Thursday, May 29, 2014

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

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