The Bible makes it clear in several passages that through the power of the Holy Spirit and "with the help of our God" we can accomplish more than we could otherwise.

The building of the walls in Nehemiah was an act of God and it was recognizable to others. Think about your work - would others recognize God's hand in it?

In your daily life, do you operate within your own capacity or do you extend your potential by humbling yourself, yielding to him, and allowing him to do more, through you?

If you feel that God has called you to the life/work/task/business/ministry that you are in, why not expect him to be faithful to his promises in scripture and help you fulfill the mission he's commissioned you to? When you feel overwhelmed, let that be a signal to you to stop what you are doing and spend 30 seconds asking God if you should be doing that thing and if so, for the Spirit's help to accomplish it.

Through humility, surrender and dependence on the God, you'll receive the help you need to achieve much more than you ever could on your own strength.

A friend and I talked about this and drew this diagram to help demonstrate the difference of a life lived on God's capacity versus our own.

We depict here that as we become less/humble ourselves, he does more and increases our capacity to fulfill the call on our lives.

It's overly simplified, but the visual helps me remember that tireless hours of work don't even compare to minutes yielded to God Almighty, the Creator of all things.

(PS - Sorry I've been a total failure and haven't posted in 6 weeks...)

Time, talents, possessions, relationships, influence, passions... ?

Are you multiplying it or burying it?

Matthew 25:16

He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more.

Matthew 25:18

But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.

Are you asking for more investment from God without being faithful with what He's already given you?

Matthew 25:20

... His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much...

You've been trusted with gifts from God and they come with a responsibility. You've been blessed to be a blessing. Given some, so you can give more.

When you meet your heavenly Father and he asks you "What have you done with what I have given you?" how will you respond?

Are you investing what he's giving you, or are you believing lies from the enemy that you don't have anything to offer? Are you multiplying your talents or burying them with doubt, insecurity, or fear?

You have a responsibility to invest because he has an expectation of return...

But, he has given you everything you need to fulfill the expectation he has for your life.

His name is Jesus.

Philippians 4:13

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

James 1:19

"Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;..."

Do you really listen to people?

I think one of the ways we can love people best is by truly listening to them, being quick to hear and slow to speak. Focusing on their words, not our own thoughts, and listening for their heart.

seriously, lets all decide to never pull the phone out during a date again...

These days inboxes, cell phones, tweets, notifications and multitasking make it easy to be very distracted, all the time. Not to mention the selfish nature of the human race that would like to turn every conversation into one about ourselves.

I believe the discipline of listening is key to personal and business relationships as well as consumer and social media marketing.

Not to mention... prayer.

With friends, co-workers, my wife and with God - I find myself being quick to speak and slow to listen. Forgive me.

This is something I'm working on, and I challenge you to do the same.

Remember that the person standing or sitting in front of you is always the most important in the world at that moment. Make them feel that way.

Last week I posted a motivational type post about leadership and breaking rules in my leaders are heretical post.

This Tuesday I posted a more spiritual, very different, poetic post titled Spirit rhythm.

And now, today's post includes a funny YouTube video.

timing is everything

Please bear with me as I attempt to find my "voice" here on kingdom commerce. And any feedback to help me know what resonates with you, is greatly appreciated. Now, back to the post at hand...

Timing is everything.

Results can vary dramatically due to timing.

If your manager has just finished a conversation with someone about simplifying, cutting costs, and focus, and you approach her about a new project that you've been dreaming up for months, you'll likely leave heartbroken.

An announcement of a new product, device, or technology will elicit a very different response the day before your competition releases their version, opposed to the day following their announcement.

A message spoken at church is received entirely differently by the man who just watched his wife walk out on him or by the woman who lost her job the day before.

Crossing a busy street can be two very different experiences only seconds apart from each other depending on which stoplights are red and which are green.

And finally, a flash mobber in-sync is a part of something fantastic, but even a few seconds too early and well... watch and see...

