iWork4Him PowerThought

We've talked about it all week .   We love to work , period . It brings exhilaration to our lives .   We love the thrill of the kill .   The completion of a major project .   The landing of a major sale .   Work brings satisfaction and appreciation in ways that family life rarely can .   However, work is demanding .   If we let it , work can take control of our lives .   If left unchecked work can...

There have been times in the 37 years of our marriage whe n one or both of us needed to work a significant amount of extra time t o meet a deadline to keep our jobs .   The issue comes when that short t erm becomes all the time .   Jim and I  started an insurance agency from scratch .   We knew that for the first three years , Jim would need to work three nights a week and 4 1/2 days a week to gro...

I can't tell you how many times Martha and I have heard this one phrase in a marriage mentoring session .   " I work hard so my family can have the things I didn't have when I was a kid. "   That's all fine and dandy , but usually , we are given that excuse after the spouse feels neglected .   That usually spurns a conversation about not feeling appreciated for how hard one spouse works .   It cre...

I love to work .   I love to jump out of bed , get ready for work , and go to work . I spend all day working and come home , and then after dinner , I like to work some more .   Working brings energy to me, and working brings satisfaction .   I love to work because I love to see things get accomplished .   I love checking things off my list .   There's a danger in loving work .   It's so easy to g...

I love to work .   I love to jump out of bed , get ready for work , and go to work . I spend all day working and come home , and then after dinner , I like to work some more .   Working brings energy to me, and working brings satisfaction .   I love to work because I love to see things get accomplished .   I love checking things off my list .   There's a danger in loving work .   It's so easy to g...

Retirement can be 30 - plus years of unemployment , but what d o those 30 years look like ? E xperts from the R etirement R eformation have determined there are three stages of retirement. The active stage is when you start pursuing life with all your energy . It is a time to be passionate about God's call on your life . Stage 2 is the mentoring stage , where people utilize the experiences and ins...

As we contemplate retirement, the horizon before us is full of immense opportunity. There are so many needs to fulfill and so many things to do ; the adventure is exciting. But how do we find out what we're supposed to do in retirement ? Well, we need to see where God is working and go and join H im there. There is a dire need for foster grandparents. There's a dire need to be an adoptive grandpar...

Does your calling retire when you do? Is o ur c alling just for our years from 20 to 65? Does God have a call on all of our lives or just those predetermined working years ? It is so important to recognize that the American government created the age 65 milestone . When we were born , we were born with a call on our lives. We were given a unique set of gifts , talents , and abilities that are ours...

It's important to recognize that very few of us think about what God wants us to do during our retirement years. We focus our thoughts on our adventures, the vacations we plan, and how many times we c an play golf , tennis , or pickleball. But what does God want us to do? When we retire , our callings do not. How do we know what God wants us to do? We ask H im. This is no small t ask either , as r...

Let's face the reality : every one of us spends a little time dreaming about our retirement . In fact , many of us spend time saving money for retirement , but to be honest with you , almost none of us plan on how we will spend our time in retirement other than going on vacation. God has way bigger plans for you than to just be on vacation during retirement. He wants you to flourish just like you...

When you retire , does your calling retire too? Does our calling run out when Social Security k icks in? I don't think so. Your mission field assignment may or may not change later on in life . Some of you have a career that could go until very late in life. Just because you're 65 doesn't mean that you're done working. Sure, maybe you need to change things up or perhaps you need to work fewer hour...

Why are you retiring? Is it because you're too old to work? Is it because you're ready for a break? Is it because you're ready for a change? We need to recognize why we want to retire. Change is OK. But it doesn't mean that retirement is an end to our work. God gave us work as a gift. That gift perpetuates throughout our lives until the very last breath. O ur work is meant to glorify God. If you'r...

So many retirees in America have spent a lifetime preparing for retirement. Well , I should say they're preparing their financial means for retirement , but are they preparing for what God has them to do in their retirement ? The answer is almost categorically no. How much time have you spent preparing for how God will use you when you retire? Does that planning include how you will use your gifts...

