day 1409: Suffering

While on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I 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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"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."

This is a topic that's been on my mind quite a bit lately. I don't know about you but I've certainly had my share of suffering in life and I'm reasonably sure that there's more to come. In considering "suffering" I think about physical pain brought on by an injury or illness; emotional pain resulting from a broken relationship or unmet expectations; psychological pain in the form of depression or shame. 

I've definitely had my periods of suffering in the context of work. I think to times in my life when work was seemingly unbearable for a myriad of reasons: hostile co-workers; days filled with mind-numbing tasks; unreasonable bosses; well, you get the picture. I've also been laid off and found myself questioning my value as a person because my identity was so closely tied to my work. In short, work has been a source of much suffering throughout the course of my life. 

I have to be honest... I really, really, dislike suffering. If I had it my way, I would never have to endure suffering one more moment of my life. That said, the Bible has a much different perspective on suffering. In his letter to the Romans, Paul states that "we also glory in our sufferings". WHAT?!?! Glory and rejoicing are not the first things that come to mind when I think of suffering. Paul goes on to say that "suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." So... suffering can lead to hope. Huh.

I do believe in my heart that suffering can lead to hope. However, I don't think that suffering necessarily leads to hope. I don't think that suffering necessarily produce perseverance. I think suffering provides an opportunity for perseverance. I think we can just "make it" or just "survive" through suffering and I don't think the product in that case is perseverance. I've thought a lot about what perseverance looks like in the midst of suffering and while I can't say definitively for everyone what it should look like, I have an idea what it looks like for me.

To me, to persevere is to contend. To suck it up and continue to do the right things no matter how painful. To love those who are not easy to love. To be an example to those around us and approach seemingly impossible situations at work with a positive attitude. To humble myself when I feel like I'm being attacked.

I'm going through a period of suffering even as I type this and I ask myself, "what will this period reveal about my character? Will I persevere and emerge from this period with hope, or will I just survive?" 

For now, I will glory in my suffering and see what follows.

 

Reference: Romans 5:3-4 (NIV)

David Lee

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
                         ________________________________________________

“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 1371: WHEN THE BUCK STOPS!

"And this is my covenant with them, that I will take away their sins.”

As leaders, managers, or in today’s world, even those who work someplace where we have influence over decisions that are made that could affect others, we need to be careful and constructive in those decisions.  We seldom see examples of leaders who step up when things go wrong.  Some will do it and admit that the buck stops with them, but they won’t accept the full responsibility, which many times would lead to a resignation or some other type of repercussion.  Last week we saw a leader do so though when South Korean Prime Minister, Chung Hong-won, resigned after the failed rescue of the ferry that capsized. I found this interestingly juxtaposed with the firing of a number of the GM senior execs, but not the CEO.  I know, she is new, but remember, she was on the senior team and has been with the company for 34 years. I’m not saying that she should have been fired, but when the buck stops, it must stop somewhere and the best of the best leaders know it stops with them. Anything short of that, can feel like lip service to leadership.

Who would take the sins of all the world and allow Himself to be crucified?  We know who and we also know that if in our work we are going to try and lead a life set by His example that we can’t not take responsibility and accountability when it is ours.  If we try and pass the blame or shirk our part of a decision or action, we are not worKING to His glory.  It’s not any fun when the buck stops with us, but it is what we have to be willing to do.

Reference: Romans 11:27 (New Living Translation)

day 1339: Invasions...Not!

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow - not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love."


I can't think of anyone who likes an invasion.  The world is nervous about what is happening in the Ukraine. We are concerned about invasions of our privacy.  We don't like it when rules, regulations, government becomes invasive in our ways of doing business. Every so many years we read of the fear of an invasion of red army ants or killer bees that will invade our communities.  And, once a year there is a hit movie about the invasion of earth by aliens that we successfully fend off so that we can cheer for those who turned back the invasion. Let's face it, we don't like invasions. What does that mean for us in our businesses?  It might have us asking whether or not we should be having someone call someones house at dinner time to sell a product.  It also might mean that we better be more than ready for the cyber-threats that could compromise our billing systems and cause our customers financial information to be invaded.  It could also mean that we think and care more about when it is okay, or not okay to have a a manager take over the work of her/his team, just because she/he feels they can do a better job.  Invasions are big and they are small, but it's worth thinking about before we make the next move.

