day 1405: Does God Get Stressed Out? ….. No!

While I 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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"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry of the center of your life. (Philippians 4:7)

Every day, every week, every month, work presents opportunities to get “High Anxiety”. So often we find ourselves sucked in - whole body, mind and soul. We feel physical effects of the stress, demands and risks of certain situations and challenges. Sadly, this is very common.

What is also common is that very often, a day later, a week later, or in some cases, it’s a year later and we look back with perspective and realize that an issue that looked huge, big and hairy at the time was just a bump, a minor hill to be scaled.

In these circumstances, instead of getting fully sucked in and overwhelmed, God wants us to call on Him to stand with us and take our anxiety and worries. He knows that if we lean on Him and let Him have our worries that we will think with clearer minds and therefore perform better in any circumstances. Even more importantly, with less anxiety and a clearer mind, we are better able to listen for God’s direction and let Him lead us in these difficult situations. It turns out that God is our best teammate if we just remember to ask Him and then listen.

I’d like to recommend a resource to you to help keep Him more front and center in your work and personal life. On many business leaders’ bookshelves there are scores of business books. The resource I recommend may be the best business and life book I’ve found. The book is by Sarah Young and is called “Jesus Calling”. The book reminds me daily that He is there if I just remember to talk to Him, come to Him and ask for His help & support. Enjoy!

Reference: 1 Peter 5:7

Tom Koch

day 1388: Summer Thanks!

"Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins."

Today is a special day.  All across the country, companies and employees are getting ready for the long weekend that signals the start of summer! Memorial Day weekend gets it all started. Some companies will start their summer hours and gear up for people taking their vacation weeks. It's always exciting.  This holiday is about paying memory to those who have served and fallen for our country.  Between getting ready for the fun weekend and the memorials it can be a great time to express to each other how much we appreciate them and their contributions that assist in our success.  It's a great time for leaders and managers to express their recognition to their teams and co-workers.

Today also marks a day for me to say thank you to many.  On Monday, I leave on a special trip. My friend Doug, who recently turned 50 invited me and a group of guys to join him on a pilgrimage trip in Spain.  We will be walking daily (with our backpacks) along the Camino de Santiago. This is a tradition for nearly a million people who have been doing it for a 1000 years.  While on this long trip, one is supposed to figure out what they will be "leaving behind". I will share what that is when I return.  While I am gone, purposed worKING will continue.  I have asked a number of the most courageous and committed followers of Christ who are daily living out their purpose in their workplaces, to write and share for all of us. I have been overwhelmed with their generosity of spirit and time.  I know you will be blessed by their writings.  And, after this series of guest contributors ends, be on the watch out for a new look and expansion of Purposed worKING.

Enjoy this Friday summer kickoff and long weekend!  Be blessed and stay strong in His promises!

Reference: 1 Peter 4:8 (New Living Translation)


 

day 1237: #AddaWordRuinAMovie The Meme

"They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven..."

#AddaWordRuinAMovie may well be the funniest and best Meme I have ever seen on Twitter.  The Meme was created on Friday night and by the time I saw it on Saturday morning, it was blowing up.  Why?  The social media people in our marketing departments try so hard to come up with something that will go viral and catch the jet stream.  Millions of dollars are spent experimenting and trying to come up with something that catches on. And, then along comes something so simple that grabs a ton of attention.  Let's dissect why #AddaWordRuinAMovie has taken off.  First, without even thinking much about it the Meme title intrigues us and we want to know more.  Once we click on the Meme we realize that it's a simple and fun game that anyone can play.  We all know movies.  We all can be creative enough to add a word to a movie title, and we can laugh, and sometimes be amazed, at the creativity of someone else.  A simple and compelling game that we can play with others. That's what we should be thinking about it if we want to create something that gets our customers/consumers engaged with our product/service.

Could it be that we are actually God's created Memes?  Could it be that we have been created to be accessible to others, intriguing enough for others to watch our lives, and additive individually and collectively for God's Kingdom?  I think that is right.  If we think of ourselves as God's Meme in our workplace we will be cognizant and deliberate in the way we work and work with others.  What are we doing today to extend the Meme, which is our life?

Reference: 1 Peter 1:12 (New Living Translation)

day 1118: Inheritances

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see."

