If you are a Christian business owner or leader, then you have faced situations where you had to make a decision. This simply comes with the job. Unfortunately, many of us are not trained in the skill of decision making. Everyone assumes we should know how to do this – no training necessary, right?
As Christian business owners and leaders, we are often faced with major decision making opportunities. Unfortunately, these situations do not always come with much warning and often carry significant consequences. Though these opportunities are critical functions of our leadership roles, we are seldom adequately trained in how to execute them – especially from a Christian perspective. In light of that, I want to share a simple set of decision making questions that can help you make God-honoring decisions.
A friend recently used the following illustration: Can you explain how cell phone technology actually works? I am not asking if you know how to use a cell phone, but if you can explain how it works? Odds are, you cannot explain this technology. I sure cannot. Yet, it does not seem like this lack of understanding of cell phone technology is a stumbling block for anyone. People do not refuse to believe in and depend upon cell phones simply because they don’t know how they work, right?
In my last post, I told you about an experience I had at an out of town meeting. I also told you that there would likely be more learning to come out of that incident. Well, I was right. In fact, it was at church that I was hit in the face with what I think was the root of my woes – envy.
It is not often that I break a post into two parts. Occasionally, I will do a series of multiple posts, but even then each one is usually self-contained for the most part. However, my last post was not that way. It was clearly only part one of a two part story about doubt and frustration. If you have not read the last post, you must first go and do it now (click here). Trust me, it is necessary if you want to understand this post.
I have a confession to make. Most of you reading this have never met me, but I will tell you that I am highly competitive and hate to lose. I strive to win and succeed at everything I do. Obviously, I am not always good enough to do so! Even worse, I am able to quickly lose my footing and fall into a pit of despair if I see myself losing. Doubt and frustration can set in quickly if I am not careful.
Do you recognize the name Samuel Pierpont Langley? I am sure some of you do, but most people have never heard his name mentioned. Yet, if you lived at the beginning of the 20th century, his name would have been one you would quickly identify. Unfortunately for Langley, it was his “Why?” that is most likely responsible for his anonymity. The ideas in this post come largely from a TED talk by Simon Sinek in 2009.
I do not have the national polling data to support this, but I would bet heavily that the one obstacle keeping most non-believers from being open to a relationship with Jesus is the hypocrisy of those calling themselves Christians. Even more critical is the hypocrisy of Christians that hold leadership positions. Fortunately, Jesus spoke many times about hypocrisy, giving us clear instructions on how to avoid these obnoxious behaviors associated with it.
Look around at the business world today and take note of those who claim to be Christians. Include yourself in this assessment. Some are easy to identify because their business practices clearly align with what they believe the Bible says. The rest are more difficult to identify because their practices are no different than the non-Christians around them. Why is this? Are these business people guilty of paying lip service to God or is there more to it?
We can all remember famous people, or just someone significant to us, who have done something to forever ruin their good name. I will not list the names of politicians, sports heroes, and religious leaders that have disappointed us all with their fall. You can come up with your own list in your head. Unfortunately, it seems that a good name is tough to get these days, and even tougher to maintain.