Three Minutes – Reggie Joiner (Orange Parents)
This is the best reflection I’ve read this week on the events of Newtown and the struggle that we all face in its aftermath. This is what it looks like to hope and healing to those affected by this great evil.

It only took three minutes last Friday to remind us there is evil in the world, but those three minutes also showed there is good in the world too. I hope the lessons we learned from the families and leaders of Newtown will challenge and inspire us. Romans 12:21 says, “Don’t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

The Importance of a Leader’s Heart – Michael Hyatt
I heard Hyatt talk about the Leader’s Heart at Catalyst Dallas in 2011. This post is actually the show notes for a great podcast based on his presentation. If you don’t listen to Hyatt’s This Is Your Life podcast, I’d encourage you to subscribe to it today.

Jerry Seinfeld Intends to Die Standing Up – NY Times
I love reading stories about artists and their craft. This a great article about a comedian who loves what he does and takes care to grow and hone his abilities.

When he can’t tinker, he grows anxious. “If I don’t do a set in two weeks, I feel it,” he said. “I read an article a few years ago that said when you practice a sport a lot, you literally become a broadband: the nerve pathway in your brain contains a lot more information. As soon as you stop practicing, the pathway begins shrinking back down. Reading that changed my life. I used to wonder, Why am I doing these sets, getting on a stage? Don’t I know how to do this already? The answer is no. You must keep doing it. The broadband starts to narrow the moment you stop.”

3 Things That Change Everything – Jon Acuff
Jon Acuff is the best. He is my favorite writer to go to when I need encouragement, a laugh, or a great dose of reality. This is a great example of his articles and his thinking.

If you told a 22-year old today that before he can change the world he has to work for 20 years, he’d giggle at you. Generation Y wants meaning now, not eventually and Generation X has been caught up in that momentum. Hope is boss.

I am a Princess – Disney
From the moment I found out that I was going to be a father to a baby girl, I started thinking through my “princess philosophy.” I struggled with wanting my daughter to embrace imagination and fantasy while at the same time avoiding an entitlement mentality. Not to mention the pressure that is placed on young women to pursue physical beauty, which is superficial, over and above virtues that are far more lasting and meaningful. I believe that being a Princess isn’t a ROLE to PLAY but a RESPONSIBILITY to LIVE OUT. To me, a Princess is a woman of strength, courage, honor, and service. That’s the woman I want my Princess to become. I saw this short film on Disney Jr a couple of weeks ago and I believe it sums up my “princess philosophy” beautifully. I am very thankful that the home of all things princess feels the same way I do.

(Full disclosure: I literally started crying while watching this. Fatherhood has softened me a bit.)