During my final Graduate School of Banking summer, I was a new Christian. My midwestern peers noticed a difference and seemed determined to draw me back into drunkenness and debauchery. One evening, my peers decided to visit a strip club. It suddenly became their mission to ridicule and pressure me to join them. I locked myself in the bathroom until ...
As someone who has hired hundreds of speakers, I take seriously the responsibility of hiring someone to speak God’s truths to our network. I’ve experienced the awe of watching Henry Blackaby speak a powerful message from God during the 2008 stock market collapse. But I’ve also experienced the horror of a speaker offending our audience by speaking to issues I ...
My friend and former police officer, Steve, once told me, “I never had a problem chasing a man that I suspected had a gun. But if I had to stand before a large audience and speak like you do, I would be petrified.” God didn’t design Steve for public speaking, and He didn’t design me to pursue criminals. 1 Peter ...
Steven was excited to take a new leadership role in the company. But he quickly got into trouble when he tried to make changes based on his own experiences, before understanding the unique aspects of his new team. At work, our experience and expertise often propel our career advancement. But relying only on our experience can cloud our ability to ...
In his book, “Revering God,” author Thaddeus J. Williams claims the most frequently repeated phrase in the Bible is the expression, “Thus says the Lord.” Williams says the phrase appears in the Old and New Testaments more than 400 times. It’s a reminder, Williams writes, that God speaks regularly. Proverbs 4:20-22 says: “My son, pay attention to what I say; turn ...
In this series, we’re discussing five guiding principles on negotiating agreements. The fourth principle is to always work towards a win/win agreement. Stan was a bank customer who believed he always needed to win all points of every negotiation so that the bank was the loser, and his business was the winner. Although Stan won occasional battles, it didn’t bode ...
God reveals amazing wisdom in the 66 books of the Bible. But I fall short when it comes to applying that knowledge to my work and my life. A former pastor summed it up when he gently chided me, “You know more scripture than you’re obedient to.” Jesus called out similar behavior in the religious leaders of his time, telling ...
My first professional job was as a daily newspaper reporter. I got along with all my coworkers except the publisher’s assistant. Reporting to the top executive, she had (what I thought was) a condescending attitude to the lowly reporters, and to me, in particular. On my last day, I sent flowers and a card to the newsroom, listing everyone – ...
Is work getting you down? Do job frustrations and pressure make workdays feel like daily battles? Although work is a blessing and opportunity to use our God-given talents, it can wear us out. Stress, conflicts with colleagues, and incentives to act in ways that clash with our faith can make modern work exhausting. We can rise above those factors when ...
Over the years I’ve gotten to know many wealthy business leaders. I’ve wondered why some are generous, while others are not. One of the answers comes from a recent survey conducted by the American Bible Study. This study determined that 94% of people whom they call “scripture engaged” gave to charity a median amount of $2000 annually. This is in ...
Equipping Others to Do Work Differently
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