An Advent Reflection

This Advent Season I’ve been studying the messages of the angel visitants to Zechariah, Mary, Joseph and Shepherds. It’s a fascinating study if you place the humans and surrounding circumstances a bit more in the background and focus on the messages alone. Of course, there is some nuance in each message because of who it is being proclaimed to, but the message is essentially this: God is rescuing his people, as had long been promised.

• In the message to Zechariah, we learn this rescue will lead to repentance, reconciliation, and renewal of a covenanted relationship with God.

• Mary learns the name of their child will be Jesus (Savior), that his real sonship will be of his Father in heaven as well as of his ancestor King David, and that he will establish an eternal reign.

• Joseph is also told to name the child Jesus, and another name is added: Immanuel (God with us). This child will save people, his people, from their sins.

• The Shepherds are told the Messiah is born and where to find him. Even more, they are told this the glorious action of God and that it brings peace to anyone who receives the Lord’s favor.

These messages are very different than the commodified and individualized versions of the gospel that say “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for YOUR life.”  Instead, it is the message that finds its glorious fulfillment in Revelation 5, where all creatures in the universe proclaim the inexhaustible worth of Immanuel, because he prepared a people for God who will be God’s priests and who will reign with God. They are a people whose chief identity is in the reign of God rather than in their tribe, people, language or nation. We might add that their identity is also not nested in a brand, product, service, division or professional credential.

Greg Leith, the Convene CEO, sometimes invites executive leaders to think five million years into the future. If they were planning that far in advance, how would it affect their planning for their enterprises and the lives of their families?  We shouldn’t think it a strange question. Disney seems to have been doing so all along as they are reputed to lock up intellectual property rights for all planets and multi-dimensional universes when a story is sold to them.

So….

• What if the end game is not just business succession, but that heavenly throne room of praise?

• What if your professional vocation is not about you but about the people God is preparing?

• What if the justification of your profit margin is the glory given to  God in heaven and the peace that it brings to earth?

• What if you are not the owner of you company, but just a steward for the real Owner?

• What if the starting place for all our plans is repentance, reconciliation and a renewed covenant of faith with the God who made us, sustains us and is preparing a place for us?

Food for thought, prayerful consideration, and faithful response.

Creating a “No Losers” Mindset in Your Marriage

One of the biggest causes of marital breakdowns … and in business relationships … is the inability to resolve conflict effectively; and every married couple runs into conflict because … Conflict is inevitable … two people who are in love … want each other to think and feel the same way about things … how to deal with money … how to deal with children … free time … and more!

The problem is … too many of us have come to believe that conflict is a bad thing … and that we should avoid it at all costs … but that’s not true … nor is it healthy for your marriage …

The truth is … conflict is a sign of connectedness … it says we have a vital relationship here … Remember – we rarely have conflicts with people we do not know or like.

But the most important thing we need to know about conflict is that it does not have to be negative!  When we learn how to successfully resolve conflicts with our spouse … we discover new things about him or her that we didn’t know before (which is why we’re having the problem) … and that helps to deepen our intimacy.

To make conflict a productive force in our marriage we have to establish a “No Losers Policy.” 

If you are “one,” a house divided against itself can’t stand.  If you are a “team” … it is impossible for one member of a team to win while another member of that same team loses!  You either both win … or you both lose … but there should never be an “I win – You lose” mentality allowed your marriage!

You both “win” when you both feel good about and agree together on the solution to your problem.  Maybe one of you came up with the solution … that’s OK … as long as both of you willingly agree that it is the best solution … you have a win-win scenario!  What will break down any marriage is the “my way or the highway” mentality!

In the Wake of the PGA: 5 values of privately-held family business

I live up the road from Whistling Straits, the venue for the 2015 PGA Championship, won by Jason Day among some incredible golfing performances on one of golf’s most beautiful courses. My extended family was involved as staff and volunteers. Many of our friends walked alongside their favorite golfers, celebrating the locale and taking joy in the beauty of their home region getting national attention. Many of us kept the radio or television on from beginning to end. Herb Kohler of the Kohler Co., and the visionary behind the championship courses and the high-end tourism in my area, made a few television appearances. He epitomizes a privately-owned family business deep into its fourth generation of leadership. A legacy like this is rare, but not quite so rare among the businesses and industries that line the western shoreline of Lake Michigan. The Kohler legacy is a standout among many families in my part of the world that endeavor for:

1. A family legacy.

2. The long-term.

3. The well-being of employees and their families.

4. Civic engagement.

5. Land and facility stewardship

These values do not match well with much of the American business landscape. But consider the many companies that bolted into existence and disappeared with an eye on the short-term while these family-owned industries keep plugging along, changing more slowly and with a longer-term view in mind. Enron anyone? How about some investments in big box stores?

Family-owned businesses get it wrong all the time. They fail spectacularly too. However, if you care about these five values – values that can easily be anchored in Christian faith and living – then we might note that the best at demonstrating them come from multi-generation, family-owned, deeply-rooted businesses. Might this be because leaders are surrounded in a culture that they cannot escape, not even at the dinner table, not even when they go out to eat, and not even when the family reunion is passing out corn on the cob? Family members and friends might chafe at being swallowed up and not feeling like an individual, and yet, given time and the opportunity to learn how to lead, so often they return to bring that new generation of leadership with a freshened vision.

Companies like these are modern expressions of the Asaph’s prayer in Psalm 78:   

I will utter hidden things,

things from of old—

what we have heard and known,

what our fathers have told us.

We will not hide them from our children;

we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord,

his power and the wonders he has done…..

so the next generation will know them, even the children yet to be born

and they in turn will tell their children.

 If these five values call to you, deep in your bones, then get thyself to a Convene Team.

Practicing Convene Principles at Home

One of the most profound lessons I’ve learned from my involvement with Convene is the importance of spending time working on my “business” and not just investing time in the “business”. I need to pull my shoulder off of the grindstone to take a look at how and why I am doing what I am doing. That is such a simple idea … yet when I apply it … it transforms what I am grinding away at … and how I am spending my time. Being in the marriage and family building “business”, I’m amazed at how many of the principles we learn at our Convene Forum Days have direct application into our marriages. I have been trained as a theologian and counselor not a business leader. So, the whole concept of Managing by Key Indicators was new to me; and I struggled a while to articulate what needs to be done in order for me to be successful in what I do.

We’ve all learned that “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” Going back to my notes these quotes jumped out to me:

“Know well the condition of your flocks, and pay attention to your herds. For riches are not forever; nor does a crown endure to all generations.” Prov. 27:23-24, NASB

Companies that fail - work hard - but on the wrong things! To help your business stay focused on the right things, create a set of simple Key Indicators, which allow you to quickly assess the health and direction of the organization.

Look at how these sound if we just change a few key words:

“Know well the condition of your spouse, and pay attention to your family. For riches are not forever; nor does a crown endure to all generations.” Prov. 27:23-24, NASB

Couples that fail - work hard - but on the wrong things! To help your marriage stay focused on the right things, create a set of simple Key Indicators, which allow you to quickly assess the health and direction of the relationship.

Have you ever thought about what the “Key indicators” might be for your marriage and family life? Here’s a list Karen and I came up with to help us see how well we’re doing:

• We’re communicating on a rapport (emotional) versus report (fact) level?

• We’re making regular spiritual connections?

• We’re making regular physical connections?

• We resolve our conflicts / issues quickly?

• We’re an effective parenting team?

• We enjoy “alone time” together?

• We are serving the Lord together?

Why don’t you schedule a family business meeting with your spouse and agree on a set of KPI’s for your marriage this week?

Preparing for a Successful Retirement