During the past Presidential election and the tax modifications that occurred afterwards, there a lot of discussion about changes in inheritance taxes.  What ended up was not substantially different than what the taxes were before, but it caused a firestorm of discussion about what and how should property and wealth be handed down from one generation to another. That discussion was not only about the rate of tax, but also sparked many conversations about the impact of generational wealth transfer and the good and bad of such transfers.  I have a very good friend who is the third generation owner of his family business and he is now looking at what and how to pass the business down to his children.  His is different in that he intends to work until he dies, but the dynamics are the same challenge with how much should the next generation gain and start with that came from the work and value creation of the previous generation.  While not an ownership problem per se, we face the same daily when we someone retires or moves out of a business and someone else comes in and picks up where they left off.  Should we compensate and give them the upside of what was created before them, or do they need to earn and find their own way. It isn't a simple answer and one that we are better off in have an agreed upon philosophy and plan before we are faced with the problem.

God made it very clear that He wants us to have an inheritance from Him when we become His children.  That inheritance is the promise of eternal life with Him. And the best part is that once we accept the inheritance there isn't anyone who can take it away from us or diminish it in any way.  I wonder if this is not how God wants us to also be with others when we are giving of ourselves. What I mean, is that are we not to extend ourselves to others in a way that helps them carry forward in a more confident, assured, and cared for fashion, and to not be people who one day extend ourselves to others and then the next exclude or pull back from helping in them with their needs?  There is also indeed one thing we can do for others that will provide them the eternal inheritance and this to share God's love and salvation with them for them to accept.  Today, there is someone with whom we work who is searching for an inheritance. What can we do to help them see the one that God gives?

Reference: 1 Peter 3:6 (New Living Translation)

day 1094: I-9's

"Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people." 

Unless you own your own business and are intimate with legal hiring requirements, or you work in HR then you probably don't know anything about an I-9 form.  The I-9 is the core piece of paper that verifies whether or not an individual to be hired is legal to work in the United States.  Every employee is supposed to have one on file and if you do any contracted work with the U.S. government and these forms are not up to date and on file for review at all times, then the government can slap you with a substantial fine that multiplies with each missing or incorrect form.  Even if you aren't a federal contractor, you are subject to violations from the Labor Department of INS.  To complete an I-9 it actually takes a human being to check two forms of valid forms of identification, including social security number and to certify with their personal signature that everything is in order.  So, it takes some discipline, process, follow-through and trustworthiness of the person doing the validating.  I-9s are going to be in the news again soon as they have recently gotten a revision and whatever passes with new immigration reform will shine the spotlight back on the I-9 form.  If you don't know anything about these and you think you should, it might be worth a quick check-in with your HR Head or office manager.

While I-9's verify our working identity, we don't need anyone but God to validate our identities for Him.  He knows who we are better than we do and wants us to know Him just as closely.  I love our Father for so many reasons and who could ever turn away a God who seeks for us to know who He is by giving us His Word and Spirit to access freely and deeply.  The only barrier is our level of faith, belief and willingness to surrender our lives to Him. There is no question of identity in the Kingdom.  We are God's children and He is excited each time we reaffirm that as we call upon Him as our Father and Lord.  If today there is any question who you belong to and who is there with you on the job, at home or throughout the day, then remember that He validates you and affirms His love for you as His, each and every day.

Reference: 1 Peter 2:10 (New Living Translation) 

day 1033: Cover Ups

“Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins."
If you have ever worked in a high-growth and fast-moving company, you know that the oxygen that fuels the fire is growth. Nothing covers up problems like growth. When growth is present, the scrutiny on hiring decisions, compensation, promotions, purchasing, travel, anything where money is spent, goes way down. When in growth mode, the answer is usually “yes”. Yes, growth masks lots and lots of mistakes and insecurities. The issue with this is that as soon as the growth slows down or worse, stalls, all of the lack of process, bad decisions, bloated structures, etc. can fall under the proverbial roosters coming home to roost. In what feels like a nanosecond, we find ourselves trying to rationalize costs, defending hires, hanging onto projects, cutting projects, squeezing every penny, etc. Everything goes from awesome to ugly in short order. So, what are we to do in the growth years? This is the time of continued discipline and attention. It does not mean that we shouldn’t make hay while the sun is shining, but it is a time when we must ensure that when the growth slows that we haven’t overextended ourselves so much that we have to make a course correction. It is surely easier said than done but it is extremely important that we learn the lesson that growth is not the cover up strategy that we want to latch onto.

