Monthly Archives: April 2012

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What Kind Of Man Do You Want To Be?

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Jim ElliotOne of my favorite role models in the world is Jim Elliot. I am not sure I know of a better example of a sold-out disciple of Jesus Christ than Jim. You cannot read his biography without being rocked by his total submission to his faith. Jim’s example is one I aspire to emulate, though I fall dreadfully short so far.

Jim Elliot – His Story

From a very young age, Jim Elliot was determined to give his all to God and trust Him for the rest. His life, and death, are told in various books and movies. Because of the depth of his dedication to Jesus, there is no way I can adequately relay his story to you here. Instead, I will give you the basic facts and let you read the rest on your own if you choose.

From his high school days, Jim Elliot wanted to spread the gospel. In college, his dream began to take shape as his every thought and action was directed toward this objective. Finally, at the age of 24, he realized his dream as he arrived in Ecuador as a missionary.

A short four years later, in January 1956, Jim Elliot and four fellow missionaries were slaughtered by the very Auca Indians they were trying to reach for Christ. Later, their wives continued their husbands’ efforts and successfully brought the gospel to these same Indians. Jim’s death received national attention and it was certainly dramatic. However, it was his life that gets my attention.

Jim Elliot – His Writing

One of the reasons his biography is so riveting is that he was a prolific journal writer. So many of his thoughts and actions are recorded there and his wife quoted from them quite often in his biography (she was the author). It is in reading these excerpts from his journals that I realize how far I am from being the disciple of Jesus that I want to be. I find myself inspired to be more of a sold-out man of God.

One of my favorite quotes from his journals is this one:

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.”

Please stop and read that again, slowly. I don’t care how many times I read that quote, I am rocked. When I talk about making an eternal impact on our employees, customers, and community, this is what I mean.

The Man I Want To Be

I do not simply want to be someone that gave a helping hand, though that is good. I do not only want to be the one that listened when someone needed an ear, though that is certainly needed. I do not want to be satisfied with being a model citizen that is respected and admired in the community, though there is nothing wrong with that.

No. I want to be a “crisis man” that causes people to truly desire to meet the God I know. I want everyone I meet to walk away wanting the same fire I have in my belly. I want them to walk away unsettled if necessary, wondering what it is that I see that they cannot.

I do not want to be neutral and liked by all. I want to be bold and on fire – clearly in love with Jesus and trying to walk as He did. I do not want to be everyone’s favorite except for those who met Him because of meeting me.

A Long Way To Go

I know I am not there – not even close. I know I have a LONG way to go. But at the same time, I am determined to make that my final destination. I am committed to doing whatever I have to do between now and then to ensure that I finish the race and get the crown (2 Timothy 4:6-8). My heart hurts to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:14-30)

To whatever extent God allows me to realize this dream through the business I am stewarding for Him, I will be thankful for it. If He calls me elsewhere, I will go. But until that day comes, my business is His business and I will commit it to be used to bring others to know Him as I do.

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Anger Is Inevitable – Is It Sin?

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Just over a week ago, I posted Don’t Do These 7 Things When You Are Angry. In a comment/question, Kari Scare asked what we ARE supposed to do when we are angry. Because she is a successful writer and blogger at Struggle To Victory, I asked her to guest post for me on the answer to her own question! The following is her guest post on anger management. Please make sure to let her know how much you enjoyed the post by commenting at the bottom!

anger

Anger is Inevitable, But Not Sin

Anger is inevitable. This is especially true the more we interact with others, such as daily at work or with our families at home. Even Jesus got angry (Matthew 21:12-13), and the Old Testament provides many references to God’s anger.

Anger is not a sin; the key is to avoid sinning when angry. Having a plan for when anger hits not only provides a way to avoid sin, but it also allows for self-control to increase as we choose to not “give full vent” to our anger (Proverbs 29:11). The Bible also indicates that we must also control or limit (Ecclesiastes 7:9 and Proverbs 14:17) and even get rid of our anger (Colossians 3:8, Ephesians 4:31-32).

I remember a time in my life when my temper easily flared, and I was known for being somewhat volatile. If God hadn’t taught me how to control and even how to eliminate anger, I would have continued believing this was simply “the way that I am” with no hope for change. Yet, He did work in my life in this way.

5 Steps To Control & Prevent Anger

The following 5 suggestions for how to control and prevent anger stem directly from that struggle:

1. Keep from getting angry in the first place.

    Sort of a preventative maintenance approach, avoiding getting angry seems difficult when the response comes so naturally. Yet, this can be achieved by staying grounded in the Word and by keeping short accounts with other and with God.

