iWork4Him PowerThought

What if today, we committed to operate our businesses from a philosophy of "It's not about WHAT we sell or HOW MUCH we sell, it's about the LIVES we TOUCH and CHANGE."  That's "God's way of doing business". And it's the exact OPPOSITE of everything we have been taught as professional business people. But isn't that always God's way? This counter-cultural philosophy is rooted in Matthew 6:33: But s...

As a business leader, if you turned your business over to God, what would that look like? What would be the result? Hundreds of business owners we've interviewed over the past eight years have done it. They say the result is a DEEP sense of peace vs. stress, pressure, and tension. And a new, deepening understanding of their role as a STEWARD of God's business, vs. "being the OWNER of it".  What wo...

Every one of us in ministry. What? No, you say, I'm a CPA, I'm an engineer, I manage people at a construction company.  Yes, and you are called to be an Ambassador for Christ there.  The Apostle Paul agrees, as he wrote to the Ephesians, in Chapter 6 I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God's ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.  If Paul can...

I learned something new talking with a Physical Fitness company owner in Nashville. The only gift God has given us that we can control 100% is our body. What we eat, how we take care of it, what we feed it, if we are exercising it. Reminds me of Luke 11:36 Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you...

For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the  Sabbath  day and set it apart as holy.   So how about you?  Are you resting from your work? Are you taking a day off every week and keeping it holy? Are you honoring God with your business and keeping the Sabbath, not only for yourself, but for...

If you are like me you jump up out of bed, check for emergency text messages, check the weather, rush through your morning devotional time so you can get on to the real work of the day. Just recently Martha and I were reading a book by Kim Avery "The Prayer Powered Entrepreneur" and she suggests a different approach. Kim suggests that when we have our morning quiet time, be quiet and ask our Lord...

The wonder-woman complex. It's an unrealistic belief that we as women need to be everything to everybody. Where did that come from? And what's it doing to us? What if instead of trying to BE wonder-woman, we commit to be who God created us to be. .... To get to know our spiritual gifts, talents, strengths, and then went in search of God's heart, to find our true calling? .... What if every woman o...

When's the last time you really saw your co-workers?  .... Saw them as real three-dimensional people?  Not just a co-worker, workplace mate or just an employee?  When's the last time you remembered, that they're a son or daughter of God? .... That they were created, like you, by God, for a purpose. That they are worthy. That they have a life, and that life is just as important as yours.  That they...

Are you dreading Monday? Do you start to lose your joy come Sunday evening? .... What if instead of dreading Monday, you LOOKED FORWARD TO IT? What if instead of moaning about Monday, you prayed away your dread, and replaced it with thanks, and joy and intention? .... To pray that come Monday morning, you would FEEL GOD in your work, as you work. That your work would glorify God, that you would be...

Are you feeling as though you're just going to work on auto-pilot? That you can do your work now, with your eyes closed, with one arm tied behind your back?  When's the last time you asked God to stretch YOU , in your work? Comfort is not a place Christ-followers should be camping out in. .... So how about you ? Are you brave enough, to ask "Lord, will you stretch me today? Will you put me to bett...

Some things in life are more challenging than others. Like finances. And even more challenging: How do we glorify God with our finances?  If you think you've mastered your finances, there's a next step, a better way to glorify God with them. To transform the money we make from working for the Lord, and seeing that it is invested in Kingdom building. It's called Biblically Responsible Investing and...

Are you a leader in your organization? If so, what are you doing to care for your team members? Your employees?  Are you ignoring the big stresses in their lives? If you are, it could be costing you in a big way. For example: The divorce of a $60,000 a year employee will cost $86,000 in lost productivity.  There are legal, low cost remedies to helping your employees get the help they need to calm...

At work, sometimes we walk away from a meeting or conversation and think to ourselves "Boy, that person sure needs some fixing." But, in reality, if we took a moment, and thought more carefully about it, maybe even looked a little deeper, we may just see what needs to be fixed is US, not them. Leaders know this. They know that the organization is a reflection of WHO they are and WHO they are being...

