Open Letter to Michael

Mike,

We are all saddened by your loss of Melinda.  Her struggle and subsequent victory has been an inspiration to us all. Thank you for allowing all of us to be a part of your and Melinda's lives!

You know, through the years you have allowed each of us to comfort you.  Your humility, has allowed each of us to serve you and your family in ways; that frankly, I would not have ever thought of.  Not something that would come easy to a Marine like yourself. Yes, we have been blessed.   From the first diagnose, we cried with you, prayed with you and we  rejoiced with each remission; while we were saddened with each relapse.  And finally, we celebrated with your family and friends at Melinda's memorial service.  I think it went just as she planned it.  No crying, no sadness, just remembrance of her wonderful life here . Yes, she is a pistol!

So, today, we continue to morn with you as a brother.  Thank you again for opening up and allowing us to be part of your life.  We will continue to pray for you.  And if you need anything, please do not be afraid to ask.  We would hate to miss the blessings.

John

The Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve

Not yours or mine but the Christmas Eve from Joseph's perspective !

It  started out like no other! You see Joseph was required by the government to go home.  He was not going home for the holidays; but rather, he was forced by the government to go home to be counted.  He needed to take his "bride to be " , home.  Not really  his home; but, hometown.  Yet , he was not going home to visit his family.  He was merely following  the orders of his government.  His family really didn't like him at the time; because, he choose to keep Mary around.  You know her, the mother of someone "else's" child.

So with the government demanding that he travel 10 miles or so with a pregnant wife to be, he sets out on the journey.  Please remember , that he did not prearrange his destination plans.  No Hotels.com, No Travelocity, hek, he didn't even have Avis or Amtrack.  He just had a path in front of him and one very pregnant girlfriend!  Now, the path must have been  crowded and dirty; full of people basically going about the same thing as he.  So much hustle and bustle! Not a whole lot of Christmas cheer!.  Remember, that he has that pregnant girlfriend. She riding on a donkey, she needs so many breaks.  So much time is lost that he just can't get to Jerusalem with much chance of getting a room.  What to do? what to do?  It is late, and all the innkeepers are full up and frankly , they got nothing.  However, in a glimpse of hope and the rush of delivery, they push aside the animals of the barn and give birth to a son.  What a day?  Joseph , first walks, 10 miles, finds no accommodations and then has to help give birth to someone else's baby!  He probably never did this before. You see this was a "woman thing" . Mary's mom wasn't around to help.  No midwife tagged along for the journey!  Joseph, was not just there to coach Mary through the delivery; he was the doctor of the day!  However, being the good carpenter , I am sure he had a knife.  You know, to cut the umbilical cord.

Now what? He has this child in his arms.  One that he has been told is God, his savior, and the Savior of the world. Once  again he has got nothing.  But, he wraps the little baby in the rags that he has probably just ripped from his robe and places him down in a feeding trough.  You gotta love him.  He makes do with what is available. But, what a day! Forced to travel,  messed with a donkey, cared for his pregnant girlfriend, argued with innkeepers, moved in with the animals, smelled the poop, delivered a baby, now finally the day is over.  A little sleep............?

No it is Christmas Day and Visitors are coming  !!!!

Thank you for allowing me to take some liberty with the True Christmas Story (below) and please do not hold against me any punctuation errors, etc.  It is three in the morning on Christmas Eve.

May God Bless you and your family.   Enjoy, the God who came to Earth.



\Actual Story from Luke.

The Birth of Jesus

2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah,the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 

Holy Devoted

I have started reading about our friend Job again.  He is most likely the most popular man in history, besides Jesus himself.   He is a man whom we can all identify with.  He is our friend; because, we all can consider ourselves one with him when we experience various trials.  But, can we consider ourselves one with him when we compare our responses.  You see Job, never wavered in his dedication to his Lord. ( our Lord). Can we look to ourselves and find the same devotion?

When God was conversing with Satan it was Job's devotion that caused God to state ," What do you think of my servant Job?  There is no one like him on earth- he is truly a good person who respects me and refuses to do evil."( Job 1:8)

Can your name be placed here ?  What do you think of my servant ____________?**

for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them"  ( Ephesians 2:10)


** Taken from Daily with the King, by W. Glyn Evans

Work?

“ In fact, after studying God’s work of forming and filling the earth and then looking back on it and saying “It was good,” James had an epiphany. With delight he exclaimed, “God doesn’t make junk. I don’t make junk!” A biblical understanding of work energizes our desire to create value from the resources available to us. Recognizing the God who supplies our resources, and who gives us the privilege of joining in as cocultivators, helps us enter into our work with a relentless spirit of creativity.”

