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Sin In The Camp – 6 Steps To Deal With It

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You are a Christian business owner or leader and you are suddenly confronted with an ugly truth about your business. It appears there is “sin in the camp” and you are not sure how to deal with it. You want to do the right thing, but that is not always easy to determine. How do you deal with it?

sin in the camp

Sin In The Camp

In the book of Joshua, chapters 6-7, we read about Joshua leading the Israelites into the Promised Land. First, there is the miraculous defeat of the mighty city of Jericho. Spirits among the Israelites are high until they are subsequently defeated by a much weaker city of Ai. What happened? Why the reversal of fortune?

It turns out someone among the Israelites had broken the covenant God had made with them during the attack on Jericho. As a result, God left them to their own against Ai and they were sorely defeated. Now, the morale of the people has fallen and they are scared to death.

Learning From Joshua

Joshua is the (fortunate?) one that God has given the task of replacing Moses as leader of the Israelites – a TOUGH job! How does he handle this similar situation? What can we learn from him?

I encourage you to read the whole account on your own, beginning with Joshua 6:1 and ending with Joshua 7:26. There is much more to learn from this passage, but I have broken Joshua’s actions into the following 6 steps that I believe we can apply to our current business challenges.

Step 1 – Set Clear Guidelines

There is no grey area in Joshua’s instructions to the Israelites prior to the attack on Jericho. In Joshua 6:17-19, he clearly tells them what is to be done with the city, its inhabitants, and and everything in it once the city is in their hands. The sin that followed was not due to misunderstanding!

We must do the same in our businesses. It is our responsibility as the leaders to make sure the rules and expectations are clear to everyone. New hires must receive clear instruction regarding your policies or they cannot be held accountable to them. Everyone must know our guidelines if we expect them to comply!

Step 2 – Stay Close to God

Joshua did not receive instruction from God and then run off on his own to carry it out. He remained close to God. As soon as he learned of the defeat at Ai, Joshua fell before God in submission (Joshua 7:6-10). He did not know the reason for the defeat, but he knew he had to seek God first. God answered by telling Joshua there was sin in the camp.

Our response must be similar. Don’t get caught up in the fact that Joshua had such an obvious defeat that clued him in to the trouble. Instead, recognize that Joshua had remained so close in his walk with God that his very first reaction was to seek God’s face.

Joshua did not question his general about strategy or even question his own decision to send a smaller force of 3,000 men. He went straight to God as an instinctive reaction. If we are in close communion with God, our instincts will be similar.

Step 3 – Trust God’s Provision

In Joshua 7:10-12, God tells Joshua about the sin in the camp. He makes it clear that He will no longer be with the Israelites unless the sin is removed. At this point, Joshua does not hesitate. He does not look for other options. He acts decisively when he delivers the instructions to the Israelites (vv. 13-15).

I don’t know what Joshua could have feared when making this decision, but I know how these kinds of decisions have affected me. When I have caught wind of impropriety in our business, fear has often flooded my mind. Will an investigation lead to a top performer? Will I be forced to terminate someone that is critical to our success?

Joshua may have had similar fears, but he acted anyway. He trusted that his provision was only from God. We must have the same trust in God. If the removal of sin in the camp causes the loss of a top performer, then we have to trust that God will make up the difference. He is faithful.

Stay Tuned!

In my next post, we will cover the final 3 steps for dealing with sin in the camp. I hope that you can see the business application of this passage. Again, I encourage you to read it on your own and see how it speaks to you. I think you might be surprised at what you find!

Have you experienced sin in the camp with your business?

How did you deal with it?

What would you do differently next time?

Start Here

If you are like most of my readers, you are likely a leader of some sort in the business world (even if you don’t yet fully realize it!).

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You may own your business or you might even be looking to go into the business world for the first time.

You are also a Christian. You know that God has called you to more than just a Sunday walk with Him and you WANT to answer His call.

Does This Sound Like You?

Yet there is a problem. You wonder exactly what that really means to you in your specific situation. What does answering God’s call look like on Monday morning?

Have you thought about this before?

If you listen to most pastors, you probably hear that you need to leave the workplace and enter full-time, paid Christian ministry. They don’t mean any harm in their advice. It is just the way our culture has viewed it for a long time!

For centuries, there has been a common mindset that says work and faith are separate. Some call it sacred vs. secular. Others say you will either be a minister or lay person.

This Does Not Calculate

If you think like I do, this does not calculate.

First of all, if every Christian left their job and went to work for a church, the economy would collapse and churches would close due to exploding payrolls without the funds to cover them!