A well timed flash mob, word of encouragement, email, presentation, product, or conversation can be powerful. But unfortunately, poor timing can single handedly ruin an otherwise brilliant act. And as you can see from the video, the results can be humiliating.

So, what's the solution? As a Christian, it's discernment and staying in Spirit rhythm.

Through prayer we can be aligned with God's timing, who not only knows the future but has already been there. By waiting on the Lord and trusting his timing, we can elevate ourselves above our own personal circumstances and worldview and have a broader perspective.

Be aware of your tendencies and balance them. I have a tendency to want to get there first and always like to run out ahead of myself; my thoughts are focused on the future and dreaming about what could be.

Others have the opposite instinct - they keep their head down, set on the work at hand and neglect to plan or prepare for the future at all.

Neither is better than the other, both types of people must learn to wait on God's timing and then confidently step out in obedience and faith when the light turns from red to green.

It's a beat we can choose to listen for; a pattern we can choose to follow.

It's a consistent, subtle, whispered, pulse... easy to ignore.

...

Spirit rhythm is Christ's song.

It's the voice that led him to a cross; a melody he chose to obey.

It was a painful, loving, dying, hymn. A song that tore the veil.

Spirit rhythm is the Holy Spirit's timing in our lives...

A never-ceasing, always listening, prayer; a surrendered dependance on Him.

It's an in-step, tuned-in, fruit-filled, life, led by the Spirit.

In daily decisions, in business, in leadership, in marriage, in everything - stop and listen for the rhythm.

It's God's good, pleasing, and perfect will for your life.

Galatians 5:25

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-19

16 Rejoice always,17 pray without ceasing,18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.19 Do not quench the Spirit.

Romans 12:1-2

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

This picture reminds me to break the rules. Although I'm almost certain its been through Photoshop...

Leaders are heretical. But no one ever changed the world by following the rules.

Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs that conflicts with established dogma.

By definition, there is nothing wrong with heresy. But, it's certainly a dirty word to many people.

Maybe it shouldn't be.

Jesus was "controversial" and represented "novel change to a system of beliefs". He shocked the pharisees on a regular basis.

Looking back on history, most leaders and change makers could also be called heretics.

Todays leaders must not be afraid to break the rules or they may not be leaders at all. In fact, to lead today, you must become comfortable with challenging the status quo. This is especially true because of the fast paced change we experience around us.

If we fail to change we get stuck in the past and what worked in the past will likely fail in the future.

It's easy to "go with the flow" and nod your head when everyone else does. But, I challenge you; don't settle. If you believe something can be better, different, new, then say something about it. Do something about it.

In a world or ruts, routines and robots, step out of the system of normal, toward your vision for the future, and by doing so, you'll be stepping into leadership.

You may be a heretic, but if you are bringing needed change to the world around you... thank you for your heresy.

The world needs more heretics, contrast, change, and people that take risks because they believe in something that's worth the risk.

No one ever changed the world by doing the same thing everyone else was doing.

Seth Godin does a fantastic job talking about heretical leadership in one of my favorite books, Tribes.

God has done amazing things through this site and community and I'm honored to be a part of the team "behind the screens"...

Travis is a kingdom minded entrepreneur. We met after being invited by our mutual friend Samuel to be on the Advisory Board of an exciting venture GreenHouse Coffee. (GreenHouse is a coffee shop in Xining, China; but I'll save that story for another day)

Travis owns land in east Fayetteville and after having some kids come out to visit, play in the dirt, spend a day outside and sit around a bonfire, he was surprised to find that many of these children "had never seen a bonfire before". Being the entrepreneur type, I'm sure it didn't take him long to start scheming the ideas that eventually led to New Creation Camp.

New Creation Camp in Fayetteville

New Creation Camp is a 25 acre retreat nestled in the Ozark Mountains outside Fayetteville, Arkansas. New Creation offers a place for groups to explore God’s creations and experience a whole host of fun outdoor activities.