Excerpt From: Keller, Timothy. “Every Good Endeavor.” Dutton, 2012-11-13. iBooks.


When I go to work I find myself in very much the same mindset. Oh, there are some mornings that i might find it difficult to face the day; but, when I realize the place we have been given, I am "pumped"! We are good at what we do ! And we certainly have a place. I find it a tremendous privilege to work with each of our employees. We don't make "junk"!

May you also recognize that God doesn't make junk and he has given you the pleasure of His creation. I pray that your work day will be filled with new creations.

Growth

This coming week is an exciting time for all of us here at GSI. We will be opening our second fabrication facility. It has truly been a team effort .

The main product that will be produced here is our sealed expansion joint (SEJ). Two years ago, GSI teamed up with the RJ Watson company to produce a very efficient and durable sealed joint. The results are in! Not only do we offer a competitive product, but our customers, designers and contractors love the product's ease of installation and the longevity of its stated purpose. We look forward to more states adding this product to their options and thus saving their taxpayer dollars.

Also, we want to extend a great big CONGRATULATIONS and THANK YOU to Miguel for taking on this task of starting our new facility. We look forward to working with him and helping him achieve his goals.


High Fives to all,
GREAT JOB!

John

Are you a Remnant?

I am up late reading a book(1), that describes the ancient midwives who refused to go along with the status quo. They chose life rather than death. They chose to stand alone. When faced with the decision to obey the king or God , they chose God rather than man. By doing so, they not only placed their occupations in jeopardy; but, they placed their very lives in danger. They are called a remnant of those midwives in the days of Egypt. They were true to their calling. And today, they are exalted centuries later.

In business today we have a similar choice.

Which do we choose?

How will we be remembered?

Are we a remnant ?

Will we be exalted?




1 Great Days with Great Lives (week seven ,Friday), Chuck Swindoll

How are you humbled?

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. (James 4:10 NIV)

This job can be very humbling. Yes, that is true. The circumstances of trying to produce all that we have , at the request of over a hundred different project managers, whose projects are the most important, is quite daunting and humbling. We don't hit the mark every time and we are humbled. However, God is not asking us to be humbled. That would be too easy. We are all humbled by every failed expectation of others. Sometimes we admit it and are forgiven and sometimes we are not. But, the verse is not a reactionary command. It is a proactive command.

Our Lord never does the humbling. Our difficult circumstances, produced by our own selfish desires, humble us when we are exposed. No, when we humble ourselves before the Lord, we come to Him before our circumstances expose our sins. Yes, He does pick us up when we are knocked down; but, how much better will it be if He were to lift us up even before we are knocked down. He can only do that when we humble ourselves before.....

Fear vs. Freedom

"There is no fear in freedom"  My daughter has this quote posted on her wall in college.

You know when we are afraid to move forward, to expand an idea or just better ourselves; we will find ourselves in bondage to either to those who have no fear or a system of mediocrity.

When we choose fear, we limit ourselves to achieve greatness.  

Great Days!

What a great month!   May of 2012 has been the single largest SALES month in GSI history.   We give God all the glory for the skills and talents we have been given to achieve this milestone.  He is truly our provider. However, it comes with a great many challenges that we have had to overcome and still need to manage to insure that we have many  great "profitable"days ahead.   Together as employees of GSI we want to thank our customers and vendors who have helped build this business.

Thank you again and may God bless each of you.

Former employee but never a former friend

Diane Lamberson was my first hire here at GSI. She was a faithful employee from her first day until her last. She retired in 2011 from GSI only to become a faithful servant through PMTRC. She keeps in touch and continues to build us up.

Please take a moment and read her story.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knGwjeOMWb8

Hi everybody, please watch this. This video is of Amber one of the students that I work with. Last Wednesday I was the lead person that leads the horse during the session. After about 10 minutes Miss Teri said that I would disconnect the lead line as Amber was relaxed in the saddle and it appeared that she was having ample oxygen for her to try to ride by herself. That was the first time that she was able to ride by her self since her accident. Helenna and Josh walked beside her for safety sake, which is always done with all of the students. It was so emotional, we were all trying to hold back the tears, me I couldn't. This is what PMTRC is all about!!! I am so blessed to have been a part of this awesome ride!!
I am so busy heading up the Spring Fling which will be March 31th. I am needing donations for both the silent and live auction, if you have anything please let me know and I will be happy to come pick it up. You are all invited, but bring plenty of money to spend as we are needing to get the arena covered, and need to get the general store built as well as the speech room.
We are also selling the Butter Braids for $12.00 each, Anita these are the ones that you like so will. I will email an order form in case any of you would like to order any. I would be please to come and collect the money and deliver the Braids.
Hope all is well with you at GSI, for me I am well and happy!!!!

