What would it be like if God partnered with you like He has with many other ordinary people throughout history?  People like Moses, who parted the red Sea or appropriately for Christmas, the young girl, Mary, who carried and gave birth to Jesus, the Son of God? 

H. Jackson Brown said, “There lives in each of us a hero awaiting the call to action.” Isn’t this true of you? Isn’t this a part of our DNA?  

There is no greater story than the story of God, the creator of the Heavens and the earth coming to His people.  We often miss the full implications of this grand and matchless story…  We take for granted the super natural power that he wants to display in each of us. 

The bible tells us that He (God) was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God– children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. John 1:10-13 NIV (Italics added). 

Born of God.  A super natural birth…

Now that’s EPIC!  God through Christ is offering us to supernaturally become His children; can you imagine becoming a child of God?  The same person who made the sun, the moon and the stars… Daddy?  Or better yet can you imagine Him, calling you, son? Or daughter?  Try to get your mind wrapped around that! 

God wants to partner with you! 

God creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join Him in the work He does, the good work He has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing. Ephesians 2:10 Message 

We, with child like faith, just need to believe it, accept it and live it.  There is a hero in each of us… Can you hear the call for 2011?  This could be the year for the impossible to become possible.  What could you and your Dad accomplish together this year?

Who is He? What is He? What is He about?  Did He really make ME, and if so, why?  Reasonable questions, don’t you agree? 

The bible says things like: 

In the beginning God… Genesis 1:1 NIV

Through Him all things were made… John 1:3 NIV

For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible,… Everything got started in Him and finds it’s purpose in him. Colossians 1:16 The Message 

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son… John 3:16 NIV

God is love… 1 John 4:8

Long before He laid down earth’s foundations, He had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love… Ephesians 1:4 The Message

In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness but the darkness has not understood it… John 1:4-5 NIV

We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do… Ephesians 2:10 NIV

Without faith it is impossible to please God… Hebrews 11:6 NIV

In Rick Warren’s great book on this subject, he quotes, atheist, Bertrand Russell as saying, “Unless you assume a God, the question of life’s purpose is meaningless.” 

We should make it our duty to at least examine these things, don’t you agree?

Usually they have access to multiple companies, which allows them to get several competitive quotes, I recommend getting at least three competitive quotes.  But don’t shop price alone, you want a company that is going to be there when you need them, one that will handle your claims and questions in a timely and professional manner.

Raise your deductible:

The deductible is the amount of money you have to pay toward a loss before your insurance company starts to pay a claim. The higher your deductible, the more money you save on your premium. An increase in your deductible from $500 to $1,000 could save as much as 25% on your premium.

If you live in a disaster-prone area, your insurance policy may have a separate deductible for damage from major disasters. If you live near the coast in the East, you may have a separate windstorm deductible, if you live in a state vulnerable to hail storms, you may have a separate deductible for hail, and if you live in an earthquake-prone area, your earthquake policy may have a deductible.

Install safety features:

Such as burglar and fire alarms that are centrally monitored; you may also get credit for living in a secured/gated community. If you live in Florida or other wind prone areas, consider wind mitigation features such as hurricane shutters.  Some of our customers have saved hundreds of dollars because they had a wind mitigation inspection and found that their homes had or they installed features to strengthen the home against wind damage. 

If you live in an older home, consider updating the roof, heating, plumbing and electrical systems, this reduces the risk of fire and water damage, and could save money on your premium.

Review the limits of coverage:

Try to cover your house for what it would take to replace it in the event of a complete loss; the land is still going to be there and does not need to be covered.  Covering the land may increase your premiums unnecessarily. Work with your agent to figure out the replacement cost versus the market value of your home.

Ask, ask, ask:

There may be other discounts available varying by company, for example, some give discounts if you are 55 or older; or if you buy several policies from the same company, such as your home and car insurance, or home and flood policies. Don’t be afraid to ask your agent or company if there are any other discounts that you may avail of.

Do you have additional tips? Or questions and comments? Please share below…

The simple answer: because the insurance companies are paying out high claims…

Is that all there is to it? 

Keep in mind that insurance companies are for profit, and will not be around to pay our claims if they don’t make a profit.  In the Florida property insurance market the major exposure is wind damage, particularly damage from hurricanes and/or tropical storms. However it’s not the only threat.  For example, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (CPIC) by itself paid $247 million since 2007 for sinkhole claims on residential properties. 

One big storm has the potential to cost tens of billions of dollars in claims. Insurance carriers could be profitable for many years, and yet lose all those profits and much more with just one event. 

In 1992 Hurricane Andrew handed South Florida a whopping blow, costing insurance carriers an estimated $27 billion ($41.8 billion 2010 USD).  

Shortly after Hurricane Andrew hit, several companies went bankrupt and many companies stopped writing Homeowners Insurance.  Additionally, major companies started to drop what has amounted to hundreds of thousands of policies. People buying homes had their closings delayed because they were not able to obtain property insurance.  This led to the forming of the Florida Residential Property and Casualty Joint Underwriting Association (FRPCJUA), a company set up by the State to avail the consumer of property insurance.

