Is 2 Tim 4: 5-8 part of your consideration when setting vocational goals?

I suggest you consider 3 phrases from 2 Tim 4:5-8 as part of your planning effort in your vocational goal setting.  When setting vocational goals, ask yourself the following questions: :  

•  Is the vocational goal I am about to set consistent with the biblical admonition to "fight the good fight?"  Am I compromising any of my biblical convictions in what I am about to do?

• Will the vocational goal I am about to set help or hinder me in "finishing the race" that God has begun and is sustaining in my life as I partner with him?

• Is  this vocational goal aligned with my desire to "keep the faith?"

Always have the end in mind when you set vocational goals.  If at the end of your life, you have on your list of accomplishments, fruit reflective of the 3 phases above, you will have much to be grateful for as to the testimony of God's grace on your life: 

If reading the above has stirred your spirit and thoughts and you would like to meditate more on the 3 phrases mentioned above, continue reading on below from an excellent online devotional taken from the insights of bible scholar Ray Stedman at the following link:

https://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#inbox/133eea9145961f9c

Looking Back Daily Devotion for November 29 From the Writings of Ray Stedman

Laily Devotion for Novemb

Read the Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:5-8

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).

Paul uses three phrases that sum up his life's accomplishments. What would you say about your life if you were looking back and summing up in brief words what had been accomplished? Here are the apostle's words.

First, he says, I have fought the good fight. It is very important to see he did not say, I have fought a good fight, as he is often quoted as saying. If he had said that, it would be indicative of his view of how well he had done. It would be boasting: I've fought a good fight. I've pitched in there and done the right thing. But that is not what he says. He says, I have fought the good fight, meaning the significant fight, the great battle that life had presented to him.

Paul says, I have finished the race. That is another common figure in his writings. In Philippians 3 he describes that race: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus, he says (Philippians 3:13b-14). The race, of course, is the Christian life itself, which is lived moment by moment, just as a race is run step by step. The question is whether you live each step in the flesh or in the Spirit, whether you are walking in the power of the new life you have from Christ or whether you are still running in the old ways of thinking, the old self-centered, fleshly, self-serving attitudes. Every moment is either contributing to reaching the goal for the prize or delaying it, wasting time in the flesh. Christians are called to run that race.

Third, the apostle says, I have kept the faith. He means by that the whole body of truth that is involved in the gospel, what he calls in 1 Corinthians God's secret wisdom (1 Corinthians 2:7a). This wisdom is totally different from the wisdom of this world. It is the truth that God tells us about ourselves and about Himself, about this world and why it is the way it is. It is the truth about the power of evil, the secret power of lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:7), and the mystery of godliness (1 Timothy 3:16) with which we can counteract evil. That is the faith that Paul is talking about. On the very edge of eternity he can say of himself, I have kept the faith. I have not lost any of the good deposit that God has entrusted to me. He has guarded it as a treasure, and he tells Timothy in turn to guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you (2 Timothy 1:14). Paul has kept this treasure from being mistreated or distorted by those who would try to twist it and use it for their own purposes. He has answered its critics. He has warned those who would take it astray, as he does in this very letter; thus he has kept the faith.

Lord, grant me the grace to fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith. Thank You that You are faithful to enable me to do that.

---

Life Application: Finishing well is a worthy aim. Are we clearly defining the journey? Have we grasped the power available in Christ to regularly encounter obstacles and counteract evil?

How do I position myself for retirement?

What is your picture of your retirement?  

If you have any question in your mind about what biblical retirement is to look like for you, I would recommend reading with a biblical world view filter (call me at 301.619.1875 W - if you are uncertain what I mean by that phrase) the supplementary book, "What Color is your Parachute for Retirement" which I found very helpful as it pointedly addresses the unique issues and challenges that we (and I stress we) as mid-50's + folks face as we position ourselves for retirement.  In our case, as Christians and devoted disciples of Jesus, positioning ourselves for fruitful work and service for what I believe are our best years to come....our years of what is typically called "retirement"...a word as you know that is not found in the bible   :)   .

