There is a lot of focus on money today and the value of the dollar. Our exchange rate for our U.S. currency appears dismal. There is another exchange that can be equally dismal. What did we exchange our life for? God created us in his image and we exchanged that for a lie of being like him, we already were. Jesus exchanged his heavenly position for humanity in order to save the world. We exchange our worldview for a Biblical view to believe in Him. We exchange death for life again. We exchange a life of bad choices for a life of transformation that brings abundant life. We exchange our comfort to reach out to those who do not have. The amazing thing is our exchange when choosing life, or Jesus, will always be better than what we give up. Because Jesus paid it all!
Business is an exchange of products or services for money. When we build products and services that transform the universe then we are showing love and doing the work of the Father. We then have the opportunity with the wealth that we have accumulated to show the generous heart of the Father. Our personal story and business story can be in alignment with God's story. We also get to exchange our fallen story for God's story. It's the story that Hollywood unknowingly writes about. Where good triumphs over evil, where people find love, where lives are transformed, where ugliness is transformed into something unexpectedly beautiful.
I think about so many young people that graduate college and have great hopes and desires to change the world. They have a passion written on their heart, college has equipped them, and they are ready to go. Usually, it doesn't take too long before they are kicked in the teeth by the world and many exchange their passion and gifting for making money. Then their lives become getting to the quickest retirement plan possible so they can do what they want to do and what they want to do has now been exchanged for rest, relaxation and parties. Where did their passions and big ideas go, they exchanged them for a lie. How do we avoid it?
We have to exchange our worldview for a biblical view. We have to know the greatest story of all and how it continues to unfold in front of us. We have to know the heart of our creator or "Abba" Father. We need to engage in a relationship with him, the author of our life, and ask Him to unfold the story of our life so we can live it. It's a daily process, it's an incredible journey.
C.S. Lewis was great at telling stories that so mirrored the story of Jesus. In an article by Eric Metaxas, he discusses that C.S. Lewis didn't intentionally write these stories to push an agenda, it came out of his biblical worldview. He understood the story. So much of our worldview is formed by cynism from television and our story becomes skewed. We need to exchange our worldview for a biblical worldview and out of that will flow stories that reflect the greatest story ever told.
MERGE Moments capturing where we can expect, seek, and find God in our professional lives.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Monday, June 10, 2013
Covenant Friendship - What a Blessing!
I just spent a weekend with one of my best friends. It's the type of friendship I have always wanted. Our friendship puts me in the mind of the story of Jonathan and David.
I Samuel 18
Now it came about when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself. 2 Saul took him that day and did not let him return to his father’s house. 3 Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.
What I love about my friendship and what I believe makes it covenant is:
Check out www.MergeBusiness.com to find a MERGE Community near you.
I Samuel 18
Now it came about when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself. 2 Saul took him that day and did not let him return to his father’s house. 3 Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.
What I love about my friendship and what I believe makes it covenant is:
- We know the plans that God has for each other both professionally and personally
- We protect those plans
- We become the eyes and ears to see what God is doing in times of harvest and in times of famine for each other
- We pray for our families
- We learn from each other
- We push one another on to more of what God has for us
- We encourage one another
- We support one another
- We have shoulders to cry on (but no longer than 48 hours)
- We have cheesecake together
- We regret cheesecake together
- We love one another
- We compliment, we complete, and we don't compete!
- Best of all...God orchestrates the relationship!
Check out www.MergeBusiness.com to find a MERGE Community near you.
Monday, June 3, 2013
Hospitality - It's All About Generosity
I Peter 4:9
"Be hospitable to one another without complaint."
What is hospitality?
According to Merriam's it is "generous and friendly treatment of visitors and guests"
So how is your hospitality in your work? The trend in the past couple of decades has been towards more customer care. We have metrics on customer satisfaction. We get surveyed to no end by many of the businesses we encounter. There is even a new executive title to pay attention to this area, Chief Customer Relationship Officer and departments for Customer Relationship Management. So should we just mark this one off the list? Do we as the workplace have hospitality covered?
Does the hospitality that we are showing in the workplace show the love of the Father? Is it generous, or is it just better than the competition? Is it love, or is it good business because we know that customer care/hospitality builds relationships?
