, I spend the entire day, every day, talking. I have to speak in front of students every hour of my workday. Whenever I find myself saying whatever comes to mind and not thinking about my words, I wind up saying something that I wish I wouldn't have. Whether it is something that puts a kid down or something about another teacher, whatever, I end up wishing I'd kept my mouth shut. Luckily, I haven't been called to the carpet about it yet, but I hope I've learned my lesson without that happening. Kids will repeat everything you say to them, and usually at the most inopportune moment. I have to remember that and I try to measure my words as a result.

In your life, make sure that you're measuring your words and not just saying what you think. Just because you can say something, doesn't mean you should. Take care of your words and you won't have to explain them to anyone. Later.

Bending Your Ear

Whom do I need to attend to today with a sharpened or bent ear?

Yesterday was a hard day for my wife and I. We both had meetings and commitments that we had to attend to that caused us to leave our daughter at her preschool for a total of 12 1/2 hours. That caused my wife a great deal of grief because she feels that we were, in essence, neglecting Cerena and that is exactly what we don't want to do. However, we have to attend to our other commitments, so we just have to make a concentrated effort to not do this again.
I want to be a good father for Cerena. I want to make the effort to be there for everything she does and goes through. We (Cheryl and I) just have to do what we can right now to get out of debt and that will free up a lot of time and resources to do things as a family and make sure that Cerena knows both parents, not just one or the other.
I'm also a teacher, so I know that there is a good chance that I may have to "attend" to my students with a sharpened or bent ear. So many of them are looking for someone to listen to them and to understand what they are going through. I may not always understand, but I've been through so much myself that I have an idea of how to deal with all sorts of problems. I just want to be someone that students can look up to, not just obey out of fear of discipline.
Remember, no matter what job you're in, people will look up to or at you and will notice what you do and how you act. Wouldn't you rather be someone to be like than someone to avoid becoming like? You may say that you don't want that pressure, but that is not always your choice. Be someone to look up, not away from. Later.

What Makes a Man

Do I spend too much of my time working or thinking about work, causing my family to suffer?

I honestly spend as little time as possible thinking about work after the day is done. Unfortunately, my wife and I have made some poor financial decisions that we are now attempting to rectify. To do this, we are having to work at extra duties as much as possible so that we can make the extra money to pay off our debt. The upside is that we will be debt-free in three years and able to live without running up any more debt after that.

Anyway, back to the question at hand. When I got married, I was in the Marines. I had to spend quite a bit of time away from home, whether it was on deployment somewhere or in the field on base. I missed my wife something fierce and we decided that we weren't going to have any children while I was active duty. Now that we have our daughter, I want to spend as much time with her and her mom as I can. For that reason, I try to separate myself from work as often as I can. Being teachers, my wife and I have really good schedules that make time for us to spend together easier to come by.

Remember, time with your loved ones and your family is precious. You can't make it up, no matter how much money you have or how hard you try. There is a saying that goes, "No man was ever on his deathbed saying I wish I had spent more time working." Keep that in mind when you're trying to make the decision whether to work the overtime or go to dinner with your family. Later.

Welcome to a new blog

Hey there, my name is Gary and I decided to start yet another blog to share my thoughts and devotionals with the world. I know that there are a number of people out there who will not care that I do this, but this is not for them. I do this because the public nature of blogging means that I will feel a little pressure to make sure that I commit to the things I say I will. The very fact that even one other person may read them and will know my struggles means that I will want to hold true to what I say I will do. Thank you to anyone who cares to check this out. Please, please, please leave comments to let me know what you think and to also let me know if you are struggling with anything I can pray for. Thanks again.