Travis seized the opportunity in front of him to bless kids with his resources. However, it quickly became clear that he was going to need a source of revenue to subsidize this new ministry.

Again, thinking like an entrepreneur, Travis decided to leverage his assets, his land, with an innovative start-up business, Modern Mission outdoor laser tag combat.

from the Modern Mission website:

We’ve taken the technology of laser tag to a whole new level and added the adrenaline rush & mission specific game-play of paintball. Our equipment is state of the art and can hit a target up to 1200 feet away. Players are placed on special teams and have specific functions, duties, roles and titles. On the first mission you might be in command of a team escorting a high-ranking official and the next mission you might be a sniper hiding in the woods.

Modern Mission is the result of a heart to serve kids and the execution of a great business opportunity.

This is an excellent Kingdom Business example, no doubt. And I'm even more excited about it because I had the chance to experience the fun first hand this weekend and it is was a thrilling and memorable experience!

As a part of my friend Chris' bachelor party, five of us guys went out to Modern Mission and had the time of our lives, without exaggeration. We all quickly became huge fans and are already planning the next trip out.

I love that this is a local Kingdom Business idea that is pretty simple and has been accomplished with excellence. It's only been around for a few months and the word is spreading quickly because outstanding experiences are worth sharing and good ideas spread fast.

A few weeks ago I spoke on Emerging Media at a Marketing Management class at the University of Arkansas.

During the presentation I was able to share my story & testimony to explain why I love working for DaySpring. Next, I talked about emerging media and how rapidly the world of marketing is changing. This led me to my main point of the presentation, that Relationship Marketing is the core concept that can separate a brand from the noise and withstand the ever-changing world of technologies, strategies and consumer behavior.

I believe in relationships. I believe the Bible is all about relationships. Therefore, in business, I believe relationships are a key to success.

Authentic, generous, transparent, 2-way, sincere, loving, Christ-like relationships.

In the same way that we strive to be like Christ in our daily lives, we should strive to be like Christ in business.

Be like Jesus with marketing.

As Christians we are called to love one another and in humility, count others more significant than ourselves. Why would that change when we go to work? Why would Christian marketers not be called to the same in their profession?

This may sound strange to some, mostly due to the stigma the word "marketing" carries, but I do this every day. Marketing is just one way to love others through generous giving, service and relationship. This is "Relationship Marketing" and the funny thing is... it is not only personally fulfilling but also the most savvy, rewarding way to do business.

This is why I do marketing.

If you read business books and articles or watch talks on marketing, you'll hear words like "tribes", "generosity" and "engagement". But they are all really getting at the same thing...

If we love our consumers through relationship and treat them that way...

they will love us back.

Pretty basic relationship management. Pretty simple stuff.

But, a very radical shift in the way marketers currently think and sadly, far from the reality we see around us.

This concept of Christ-like marketing is one I hope to explore and develop and I'd love to hear your feedback on these terms and ideas in the comments...

How often do you ask yourself "Why"...?

As sinful people, we need to constantly keep our hearts in check.

Even (maybe especially) in missions and ministry we must always ask ourselves: "What is the real motivation, deep inside, that drives me to do this?"

When I look hard at my own heart I'm often disappointed to find my own selfish desires for some ounce of personal gain or glory at the root of my actions.

It takes digging, but you've got to find that root and replace it with a heart set on God's glory.

Missions can be sexy. There's no doubt about it.

Sadly, I see people "going" to the mission field to achieve a "radical" image and respect or acceptance in our Christian culture.

But even compassion is a motivation mis-guided.

If your heart's desire and driving motivation is not God's glory and simple obedience to him, its off-target.

There is a constant battle in me for the desires of my heart. I wish it didn't exist, but I'll keep fighting it as long as it does.

I've found that the best way to change my heart is through prayer and time with God.

More often than not, I go to prayer to change other things and yet, I'm the one that is changed.