I for example, based on some of the insight in the book, re-positioned myself 1 1/2 years ago to a less stressful, and less time consuming job.  The job still is very challenging and meets more than adequately the provisional needs of our family with the Army Corps of Engineers at Fort Detrick.  This was so I could intentionally invest more time with my wife in this new season of our life and with our teenage and young adult children and their spouses.  I also was sensing that I was to become more intentional in being available to "reach back" to younger folks in our church to help them work through issues related to career.  This resulted in the launching of  the new pastoral team initiative of the Vocational Gift Workshops  (VGWs) under Corby's oversight which many are currently attending.  

Since it started in June, I have crossed paths with over 40 folks as they have dropped in on a VGW to get support in navigating career issues and decisions before them.  The youngest has been a 9th grader in Covenant Life School...the oldest is 58. 

So for now,  this is how I have positioned myself for retirement...Lord willing, fully anticipating using my God-given gifts as a trained architectural engineer and design manager at Fort Detrick to support construction and renovation of bio-technology facilities for our nation's defense against terrorism...

....but in a less stressful environment that will allow me the time and energy to reach back and invest in the younger generation(s) of our church in any small way I can.

My question for you is, what has God called you to do in your golden years for his glory..and what steps are you taking now to prepare for maximum fruitfullness? 

Need some help brainstorming about the answer to the above question?  Begin to ask God about the future he has for you and you might want to consider checking out the book "What Color is Your Parachute for Retirement".    It is available  at  amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_6_7?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=what+color+is+your+parachute+for+retirement&sprefix=what+co

And remember, the best is yet to come in your expression of gratefulness, love and devotion to God through gracious and gifted service of others....motivated by appreciation, not duty, for all we have in Christ as our Savior and Redeemer.

For the Audience of One's glory and our best good,

Art

5 steps to a killer cover letter

The basic format of a good cover letter is:

-- A three-sentence paragraph up top that summarizes your skills and experience that are explicitly related to the job in question.

-- Bulleted list of achievements that are directly related to the job.

-- Summary paragraph that says you really think you'd add to the company's bottom line (say that in a specifically relevant way) and that you'd like to set up a meeting to talk.

For more insights and a sample cover letter, go to to the following link on CSB Money Watch  http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505143_162-57324358/5-steps-to-a-killer-cover-letter/ for an excellent post entitle, "5 steps to a killer cover letter"  by Penelope Trunk.  

Thanksgiving 2011 - Jonathan Edwards on True Thanksgiving

I encourage you to take time to give thanks to God on this Thanksgiving Day 2011... 

....not only for His providence for another year including the gifts he has given you to steward in the work place, 

....but also for the beauty and excellency of his character.

John Piper develops the true meaning of thankfulness in a posting at http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/articles/how-not-to-commit-idolatry-in-giving-thanks which starts out as follows:

Jonathan Edwards has a word for our time that could hardly be more pointed if he were living today. It has to do with the foundation of gratitude.

True gratitude or thankfulness to God for his kindness to us, arises from a foundation laid before, of love to God for what he is in himself; whereas a natural gratitude has no such antecedent foundation. The gracious stirrings of grateful affection to God, for kindness received, always are from a stock of love already in the heart, established in the first place on other grounds, viz. God's own excellency.¹

In other words, gratitude that is pleasing to God is not first a delight in the benefits God gives (though that is part of it). True gratitude must be rooted in something else that comes first, namely, a delight in the beauty and excellency of God's character. If this is not the foundation of our gratitude, then it is not above what the "natural man," apart from the Spirit and the new nature in Christ, experiences. In that case "gratitude" to God is no more pleasing to God than all the other emotions which unbelievers have without delighting in him.

>>>for more thoughts on topic, continue reading at the link above. 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Biblical Productivity - Collection of Posts by CJ Mahaney

Tony Reinke indexes a series of CJ Mahaney's blog posts on topics related to Biblical Productivity. I suggest you scroll down the list for topics that may be pertinent to areas that may be good for yo to grow in as a worker.  As always, CJ's writings are pointed and biblically/theologically sound.

