Values
Its easy today to see that a lot of values have changed over the years. What some people value today, is different than what people valued 30,40,50, even 10 years ago. When September 11th happened, we didn’t value our freedom as much as we do today. But, when something challenged what we had so dearly taken advantage of, our value systems toward what this great country is all about changed. Whenever something challenges your comfort zone, your value system changes!
VALUE YOUR REPUTATION
It’s sad to see a lot of young people today not valuing their reputation. Now I know the only opinion you should care about is Gods, but valuing what certain people think about you has a way of propelling you forward in life, or propelling you backward in life and is biblical. I value what my pastor thinks about me. I value what some of my close friends think about me. I know that they will tell me or somehow let me know if I am stepping somewhere I shouldn't be stepping or going in a direction I shouldn't be going. I value their opinion about me. It helps keep my reputation in tact.
It’s very hard to rebuild your reputation when you have damaged it. That’s why you have to be so careful about everything you do and say. Especially in front of eyes where your actions could effect somebody. One moment of lost trust, takes a lifetime to earn back. Some things can never be earned back. Some things can only be brought back by God when you ask for forgiveness from the only one who can really give it to you.
I think that’s where a lot of us get mixed up - in the crossover line between wanting to do a work for God, but not actually wanting to be accountable for our actions off the spotlight. They want to be used by God or they want to be in a position where people can see them, and yet won't admit to the fact that now that I am in a leadership position, all eyes are on me, but I can still do what I want.
You can tell what people value just by watching them. It’s funny to watch how their value system changes in front of people then in front of friends. This is how you can tell the difference in real people and fake people. Recently I was watching somebody who was in a small leadership position, and in front of an audience this person would move the crowds, minister, and use the gifts God had given them to their full extent. But as I watched, when the lights were off them, when the show was over, when things were back down to planet earth, they started acting different, doing stuff they knew they shouldn’t be doing - THEIR VALUES WERE DIFFERENT AND THIS WILL NOT GO UNNOTICED BY PEOPLE. Remember, your reputation doesn’t come from what the audience says about you when they see you on stage, because that can change from Sunday to Sunday. But your true reputation among people comes when people see you when you aren’t in front of the lights, on stage, or in a elevated position, but when you are down to earth being who you really are. BECAUSE WHETHER YOU BELIEVE IT OR NOT, PEOPLE ARE WATCHING YOU!!! You are in a leadership position. Be careful what you do. Be careful what you say. Always think twice before saying something!!
Because some things can't be replaced, they can't be forgotten, and their value is beyond measure.
Okay, it is time to get some interaction from all of you. POTM is just around the corner and it will be a busy day with sound checks, performance, and hopefully fun. So, tell us. What ride do you just have to get on while you are at Six Flags Magic Mountain? If you don't like rides, what is your favorite thing to do while you are at Magic Mountain? Do you have to have a funnel cake, hug Bugs Bunny, pretend you are the Tasmanian devil, sneak into kiddie-land........? Come on. Click on "comment" and type in something. 