This company now known as Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (CPIC) has become the largest insurance carrier in Florida, as of August 31, 2010 they have 1,153,187 residential policies in force. 

Just last year, State Farm threatened to leave the Florida market because they did not get their rate increase approved.  Arrangements were made for State Farm to stay, however, they began dropping 125,000 policies in August 2010. 

Since 1992, Homeowners Insurance premiums have increased by as much as 300%. Several of our customers have seen their annual premiums jump from less than $500.00 to well over $4000.00. 

In this chaotic property insurance market, several changes have occurred; here are just a few: 

• The introduction of a separate wind/hurricane deductible (typically 2%). The consumer has to share a little bit more of the risk in an attempt to curtail the huge increase in premiums. It’s a price we have to pay to live in paradise. 
• CPIC becomes the largest property insurer in Florida and the Legislature introduced a takeout program in an effort to reduce the number of policies in CPIC while encouraging other companies to write policies in Florida. The result of this is many start-up companies underwriting property insurance in Florida and unfortunately several of them are have already gone bankrupt. 
• CPIC is allowed to operate without the necessary cash reserves that other insurance companies have to adhere to, and as a result, reports indicate that CPIC would not have anywhere near enough money to cover their storm exposure.
• Yet, in an effort to drive premiums down, the State is using CPIC as a competing company rather than a company of last resort, forcing other carriers (who cannot operate like Citizens and still remain in business) to lower their premiums and face the potential of not having enough funds to pay claims or not write the business at all. 
• Wind Mitigation Discounts were introduced. The Concept makes sense; homes that are built stronger, with specific features to help mitigate damage from windstorm, should receive discounts on their premiums. Great idea, however, because of  lack of understanding, fraud and invalid State mandated credits, premiums have dropped disproportionately, in some cases by thousands of dollars. Carriers are fighting for this process to be overhauled. 
• Fraudulent and frivolous claims are on the rise.  A growing number of people are filing claims (many of them due to the prodding of an usually high number of Public Adjusters) because they think that the insurance companies have deep pockets, not realizing that eventually, it’s the policyholders who end up paying for it all. 

In summary, premiums have gone up, come down and are going back up again and it’s still not where it needs to be in order to cover the potential loss.  The battle between our State Government and Insurance Carriers has not resulted in a viable solution.

If you are a Floridian, I encourage you to make this issue a priority as you vote in the upcoming elections.  Ask your politicians specifically what they are going to do about the property insurance crisis, if and when they are elected. 

While this discussion has focused on Florida, stay tuned for part two.  In which I will provide practical ideas on how to keep your Homeowners Insurance premiums lower, whether you live in or outside of Florida.

What other factors do you think has contributed to roller coaster change in premiums?  What do you think are possible solutions?

Hey I’m sorry, if you’re like me; some of the mistakes we make may cause significant financial loss or serious pain and suffering and even lead to depression… What should our perspective be in these or any of our mess ups?  How do I minimize the downside and make the best of my mistakes? Those are very good questions. While I don’t have all the answers, here are four suggestions that I have learned through personal experience.

First, stop and face reality, admit your mistake, take responsibility for it, discover the ramifications of it and do your best to remedy and deal with the situation. The key is to complete this process sooner than later. The more we prolong this, or if we never get around to it, the more our mistakes will hurt and haunt us.

Second, thank the Lord God for His provision of mercy and grace. Accept His unconditional love.  Be comforted with the forgiveness of a God who does not condemn. Forgive yourself, and use this experience and learn to forgive others.

Third, recognize that it is not final. Learn from it; take the time to reflect on and analyze the thoughts and actions that led to the mistake. But do so with today in mind… Today is a new day with new opportunities, yesterday is behind us, we cannot go back there.  But we can learn from it and apply the lessons today. It’s okay to make mistakes; nobody has done anything of significance without making mistakes along the way.  Now we know one more thing that does not work and/or one more thing that we should not do…

Focus on and be grateful for what you have, not what you may have lost.  Count your blessings, spend time with those who love and believe in you. Re-focus your goals and priorities and do your best to always keep them in front of you.

Fourth, figure out how you can use this to help others. Teach people and help them to not make the same mistakes. Encourage and guide those who make the same mistakes. Take advantage of the lessons that you have learned and bring the new more wise you to the community. Go out with this new knowledge and make a difference. 

So you made some mistakes… please don’t waste them… make us the beneficiaries of your mistakes.

If you were brave enough to say it, do it, wear it or launch it, you know exactly what I mean. We are naturally selfish and our selfishness causes us to miss wonderful people and things happening around us everyday.

Therefore, those who really care, will stand out.
People don’t care what you know until they know that you care. 

Caring causes us:

• To put aside any barriers or prejudices and respect each other, just because.
• To be genuinely interested in others.
• To learn, grow and change in order to give others the best that we can.
• To love others unconditionally.

So what? Who cares? You consistently be the one! And see if I don’t care…

• People are raised up with other beliefs and become closed minded
• People may have had bad experiences with Religion or Christianity
• People think only weaklings need this
• This story is made up by a master-mind trying to misguide and/or control people
• It Seems too far-fetched
• Fear that life will no longer be fun
• Religion does not look pretty
• If God really loves me, He would not place conditions on it

But what if it’s true?  What if it’s really the Creator’s plan? There are significant implications! 

