Failure to Communicate

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I communicate for a living. Story telling, blogging, marketing messaging and communication strategies. Of all the people I have worked with, the most challenging are those who think they are good communicators, but aren’t. They may be fine verbalizing an idea or thought, but ask them to write it down and disaster strikes. Some gremlin crawls in and blocks the words, scrambling them from their brain to their hands. There is no helping them understand their diagnosis. Their denial of the truth screeches like fingernails on a chalkboard.

It may be my simple mind, but I can take a complicated message and break it down into succinct statements, paragraphs or bullet points. The key is to not over-communicate. To explain how to fry an egg, there is no need to explain the reproductive system of the chicken first.

Clearly, there are far more complicated topics than frying an egg. It’s been my experience that with detailed complicated issues, the best way to communicate is to break them down into smaller, more manageable pieces of information.

So we have these non-communicators who think they are great communicators and driving us real communicators nuts. I’m not naming names, but let me encourage you to please for the love of connecting with others, slow down and really think about what you want to convey before attempting to do so. This may help. Or it may not and you may see me running away from you screaming.

Thanks for listening.
KK

 

 

I bought it.

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lotto (003)Over the last week or so the lottery has been quite the thing to buzz about. I am not a regular player, and don’t understand the fun of consistently paying two dollars for a little slip of paper that more than likely will deliver nothing in return. That being said, I admit to purchasing maybe a total of five lottery tickets in the life of the lottery.

Once, I was reminded of recently by a college friend, was when the lottery first started and I bought a scratch off and actually won. That winning didn’t give me the fever though. The other times have been when the lottery potential winnings hit historical highs, like hundreds of millions or like last week over a billion dollars. Why not? I spent two dollars and bought myself and my family a few days of fun conversation surrounded by the “what if” question.

We talked of being debt free and blessing our church and missionaries we support. What I admired was that we didn’t talk of world trips or huge houses. We talked about life being a little easier because of not having to worry about our future financial state.

I enjoyed dreaming of a lifestyle that I wouldn’t have otherwise thought about. It was a fun escape. Needless to say (as you can see from the photo), they chose the wrong numbers and I didn’t win. My participation last week reminded me that dreaming is good. No, I’ll never be a billionaire at the rate I’m going, but my family will always have what we need most. There will be successful goal-achieving moments ahead. Money certainly helps in this world, but it’s not everything. It’s a resource that gives us the opportunity to make this place a little better for ourselves and those we care about.

There still may be moments of escape when I do a little dreaming of “what if”, but I don’t need a lottery ticket to do that.

All the best,

KK

The children are our future

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This morning in our Sunday school class (or Sunday morning Bible study, whatever you call it) we discussed a passage from Mark 10 when Jesus rebukes his disciples as they attempted to keep the children from Him. There are certainly many layers to this passage to explore, but the one that we camped out on was the fact that children have a point of view on faith and Jesus that we should value and pay attention to. Our children do represent future believers in our churches, future parents passing their faith to another generation, future employees and supervisors who will have a broader spherechildren-7 of influence outside their home and churches. As parents we have an awesome responsibility to our children, to raise them to know the Lord personally and to carry their personal faith into adulthood. Allow me to take this responsibility a step further.

Not every believer is a parent. An individual who is a Christ follower may be an aunt or uncle, a teacher, a coach, or a friend of the family. These adults can have a HUGE impact in the life of a child. As I listened to the lesson this morning and I considered that many of the adults in the class were parents, I was grossly aware of the individuals who are not. But I know them to be investing in the lives of young people who God has brought into their lives.

I don’t often talk about my single parenting days, but during those eight years, the first eight years of my son’s life, I prayed for God to bring Godly men into his life. The prayer was answered in several ways – my brother who came to ball games and concerts; a friend from college who “happened” to be his Bible bowl coach and fifth grade teacher; a good friend who coached basketball and baseball; and the best of all, my husband and his step father who shows Christ to him every day.

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me,” and He drew them into His arms. The children we encounter every day or every week need us to invest in them, take an interest and pray for them. To the parents reading this, be encouraged to stay the course and finish the race of parenting strong. When you are tired ask for prayer. As your children grow and become more independent, this is when the real-life choices come. They need you just as much to guide them through the worldly issues they will encounter, as when they were young and you made all the choices for them.

To the non-parents reading this, find a young person and even if you don’t have a close relationship with them, pray for them. Seek ways to cheer them on to a Godly adulthood.

All the best,

KK

 

It’s not what you think

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khrichardsonAbout this time each year I attempt to inspire you to make goals for the New Year. Written goals are 10 times more likely to be accomplished than goals that are not written. Typically, I encourage goals for spiritual growth, financial soundness, and physical betterment. I still believe each of these areas is important, but this year, I’m re-thinking my goal-setting and accomplishing strategy.

What if I keep my three main categories, but only have one maybe two goals in each. Quality not quantity of goals. Each day, week, month, live intentionally to end up with a higher accomplishment rate. I’m not going to lose 15 pounds the first week of the year. But I can over a few months. It’s going to take being intentional each day to lower my sugar intake. It’s going to take being intentional each week to make time to exercise.

