My wife never ceases to amaze me. Each time God puts an opportunity (or challenge!) before us, she says "yes." While I'm mulling over the impact and considering the inconvenience, her heart is already "all in." Peggy's like Isaiah (Isa 6:8) when God rhetorically asks, "Whom shall I send?" -- with emphasis, Peg answers, "Send me!"
Over the last few days, I've watched with amazement as Peggy has continued to lavish love onto a stranger's son. Despite averaging a couple of hours sleep over the few nights, her energy hasn't waned. When I asked last night whether she had any second thoughts, the question seemed foreign to her. Her greatest concern is loving Skyler too much and becoming overly attached.
I'm blessed with a wife and "helper" who teaches me daily about love and sacrifice. The joyful chaos that is our home, at the moment, seems just right. Peg has taught me to abandon order and control -- which allows us to keep our eyes and hearts on our Lord, whom we're honored to serve.
"If only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace." (Acts 20:24)
To run a marathon, we must train often while keeping the final goal in mind.
As a follower of Christ, with each step of each day I seek to honor God and increase his glory by sharing of the gospel.
Faith at Work
When I first started working for AT&T, one of my mentors told me that the two things he's learned to avoid discussing at work were religion and politics. Subconsciously, I think I've taken that mantra and expanded that in ways he never intended. It's not so much that I've denied my faith or kept it hidden. Rather, I built walls to compartmentalize my private (family, faith) and my professional lives. Actually, that's not quite true -- I've often applied lessons learned from work to activities at church or to help family with computer/networking issues.
Over the last 5 years, AT&T has invested heavily in leadership training for all of its managers. One common, recurring emphasis has been on integrity and character. This year was no different -- one of the primary was Harry Kraemer, the author of From Value to Action. As Harry was speaking, I had one of those smack my forehead moments. Whatever success I have at work is largely, if not wholly, due to my faith. I've been abundantly blessed by God with talents and the opportunities at work. But even more than that, my faith has offered me certain traits (things that don't quite make it on the résumé).
Harry spoke on these four principles of a value-based leader:
Over the last 5 years, AT&T has invested heavily in leadership training for all of its managers. One common, recurring emphasis has been on integrity and character. This year was no different -- one of the primary was Harry Kraemer, the author of From Value to Action. As Harry was speaking, I had one of those smack my forehead moments. Whatever success I have at work is largely, if not wholly, due to my faith. I've been abundantly blessed by God with talents and the opportunities at work. But even more than that, my faith has offered me certain traits (things that don't quite make it on the résumé).
Harry spoke on these four principles of a value-based leader:
- Self-Reflection: "the key to identifying what you stand for, what your values are, and what matters most." He encourages us to set time aside daily to get our bearings. For me, this is nothing more than waking up an hour earlier than necessary to pray and delve into the Word.
- Balance: "the ability to see issues, problems, and question from all angles, including from differing viewpoints." J.C. Ryle once said, "“For my part I am persuaded the more light we have, the more we see our own sinfulness; the nearer we get to heaven, the more we are clothed with humility.” No matter how much Christians may wish to believe that they're set apart from the sinfulness of the world, we cannot forget that we share the same origins of depravity. Our ability bask in the light while relating to the darkness is how we're best equipped to make disciples. For my part I am persuaded the more light we have, the more we see our own sinfulness; the nearer we get to heaven, the more we are clothed with humility.
- True Self-Confidence: "Far more than just competency at your job or mastery of certain skills, true self-confidence is the attribute that allows you to see and accept yourself exactly as you are." Faith has taught me to realize and accept that we are created (Psalm 100:3), loved (John 3:16), and cared for in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16). With that in mind, I have assurance that I don't need to please my supervisor, co-workers, or even myself. As long as I keep doing what's right by God (which often, by the way, ends up pleasing supervisors and co-workers), I need not worry doing things for the wrong reasons.
- Genuine Humility: "Never forgetting who you are, appreciating the value of each person in the organization, and treating everyone respectfully whether she is a senior manager or a summer intern." The Apostle Peter teaches us to, "Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time." (1 Peter 5:6) Whatever talents and opportunities I may have are thanks to God. Just as with true confidence, I'm no better than the next person as we're all objects of His creation fully dependent on His grace and His love. Our response to that love is not to Lord our blessings over others but to recall that "if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:11)
I cannot credit Harry with what God has provided. However, he brought these principles to light and in the context of the workplace. I then wondered whether I may have been hoarding God's blessings by keeping my faith out of the workplace. I have no intention of thumping heads with the Bible, but would coworkers care to know why I refuse to blame others for failures? Would it serve them in knowing why "jeopardies" and "escalations" don't cause me to panic?
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