Advice I Would Give a Young Man

This is a blog post by Herbert Cooper, the lead pastor of People's Church in Oklahoma City. The first time I read it I was moved by it's profound simplicity. I decided that this was something that I should remember forever and pass on to future generations. So here I am...passing it along.

Advice I Would Give a Young Man
by Herbert Cooper

1. Pursue Jesus with passion!
2. Don't take shortcuts, that's the long way to get to your goal.
3. Pay now so you can play later. If you play now, you'll pay later.
4. Find a mentor and let him speak into your life.
5. Make sure your priorities line up with your schedule. If God is first, family is second and work is third, it should be reflected in your schedule.
6. Whatever you are good at, develop it so you can become great at it. People don't pay for average.
7. Find a woman who is in love with Jesus and marry her. Don't settle!
8. Tithe. Give God the first 10% of your income and watch how he blesses your socks off.
9. Start giving over and above your tithe while you are young. Make this a habit, and it will pay off huge dividends in your life. You can't out-give God.
10. Develop a budget and stick to it. You can't spend more than you make and be financially free and invest heavily in the kingdom of God.
11. Don't follow the crowd, follow the word of God. The word of God will more than likely go against the crowd.
12. It takes years to build a reputation and seconds to lose it. Live a life above reproach.
13. Work Hard. Laziness will not produce success.
14. Make sure you have two or three really close friends who know you and love you for you.
15. Don't burn bridges because you never know when you need to cross one again.
16. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Take time to enjoy this gift called life.