We know, however, this saying isn’t true; Christmas is about much more than a tree. But when someone forgets to set up the tree, or its needles fall off prematurely, we’re tempted to buy another one before the relatives arrive. Christmas trees are important and today, during the holidays, there’s one for sale on every corner. But this wasn’t always true.

It all started when a businessman, Mark Carr, saw an opportunity to serve his community.

Before 1851 the United States was a rural society. Most Americans could easily cut down and carry home their own trees. But, for those who lived in New York City, it was nearly impossible to access trees of any kind. Carr realized this and travelled by sled to the Catskill Mountains nearby and collected several bunches of evergreens. He hauled them back into the city and sold every single tree from a vacant lot. The Christmas tree market was born. Today in the U.S. nearly 40 million are bought and sold each year.

During this holiday season remember, sometimes it only takes one creative idea to launch a new industry. Always be looking for new opportunities. There are people to serve, problems to solve, and profits to make.

Money really can grow on trees. Even on evergreens.

Written by Justin Stephens. Edited by Andrei Duta. This article first appeared in Andrei’s Newsletter.

Friends of Peter (FOP) is a gathering of unique and beautiful individuals with eclectic skills and talents. FOP is many things. FOP is networking with a soul. FOP is a creative ideation forum. FOP is a dynamic group that thrives under the leadership of Peter.

Who is Peter? Two words: SERVANT LEADER. Peter is a servant leader with a golden heart. As such, I can now think of an additional definition of FOP: support group, service community, and network of servant leaders!

I will close by pointing to one of my favorite writers/thinkers: Robert Greenleaf. I believe he did a superb job in capturing the spirit of servant leadership… the spirit of Peter, the spirit of the individual friends of Peter, and, also, the spirit of the collective Friends of Peter:

WHAT IS SERVANT LEADERSHIP?

“Servant leadership is a philosophy and set of practices that enriches the lives of individuals, builds better organizations and ultimately creates a more just and caring world.

While servant leadership is a timeless concept, the phrase “servant leadership” was coined by Robert K. Greenleaf in The Servant as Leader, an essay that he first published in 1970. In that essay, Greenleaf said:
“The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions…The leader-first and the servant-first are two extreme types. Between them there are shadings and blends that are part of the infinite variety of human nature.

“The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people’s highest priority needs are being served. The best test, and difficult to administer, is: Do those served grow as persons? Do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants? And, what is the effect on the least privileged in society? Will they benefit or at least not be further deprived?“
A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. While traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid,”servant leadership is different. The servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.”[/blockquote][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

But still, it got me thinking about what it would be like to cross the desert on camel or donkey or, my goodness, on foot. An intense experience not for the faint of heart. Oh yeah, not for the feeble ones. It seems that all those who are called for great things in life (Abraham, Moses, the Israel nation and, also, Paul, Peter, Jesus Himself and even you and me as Jesus reminds us in John 14:12) had to spend time in – or cross through – the desert. Both literally and figuratively.

King David too spent time in Ein Gedi. He hid in the caves from Saul. I know now what David meant when he sang in Psalm 42:1 “as the dear pants for flowing streams of water, so my soul longs after You, oh God.”

I get it. I saw the Ibex drink from the mountain springs above the waterfall in the Ein Gedi wilderness. I felt David’s thirst for the Lord. I understand.

You know, even Jesus spent time in the desert. He launched His divine ministry with a 40-day fast somewhere in the wilderness east of Jerusalem. Around Jericho? Or in Ein Gedi. Somewhere in that area.

It gets hot during the day. And cold at night. It is rough. The wilderness is painful. Yet, the desert is also a cathartic place and process that draws us nearer to our heavenly Abba. It seems that experiencing the wasteland is God’s way of molding His chosen ones for greater things in life. I know a thing or two about arid wastelands, dark valleys, and the desolate desert. I know that it is not easy. But I also know that the tears shed during the wilderness bring healing. I moreover know that the desert precedes the place of “shalom,” the place of peace, abundance, completeness, wholeness, healing, and prosperity. I know it by faith from what King David was forced – and Lord Jesus chose – to endure. I also know it experientially from what I personally suffered during the crossing of my own wildland a few years ago. I now know beyond a shadow of doubt that there is a place of “shalom” for us both here on earth in this life and also beyond.

In Psalm 66:10-12, The Lord reminds us that He will see us through the wilderness. He will see us to the other side of the desert. He won’t see us OUT of it but He will see us THROUGH it. We have to go through the process. But, there is an end. There is a place of “shalom” for you. For me. For both of us. Crossing the wildland is necessary. It is an integral part of the healing, purifying, and humbling process. Though challenging, we are not alone during our journey through the arid and dry places.