In December, I gave up talk radio in order to clear the clutter from my brain and allow my heart to experience the Christmas season. It worked. Not in the way I expected it to, but I found my spirit calm and my heart excited to celebrate the birth of Christ. The other thing I gained from this was control. Instead of absentmindedly turning the channel to talk radio or news, I chose to listen to uplifting and inspirational music. I controlled the messaging going into my brain. It’s important to keep up with news and the affairs of the world, but do it on YOUR terms.

Our days can get busy and life can get messy, take control where you can, be intentional in your living and focus each day on what is most important.

Take Care,
KK

P.S. — Want to help me with one of my goals? Share one of my posts that you most enjoy on your social media sites. Invite your friends and colleagues to follow.

 

 

Happy New Year!

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party hats and hornsI love that the first day of a new year is a holiday. Many wake up ready to throw away the old bad habits and jump into healthier living and better financial decisions. Gung ho! Not me. Yes, there are things I’d like to do and change in 2016, but today is a day of relaxing and family. It’s our last day or two of this holiday season. New Year’s day and (because of how it falls this year) the weekend that follows is a great way to ease into a new year. Take these few days to wrap up your holiday mindset. Make decisions about goals for 2016 and steps you will take to accomplish them. Look at your calendar and plan time to work on your goals. Is it exercise? Is it eating right? How will your meals change this first week/month of the year? Are you going to take a class? When will you be in class and when will you do homework?

Here’s to a well-paced goal-accomplishing 2016.

KK

 

Six Days or Six Thousand, Who Cares?

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There are dozens of theories about howhand of god the earth was created, evolved or banged together. I believe in creation through the power and spirit of one God. But even those who agree with me have thoughts about whether it was six literal 24-hour days or it took thousands of years. To this simple-minded, non-scientific girl, I say, who cares? The story of creation gives us more to discuss than how long it took.

First of all, God created the world and everything in it in a specific order. An order that provided for growth and sustainment. Think about it, the light and darkness came before the land and the water being separated. The land provided for the animals and plants, the water provided for the water creatures and the water that land dwellers would need.

Then came vegetation. All plants and trees needed to produce fruit and food was water, light and darkness.

Then came the sun and the moon. So what was the light and the darkness before we had planets to attribute? Who knows? Perhaps the light and darkness came from the control God had over his own power. Knowing our limited ability to comprehend Him, perhaps God is the pilot light of the sun, set it in space and let it be our reminder of the giver of life. Nonetheless, he gave us the sun and the moon as physical reminders of when we should wake and when we should rest.

He then gave life to the creatures of the sea, air and land. These creatures that would later sustain his favorite part of creation, man.

And 26 verses from nothing, God created his most sophisticated creature, man. Man was created in their image. God put him in charge of all he created. Man, imperfect, but God’s most trusted creation. And to create balance and order, he gave man a woman by which to partner and procreate. It was VERY good. Then he rested.

It is good from us to search the scriptures and have healthy debate. But in six days or 6,000, God gave more than our physical world.

  1. He taught us order. Do things in the right order for greater sustainment. There is peace and harmony in order.
  2. He taught us that nature was important enough to create first. Take notice and respect it.
  3. He gave us structure by which we schedule our life; day and night – seven days. Be productive and create for six days and then remember Him on the seventh. Rest in knowing that God is in charge of the big stuff like the universe AND the little stuff like caring enough to know the number of hairs on your head.

Your thoughts please,

KK

Give It Up For Advent

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Every year folks talk about how busy the Christmas season is. They declare that THIS will be the year they slow down and enjoy the true meaning of the season. Good intentions. I’m guilty of it too. Every year I begin December longing to truly feel that silent night, holy night. And while there will be moments late at night, or in church on Christmas Eve, I don’t feel like I experience what I long to have during the holiday. I’m not looking for movie-like Christmas miracles, just a little deeper peace; an expectancy throughout the season seeking the coming King.

Part of the problem is the noise and clutter in everyday life. What if we made intentional decisions every day to remove the noise we can control? What if each day until December 25th we live expectantly? starUnlike the shepherds and wise men, we have a date on the calendar. We know that we are going to celebrate the birth of Jesus. For believers, it is the birth of our King. The man who changed the course of history.

I don’t sacrifice for Lent. But this year, I’ve decided to sacrifice for Advent. I’m clearing some clutter and making way for the birth of the Savior. I’m giving up talk radio for Advent. No Dave Ramsey or Sean Hannity or NPR. My time with the radio on will be with music declaring the coming King.

The other decision I’ve made is to not get caught in the hurriedness. We will make choices about the most important activities and be in the moment; not worrying about rushing to the next thing.

How will you make this season special? Will you join me in living expectantly each day, choosing to prepare your heart and mind for the birth of the King?

Merry Christmas,

KK

 

Noel — Take 4 minutes

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This is absolutely amazing. Please take 4 minutes to sit quietly, eyes closed and let the message pour over you.