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Dennis Peacocke
“Good times or tough times, bring them on. We shine our best when
people are asking for help.”
Ultimately, managing
our "business" is about managing ourselves, whether or not we
actually own or oversee our place of employment.
As we have all been
told before, true freedom begins in godly self-government. While we cannot
control many factors in life and in our external environment, we can control
our reactions to them.
In uncertain times
like these it is wise to re-ground ourselves in these kind of
"basics."
Indeed, under
pressure, the basics of truth that we know and have practised are what help to
stabilize us and all those we influence.
It therefore behooves
us in both our personal and professional lives to be very clear on the truths
upon which we rest our lives, our families, and our fortunes.
Ernest Hemmingway once opined that, "in a calm sea, every
man is a captain."
That phrase has stuck
with me over the years because it so clearly expresses the idea that genuine
pressure reveals where people and organizations really are.
Similarly, knowing
that cycles of pressure and uncertainty are the normal and expected realities
facing us all, it is in times of relative peace that people, businesses, and
nations should clarify and shore up the values and principles which have proven
themselves in times of peace and times of pressure.
In this sense,
self-government and managing ourselves means living in the constant reality
that what we practise in times of profit and certainty must be grounded
sufficiently in God's truth to work in times of leanness and uncertainty.
A
"disciple" is a disciplined learner; a good manager is a
self-conscious truth-practiser.
Living in reality
means preparing for challenges and belt-tightening when expansion and
profitability seem to extend out into the future indefinitely.
Those who haven't
prepared for 2003 in the hay-days of the latter half of the 1990s are now
paying the price for their own ungoverned optimism.
Life on a
"fallen planet" is constantly cycling in and out of seasons of
relative prosperity only to fall prey to the consequences of personal and
social sin following prosperity's heels.
This external
fickleness should build within us a determination in God for internal
"fixedness." That kind of stability or "fixedness" within
us also produces stability around us.
This kind of stability
is the product of living in some "tough questions" in all seasons and
cycles. Let us now look at some of those self-examining exercises that produce
firm foundations in life.
Three Tough Questions that Stand Up to Tough Times
Three Tough Questions that Stand Up to Tough Times
1. Question Number One: Am I "current" with God?
Being
"current" with God means that we are living in fellowship and
obedience to Him daily. We are not talking about "perfection" here.
What we are talking
about is a disciple's lifestyle of seeking to guard our thoughts, emotions, and
actions and constantly submitting them to the training process of God's Word
being applied to real-life situations under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit.
If indeed we are
living in this kind of simple yet profound reality, habitual sins are being
addressed, and deceptions and unrealistic expectations are being exposed and
rejected.
Being saved in
Christ, and daily practising His lifestyle of disciplined reality, are not the
same thing for the vast majority of believers. After thirty-plus years of
pastoring I know this to be true.
2. Question Number Two: Am I diligently applying God's Word and
principles to my ministry in the workplace?
As regular readers of
this magazine know, "Christianity" that does not envelop the whole of
our lives is not yet biblical Christianity.
This is especially
true of how we think and act at work, where we spend the majority of our
energy, time, and ministry focus.
The curse of
Greek-thinking philosophy is the separation of "spirit and matter."
The curse of this
dualistic thinking in Christianity is the attempted separation of Christian
beliefs in our so-called "church life" from the remainder of our
"regular life," especially our ministry at work where we have the
opportunity to know and influence so many others.
The workplace is
Christianity's greatest "fishing hole," and it is the place where
believers can create investment capital and jobs.
Someday Christian
economics will profoundly influence the world. That reality is in its
conception stage today but its infancy may not be many years in the future,
especially in the so-called "Third World."
Put on your
"magic glasses" and study the scriptures from a workplace,
economic-principled, leadership perspective. A whole new world will unfold to
you and continue to expand in depth, breadth, and power.
3. Question Number Three: Am I preparing to accept change and
increased responsibility for people and things as God is growing me up?
". . . and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow
heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be
glorified with Him." Romans 8:17
To grow in Christ
means that the depth of our relationship with Him is causing our influence with
people to grow deeper and wider as a result.
If our workplace
ministry in God is motivated by the desire to simply "make more
money," we are missing it tragically.
The real issue is,
how is my relationship with God serving people as it draws them to Him, and
displays the effectiveness of His truth practically in the real world?
Life in the marketplace
is the believer's golden opportunity to "put up or shut up," or more
precisely, to "grow up so that we can show up."
The worldwide revival
that is being slowly awakened in the marketplace will be driven by believers
who see God's strategic hand moving here.
In regards to the world's worship of economic issues and personal
lifestyle, God is basically saying: "Okay, if you insist on making
economics and personal lifestyle your god, I will touch them both through
judgment and by modeling My economic vision for the earth simultaneously."
This is not a
statement of "doom and gloom." It is a statement of God's ongoing
love for the world by calling it out of unreality as He demonstrates the real
thing through His people.
If we don't get this,
we don't yet understand the game. The King and His Kingdom are coming to earth
through His people, in a measure, before He returns in person.
Believers who are
constantly preparing themselves for more responsibility in Christ will prosper
in any economic cycle or climate. T
heir stability,
decision-making, and principled lifestyles will make them lighthouses in
turbulent seas. They will be real captains, to respond to Hemmingway's
observation, because lighthouses were built for safe navigation in storms.
Living in these three
questions is putting boulders, cement, and re-bar into our foundations while it
is at the same time cleaning our windows, and brightening the clarity and sweep
of our beacon light.
Good times or tough times, bring them on. We shine our best when
people are asking for help.
By Dennis Peacocke. This article originally appeared in the March/April 2003 edition of Business Reform
By Dennis Peacocke. This article originally appeared in the March/April 2003 edition of Business Reform
DENNIS
PEACOCKE
One of
the most genuine and compelling communicators of our day, Dennis Peacocke has
carried a concern for social justice for over 35 years. In his college days,
this concern was expressed through his involvement in the civil rights and free
speech movements.
He
graduated from Berkeley with a major in Political Science at the height of the
turbulent 60’s. Since his conversion in 1968, Dennis has gained international
respect as a strategist due to his unique way of applying biblical solutions to
the many challenging issues facing families, churches, business, and
government.
Both a
former business owner and pastor, Dennis is the founder and president of
GoStrategic (formerly Strategic Christian Services), a leadership
organization dedicated to demonstrating the relevance of Christianity to every
area of contemporary life. He has authored four books: On the Destiny of Nations published
in 2012, Winning the Battle for the
Minds of Men, published in 1987 and 2000, Doing Business God’s Way, published in
1994 and 2003, and The Emperor Has
No Clothes published in 2003.
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