Here is our opportunity for the Kingdom! We already know that outstanding customer care and hospitality is good for business. But genuine love and generous hospitality shows the welcoming characteristic of the Father. In Ecclesiates, it talks about how God has written eternity on the hearts of man. What if we started calling that out? What if we reflect the goodness of God and call out the life that God has placed on man's heart.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
"He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end."
It's an opportunity to be the salt of the earth that Jesus calls us to be. Look at the way the Message translation talks about being salt of the earth.
Matthew 5:13 (MSG)
“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness?"
As salt we get to preserve what God has hidden in their heart and bring out the flavor. That is an experience that the people you encounter at work will not soon forget. It glorifies God and it brings more meaning to your work. It is infectious and it's what people love being around. The generosity of the Father is the best thing we can give our customers and co-workers.
How do we do that?
1. Pray for the person you are interacting with, always pray for the heart of the Father for that person. It can be a quick prayer asking the Father what He has for them and show you how to love.
2. What pictures or words come to your heart? Is it encouraging? It may surprise you that you thought something you don't know.
3. Speak it out.
4. Always be generous...surprise them!
"Be hospitable to one another without complaint."
What is hospitality?
According to Merriam's it is "generous and friendly treatment of visitors and guests"
So how is your hospitality in your work? The trend in the past couple of decades has been towards more customer care. We have metrics on customer satisfaction. We get surveyed to no end by many of the businesses we encounter. There is even a new executive title to pay attention to this area, Chief Customer Relationship Officer and departments for Customer Relationship Management. So should we just mark this one off the list? Do we as the workplace have hospitality covered?
Does the hospitality that we are showing in the workplace show the love of the Father? Is it generous, or is it just better than the competition? Is it love, or is it good business because we know that customer care/hospitality builds relationships?
Here is our opportunity for the Kingdom! We already know that outstanding customer care and hospitality is good for business. But genuine love and generous hospitality shows the welcoming characteristic of the Father. In Ecclesiates, it talks about how God has written eternity on the hearts of man. What if we started calling that out? What if we reflect the goodness of God and call out the life that God has placed on man's heart.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
"He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end."
It's an opportunity to be the salt of the earth that Jesus calls us to be. Look at the way the Message translation talks about being salt of the earth.
Matthew 5:13 (MSG)
“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness?"
As salt we get to preserve what God has hidden in their heart and bring out the flavor. That is an experience that the people you encounter at work will not soon forget. It glorifies God and it brings more meaning to your work. It is infectious and it's what people love being around. The generosity of the Father is the best thing we can give our customers and co-workers.
How do we do that?
1. Pray for the person you are interacting with, always pray for the heart of the Father for that person. It can be a quick prayer asking the Father what He has for them and show you how to love.
2. What pictures or words come to your heart? Is it encouraging? It may surprise you that you thought something you don't know.
3. Speak it out.
4. Always be generous...surprise them!
Monday, May 27, 2013
Spice Up Your Networking
Colossians 4
5 Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.
As I was reading in Colossians 4, I was pondering verses five and six. "Conduct yourself with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity." This is great networking tip! When I was a State Farm agent, many asked me how I would have time to run a business, sell insurance and financial services, and be a single mom to three in a town I wasn't familiar with. I said, simple, it's about just living life and sharing what you do with those you meet, listening for the needs they have, and trying to offer a product or service during those moments.
While that was insurance, it was work for the Kingdom. I didn't realize it. But helping people recover from unexpected loss or from what Satan is continually trying to destroy; that is Kingdom work. It's about restoration. Now with a larger understanding of how Kingdom work translates to the workplace, it is so exciting to see how God uses our businesses to do the work of the Kingdom.
There is also another opportunity that the Scripture points to. That is our opportunity to share what God has done for us. The next verse, "Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person." I hung on this phrase "with grace", while some translations interpret that to mean gracious, I think it is bigger. It's communicating what God has done through Jesus through His finished work on the cross. That is where the salt comes in. His sacrifice, his labor of love, has so many features and benefits (still speaking sales), that's what we need to share. The finished work of the cross brings freedom, it brings salvation, it brings purpose, it brings joy, it brings peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, self-control, and love. Our speech regardless of what are calling is should be seasoned with all these amazing things. It should be so attractive that it draws people in to want to know more.
Life is so busy, how do I do this? The scripture did not leave us hanging, but we have to back up to see it.
Colossians 4
2 Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; 3 praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; 4 that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.