Then there is the Scripture you have read. Like this example:

Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men, knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord. You serve the Lord Christ.
– Colossians 3:23-24

That word “whatever” seems to say that you can work for the Lord no matter where you are or what you are doing.

What Are You To Do?

If that is the case, then what are you to do about it?

You want to serve Him, but you just don’t see yourself working in a church. You want to believe you can live out your faith right where you are, but you just aren’t sure how to get started.

Maybe you have already started down this path, but you are stuck. You might even be progressing down this path, but you would certainly appreciate new ideas and different perspectives!

I Know How You Feel

I believe I have been where you are.

In 2003, I realized that God was the true owner of our family business. Over the next several years, I made many changes to our policies and processes in order to better reflect our Owner’s character. It was a struggle, but He saw us through.

Home005 copyThen, in 2006, I joined the C12 Group and my learning accelerated. I finally had a group of like-minded business owners that could mentor me as I became more intentional with my faith in the business.

I was also learning from other blogs, contacts, and the Holy Spirit. Our impact began to multiply and the momentum increased!

My Goals For This Blog

Five years later, I started this blog. I am not a professional writer.  This, my first blog, is my effort to share this path I have taken as well as what I have learned and continue to learn.  This blog has several purposes…

Enlighten – I am writing this to open the eyes of Christian business owners and leaders everywhere to the fact that we are called to more than just Sunday Christianity.  We are called to be disciples of His the rest of the week as well.
Educate – I am writing this to share what I have learned over the years and what I continue to learn going forward.  I want to share resources that I have found to be helpful.  I want come alongside others and learn with them as well.
Encourage – I am writing this to encourage others that have chosen a similar path to mine.  Whether through relating my successes or failures, I hope other disciples of Jesus will draw strength, encouragement, hope, and wisdom from the content here.
Enlist – My hope is that, as a result of reading this blog (and more importantly listening to God), others will decide to take the same path.  I believe this is my part in going and making disciples!

To get you started, I have included some of my most popular posts below.

My Most Popular Posts

Leadership
– 11 Killer Resources For Free Christian Leadership Material
– How to Create Employee Engagement
– Tortoise and the Hare

Business Practices
– An Example Mission, Vision, and Core Values
– Is A Good Name Important In Christian Business?
– Employee Decisions: Rigorous Or Ruthless?

Strategic Ministry
– What Is Christian Ministry?
– 7 Easy Ways To Integrate Faith And Work
– Taking Action: Owners Manual For Life

Personal Growth, Life Planning
– How To Create A Life Plan Document
– Pursue The Gifts You Have, Not The Ones You Want
– 5 Lies Too Many Christians Believe

Eternal Perspective
– Is Your Work Meaningless?
– What Will Your Funeral Look Like?
– 3 Easy Steps To Eliminating Frustration In Business

Other
– Why I Decided To Walk Away From The Family Business
– What If You Won The Lottery?
– 5 Reasons To Run Your Business According To Your Christian Faith

My Archive
You can also check my blog’s archive for a list of every post I have written or use the search function in the upper right corner of this page to find other posts that might be of interest.

My Products and Services
While the content on my blog an in my podcast is all free, I do offer a number of commercial products and services. Be sure to check out my Resources and my Work with Me sections.

Subscribe To My Blog Below
In order to make sure you don’t miss my newest blog posts, why not subscribe to my blog. It’s fast, easy, and you can unsubscribe at any time. Best of all, I have a special gift when you subscribe.

Yes, you can live out your Christian faith at work. If you have the intention, I will give you guidance based on my experience and learning. Add those two ingredients to a strong walk with God, and you are in business!

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9 Simple Hacks For Better Leadership Perspective

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Warning: when anyone tells you something is simple, don’t assume it is easy! There is a big difference! I have 9 “simple” (not easy) hacks for anyone that is committed to seeing themselves more clearly for the purpose of being a better leader. Gaining perspective in these ways is not complicated, but neither is it easy. You are warned!

perspective

Coaching Perspective

In his devotional book, The One Year Uncommon Life Daily Challenge, former professional football coach Tony Dungy describes how coaches watch a lot of game films to critique past execution and develop future strategy. In doing so, he always made sure he was watching the game film that had been recorded by two different cameras – one set at a mid point on the sidelines of the field and the other between the goalposts at the end of the field.

He described how the goalpost camera had some advantages, but would not allow him to see yardage gained or lost like the sideline camera would. The sideline camera also had advantages, but would not give perspective on the spacing of his players like the goal post camera would. With only one perspective or the other, too much information is missing. True performance assessment is impossible and good decisions cannot be made without both perspectives.