Our relationship and life example for Christ is under threat of invasion at every moment.  When we feel that temptation, lose our temper, take credit for what is not ours, become too self-reliant, or just ignore what God is telling us to do, then our relationship with Christ is being invaded by the other side.  The old adage is that the best defense is a strong offense.  In God's Kingdom that also rings true.  The more that we actively and proactively deepen our lives in the Word, prayer, church and fellowship, the more we can be ready to ward off the invasions that will come. And, yes they will come.  When we are living out the example that God desires, we become a greater and greater target and threat to those who want to see us fail.  But, as we are promised, nothing can separate us from God's love and protection, if we only seek and allow Him in.  So, take this weekend and spend time with God.  It will be good readiness for the invasions that will inevitably show up next week.

Reference:  Romans 8:38 (New Living Translation)

day 1328: Better Problems

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us - they help us learn to endure."

When I am in an airport airline lounge I love to listen the conversations happening around me. At the root, they are all the same. They are business people all trying to fix some type of problem. It can be a problem with their travel, a problem with a deal, a problem with an employee, or a problem with a customer. It can be any type of problem and they are working as hard as they can to fix it and make it go away. This is one of the fundamentals of work. We fix problems. But, problems can be weighty and disheartening and they can create stress that leads to other problems. All of the emotions that come from problems and our need to resolve them can be managed. The problems will still be there but our emotions and reactions to problems are ours to control and create. The answer is all in our outlook and how we look at the problems when they come to our doorstep. We get a choice each and every time. We can either let them take over us or we can take over them.

In Romans 5:3 Paul says; "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us - they help us learn to endure." He goes on in verse 4 with; "And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectations of salvation." I love those two verses because in them we learn that in those problems, way down deep, are the beginnings of the reminder to us of what our God has sacrificed for us to that we can receive His salvation. So, today, each and every problem can be looked at as happy problems because if we remember these problems that seem so hard to overcome are just the first steps of what is the ultimate expectation! Hard to do, yes. But, that is the strength that God wants us build each and every day, starting today!

Reference: Romans 3:3-4 (New Living Translation)

day 1325: "WhatsApp With That?"

"In Christ Jesus, then I have reason to be proud of my work for God."

The news broke yesterday afternoon that Facebook is buying "WhatsApp" for $19 billion.  Yes, $19B!.  "WhatsApp (up) with that?", you might ask about WhatsApp getting that type of valuation.  Well, let's see, they have 450MM users and they add 1MM new users a day.  And, they also have a revenue model of $.99/ year for each user, after a one year free trial.  What's kinda cool about this 50 person team is that lots of people knew about WhatsApp, but not that many people knew about them from a bragging and boasting perspective.  This wasn't a group of people who were the headlined in blogs and conferences as "the next big thing".  They just went about their business, building something extraordinary until, bam!, the unimaginable happened. There is a lesson in here for all of us.  Yes, we have to market.  Yes, we have to ensure that we are known and recognized, but more so we just have to be awesome at what we set out to do, and as the one of the oldest sayings goes, "The cream will rise to the top".

We learn in much of the New Testament about what the Apostle Paul did a a spreader of the Good News.  As the Associate Pastor at my church, said this past weekend, "Paul was an entrepreneur as he started and grew church after church, in land after land after land."  Yes he was, and with his works, he led.  Paul was proud of his work because he could see God working in each place that he went.  But, Paul was not a boaster.  He didn't go back among those who he once worked and bragged about what he was doing.  He just went about doing it and we still read, write and talk about him and his works today.  Our workplaces don't need any more boasters or braggarts. We wouldn't be looking like or acting like Christ and Paul if we were one of those.  If we go about our work in the same way of excellence that we are taught through Paul and Jesus, then we will have people around us wondering what's up with them?  That then becomes our time to share!

Reference: Romans 15:17 (New Living Translation)

day 1241: The Alignment Day

"In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable."