I hope you find them as helpful as I have for my growth in godliness in my work place ethics.

Biblical Productivity

January 9, 2009 by Tony ReinkeCategories:

One solitary blog post on procrastination. That was the extent of what C.J. intended to write. But not long after spreading out the contents of his “time management” file folder over his desk, useful old resources surfaced, old themes returned, and new ideas emerged. A series was born.

C.J. began weaving his thoughts into blog posts and now, two months later, I think he’s approaching the end of the series. Or maybe he’s just beginning. I don’t know.

When it’s complete, the entire series may be organized into a more formal outline. And as C.J. continues his work on the next post, it may be helpful to see how this series has developed.

Here is a simple series index to date:

Biblical Productivity

1. Are You Busy?

2. Confessions of a Busy Procrastinator

3. The Procrastinator Within

4. Just Do It

5. In All Thy Ways

6. The Sluggard

7. Time. Redeemed.

8. Roles, Goals, Scheduling

9. Roles (Part 1)

10. Roles (Part 2)

11. Goals (Part 1)

12. Goals (Part 2)

13. Goals (Part 3)

14. Goals (Part 4)

15. Scheduling the Unexpected

16. The To-Do Lists Are Never Done

17. Self-Sufficient

Feedback

How can this series improve? As the “Biblical Productivity” series expands, C.J. would love to hear your suggestions, questions, and comments. Email them to blog AT sovgracemin DOT org. I cannot promise a personal email response, but I can promise your words will be read and taken into consideration as the series develops.

Thanks for reading!

Roles, Goals, Scheduling

One of the best time management approaches that I personally use is "roles and goals" scheduling. I first read about the approach in the book "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen R. Convey.  He develops the approach in the book in the section of the book entitled, "Habit 3:  Put First Things First - Principles of Personal Managemment".  I also had the privilege of being mentored  for a season in this planning technique by CJ Mahaney whose personal example of life planning inspired me to follow his example.  Below is a blog post he did where he does a brilliant job in capturing the key elements of Roles and Goals planning.  The post can be found at:

http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/blogs/cj-mahaney/post/cj-mahaney-roles-goals-scheduling.aspx

Roles, Goals, Scheduling

December 11, 2008 by C.J. MahaneyCategories: Busyness | Laziness | Schedule

Currently Amazon.com lists 90,864 books under the topic of “time management.” Titles range from Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen, a helpful book I recommend, to Time Management for Dummies, a book I have not read, although it appears I represent the target audience.

“Time management” books are hot and it’s obvious why—we all want to discover some previously unknown secret that will enable us to become more productive. Yet in this series we have discovered that getting more things done does not mean we are getting the right things done.

Or to put this in a little triad: busyness does not mean I am diligent; busyness does not mean I am faithful; busyness does not mean I am fruitful.

In the past several posts in this series, we looked at procrastination: putting off until the last moment tasks that are important (and presumably most difficult), and instead devoting ourselves to what is easy and urgent, but not as important.

My busyness may be procrastination in disguise.

But today we transition in this series from discussing the hindrances to biblical productivity (procrastination, laziness, and the tendencies of the sluggard) to looking at how we can effectively plan and prioritize.

From my study of this topic and my observation of those I admire (and desire to emulate), it appears to me that being faithful, productive, and fruitful for the glory of God requires that I accomplish three things:

1. define my present God-given roles,
2. determine specific, theologically informed goals, and
3. transfer these goals into my schedule.

Over the next several posts we will develop these three in some detail.

But you may be thinking to yourself, why go through the trouble of determining these roles, creating goals, and fitting all this into my schedule? Why not take life as it comes?

Perhaps you dislike—or even despise—all things related to planning. Perhaps you, like me, can identify with my friend Michael McKinley when he recently wrote: “I would rather stick a fork in my eye than sit in a planning meeting.” Mike has painfully and creatively captured my tendency to postpone planning, and if possible, avoid planning altogether. But while I think of myself as an all-about-the-moment guy, my avoidance of planning is to the detriment of my schedule and (more importantly) to the detriment of my service to my family and church.