Leadership Perspective

The same is true about you and me as leaders. Quite simply, we must not trust our own perspective as our only gauge of our performance or effectiveness. There is just too much missing from our perspective to rely on it as our only source. Instead, we must seek out other perspectives if we want a clear, honest picture.

Below, I have listed nine different ways that you and I can gain perspective on how well we are (or are not) doing as leaders in our homes, businesses, and communities. None of these “hacks” are fool-proof. None give the entire picture. None can be relied upon by themselves.

Just like the multi-camera game films, we need a minimum of two or three of these views if we want any semblance of the truth! Take a look at each and determine which will work best for you.

Simple, Not Easy

Keep in mind, you may not like what you hear from some of them. In some cases, you will need to face feedback that is difficult to hear. In other cases, you may need to exclude feedback that may be contaminated with less-than-pure motives. You have to be the judge of which is which…or you could get some help with that as well!

#1 – Coach or Mentor

A coach or mentor is someone likely older than you that has more experience and wisdom than you in certain areas. You meet regularly with them on certain topics and pick their brain, learning from their wisdom.

If set up correctly, this relationship will bring to the surface some areas where you need to improve. If you are willing to be open to this person, you can get great perspective and advice from them. Finding the right person(s) for this relationship can be tough. Accepting what they say might be tougher!

#2 – Accountability partner

This person is likely closer in age (though its not necessary) and might be in a similar stage of life as you are. Meeting on a regular basis, you share victories and struggles. You hold each other accountable to commitments you have made together.

Again, openness and transparency with this person is the key. If you give them permission to call you out on anything they see, you gain the most perspective. This is the only way you max your odds of growing as a result of this relationship!

#3 – Peer Group

These groups are usually centered around a common theme. Some are based on age of children. Others are business-based. Small Bible study groups also fall into this category.

In the regular meetings, everyone shares what they are learning and how they are struggling. Through this process, members get to know each other well and are able to give each other perspective that can’t be found elsewhere.

#4 – Employee survey

Unlike the first three hacks, an employee survey is more likely something you would do once every 6-12 months, depending on the need at the time. Spend time on the questions and make sure you include some that get to the heart of the perspective you are seeking.

Sure, some of the results might not be dead-on, but you should gain perspective from the overall results and the trends over several iterations of the survey. Tip: don’t completely ignore the outlier results. Dig to determine whether or not there is something in your leadership that is helping to create the feelings represented.

To Be Continued!

Once again, I have run out of room in this post! Rather than making it one that you stop reading due to its length, I have broken it into two posts. In my next post, I will go over the remaining five hacks for better leadership perspective. I hope you are eager to see what they are!

Are you currently using some of these hacks?

Do you value the additional perspective you gain from them?

Do you lack the perspective you need? How will you change this?

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Don’t Believe These 5 Myths, Part 2

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While many people we meet might have a general understanding of the Christian faith and a familiarity with business, few fully understand what it means when we combine the two. In fact, there are many myths that rise out of this lack of understanding what we mean by Christian business.

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Common Christian Business Myths

In my last post, we looked at two of the five most common myths about Christian business. We discussed how a Christian business owner should not hire just anyone that applies for the job(s) they are offering. We also talked about the fact that we will simply have to say “No” to some requests.

Today, I want to look at the final three myths and how we should dispel them. If you have any input on these or other myths you have encountered, I would love to hear from you in the comment section at the bottom!

Myth #3 – Christian Businesses Should Never Terminate Anyone!

To some, this may sound crazy, but I have actually had it said directly to me more than once. I guess people believe that since Christians are supposed to turn the other cheek and forgive 70 X 7 times, they should never fire anyone. Unfortunately, this is poor logic.

Folks, employees are not always going to do what they are supposed to do. Sometimes they will make a poor decision and steal or cheat the business for various reasons. Sometimes they will make too many mistakes because they are preoccupied or not taking their job seriously.

Other times their behavior is due to poor fit for the job (bad hire) or lack of training. Regardless of the reasons, there comes a time when their continued employment is bad for them or the company or both. Therefore their employment needs to end. This is a must if your business is going to remain healthy, providing opportunities for those that do fit.

Myth #4 – Christian Businesses Should Give Away Products or Services!

I think the fact that people associate Christians with giving to charity, they leap to the idea that Christian businesses can and should do the same…with everything! Now before you laugh, this is no joke! I have had people tell me that I am responsible to give them (fill in the blank) because we are a Christian business.

