A Journey With Christ
Helping business leaders be what God has called them to be
We are not Human Doings. We are not Human Sayings. We are not Human Knowings. We are Human Beings. And yet so often we only focus on what we are doing, and saying and knowing and not on what we are being.
There is more to an individual than what he or she does, says or knows. And there is more to business than production, marketing and intellectual property. Spin doctors and image consultants focus on the outward appearance and public perception, but there is much more to the life of a business leader.
Some people, at the end of their life, realize everything they pursued was meaningless. How often has this thought been articulated, “I’d give anything if I could live my life over again. I’d give anything if I could buy those years back.”
Jesus summed this up in one principle: “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).
The story is told of a top executive of a Fortune 500 company who attended a retirement banquet in his honour. Speech after speech was given applauding his life’s work. He was a powerful business leader with many achievements in his lengthy career. Each of the young ex-ecutives secretly pictured themselves with the same prestige at the end of their career in the future.
After all the accolades, it was finally time to hear from the retiring CEO. Each voice was hushed as all strained to hear a lifetime of wisdom from this retiring giant. This influential business leader began his speech with this statement, “Years ago I put my ladder up against the wall and began to climb. For all these years since then I have struggled to make it to the top. Now I’ve arrived only to discover that fifty years ago I placed my ladder against the wrong wall.”
The sum total of his wisdom was the realization that he had been on the wrong path for decades. What he had pursued he had found, only to realize what he got he didn’t want.
This can be illustrated by a simple quiz. Pay attention because there is a skill testing question at the end. Please only do the calculations in your head and not on paper as this will skew the results. Here is the quiz.
A Bus comes into town with 40 passengers. At the first stop 15 got off and 6 got on. At the next stop 5 got off and 14 got on. At the next stop 18 got on and 15 got off. At the next stop 10 got off and 10 got on. At the last stop 3 got on and 5 got off.
Now here is the obvious question… how many stops did the bus make?
For the last 50 seconds, we’ve done what millions of Canadians spend 50 years doing — trying to find the answer to the wrong question. How can I be successful in business? How can I get rich? How can I live a life of pleasure? How can I become famous? And all the while, Jesus’ words are being ignored, “whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35).
The now common modern parable tells of the American investment banker who was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied it had taken only a little while.
The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish.
The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs.
The American then asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”
The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life.”
The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats; eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”
The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?”
To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”
“But what then?”
The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions.”
“Millions, then what?”
The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”
Christian Business Ministries Canada is aiming far higher than that goal. This Business Life issue is introducing the title for the next chapter of ministry, “Pathway to Purpose”. It is a journey with Christ, in the pursuit of personal and business transformation.
On this Journey there are Four Paths. The pursuit of Life, Leadership, Ministry and Business Excellence will help build Kingdom Leaders and Kingdom Companies, who will bring about transformation of the Canadian marketplace.
This Journey consists of many stages, steps, rest stops, detours, challenges and celebrations. This Journey with peers will bring new significance to work, and help fulfill our purpose in Christ.
The goal is Marketplace Transformation, one business leader at a time. This has been the goal of CBMC since its inception. This transformation is experienced over time, in the reputation, appearance and performance of people in the everyday world of business and commerce. It has no practical or societal explanation. It is a work of God, through prayer and transformed lives, to the Glory of God.
Marketplace Transformation occurs when there is Business Transformation. That is a God induced change in the corporate DNA of a company, influenced by personally transformed leaders, with the desire to glorify the Lord through their work in the marketplace.
This Kingdom Company is a business where the key stakeholders embrace, in every aspect of the company, the purpose of God and His righteousness. It is lead by a Kingdom Leader who is a transformed business leader
There are four areas of development which together, in harmony, define a Kingdom Leader: Life Development, Leadership Development, Ministry Development and Business Development.
Life Development is a journey leading towards Spiritual Maturity which renews the mind and changes the heart of the business leader.
God works through leadership in every facet of life. Therefore, good leadership is critical to any organization. In the Leadership Development pathway, members will learn the essence of servant leadership and move toward acquiring and honing their leadership skills.
Work is ministry and ministry is work. Our business and career will be the most challenging and fulfilling ministry. Our workplace is a mission field, a vehicle for sharing the Gospel and living out biblical values. On the Ministry Development path, members will explore ministry strategies that will impact employees, customers, suppliers and the marketplace for Christ.
Business Development is a journey leading toward Business Excellence. It is the process engaged in by an individual and organization to strive for excellence in the areas of planning, finances, human resources and integrity. It is an active discipline to seek and apply Christ’s “best practices” to specific business issues and opportunities with a group of peers.
This Pathway to Purpose is helping business leaders be what God has called them to be, and not just focus on doing and saying and knowing. When we are what God has called us to be we will move in the power, anointing and success the Lord wants for our business, life and families. That is the bottom line.
This was first published in Winter 2006 Business Life.