    In other words, deal with issues while they are still small. The bigger a conflict becomes, the more overwhelming it feels, and the more likely anger will rise up.

2. Deal with root cause issues.

    Usually, anger stems from a deep-seeded issue that an individual has failed to deal with and overcome. Anger also often results from feeling a lack of control over circumstances. Coming to terms with and understanding those issues can help curb and even eliminate angry outbursts.

3. Realize you don’t know the whole story.

    When another person feeds your anger by their attitudes, actions or words, try to remember that when others treat you wrong, it’s usually more (if not totally) about them and not about you.

    You may never know the root cause of their behavior, but you can avoid letting it negatively impact yours. Chances are you don’t know the whole story, so err on the side of grace when dealing with others.

4. Be aware not only of words spoken but the tone used.

    Proverbs 15:1 says, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” A gentle answer often includes saying less, but always includes a tone that calms and soothes rather than agitates and fuels the fire.

    Personally, I find that gentle answers come more easily the more I listen. So, the less I speak and the more I seek to understand, the more gentle my words become.

5. Get and use wisdom.

    The Bible instructs says “discretion” makes a man “slow to anger” and better able to overlook hurts from others (Proverbs 19:11). Discretion means “the power or right to decide or act according to one’s own judgment.” Acting based on sound judgment means thinking before acting or speaking, and the result is that anger automatically subsides.

    Having wisdom means listening more and truly hearing what others say. It means avoiding those who struggle controlling their anger or who seem to provoke you easily. Wisdom means knowing when to walk away, to stay well-rested, and to avoid those blood-sugar highs and lows that make emotions difficult to manage. Pursue wisdom, and anger will begin to subside.

Don’t Just Eliminate Bad Habits..?

Whenever we eliminate bad habits, only getting rid of the negative creates a weak defense. When the opportunity presents itself to employ that habit, not having an alternative can spell certain disaster. God has a way of testing us in areas in which we are trying to mature and grow, which is helpful since that’s really the only way we’ll grow.

To properly prepare for this future challenge, the negative must be replaced with positive. In other words, simply getting rid of my anger and bad temper was not enough. I needed to replace it with another “go to” response. But what response?

The Bible’s Answer!

We find the answer in Colossians 3:8 & 12, which tell us to “put aside anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language” and to replace them with “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” As the fruit of the Spirit increase in our lives, their counterparts will naturally decrease. Avoid having an empty house that will be “worse than the first” if left untended (Luke 11:24-26).

Today, I can happily say that anger no longer controls me. While I do get angry once in a while, the above lessons serve to prevent and often eliminate anger, and suggestions such as those found in Don’t Do These 7 Things When You Are Angry help keep me from sinning when I am angry. No, my score is still not 100% in controlling my anger, but it sure improves as I deliberately and intentionally employ the instruction the Bible gives for managing anger.

What do you do to manage your anger?

Have you replaced any bad anger habits with good ones?

If you are still struggling with anger, what are you going to change?

Please leave comments to let Kari know how good this post was! You can read more from Kari at her blog – Struggle to Victory.

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Ministry Action: Resource Library for Employees

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Do You Have A Resource Library…?

As a Christian business owner or leader, you are most likely a life-long learner. Whether you read books, blogs, and magazines or listen to podcasts or other audio materials, you most likely consume teaching resources on a regular basis. You may even have your own resource library. I bet you consider the expense of learning to be necessary – just a part of being a leader.

resource library

…For Employees?

My question is this – do you give your employees the same opportunity? Have you even thought about this? Obviously you see the benefit of constant reading and learning for your own growth. Don’t you think the same is true for your employees or team members?

ministry actionWhat I am suggesting here is not a program that forces them to read. I am not talking about forcing them to do anything.

First, it may be that no one else has ever before emphasized to them the importance of reading. Their lack of reading could also come from a lack of the financial resources. Regardless, for those that see the benefits of continuous learning, you can certainly offer your support.

Recently, I posted about easy ways to do Christian ministry in the course of doing business. Now I am about to add another one – a resource library for your employees. There is nothing complicated about doing this at all. In fact, it may be easier than you think.

How To Set Up A Resource Library

Here are some of the steps we went through to set up our resource library:

    1. Decide where you will locate it.

      It needs to give them easy access while also being monitored so it does not turn into a hide-out or junk collection point.