Here’s why.

The problem for those of us with this fork-in-the-eye approach to planning is that during each day the most urgent requests will compete with and distract from the most important goals and priorities of our lives. Each day the number of requests we receive normally outnumber the time allotted for the day. My experience confirms that if I fail to attack my week with theologically informed planning, my week attacks me with an onslaught of the urgent. And I end up devoting more time to the urgent than the important.

And at the end of the week there is a low-grade guilt and dissatisfaction in my soul, because I’ve neglected to do the truly important stuff. I want to have as few weeks like this as possible in whatever time remains for me to serve the Savior. I’m thinking you do as well.

--------

Roles (Part 1)

December 17, 2008 by C.J. MahaneyCategories: Schedule

It’s not hard for us to imagine that pastors and church planters are called by God. This is clear to us throughout Scripture. So when we come across the first verse in Romans, where Paul says he was “called to be an apostle” (ESV), we have no problem with this. 

But what about the rest of us? 

What about a stay-at-home mom with two kids? What about an auto mechanic? How about a real estate agent and a business owner? Has God called them? 

What about you? Are you aware of being called by God to a particular task?

Theology of Work

Disagreements over a “theology of work” are common throughout church history. In fact (I was just told) the Middle Ages was marked by a stiff distinction between sacred and secular work. Pastors and church leaders were considered called; laborers were not so called. One is sacred; one is secular. 

Then along came a Reformation.

Not only did the Reformers make a giant stride by viewing “secular” work as a calling from God, they took a second step and broadened this calling to include not only work but also vocation. 

Leland Ryken writes in his book Redeeming the Time (Baker, 1995), “The early Protestants rightly conceived of our callings as being much broader than our job. All of our roles in life are callings. Being a spouse, a parent, a church member, a neighbor, and a Christian are all callings” (p. 151).

By this, the Reformers introduced an understanding of God’s sovereignty that included all of life—every vocation, every detail, every moment.

Today it appears that many Christians aren’t clear on their work as calling. Christians are normally clear that we should live out the Christian ethic in the workplace. But the Reformers were calling for something bigger.

Ryken writes:

Most Christians believe they can be a Christian at work. To do so involves being a diligent worker, being honest in one’s dealings with an employer, and witnessing to fellow workers. But this still leaves the work itself untouched by one’s Christian faith. The original Protestants were right in going beyond this and claiming that the work itself is a spiritual issue and a means of glorifying God. We can be Christian not only in our work but through our work if we view our work as an obedient response to God’s calling. (p. 148)

This perspective will transform your attitude as you proceed to work, wait in traffic, and arrive to work for yet another day!

Determining Roles

But how can I be certain of my own calling? How can I know I am in the right job? Am I in the proper career path? What about where God wants me in the future? How do I determine God’s intended vocation(s) for my life? 

In his book The Spirituality of the Cross (Concordia, 1999), Gene Veith provides two insightful questions.

First, where has God placed me?

How do we know our vocation? Strictly speaking—and contrary to the way we pressure young people to “decide” what they are going to do when they grow up—a vocation is not something we choose for ourselves. Rather, it is given by God, who “calls” us to a particular work or station. God gives each individual unique talents, skills, and inclinations. He also puts each individual in a unique set of external circumstances, which are understood as having been providentially arranged by God. Since vocation is not self-chosen, it can be known too through the actions of others. Getting offered a job, being elected to an office, finding someone who wants to marry you, are all clues to vocation…

Perhaps later, another vocation will present itself. But vocation is to be found not simply in future career decisions, but in the here and now. Nor can a person use the excuse of “not having a vocation for marriage” for getting a divorce, or claim “not having a vocation for parenthood” as a way to dump childrearing responsibilities. If you are married, that’s your vocation. If you have children, they are your vocation. (p. 80)

Second, where am I positioned to serve others?

