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.      

Luke 12.5,8-9 records, Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in His hands……Stand up for Me among the people you meet and the Son of Man will stand up for you before all God’s angels. But if you pretend you don’t know Me, do you think I’ll defend you before God’s angels? MSG

We are in desperate need of men who will live the way God warns us to live in this passage. As the culture increases its antagonism toward Biblical Christianity, that is the recorded will of God in the Scriptures, Christian men will have to choose between fearing God and fearing men. What does that choice look like practically?

Fearing God is obedience to the Great Commission, owning and working toward the building of God’s kingdom upon earth as it is in heaven. Because men love darkness more than light they will persecute those who proclaim His Name just as they persecuted Him. Some however, will believe, and will be reconciled to God, receiving eternal life. This is the goal. People are the prize. Christians are the means for making known the gospel which is the power of salvation for all who believe. To fear God is to fearlessly make God known in the world so that men can know God and live forever in His world.

Fearing men is to deny knowing God. It is to acquiesce to the dictates of the culture. To fear men is to give in to their demands that we not live, speak or disciple others in the ways of God that conflict with the ways of men. It is to promote the ways of men that conflict with the ways of God in advertising, in our corporate training and with our charity dollars.

The days of passive Christianity are quickly coming to an end. Our long passivity has led to an increasingly hostile culture to the ways of God. Now, like our church forefathers, we must stand with Christ, but some will suffer harshly for His Name’s sake, yet their reward in heaven will be great if they feared God more than they feared men.  

Our Opportunities

1. Are you under 40? CBMC is launching it’s Young Professionals ministry team with an introductory meeting April 13th from 5-6.30pm at the Sandler Training office located at 6639 Centurion Dr. Ste. 180 Lansing, MI 48917. Learn more about YP here, and contact Mike if you are interested in attending. Seating is limited to 20 young professionals due to COVID constraints. Contact Mike here
   
2. Celebrate Good Friday with CBMC. In partnership with Redemption Fitness, CBMC is sponsoring the Passion WOD. Be reminded of Jesus’ lashings through jumping rope 200 times, remember His cross by carrying 95pds 800 meters, participate in His death and resurrection by completing 100 burpees. Join us, anytime between 10.30am and 12pm, April 3rd at Redemption Fitness in Holt,  with an unchurched friend so they can hear the gospel presented upon completion of this workout using these exercises as our means to share what Jesus did for us. Register here 

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917  / 517 481 5996 www.lansing.cbmc.com 

MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

March 1, 2021 

If You Are Needing A Ship, Why Not Just Build One?

by Robert J. Tamasy 

Some people like to dream. “If only I had the opportunity to show what I could do!” Others talk about what they will accomplish when “their ship comes in.” We talk about people getting their big break when “opportunity knocks.” But what if, when opportunity knocks, we are taking a nap? Taking out the trash? Or pursuing some hobby? 

I don’t know who originated it, but recently I read an insightful comment. Remember Noah, the fellow in Genesis 6 whom God assigned the responsibility of building a huge ark to preserve his family and representative animals from an imminent flood? Well, as the observer pointed out, “Noah didn’t wait for his ship to come in; he built one.” 

We live in a time when an increasing number of people are keeping a vigilant eye out for a free lunch, free education, and a slew of other benefits and services they have not earned. Basically, they are waiting for someone else to do the hard work, to provide the resources they are not willing to put forth the necessary effort to produce. They are expecting to win the lottery – without even going to the trouble of buying a lottery ticket. 

As a young man, I had been coddled by my parents and lacked a reasonable work ethic. Fortunately, I had an uncle who kindly but firmly taught me that if you are going to succeed at anything, you will need to do the work to achieve it. After becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, I prayed for God to bless my career, but understood that He expected me to do my part as well. The result, I ultimately learned, was that God is “able to do immeasurably more than all [I could] ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20). 

Think about Noah again for a moment. Biblical scholars tell us that, according to the passage, it had not yet rained on the earth up to that time. So when God informed Noah that it was going to not only rain, but also flood the entire earth, the would-be ark builder was probably a bit perplexed. But Noah did as commanded, building a ship of immense size – empowered and directed by the Lord. We might not be asked to construct an ark, but it is likely He might ask us to do something equally formidable. Are we willing to do the work? 

The Bible teaches much about the importance of hard work, especially when pursuing clear-cut goals and purposes. Here are some of the principles it offers: 

Goals require more than dreaming. Many of us have lofty aspirations, things we would like to accomplish. But wishful thinking and hoping is not enough to turn our dreams into reality. “He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment” (Proverbs 12:11). 

Action always speaks louder than words. “Talk is cheap,” the adage reminds us, but the real expense comes in actually following through on our good intentions. Writing down goals is always a good idea, but formulating a measurable, tangible plan for accomplishing them – and then following through – is much better. “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty” (Proverbs 14:23). 

Half-hearted efforts seldom succeed. One day, my friend Gary Highfield realized his “want to” – desiring a better life for his family – had to become “have to,” shaped by a variety of efforts to transform himself into a more valuable worker. His efforts paid off, and he even wrote a book, When Want To Becomes Have To, that inspires many young people today. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward” (Colossians 3:23-24). 

© 2021. Robert J. Tamasy has written Marketplace Ambassadors: CBMC’s Continuing Legacy of Evangelism and Discipleship; Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; and The Heart of Mentoring, coauthored with David A. Stoddard. Bob’s biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com.

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917 / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com

 MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

March 1, 2021 

Reflection/Discussion Questions 

1. Are there opportunities you would like to receive to advance yourself personally, or professionally? If so, what are they?
    
2. How do you think you could become more diligent in pursuing those opportunities, rather than waiting for them to suddenly appear at your door?
    
3. What do you think Noah might have been thinking when God instructed him to build an ark? How do you think you might have responded?
    
4. Why do you think it is difficult for some people to act upon their dreams and aspirations? If you knew of someone stuck in “dreamland” rather than moving into action, how do you think you – or someone else – could help in acting upon what they have been envisioning? 

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more, consider the following passages: Genesis 6:9-22; Proverbs 10:4, 13:4, 16:26, 22:29, 27:18; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Ephesians 2:10 

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917 / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com