    2. Decide who will approve the material and the guidelines they will use.

      Depending on your purpose, you need to make sure there are guidelines for what you will and will not include. Our guideline is simple – it must not conflict with our mission statement.

    3. Decide how it will be funded.

      We fund ours through the business, but I am sure you could come up with any number of ways to raise the money to make this happen.

    4. Solicit book donations.

      Allow your employees to bring some of their favorite books and materials and donate them or loan them to the resource library. They need to understand the risk of loss, but most are fine with this.

    5. Begin with basic materials.

      I would suggest you start with your own books – those fitting the overall purpose – and then adding those resources you think will meet the basic needs of your people.

    6. Accept requests from employees.

      In the event an employee sees a book they would like to read, have them submit a request for it. If it fits your criteria, buy the book and add it to the resource library.

    7. Add your own twists.

      a. We stock several translations of the Bible. In the event an employee wants a Bible, we will buy it for them. In this case, they get to sample the various translations and choose one they like. This is one book they do not have to return to the resource library. It is theirs to keep.
      b. We also stock multiple copies of several more popular books. We encourage the employees to share these copies with anyone they meet that is interested. This is especially true with the Christian books.

As a reference only (not necessarily a guide), the following is an estimate of the mix we currently have in our resource library.

resource library resource library

Do your employees have access to a resource library?

How hard would it be to establish one for them?

What benefits do you think you would see?

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Crisis – An Advisory Board In Action

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advisory boardAs Christian business owners and leaders, we are virtually guaranteed to face a crisis in the course of doing business. In fact, the odds are we will face more than one.

Are You Prepared?

Depending on your experience, you may or not be prepared for it when it hits. If it is big enough, even your years of experience may not help. This is where the combined godly wisdom of a good advisory board is critical.

Advisory Board in Action

In a recent C12 advisory board meeting, one of the members shared the crisis he is currently facing in his business. His crisis was actually a conglomeration of several difficult issues involving family, business, and faith. To protect the innocent, I will not go into details!

The Crisis Defined

I will tell you that in all my years of business, I have not faced anything like this business owner is facing. It quickly became clear in the group that the same was true for the rest of the members. This situation was a doozy and had more hair on it than Bigfoot! Quite simply, there was no clear and easy solution.

It took the member 30-45 minutes to finally get all of the pertinent facts onto the table because he was so distraught over the situation. He bounced from issue to issue, trying to describe all the details. We were asking clarifying questions the whole time because he was so scattered in his thoughts and words. It was a painful effort just getting a clear picture of the whole situation.

Action Plan Established

From there, it was amazing to watch the minds of eight godly, Christian business owners jump into action. In a flurry of more questions, debate, and brainstorming, our advisory board group came up with a solid action plan for the member to execute.

Here are some of the advisory board contributions:

    1. Detailed the timeline for his action plan.

    2. Debated the best approach to each step of the plan.

    3. Outlined possible break downs in the plan and how to respond to them.

    4. Discussed the potential pitfalls to shortcutting various steps in the plan.

    5. Gave advice relating to legal issues he will need to further investigate.

    6. Tested our recommendations against Scripture throughout the process.

    7. Questioned him on various decisions he had made up to this point.

    8. Gave him contact info for key people that could meet various needs.

    9. Prayed over him and the whole situation – asking for wisdom, peace, strength, mercy, forgiveness, peace, and reconciliation for all parties involved.

Now Fully Prepared

At the end of the meeting, it was clear that the member was in better spirits and fully equipped to face the crisis head on. While, the tough time was still in front of him, he knew he was on the right path and had a solid game plan. He also knew that we would continue to pray for him through the process. That does a lot for one’s confidence.

Advisory Board Structure

I encourage you to contact C12 if you are interested in visiting a group meeting to get a feel for how it works. Of course, the C12 Advisory Board structure is not the only way to accomplish this process. In my conversation with Mark Cress a couple of weeks ago, he explained how his advisory board consisted of a unique blend of personalities and experience. This board is the actual Board of Directors for Corporate Chaplains of America (CCA).

Though there are some significant differences in the responsibilities of his board when compared to the C12 advisory board, the benefits discussed in this post are the same. An example of this is how the CCA board has played a critical role in creating Mark’s succession plan over the next several years. Their combined wisdom will ensure a smooth transition of leadership over CCA, as well as position the organization for significant growth in the future.

