Every once in a while, we run across people who did not really find their gifting until later in life. Either that, or the opportunity did not present itself for them to exercise that gifting until then. Whatever the case, it is fun to watch people like this excel in their gifting as if they have a lot of ground to make up! My wife is one of these people and she has certainly found her gifting as a teacher!
Have you ever been in the grocery store when a mother has told her toddler “No, you cannot do that!” All I can say is that the picture is not normally very pretty after that, right? For the next several minutes, if she is lucky, the toddler pitches a fit and throws a tantrum in an effort to convince her otherwise. Unfortunately, we often react the same way!
As I said in my last post, God got my attention over ten years ago and changed the trajectory of my life. He made it clear that I was to begin working toward a vision of using our business as a platform for Christian ministry. From the beginning of this journey, my motives have been to do just that. My goal has been to one day hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
God got my attention over ten years ago and made it clear to me that He expected more from me than I was giving Him. You can read more about that series of events HERE, but just know that I was changed virtually overnight. He gave me a clear picture of what our business should look like and I began working hard to make that vision happen.
Every once in a while, I like to mix things up a little. Today’s post is one of those times. Rather than writing a post that tells you my thoughts and gives you my opinions, I am going to ask you a series of tough questions and let you come to your own conclusions. My hope and prayer is that these questions will lead you to action.
Sometimes the exact same image can communicate two totally opposite ideas or concepts. I recently posted about this picture, describing 7 Ways Christians In Business Kill Their Witness. In this post, I took the position that “blending” with the world was a recipe for trouble. Today, I want to take the opposite position – encouraging you to engage culture!
Have you ever made so many copies of copies of something that you eventually end up with a copy that barely resembles the original? Sometimes that is the way I think we can be as Christians – even Christians in business. Maybe we model ourselves after someone else who has modeled themselves after someone else. Eventually, we lose our resemblance to the original – Jesus!
Business is not easy. You know exactly what I am talking about. There are challenges and resistance almost every day. Some are larger than others, but it is rarely smooth sailing for very long. As a Christian business owner or leader, what is your prayer when you are challenged or even overcome with resistance? Do you pray for relief or do you pray for boldness?
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Take a look at this picture and tell me what you see. Did you catch the anomaly? If so, what does it say to you? Do you see how it relates to how Christian business leaders can kill their Christian witness by trying to fit in?
The days get faster and faster sometimes. Deadlines and headaches rush at us at a high rate of speed. We do well just to survive to fight another day, right? It is in this kind of environment that Christian business owners or leaders can get so busy and we forget some key truths about our ministry. Hopefully, this post will remind you of some ideas you need to revisit.