Diane
http://www.pmtrc.org/

Saturday work?

I came in here today to get a couple of things done. Have a little quite time and in general , just enjoy the morning . It was just something for myself.

Instead, I hear the sounds of the shop. A little banging on the steel, grinding wheels spinning, welding wire sputtering and the old time Marvin Gay on the radio. Life is great here!

The sounds that I hear are from guys that have given up there Saturday morning to help get an important project done. Each one of them is wonderful in their own right to give up some personal time to help all of us . This is a team that enjoys working together and putting out a product that they can call their own. Believe me, they put out a good product!


Guys, thank you for being here today and of course thank you for being here on Monday. Your the greatest!

Daily work

God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good.



Enjoy what you do today!

Quotation

As you can see I rarely post. However, I would like to learn to stop and reflect on the activities of the day/week/month. It is something that we all should do.

I am currently reading Avoiding the Danger Zones by Jerry Mills. Wonderful guick read. In it ( page 162) are many quotes that we all could learn from. (Ask me and I will get you a copy.) However, two that stand out:
1.Men do not attract what they want; but, who they are.
2.Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves.

Enjoy the day and learn something new! Improve yourself. It is always a new day.

Faithfulness?

You know it has been a long time ( over a year ) since I last posted.

This past year has been a difficult one to say the least; but, I am trusting God that he is faithful and it will soon come to an end.


Faithfulness... I will tell you of faithfulness! There is an employee here who with his wife are utilizing the Dave Ramsey course on debt free living, and I will tell you that God is right now blessing them in unfathomable ways. Because of not only their discipline, but also, God's faithful leading; they will be, in 3 short months , living debt free! You know what that means? Freedom! Isn't that what we all desire and want? They are on that path because they have chosen to live according to God's plan. Not some selfish me first; but, placing God first and honoring Him. What a testimony to us all.


I have been taught a lesson today! Now, will I choose to listen?


God Bless

Remember it is Friday; but, Sunday is a'comin' !

Have a wonderful Easter


John

The End

December 31, 2009


The end of a “new” year?

You know, it really seems like a new year. The older we get, it really does go by faster and faster. I hardly realize the time that has gone by, but the kids are older, there are a few more nicks in the door frames and my barber exposes a few more grey hairs. Yet, it has been a very blessed year.

2009 is a year that God has carried and guided us through. We have a wonderful group of individuals here at GSI that I call a family. We have grown in number and character. We have enjoyed successful and unsuccessful projects. But, God has been present through it all and that makes it all, a success. We continue recognize that fact; in order that, we will not forget to trust Him to carry and guide us into 2010.

Do you know that His eyes are always on the Promised Land. I refuse to believe otherwise. He always has our best interest in mind and I pray that we will not doubt His opportunities. In the current unstable economic climate and government policy, we see many opportunities to be servants in the marketplace and to our fellow employees. GSI is moving forward with plans to continue the two production shifts. We are remaking our scheduling and production to better meet our commitments of our customers. We will continue to develop partnerships with expanded territories and products. We also, will continue to provide spiritual support to our family of employees with our chaplains from Market Place Ministries. (http://www.mchapusa.com). Additionally, several of our employees have begun to sponsor ten World Vision (http://www.worldvision.org) children and plan to mobilize additional funds for year end projects through our employee provides program. Yes, we will keep our eyes fixed on our God. We will not doubt, and we will not forget.

May your new year be as blessed as ours will be. I hope you will be able to join us in…

The Beginning

100 % safety or 100 % quality

Terms usually reserved for the work place. However, I heard the term 100 % Safe Tons by one of our suppliers and one might think it refers to the need for a safe workplace environment. Yet, they have taken it a couple of steps further..

Certainly, at GSI we desire our employees to maintain and strive for a 100 % safe work place, but there should be a commitment to more. We are to be committed to provide for a safer community and a safe product for all. Our 100% commitment to safety means we are committed 100 % to quality. The quality we produce determines the level of safety we provide for the community around us. The products we produce are products of safety; therefore, we are 100 % safety and 100 % quality. Without both we are neither!