You Need An Advisory Board

The bottom line is that regardless of the size of your business, you need an advisory board. There are too many potential problems you could face that will require more wisdom and experience than you have. Whether you seek a paid advisory board or one that volunteers their time, you cannot afford to go it alone.

Consider these verses from Proverbs as your encouragement to get started:

Without guidance, people fall, but with many counselors there is deliverance.
-Proverbs 11:14

Plans fail when there is no counsel, but with many advisors they succeed.
-Proverbs 15:22

Finalize plans with counsel, and wage war with sound guidance.
-Proverbs 20:18

…wage war with sound guidance – victory comes with many counselors.
-Proverbs 24:6

Do you have similar access to the godly wisdom an advisory board offers?

What are some other benefits you have seen?

If not, when are you going to get started?

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Christian Business: 7 Easy Ways To Integrate Faith And Work

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Christian businessI am a strong believer in the great need for Christian business owners and leaders to begin integrating their Christian faith and their businesses. I do not think enough people are thinking this way, so I write this blog in an effort to get the message out.

As part of this effort, I often include practical ways to do ministry in the normal course of doing business. The following is a list of 7 easy ways to get started. Each item on this list is something we are already doing and is further described in separate post. The link to each post is included in each brief description. At the end of this list, I will tell you how to find another 101 ideas!

7 Easy Ways To Integrate Faith and Work

1. Christian mission statement

    This is so crucial that it really should be the first thing you do. A mission statement that acknowledges your business as a Christian business not only tells others what you are about, but also serves to keep you on track for years to come. Read more here – Mission Statement – Step 1 in a Strategic Ministry Plan.

2. Impact Fund

    Your employees will get into the giving spirit if you lead the way. Creating a fund that allows them to support their co-workers in times of need is a huge opportunity to lead. They will surprise you with their response! Read more here – How Could a Business Help with Employee Hardship?.

3. Gospels in the lounge

    You do not have to hit people over the head with the Gospel to spread it as a Christian business. Simply placing these simple Gospel messages in your customer areas is a great way to sow seeds. Let God do the rest. Read more here – Ministry Action: Gospels in the Lounge.

4. Employee Newsletter

    Communication is critical for any business. This is especially true for a Christian business. You can easily improve your company-wide communication through the use of a company newsletter. Using even the simplest of newsletters to convey a Biblical message or promote Christian values can bear fruit. Read more here – Advice from Coach Wooden.

5. Message at company gatherings

    Company gatherings, such as Christmas parties, can be an excellent opportunity for the Christian business owner or leader to reinforce the mission of the company. An easy way to do this is to carve out 10-15 minutes or so and tell a story or interesting illustration that conveys the Gospel message. While the first time may be uncomfortable, God will honor your efforts. Read more here – Christ and the Company Christmas Party.

6. Message to customers

    Different companies will have varying opportunities to share the Gospel with customers. For us, including a copy of the New Testament, with a cover that reads “Owner’s Manual For Life”, in the glove box of every car we sell seemed like an easy way to accomplish this. Read more here – Taking Action: Owner’s Manual for Life.

7. Chaplain program

Don’t Delay!

You should have no excuses to delay. Pick one or two ideas to get started, grab a couple of your key people to help, and lay out your plan. I promise you will not regret taking action!

Do you see any ideas you can implement immediately?

What can you add to the list?

What results have you seen from your efforts?

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Have You Thought About Walking Away?

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Walking AwayI made a new friend recently. During our conversation, he told me about his decision to walk away from a very successful business because he felt God calling him to something different. He did not know where God was calling him, but he knew he had to follow. I think you can draw inspiration from his story – whether you have ever considered walking away or not.

Mark Cress’ Story

In 1993, Mark Cress was part owner of an Inc. 500 company. At 37 years old, he was extremely successful and it appeared he had nothing but blue skies ahead. But then he started to realize that God was calling him to something else. Once he and his wife made the decision to follow God’s call, things changed rapidly. Within months, he was walking away. He had sold his business to the employees, sold his house on the lake, and enrolled in seminary. In less than a total of three years, he had started the organization that is now Corporate Chaplains of America.

Corporate Chaplains of America (CCA) now ministers to more than 800 different business locations. Those locations represent thousands of employees served on a weekly basis. Can you imagine the impact God is having through this organization?

My Story

As I listened to Mark tell his story, I saw a few clear parallels to my own story. At the same time, God sent us down different paths.

