You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Marketplace Leaders’ category.
I believe a storm is coming. That storm will test what we believe in our hearts – about the LORD and His kingdom. We will learn just how spiritually prepared we have become. That storm will test our houses.
It is comforting to know that I am not alone in my beliefs about the storm; nor am I alone in my preparation. Just in my community, God is raising up a good number of houses that will stand in the storm. He is preparing a people that will be a light and a refuge to those who lose their houses – perhaps even those that have no houses at all. I am sure He is doing the same all over the country.
As we explored earlier, spiritual preparation is paramount. Yes, as with any storm, there are physical/practical things that God has given us wisdom to pursue. Still, we must ensure that these are done in faith, with God’s wisdom. We must be careful to avoid ungodly fear and the wisdom of man.
So, how does one prepare for a storm? I have been thinking about this a lot lately (no surprise there); and I have been discussing the subject with everyone that seems interested. I recently met with 21 other mature Christian men to discuss what it means to be spiritually prepared. You can review the notes from that meeting here.
One of the things I have learned, and humbly offer to you today, is what I believe to be the obvious first step in building a house that will withstand the storm. It comes to us from Matthew 7:24-27. Read the rest of this entry »
Recently, I was encouraged to write my testimony. Like me, you may have done this sometime in the past. If so, then I am writing to encourage you to write it again. This time, write it with the understanding that your testimony is an asset for the kingdom of God – a disciple making asset. Use it to encourage others and bring glory to our Father in heaven. If you have not written your testimony, then I am writing to ask you, “What are you waiting for?”
I humbly offer my own as an example.
This is a story about the making of a man. This man’s name is Rob Streetman. Rob is not a great deal unlike many men; but Rob is unique. Consequently, parts of Rob’s story – His being made – will be familiar, and parts will be strange. Hopefully, you will be encouraged by the former, and challenged by the later.
The important thing to keep in mind is that we are all being made into something… by someone. We are all “in process”. As you will see in his story, Rob is not a self-made man; and he is most grateful to God for that. He tried that approach for a season. It didn’t go well for him or anyone else. Fortunately, The Maker is patient and persistent in His love. That is the testimony of Rob’s making.
Read the rest of this entry »
Finding purpose in life is one of man’s greatest pursuits. It is a part of our DNA. Regrettably, we seek to find purpose in many of the wrong places. Don’t misunderstand; it’s not necessarily because all these places are wrong. Many are quite noble – work, family, church, service to others. God wants to give us purpose in all these areas.
The challenge is discerning from where, or whom, our purposes in life originate; for that thing or person will then govern the motivations and measures for our success. If our purposes center on our work, then we will become performance driven and prideful. If they begin with our relationships, we will become controlling and self-indulgent. Even service toward others – if it is the source of our purpose – will result in people-pleasing codependence.
For our purposes to be right and virtuous, they must originate in the One that has ordained and orchestrated them. This is a worthy saying: Your purpose is not to be found in a place or activity, but in a Person. Only God is the source of the purposes that are good, praiseworthy and worthwhile. Therefore, it is critical that we discover God’s purposes for each season of our lives. In this lesson, we will explore the relationship between God’s eternal purposes and the formation of Workplace Ministry.
This is the second of six lessons designed to encourage, edify and equip a Leadership Team in the formation of a ministry to the Workplace. Please study Lesson One – The Workplace Mission before continuing here. Read the rest of this entry »
I have been thinking about Change Theory quite a bit lately. Surprisingly, it has a lot to do with our spiritual state – our relationship with the LORD. I learned Change Theory as an Enterprise Architect. Since beginning this ministry, God has used it to help me understand and communicate the spiritual concepts of transformation and disciple making. I believe He would have me share a part of that theory with you.
As a management philosophy, Change Theory seeks to explain how systems, individuals and groups are motivated and managed from one state to another. In my vocation, that included the implementation of new technology, new technology development processes and new business processes (all in the banking industry). In a more general sense, Change Theory applies to every part of our lives: Adding quality controls in manufacturing, moving to a new town, changing church fellowships, becoming a married person, etc.
