March 8, 2010 by David Roth
Need some Monday morning inspiration? Some simplicity to focus on? Several years ago, Henry Blackaby, author of Experiencing God, gave me this pray, work and watch idea.
Take a minute and read this powerful scripture:
33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:33-34
I know so many of you are struggling at work. I hear it day after day in my job at WorkMatters. That struggle is impacting your home life, your marriage, your lifestyle. Sometimes it seems overwhelming.
But this scripture points us to a simple approach…seek God first. Some of you already have done this today early this morning. But if you didn’t, it’s ok. Seeking God first means we can do that all day long!
Let’s try that today. Let’s pray, do our work…then watch and see what God does.
Father, thank you for these powerful verses. For this simple instruction. Give us the courage to live that way today! Amen
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March 1, 2010 by David Roth
We spent the month of February really thinking about one of our Seven Pillars of Faith and Work…Integrity.
It was an interesting experience. We spent time thinking about and talking about men and women we knew who we thought had great integrity. Time after time, we would bring up a name, then we would say, “yeah, but remember they had that issue at work with…” Or, “don’t forget their marriage situation”. Or, etc., etc., etc…
It was an amazing process! What became painfully obvious is that none of us are perfect! That Integrity is extraordinarily difficult to achieve day in and day out. That we have all stumbled. I found that often one party feels there was an integrity issue and the other absolutely does not.
Friends, this is what I learned. Living with Integrity everyday is a very, very difficult thing to do. The gray zone between right and wrong is often just that…gray.
This past Friday morning we hosted a powerful Eight-to-Five event. Andy Wilson, Executive Leader at FBC of Springdale, AR and Church at Pinnacle Hills was our speaker on this subject of Integrity. He shared two powerful stories.
One story involved his encounter with Mr. Sam Walton as a 29-year-old VP at Wal-Mart. You can hear the entire talk and this story on our Eight-to-Five iTunes Podcast at http://graenark.libsyn.com/rss, but I wanted to share the “key learnings” Andy had from Mr. Sam:
- Humility is not a weakness
- Check your ego at the door
- Arrogance consumes everything and everyone
- Create an environment of open dialog
- Unite people and ideas
This week, can I challenge you to really embrace this word Integrity? Consider what the Bible says about it. Pray about how to live it. Listen to Andy’s talk.
“I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity.” 1Chronicles 29:17
Father, integrity is easy to talk about, but really hard to live. Please give me the wisdom to know what’s right, and the courage to do what’s right…even when it’s hard. Amen
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February 19, 2010 by David Roth
It is amazing how a relatively obscure verse in the Bible can mean nothing one day, and then say something so specific and clear to you the next.
Such was the case with these two verses below from Acts:
Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. Acts 16:7-8
The message to me was this…the Holy Spirit guides us to the right places, but he also guides us away from the wrong places!
How many times do you think you have been guided away from the “wrong place” at work at not even known it?
Or, if you are between jobs, is it possible that the job you so badly wanted that did not come through was actually the Holy Spirit guiding you away from the wrong place?
Father, I have been praying for you to show me your will. For you to show me what TO do. Father, will you now please just as importantly guide me AWAY from the wrong things? Amen…
Posted in Bible, Job Search | Leave a Comment »
February 8, 2010 by Sam Bates
What an incredible day it was last Wednesday, Fe
bruary 5th at the Joseph Project 2010 Advance Workshop! There was great anticipation during the weeks leading up to this kickoff event. Seems like what you hear is how the economy is recovering. That may be true in some some quarters, but there are many others who are still trying to recover from the loss of their job. Another 300 people in fact were released from Wal-Mart the day of our event.
The room was packed with close to 100 people participating in the event. Lots of people came who had never been to a Joseph Project meeting before who hopefully have now found a welcoming environment that will provide helpful job search skills, networking opportunities, as well as hope and encouragement.
The program was very powerful. So much content was packed into these few hours that my head was about to explode by the end of all the sessions. It was clear that the presenters came fully loaded with their best stuff in an all out effort to help in any way they could. It is such an encouragement to see the heart of these people who only want to help and are willing to give so much. Thank you to all the speakers and panelists who went all out to make our sessions rich with practical comments and real world advice.
Friends, we are really counting on you to help us get the word out about the Joseph Project. No doubt you know someone who would benefit from attending. Please invite them and if at all possible, tell them you will come with them. YOU are the most powerful marketing tool we possess. Tell your church, community groups and any other organizations you are involved with about this opportunity to help so many that are traveling this difficult path of job loss. Please help us to get the word out that this is not a path you have to travel alone. Do it today!
Posted in Adversity, Economy, Encouragement, Hope, Job Search, Relationships, The Joseph Project, perseverence | Leave a Comment »
January 31, 2010 by David Roth
I’m sure none of you have any issues balancing your work life and home life, right? So we should just move on…
Right… out of the Seven Pillars of Faith and Work, the challenge of Balance dominates! That’s why we are excited that this Friday at our monthly Eight-to-Five event, I will have the opportunity to speak on this subject.
So…I am sitting here…with my family…watching the Grammy’s…working on this blog post. When my family asks me why I am working while we are watching the “Super Bowl of Music”?
Good night…we’ll continue this discussion throughout this week. Stay tuned!
God bless your week,
David
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January 26, 2010 by David Roth
Every single Wednesday, we host The Joseph Project meetings for business men and women between jobs. Last week we had a very special speaker in Mr. Maxie Carpenter. He was surprised and moved by what he saw there. He has given us permission to share his Blog post following his experience at The Joseph Project.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
I never cease to be amazed at the strength and potential of the human spirit!
I was invited to give a presentation today to a group that comes together for the purpose of providing support, encouragement and resources to marketplace professionals, who have been displaced in the recent wave of restructuring.
