Difficulty at work? Opportunity or Problem?

The past month has been a significant time of learning for me. Sitting at the feet of Jesus, learning from others, and just asking lots of questions of what is next. In October, Leif Hetland joined MERGE and shared with us the three chair concept and what it means for the marketplace.  Basically, chair 1 is for those who understand that they are children of papa God, chair 2 is for those who don't understand their identity as sons and daughters of King Jesus and position themselves as orphans (who are saved), and then there is chair 3, for those who don't know Jesus at all.  There is so much around this teaching, it is worth getting Leif's book or one of his tapes. 

The biggest take-a-way from me is understanding our identity in Jesus and what He has for us. We are to partner with our Heavenly Father to solve the problems of this world. Chair 1 doesn't see problems, they see promise and opportunity. Our worldview, business view, education, etc, has all taught us to avoid problems, to fear them, and to get away. In fact, I say on one of my hometown high school marquis the following quote: "A clever person solves problems, A wise person avoids them." WHAT?!   We need to reform our thinking. Chair 2 people are waiting for Jesus to come and for us to be taken to Heaven. While being heaven minded is great, we also need to realize that we carry Heaven with us. Chair 1 people realize, we have the opportunity to bring Heaven to this world. 

When we understand our position in Christ, we have the opportunity to serve the world like no one else has or can. So my question is who are the difficult people or problems of your work that you are seeing as an opportunity and a promise. Make a list and offer them up to God and see what answers and insights He wants you to bring to the situation. 

I love this quote:

“Jesus served with the heart of a king but ruled with the heart of a servant. This is the essential combination that must be embraced by those longing to shape the course of history.”

Bill Johnson, Bethel