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Article |
By Douglas
Harrison-Mills Haversham Foundation I dare say that none of you went into business intending to fail. Neither did you intend to spend more time managing crises than you did on actually doing business. So what's going on? On the one hand, according to God's plan for His people (ie. His covenant), life is supposed to be easier than it is. But, on the other hand, according to God's individual plan for you (ie. your calling), the degree of difficulty you may be experiencing is necessary, because it helps to develop and strengthen your character. I may not know you or your story, but I do know the plot -- intimately. God calls you and you answer. Then soon after, you feel like you have been thrown in at the deep end. However, you know you'll be okay, because God will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13v5); and "no calamity shall come nigh thy tent" (Psalm 91v10) -- even though cannonballs may sail over your roof on a regular basis. So, again, what's going on? If you were to read the histories of the great Jewish merchant banking "houses" of Europe, one point would stand out. You would find frequent references in each generation to where some young Rothschild spent three or fours years working for Warburgs or Lazards -and sometimes both. Or where some young Warburg spent a few years working for Rothschilds or Lazards. Or where some young David-Weill (the current controlling family of Lazards) spent some time working for Rothschilds or Warburgs. And once the young man had mastered the basics of his "vocation" (in this case, merchant banking), he would then be sent to work in his family's bank in another country. A key point here: both experiences (ie. working outside of the family business and working in the family business outside of the country) helped to create and build upon a key driving force in the merchant banking business; namely, personal and international networks. Those networks take years to build and are treated like gold by international bankers. But sadly, they are missing in the Body of Christ -- and they need to be rebuilt (which may help explain why your spiritual career path is not as smooth as you would like it to be). So, in a perfect world, if Our Heavenly Father called you to serve in government, in your youth, you would have been sent to work for a few years in the "House of Joseph". If God called you to serve in the military, He would have sent you to serve in the "House of David" or perhaps the "House of Joshua" for a time. And to learn business, He would perhaps have sent you to work for the "House of Abraham & Sons" (ie. Isaac and Jacob). And as a young man or woman with those experiences and opportunities under your belt, you would then be ready to conquer the world. However, as you may have gathered by now, it's not a perfect world. And since the world hates us, because it also hated Jesus (Matthew 10v22; 24v9; John 15v9), it's highly unlikely that God is in a position to call in a favour or two, and send you to some great non-Christian "House" of commerce, for example, to work in the international banking world for a few years. So, in order for you to gain the experience necessary to fulfil God's calling on your life, whatever that is, His only alternative is to send you to work where someone will accept you -- for both the right and wrong reasons -- which is not as great as it sounds. For example, one of those right/wrong reasons may be because you need a job and the company thinks that they can get you cheap. And one of my readers from Canada, Frances Paskins, has an interesting take on that situation. "Another problem I saw very clearly, when I was pastoring, was the problem of people coming to a prayer meeting and asking the body to pray for a job. That was fair, but when they arrived next week without a job only to relate that they had been offered a position at "x" dollars and they didn't take it because they were worth more than that, I saw red. Take a look at Moses! He was about to undertake one of the greatest tasks the world has known -- to lead 1-2 million complaining, griping Israelites out of bondage. When he asked how he was going to do it, God asked him, 'What is in your hand?' He didn't have the gold of Egypt yet, nor did he have a ferry to cross the Red Sea. What was in his hand was to suffice for now. Why are Christians waiting to have all their worldly ducks in a row (read: the windows of heavens pouring out golden coins) before they are able to walk by faith. The Jordan didn't open for Joshua until the priests put their feet in the water. It's the same for us. The means (ie. vehicle) that God is trying to use to get us to His miracle is exactly what we are turning our noses up at. That rod Moses had -- or the little job He is putting in our path -- is exactly the means He desires to use to bless us and we can't see it." Thank you, Frances. I couldn't have said it better myself. However, I would like to add that Moses' humble rod (ie. what was in his hand when God called him), proved to be more powerful than Pharaoh's sceptre (the symbol of power and authority of the most powerful monarch of the day). Moses' rod was also used to destroy the mightiest army of the day, and even brought down an empire (since Egypt never again rose to such a high position of power and prominence after that event). However, before we continue, let's establish one thing: the "path" of preparation for young Jewish international bankers that I described earlier is, in some respects, too easy -- for us at least. "Fear not, for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties" (Isaiah 41v10). Does that sound like Our Heavenly Father has picked out an easy ride for us? I don't think so. And neither did His Son, Jesus. As I have mentioned many times before, Jesus instructed His followers to "enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and spacious and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who are entering it. But the gate is narrow