I don’t use the term “professionals” in an exclusive sense. Any of us that have had a position of responsibility in an organization for an extended period of years is, in my opinion, a professional. In fact, I wish more of us would embrace that mindset rather than thinking that a professional is just someone with specialized training that can only be attributed to a very few. This group of people were definitely professionals in every sense of the word and they came from all walks of life.
What overwhelmed me today was a conviction I felt in the room that derived from a group of people making a conscious choice to do everything they can to move forward as proactively as possible. Even more amazing was the fact that this group was doing so based upon a shared faith that their mutual experiences were purposed and part of a plan that held more promise than disappointment. As a believer, this resonated with me in a very unique yet familiar way.
The emotion of that conviction really overwhelmed me this morning to the degree that I had to compose myself before speaking. I was humbled and honored that I would be asked to share my perspectives with a group of people that have no idea how much they blessed my day and reinforced my own conviction to keep moving forward in faith regardless of the circumstances.
Posted in The Joseph Project | Leave a Comment »
January 15, 2010 by Sam Bates
Every now and then don’t you want to hear about a miracle that has happened is someones life? Its can be tough at times today to believe that miracles still happen. God is sovereign and he chooses the people, places and times, but miracles still happen.
We have all probably experienced things that thought to be miraculous. They don’t always have to be huge, blow you away types of miracles either. We tend to only think about the really big stuff that happens and classify them as a miracle. Many times, God uses the small seemingly insignificant things of life in which to work his miracles. I know that I have experienced some things in my life that seem to be miraculous. I’m sure if you thought about it enough, you would feel that as well.
On occasion, we hear about a miracle happening in someones life that we just have to sit back and be amazed. I wanted to share with you something I heard today that would definitely fall into this category. It is simply to incredible to not hear and I would hope this would be blessing to you today.
James Dobson played an interview on his show this morning that I want you to hear. If you don’t have time to listen to it right now, please come back to this at some point soon. You won’t want to miss this. Please click on link below to hear this amazing testimony.
Breaking the Silence
May God bless you today and hopefully you will be inspired like those spoken of in Luke 19:37.
When he reached the place where the road started down to the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
Posted in Encouragement, Faith, Miracles, joy | Leave a Comment »
January 13, 2010 by David Roth
“…The few things we can confirm – yes the four-story Caribbean Market building is completely demolished. Yes it was open…”. I found a link through a Twitter post to a blog from missionaries on the ground in Haiti. The stories are heart breaking.
http://ow.ly/W00E
As marketplace believers, let’s join together to pray powerfully for the Haitians. We work in a mission field every day. But, we are also called to be in mission with people all over the world. Let’s pray for the Haitians, for the missionaries already on the ground there, for those trying to get there, for how we can help from where we are.
Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. Psalms 57:1
Posted in Adversity, Prayer, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
January 11, 2010 by Sam Bates
How are you sleeping these days? Ever troubled by insomnia? Anyone feel like they are working hard all day then laying awake worrying half the night? The bed looks so inviting. You climb in and fall asleep only to find yourself awake a couple of hours later, but it seems like you just shut your eyes. If you can’t immediately roll over and go back to sleep, for whatever reason, you begin to realize its going to be another long night.
The parade begins and a thousand different things start their march before your wakeful eyes.
What can be done? I recently heard about one guy who said, “When I can’t sleep, I just get up and sit in a chair until I bore myself to death.” Another reaches for an Ambien or some other kind of sleeping pill. Yet another tries to fill the wakefulness with some kind of late night TV or surfing the internet.
Having experienced a multitude of these kinds of nights over the years, I have learned a few things about how these wakeful hours can be more productively spent. Free from distractions of the day, it can be a perfect time for some reflective God-centered thought.
God is awake in the still of the night and is ready to hear from us. The time that I have spent during those wakeful times has proven to be so valuable. Think on God! Use this time to pray or maybe praise him with a favorite song or hymn. It has always been an amazing opportunity to get close to the Father. The quiet stillness seems to allow for a deeper focus and more penetrating praise.
David seemed to understand this when he said, “I remember you and meditate on you during the night watches.” And of Jesus we read, “he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God (Luke 6:12).
When I can’t sleep, it is amazing how giving this time to the Lord in prayer and praise will settle my my mind and before I know it, I am back to sleeping peacefully.
Posted in Contentment, Jesus, Peace, Prayer, music | 1 Comment »
January 7, 2010 by David Roth
OK, this week we have tried to give you some 2010 candy. Some solid ideas for crafting a special year. We focused on being an encourager, not judging others, and living with purpose one day at a time.
But all of that feels somewhat empty if there is no Jesus. If we just keep doing whatever it is we have been doing. Without growing in our relationship with God, these other goals are good, but not great.
So what does that look like? Let me share four tried and true ideas for you to consider.
- As disciplined and committed as you are to get up and go to work, use that same discipline and commitment to get up and go to God. The only way to build a relationship, is to spend time with that person. You will get out, what you put in.
- When you get there, have a plan to read the Bible. There is no formula. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. I am excited to be reading the entire Bible this year along with six business leaders in our executive small group.
- Be committed to prayer. Seek God’s will for your day. Pray for your marriage, your kids and your work. When you’re at work, teach yourself to pray breath prayers as you go through your day.
- Last, and this may be a big step for you, buy yourself a journal. Begin to write down what you are learning, what you are hearing. When you read that one special scripture, the one that was perfect for you that day, write it down.
There is so much more that could be said on loving Jesus more deeply in 2010. Maybe a fitting way to leave you is with the special words of Texas QB Colt McCoy, hurt on the third play of the last night’s national championship football game… “God is in control of my life.”
But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. Psalm 1:2
Posted in Bible, Jesus, Journaling, Prayer | 1 Comment »
