Our Mission

 To present Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord to business and professional men and to develop Christian business and professional men to carry out the Great Commission.

Mark 12.34 comments, you’re almost there, right on the border of God’s kingdom. Who was this man that God observed, was almost there? First, its not a good thing to be ‘almost there’ in the eyes of God. If ‘there’ is heaven the only other destiny is hell. We don’t want God to say we are almost in heaven! So who was this man?

He was a religious scholar. He was a student of God and His biography, a book we call the Bible. He was a man that should have known the character, nature and will of God because he was familiar with the word of God. His familiarity was evidenced in his understanding and acknowledgement to God, Jesus, of what is most important to God. Herein is the clue to his ‘near’ arrival to heaven. The religious scholar knew God’s word and what God desired but most likely he was poor in his execution of the doing of God’s will.

The scholar knew that what was most important to God was to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as our self. But if he did not love God first and most and his neighbor as he loved himself, but knew these things to be the supreme will of God, then he would be close to getting into heaven without getting to heaven because he was not doing what he knew God wanted.

He was close because he knew what God wanted but not in because he didn’t do what God wanted. This is why reading, learning and studying the Bible is so important. We cannot know God or how to please Him without spending time in His biography that He gave us for the exact purpose of knowing Him and doing His will. Ignorance of God and His will keeps us living in disobedience to God no matter how good we think we are. But knowing God and His will is insufficient for pleasing God.

We must do His will if we are to please God. The enemy of God knows the will of God but works against that very will. God said whoever is not for Him is against Him. Our works must align with God’s will for them to be approved by God. We are not good because we think we are good. We are good because we do what God declares good.

Fortunately, getting to heaven is not based upon our works but the work of God in Jesus, appropriated to us through faith in Him as Savior of the world. Nevertheless, we are not going to heaven if we believe this to be true, we are going to heaven when we live this truth.

His Opportunities

1. CBMC is trying something new in 2018: Monday Manna live. 10.00am Mike will explain today’s scripture in person. Catch it here
   
   
2. CBMC’s first special luncheon of the year is March 29th. Our speaker is Deloitte CFO Pete Shimer. Register HERE
   
   
3. CBMC Leadership Coach Training is changing the way leaders are being developed and the way people are communicating. Learn how the art and science of listening well and asking powerful questions are at the heart of conversations that can lead to individual and corporate transformation. It’s true with your family, friends, business and personal ministry. This is a one day hands on training workshop with 8 weeks of follow up exercises and Teleclass conference calls to help you to embrace and practice what you’ve learned. February 23& 24 Register HERE
   
   
4. CBMC needs more investors in 2018. Join the Team Today.  COMMIT now.

 CBMC Central Michigan 6011 W. St. Joseph Ste. 401 Lansing 48917  / 517 481 5996 www.lansing.cbmc.com

MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

February 12, 2018

The Benevolence of Burden-Bearing

by Rick Boxx

One day during a period of some difficult changes at work, I asked an employee how she was doing. She responded that she was fine. I looked her in the eyes and said, “No. How are you really doing?” I could see from her demeanor that the upheaval at our business was taking a negative toll on her.

The next morning, with tears in her eyes, this employee approached me to say my heartfelt question the previous day had touched her. It made her understand that I really cared. She then expressed important thoughts about how she perceived the changes and what was troubling her the most.

A study by an employee benefits administration company discovered 33 percent of people would be willing to switch companies if they knew they would receive more empathy, and 40 percent said they would work longer hours as long as they felt assured that those they were working for genuinely cared about them and their well-being.

This is interesting, since empathy is not a topic given much attention in business schools, if at all. Even in management training, the focus is typically on how to get things done most productively and efficiently, not on how to address the heartfelt needs of the people doing the work.

Empathy is defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. In the business and professional world, we can easily ignore the feelings of others. Maximizing profits and satisfying stakeholders tend to take priority. But genuinely caring for others can make a tremendous difference in developing loyal employees that are more content and productive because they feel valued.

In the Bible’s New Testament, Galatians 6:2 teaches, “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” Another way to express this is “sharing the load.” The weight of emotions, or the strain of dealing with problems that cannot be quickly resolved, can overwhelm. Sometimes we can help in specific, tangible ways. Other times all we can do is communicate to the other person that we care – and sometimes, that is enough. We might assure them we are praying for them. Helping to bear someone else’s burdens might be an act of benevolence they will never forget.

The Scriptures affirm this principle in other ways:

Willingness to put others first. Whether our role is that of executive, supervisor or coworker, showing empathy to others communicates we are concerned for their best interests. “We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.” (Romans 15:1).

Doing as we would want others to do for us. If you were in the middle of circumstances that seemed overwhelming, would you want to experience the concern and care of others to help you through the difficult time? “…serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:13-14).

 Copyright 2018, Unconventional Business Network (formerly Integrity Resource Center, Inc). Adapted with permission from “Integrity Moments with Rick Boxx,” a commentary on issues of integrity in the workplace from a Christian perspective. To learn more about their ministry or to sign up for Rick’s daily Integrity Moments, visitwww.unconventionalbusiness.org. His latest book and inspiration for their new ministry name, Unconventional Business, provides “Five Keys to Growing a Business God’s Way.”

CBMC Central Michigan 6011 W. St. Joseph Ste. 401 Lansing 48917  / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com 

 MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

February 12, 2018

 Reflection/Discussion Questions

1. In general, how often do you see empathy expressed and demonstrated in the workplace? In what ways have you seen this done?

1. Can you think of a time when you became the beneficiary of someone else’s sincere concern and caring? How did that make you feel?

1. Some people are more naturally empathetic than others. How would you rate yourself on an “empathy scale” – very empathetic, somewhat empathetic, not very empathetic? Explain your answer.

1. Even if empathy is not one of our natural assets, how can we strive to be more empathetic, more considerate of the concerns and needs of others going through difficult times?

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about this subject, consider the following passages:

 Proverbs 12:14,18, 15:4, 16:24, 20:5,12; Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; 1 Corinthians 12:12-20,26

CBMC Central Michigan 6011 W. St. Joseph Ste. 401 Lansing 48917  / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com