Living With Purpose

Tips For The Beginning Time Traveler

/ Alex Doriot / 6 Comments

ABOUT-TIME_NZ_A3_v1.inddYou may not be able to travel back in time. But you can change the future.

That’s the theme of “About Time”, the new movie starring Rachel McAdams which just hit theaters. My girlfriend and I saw the film this weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it.

The plot focuses on a young man who learns a secret from his father on his 21st birthday – all the males in his family have the ability to travel back in time.

The young man knows instantly what he wants to use his gift for: to find a girlfriend.

At first the possibilities are endless for how to use his new power. He’s able to fix those awkward dinner conversations, perfect the first kiss, even stop the love of his life from meeting a bad boyfriend.

Late in the movie things really get interesting. I don’t think I’m spoiling anything, but the question for the main character becomes “Instead of traveling back in time to fix my mistakes, how can I do things better the first time around?” Continue reading →

Going To Six Flags With God

/ Alex Doriot / 3 Comments
courtesy: Hallmark

courtesy: Hallmark

I love a good roller coaster.

My family used to travel the country every summer scouring every Six Flags for the biggest and best thrill rides in America.

If I’ve learned one thing from the hundreds of coasters I’ve had the chance to ride, it’s this: You’re not supposed to be comfortable on a roller coaster. Continue reading →

20 Things I Learned At The Storyline Conference

/ Alex Doriot / 11 Comments

IMG_1720

“What will the world miss if you do not tell your story?”

This weekend 1,000 storytellers gathered in Nashville for the Storyline Conference to ask this profound question together. Hosted by Donald Miller and inspired by the logotherapy process of Victor Frankl, the Storyline Conference was a fire hydrant bursting forth knowledge and inspiration for dreamers wanting to live a more meaningful story.

Going into the conference I was confused and frustrated as to where my life was headed. After hearing from so many incredible speakers and beginning to go through the process of editing my life, I am finally finding clarity as to my purpose in this world.

I’d pay everything I have to send you to the Storyline Conference. Do yourself a favor and sign up for the next one. If you can’t make it to San Diego or Nashville next year, here’s a sampling of what I learned about sharing your story with the world: Continue reading →

Jesus and Jerry Seinfeld

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

Jerry Seinfeld would have made a great Young Life leader.

Can you imagine the talks he would give? “What’s the deal with forgiveness? Have you seen this? Have you heard about this?”

It’s not just the jokes Jerry would kill at. Jerry Seinfeld is really good at relationships.

For the past few months Seinfeld has been putting out a web series called “Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee.” The show is exactly what you think it is and is absolutely worth 15 minutes of your time.

Each week Jerry phones up one of his famous funny friends, picks them up in a classic car, and picks their brain over coffee.

I’ve never not laughed during an episode. The wisdom from legends of comedy like David Letterman, Larry David, and Don Rickles is valuable for anyone in entertainment, business, or even ministry.

In between the laughter and the glamour shots of Lamborghinis and latte art, what I really take away from each episode is just how simple relationships have to be.As Chris Rock put it in his chat with Jerry, “Everything is about company. A gourmet meal with an [jerk] is a horrible meal. A hot dog with an interesting person is an amazing meal.”

Jerry Seinfeld, unsurprisingly, is really comfortable at talking with people. His conversations with comedians are at once light and deep. It’s something Jerry Seinfeld has in common with Jesus. Continue reading →

Relearning To Fly

/ Alex Doriot / 4 Comments

If you can’t fly then run. If you can’t run then walk. If you can’t walk then crawl. But whatever you do you have to keep moving forward. – Martin Luther King, Jr. 

photo-2Have you ever flown before? Not literally in an airplane. I’m talking about the sensation that comes when you’re gliding through life, when joy comes effortlessly, when you feel as if you’re floating off the ground. 

When I go out for a run and I really get in the groove, that’s when I feel like I’m flying.

Once upon a time I ran a half marathon. Way back in 2011 I sweated my way across the finish line of the Greenwood, SC Half Marathon in a half-decent time of 2:12:36.

I couldn’t believe it. I would have been happy to finish under the 3 hour mark.

For years I wavered on whether or not I was capable of doing a 13.1 mile run. I trained on and off, never really breaking an 8 mile run at the most.

Finally I made a pact with a few students of mine. We decided we would do this together.

The feeling on the other side of the finish line was elation. I could not believe I had really completed the race. I had immediate plans to get back into training for the next one.

It’s over 2 years later and I still haven’t run the sequel. Continue reading →

The Seal Of Approval

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

like-button2A thumbs up. A like. A checkmark. A retweet. A gold star.

Seems like we’re constantly seeking a seal of approval. No matter if it’s a big budget movie, a work of art, a Youtube video, or just a simple Facebook post, our work is not validated unless it bears some mark of approval.

On the flipside, it can take years to recover from a bad review. Some poorly reviewed films go on to cult classic status. While others never do and dwindle in the $5 bargain bin at WalMart.

A bad review can go a long way in sinking movie. In recent years After Earth, John Carter, and Battleship have all been sunk by poor early buzz.

What would you do if God reviewed you? How would it influence your opinion of yourself, or your idea of purpose? Continue reading →

10 Things I Learned At Big Stuf 2013

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IMG_2360You’re never too old to learn something from youth camp.

Last week I took my students from The Hill Baptist Church of Augusta, GA to Big Stuf camp in Panama City Beach, FL. Together with about 1500 other students we laughed, sang, and learned together about God’s Reality.

This is the 25th year of Big Stuf. Each summer founder Lanny Donoho and a crew of speakers, musicians, magicians, acrobats, and comedians have come together to proclaim the crazy things God wants to do in the lives of students. Here’s a few things I took away from the main session speakers Jamey Dickens and Jon Acuff: Continue reading →

It’s Going To Rain

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photoIt’s going to rain.

If you live in the southeast, especially Augusta, you know this by now. The sun may be shining down right now. It may seem like the perfect day for driving around with the windows down blaring the song of the summer and sipping a Caramel Crunch Frappuccino. But at some point today it is going to pour.

Every day for the past 3 weeks we’ve seen the rain come. Flash floods are happening. It’s raining cats and dogs.

It’s going to get worse though. In fact, all of the cats and dogs are going to be washed away in the water. That’s how bad it’s going to get. You don’t see it yet on the forecast, but the hardest rain is yet to fall.

You may think I’m crazy for forecasting this weather. I’m no meteorologist, that’s true. Neither was Noah. He was just a guy who heard the voice of God.

God told Noah to be prepared, for a storm was coming. A storm like the world had never seen before. God told Noah to build an ark to protect his family and the creatures roaming the earth.

People thought Noah was crazy, building an behemoth ship in broad daylight. But he had faith in God’s voice. He knew that the sun never shines forever.

Noah obeyed God’s instructions. He was prepared when the storm hit. He protected his family because of his faith. Together, along with the world’s first zoo and aquarium, Noah and his family rode out the storm because they listened to God’s voice.

God still speaks to us, if we will listen. He wants us to be prepared for the storms. Not with raincoats and umbrellas – with prayer and community.

When we pray, study His word, and fellowship with the church, we are preparing for the storms in life. We are building the arks that will carry us through the hard rains.

Even when life is full of sunshine, we must still guard ourselves in God. We must still prepare the ark. The rain will fall. Don’t let it catch you off guard.

Wear God’s word as your raincoat. Wear it even when there isn’t a cloud in the sky. It won’t stop the storm from happening. But when the world tries to drench you with rain, it will keep you from getting wet.

 How can you stay prepared for the storms of life?