There is only one great cover up that is appropriate to become attached and addicted to and we read about this in 1 Peter 4:8; “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins." Yes, love is a great mask for so many things. Unlike other drivers that are temporary or are so fleeting, love is consistent and can be spread to cover everything. The Bible is not saying that we should go and sin and let love be the cover up of our sins. Instead, what we are reading is that if we truly love Him and God’s love comes through and there is a transfer of that love truly to other people, that there are many sins that we will never commit because they just can’t be committed when you thoroughly and truly love another. The love of God is at the root of everything we can do if we will only allow it to cover us and become that which we desire and hold dearly day in and day out.

Reference: 1 Peter 4:8 (New Living Testament)

day 1010: Election

"But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light."

Today, like any election day, is an important day in our country.  Today we will choose the person, in this year, the man who will lead our government for four more years.  At the conclusion of this election either the incumbent will continue in office or there will be a peaceful and orderly transfer of power to a new President.  This predictable and accepted process is part of why we live in such a great county.  Elections can divide us philosophically because it a zero-sum, black and white choices that tend to divide. But let us pray that the division is melded back together at the end of this day into what we all should respect and admire, which this Republic for which it stands.  Please exercise today the most foundational of all citizen rights we are given and that is to vote. For our democracy to survive and thrive the people must be represented and heard.  This is our day to be heard.

Putting elections and politics in perspective with the Kingdom of God is not always easy and when left to our human interpretations it can also become divisive.  But, one thing is for sure, that God tells us that we are to respect our leaders and to not let any of this get in the way of forwarding His Kingdom.  So, at the end of  today, it's pretty sure that nearly 1/2 of our country will not be happy, but let's not let that get in the way of reminding ourselves that as royal priests of His holy nation that we are called to act in His light and be a standard bearer for His grace and love.  Let us also thank Him today that we don't have to campaign for His salvation.  The acceptance of His gift is all that we need to do.  

Reference: 1 Peter 2:9 (New Living Translation)

 

day 763: Committed For The Long-Haul

"Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about what happens to you."

The other day a colleague and I were debating a company's strategic direction and came to the conclusion that regardless if they were right or they were wrong, they were to be commended because they are committed and sticking to it and only time would tell whether they are correct in their assumptions or not. A month or so ago I mentioned Netflix as an example of a company who was so committed to moving into the future that they were burning the ships behind them with the spinning off of their DVD shipping business so they could focus on their streaming segment. It was a gutsy move and I applauded them for it because no matter how flexible and how long your legs are, you can't do a deep enough split to keep one foot in the past and another far enough in the future. Something has to give and it should be the foot that moves out of the past and into the future. Netflix was doing that, and then they changed their mind. They were not committed to their strategy for the long-haul. They vacillated and now they are stuck. I was surprised because it is a company built on strong convictions and some unshakable points of view. If we are going to be committed, we need to be really committed. Once we go, we need to keep going. Like an airplane, we lift off, we adjust the engines for less thrust, and then we level off, but an airplane knows no reverse and if the engines stall, bad things happen. Once we decide to go, we must go and stick with it.

As individuals it is hard to stick with things. Too many distractions are out there and we can find ourselves casting about and not following through. We must also be committed for the long-haul in our spiritual lives and committed enough that there is no going back. We can be that example to others in our work lives and that example can be the glimpse of what it is like to follow Christ. He never looked back. He was committed beyond any commitment that we will ever know. He left the earth for us, but He did not leave us. We know that we can give all of our worries, our doubts, our fears, or anything that gets in the way of us following through for Him, and He will take care of us to get us through. Undoubtedly, we all have one, or many of those cares upon us today. Let's start this work day with giving them up to Him and asking Him to carry us through the long-haul, with no going back.

Reference: 1 Peter 5:7 (New Living Testament)

day 762: Purity

"But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy."

There was a time that when we heard or read about the product that was "99 44/100% Pure", that we would have immediately known that it was Ivory Soap. Since I am not a business historian, I can't say whether or not the claim was accurate, but it worked. Today, it's harder because of regulatory standards to make claims unless they are fully substantiated. Yet still the claim of purity remains one of the best ways to convince and influence a consumer. What is there not to like about purity? When we hear that something is pure we also seem to want to extend the purity and goodness to the company and the intentions of those who are making and selling the product. We like the idea that someone cares about making something that is pure. We want to believe that these people behind the products are also pure of heart. But, we must be careful about our claims because there may not be any other statement that will attract greater scrutiny. Just as we want to believe that something can be truly pure, there are also others who want to be the ones that prove the claim to be false.