If pressed, they may not think we should do it for everyone, but they clearly believe it should be true for them. As business owners, we know this is crazy, but we still struggle with our pricing, margins, and good will decisions. Sometimes we buy into this myth without realizing it.

The bottom line is that we have to make a healthy profit if we want to continue to be in business. We cannot “give away” our products and services as a habit. Sure, we can (and should) designate a portion of our proceeds to help out those in need around us. However, this charity should not work its way into our everyday transactions. We cannot afford it!

Myth #5 – Christian Businesses Are Complacent!

I am not sure if this is more prevalent among people outside the business or inside it. Too many Christian business owners have allowed themselves to think they should not have to work as hard or drive for excellence because they are doing their work for God. Hopefully, this sounds backwards to you, but many actually think this way!

Folks, we are to work harder and drive for greater excellence for the very reason that we answer to the Lord as the true owner of our business. We should never become complacent, thinking He will understand or that He should just be glad we are doing all of this for Him. That is very dangerous thinking!

We owe Him our everything! We are commanded to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We cannot do this and be complacent at the same time. These two ideas are polar opposites!

Seek God’s Help!

Hopefully, you recognize these 5 ideas as myths and have not fallen victim to this kind of thinking. However, if you struggle with any of them, I encourage you to seek God in prayer about them. I think you will come to realize the truth and see them for the myths they are!

Have you struggled with any of these myths?

What other myths have you encountered?

How do you combat these myths?

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Are You Getting The Right Return?

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What is the purpose of business? If you ask a dozen people this question, you will likely get some common answers. Some will say it is to make money. Others might say it is to provide products and/or services at a profit. Those most educated in business theory may come back with something like this – to create a return, or added value, for the stakeholders.

return

Stakeholders’ Return

Let’s run with this last answer for today. I think it is likely closest to the answer we understand. Stakeholders are those who have an interest or concern in an organization. In our businesses, stakeholders include employees, owners, vendors, etc. – anyone with an interest in our business.

For the sake of today’s post, I want to focus on the owners of the business. Hopefully, you have already come to the understanding that you are not actually an owner of your business (or job). You are simply a steward of that business or job for a season.

God Is Owner

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it (Psalm 24:1). Therefore, He is the rightful owner of the business. He has entrusted it to you for a time (Matthew 25:14-30). He expects you to manage it well, bringing a return for the stakeholders – all of them.

This means your employees must get a return for working there (compensation, fulfillment, education, etc.). The vendors must get a return (fair pricing, timely payment for products or services). You are to get a return for the work and effort you put in as steward (compensation, fulfillment, share of profits, etc.).

Finally, there is God. He is actually the owner, right? Therefore, He should get a return as well. What exactly should His return be? He already owns everything. He has no real need for money because it is all His!

God’s Return?

I have spent a lot of time thinking through this question and have come to a conclusion. As with anything else on this site, you have the right to disagree with me. However, before you do, I encourage you to pray through this. I think you might see I am onto something.

I have racked my brain to figure out what God wants, but does not yet have. What is his ultimate goal for us and how does that play into my operating of a business for Him?

Well, the only answer I could come up with is that He desperately wants everyone to come to Him in faith, repent, and have a relationship with Him (2 Peter 3:9). He sent His only Son for this very purpose (John 3:16). I think we all agree with this, right?

Point Them To Him

So in that light, if I can operate His business in such a way as to point other people to Him, then I am bringing Him a return that is pleasing to Him. I am bringing Him something He does not yet have, but desperately wants.

Now, there is no way for me to bring everyone to repentance that comes into contact with His business. I cannot “save” them. That is absolutely His job. My job is to point them to Him in such a way that they are drawn to Him.

However, I CAN operate the business in such a way that everyone who comes into contact with it is positively impacted and directed toward a relationship with Him. Read through that again, slowly.

Not Just “Nice”

I am not saying we are to make it our focus to verbally witness to every employee, customer, and vendor so we can lead them in the sinner’s prayer. I am not saying that we should hire everyone that comes to us needing a job just so we have the opportunity to influence them at some point.

Nor am I saying that we are to give away our product or services until we go broke, just so we can impact customers in need. None of these practices are biblical business practices. They may sound “nice”, but they will only serve to bring your stewardship of His business to a premature end.

Purpose Is Different

It is my belief that we are to run businesses that focus on integrity and excellence. These businesses should make significant profit and seek healthy growth and expansion. Our customer satisfaction should be at the top of our industry and other similar businesses should imitate us.