All of my life, I had been working toward taking over my family’s business, an automobile dealership group in Georgia. In 2001, I was General Manager of two of our seven locations. I planned to expand and take the company to new heights!  I had visions of grandeur and everything looked like it was headed that way.  But when I began spending time in God’s Word, I realized that everything I wanted and was working for was only temporal.  None of it would really matter in 1,000 years.

My Revelation

I realized I was only giving God the Christian requisite one day per week (actually, just Sunday morning) and an occasional Wednesday evening.  The rest of the time was spent trying to juggle my job in the car business and my family at home.  Even when I added the daily quiet times, God was still not the central focus of my life.  This was not the way He wanted it!

Searching For Answers

I began searching for answers.  If God wanted all of me, what would that look like?  I had heard of people getting “called” into full-time ministry, but I did not feel that call.  I knew of others, like Mark Cress, that were “called” into the mission field, but I did not feel that either.  What exactly was God asking me to do? What was I created to do?

Was I Walking Away?

To tell the truth, I did not have a clue!  I only knew I was not comfortable with the status quo and had to change it. I sat down with my father and explained that I was walking away from the business.  Because I was already in a significant leadership position within the company, I told him I did not want to do it effective immediately.  I wanted him to have time to replace me and make any other arrangements that may be necessary.  This would likely involve downsizing the business and could take a couple of years.

I did not feel God calling me to leave right away, only to let go and be prepared to walk away.  I had no idea where I was going or when.  I only knew I wanted to be spending more of my time working for God – whatever that entailed.

Called To Stay In The Business!

Fast forward eleven years, and I am still in the business! It was almost two years after that conversation with my father that God showed me where He wanted me. Though I thought I was walking away, He showed me that He had placed me in the position I currently held for a purpose and a season. He wanted me to do all I had envisioned in ministry, but He wanted me to do it through the business. As a good friend recently told me, God wanted me in the car ministry!

So that is exactly what I am attempting to do. I have said it many times – I do not have it figured out. Yet I keep showing up. I am determined to allow God to have the eternal impact He desires, through this business. I am only the steward of this business for now. Until He changes my direction, that is the role I will play.

Eternal Impact Either Way

See, Mark Cress followed God’s plan and he is enjoying the fruit of that decision. There is incredible eternal impact coming from his decision to step out of his business and start CCA as a non-profit organization. For me, walking away is not in the cards (at least for now!). God has called me to stay in business and I expect there will be eternal impact from that decision as well.

My point is this…regardless of where God calls you, you can have an eternal impact. There is no reason to think that you have to be a paid staff member of a church to do ministry. Seek God’s guidance, but know that He just may want you doing ministry right where you are!

What would you do?

Do you think this move was too drastic?

Have you thought about walking away?

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Do You Make These 9 Christian Leadership Mistakes?

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Over the past seven months, I have been telling you about the various actions you should take in order to run your business based on your Christian faith. I have discussed behaviors and attitudes you need to exemplify if you want to excel in Christian leadership. I have even given you tips on Christian ministry projects you should consider.

Christian leadership

Christian Leadership Contradictions

Too often, I hear about (or even witness) professing believers in Christian leadership positions who are behaving in a way that contradicts their words. Worse, some of these leaders are getting caught in compromising situations or scandals that end with them being removed from their Christian leadership positions.

The fallout from these situations is disastrous. Not only is their career often ruined, but the damage done to those following them is incalculable. The wounds can last for years. I have seen it firsthand.

Something Worse

As bad as these events can be, I think there could be something worse. Consider the 30-40 year career of someone in business. Assume they profess to be a Christian and hold a significant leadership role or even own the business. Potentially, their eternal impact could be tremendous – in a positive or negative way.

Now picture that nothing happens like I described above. They do not get caught in a situation that ruins their career. There is no “Evening News” expose` that causes their reputation to come crashing down. Sounds good, doesn’t it?

Something Missing

Unfortunately, I think you could be missing something. Instead of a sudden explosion causing the damage, there is something going on that could cause just as much damage, if not more, over the long haul. Rather than doing anything extreme, they are simply not walking their talk.

From a distance, this person looks like a model citizen. They talk about their faith and preach to those around them about integrity and other Christian values. Their motives are even good. For these reasons, they are more likely to stay in this damaging position for a longer period of time.

But instead of living out what they are saying, they are making some crucial mistakes. Unfortunately, these mistakes, when made over time from a position of Christian leadership, can have devastating effects on those who are close enough to see the truth.

Higher Standard

See, as Christian leaders, we are held to a higher standard. More is expected of us. Right or wrong, when we make mistakes, the price is higher. When we step out and declare our faith in Jesus, we associate our name with His name. We tag His reputation with ours.

