Pleasing to the Lord
by Os Hillman, June 28, 2006
Prepare it with oil on a griddle; bring it well-mixed and present the grain offering broken in pieces as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. - Leviticus 6:21
There is a requirement to be blessed at a deeper spiritual level by God. Christ requires it of each of His servants. He required it of Paul when He struck him down on the Damascus Road. He required it of Joseph when he was left in the pit and then sold into slavery. He required it of Jacob when he left his homeland penniless and needy. He required it of most every major leader that He used significantly - brokenness.
Brokenness cannot be achieved on your own. It is something God does Himself. We cannot determine that we are going to be broken, but we can refuse to become broken. When God begins this deeper work in our lives, we can kick and scream and refuse the process. We can manipulate and strive to stay on top, but this only delays His work.
Pride and mammon are ruling strongholds of the workplace. Brokenness is considered a weak position in the workplace. However, God says until we are broken we cannot be an aroma pleasing to the Lord. God wants you to be an aroma in the workplace. In order for this to happen, you and I must be a broken vessel in His hand. Pray that God would allow you to become a pleasing aroma to Him no matter the cost.
© 2006. TGIF Today God Is First™ is a registered trademark of Os Hillman/Marketplace Leaders. To request re-print permission, click here.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Friday, June 23, 2006
Divine Appointments
Divine Appointments
by Os Hillman, June 23, 2006
I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. - Matthew 10:16
"Os is now taking over this division. He will be managing all of these activities from now on. You should know that he has a different management philosophy than what you may have experienced before. He has a biblical management philosophy. Os, would you like to explain what they could expect from you in this regard?"
These were the words spoken to me by a non-Christian CEO recently when he decided to increase my responsibilities in the company. We had never spoken of spiritual issues before.
Each business day, you and I will have the opportunity to stand before presidents, marketing directors, secretaries or other coworkers to create a defining moment. When that happens, there is a good chance you will be thought of as someone to avoid. You might be considered "religious" or "fanatic." If so, consider this a great compliment because it says you are standing apart from the crowd.
Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you (Matthew 10:17-20).
You may never be flogged for your faith. However, you may very well be brought before others to give account for what you believe. It may be at a water cooler, or it could be during lunch with a coworker. In whatever situation you find yourself, the Holy Spirit awaits the opportunity to speak through your life to that person who needs to hear. Ask the Lord whom He wants to speak to today through your life.
© 2006. TGIF Today God Is First™ is a registered trademark of Os Hillman/Marketplace Leaders. To request re-print permission, click here.
by Os Hillman, June 23, 2006
I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. - Matthew 10:16
"Os is now taking over this division. He will be managing all of these activities from now on. You should know that he has a different management philosophy than what you may have experienced before. He has a biblical management philosophy. Os, would you like to explain what they could expect from you in this regard?"
These were the words spoken to me by a non-Christian CEO recently when he decided to increase my responsibilities in the company. We had never spoken of spiritual issues before.
Each business day, you and I will have the opportunity to stand before presidents, marketing directors, secretaries or other coworkers to create a defining moment. When that happens, there is a good chance you will be thought of as someone to avoid. You might be considered "religious" or "fanatic." If so, consider this a great compliment because it says you are standing apart from the crowd.
Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you (Matthew 10:17-20).
You may never be flogged for your faith. However, you may very well be brought before others to give account for what you believe. It may be at a water cooler, or it could be during lunch with a coworker. In whatever situation you find yourself, the Holy Spirit awaits the opportunity to speak through your life to that person who needs to hear. Ask the Lord whom He wants to speak to today through your life.
© 2006. TGIF Today God Is First™ is a registered trademark of Os Hillman/Marketplace Leaders. To request re-print permission, click here.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Interview with Rick Warren
This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick
Warren , "Purpose Driven Life" author and pastor of Saddleback
Church in California.
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In
a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to
last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One
day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my
body-- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend
Trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act -
the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we
will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God,
and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're
just Coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into
another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested
in your character Than your comfort. God is more interested in
making your life holy than He is in making Your life happy. We
can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's Not the goal
of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also
the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to
think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a Dark
time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't
believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys,
I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track,
and at all times you have something good and something bad
in your life. No matter how good things are in your life,
there is always Something bad that needs to be worked on.
And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always
Something good you can thank God for.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your
problems. If you focus on your problems, you're going into
self-centeredness, "which is my problem, my issues, my
pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to
get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds
of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make
it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her, and yet
God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of
helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer
to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of
life. actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is
harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the
book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal
with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety
for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money,
Notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages
that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change
our Lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a
salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The
Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor,
care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24
years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It
was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for
possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by
pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to
be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and
say, "God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to
know You more and Love You better." God didn't put me on earth
just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what
I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings,
not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD. Difficult moments, SEEK GOD. Quiet
moments, WORSHIP GOD. Painful moments, TRUST GOD. Every moment,
THANK GOD.
Warren , "Purpose Driven Life" author and pastor of Saddleback
Church in California.
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In
a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to
last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One
day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my
body-- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend
Trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act -
the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we
will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God,
and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're
just Coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into
another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested
in your character Than your comfort. God is more interested in
making your life holy than He is in making Your life happy. We
can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's Not the goal
of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also
the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to
think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a Dark
time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't
believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys,
I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track,
and at all times you have something good and something bad
in your life. No matter how good things are in your life,
there is always Something bad that needs to be worked on.
And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always
Something good you can thank God for.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your
problems. If you focus on your problems, you're going into
self-centeredness, "which is my problem, my issues, my
pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to
get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds
of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make
it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her, and yet
God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of
helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer
to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of
life. actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is
harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the
book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal
with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety
for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money,
Notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages
that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change
our Lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a
salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The
Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor,
care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24
years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It
was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for
possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by
pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to
be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and
say, "God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to
know You more and Love You better." God didn't put me on earth
just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what
I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings,
not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD. Difficult moments, SEEK GOD. Quiet
moments, WORSHIP GOD. Painful moments, TRUST GOD. Every moment,
THANK GOD.
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