It's the same as how I answered my critics when it came to being a State Farm agent. You do life and you be watchful for every interaction, every opportunity. We pray and we stay focused on what God is doing around us. We get to know the Father so well, we see His work, He will be faithful to prompt us, and He will provide for us as we make the most of every opportunity. Those opportunities may look like sharing how your business or work can help (remember bringing solutions to life's problems is how God shows love to His people), it might be what God is doing or has done in your family, and it may be what God is or has done in your personal life. Being present or in the moment of what God is doing is good for business and it's good for Kingdom.
For more on MERGE - visit www.MERGEBusiness.com
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Follow us on twitter @MERGEmyLife
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Feast of the Harvest in the Workplace
This weekend is Pentecost - Feast of the Weeks. Pentecost was a celebration of the Law coming down from Mt. Sinai and then in the New Testament, the coming down of the Holy Spirit to begin the New Testament church. What does this have to do with the workplace? A lot.
Let me back-up. Our understanding of the church varies and mostly we think of the organizational church that we go to on the weekends. It was about 5 years ago, that my family and I took a trip to Greece and Turkey. We were on a tour in Turkey of the seven churches in Revelation. It wasn't until a few months ago that I realized all these places we visited, I only went through one church in Smyrna. In New Testament days, the church was a group of believers in town. They met in homes. They worked in the marketplace. Don't get me wrong, I love the organizational church and all they contribute, however the walls of the church sometimes become a barrier for our doing the work of the Father in our workplace setting. It creates a physical dualistic mindset that what is preached on Sunday morning only impacts my time away from the workplace.
God's plan for our life includes all things. We don't need to compartmentalize, we need to learn to integrate, to merge our lives. Our work becomes another place to do the will of the Father, for God to be glorified in my work. Not to mention the amazing harvest of reconciliation in our workplace settings.
John 4:34-35
Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.
Is your work the work of the Father, does it provide nourishment? I'm sure for many of us it doesn't feel nourishing at all. But Jesus came to reconcile all things and that includes our work. So it can provide physical nourishment to you and your family, it can provide spiritual and emotional nourishment because we are partnered with the King, and it can bring nourishment to our soul because we have true eternal meaning and purpose in our work.
Yesterday I was talking with my son and asking him about his work. He said he loved it but was concerned about his promotion coming up. Would it represent all the work that he has put in over the last year? And let me tell you, he's not exaggerating, it was a lot. I know for me financial increases at work rarely measured up to my expectation. Even when they did, they felt hollow. That comes from a lack of understanding of my identity as a daughter of the King and my eternal destiny of bringing heaven to earth, right where I'm working. When we understand the influence of the Kingdom than we don't depend on the things of this world that have not been reconciled.
Finally, the power of the Holy Spirit that fell on that day of Pentecost in Acts 2, the power that was central to Jesus ministry as well as the New Testament churches, is available to us in our workplace. Jesus came to reconcile all things and He left that we might have all the benefits of Heaven through the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit doesn't just operate in the confines of the church or in the confines of church activities. He is available to us in everything, in our workplace.
The harvest in the workplace is an untapped area. And we can be on the front lines with all the Kingdom influence and all the power of the Holy Spirit to do the work of the Father. And it's all in the midst of our workplace giftings. God is amazing!
Romans 5:18
Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.
This new life for everyone includes our workplace.
Like us on Facebook "MERGE Community"
Follow us on Twitter @MergeMyLife
Invest in your calling and join the journey with us as we launch official training for your call...check it out here
Let me back-up. Our understanding of the church varies and mostly we think of the organizational church that we go to on the weekends. It was about 5 years ago, that my family and I took a trip to Greece and Turkey. We were on a tour in Turkey of the seven churches in Revelation. It wasn't until a few months ago that I realized all these places we visited, I only went through one church in Smyrna. In New Testament days, the church was a group of believers in town. They met in homes. They worked in the marketplace. Don't get me wrong, I love the organizational church and all they contribute, however the walls of the church sometimes become a barrier for our doing the work of the Father in our workplace setting. It creates a physical dualistic mindset that what is preached on Sunday morning only impacts my time away from the workplace.
God's plan for our life includes all things. We don't need to compartmentalize, we need to learn to integrate, to merge our lives. Our work becomes another place to do the will of the Father, for God to be glorified in my work. Not to mention the amazing harvest of reconciliation in our workplace settings.
John 4:34-35
Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.