We are to be as pure and as holy as we can be. We are told that many times in God's Word. But, we can't be pure or holy unless we are doing so to be in the likeness of Christ. If we are only striving to be pure, as in good, then we may be doing well, but we are not centered where God wants us to be. What we are told to do is to be holy as God is holy. As we work it is certainly not easy to be holy or to be pure. We are faced all day long with those areas and things in our jobs that do their best to pull us away from Him. It may not be that we are doing anything that is obviously wrong, dishonest, or not becoming. But, underneath it all work can make us take it all on our own, depend upon only ourselves, and forget who it is that we are to depend, rely and call upon. When we are trying to go it alone, without God as our center and director, then we cannot be holy and pure as he wants us to be. As we start this week let's consider how pure our intentions are and how hard we are worKING to be holy in His eyes?

Reference: 1 Peter 1:15 (New Living Testament)

day 739: Retaliation

"He did not retaliate when he was insulted. When he suffered, he did not threaten to get even. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly."

Not a week goes by that we don't read about one company suing another for something. Usually the litigation is a form of retaliation for some infringement or action that was threatening. Corporations can have large legal departments who are there to just retaliate. When you are a little business or an entrepreneur this can be intimidating and frightening, even when you haven't done anything wrong. I was with an entrepreneur the other day who is getting cease and desist letters for the use of a trademark that he received well in advance of the other, big company, even being in business. When he ignored that letter they sent another threatening to sue him if he didn't surrender the trademark to them. Fortunately, he had an attorney, and all of his ducks in order, and the big company didn't have any legs to stand on other than bravado. We are in a litigious age where the fastest form of retaliation can be a lawsuit. It's a shame that we have to live and work like this, but it is what it is.

As we work and live, we do have a choice though to not retaliate and to roll with the punches. We have to look no further than driving to and from work to see lots of retaliation going on. The obscene gesture or even the raised hand as to question why someone would drive like they are, is a form or retaliation. In the office the sly look, or the mumbled words under the breath, or the cc to the boss on the email can all be forms or retaliation. But see, as believers we are not to retaliate, even when we are wronged or are suffering. We have an example to follow and if we don't then we are degrading and disrespecting the Lord who suffered for us, who took the worst for us, and who gave it all for us. What we read in 1 Peter is all true. He never retaliated and if He didn't then there is no reason that we ever should.

Reference: 1 Peter 2:23 (New Living Testament)

day 734: Onward and upward

"So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor."

I've always said that if a business is not growing, it is dying. While that may not be obvious, it is dying from the inside out if it is not growing. The best people won't stay, the best deals won't be secured, the next big idea won't come to a business where others smell stagnation. This is why, even if incremental, moving upward and onward is important. Sometimes these moves can be scary and risky. Just check out what Netflix did this week with spinning out their DVD business as a legacy business so they can focus on the area of the business they believe will grow. This was about as gutsy as it gets and it certainly burns the ships behind them as they case themselves away from warehouses, envelopes, plastic and the U.S. Postal Service (which is having their own growth challenges). In CEO, Reed Hasting's letter to all subscribers he wrote to us humbly of his misstep and then laid out a growth plan for the company. It takes courage to stay growing and more businesses should be humble and honest enough with themselves to make the changes necessary to keep their growth alive.

We must also grow and we must also be humble. What we have is a promise from God that if we do humble ourselves under His power and we wait on Him that He will lift us up and we will experience our own upward and onward growth. But here is the amazing thing, while we are waiting, we are also growing because if we are humbling ourselves to Him, we are spending time in his Word, in prayer and in fellowship with others. Let's ask ourselves today, are we in an onward and upward pattern right now? And if we are not, then what do we need to do to put ourselves in the position where we can wait on God to lift us up?

Reference: 1 Peter 5:6 (New Living Testament)

day 716: Networking

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."

Networking to find a job isn't the only type of networking that we do in business. We are also always networking with other people inside and outside of our industry to learn more about opportunities that we don't want to miss. I recently watched the movie "Too Big To Fail" (great cast, fantastic plot that couldn't be made up, but too much of in-your-face writing for my taste) and among many other things, the movie reinforced the importance of always being networked and as much as possible on the good side of those we work around. A few different relationships that were stronger and better connected and some things might have been different for a few of the banks that were reeling in 2008. To be well networked is to know yourself as well as you might want to know others. It also means to be willing to give some of yourself to others for their needs, not always wanting to satisfy only what you are trying to achieve for yourself. It is good business to stay truly networked and connected, in the right way. One never knows what we might learn, know, and need to know from someone who is thought by others as a competitor.