If this sounds like a normal business, then so be it. The difference is that the overriding purpose of our business should be to bring God glory. I believe we will be held accountable as stewards of His business. I believe we will be accountable for the “return” of lives being pointed to Him because of the way we operated the business.

If we do this well, these people will eventually spend eternity with Him. In some cases, we will get to see their transformation. In other cases, we will only find out in eternity what we did to influence them. Again, it is not our job to “close” the deal…that is God’s job. We are only to point them toward the closing table!

What return has been your focus?

Do you think your focus needs to shift?

Are you prepared to make decisions that lead to this return?

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Two Trustworthy Tools For Decision Making

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In the business world, we are faced daily with decisions. Some decisions come with huge consequences. Others are so small that they will be forgotten within the week. In the big decisions, we want to make sure we apply wisdom and make the right choices. I have two questions, given to me by a friend, that you can ask to help you with these decisions.

decision

Touch Decisions

I was recently approached by another close friend. He is wrestling with a major decision that could impact his career, family life, and even his walk as a disciple of Christ. As he described his dilemma, I was reminded of the two questions I mentioned earlier. Immediately, I shared these questions with him and left him to answer them on his own.

Regardless of the decision you need to make, these two questions can help you make the right choice. They may not immediately clarify the right choice every time. You really need to pray through these questions when you face the really complex questions. However, over time, I believe the answers will become clear.

Decision-Making Tool #1

The first question is this:

    Will this choice draw me closer to God or further away from Him?

As you think and pray through the choice you are considering, ask yourself how it will impact your relationship with God. Will this particular choice draw you closer to Him? Will another choice draw you even closer?

If we look at a couple of verses from the Bible, it is clear that we are to be drawing closer to Him. In James 4:8, we are told: “draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” In Hebrews 10:22, it says, “let us draw near to God with a sincere heart…”

I won’t tell you that you always have to pick the choice that draws you the nearest to Him. However, if given a choice between one option that draws you closer and one that takes you further away…that answer should be clear to you!

Decision-Making Tool #2

The second question is this:

    Will this choice make me more dependent on God or less so?

We are independent creatures and we desire to be self-sufficient. This is especially true for business leaders and owners. It is in our DNA and we rarely fight it. This quality is a significant part of what makes us successful in business.

Unfortunately, when it comes to spiritual “success”, last is first and first is last. What works for us in the business world can work against us in our Christian walk. Our independence is exactly what God does NOT want from us in our relationship with Him.

We see this idea of God desiring our dependence on Him in many places in the Bible. Here are a couple of examples:

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.
2 Corinthians 12:9

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.Are you not much more valuable than they?
Matthew 6:25-26

As we are making decisions in life, we need to be mindful of whether we are seeking independence from God or dependence on Him. As I said before, this answer may not be perfectly obvious at first glance. If we will pray and sincerely seek His heart, God will show us the truth.

Give These A Try!

The next time you have a decision that carries significant consequences, try these two questions. Pray through them and ask for a clear mind and heart as to the answers. I believe the right choice will become evident to you!

What decision are you facing now that would benefit from these questions?

Can you recall a decision that would have been better made with these tools?

What other questions do you use in your decision making process?

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One Choice You Need To Make Every Day

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I don’t need to tell you that you will have to make choices every day that determine your effectiveness and success in whatever your endeavor. You already know this. What you might find interesting is how Paul framed a choice that he faced on a regular basis.

choice

Paul’s Choice

If you will read the first chapter of Philippians, you will see that Paul is on a mission to take the gospel to the Gentiles. He is determined in this mission, even to the point of finding himself in jail over it. Yet he continues to carry out his mission, despite the interruption!

In the letter he is writing to the church at Philippi, Paul mentions a choice in his mind that he continues to wrestle over. Take a look at how he frames this choice:

For me, living is Christ and dying is gain. Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should choose. I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ – which is far better — but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you.
Philippians 1:21-24

Can You Identify?

When you first read this (and you are completely honest with yourself), you may not really identify with Paul’s struggle. I will say for myself that I understand Paul’s struggle. On occasion, I even feel the same way…to a degree. I wish I could say that I have the exact same struggle on a daily basis…I don’t.

Maybe one day, I will mature to the point where that is my actually struggle. For now, I will keep striving toward that day!

Two Pairs Of Words

Fortunately, I do not want to focus on Paul’s struggle in this post. Instead, I want to isolate two pairs of words that I truly believe we all wrestle with on a daily basis. Paul’s words should echo in your mind after reading this post or I have not done a very good job of communicating.

