King David’s Last Words – about Leadership

 

When one rules justly over men, ruling in the fear of God, he dawns on them like the morning light, like the sun shining forth on a cloudless morning, like rain that makes grass to sprout from the earth.

2 Samuel 23 – The God of Israel has spoken; the Rock of Israel has said to me: When one rules justly over men, ruling in the fear of God, he dawns on them like the morning light, like the sun shining forth on a cloudless morning, like rain that makes grass to sprout from the earth.

“For does not my house stand so with God? For he has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure. For will he not cause to prosper all my help and my desire?

But worthless men are all like thorns that are thrown away, for they cannot be taken with the hand; but the man who touches them arms himself with iron and the shaft of a spear, and they are utterly consumed with fire.”

 

I find it interesting that David’s last words were words of wisdom about leadership.

And interesting reminder of God’s covenant with the Israeli people.

I’m proud that in Canada we have a prime minister does the right things for the right reasons like standing up for Israel.

But these are words of wisdom not just for world leaders but in every small way that we lead others.

We rule justly
We fear God

Simple rules for leadership.

Grateful (Five Minute Friday) – The anti-dote to resentment is to be grateful

The anti-dote to resentment is to be grateful.

It’s in our human nature to resent those around us. In our workplace, it’s easy to be resentful when someone undeserving gets ahead. We never really grow out of the child-like cry of ‘it’s not fair!’ Unless we choose to be grateful.

One of my life verses – in EVERYTHING, give thanks.

Philippians 4:6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

But it comes with a promise!!

Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Is God faithful?

Yes

Does He do what He promises?

Yes

So if I am grateful and thank God every single time I go to him in prayer, he WILL absolutely GUARD my MIND and my HEART.

and for that I will always be grateful and lift, exalt, and praise the faithfulness of our God!

If Paul can be grateful while in prison, I can be grateful in my cubicle.

Today I am grateful for my mother, for her example of godliness, for her faithfulness in praying over my and my children and for giving me a heritage that chooses to be grateful and to have joy.

!

Gratefulness as the antidote to resentment is part of my strategy for Maintaining Good Mental Health

What if God Were My Boss?

I have been convicted lately about my work ethic – at work. I can sometimes lose focus, or spend time working on non-work related things while at work. I know that this is not right. If I was doing a job, that I knew was directly related to God’s kingdom and I had to report to him every day on what I had done, how I had spent my time, and how I had treated others, would anything be different? Moste likely the answer is yes!

A few of my favourite verses that speak to this.

Colossians 3:17 – 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Philippians 2:14-15 – 14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,

Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might…

Staying Connected

Using Technology
Despite our resolve to reduce our expenses (see Frugal Club entries), the one thing we chose NOT to reduce, was our family cell phone bill. With 3 teens (well, one pre-teen), at 2 different schools and both of us working full-time jobs downtown in the city, for us it is a priority. All 5 of us have devices. All our devices can text, email, call as well as be tracked via GPS. For my ultra-safety-minded husband, this – being able to track the whereabouts of our children, was a must.

However, what Richard does do, is call our cell phone provider on a regular basis and re-negotiate a better contract. We have been with the company for almost 20 years!! So he will ask for their loyalty and retention department and work them down until he has the best deal. He has the patience and perseverance to be on the phone for 2 hours sometimes hashing out a deal!

Richard and I text each other throughout the day (I am not a phone person). And I text the kids sometimes during the day as well. My oldest daughter had a history test 2nd period, so I just sent a quick text on my lunch hour to see how it went. Yesterday, I retweeted a funny comment and tagged her in the tweet. Within minutes, she had favourited the tweet, and I knew she had gotten it and smiled. We embrace and use the technology for all the good reasons!

Sharing the Household Chores

Right from when our children were babies, we were both working full-time, but both of us wanted to be deeply attached to our children. So we share the responsibilities of maintaining the house almost equally so we both have time left over for our kids. He goes into work at 6am every day, so that he is home when they get home from school. And he cooks dinner every night! He feels I am better suited to help them with their homework in the evening, so he will do laundray or other tasks as needed.

Minimum Weeknight Activities and Sports

As a family, we are all home-bodies and relish our time relaxing at home together, watching or movie or playing games. I realize some kids want to participate in every activity and sport, and we are lucky our kids aren’t that way. It saves us money and allows us to spend more time together as a family. If they do any sports, it’s through school so it doesn’t cost money and usually takes place during school hours. My one daughter with music lessons, takes them at school. And they all do Bible quizzing, and go to Youth at church. For our family, this is a balanced approach that helps us stay connected.

Proverbs 1:2-7
To know wisdom and instruction,
to understand words of insight,
3 to receive instruction in wise dealing,
in righteousness, justice, and equity;
4 to give prudence to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the youth—
5 Let the wise hear and increase in learning,
and the one who understands obtain guidance,
6 to understand a proverb and a saying,
the words of the wise and their riddles.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Being a Light Wherever you are – 1 John 1

Have you ever met someone who positively radiates Christ?