It shouldn’t surprise you that Change Theory also applies to our spiritual lives. Read 2Corinthians 3:18 and you will understand what I mean. The normal Christian life is a life filled with change; at least it should be. Moving from one state of “the glory of the Lord” to the next is God’s way for our maturing in Jesus Christ. Read the rest of this entry »
In Starting a Ministry to Marketplace Leaders, I promised to provide the curriculum for discipling the Workplace Ministry Leadership Team. What follows will make more sense if you read that article first.
Now that the lesson outlines have been completed, I can offer you the Curriculum Overview. The lessons will soon follow. NOTE: While the following is written with the local church setting in mind, this curriculum is also impactful for ministry leadership development in the workplace and community.
Introduction
God is moving in the Workplace. There are hundreds of Workplace Ministries moving with Him. Regrettably, the vast majority of these are operating outside the local church (e.g., peer-to-peer groups, business chaplains). A few are attempting to minister in the local church setting, but success has been elusive.
It is our conviction that, while the reasons for our lack of success are many, the solution is quite simple. To successfully launch a Workplace Ministry in the local church setting, the local church must establish and maintain a Ministry Leadership Team with the same intentionality it would have for any other ministry. It must provide its leaders with the spiritual and practical tools necessary to be successful.
No serious local church would try to start a Children’s Ministry by purchasing a bunch of Children’s Ministry programs. They would first select and inculcate the leadership team with the church leadership’s vision and mission for Children’s Ministry. Then they would send them to ministry leadership training. The same is true for every ministry in a local church; including the Workplace Ministry.
With this critical success factor in mind (i.e., preparing the Workplace Ministry Leadership Team), we offer the following curriculum. As you will discover, this curriculum (and any follow-up coaching we provide) is based on a very simple premise: Whenever possible, establish and maintain the Ministry with God’s purposes at the forefront, in the way God prescribes, and with God’s power. Read the rest of this entry »
Most serious Christians recognize that most media is of this world (at enmity with God). That includes what we find at the theatre, on television, and on the internet. Even “clean” content can be dangerous, in a most sinister way. Here are two examples:
- The time we spend being entertained and informed by media outlets subtly takes the place of the time we should be spending with God, seeking His pleasure and revelation. I have found in my own life that “just 30 minutes” of winding down can easily turn into a couple of wasted hours. Think about it. Making such a poor investment of our time is truly self-destructive behavior. It might even be a sign that media has become an idol – providing what we should be seeking from God. If we are not very careful, Satan will use it to draw us further from the Lord – as in my second example.
- Do you think that the rise in the popularity of reality TV is a coincidence? I have come to believe that it is a sinister tactic of our worst enemy. The whole premise of reality TV – the draw of it – is that it allows us to live our lives through other people. This is, at the very least, a distraction from our living our lives through Jesus Christ (Philippians 4:13, 1Peter 2:5). Worst than this is the potential it has to engage our heart in such a way that we begin to prefer the lives of others – further separating us from the life we are called to live in our Lord.
It is important to recognize that media is developed to conform the mind to the philosophy and world view of the media provider. This is more than psychological conformation (as if that were not bad enough). Scientists have proven that the “wiring” in our brain is physically changed by what passes through it.
Most importantly, this is a spiritual matter; for we are commanded to avoid the conforming power of the world (Romans 12:2). The next time you are watching reality TV, or VLOGs on the internet, consider the damage you are doing to your mind. Recognize that you are under attack from the one who seeks to steal, kill and destroy. Fight the good fight. Resist the Devil (and his schemes) and he will flee from you.
Humbly yours and forever His,
In America, we have grown up with the philosophies of a “democratic republic”. It has been a great political experiment. Regrettably, it has created a cultural mindset that makes it difficult to live in a healthy relationship with God.
In God’s kingdom, there is no “of the people, by the people, for the people”. The King has the only and final vote. He is the one that determines and executes mercy and justice. Our rights are what He determines them to be.
For the rebellious, this is an unacceptable situation. And that is exactly what got us into this mess. The first sin was not disobedience, it was outright rebellion. Before Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they decided that they should determine what was best for themselves. They decided that they would become the captains of their ship. They mutinied, and all was lost (for a time).
Then God sent Jesus Christ to the earth. Why would He do such a thing? Why would He subject His Son to the humiliation, persecution and pain? What was His primary mission?
Most in the Western church have been taught to believe that He was sent to save mankind from hell. We call it, “The Gospel of Jesus Christ” – the good news of man’s salvation.