Go back to the above passage and notice how he describes his two choices with a pair of words for each…”far better” and “more necessary”. Stop and think about how powerful and insightful these words are when compared to each other.

Frequent Choice?

How many times a day do you face a decision between “far better” and “more necessary”? If you are anything like me, you face this decision a number of times before you even leave the house to go to work.

Before lunch, you have likely faced this same decision multiple times. The same is true after lunch. Once you are home again for the night, this decision shows up a few more times – at least.

Tough Choice!

Here’s the deal. You and I are constantly faced with the decision between doing what, at that moment, is far better or more necessary. This is the root question that determines whether you will be a responsible or irresponsible leader – at home, in business, with relationships, etc.

At home, the decision might be whether to kick back and relax after a hard day (far better) or perform acts of service for your spouse (more necessary). It could be deciding between the Moose Tracks ice cream (far better) or the apple (more necessary).

Business Choices

In the business world, this decision can take on many forms as well. Will you take the day off to play golf with your buddies or will you put in the extra time to make sure the project beats the deadline for a customer? Do you personally enjoy the rewards of all of your profit (or income) or do you use it to promote the Kingdom?

Sometimes with these decisions, it can even be difficult to discern which is which. Do you keep the low performing employee and give them another chance or do you go ahead and terminate their employment so they get started on a new, more productive path?

Strive For Paul’s Example

Folks, I think we are to strive to follow Paul’s example (1 Corinthians 11:1). We should be struggling between “living is Christ” and “dying is gain” like he did. At the same time, we know this is a high standard to reach.

Until we reach that level of maturity, we will still have the choice between “far better” and “more necessary”. My encouragement to you is that you start trying to see your day-to-day decisions in this light. Try to figure out which is “more necessary” and choose that one.

I believe the more we will do this, the closer we will get to Paul’s struggle between living and dying. That is where I want to be!

Do you see how critical this choice can be?

Do you see yourself more often doing what is “more necessary” or not?

How do you need to move closer to Paul’s example?

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Is Your Life Like Your Closet?

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I recently had to clean out my closet at home. After ten years without doing it, the accumulation of stuff and clothes that no longer fit had finally gotten out of hand. I finally recognized the need and set aside the time to clean it. In the process, I was reminded of a truth about life that all Christians need to learn. If you cannot see the connection between a clothes closet and a life truth, then read on!

closet

Organizing My Closet

Obviously, I first had to go through everything in my closet and determine whether I would keep it, give it away, or trash it. I went through work clothes, play clothes, socks, shoes, etc. I think you get the idea.

Once I did that, I figured I would take the opportunity to reorganize the entire closet. I know, that may be a little OCD, but I liked the idea and ran with it. I went to WalMart and bought a couple of cheap cloth baskets for socks, tshirts, etc. I placed these in line on my shelves.

I moved my work clothes to one side and put my casual clothes to the other side. I made sure my work shoes were easily accessed while the others were off to the side. My ties (fewer now because I got rid of those with stains or those too wide!) were placed on the tie rack in the corner and my belts moved to the other corner.

Each Had Its Place

When I was done, I stepped back in pride. I had found a nice, neat area for each type of clothing and accessory. While my closet may not win any HGTV awards for creativity or design, I had achieved what I had set out to do. I had compartmentalized the area and each part had its place.

As I stood there, I remembered the life truth I mentioned at the beginning of this post. If given the opportunity, many Christians will do the exact same thing with their faith as I did with my socks. Stick with me and I think you will see what I mean.

Separate Life Compartments

Too often, we as Christians compartmentalize our lives. We have time for our family. We allocate time for our work. We may prioritize some time with friends and/or hobbies. We also make sure we give time to our faith. Each area of our lives has its own time allotment.

Some of these areas overlap at times (friends and faith, family and hobbies, etc.), but for the most part they are each kept within their own compartment. This is especially true of our faith.

Maybe we have friends at church, but it is unlikely we are regularly and intentionally meeting with them to grow in our faith together. We don’t talk much about our faith with some of our other friends or family because they might get offended.

Faith And Workplace Separate?

We don’t allow our faith to enter our workplace for the same reason. Or it might be that we feel our faith will limit our ability to do business profitably. Surely God would not want that, right? Work is for Monday through Friday, family on Saturday, and we give God our Sundays. That is the way it has always been.

Unfortunately, the way it has always been is wrong. God does not want our Sundays (only). He wants our Mondays through Saturdays as well. He wants our time with family and our time with friends.

God Wants Our ALL!