Experts say the earth weighs approximately 6,000 million, million, million tons; and right now it’s suspended in space, spinning on its own axis while rotating around the sun and at the same time the moon is revolving around it.  This is only a small part of The Universe, everything is so perfectly designed; it amazes the most brilliant minds.

And yet God spoke it all into being; and He holds it in the palm of His hands.  He is an amazing being, way bigger than I can understand.  

The bible tells us that there is only one true God.  He created the heavens and the earth, with us in mind, “Long before He laid down earth’s foundations, He had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love, to be made whole and holy by His love.  Long, long ago He decided to adopt us into His family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure He took in planning this!)”  Eph 1:4-5 Msg. 

Long before He made the earth He was thinking of us… in fact He made all of it for us.  He decided to love us before we were conceived, regardless of how we perform.  For comparison think of an expecting parent who has love for their child before birth, God has love for us before He made the earth.  Huh?

He demonstrated His love for us and made the way for us to love Him through Jesus Christ.  His life has been well documented, a review of history would reveal that it is impossible for this story to be concocted.  His divine virgin birth, His on-purpose life, sacrificial death and miraculous resurrection witnessed by many, brings about the forgiveness of sins and opens the door for us to have intimate relationship with Him forever. 

For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16 NIV 

It’s His story not ours… it’s His plan, not ours!  I write this not to convert you, though I am a believer and hope that you will become a believer yourself, that is a choice that you have to make.  While my circumstances are not the same as yours, I write this as one who had the same choice to make and having made it, and found it to be true, I want to share my positive experience with you.  He is real.  This story is true.  Jesus really loves you!  He can be trusted, just look at the cross to see how much He believes in and loves you… Exercise a little faith, it’s worth it!

Make no mistake, I will let you down, and I will let Him down, and chances are you will do the same.  But He will not let us down.  He loves us.  The proof is in His Son.  

What do you think?

Most of us already know what to do… without a doubt there is still much to learn.  I am not suggesting that we know all that we need to, however if we did half of what we knew to do, our lives would be so much more meaningful. 

We know what it takes to get and remain in shape don’t we?  We know what it takes to love our spouse, don’t we?  We know what it takes to be successful Networkers, don’t we?  If you are a bible believing person of faith, we know what the word says, don’t we?  Are we doing what it says?

We know what it takes to ______________________________ so why aren’t we?

I have to remind myself regularly and encourage you to consider the eleventh commandment:  “Thou shall not kid thyself.”

Yes, let’s clarify what we value and what we want to accomplish, write it down, and learn to articulate it well.  Include personal growth as one of your ongoing goals. Formulate a plan of action and make it your priority to review, restate and act on your plan daily.  Then just do it! 

We get distracted.  Life happens, and we get off track… and that contributes to making the gap even greater.  How do we reduce the impact of our distractions?  And how do we get back on track?  We make it a habit of reviewing, restating and acting on our priorities daily.  Daily is the key!  Set a time and place and do it everyday.  This is so simple (yet not easy) that we underestimate the ramifications of it and allow ourselves to miss one day, then the next and the next and before you know it we are completely off track and discouraged and wondering how and why this happened. Success doesn’t jump up and grab you; it requires your daily focused attention.

 As you review, celebrate your victories, learn from your mistakes, make the necessary adjustments and just do it!

 Let’s shorten the gap, one day at a time.  You can do it.  I believe in you!

“Genius is actually the eventual public recognition of dozens (or hundreds) of failed attempts at solving a problem. Sometimes we fail in public, often we fail in private, but people who are doing creative work are constantly failing.”

If this is true and I believe it is, what should we do about the two major stumbling blocks to greatness?

1. The fear of failure.
2. The fear of what others might think of us.

The answer: Keep the right perspective.

John Maxwell said, “A difficult time can be more readily endured if we retain the conviction that our existence holds a purpose – a cause to pursue, a person to love, a goal to achieve.”

This perspective provides the motivation necessary for us to rise above the fear, to get back up after we fail, learn from it and move on.  We must do our best to clarify, review and renew our commitment to that purpose. When the purpose is more important than our fears and when we realize that accomplishing it requires us to courageously face our fears and  fail over and over and over again, we will welcome those fears and failures.

Learn from it but do not get discouraged because of it.  Keep swinging the bat, making the call, serving others, doing the research, writing, reading, making the speech.  Keep kicking, shooting, throwing, hitting or catching the ball… keep trying, keep learning, keep getting back up, do not be discouraged.  Every time you fail you are one step closer to winning!  One step closer.

It’s just as important for us to instill this perspective into our children and those we influence.  Be an encourager.  Discipline your children and those you love as you must, but do not discourage them.  Do not make their mistake seem so big that they fear failing, more than they want to try again and again.  Practice the art of helping them to learn from their mistakes while encouraging them to be resilient and to retain the conviction that their existence holds a purpose and to be bold and courageous in the pursuit of it.

The point is, greatness comes through failure.  Go fail yourself to greatness while encouraging and inspiring others to do the same!