Good morning! I’m glad to welcome you to worship today at Hillcrest Baptist Church.

John Ortberg recounts a true story from a Tacoma, Washington newspaper about a basset hound named Tattoo. Tattoo didn’t intend to go for an evening run, but when his owner shut the dog’s leash in the car door and took off for a drive, he had no choice. Noticing what was going on, a police officer finally pulled the driver over. The officer commented: “The basset hound was picking up his feet and putting them down as fast as he could.” Amazingly, this short-legged canine reached a speed of 25 miles per hour, rolling over several times in the process. Ortberg notes, “Too many of us end up living like Tattoo, our days marked by picking them up and putting them down as fast as we can” (LeadershipJournal.net, 7-11-02).

Many of us made New Year’s Resolutions with a desire to live with greater control, discipline, and fulfillment. The most common breakdown in keeping resolutions is that most people have no plan. It is much like one of the great Yogi-isms, “You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going, because you might not get there.”

Regardless of your stage and age of life, as a follower of Christ there is always more to accomplish in your life with Christ. In Philippians 3:12-14 the Apostle Paul gave us some principles to enable us to do “One Thing” well. Writing from prison Paul was determined to be, do and accomplish more for Christ, and there was nothing that would stop him. Quoting the great Yogi once again, “If the people don’t want to come out to the ballpark, nobody’s going to stop them.”