God wants to be a part of our hobbies and our social lives. He wants to live in our workplace and direct our business decisions. There is not a single part of our lives that God does not want. He wants it all. Want proof?

Let’s just ask Jesus. He should know the answer, right? Jesus, what is the most important truth for us to remember in life?

Love the Lord your God with ALL of your heart, with ALL of your mind, and with ALL of your soul. This is the first and greatest commandment (emphasis mine).
Matthew 22:37-38

God IS Our Closet

Folks, we may need to compartmentalize our closets, garages, or work desk. Separate areas for separate items can be helpful for an organized mind. However, this is not true for our lives when it comes to our faith and our relationship with God.

In life, our faith in and relationship with God IS our closet. It IS our life. Everything else can have its separate place WITHIN our faith, but nothing we have or do should be separate from this faith. Our relationship with God permeates every aspect of our lives.

There is no other way to live out the Greatest Commandment.

What About Your Business Life?

Take a look at your business or work life. Reflect on how God is a part of this area of your life. If He is, what can you do to allow Him to be more involved. If He has not yet been allowed into this part of your life, then pray about how you can turn it over to Him.

The ultimate goal is for Him to fully control this area (along with all other areas) of your life, with you as the passenger and Him as the driver. That is a tough position to reach, but the more you prepare for it, the easier it becomes.

Is your life compartmentalized like your closet?

If you changed it at one time, has it drifted back?

What action do you need to take next?

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4 Little Known Qualities Of Godly Leaders, Part 2

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The Bible says that the Lord “spoke with Moses face to face, just as a man speaks with his friend” (Exodus 33:11). Wow…if we could all attain that sort of relationship with God, I believe we could be the godly leaders we want to be. The problem is that this kind of relationship is not really attainable, is it? Or is it?

uncommon communion

Quality #2 – Uncommon Communion

In my last post, I introduced you to Dr. Crawford Loritts and his 4 little known qualities of godly leaders. In that post, we tackled the first quality – brokenness. In today’s post, I want to discuss the second quality Dr. Loritts cites in his segment in Dennis Rainey’s Stepping Up video series.

In his segment on godly leaders, Dr. Loritts describes how godly leaders must have a second quality – an uncommon communion with God. Before he describes what he means by this, he goes on to say, “God gives us assignments that are greater than our capacity to meet. There is always a gap in leadership – it is always beyond where you are. God fills in that gap.”

The Gap

This idea of a gap fits perfectly with the idea of brokenness from the last post, but uncommon communion takes this a step further. When we are broken, we see that we alone cannot accomplish the mission God has for us. We see this gap he mentions.

The uncommon communion is our response to this gap.

For most of us, this may not be an easy quality to grasp at first. What exactly does he mean by having an uncommon communion with God? How do I do that? What does it look like? How will I know when I have that quality?

Communion Defined

Before I go any further, let me first define “communion” in this context for you.

Communion:
the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings with God

Scripture’s Answers

Now, as we have done before on multiple occasions, let’s take a look at Scripture to find our answers to the questions above. I think Dr. Loritts picked a great example in Moses, so we will stick with him.

As I mentioned above, God spoke with Moses as we would a friend. I think that is the perfect example of uncommon communion. I don’t think there was anyone else in the Israelite camp that had that kind of relationship with God.

Moses’ Part

So what exactly did Moses do that, for his part, caused that relationship? First, he made it perfectly clear on a number of occasions that alone, he did not have what it took to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Moses was clearly broken as it related to his leadership.

But Moses did not only acknowledge that he was broken and unable to lead God’s people. He also acted on this brokenness. Moses pressed into God to make sure He gave him what he needed. This included asking for a mouthpiece (Aaron) and the words to say to Pharaoh (Exodus 3:1-4:31).

Pressing In

Whatever the case, Moses recognized that he was not able to do it on his own and he was determined to make sure God met his needs. Moses pleaded with God, even to the point of aggravating Him (Exodus 4:14). While God did get angry with Moses, I this free and open relationship is exactly what He wants from us.

Even later, Moses continued to plead with and push God to maintain His presence with the Israelite people as they moved. He also pushed God for a glimpse of His glory! Moses was broken, but he was also bold in his relationship with God!

Imitate Moses

The more I look at Moses and his uncommon communion, the more I believe we actually are able to imitate him. In general, Moses did not (normally) make a move without consulting God. Through his frequent interaction with God in the tent of meeting, Moses sought God’s wisdom and direction in everything he did.

For us, uncommon communion looks the same. We recognize our brokenness and see the gap between who we are and the godly leaders God has called us to be. Once we see this gap, we press into God to make up the difference.