We personally network all day long. We meet new people and we get our chance to help and also tell our story. In 1 Peter we are challenged to know ourselves well enough that when our time comes to tell others about ourselves that we are ready to give an answer about what makes us hopeful. It's about having our story and testimony on the tip of our tongues at all time. It's also knowing how to do this in a way that as we are told is done with "Gentleness and respect". Today, there will come an opportunity to tell someone else about yourself. How ready will you be to expand your network with the answer about yourself that can open the eyes and hearts of others?

Reference: 1 Peter 3:15 (New Living Testament)

day 705: R-E-S-P-E-C-T

"Show respect for everyone. Love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, show respect for the king. You who are slaves must accept the authority of your masters. Do whatever they tell you - not only if they are kind and reasonable, but even if they are harsh."

It's not unusual to hear cheap shots and disses being thrown around the office about the competition, the boss, and other co-workers. Why is it so easy to just spout off and say something that is so disrespectful? It may be that the other party is not standing there to provide a rebuttal. But, it's also too many times part of the bravado of building ourselves up by tearing down others. When I hear CEOs do it against other companies and other leaders, I think it just pulls down their own credibility and authority. The truth of the matter is that if we can't find someway to respect others and give them the credit that they are due, then we will never fine-tune and sharpen ourselves to become better. If we lower the bar on others then why should we or our organizations and teams jump higher? The greatest respect comes from giving credit where credit is due, examining and finding where they are better than we are, and ensuring that we then make our own improvements.

As we work with others, we are to show our proper respect to everyone, regardless of position, stature, opinions, or how we are treated by them. Wow, is this ever hard? Especially when just about everyone and everything around us is taunting us to do just the opposite? The crowd loves to tear down the weak, but we are to stand up for the weak and the broken! As we go through today, can we pick out the people who are due some respect and reach to them and pay them the respect we are taught that they deserve. A simple act and word of respect can go an unlimited number of miles. Let it dwell in our spirit and find ways to pay a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T!

Reference: 1 Peter 2:17-18 (New Living Testament)

day 647: Probationary Periods

"...don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through... Instead, be very glad-for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. "

During the Great Recession companies began to revert back to using probationary periods or hiring someone on as a temporary before bringing them on full-time. These "temp to perm" or trial periods were ways to provide a time of trial before making the commitment to hire. This practice is not a new one as many a company had done it in the past but once the talent market heats up it is hard to ask the best of the best to leave one job to go to another with a period of uncertainty before a commitment. I suspect that with the hiring market beginning to recover we will see less and less of the formal probation happening but certainly it is there informally, and that never goes away. Anyone who starts a new job will serve under watchful eyes and will be put to the test to see if the right hiring decision has been made. When asked on how to best manage during this time I always tell new hires the exact same things; Establish clear expectations from your boss for the first six months; work harder than the other guy; and build as many deep and close relationships as possible. If you know what is expected of you, you can meet or exceed those expectations. If you work hard and put in the extra effort then that can carry you far. If you have strong relationships with others and get to know them and them you, then when you stumble (which you will) they will be there for you and will also want to give you a second chance. It's always smart to go into any new situation with the attitude that you still have some proving to do. That way your attitude doesn't turn into taking it for granted or worse, putting on an air of complacency or entitlement.

Work and life is a set of trials. We get stronger through these trial and they force us to rely on the One who is stronger than us and who has gone through more of for us than we could ever give back to Him. How we handle our trials and out challenges can be a clear signal to others that we have something inside of us that they desire and need. If we can handle our trials and our tribulations in such a way that they can see God in us, then we are likely going to get our chance to tell His story to them. God doesn't put us on probation with Him. It is the one part of our lives where the love and protecting arms of the Lord are never taken away. If we believe, remember and count on this then there isn't any trial or any testing that He won't give us the power and grace to handle.

Reference: 1 Peter 4:12-13 (New Living Testament)

day 495: How Much Effort? All You Got!

