Never be envious again…

Sometimes I have people say to me, "I wish I had your job, I'm just a (fill in the blank). Your work has meaning, purpose, you are doing something for God, I wish I could do that".

I smile and usually don't say much because it would take me too long to straighten their thinking out, but for those who hang around me long enough and give me the chance to explain life on a bigger scale, they finally get.

It's not what you do; it's how you do it.

Counting the contractions, those last 10 words I just wrote should be the most profound 10 words of wisdom you have heard in a long time-go back and read them again and do yourself a favor, write them down, then think about them until you understand.

Let me give you some examples. One of the kindest and most righteous man I have ever known was a handyman of sorts who sprayed apple trees, watched over lawn crews and wore jeans every time I saw him. I gave him a fine cigar once and he smoked it until it went out and then chew what was left, loving every minute of it.

He told me once to eat the apples that had worn holes because that meant they were good, otherwise the worms wouldn't bother with them. He also taught me courage, faith and kindness when he lived for several years without a stomach, walking around with a glucose bag for nourishment when cancer took away his body.

It' not what you do; it's how you do it.

My mother told me about a woman who raised her along with my 8 aunts and uncles, a nanny/cook/maid of sorts. They called her Aunt Caroline. It didn't matter that she was black, probable the grandchild of a slave there in eastern North Carolina, she was still Aunt Caroline. To my mother and the rest of the children, she was their guardian angel.

My mother came home from school once crying because she had been teased about her freckles. Aunt Caroline hugged her and said, "Do you worry child, don't you know that everyone of those freckles are angel kisses?"

It's not what you do; it's how you do it.

On the other hand I have had the misfortune of personally knowing Ministers of the Gospel of Christ who used their office to intimidate followers, use and abuse those close to them and do things that I have worked so hard to forget that thankfully they are only vague memories.

It's not what you do; but how you do it.

I teach prosperity because, as I have said a million times, I believe God wants us to prosper, but it has never been about just making as much as you can. It has always been about how you do it.

Some think that if I wouldn't mention God or Jesus Christ I would make a lot more with my products and that may be very true, but that's not how I do it.

I could turn it around the other way and play to the emotions, passions and desires of most Christian groups. Believe me, I could work up a crowd into a fever pitch with the best of them. I know what makes them cry, I know what makes them seek forgiveness, I know what would make them open up the checkbook and write check after check to buy repentance, but no matter how much I made doing that, I couldn't live with myself, so that's not how I do it.

It's at this point that people start thinking that their choice is either morals or wealth and that's where the thinking goes wrong. You don't have to compromise to get what you want and you don't have to be poor in order to do it right. You can have both-it's all about choice.

I will admit there are not many people who think this way; well maybe it's time for a paradigm shift in thinking. Some have thought my ideas adventurous and pioneering, others have thought them rebellious and hieratical-I really don't care either way.

I just want to give you a chance to listen to them and decide for yourself.

So to start with remember you never have to envy anyone because it's not your job that matters; it's how you do it.