Is your work the work of the Father, does it provide nourishment? I'm sure for many of us it doesn't feel nourishing at all. But Jesus came to reconcile all things and that includes our work. So it can provide physical nourishment to you and your family, it can provide spiritual and emotional nourishment because we are partnered with the King, and it can bring nourishment to our soul because we have true eternal meaning and purpose in our work.
Yesterday I was talking with my son and asking him about his work. He said he loved it but was concerned about his promotion coming up. Would it represent all the work that he has put in over the last year? And let me tell you, he's not exaggerating, it was a lot. I know for me financial increases at work rarely measured up to my expectation. Even when they did, they felt hollow. That comes from a lack of understanding of my identity as a daughter of the King and my eternal destiny of bringing heaven to earth, right where I'm working. When we understand the influence of the Kingdom than we don't depend on the things of this world that have not been reconciled.
Finally, the power of the Holy Spirit that fell on that day of Pentecost in Acts 2, the power that was central to Jesus ministry as well as the New Testament churches, is available to us in our workplace. Jesus came to reconcile all things and He left that we might have all the benefits of Heaven through the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit doesn't just operate in the confines of the church or in the confines of church activities. He is available to us in everything, in our workplace.
The harvest in the workplace is an untapped area. And we can be on the front lines with all the Kingdom influence and all the power of the Holy Spirit to do the work of the Father. And it's all in the midst of our workplace giftings. God is amazing!
Romans 5:18
Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.
This new life for everyone includes our workplace.
If you want to know more about your workplace calling...
Join us for our monthly lunches in Urbana, ILLike us on Facebook "MERGE Community"
Follow us on Twitter @MergeMyLife
Invest in your calling and join the journey with us as we launch official training for your call...check it out here
Monday, May 13, 2013
What Are You Working For?
What are you working for? Money. Relationships. Security. Is it fulfilling? Or are you looking for and waiting for early retirement? Does your work satisfy? Do you stand back when something is accomplished and find satisfaction in your work? Or do you just run through the tasks everyday working towards a paycheck, a weekend, a vacation, or a promotion.
I remember a time when I didn't find much satisfaction in my work and I hated getting my yearly salary increases. Might sound funny but it reset the clock to have to wait another year for the next exciting moment in my job. Very sad. Once I realized that my vocation was something that God wanted to restore my job and use it for His purpose. It changed the way I work. I spent the last 6 days mostly away from work through a four day weekend with family, whom I love and a 2 day retreat with my fellow workers, whom I love. During these last six days I have missed my work. While it is unhealthy to become all about work because even God rested on the 7th day. We also must build rest into our daily, weekly, monthly and yearly schedules to reflect with God and family all the blessings and spend time getting refueled. However, I have missed working alongside My Father (God) and watching Him create and use my vocation for His purposes.
I'm not wanting anything..."The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want" Psalm 23:1
I'm not anxious for anything... "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6
What if our work could be satisfying? What if we could regain that passion that we had when we were young thinking about what we wanted to grow up to be, before we headed to college to study for our exciting new careers, before we started our jobs that held so much anticipation? How do we get here? It's so important to know that God loves you and made you uniquely for a purpose. He hid an amazing treasure in you and is waiting for you to engage to unlock the treasure.
"Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain" - Psalm 127:1
To find out more about your workplace calling and how to live that out, join our MERGE community. Check out our website www.MERGEBusiness.com
I remember a time when I didn't find much satisfaction in my work and I hated getting my yearly salary increases. Might sound funny but it reset the clock to have to wait another year for the next exciting moment in my job. Very sad. Once I realized that my vocation was something that God wanted to restore my job and use it for His purpose. It changed the way I work. I spent the last 6 days mostly away from work through a four day weekend with family, whom I love and a 2 day retreat with my fellow workers, whom I love. During these last six days I have missed my work. While it is unhealthy to become all about work because even God rested on the 7th day. We also must build rest into our daily, weekly, monthly and yearly schedules to reflect with God and family all the blessings and spend time getting refueled. However, I have missed working alongside My Father (God) and watching Him create and use my vocation for His purposes.
I'm not wanting anything..."The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want" Psalm 23:1
I'm not anxious for anything... "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6
What if our work could be satisfying? What if we could regain that passion that we had when we were young thinking about what we wanted to grow up to be, before we headed to college to study for our exciting new careers, before we started our jobs that held so much anticipation? How do we get here? It's so important to know that God loves you and made you uniquely for a purpose. He hid an amazing treasure in you and is waiting for you to engage to unlock the treasure.
"Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain" - Psalm 127:1
To find out more about your workplace calling and how to live that out, join our MERGE community. Check out our website www.MERGEBusiness.com
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Say Yes to Give Through Your Workplace Calling
Giving and the church always seems to be an uncomfortable topic. For those of us in the workplace sometimes we feel like a big paycheck for the church or that the church is just another one of our kids asking for their allowance. Although the church is being more prescriptive about it, there is a 10% and above expectation. For some we may attend churches where we aren't really sure of the budget and aren't trusting leadership. Sometimes it feels like money is the main point of connectivity because a lot of what is preached from the pulpit, I can apply it to my life or not. But when it comes to money, I feel like they are directly talking to me. If you are someone who has one of these thoughts or maybe giving is just an obligation. I would like to challenge our uncomfortability.
If we only believe that people who work in the church have God given purposes than the topic of money because of point of contention. We are all called to the mission field and most of us are called to the workplace. If you want to know more about this, check out the MERGE events on www.MERGEBusiness.com for more information on workplace calling.
We as leaders in the workplace have a great capacity to make and accumulate wealth. Let's read that again, we as leaders in the workplace have a great capacity to make and accumulate wealth.
But to what end are we making money? We have believed the lie that it is for our comfort and reward and while God wants us to prosper he also wants us to partner with Him in the Kingdom. So we have distorted the value of money by overusing it for our own good. And we have exchanged something that was supposed to bring life to others as well as ourselves for something we now serve.
Even money can be reconciled back to God. We can say thank you to God through our generosity, we can show the love and generosity of the Father as we give to others, and our generosity translates into others hearing the good news and the Kingdom advancing. Look at the following verses:
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that although he was rich, he became poor for your sakes, so that you by his poverty could become rich. II Cor. 8:9
And God is able to make all grace overflow to you so that because you have enough of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow in every good work. II Cor. 9:8
When we change our heart and our thinking about money, than we will experience great freedom in our finances. Then I believe there is a next step that God wants us to take. I believe He's calling us to be financial partners in the Kingdom. In a sense, you can become a Kingdom Venture Capitalists.
We have been given the wealth of the world to finance the Kingdom. Why wouldn't we want to be a part of this? Do you want to be stewards of God's finances? Then let's say yes to give.
Things we can practically do:
1) Go to God and 'say yes' to what He has for you.
2) Ask for creative ways to partner with Him in the Kingdom both through finances and through your workplace setting.
3) Talk to your pastor or church leadership about how to connect at this level.
4) Watch expectantly for God's blessing in this area.
If we only believe that people who work in the church have God given purposes than the topic of money because of point of contention. We are all called to the mission field and most of us are called to the workplace. If you want to know more about this, check out the MERGE events on www.MERGEBusiness.com for more information on workplace calling.
We as leaders in the workplace have a great capacity to make and accumulate wealth. Let's read that again, we as leaders in the workplace have a great capacity to make and accumulate wealth.
But to what end are we making money? We have believed the lie that it is for our comfort and reward and while God wants us to prosper he also wants us to partner with Him in the Kingdom. So we have distorted the value of money by overusing it for our own good. And we have exchanged something that was supposed to bring life to others as well as ourselves for something we now serve.
Even money can be reconciled back to God. We can say thank you to God through our generosity, we can show the love and generosity of the Father as we give to others, and our generosity translates into others hearing the good news and the Kingdom advancing. Look at the following verses:
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that although he was rich, he became poor for your sakes, so that you by his poverty could become rich. II Cor. 8:9
And God is able to make all grace overflow to you so that because you have enough of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow in every good work. II Cor. 9:8
When we change our heart and our thinking about money, than we will experience great freedom in our finances. Then I believe there is a next step that God wants us to take. I believe He's calling us to be financial partners in the Kingdom. In a sense, you can become a Kingdom Venture Capitalists.
We have been given the wealth of the world to finance the Kingdom. Why wouldn't we want to be a part of this? Do you want to be stewards of God's finances? Then let's say yes to give.
Things we can practically do:
1) Go to God and 'say yes' to what He has for you.
2) Ask for creative ways to partner with Him in the Kingdom both through finances and through your workplace setting.
3) Talk to your pastor or church leadership about how to connect at this level.
4) Watch expectantly for God's blessing in this area.
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