The purpose of one’s vocation, whatever it might be, is serving others. It has to do with fulfilling Christ’s injunction to love one’s neighbor…Our relationship to God is not determined by our good works (since those with a sinful nature can never have enough of them to earn anything before God)—what we need rather, is forgiveness for our sins and the perfect good works of Jesus Christ. But our relationship to our neighbors is determined by our good works, which themselves are only made possible by God working through us. (pp. 77, 78)

Essentially, your vocation is to be found in the place you occupy in the present. A person stuck in a dead-end job may have higher ambitions, but for the moment, that job, however humble, is his vocation. Flipping hamburgers, cleaning hotel rooms, emptying bedpans all have dignity as vocations, spheres of expressing love of neighbor through selfless service, in which God is masked. (p. 80)

It may be that our vocation is not clear because we have not started with these two questions.

• Where has God placed me?
• Where am I positioned to serve others?

Take a moment to look down at your feet. Go ahead, look. For most of us, our feet are currently resting within the geographic circle of God’s calling on our lives. In the future God may call you outside that circle. But that is for another time. 

I fear too many Christians are so distracted by thoughts of the future that they cannot discern with clarity how God has called them to serve in their present vocations. Though they show up for work each day, they don’t work with passion and joy each day.

Conclusion

As you ask yourself these questions, pray that God will help his specific call on your life become clear. Look down, and write down what you discover. 
    
Keep the list handy, because next time we will look at that list and get into the specifics.

Roles (Part 2)

December 18, 2008 by C.J. MahaneyCategories: Schedule

Not long ago I was awake in the middle of the night, reading, and enjoying the silence. 

Except I kept hearing a sound.

Tap…Tap…Tap. 

It sounded like dripping water. But from where?

A short search led me to our main-level bathroom, where the dripping noise was the loudest. Crouching down, I opened the cabinet doors under the sink and discovered a little puddle of water in the cabinet.

The problem was easy to see: The drip was coming from the shut-off valve connecting the main water pipe to the faucet pipe. 

A small drip. 

A small puddle. 

A small problem.

I had two choices: seek help from someone who understands plumbing, or take matters into my own hands and fix the drip myself. 

I chose the less wise option.

Equipped with no plumbing knowledge whatsoever, I assumed that turning the shut-off valve would tighten the connection and stop the leak. But as I tried to tighten the valve, it came loose. Powered by the water pressure behind it, the valve was fired past me like a bullet.

Immediately an unstoppable spray drenched my clothes, sprayed through the makeshift stopper of my hand that was clenching the pipe, soaked the bathroom floor, and began to flood the hallway.

The dark, quiet, sleepy household was filled with the loud shouts of a helpless, waterlogged man. 

With some help we shut off the water pressure, cleaned up the mess, laughed a lot, and went back to bed. Someone with actual plumbing expertise fixed the problem the next day.

My point is obvious: I am not a plumber. And although sometimes I think I can excel beyond my limited gifting, I cannot. Now that the bathroom has been restored to proper working order, I find great liberation in yet another reminder that I am not called to do everything.
 
Gene Veith writes, “In our earthly lives, we do not have to do everything. Earthly life—and this is operative with non-believers no less than believers—consists of giving and receiving, serving and being served, in a network of economic and social and personal interdependence” (The Spirituality of the Cross, p. 76).

Which is to say that God calls us to fulfill specific roles.

What Are My Roles?

It is liberating to know that God has called me to fulfill specific roles. And knowing this can protect me from doing stupid things. But how do I know what God has called me to do?

In the last post we talked about two very helpful questions:

• Where has God placed me?
• Where am I positioned to serve others?

If this all seems illusive to you, it may help to see a list of roles (or vocations). This is hardly a comprehensive list, but in this list perhaps you will better identify specific roles where God has placed you. 