Body Parts on the Moon

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Neil, Buzz and Mike making history. While we know their names, we must remember that it took literally thousands of individuals to work together for such a place in history.

Our place in history is not as individuals either, God states that we are all part of a body, each with different skills and gifts. It is His desire that we recognize that fact, deny ourselves and work together for His glory. It is true today in our achievements and it was true the day God spoke it. **

What body are you part of?

**Romans 12:4-5

Presidential Words

Occasionally, we come across some words spoken by a person of history that inspire and encourage.


Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.
Franklin D. Roosevelt

Life has given each of us creative gifts, and when discovered they offer us a roller coaster ride for eternity, of ups and downs and twists and turns.. But, like a roller coaster, our life is only joyous when we trust that we will be safely home as it ends.

Current Poverbs

I never tire of reading the Book of Proverbs. The words which Solomon wrote have been preserved not as an ancient book of history; but rather, as a timeless word of encouragement. It was relevant yesterday and is relevant today.

Steve Marr (http://www.stevemarr.org/) writes a Business Proverb for his web page for Buisness Executives. Yesterday's was particulary insiteful for today's business climate.

Multitasking Devastates Efficiency

Written by Steve Marr
Wednesday, 15 July 2009

Today we all seem to wear multitasking as a badge of honor. The need to perform multiple tasks is assumed as we are pressured by customers, bosses, and the other demands of our work. We create a fury of activity with constant motion, which impresses those around us and even ourselves at how busy and productive we are.

However, true multitasking actually kills output rather than helping create it, and this has profound ramifications on our overall effectiveness on the job.

We are required to engage successfully in a multitude of tasks, such as answering the phone, responding to e-mails, writing letters, ordering merchandise, writing staff reviews, or reviewing customer proposals. Yes, we need to do all these things, and more, but we can’t effectively do two of these things simultaneously.

Talking with a customer on the phone while reading and replying to e-mails is an example. When we allow our customer to drift away in our thoughts while focusing on e-mails, we can lose the most critical part of the conversation or make a blunder in deleting the wrong e-mail message or send off a reply that needed to be far more thorough. Other examples are driving while talking on the phone or listening to a string of phone messages while signing purchase orders.

Paul wrote, “I box in such a way, as not beating the air…” (1 Corinthians 9:26). A boxer needs 100% focus, 100% of the time. The fighter needs to watch the opponent, change directions, and be ready to deflect blows or strike an opportune right hook. Any loss of concentration will create a tremendous opportunity for the opponent.

Jesus said, “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other…” (Luke 16:13, emphasis mine). When we are doing something, that task becomes our master, so to speak, at least for that moment.

Try a little home test. Ask your spouse or a friend to watch the news with you for 15 minutes. Watch all the news trailers at the bottom and listen carefully to the news stories. Then have the other person ask you 10 questions relating to the trailers or news stories, without telling you in advance which type of information will be on the quiz. You will likely miss several answers. Then repeat the process, but this time focus on either the news or the trailers and then have another quiz. Most of us will do far better the second time.

Another problem with multitasking is that we constantly change focus, and with every change we lose time. Dr’s Joshua Rubinstein and David Meyer wrote a study published by the American Psychological Association that determined everyone loses time refocusing when shifting from one task to another. The more complex the task, the more time is needed to get refocused, which costs us productivity. It does not enhance productivity.

The study did validate the common-sense notion that we lose less time when we switch between tasks we know well and that we lose more time when switching between unfamiliar work. However, the reality is that we lose time either way. When we have to stop and refocus, we lose time and are not as productive as we can be.

And it’s not an age issue. This re-focusing and losing time and productivity is true for all age groups, not just the over fifty crowd. A call from a key customer or an urgent question from a colleague will require that we respond and then refocus. We can’t stop all interruptions, but we can control many of those interruptions.

Some activities we can and should do at the same time do not require us to re-focus. We can respond to e-mail after we have started to print a long document or we can read the newspaper while eating. A machine operator can load one piece of equipment while another is operating, like we can load the washing machine and then move on to something else. The more often we combine these tasks, efficiency increases.

Make a list of 3-4 things you tend to do at the same time and then check yourself when you start crossing that line. When I write, I ignore my incoming e-mails, despite the temptation to see what’s coming in, because each “look” costs me productivity.

While avoiding multitasking whenever possible, we actually get more done. After all, at work we need to produce results, not just a flurry of activity. Then as Paul wrote, you will get results, not just beating air.