I learned early on, if you are going to do something, do it well and don't cut the corners or take shortcuts and don't above all else, not give it your all. There are few feelings like quitting or stopping when you know down deep inside that you haven't given it your all. The disappointment that comes afterward when the results align with the effort, and fall short, is impossible to reel back in and becomes something that we have to live with. When we don't give it our all, we squander an opportunity and we let ourselves and others down. After we do this a few times we start to become conditioned to a less than full effort and that is a very dangerous and slippery slope to stand upon. A friend has a son who has the innate talent to be a very good golfer. He was told throughout college that if he stuck with it, practiced, played and studied the game as if it was his job that he has the potential to turn professional. That is what he is doing. He has given himself a full calendar year to give it his all and at the end of the year if he has not broken through, then he will realign his efforts to another profession. What is most impressive about this is that within that year, there are no compromises and only a fully focused, all out effort. No day can be wasted and every hour that he has prescribed for practice must be maximized. It's impressive to see. His example makes me stop and evaluate how well I am doing at putting my efforts all out there. Peter tells us something similar when he writes of the gifts that God has given us. In 1 Peter 4:11 as he describes how we are supposed to use our gifts; "...Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then God will be given glory in everything through Jesus Christ. All glory and power belongs to Him forever and ever. Amen." There is no question, we are to give every bit of ourselves with an all-out effort. When do we do, then God's glory can be seen and delivered through our efforts. Anything less, and we come up short. Today, there is work on the docket that demands all we got. Call on God for His strength and power and then go all-out and give it all you got and watch for what God does next!

Reference: 1 Peter 4:11 (New Living Testament)

day 494: The Intangible Gifts

I was on a panel where the first question that was asked of me was beyond the core skills that someone has what do I look for when interviewing someone as it relates to the soft skills or the intangibles? My answer came in four parts; 1) I look for an alignment of a person's value and principles to the values of the company. Getting down to the true values that someone lives and works by can tell you much about the person, including even whether or not they consider their values and principles to be driving influences for them; 2) An attitude of achievement and winning. Work is about winning and battling the competition of the company and to achieve there must be an attitude and passion to win; 3) The ability to play well with others in the sandbox. This is the teamwork that we have been reading about the last few days. The ability to be a good team member and team player is essential; 4) And finally, the ability to communicate with others. Especially in a small company, or a start-up, if one can't communicate what she/he is doing and do so in a way that others understand and want to follow or support, then it doesn't matter how good they are at what they do, they wall fall short of their full potential. How do we describe these intangibles, other than call them intangibles that are hard to teach and sometimes very hard to discern and evaluate? Peter talks about some of these as "gifts" that come from a great variety of spiritual gifts, many which, have been defined for us in God's Word. However, since God made us all and put us here on this earth to bring glory to Him, then we can look at all of our talents and skill as gifts from God that are to be put to work, for Him. In 1 Peter 4:10, we read; "...Manage them (gifts) well so that God's generosity can flow through you." Are we using our gifts today well enough? Are we using our gifts to the point that can feel that God's generosity is being magnified and flowing from us? Consider today that the talents, the skills, the set of experiences that we have been given are the intangible gifts of God that we get to open each and every day and like we marvel and are excited about any new gift, we need to make the most of them, today and every day.

Reference: 1 Peter 4:10 (New Living Testament)

day 420: Masks

If you have ever worked in a high-growth and fast-moving company, you know that the oxygen that fuels the fire is growth. Nothing masks problems like growth. When growth is present, the scrutiny on hiring decisions, compensation, promotions, purchasing, travel, anything where money is spent, goes way down. When in growth mode, the answer is usually “yes”. Yes, growth masks lots and lots of mistakes and insecurities. The issue with this is that as soon as the growth slows down or worse, stalls, all of the lack of process, bad decisions, bloated structures, etc. can fall under the proverbial roosters coming home to roost. In what feels like a nanosecond, we find ourselves trying to rationalize costs, defending hires, hanging onto projects, cutting projects, squeezing every penny, etc. Everything goes from awesome to ugly in short order. So, what are we to do in the growth years? This is the time of continued discipline and attention. It does not mean that we shouldn’t make hay while the sun is shining, but it is a time when we must ensure that when the growth slows that we haven’t overextended ourselves so much that we have to make a course correction. It is surely easier said than done but it is extremely important that we learn the lesson that growth is not the mask that we want to latch onto. There is only one great masker that is appropriate to become attached and addicted to and we read about this in 1 Peter 4:8; “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins." Yes, love is a great mask for so many things. Unlike other drivers that are temporary or are so fleeting, love is consistent and can be spread to cover everything. The Bible is not saying that we should go and sin and let love be the mask of our sins. Instead, what we are reading is that if we truly love Him and God’s love comes through and there is a transfer of that love truly to other people, that there are many sins that we will never commit because they just can’t be committed when you thoroughly and truly love another. The love of God is at the root of everything we can do if we will only allow it to cover us and become the mask that we desire and hold dearly day in and day out.

