We are now in the first whole week of February, and I am curious how many of you have already given up on your New Year resolutions. Based on research by Ohio State University, about 43% of people have given up on their resolutions by the end of January, and nearly 80% will have given up on their resolutions by the end of February. Now, I tend to prove that category right most of the time. This year is a little different for me, though. Having been a part of Maxwell Leadership for a year and having some other external influences, I am learning to be more INTENTIONAL with my life. So, having endured a couple of lulls in the strict following of my resolutions, I am staying with them and continuing to press ahead.
I am currently reading John Maxwell’s book Intentional Living, and that is going to help guide this month’s blog. If you have already read it, we are just going to focus on the first two chapters for now. In the first part of the book, John talks about how people have always used stories to portray messages, themes, and ideas. Look at how we communicate and how humans have always exchanged ideas. The early Bible was passed by voice before it was ever written. Early man left cave drawings or glyphs. More modern humans had the written word, which evolved to the radio, then TV, and now we have the internet. All these things are used to tell stories. X tells us a story in 280 characters or less. YouTube Shorts can give us little movies. I am assuming TikTok is similar; I have never used it.
The question is now, what is YOUR story, or better yet, how do you fit into the story? Are you the hero, the villain, or a background character? How do you see yourself in your own story? How do you tell your story, or do you keep it to yourself? With the internet and cell phones, many people are putting their “story” out there or at least what they want us to see. Let's think about our stories, and I especially want you to think about what your story would be. When I was a Motorcop, going to funerals was one of my duties. I have been to more on-duty law enforcement funerals than I can remember. That includes the one for my Brother. One thing that I realized in attending all these funerals is, “How do you want to be remembered?” or “What are people going to say about you?” At times, these questions would fade into the background when life got busy—whether dealing with family struggles or spending time with my kids. But they always returned, shaping how I lived my life.
You may be thinking, “How do these two ideas intersect?” Well, like our New Year resolutions, many, if not most, of us have great ideas, dreams, plans, and resolutions, but do we have the courage, faith, trust, or energy to act on them? It is not the stuff we have that makes us valuable; it is our behavior and who we become through the process that is valuable. Simon Sinek has been teaching for years “Start with WHY.” Why do you do what you do? Once you start to establish those values and reasons, then you have to take action.
Now, finding your WHY is much more complicated than it sounds. How and what we do is way easier and can sound like a why. I suggest you watch Simon’s YouTube videos or read his books to start to work on your WHY. Even before you have your why, you can begin to take action based on what you already know and what you already believe. If you have strong values, then start acting like it. Do not let the culture quiet or devalue you because of your beliefs. If you are a Christian, you have two beliefs you are supposed to follow: “Love God above everything else and Love your neighbor as yourself.” Those two sound easy but are way more demanding in this day and age. But those aren’t necessarily your WHY. Maybe your why is to help the poor or to create a new invention to save the planet. Maybe your why is that you want to explore space or feed the world. Those whys will drive what you do and how you do it.
However, if you start living intentionally and start living out what you genuinely believe, you will reaffirm your values. If you study and learn your why and more about what you think, it will help you find your voice to tell others when they ask why you do certain things. Your character will be strong enough to maintain your level of strength and certainty when the culture turns against you, and finally, you will reach that contentment you have been desiring that nothing ever seemed to fill. How often have we heard those who have “everything” say they were not fulfilled? That is because they were not living intentionally but doing whatever it took to get “stuff.”
My friends, living intentionally starts with remembering that everything we have is a gift, a fleeting gift from God. The tragedies of the past couple of months should be a stark reminder that things can be destroyed, and lives can be lost in mere seconds. Denzel Washington famously said in 2015, “You never see a U-Haul behind a hearse.” What a reminder for us all. It is always good to leave your heirs “things,” but isn’t leaving them a better world or being an example of living an intentional life even better?
So, as we start the second month of 2025, let me ask you: Are you living intentionally, or are you just “going with the flow?” What do you think will be said about you when your time comes? At the end of your journey, will the world be different because you lived? Or will all you leave behind be a full U-Haul? What is your why? Is it something that will change those around you, or is it just to fill that U-Haul? Is it a selfish why, or do you have the benefit of others in mind? Be that Lampstand Leader; let your light shine in a world that needs it!
“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it!”—Simon Sinek.
The U-Haul Behind the Hearse: What Will You Leave Behind?