• Christian
• Single man
• Single woman
• Husband
• Wife
• Father
• Mother
• Child
• Grandfather
• Grandmother
• Church member
• Pastor 
• Ministry leader
• Church planter
• Employee
• Business owner
• Student
• Educator
• Chef
• 24-hour emergency plumber

Wonderfully, none of these roles falls outside the scope of God’s calling. By his sovereign grace, he has placed each of us where we presently are. And once we identify these God-given roles, we can begin to think about creating specific goals.

And I think it’s important to note that our specific roles will change over time, so we need to revisit the list (maybe even annually).

My Roles

So here is where my planning for a particular week begins, not with the schedule, but with considering my God-given roles. If I’m not fulfilling my roles, my goals will be misdirected, and I will be vulnerable to all manner of requests and fail to devote myself to what is most important.

These are the roles assigned to me by the grace of God. I am a…

1. Christian
2. Husband
3. Father
4. Grandfather
5. Ministry leader

So how has God called you? Take a moment to list God’s callings on your life. Create your own personal list of roles. Writing this list out will increase your awareness of your God-given roles, which will help you prioritize and plan.

As I hope you will discover for yourself in this series, our biblical productivitydepends upon a schedule, which depends upon clear goals, which depends uponclearly defined roles. Working toward clarity on understanding my present roles is my first (and most important) step in developing biblical productivity. 

Defining our roles helps to ensure that we are doing stuff that matters each day, knowing we have in some small way advanced the gospel and served others. 

It is sweet falling asleep knowing we have redeemed the time.

Do you plan each week for your job search?

One of the biggest challenges in a job search is to make the weekly investment of time that is necessary to make contacts with people who are hiring (advertised or not).  Blindly emailing resumes often has limited success.  

This is where your relationship with God comes in to help in your time of need.  Remember that in your job search, the Holy Spirit is there to guide and direct you into the Father's will for you in this season.  God the Father is in control (sovereign) , he is good and he causes all things to work together for your good as well ...or as the ESV study bible footnote says....God works IN ALL THINGS for the good.

Romans: 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together hfor good,1 for ithose who are called according to his purpose.

Footnotes

[1] 8:28 Some manuscripts God works all things together for good, or God works in all things for the good

One of the keys in staying in touch with the Spirit during your job search is regular prayer...acknowledging your dependence on God for his help.    Below is a devotional by Os Hillman that exhorts us about the importance of good planning.  Mr. Hillman shares his insights in respect to the lack of planning in a failed construction project or the tendency of entrepreneurs to not follow thru on the detailed planning that is necessary to make their ideas reality.  The importance of planning in a job search is fundamental to success.  

In addition to regularly crying out/praying  to God for his help and guidance in your search, I suggest you consider the following activities and block the appropriate time slots in your upcoming weekly schedule to keep momentum going in your job search....putting on your calendar to do such things as: 

• blocking a certain time each week to plan for the week.  I like to use the "roles and goals" approach which is addressed in another blog.  Once you get your roles and goals template up and running it takes as little as 10 minutes a week to advance specific, atttainable and measurable (SAM) goals that you sense God is leading you in.  

             (Caution:  If you are not committed to regular planning, a week can go by without doing anything on your job search.  A week of inactivity can easily turn into successive weeks of inactivity and all of a sudden months go by and there has been no intentional investment in the hard work it takes to look for a job .  Left unchecked, a lack of planning and actual investment of time in your job search often times leads to discouragement and a temptation to give up your search.

• doing discovery exercises in books like "What Color is Your Parachute?"  to better understand your God given gifts and passions to be used in the work place for God's glory and your best good. 

• planning to attend the weekly Tuesday night McLean Church Career Network Ministry (CNM)...an exceptional ministry with its sole mission being  to support folks looking for jobs with over 60 trained job counselors ready to assist folks each Tuesday night.

• blocking time in your weekly schedule for looking for job opportunities on job sites like Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, Indeed.com, USAJobs (governement).  Take the time to set up job searches on the respective websites so you will get emails when a new job opportunity is first advertised in your area of interest.  This email notification makes it so much easier to stay on top of breaking announcements.