Reference: 1 Peter 4:8 (New Living Testament)

day 244: Bring Your Dog To Work Day...

Yes, there is a national "Bring Your Dog To Work Day" that happens each summer. This is a day, that if an employer chooses to honor, employees can bring their dog to work with them. I would assume that for most people, if they have a dog like mine, it is not a day of great productivity. I am always amazed at the people who have dogs who are so well trained that they can take them to work and the dogs basically sit in the corner or under the desk and you would never know they were there. It's always a big debate as to whether or not allowing people to bring their dogs to work is a good idea or not. I think it is a pretty cool thing, but for sure it takes maturity to know when your dog behaves well enough to be at work with you, or not. I would guess that most dogs would be better left at home. This past weekend, I taught a lesson at my church's Children Sunday School regarding how God wants us to fellowship with Him. I used my French Bulldog, Louie, as a metaphor. French Bulldogs are bred to be lap dogs. All he wants to do, all day long, is lay in my lap and cuddle up. The metaphor of Jesus always inviting us to cuddle up in his lap, to me, is strong imagery for the kind of relationship we can have with God if we choose. If I brought Louie to work with me, all he would want to do is sit on my lap in every meeting and while I was doing email, etc. I ran across a verse that tells me that God is after us to be as well-behaved and "trained" as man's best friends. I think of what it takes for my dog Louie to sit and stay and it makes me think how hard it is for God to get me to do the same. To get Louie to sit and stay, he must submit his will to me and wait until I release him. God does the same with us. See what it says in 1 Peter 5:6; "So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor." God gives us free-will to either submit or not, but in many ways, we are not that different than our pets. We have to decide within ourselves if we can humble ourselves under the power of another, in our case, our God. And do we see the reward as worth the submission? In our case, it is God saying that at the right time, it will be a lift up from him in honor. Rather than a bring your dog to work day, let's make it bring God to work day! Let's think today that we have our Master with us and He is asking us to sit and stay within His presence. Can we submit to our Master and allow ourselves to wait on Him to lift us up? If we can, we can expect that everyday can be a day of being lifted up into the lap of God and what better place is there than that?

Reference: 1 Peter 5:6 (New Living Testament)

day 178: Delegating Up

We do it all the time, even when we don't know we are doing it. We delegate up with our bosses. "Oh no, I don't do that. I would never do that", you say. Oh, but yes you do. Here is how it happens. You and your boss are having a conversation, maybe it is your weekly one-on-one meeting to go over the tasks and updates for the week. Somewhere in the conversation you mention a problem or an obstacle that you might have run into to get something done. It could be a policy or procedure that has slowed you down or has stymied you from moving forward. It may be an approval that you need to get from another department. It might be that you have run out of funding for this part of the project and you need to figure out how to shift some money over from somewhere else. Or, it might be a problem you are having with someone else on the team, that you haven't had the conversation with yet, or maybe you have had a conversation but nothing got resolved. It could be any of these topics or many more that you are discussing with your boss and she/he says, "You don't worry about that, I'll take care of it." Or, he/she just picks up their pen and makes a note to themselves to follow-up on the item. Either one of those happens and you just delegated up. You let the boss take the ball and run for you. I make this sound like it is a bad thing. It isn't at all and if it was, it wouldn't happen nearly as much as it does. In fact, it is just a part of how work works. However, we do this without much thought but we find ourselves not wanting to delegate up our problems to God even though it is clearly said that we should. We read; "Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you." But, still we hold onto our own problems tightly and won't give them up to God to help us out and through our rough times and challenges. Our bosses may reluctantly take the problem but we don't have a problem in handing it off to her/him. And yet God, who doesn't flinch, but instead welcomes the problems and wants to take them from us, we resist and think of last in the chain of support. Today, we all may want to rethink who we are delegating and reorder our delegation chain and start first with delegating up to the highest order first and then working down from there. By the time it gets back down to you, it may already be taken care of for you.

Reference: 1 Peter 5:7 (New Living Testament)