It is that time of year again…the time of year when most people begin planning out their next year! For me, I started this process in November and I expect 2016 to be my best year ever! As I went through my annual process, I thought I would share it with you.
I am not sure about you, but this past year has flown by for me. Not only has this year flown by, but I will say with confidence that it has been my best year ever, in many respects! As I look back over what all has been accomplished this year, I am amazed. I am also excited because I know why and I believe I can build on it this new year.
If the idea of having your best year ever interests you, then I have good news for you.
It is the start of another year and I am thankful to be able to start it off with the opportunity to appear as a guest of P.J. Simmons on the Gospel Driven Entrepreneur podcast! You can jump over and listen to the podcast here – GDE interview!
In case you are not already familiar with P.J. Simmons and the Gospel Driven Entrepreneur (GDE), here is some more information:
Picture a room where you regularly go to sit down. It may be a conference room, office, study, church, or anywhere with chairs. Now picture the chair you normally sit in (you know the one!). How often do you sit in that chair? Has it ever fallen apart when you sat in it? Has it ever been soaking wet without you knowing it? Would you say you “trust” this chair?
I know you may never have asked yourself this question, but why is it that you trust this particular chair? If I had to bet, I would say that you trust it because it has been consistent!
With politics, the stock market, and the economy seeming to be so unpredictable to most of us these days, it is very difficult to know where we should invest for the best long term gain. If you talk to a handful of financial advisors, you will likely get a handful of opinions on the subject. Unfortunately, this is not a game that allows us to sit on the sidelines…we must participate. How then do we invest for the best long term gain?
As you might guess, I have a little different perspective for you to consider on this topic.
Why is it that we are so quick to think we know what is going on in a particular situation when we really don’t have the whole story? Why do we so often jump to conclusions about someone’s actions or behavior when our perspective is clearly limited? How is this related to our relationship with (and faith in) God?
So many things happen in our world today and we are often very quick to assume we know the whole story, including others’ motivations, circumstances, and intent. The truth is that we know very little about these things just by looking at a picture or video on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
I am often asked what I do for a living. When we meet new people, we often identify them by what they do for a living. You know exactly what I mean. Whether this is all good or all bad, I don’t know. What I do know is that I often get a funny look in return when I answer that I run a Christian car dealership group!
Sometimes I believe the funny look is simply related to me using “Christian” and “car dealer” in the same sentence! However, more often what throws them is the fact that I am calling my company a “Christian company”. This is not something people are familiar with hearing and they are not sure what to think of it.
Mike Tyson was once quoted as saying, “Everyone has a plan ’til they get punched in the mouth.” While I am not a Tyson fan, I do think his quote should get our attention. Our “plan” to define success as hearing Jesus say, “Well done” is one thing. Living it out when there are difficult circumstances…that’s a different story.
I have written before about quotes that get stuck in my mind and will not fade. Well, today I would like to share another one. This quote was not necessarily directed specifically at those of us in business, but you will quickly see that it applies directly to us and how we each define success!
The quote in the spotlight today is from Billy Graham. Graham is not one of the original disciples or even the author of any of the lesser known books of the Bible. At the same time, he is someone that most of us look up to and respect immensely. He has lived a life true to his talk. He has certainly remained committed to spreading the gospel and is arguably one of the all-time greatest evangelists. Here is his quote:
When you first read that quote, what are your thoughts?
If you are a Christian in business, then you have been compelled to compromise your faith (or how you exercise it) at some point. It may have come in the form of a small decision. Maybe it came in the form of a big one. Whatever the case, there are many opportunities to compromise. We need to be aware of this and fight hard to stand firm.
It really does not matter if you are the business owner or if you work for someone else. Either way, people will come to you with decisions or directives that can impact the way you walk out your Christian faith at work. Let’s take a look at some examples.