• arranging for making a certain number of informational interview calls or office cold calls (see "What Color is your Parachute for more on this topic) each week.

• finding and beginning to attend a monthly professional society meeting in the area of your vocational interest.  This is an excellent way to get in touch with folks who are passionate about and dedicated to the stuff you are interested in.  You can build a network of workplace points of contacts that will not only serve you gleaning information for your current job search but will be sources of counsel for years to come.

• working  on making your resume "base template"  (what you edit each time for a specific job advertisement by making sure you have used the appropriate "key words" from the ad in your resume )  more robust with specific details and accomplishments to distinguish yourself from other applicants.

Read on for more insight in the devotional entitled, "TGIF - Complete the Work" that can be found at:  https://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#inbox/133d4885f977d145

Today's Prayer 

Dear Father in Heaven, my hope is in your unfailing love. I acknowledge that you are the source of all that I am. You are the one who gives me the ability to work, plan, and execute. Help me to keep my mind on your abilities, not my abilities. Please show me how to maintain this balance of your abilities and desire to do for me and through me and my abilities that you have given me to use in work and ministry. I pray that, with your guidance, I will use my abilities to the fullest at home, work, and play, and that you will get the glory for all the good that is done. Thank you in the name of Jesus, amen.

---

Complete the Work
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
11-24-2011

"Tell Archippus: 'See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord.'" (Col 4:17).

Have you ever driven by a construction project that was half finished but was now abandoned? It is a lasting testimony of something that had a vision, often with significant money invested, but something happened that killed the project.

Why do projects fail to be completed? There could be a number of reasons. There could have been a failure to raise adequate funds to complete it. There could have been a fall-out among management. The project could have been simply ill-conceived.

Good planning is key to estimating what it will take to complete a project. "Then the LORD replied: 'Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time ?'" ( Hab 2:2-3).

We must conceive the project and clearly write out the vision with detailed specifications that identify what will be needed to complete it. Entrepreneurs have a tendency to conceive projects without estimating the financial and manpower requirements to complete the projects. Many a project has died because of this trait in entrepreneurs.

Great entrepreneurs understand their need to have detail-people around them that can take their ideas and put the details around them. These are wise entrepreneurs who have learned to complement their weakness with those who can help them achieve their vision.

Do you have a vision for a work God has called you to do? Identify what will be needed to achieve success. 

Today God Is First (TGIF) devotional message, Copyright by Os Hillman, Marketplace Leaders.

John Piper - How can a business person glorify God in their work?

In this video clip, John Piper shares how a business person can glorify God in their secular work by seeking to do their work in such a way that Christ looks more important than their work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGVkQyC1IFY

John Piper - The Protestant Work Ethic

For John Piper's inspiring message on the Protestant Work Ethic, go to the following link for his message on how working out our salvation in fear and trembling expresses itself through the Protestant Work Ethic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QD1Z1iJhhtU

How long does it take to find a job?

Author of best selling book "What Color is Your Parachute", Richard Bolles,  briefly shares insights related to the following three topics:

• How long does it take to find a new job?
• How effective are resumes 
• Above all never give up

To see the video presentation, go to:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CskppTlw2S4&feature=related

Losing a job can be a secret nudge of the Spirit

Richard Bollles, author of the best selling book, "What Color is your Parachute?" is interrviewed and tells how losing a job can be a secret nudging of the Spirit...ultimately to something positive.  He tells of  some of the terrible experiences he has been through...including being fired twice....a how every experience you go through develops skills that you will use at a later point in life.  The key becomes staying alive to what you are learning as no experience is ever wasted.

Go to the following link for more from Richard Bolles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HN_kPI16LEk&feature=related

Honor God by making your boss a success

I have found that the one of the best ways to advance a career is having as one of your goals to make your boss a success...whether in your opinion he is "good" or "bad" of his oversight of you.  