Do you want to see your workplace as a place to live out your faith? Your work is a place where you finally get that chance to be involved in fulltime ministry. Then do these things. 1st Start praying for those you work around, by name every day. 2nd look for ways to serve those same people over and above what your job requires you to do. 3rd look for ways to build a friendship with those you work...

I wonder how much of our life is lived from a place of "taking". Not consciously, but just getting up and living our life, as we go to work and just delve in. I've found my unconscious self is pretty selfish . If I don't pray first, submit in obedience, my day, my hands, my mouth, eyes and ears, to serve all those I come in contact with, I'll just spend all day at work taking what I need and want....

Is God building another testimony for you, through your workplace? Often, hard times come in our work, and we're called to respond as a Christ-follower. Not react with fear, self-pity, anger, resentment or push-back. But with a keen sense and trust that God is sovereign in our work. That He may have brought something to an end, for His Glory, not our punishment.  So how about YOU? .... Are YOU goi...

How do you measure your work success?  We're referring to eternal success in your work.  One way is to ask yourself:  Is my workplace better off because of having me work there?  Have I changed it for the better?  Would my co-workers say that I am a blessing to work with?  A roofing business owner in Florida told us he takes an inventory every year, looks back at the year to see what benefit or go...

Kathy Branzell, President of the National Day of Prayer says: there's the idea that when I work, I work, but when I pray, God works.  So how about YOU? Are you working, when you should be praying?  Are you starting work first, before you pray? Are you taking God's place for the results by over-working?  There's a beautiful balance we can obtain between work and prayer. We can choose to pray first,...

Are there ROCKS in YOUR schedule? ROCKS are IMMOVABLE commitments. Those priorities that are unchangeable.  As a working Christ-follower, what are some of YOUR ROCKS? Here are some of mine: Time with the Lord. Family commitments. And anything I have given my word to, to be there.  Is WORK one of YOUR ROCKS? If it is, maybe it's time to look at that rock, and decrease its size, or the amount of spa...

We all have a calling, have you heard this before? Some of us get called to the pulpit and some to the foreign mission field but most of us get called to our cubicles, construction sites, care facilities or whatever your job site may be. Your Workplace, It's your mission field and in that mission field, you and me, we may be the only Jesus our co-workers, employees and bosses may ever meet. That J...

 As Christians everything about us should be changing. When we were born again, it wasn't just a one-time event. We are to be changing daily…remember the word "sanctified"? We are being "set apart" to be dedicated to God's use.  And to that end, we're to be changing and growing more Christ-like every day, to be conformed to His image. So how about you? Would those you work with say you're a better...

Ahhh rebellion. Its' the sickness of youth but perhaps, there's still some rebellion in our hearts as adults.  Is there some ONE or some THING that you're rebelling against at work?...You may be doing it unknowingly… "under the table"…undermining, backbiting, using sarcasm or pushing against another's ideas or leadership in subtle ways. Romans 13:1 and 2 is clear: Everyone must submit to governing...

After a conversation with Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, of Love & Respect, I'm rethinking the way I go about being a peace-keeper. Here's what he said: Sometimes, as peace keepers we hedge on the truth, or just lie, to keep the peace. .... So let's apply that to our workplace. Are you unknowingly hedging on speaking the truth in work situations, to keep the peace? How can you know? You'll probably have a...

After a conversation with Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, of Love & Respect, I'm rethinking the way I go about being a peace-keeper. Here's what he said: Sometimes, as peace keepers we hedge on the truth, or just lie, to keep the peace. .... So let's apply that to our workplace. Are you unknowingly hedging on speaking the truth in work situations, to keep the peace? How can you know? You'll probably have a...

As we start our work week, let's remind ourselves of our calling to our work and God's plan for our work. Declare this now as you head to work today, walk to your office, or sit down to do your devotions. … "My workplace is my mission field, a place of full-time ministry… My workplace ministry manual is my Bible. …My calling to my workplace is not a second-class calling…. I dedicate my workplace a...