Brave Men Podcast with Paul Louis Cole

Jesus did most of his miracles in the streets, homes and farmer's markets of his day. Hope has always been found in the community. HOPE IS ALIVE. Hope has a name. Hope is right where you are. Here's a word of extremely practical hope. Not the cheerleader type - but the RUACH, presence of God type of hope. The Lord gives us hope, but hope is always delivered by people. The enemy hates your guts - but God loves you with a passion. And God has always won every battle. Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." For more info: https://CMN.Men / Email us: paul@cmn.men

How do we keep hope alive in the midst of chaos or tragedy? Today we talk about the shocking death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter, and their friends. How do we deal with these kinds of issues, how do we pick our lives back up and keep going? The onslaught of life constantly tries to defeat hope. But it is hope that is the fuel of purpose. There is a key to keeping hope alive - it's an ancient celebration of fellowship that builds and restores hope. This is one to enjoy and share. Courage, wisdom - and HOPE! Email me: Paul@cmn.men // https://CMN.men for more info

Change your habits, increase productivity and live a healthier life - one small step at a time. Join Paul as he gets inside the real work of one of the world's leading behavioral scientists. Dr. B.J. Fogg is the founder and director of the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University. He is the best selling author of "Tiny Habits" a groundbreaking book on creating new habits. His work has been featured in every major outlet including the New York Times, Forbes and the Wall Street Journal. His TED talks are some of the most popular ever presented. Dr. Fogg joins Paul on Brave Men with a fascinating look at how scientists view our human behavior.

This is the issue that so many of us are facing today – how will I finish this adventure called life? And, what does it take to finish strong? Every life has obstacles, and most often the largest obstacle is not the devil, our neighbor or our culture – it’s us. To live well and finish strong will require a clear understanding of what it takes – and how we can acquire what it takes. What you do in life becomes history, but what you put into motion becomes your legacy. The great biblical leader Gideon had a massive start – but didn’t finish well. How did that happen? Is it possible to start with great passion but finish without a purpose? In a basketball game, what we see visible on the court is the result of hundreds of practice hours invisible to us … hours that were committed to by the players. Fully committed to becoming better players, athletes. What we desire to see in the visible must first be apprehended in the invisible. Endurance is an invisible quality with a visible result. Paul said, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Philippians 3:12 NIV Remember, your life is not about your present circumstances… they will change. But conducting your life well through the circumstances comes from endurance, faith and hope.

Your daily routine can reduce anxiety and stress, build wisdom and courage … or it can do the opposite. We are what we allow to become routine – or we can become what we purpose to make a disciplined habit. We can choose wholeness of heart and mind. But, it takes a decision. Recent studies say 68% of teens in America feel a sense of depression or have acute anxiety … in the most affluent and dynamic culture to ever appear on planet earth – we’re expanding our knowledge but shrinking our hearts. I believe there’s a solution – and it simply starts the moment you wake up in the morning. How you start your day, your core foundational launching ritual is what will create the atmosphere of your heart and mind throughout your day. Everything lives or dies based on an atmosphere. It’s said that 40 percent of what we do each day is done without really thinking. It’s just routine. Are you compounding the chaos of your life just by what you have allowed to become a routine – or can you change that by building new habits? What’s your daily ritual? How do you start and end your day? What’s your daily habit for intimacy with God? This is the basic core issue. Because intimacy with God produces a heart that makes the right decisions. Wisdom and courage are in your power of choice.

One of the most powerful moments in a person’s life is when we turn from our past, the hurts, regrets, and disappointments - and move into our future. The pathway to move forward is through forgiveness. Forgiveness is the most powerful tool to launch into a fresh new start. Forgiveness releases. Unforgiveness holds on to the past. Whether your last year or two was good or bad, the only way to face a new start is to let go of the past. It no longer defines you … it is part of your life, but not part of your future. Jesus said, “When you forgive others, you release from your heart the negative thoughts that are there. If you don’t forgive others, you will retain the hurts and shame from things you’ve done or things that have happened to you.” John 20:21-23. When Christ forgave you and me – it released us of our past. For many of us, forgiving ourselves is the largest battle. It’s a new life – no longer held back by your past. If we don’t walk through forgiveness then our past is our future.

One of the most overlooked healthy practices of Jesus was this – he had friends. Too often we look at what he did rather than how he lived. We think of the people around him as just cogs in a divine project – disciples who were there to get a job done. But more important to his life, and to their development, was that they were friends. Brotherhood marked the life of Jesus. They did life together. And what they learned from him wasn’t just from sermons – it was experiencing him living life every day. Friendship builds character. Friendship makes us healthy. Healthy friendships build our faith. Building healthy friendships is one of the core ingredients in becoming strong in faith and spirit. Jesus said this, “I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in His slaves. Now you are My friends, since I have told you everything the Father told Me. You didn’t choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using My name. This is My command: Love each other.” John 15:15-17

Successful entrepreneur Ed Preston talks about the core values that took him from penniless at 50 to a multi-millionaire at 70. These foundational principles will work for anyone in any endeavor. Part Two hits key areas that helped Ed scale his business from a small cafe to a multi-state corporation with dozens of restaurants.

Successful entrepreneur Ed Preston talks about the core values that took him from penniless at 50 to a multi-millionaire at 70. These foundational principles will work for anyone in any endeavor. Part One hits key areas that helped Ed change his thinking about business and life.

Ed Preston was a hard-charging successful corporate executive, then it all came apart. He landed driving a lumber truck from Oregon to California, a failing marriage, close to bankruptcy and desperate. Then a neighbor invited him to a Maximized Manhood men's event at a local church. Dr. Ed Cole was the speaker. Ed had an experience with God. He took a Bible and the Ed Cole books and cassettes with him on the road and began to pray for the Lord to change his life. After four years of study and transformation, he saw a small restaurant for sale. He and his wife Barbara borrowed the money and bought it. Today, twenty years later, they have a multi-state restaurant company based in Phoenix. It's a remarkable and encouraging story.