1 telling, liberating, and empowering question

Most leaders have very little difficulty filling their calendars; many have people (invited and not) that help them squeeze the most out of every day. Sometimes we get so active in so much productive work, we lose consciousness of our purpose.

Rushing down the difficult path – even in a daze – is better than wandering off after the world. God has prepared good works for us to walk in. None of us want to miss an opportunity to please the Lord and be an instrument of the Father’s glorify.

However, there are times in most leaders’ lives when it all gets rather distracting, binding, and exhausting. We feel like we are losing focus, our calendar is managing us, and the good work has become a burden. Our attitude and productivity begin to suffer… almost as much as the people around us.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the work we forget to ask the most basic question:

Why am I here?

This is the question we should ask ourselves:

• Every morning;
• Before every meeting, activity, or encounter with another person; and,
• Several times during the day.

This is critically important: The key to “why am I here?” is knowing who or what we have gone to for the answer. Many of us have been trained to solve such problems with our reasoning – reasoning born out of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil; reasoning that is often under the control of our carnal mind. Ask your carnal mind and you will get a carnal answer.

Remember, take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (2Corinthians 10:5).

Now, if the carnal mind manages to sneak in some response (it is sneakier than we imagine), we can use that response to tell us something about our attitude. For example, if our carnal mind says we are here because we have to be, that’s a problem. First of all, this response is simply not true; it is a very base deception. We all have free choice.

Year-End Encouragements

Our heart’s desire is that you have yours in the coming year. I am sure you feel the same about those in your spheres of influence and responsibility. And so, I offer you three year-end encouragements. Please pass them on.

Delight yourself also in the LORD,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

First, the LORD has promised to give you the desires of your heart. Consider that for a moment. Every desire God has placed in your heart, for every good work He created you to walk in, has been promised to you by the Creator God. Nothing is impossible, if it is in His will… and you meet the condition.

The only thing that stands between you and those desires is your unwillingness to be soft in Him. That is the meaning of “delight” in this verse. Encouragement #1: Be soft like clay in the Potter’s hands.

Second, God has a way for everything – including the way we manage our time. I recently wrote an article that speaks to this subject. Encouragement #2: Make whatever sacrifice is necessary to spend time with the Father that very much enjoys speaking with His children.

Third, humility is indispensable for the Christian… and likely something different than our minds have been led to think. A. W. Tozer, in his book God Tells the Man Who Cares, puts it this way:

I have met two class of Christians: the proud who imagine they are humble and the humble who are afraid they are proud. There should be another class: the self-forgetful who leave the whole thing in the hands of Christ and refuse to waste any time trying to make themselves good. They will reach the goal far ahead of the rest.

God is working in us to will and do to His good pleasure, which is to give us His kingdom (Philippians 2:13; Luke 12:32). He works best in and through those that have committed their entire way to Him (Psalm 37:5). Encouragement #3: Pray for me and others you love in this regard.

God bless you with the desires of your heart.

Humbly yours and forever His,

Rob

P.S. Please continue to pray for An Enemy Lies Within. We are nearing completion, but there is still much to do and funds yet to raise.

Ensuring Success in Ministry and Business

For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:16

Sometimes the smallest words carry incredible meaning. Take the word “all” for example. All things were created through Him and for Him. Not some things, or even most things. ALL THINGS!!

All things include the place where we spend most of our waking hours – the workplace. Whether you are a pastor, business owner, executive, or professional, God has very carefully created the environment where you have authority and influence. This is most encouraging; so don’t forget it.

With that encouragement, let’s talk about why He created your workplace. Ultimately, it is “for Him”. What does that mean? It means that for Him to be active in your work, He must be the Boss. Be careful: Boss does not mean partner. There is only one Boss.

If you have settled that transaction with God – surrendering your ownership over to Him – then you are in a most advantageous position; for your success as the steward of His resources has now become a matter of personal interest to Him.

Now, imagine your boss offered to meet with you every morning. What would you do? If you were smart, you would block out time on your calendar; and you would not allow anyone, or anything, to interrupt that appointment.

God’s thoughts and ways are above our own. Doesn’t it make good ministry/business sense to talk to Him daily? How about before every major decision?

Our calendar says a lot about what is important to us. That is true for all workplace leaders – pastors included. Meeting with God, our new Boss, has got to be the most important meeting we have every day.

Consider this: First, put the meeting on your calendar (recurring, daily). Second, as the leader of leaders in your fellowship, determine how you can communicate and demonstrate this foundational principle of ministry/business success.

Humbly yours and forever His,