Every business has a day of the week that is best for meetings, planning and setting up the days ahead.  Usually that is Monday, but not always. I have been doing some consulting work with a company that executes their business primarily over the weekend and it's not until Tuesday when everyone can take a deep breath and get ready together for the coming week.  Regardless of the day of the week, there is one that we should be gathering to look back to celebrate and adjust and then to forwardly align and go into operational mode.  This day is really the first day of the week as if it is done right, all will flow from there.  If you haven't put that day in place yet, you are missing an opportunity to get the team all on one page and to ensure that everything is in place to get out there and win.

On one day over the weekend we are in church, worshiping, learning and gaining fellowship.Yes, this is the Sabbath, but it is also can be for us the first day of readiness of our workweek. This is our alignment day to get ready for what we will face in the coming week. Without this, we are weakening our ability to be strong and ready for the challenges that work brings to us that tests our faith.  Are we making the most of our preparedness and readiness for next week and planning on being in church this weekend?

Reference: Romans 14:5 (New Living Translation)

day 1159: IBNO Status - Part 3 (Redux)

"Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

"Let's just take a shortcut and we'll be done with this". To anyone who wants to get anything done, that sounds like a fine alternative and when we have been working really, really hard, this alternative could come as such a relief. Unless, that shortcut undermines the quality and/or credibility of the work. Seldom does anyone come right out and use the word "shortcut" but it shows up as the result when the extra quality check is ignored or the preventative maintenance schedule is not followed, or the details on the expense report are too complicated to fill out. They aren't stark and visible shortcuts, but they are things that when not fully completed, cut short ourselves and our potential to be as good as we can be. Many of the cues for these actions come from the world around us. I marvel at how when there is some very egregious crime committed in the corporate world that there will be people who say, "I never imagined he would do that". Any major infraction started a long time ago with a little of this and a little of that going on. The erosion of character, values and disciplines are always evident if we just pay attention and look hard enough for them. But, as a people, we don't. We allow the curve to shift and the standards to slip and before long, "everyone is doing it". 

This is the world doing this to us and unless we have a strict and strong standard we will find ourselves moving along the curve. We all are in, but we do not need to be of this world, this is why in Romans 12:2 we are given the boundary lines. Our IBNO (in but not of) Status is constantly challenged by the crowds. Books are written about the the wisdom of the crowd. In the technology world we are asked over and over, "are you crowd-sourcing?" When it comes to values, principles and disciplines, may we never allow the crowd to source any of us. Today, if there is an area at work or in your life where you feel that the crowd and the world has pushed you in a direction that makes you not happy with you are, then today is the time to step away from the crowd and start back to being you.

Reference: Romans 12:2 (New Living Testament)

 

day 1158: IBNO Status - Part 2 (Redux)

"Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

I once worked at a company where no one felt comfortable wearing blue jeans to work. There was no rule or policy against it and quite the opposite in that the company prided itself on having a casual dress policy. But it would be the very rare day when you would see a senior executive or anyone in management wearing a pair of jeans in the office. Recently I saw a video of an internal meeting of the same company and I commented that all of the senior team were wearing blue jeans. The person who was showing me the video said, "yeah, we all wears jeans these days, almost every day." What was the difference? When I was at the organization the CEO then never wore jeans to work and if someone did, he wouldn't say anything, but he would give them the once over look and would look at what pants they were wearing just long enough that it would let them know that he was frowning inside. Today, the same company has a different CEO and he is known for wearing jeans to work all the time, even though he never did back in the day when he was number two in the company. The point of all of this is that we very easily become the products of our environment. 

Just like chameleons we can quickly change based on the landscape and the backdrop around us and if we are not careful we will have changed and not even known it. It's nothing new to any of us that we change over time in small increments that begin to add up. It's like gaining weight. Few people just wake up one morning and find that they are overweight. It's the pound here and the pound there that leaves us with 20 extra pounds that has to be taken back off more diligently than how it was put on. So are the things in life that can cause us issues regarding being in but not of this world. Our "IBNO Status" must constantly be monitored. There are many traits and characteristics of others that are fine to take on, but there are others that we have to monitor and not just do because everyone else does them or the person at the top of the company does it that way. Not knowing or recognizing how we have changed is the first sign that our IBNO status needs to be checked.
Reference: Romans 12:2 (New Living Testament)