Just how unique are each of us made in the image of God?

For the last dozen years I have been a disciple of strengths-based work and understanding what I am called to do. Chances are you have not heard of strengths-based work or, at best, you are not familiar with it.  

For the uninitiated, simply put, strengths-based work means I focus on what I AM GOOD AT, not what I am poorly fit to do.

This past weekend I attended a seminar at Gateway Church in Southlake, TX, to get a better handle on my Christian identity and to my surprise, they embraced the Gallup Strengths Finder and a spiritual gifts finder hand in hand to help plot my course. 

During my time in sales with Johnson & Johnson EVERY field ride was the same- NEGATIVE. I would hear things like “You know anatomy & procedure very well,  you know instrumentation, you are very good with your customers, BUT we wish you were better at this or that.” These items on their wish list were invariably clerical in nature- minutiae if you will, that did not enhance my relationship, sales or customer service. Just one area to work on to make me a more-rounded employee. It frustrated me and my colleagues no end because at the time, no one knew any better. Today, many are still laboring under these arcane ideas. 

The Gallup organization breaks strengths into 35 areas or terms. For me, my top 5 are Context (understanding the intent), Responsibility, Belief (I HAVE to believe to move forward), Includer (I ensure others are included in discussions), WOO (Winning Others Over or persuasion). Few people have the same strengths as me in the same order. So few in fact, if we extend the list to my top 6 and looked at the nearly 7 billion people on earth, we might find 220 people with the very same strengths in the same descending order. 

Let’s look at the top 8- there would be approximately .0026 people in the entire world with the same top 8 strengths, in the same descending order as me. Statistically speaking, not even ONE person alive today!

Now, extrapolate that out to all 35 strengths….   

In case you are wondering how to figure that out, it is simple multiplication with the possible remaining variables. In other words, 35x34x33x32x31…. all the way down to 1. Does that give you a sense to the size of that number? HUGE. In astronomical terms, it would probably be measured in light years! In human terms, it is likely no one has ever existed with the exact same gifts in the exact same order. NO ONE in all of humanity's existence.

Well, that’s all well and good- so what?

Take another look at the rankings of YOUR strengths. Since there are so many variables and combinations, can you not see how unique YOU are? How amazingly designed YOU are?

Can you now see the tragedy the business world has perpetrated against us and perpetuated in trying to help us with our “weaknesses” and not focusing on the strengths God gave each of us? And what about the recent "equality" push where we seem to be eliminating gender from the equation in the hopes of making everyone equal. The paradigm is revolutionary and breathtaking. 

Rather than continually striving to be something you can NEVER BE, God has intended us to find work and even ministry using that which we are already anointed with and in which we will find fulfillment, and thus peace and a restful heart.

The other thing I found fascinating about this class was how we can use science to confirm God's Intelligent Design! Too many people have failed to understand the argument and have learned they have to choose BETWEEN God and science, but that is a topic for another conversation.

What are you waiting for? Find your strengths and change your life today!

The Importance of Timing in Your Life

Watching the videos below you can see some similarities between these two professionals and their swings. Each composes himself with balance and poise. One focusing on a moving object and the other on a much smaller stationery one. Each is noteworthy in their respective fields. Each is of a similar build, not over-developed muscular-wise.

If you have ever watched a natural hitter like Ken Griffey Jr, below, you notice a quick, fluidic, effortless swing which generates great batspeed and thus massive power.

Or perhaps you are more familiar with the phenomenon known as Tiger Woods:

Notice neither of these men are particularly BIG physically like Arnold Schwarzenegger for example. Rather they are tall and lean. There are few instances in which massive people like Arnold have the finesse for such skills as hitting a home run or a 400 yard drive.  Yet they make it look so easy.

For anyone out there whom has played either sport and gotten THAT hit, the one where there was no resistance of the ball against the bat or the club. That hit in the "Sweet spot" where you weren't even sure if you made contact for everything met at just the right moment and the right space in time.

So what is it about these swings that make them so beautiful and desirous to recreate?

Watching these videos and even listening to the experts' analysis of Wood's swing we can glean these are finely tuned athletes with extraordinary muscle control, but there is one critical ingredient laying right before our eyes like an elephant in the room yet no one mentions it at all:

TIMING. 
The old cliche' "Timing is everything" is a cliche' because it is so true. There is nothing like showing up 15 minutes late to work, for your flight or to miss dinner at home with your family to make you realize that. NASCAR and NHRA fans understand timing. Expert marksmen and hunters understand it. Comedians and actors live and die by it.

With exceptional timing and being in tune with their body, these athletes show us what it is like to have the right timing for maximum result with less than maximum effort for they know by FORCING it or trying harder, they will fail to get the results they desire. In baseball it will be a pop fly because the tension in Griffey's muscles will squeeze the bat too hard and cause a slight drop in the bat angle leading to too much undercut. Or Woods will pull his hands in too close to his body and end up with a huge slice to the right. Instead, they realize by slowing down and keeping the proper timing, they will get extraordinary results.

The other thing I would point out too is once these athletes commit to their swing, there is no hesitation. No second-guessing. Once it commences, there is no reservation whatsoever. They are committed to it and execute it quickly.