Man’s salvation is good news; but it is not the gospel that Jesus came to preach.
Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them; but He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.” Luke 4:42-43
Notice that Jesus was not sent to preach the gospel of man’s salvation. The salvation of man is the smaller part of God’s eternal plan; something of a necessary sidetrack. First, there is the kingdom.
Now is a good time to remind ourselves that His story is more about Him than it is about us. Believe it or not, God had a much bigger mission for His Son: The plan to take back the throne of mankind’s heart; to take back His kingdom. Read the rest of this entry »
There are particular times in every person’s life when they must determine what they believe and do something about it. If you believed your house was on fire, you would not remain seated on the couch watching the television. You would be taking action comparable to the threat you perceived in the fire. I suggest to you that 2015 is such a year.
2015 is a year that will prove what we, as Christians, believe in our hearts. I have not hidden my feelings about the probability of God’s judgment on the church in America. For those of you that are hearing this for the first time, here are a few articles that will help get you up to speed: The Harbinger’s Deeper Meaning; The Foundations – Confession and Introduction; Should We Leave Them at the Gate?; The Shemittah.
My dad asked me how serious I was about my expectations for calamity in 2015. It was a good question; causing me to ask myself, “What do I believe; and what am I prepared to do about it?” For what it is worth, I am taking steps to secure my family and fellowship. Much of it is planning at this point; which means spending more time with God to understand what He would have me do. I have heard enough to get started. We will be taking intentional steps before the year is out.
I share this with you to make it clear how serious this is to me; and how serious I believe it should be to you. Some of you may wonder what I am planning to do. Give me a call and I will let you know. What you will hear first is “I am doing what God tells me.” That will be followed by, “What is He telling you?” This is important; for God speaks in community. Read the rest of this entry »
Let’s say you are a draftsman, and an aspiring architect. Let’s say an established and highly respected architect asks you to join his team; that he has seen your work and would like to train you to take over his firm. Without hesitation, you drop what you are doing and follow him; for this is your heart’s desire.
Time goes by. You spend three and one-half years with him, being made into the architect that he desire you to be. Then the day arrives for his retirement. With the authority vested in him as the owner of said firm, he commissions you to carry on his good work; work that he has promised will be greater than anything you have seen to date. What do you do next?
Do you go back to being a draftsman? Do you limit yourself to drawing preliminary or conceptual plans? Do you start creating paintings of buildings?
Do you do anything but the work he has trained, and commissioned, you to do?
Do you settle for less because it’s easier being something less than an architect?
To some, these questions will seem silly; even a waste of time. I wish they were. I wish they were not relevant to our current situation. I wish the Western church had not settled for less. I wish we knew what it meant to be fishers of men; and were about doing the business to which we had been commissioned.
Regrettably, we (leaders of the Western church) have altered the definitions to make being a disciple easier on everyone.
Read the rest of this entry »
God is interested in every aspect of our lives. Consequently, planning God’s way includes the spiritual, personal/family and vocation portions of our lives. This is sometimes called whole life planning, or balanced life planning.
Furthermore, for Kingdom people, planning God’s way must be done in the context of His ultimate purposes. These are the restoration of His reign, habitation and intimacy with His children. This is all review to make the following point.
As we look back on the accomplishments and disappointments of 2014, it is important to review what has happened in the same holistic way that we planned. It would be easy to focus on one area or another. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say.
For many of us, failure and disappointment tend to get an inordinate amount of our attention. If we are not intentional, we may miss what God has done and the opportunity to praise Him for it. We may become trapped in regret and sorrow, failing to see how God has positioned us for the future.
God works all things to the good of those that love Him, to those that are called to His purpose. The activities of our past, and God’s involvement in them, help us discern the path He desires for the coming season. Even when He is doing an entirely new thing, our perspective of the past can either blind us to the possibilities of the future, or encourage, edify and equip us for the adventure of a new year.
Marketplace Ministry Tip: I hope and pray that you consider all that God has allowed in your life in 2014 – the good and the bad; and that you will consider it in the context of His eternal purposes for your whole life, and for those in your spheres of influence. Be intentional to involve God and others in your review. He speaks in community.
Humbly yours and forever His,
inLight Adventure 