The American dream of retirement is a lie. The American dream says that we will retire and live out the remainder of our lives on vacation , enjoying sunsets on the beach w here every day is filled with pleasure and deep satisfaction. One problem. I t never work s out this way. Most of us know what we are going to retire from. We're retiring from a job we just want to be done with. It has paid our...

The American Dream of Retirement is a lie. It's also not biblical. God never intended for us to retire from work and then go on a perpetual vacation. Retirement is only mentioned once in the Bible and only for levitical priest s. However , when they retired,  their next role was to train up the next generation of levitical priests. We can learn a lot from that model. If you are retired or almost r...

One day a friend of mine called me and said "Jim, I have been trying to mentor and disciple my friend for 2 years now .   He is hopeless .   Maybe He will listen to you." That was almost 10 years ago now .   My new mentee was not a believer yet, was struggling with issues from the battlefield that impacted his marriage , and was very skeptical of church culture .   For 3 years , we wrestled about...

For the first two decades of our marriage, Jim and I did youth ministry as volunteers .   We spent thousands of hours with kids from various backgrounds and family structures .   I worked with girls who were daughters of pastors and daughters of high - powered executives , some from b roken families and some from healthy solid families .   These relationships often started when these girls were 11...

My husband Jim and I are very different .   He has done a lot of formal mentoring, and I tend to do more informal mentoring .   Over the years, I have taken the time to live life alongside so many different women .   Some older than me, some younger than me .   Since Jim and I are involved in marriage mentoring with Christian Entrepreneurial couples, I often spend time with the wives working life...

I f there is one thing , I learned from my first mentor, Mike, it i s that mentoring and discipleship is something to be done in the context of life and not in a hurry .   It was not a box to be checked but time to be set aside .   It was an investment of Mike's life into mine and , honestly, as it turns out, an investment of my life into Mikes .   Since I experience God differently than Mike, he...

As a 16 -year- old and a new believer of just 3 year s , I needed someone to invest their life in mine .   Was that discipleship or mentorship that I needed ?   Enter - Mike .   Many would argue that b eing a disciple - maker is inherently different than being a mentor.   Mentors often help someone become more like the mentor ; Disciple m akers help someone become more like JESUS.   Discipleship i...

Don't hang up on God! A friend shared this insight when she realized God wants to be with her at work and all day, not just during her morning quiet time. Imagine that God is right next to you throughout the day as you sit at your desk, meet around the conference room table, deliver that presentation , or make that sales call. Scripture tells us that we are God's co-workers , and that is true in a...

Your voice matters. No matter what you've experienced or been told, your ideas, creativity , and perspectives are important contributions to your work. Unfortunately, many women have been ignored, overlooked , and had their ideas stolen by others. Someone may have assumed you are more junior than you are. As difficult and discouraging as those experiences can be, other people don't get the final s...

We all have two voices speaking to us daily — God's still, small, loving voice and the accusing, fear-ridden, loud voice of the enemy. How can you tell the difference? If it's encouraging, uplifting, life-affirming, convicting yet loving, aligned with Truth, you can be sure it is from God. If it brings fear, insecurity, anger, condemnation , or confusion, you can be sure it's from the enemy. Whose...

You, dear sister, were created in God's image. Man and woman were given the same cultural mandate to fill and subdue the earth. Your talents and desire to make an impact through your work are planted in you by your Creator. Your purpose is to steward those talents for His glory by continually leaning on Him. No one else will use your talents in quite the same way you do. You will reach, impact , a...

Who you are is not the sum of your past mistakes, successes , or talents. You are a daughter of the one true King, created in Christ Jesus , to do work that brings glory to God in your own unique way. Even when no one else seems to notice you, God sees everything you do to support others, contribute to the success of your organization , and share His love. God hears every prayer you whisper, cry ,...