We will know we have this quality when we simply cannot imagine making a significant decision without seeking God’s face about it. We will be models of this level of godly leadership when others watch us enter our own “tent of meeting” before making any important decisions.

Do you have an uncommon communion with God?

What action is God leading you to take toward this relationship with Him?

Who are you asking to hold you accountable to taking these steps?

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Do Not Ask WWJD!

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Charles Sheldon’s book, In His Steps, introduced Christians to a powerful question more than 100 years ago. Since then, Christians have been asking “WWJD?” (What Would Jesus Do?) when faced with difficult choices or deciding what action to take. I am a huge fan of that book and it is on my recommended reading list. In fact, I believe every Christian should read it, but it is my recommendation that you NOT ask this question. Let me explain.

WWJD

Sports Hero?

In an effort to create a visual illustration of my thought process, I want you to think of your favorite sports figure. Picture in your mind a scene where they are exhibiting the height of their skills in a single move.

Maybe you are picturing a wide receiver in football making an unbelievably acrobatic, one-handed catch while diving for the end zone. Maybe it is a batter in baseball reaching for the outside curveball, getting just enough of it to send it over the infield and into the outfield before dropping to allow the game-winning run.

I could go on with examples, but I believe you get the picture. The idea here is that this athlete is doing something that you would love to imitate. If you could, you would put yourself into his or her position and do the same thing, right? Haven’t you dreamed about something similar at one time or another?

You Are Not Prepared

Here is the problem. You and I are not prepared for that situation. We have not put in the hours of practice, workouts, stretches, and training that this particular athlete has given. The move or play that you saw them make was the culmination of thousands of hours of preparation.

For you or me to be given the exact same opportunity and expect to be able to make the same play as our favorite athlete – that is somewhat crazy, don’t you think? While I am perfectly okay with a fantasy like this, I do think we need to recognize that it is just that…a fantasy.

Hours Of Work Required!

The only way you or I could truly be ready to execute the same play would be to prepare in the same way, right? We really would need to put in the hours of hard work, practice, and training if we wanted to be able to direct our bodies to respond the same way.

This idea is no different in business, right? It would be naive for us to expect to be able to have the insight or acumen necessary to identify and exploit a huge profit opportunity in the market without having the years of experience and learning in that particular industry.

Why Different When Imitating Jesus?

So why is it that we think we can simply ask the question, “WWJD – What would Jesus do?” and get the answer we need? Why do we think we can wait until the heat of the moment when faced with temptation, tough moral choices, or other decisions before we ask this question?

Put Jesus in the place of the athlete in the earlier illustration. Like them, He prepared for a lifetime. As a man, He spent his life seeking the will of His Father. He was constantly withdrawing to a quiet place to be alone with His Father and pray. He was totally and completely focused on living out His mission on earth, not allowing distractions.

More Than Asking WWJD!

In the same way, if we truly want to imitate Jesus, we must do more than simply ask what He would do in any given situation. Instead, we must be willing to dedicate the time, energy, and effort necessary to prepare as He prepared.

If we really want to run our businesses the way Jesus would run them if He were the boss, then we must focus our minds and hearts on learning all we can about Him and His actions. We cannot simply hope the answers will appear just because we ask the WWJD question.

Disciplined Discipleship!

We must commit the time in the mornings to read His Word. Studying the Bible and how it applies to each of us today is critical. We must memorize Scripture so that we can quote it in the face of temptation, just like He did.

We have to prioritize time alone in prayer with our Father the way Jesus did. If we are not constantly communicating with God in a way that allows us to become intimately familiar with His overall will for our lives, then we will have no clue what Jesus would do in a given situation.

Time With Sinners?

We also need to spend our time around sinners and those in need. While you may not immediately see how this can be helpful, I promise that it is. First of all, this is something Jesus did so that is really all you need to know. If you will just do it for a while, you will begin to see why it is necessary.

But since you are impatient, I will tell you that spending your time around these people will increase your sensitivity to the needs of the world around you. You will be better able to see that this life is not all about you, but is about God and communicating His love to everyone. Doing this will enable you to feel the compassion Jesus had for those around Him.

Answers From Preparation

When you combine all of the above over a period of time, you will find that the answer to your question (WWJD) will come more easily. The more you prepare like Jesus did, the more you may find you don’t even need to stop to ask the question – the answer will already be there.

What are your thoughts about asking WWJD?

How prepared do you feel you are to ask the question?

What should be your next step in preparation?