A couple of days before the Ein Gedi desert experience, I visited a vibrant beach in Haifa. As I was walking and watching the sun set on the sea side of the Mediterranean, I had a divine revelation. I passed a little Jewish boy, about 15 months old, who was wading through the sea along the beach. His abba, his father, was protectively hovering over his young son. The dad was holding up his baby’s two hands for support. With most of the weight lifted up by the father, the butt-naked baby was awkwardly, but joyfully, laboring step by step through the water. As I passed them, the baby turned his head, gazed at me, and smiled. A smile of happiness and innocence reflecting a heart free of any and all worries.

The Lord spoke to me me through this Jewish baby’s pure heart. The baby’s smile and sparkling eyes said it all. “No worries. Abba got you. He covers you. He hovers over you. He protects and sustains you. No worries. No fear. You are not alone. Abba holds you. He sustains you. Your Heavenly Father walks with you.” The Haifa message punctuated what my heavenly Abba has been revealing to me throughout the last 12 months. I would say that I finally started to see my own Jordan River last summer. And I crossed into my Promise Land, the place of shalom, sometime at the beginning of this year. Maybe 1/1/2014. Around that time. A few days before. A few days after. This is my faith testimony! A story of God’s faithfulness during my wandering through the wildland.

Please take a moment to read this once you finish this blog entry. My Ein Gedi desert experience will make even more sense.

Praise God for the victory of truth! God turned and turns ashes into beauty! Thank The Lord for His shalom!

What a journey. Hallelujah! Praise The Lord! Amen!

Blessings and Love, Andrei

Photos

Above: HAIFA – vibrant Mediterranean Sea beach.

Left: EIN GEDI – waterfall from mountain spring in the desert.

Billy Graham is now 94 years-old, and has Parkinson’s disease.

In January, leaders in Charlotte, North Carolina, invited their favorite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor.

Billy initially hesitated to accept the invitation because he struggles with Parkinson’s disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, ‘We don’t expect a major address. Just come and let us honor you.’ so he agreed.

After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said: “I’m reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time magazine as the Man of the Century. Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train, when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of every passenger. When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn’t find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets.

It wasn’t there. He looked in his briefcase but couldn’t find it. Then he looked in the seat beside him. He still couldn’t find it.

“The conductor said, ‘Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I’m sure you bought a ticket. Don’t worry about it.’
“Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the great physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for his ticket.

“The conductor rushed back and said, ‘Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don’t worry, I know who you are; no problem. You don’t need a ticket. I’m sure you bought one.’

Einstein looked at him and said, “Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don’t know is where I’m going.”

Having said that Billy Graham continued, “See the suit I’m wearing? It’s a brand new suit. My children, and my grandchildren are telling me I’ve gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion. You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I’ll be buried. But when you hear I’m dead, I don’t want you to immediately remember the suit I’m wearing I want you to remember this: “I not only know who I am. I also know where I’m going.” May your troubles be less, your blessings more, and may nothing but happiness come through your door. “Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil – it has no point.”

– Author Unknown

Amen & Peace, my friends

And may each of us have lived our lives so that when our ticket is punched we don’t have to worry about where we are going.

Perseverance is the forward or upward motion of a subject in the face of resistance. Perseverance pertains to motion and resistance. Imagine a seed that falls in a sidewalk crack. It takes time and perseverance, so to speak, for the seed to sprout and fight its way up towards light. A certain level of “tenacity” is required to squeeze the tiny, but ever growing, leaves through the small sidewalk fissure. Perseverance pertains to overcoming resistance. Tenacity describes the seed that shoots its leaves through the small cracks in the hardened cement.

Patience is related to, yet different than, perseverance. Patience is the subject waiting against the backdrop of time. Patience is about enduring time. Patience pertains to stillness. Patience relates to clock or calendar. Patience complements perseverance. Patience can be viewed as perseverance in terms of temporal resistance. Patience and perseverance are two sides of the same coin.

Perseverance is about breaking through obstacles. A persevering character is a powerful one. Patience is about waiting for the right moment when the right sand grain drops in the hourglass of time. A patient character is a refined one.  Two beautiful virtues worth embracing and cultivating.

Patience and perseverance. Perseverance and patience.

A: Dear Amanda,

There are several companies that come to mind. I will highlight one at this time.

Roadwire (RWDR) is a premier aftermarket automotive solutions company based in Austin, Texas. The main reason that I admire this company is due to its leadership. Aaron Forrister, the CEO of Roadwire, improved the corporate bylaws during his first 30 days on the job at the beginning of this year. The bylaw change accounts for giving away 10% of the profits to charitable organizations. Aaron is an effective leader who was able to inspire his entire company to rally behind the new corporate mission statement:

“Our mission at Roadwire is to bridge the gap between the needs of humanity and the resources of business.”

Aaron’s focus transcends the automotive industry. He and his company think globally and look for ways to truly make this world a better place. Whether sponsoring medical missions, taking care of orphans, supplying resources for microfinance programs, or digging water wells, Roadwire is an enlightened company that understands how “doing good” leads to “doing well.”

Best, Andrei