Jesus of course realized the importance of timing also. For 30 years he labored as an obedient carpenter before breaking out into the role God had in store for Him. Waiting for His time and calling, Jesus was faithful, making the most of his craft while biding His time. He lived in the moment, not looking forward to the future. We humans are often looking to the future- to get off work, go on vacation, to eat, etc. Too often I hear people wishing their lives away by saying things like "I wish it were Friday" or "I am just killing time." These are powerful statements that provide us a glimpse into the psyche of that person.

But there's so much more to it than just Jesus waiting 30 years for His first miracle. Consider how He NEVER seemed to be in a hurry. Waiting for 30 years to perform His work. People would implore him to come and heal this person for they are sick and but he would deliberately take his time. This resulted in two ill people actually dying before He could arrive. But of course if He had hurried He would not have resurrected  Lazarus and Jairus' little girl in Mark 5:21-43. In Mark 4 we see Jesus and the disciples leaving a large crowd behind to travel to the far side of the sea. He spent 40 days fasting in the wilderness.

He was never in a hurry because He was on GOD'S TIME! As it turned out, we see Lazarus and the little girl raised from the dead not just simply healed, a much greater miracle. His waiting for God's timing made these larger miracles. Leaving the crowds hungry for His Word and works made them pursue Him rather than sitting back, having been satisfied and feeling as though they had heard all they needed to know. They knew there was more so they pursued Him out of faith and hunger.

You don't have to go THAT far out of your comfort zone to
see a Big return on your investment!

Too often we are satisfied and comfortable with our walk and thus will not get out of our comfort zone to grow. Growing ourselves can be a scary proposition for the truly experience growth, we have to get outside our personal boundaries and push ourselves into uncharted territory.

Be that as it may, it is clear to me, whether you believe in God or not, we are all in place as a part of a plan. One that is orchestrated with an intellect and perfection we cannot begin to comprehend, but can be obedient to. God places us in positions for a reason but this reason may not be immediately clear. It may not even be for our own benefit but perhaps for someone around us. It has taken me more than a decade to begin to appreciate the lessons God has intended for me as a disciple but I was too proud in my walk to hear what He would have me to hear.

I now realize I may have been in a storm, but it was really a season. A season of understanding and openness with myself and God.  What I am trying to say is, when I entered this stormy season, I was upset and asked "Why me?" and I now realize the time for that part of my life had come to an end though I desperately clung to it and I needed to  LET GO first before I could take the next step.  Unfortunately, I was disobedient, trying to hold on too long and ultimately had to be humbled before I could begin to hear the lesson He would have me to hear.  I had to be removed from one career path to one substantially lower in esteem than the one I was on. That was not the humbling part for me. It was to stop asking "Why me" and start asking "Why NOT me?" and to thank Him for the grace He extended to me despite my disobedience.

What is just beyond YOUR comfort zone? What is just out of reach that God would hand to you? Reach out your hand and take it from Him for He is a loving Father and you are a beloved child of His. What father would deny his child anything beneficial for them? Commit to your swing right now. Take that step and watch what happens next in your life.

You have not because you ask not

We were just watching Joel Osteen's message this morning about expecting a flood (#425R - Living Breakthrough Minded) . He said too many of us ask for a trickle or a stream, but few ask for a flood. Too many times we settle for what we have, what we had or what we think we deserve. We have no idea what God has in store for us, and the only way to get there is to pray and ASK for it.

During the message it struck me- I remember how when my children were younger they thought I knew everything, could do anything, could fix anything. I think they would have told you I could have built a nuclear reactor if you had asked them if I could. I remember how proud that would make me feel (even though now they don't think I know how to tie my own shoes!) and what a sense of validation that would give me. That anything they asked me to do I could (and would) do, if I could.

How much greater does God love you than you love your children or parents? How much greater are the blessings he could bestow on you? Knowing He is a jealous God, and He seeks an intimate relation with each of his children , how happy do you think He is when we challenge him to bless us mightily- more so than we dreamed? How proud do you think He is when we ask Him for help, with the faith and innocence my little boys had? Do you think for one second the Father would withhold ANY blessing from you?

Not possible. He wants more for you than you dreamed of. More than you dreamed of asking for.

We have been in this situation. We have been asking for a job to replace what we have lost. I have had many jobs, none of which approach what was taken from us, so recently I decided to start a consulting business to capitalize on my experience over the last several years and leverage it and my relationships to grow a business.

I approached a friend of mine a couple of weeks ago for some financial backing. My business plan is simple, straight forward, and with no overhead save our living expenses, I felt the amount I was asking for would be easy for him to approve and more than adequate for the business' needs.

Rather, I was disappointed when he rejected my plea, saying instead he felt I was thinking too small. He felt I should be seeking some serious start-up capital (the sum makes me queasy), and that would allow me to hit this business hard and grow fast.

The bottom line, as crazy as I think it sounds, I think he was right, and I have redone the plan showing rapid growth and allowing me to bring on several people, a couple of whom have had similar challenges, giving THEM a chance to escape the rat race. (Thank you for your vision and advice George).

I have longed to be able to make a difference in peoples' lives and by thinking big, I will be able to do so sooner, and impact more people than if I just went for what we need.

What is happening in your life, or your families' lives that requires an adjustment in your thinking, in your altitude? Do you need a different perspective? Will it require you to step outside your comfort zone and learn new skills, to push your abilities?

Good! God will not only show you the way, but He will give you the strength, courage and wisdom to make it. He will put people in your path to mentor, assist and guide you. Just ask Him, pray patiently and wait for your answers to appear supernaturally.