and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life, and few are they who find it" (Matthew 7v13-14). [Comment: the gate through which we are to enter is narrow by its very nature (the Greek word is "stenos"). But the way upon which we are to travel has been "made narrow" or straightened (the Greek word "thlibo"), and is continually "pressed" or under pressure.] As such, we have all been called to a life of faith, filled with what the Greek word "thlibo" describes as "tribulation" or "sufferings due to the pressure of circumstances, or the antagonism of persons". However, Jesus also said that He has overcome the world, which is the source of all that tribulation (ie. a world full of antagonistic people who create lots of pressure-filled circumstances for us). Which brings me back to my central point: that, in order for you to gain the experience necessary to fulfil His calling on your life, God has to send you to work where people will accept you -- for both the right and wrong reasons. For instance, the company concerned may be desperate for help. And my own career (since I gave God control of it) can perhaps be summed up in the phrase: "cleaning up other people's mess". [Comment: I often joke that the Lord takes me into a situation or opportunity "through the back door". And the back door is where people usually keep their rubbish (ie. trash), so you get to see things that most firms do not want people to see.] It's not pretty. And it's not always peaceful; since people usually take months, if not years to get into the kind of hole they have dug for themselves, and then expect (or need) you to dig them out of it in a few weeks or so. However, it does (a) qualify as "ministry"; and (b) provide the sharpest possible learning curve re: new situations, new markets and even new business categories or industries. But you need to hear from God. Firstly, before you take on any mess (because there are some that you shouldn't touch with a barge pole). And secondly, every day that you are working in it, to receive the wisdom required to solve the problems that arise -- and also to ensure that you do not get caught up in the mess yourself. As the apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians, "Brethren, if any person is overtaken in misconduct or sin of any sort, you who are spiritual [who are responsive to and controlled by the Spirit] should set him right and restore and reinstate him, without any sense of superiority and with all gentleness, keeping an attentive eye on yourself, lest you should be tempted also. Bear (endure, carry) one another's burdens, and in this way fulfil and observe perfectly the law of Christ (the Messiah) and complete what is lacking [in your obedience to it]. For if any person thinks himself to be somebody [too important to condescend to shoulder another's load] when he is nobody [of superiority except in his own estimation], he deceives and deludes and cheats himself" (Galatians 6v1-3). Obviously, "cleaning up a mess" equates to "bearing one another's burdens". On the other hand, I would not dream of accusing my employers and/or clients, past or present, of "sin" in the traditional sense. Nevertheless, this passage is still appropriate because, in any (corporate) mess, sin abounds. For example, strife is usually present, both from within and without (remember that 85 percent of leadership tasks involve "conflict resolution"). Or perhaps selfish ambition. Or perhaps pride, which might be present either in the form of management denial, or in a consultant's feeling of superiority -- if he or she felt that they were too smart to ever make the same mistake. And that's a good example of what Paul warns about. Cleaning up a corporate mess (or even a personal one) will always involve some highly stressful episodes, which can also cause lots of stress for the person sent by God to help -- if they let it. So bearing one another's burdens, especially in a commercial sense, is fraught with "sin", or at least lots of opportunities (ie. temptations) to succumb to it. And that kind of potential spiritual and emotional "quagmire" is the perfect "pressurised" environment for any potential leader to be trained in -- to help you grow up into the full maturity of Christ. Hey, you were the one who wanted to be a leader, right? So get used to the fact that leadership "preparation" is usually the toughest form of training. I don't know why, but many Christians have some strange idea that God's leadership training is going to be something like the Senior Officers' College in the Army, where future generals are looked after by "valets", get to ride around in chauffeur-driven Range Rovers (or Humvees), and sit in small elite classes, being addressed by the best instructors and advisors your country's taxes can buy, discussing important, global strategies for conquest. Get real. The style of training required for a leader of God's people, especially a leader in the marketplace, is "elite" only in the sense of it being like that of an elite athlete: up early, training hard, going without luxuries, withstanding physical and emotional pain, even being badgered by some hard-headed coach (like me) on the sidelines, etc. All in the hope of, one day, "winning the prize". Do you get my drift? Of course, God's plans for you are "plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome" (Jeremiah 29v11). However, you are not at "your final outcome" right now; and perhaps nowhere even near it. So, because of the circumstances you find yourself in at present, you may indeed be planning for conquest, but praying for survival. After all, if you haven't come to the end of your journey, it suggests that you are still on the "path" to get you there, a path that has been "made narrow" or straightened, and is continually "pressed" or under pressure -- in a world full of antagonistic people who create lots of pressure-filled circumstances for you. Does that sound familiar? If so, for the time being, you may need to spend more time praying than you do planning.
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