Regardless of how our bosses relate to us (see Eph 6: 9 below...which doesn't always happen), we as "bondservants" are to conduct ourselves in the following manner toward them according to Paul's exhortation in Eph 6:5-9

Bondservants and Masters

5 vBondservants,1 obey your earthly masters2 with fear and trembling, wwith a sincere heart, xas you would Christ, 6 not by the way of eye-service, as ypeople-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7 rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man,8 zknowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, awhether he is a bondservant3 or is free. 9 Masters, do the same to them, band stop your threatening, knowing that che who is both their Master4 and yours is in heaven, and that dthere is no partiality with him.

I was reading through some articles on how to make your boss a success, a biblical principle that I believe honors God.  I found the following tips in an article entitled, "7 ways to make your boss look good".  I have taken excerpts from the article intentionally as some of the content was not as helpful to me as other (including the warning that some of the distracting pop ups of the site are not edifiying...and the website would have content in general that would be counter to a biblical world view in my opinion).  It you still would prefer to read the original content in its full context, it can be found at:  


http://www.askmen.com/money/career_100/108_career.html

Now on to the tips I found personally helpful:

>>>>>>Taken from the Article "7 Ways To Make Your Boss Look Good"


Helping your boss shine has several advantages, including:

It can make his job easier, which reflects well on you

It makes your boss remember you

It provides you with a greater level of job security

It can make you look good

It's good for the overall image of your department

tricks of the trade

Making your boss look good can also be tricky.  Because I'm assuming that you already know how to do your job well, this will not be a lesson on how to be a competent employee.  

Here are seven tricks of the trade when it comes to shining a positive light on your boss.

1- Prepare

•  Being prepared means having things ready when you say they'll be ready. It also means preparing things (like reports) and going over them with your boss so that he understands them as well. This will help him when he has to explain your work to others, and he'll look informed and on top of the situation.

2- Anticipate

• Anticipating what will make your boss look good.   For example, if you happen to know that your boss' boss likes pie charts, prepare them for your boss. You might say something like, "I know your superior likes pie charts, so I thought that these might make your presentation go a little smoother."

• Another example might be a meeting where your boss seems to be at a loss for words. At the appropriate time, you might want to chime in and ask a pertinent question to get him back on track. Give him the wording he's looking for.

• Make him look good, cover his back and share the credit.

3- Market

• You should try to positively market your boss when you get the chance. That doesn't mean that you have to slap everyone on the back and tell them what a great guy he is every chance you get.

• You should also be on the lookout for opportunities to subtly give him credit for good ideas or for helping you in a pinch. 

• And don't hesitate to pitch in unsolicited help when it's required. This can take the form of entertaining a client that has an appointment if your boss is going to be late.

4- Cover your boss' back

• Provide damage control for his actions and be a filter for what he says. This may take the form of you stepping up to bat for him if someone is running him down. It may also mean that you "soften" some of his words, memos or letters if they seem too harsh.

• Clear up any misunderstandings about him. For example, if you know he's late for a meeting because of traffic, then say so. If he's late submitting a report because his wife is in the hospital, tell the right person.

5- Share the praise

• Let your boss take credit for work that you've done or that both of you have collaborated on. Hopefully, he'll recognize your efforts and give you the proper credit. 

• Don't try to grab the spotlight; share it with your boss and chances are he'll share it with you.

6- Do your job well

• This point may seem almost too obvious to mention, but it's one of the most important. If you do good work, everyone benefits, including your boss. Here are some key points to remember:  (1)  Meet or exceed your goals (2) Follow the mission statement (3) Be a cheerleader for the company (4) Be punctual not only for meetings but also for deadlines

7- Look sharp

• Your appearance not only affects what people think about you, it reflects how they perceive your boss as well. 

• Looking sharp gives you an instant boost in the eyes of others. It also has an impact on their perception of how your boss runs his department. This is especially the case when it comes to clients.

• Looking like a slouch may be comfortable, but it does nothing for your credibility. 

Make him look good...It involves doing everything you can to put him in a positive light in the eyes of those around him. Become his invisible hand that gets things done and eventually you'll be repaid with visible rewards.