Then, when we make mistakes and live in a way that does not reflect God’s love to those around us, we run the risk of turning people away from Him. Even though we may not blow up our reputation with a single news-worthy event, we can do just as much harm. The only difference is that it is spread out over a longer period of time.

What Does Jesus Say?

I promise you, Jesus is crystal clear on what He thinks of this kind of behavior.

But whoever causes the downfall of one of these little ones who believe in Me — it would be better for him if a heavy millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea!
Matthew 18:6

Common Christian Leadership Mistakes

Rather than complain about the too-frequent public scandals, let’s do something about our own contributions to Christian leadership. Take a look at the following list of common mistakes made by leaders like us. Then let’s commit together that we are going to live the faith we claim.

    1. Pray before meetings, curse afterwards

    2. Tell crude, off-color jokes or laugh at those that do

    3. Preach about faith, panic when stressed

    4. Tell someone you will pray for them, forget about it

    5. Promote forgiveness, carry grudges

    6. Require accountability, fail to acknowledge your own mistakes

    7. Expect loyalty, treat the employees like numbers

    8. Demand integrity, cheat on your taxes

    9. Talk about family values, but encourage workaholism

Take Action

I would suggest reading through this list a couple of times. Make sure that you ask God to search your heart and reveal to you any inconsistencies between your words and actions. Then share your findings with someone you can trust to hold you accountable to changing.

Do you agree with a higher standard for Christian leadership?

Do you make any of these mistakes?

Which mistake do you need to work on first?

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What Must Tiger Woods Do To Win The Masters?

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Last week, Tiger Woods pulled off his first win in more than 30 months. After a series of life storms have blown through his life over the past couple of years, it was good to see Tiger get his groove back. While I am not a golf expert, I know there is one thing Tiger accomplished in this past tournament that he must do again if he wants to win the Masters in Augusta next week.

Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods Fan?

Whether you are a Tiger fan or not, you have to admit it is more fun to watch a golf tournament when he is playing than when he is not. He just has a quality that raises the playing level of all those around him. There is more pressure, more suspense, and more excitement when he is in the hunt.

So what is it that Tiger Woods did that allowed him to win last week? What must he do to win the Masters?

Show up.

Now hold on a minute…don’t look at me like that! I know this seems obvious, but I really do have a point. Not only that, this point applies to every one of us.

You Must Show Up To Win

Quite simply, there is no way to win at golf if you do not show up. You must first show up for practice. Then you must show up for the tournament. You must show up for every tee time, regardless of how you played the day before. You must show up to every tee box, even if the last three drives have gone in the water. You must show up for every shot even if your back or knee has started to ache.

I think you get the point…while it is a simple idea, it is not easy.

We Must Show Up

The same is true for us. As Christian business leaders, we know there are going to be things that go wrong. We know there is an enemy. We know that not everyone will support our positions. We know that some of our best efforts will result in delayed rewards.

And yet, we cannot forget that we are called to keep showing up. God knows our frustrations. He sees our disappointments. He feels our pains. Even so, He expects us to continue to show up.

We Get The Crown

See, He knows that if we will continue to show up for the race, we will eventually get the crown. Now only does he know this, He promises it to us in His Word (2 Timothy 4:1-8). He knows it is difficult, but He also promised that He will be with us through it all (Matthew 28:20).

Additional Benefits

There are other benefits to showing up that we sometimes overlook. I am not sure Tiger Woods even recognizes this. One additional benefit is in the impact it has on our followers. Folks, when you continue to show up day after day, despite the headwinds and pitfalls, your followers will notice. Not only do they notice, they draw strength from it and seek to emulate it.

This does not only affect your followers. Those you serve, especially the least of these, feel a sense of acceptance when you continue to show up. This acceptance may have escaped them their entire lives.

Jim Reese talked at Catalyst about how many of those served by Atlanta Mission have experienced a life of people failing to show up. It could have been parents that disappeared or well-meaning volunteers that failed to show back up after the first couple of visits.

Keep Showing Up

Regardless of how or why, Reese told leaders that we too often underestimate the impact we can have by simply continuing to show up. Like Reese, I want to encourage you to keep showing up.

Times will get tough and situations will not go your way. Do not give up. Remember that if you want to win like Tiger Woods, you must continue to show up!

Have you been consistent in showing up?

Have you seen benefits to showing up?

Where do you need encouragement to show up?