Anyone who knows me very well knows that I am a networker and a wisdom-seeker. Since I was in high school I have tried to surround myself with people heading in the direction I want to go who know more about a subject than I do and I am never afraid to ask for help.
One of the primary purposes for our recent visit to Lithuania was to work with business leaders and individuals on issues related to personal finance, leadership, and budgeting. This was our initial trip, but we were able to open doors and build trust with key people in the church and community for future interaction. Our end goal is Kingdom-building, but instead of a medical or construction project, which is typical for many mission trips, we went addressing the primary need of the Lithuanians at this time; the economy. Naturally we received lots of questions about the economy in the United States. There was keen awareness that our economy impacts their economy.
I am always curious what people are looking for when they come to my blog. Occasionally I look at the keywords stats in Google Analytics to decide what interests or needs people have and this helps form my thoughts about what blogs are needed or desired. I did that tonight.
Recently while I was in Lithuania I spoke with some people who want the country to return to Communism, because, as they put it, they feel they are “missing hope” in a capitalistic society. Under Communism, even though most had very little and the same people told story after story of doing without and wanting for more, they at least knew what to expect. That was their definition of hope. I understand that capitalism allows a large amount of uncertainty and risk. There are few guarantees, but that is what makes it capitalistic, the ability for individuals to make a difference for themselves through hard work, risk and speculation.
The call to leadership often requires making difficult decisions no one else is willing to make. Over the years I have observed people that call themselves leaders, but who easily give up when difficult times come to the organization. Leaders should strive to structure the organization to weather storms, but in any organization there will be times when hard decisions have to be made and a leader must be willing to make them for the good of the organization.
I remember when my son was younger, three or less, and we would be in public and a stranger would come up to take notice of the cute little blonde in my arms. The more the person would try to get my son’s attention, the more my son would hide his face in my chest. We called it shyness, but it was really a son seeking protection in his father.
The vision or end goal or an organization or business should be consistent, but the way the vision is reached should for the mostly be flexible. As demands of consumers or clients change, as the economy changes, or if improvements need to be made to the existing methods of reaching the defined vision, an organization or business needs to be flexible enough to tweak the way it attempts to reach its set goals.
Recently I posted about the need to use the summer to plan for the fall. Read that post HERE. I have been heeding my own advice and dreaming and planning for the fall. This is going to be an exciting time. We are experiencing record growth, God is showing up mightily in people’s lives, and we think this fall is going to be crazy.
Did you know there are economists who claim the government needs to pump even more money into the economy? Which number stimulus package would this be? Who will pay for this one…China maybe? Seriously, aren’t countries about tired of loaning us money so we can place it back in the economy? Just wondering….
I decided my 18 year-old son’s latest post was important enough to steal it from him. I only wish I had written this first. Great thoughts. Nate has led in our student worship area for the last couple years and done an amazing job. Our church is going to miss him this fall as he begins his college days at Moody Bible College in Chicago. You can follow Nate’s thoughts at his blog Moons from Burma.