I’m currently writing a reference for a young lady just about to graduate from teacher’s college. This young women truly radiated Christ in her interactions with others. She was always a joy to be around.

Writing up the reference letter has really made me stop and think about my interactions with people in my workplace. Do I radiate Christ? Do I shine among my coworkers? Do people see me as different?

I think people see me as ‘nice’ and some may notice that my language is clean or that I don’t go out for drinks with them. But that isn’t the same as someone seeing me in action and wanting what I have – joy, peace, outpouring love for others, etc.

How can I be a light? How do we shine? Paul says in Philippians

Philippians 2:14-15 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky.

We can start by not grumbling or arguing!

I started the #HelloMornings challenge today (1 day late!) and we are studying Abiding Love in John’s letters, today we were in 1 John, and I really loved this whole passage, especially broken out in the Amplified Bible.

John says in 1 John 1 (from the Amplified Bible)

Walking in the Light

5 And this is the message [the message of [promise] which we have heard from Him and now are reporting to you: God is Light, and there is no darkness in Him at all [no, not in any way].

6 [So] if we say we are partakers together and enjoy fellowship with Him when we live and move and are walking about in darkness, we are [both] speaking falsely and do not live and practice the Truth [which the Gospel presents].

7 But if we [really] are living and walking in the Light, as He [Himself] is in the Light, we have [true, unbroken] fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses (removes) us from all sin and guilt [keeps us cleansed from sin in all its forms and manifestations].

8 If we say we have no sin [refusing to admit that we are sinners], we delude and lead ourselves astray, and the Truth [which the Gospel presents] is not in us [does not dwell in our hearts].

9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action].

10 If we say (claim) we have not sinned, we contradict His Word and make Him out to be false and a liar, and His Word is not in us [the divine message of the Gospel is not in our hearts].
..

So John is saying that we need to walk in the light, and since Jesus is the light, and there is no darkness in Him, if we want to have fellowship with him, we need to:

1. Confess our sins, so we can be cleansed from our unrighteousness
2. PRAY – Fellowship with Him
3. Stay away from darkness, Walk in the Light so we can have true, unbroken fellowship with one another
4. Live and practice The Truth, The Gospel, keep His word in us and in our hearts.

I pray Father, that today I will reflect Jesus in me. That my face will radiate the joy and peace that comes from you. That my heart will not grumble or complain. Help me to know where I am sinning against you so I can confess and you will remove my sin and guilt. Keep me in close fellowship with you throughout my day, steer my path away from darkness so I can stay in your Light. Help me to live and practice you truth day in and day out and to always love your Word.

Got Wisdom?

Early in my career, something came up in work, and I prayed and asked God for wisdom in this particular situation. And for some reason, I was surprised when He did graciously give me wisdom! But He promises us that if any of us lacks wisdom, we should ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach. It’s a pretty open offer!

I am thankful to have learned this lesson early in my career, as I have relied on God’s wisdom time and time again over the years. Best advice to someone starting out in their career – is to keep asking for wisdom every day.

I recently found this little gem in Proverbs.

Keep Sound Wisdom and Discretion

Proverbs 3:21 – 26

21 My son [daughter], do not lose sight of these—
keep sound wisdom and discretion,
22 and they will be life for your soul
and adornment for your neck.
23 Then you will walk on your way securely,
and your foot will not stumble.
24 If you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror
or of the ruin[d] of the wicked, when it comes,
26 for the Lord will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being caught.

The Lord will be your confidence

You Do Not Need a Work Spouse

Working closely every day with others can definitely have its pros and cons. There is a relatively new phrase out there – ‘work spouse’ that I find a bit disconcerting.   As a christian in the workplace, in the IT field particularly, I rather enjoy the fact that I work with a higher percentage of males than females.  However, I set for myself certain personal guidelines to ensure that my actions in the workplace are honouring both to God and to my husband.

1. Always go for lunch or coffee in groups of 3 or more – although I would never tell a coworker that I can’t go to lunch with him unless a 3rd person comes along, I usually have a valid excuse not to go for lunch or coffee with that one other person.  Even though 99% of the time, I would trust the other person and no-one has any thoughts or intentions that are dishonourable, it is just better NOT to spend time with solely one other person.
2. Keep personal life seperate – i do not talk about, especially complain about, my spouse or family life to another coworker.
3. Keep in contact with your spouse at least once or twice during the day – a quick call, or in my case it’s usually a text message or two.  My husband is the one I should go to first – whether its with good news or bad.

1 Timothy 3:2 ESV

Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, [or the wife of one husband!] sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,

Psalm 85:10 ESV

Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.