May 27

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  (Col 3:17 NIV)

Back to work.  After nearly two weeks, I'm headed back to work.  I've learned as I age that in order to consistently work at optimum capacity and competency, I've got to take some time off work every now and then to recharge, rejuvenate, and reinvigorate.  Unfortunately, my type A personality doesn't lend itself to rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation.  There is always something to do, something to fix, and something to enjoy.  So, I go back to work, tired.  The challenges I faces when I left, remain.  Some of these involve people and those are always the most challenging of issues.  Annual performance appraisal season doesn't always proceed as people would like.  I would be easier for me to simply say "hey, you're doing great, keep at it" when performance is clearly lacking.  Instead, I've got to deal with people with a great sense of fairness and integrity. 
Integrity is something that is always challenged.  Yesterday, for instance, as we went fishing under competing rules in state vs federal waters, I found it personally challenging to fish with integrity.  We rarely "limit out" (in fact I can't recall a hunt or a fishing trip where I had to quit as I had reached a limit) and its easy to justify a little hedging as "we're not the problem" or "hey, we're just a few hundred yards away - no one will know."  I knew and it's important for me to model integrity for my son as well as the other young men on the boat.  So, I threw a couple of fish back that as it turns out, we could have kept (once we had an accurate distance to shore).  In the end, I think it more important to err on the side of integrity than to keep a nice fish.   
Today as I deal with people as well as challenges involving a myriad of projects that aren't as simple as they seem on the surface, I feel a little like Solomon must have felt when confronted with governing a vast kingdom at a young age - I'm simply not wise enough to deal with these issues correctly.  Yet, I know who is and pray that God would inspire me to deal with these issues correctly, fairly, and with a dose of His grace. 
Lord may everyone I come in contact with today be blessed by Your presence.  May my actions be Holy and acceptable to you, and may You be glorified in all that I do and say.