day 1392: What Are Your Mantras?

While I am on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I have asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty
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“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit”

I live with mantras.    

For instance, if I don’t want to exercise I say, “Don’t think, just do”.   

If I am tired or weary or lose focus, I say, “Be here now”.   

When I really get smacked in the head and heart – gripped by fear, indecision, loss, I scream, “Trust God Now”!  This mantra takes a bucket full of water and douses doubt.  It shakes me out of myself and lands me right in the lap of God.  TRUST is ALL I am required to DO according to God – the one who knows me better than I know myself – the one who has ALWAYS captured me when I’m falling/en, - the one who makes all things right for his glory.   

Are those good odds to TRUST?   

Astounding results are promised!  

I am filled (all the way up) with ALL joy and peace.  What is ALL joy and peace?  Not sure, but I do know bits and pieces of joy and peace. The bonus here is HOPE OVERFLOW – that means not only am I filled up, but overflowing with God’s Joy, Peace, and Hope!   

That says pretty much that I can DO ANYTHING with God.  No need to fear and doubt.   All I have to DO is TRUST.  I think these are pretty good returns for “Trust God Now”.   

What are your mantras?

Reference:  Romans 15:13

Darci Kendrick

Chiropractor

day 1391: A Hack for Life

While I am on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I have asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty

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"He makes me lie down in green pastures"

In Silicon Valley, everything is subject to being “hacked”.  Silicon Valley folks love to make anything they can get their hands on smaller, smarter, faster, stronger, or less expensive.  I have friends working to build everything from a driverless car to a monitor that tells you how many calories your dog burned while you were at work.  Wired, Fast Company, TechCrunch, Engadget, RE/Code, and a host of other magazines and websites have created an entire industry dedicated to reporting the latest and greatest innovations in technology.  The need for instantaneous news updates and social connections have created billions of dollars in market value for companies like like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.  Apple employees go to work at 1 Infinite Loop and Facebook employees at 1 Hacker Way in case they forget the goal is to always innovate and move forward.  

But, could it be possible to go too far too fast and for too long?  The same media outlets listed above are also filled with stories of burnout, questionable business and personal decisions, and intellectual stagnation made by the same companies and employees that had been previously praised as the best and the brightest.  How does this happen?  Should the employees work harder or smarter and figure out a new hack for management and work style?  Should companies replace their management or board periodically to bring fresh thoughts and energy to the front lines?  How can we engineer our way out of the inevitable future obsolescence?

My suggestion is that every manager and employee stop and think about one key word in the Verse 2 of Psalm 23 - “ He MAKES me lie down in green pastures.”  God doesn’t suggest, prod, or offer that we take five every now and then for a quick touchbase.  He tells us specifically that we have to stop and spend time with him in his green pastures and by quiet waters.  Only when that happens deliberately and regularly are we fully available and able to have God refresh our soul (v.3), guide us along the right paths (v.3), live life with confidence (v.4), nurture and heel us (v.5), and bask/share in his eternal glory (v.6).  

The Bible is filled with verses and examples of people stopping and seeking God and the promises of Psalm 23.  Jesus is described as stopping and seeking God at all times of the day, on land and water, in public and private, and alone and in groups.  Sometimes He took hours or days to be with God.  Other times, He is quoted saying simple, straight forward prayers during the rush of the day.  

I encourage you to stop what you are doing and "hack" your calendar to regularly stop and just spend time with God.  No need to send an email invite or set up a video call.  Prayer and time with God is the original killer mobile app and is available anytime and any place.  

Reference: Psalm 23 

Kevin Miller
Coitcom

day 1390: Setting Your Tone

While I am on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I have asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God." -
James 1:19-20

Business leaders shape their organizations everyday by what they say and do.  Sometimes the tone they set has as much to do with how results are achieved as the strategic direction they set. Every leader must set high standards and achieve results but some do not utilize the power of their teams to achieve exceptional results.  Some leaders seem heavy handed and dictatorial, which demoralizes their people and in the end paralyzes creativity, teamwork, open dialogue and effective decision-making.

Many executives are unwilling to listen to anyone else when making decisions. They are smart and they think they have all the answers. How do they get away with this?  Simply, they get results. Teams become desensitized and conditioned to respond even though they believe they could help make better decisions if asked. The first time results go south the house of cards can begin to fall for the leader. The leaders begin to recognize they need help to solve the complex problems they face. They don’t know how to effectively involve their people because they are used to dictating what should be done.

People want to be inspired. A few keys to effective team leadership are patience to listen, speaking only when the perspectives of all-important constituencies are understood and not yelling and blaming other people for the problems. Showing compassion, caring and extending Christ like understanding are not weaknesses.  They set the right tone for outstanding team oriented decision-making.

Anger, impatience, and contention block the Holy Spirit from guiding us in our daily walk with God. May we all be swift hear, slow to speak and slow to wrath so we may inspire and unleash the God given talents of our teams.

Dan Paxton

President, Organizational Leadership Resource, Inc. 

day 1389: The Ordained Walk

While I am on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I have asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty
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Having control over our lives I think is a natural human instinct. No one like’s living a claustrophobic life where we can not control our environment or mostly what environment we live in. So we walk and fight for control over where we go and what we do. We find ourselves fighting to shape our worlds to meet our personal objectives when we should remember we are not in the outcome business all by ourselves.

Everything in the heavens and earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom.  We adore you as being in control of everything.  Riches and honor come from you alone, and you are the Ruler of all mankind; your hand controls power and might, and it is at your discretion that men are made great and given strength. (1 Chronicles 29: 11-12, TLB)

I spend about half my time wrestling the steering wheel out of God’s hands and the other half digging my truck out of the mud as a result. My disposition can at times be so terrible and I find myself so fearful. I forget that this is God’s Kingdom that I live in and it’s by His hand that I am made great and given strength and so much more. When I just lay down my sword, hand over control and rest in the knowledge that he is in control, I am so happy, peaceful and courageous. When I recognize where I come from, where I am currently and where I am going are all at the great discretion of God I start to see real victory in my life.

I believe that the walk Rusty is on today is an ordained walk. I think the walk we are on is in the same way ordained. My hope is that we will let God lead us and that we all rest in the fact that this is His World and He decides.  

Mike Mayeux

CEO, Novotus