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.    

Jeremiah 24.4-10 says, God told me, “This is the Message from the God of Israel: The exiles from here that I’ve sent off to the land of the Babylonians are like the good figs, and I’ll make sure they get good treatment. I’ll keep My eye on them so that their lives are good, and I’ll bring them back to this land. I’ll build them up, not tear them down; I’ll plant them, not uproot them. “And I’ll give them a heart to know Me, God. They’ll be My people and I’ll be their God, for they’ll have returned to Me with all their hearts. “But like the rotten figs, so rotten they can’t be eaten, is Zedekiah king of Judah. Rotten figs—that’s how I’ll treat him and his leaders, along with the survivors here and those down in Egypt. I’ll make them something that the whole world will look on as disgusting—repugnant outcasts, their names used as curse words wherever in the world I drive them. And I’ll make sure they die like flies—from war, starvation, disease, whatever—until the land I once gave to them and their ancestors is completely rid of them. MSG

The good figs, the blessed by God, were those taken as prisoners from Israel. They were the ones who walked in chains to far off Babylon. Nothing about that event could have felt like a blessing. Yet they were the ones God said were blessed, the ones He was watching over, the ones whose hearts He would return to Himself and eventually would have their ancestors return to the Promised Land.

Those who were not taken captive, those allowed to stay in their homes, those who lived in the Promised Land after the conquerors left, were the rotten figs, the ones cursed by God. How strange. No doubt after Babylon left those who remained felt they were the blessed ones. They still had their homes, they still lived in God’s land, they still had their ‘normal’ life.

Our circumstances are not indicative of God’s blessing upon our lives. What looks bad could be the best for us and what looks like a blessing could be a curse upon us. How will we know the difference? We may not exactly but we do need to stay with the Lord. We need to always be praying. We need to always be obeying.

It is so easy to judge life by its ease or blessings rather than by our obedience and fruitfulness for the Kingdom of God. If we want to be God’s man, doing life God’s way, for God’s glory, no matter what then we mustn’t seek the easy life but the obedient life, accepting whatever that life is that God allows upon us.

Our Opportunities

1.      CBMC welcomes The Global Leadership Summit August 5 and 6.  If you’re looking for a great place to get refreshed, recharged, fired-up and encouraged to lead and thrive personally and professionally, you’re not going to want to miss The Global Leadership Summit!  Learn more here then contact Mike for a special discount code for you and your team!

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

August 2, 2021 

Taking A Stance For ‘Spiritual Conformity’

by Jim Langley 

Our culture seems to be constantly changing these days. Personally, I have come to the conclusion that I can no longer keep up with, much less conform, to the many cultural shifts that are happening all around us. There was a time when I accepted those social changes as inevitable. However, as a follower of Jesus Christ, I now understand I cannot condone many of these changes and now am taking a stance for what I call “spiritual conformity.” We are called by our Lord to follow His ways, not to conform to the ways of this world. 

Romans 12:1-2 admonishes all believers, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer 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.” 

As a young officer in the U.S. military, I was instructed to follow the orders and commands that came down from above. Orderly conduct governed by established rules produces positive results on the part of any group. Businesses must also establish best practices to ensure their employees follow guidelines that will honor their company and properly serve their clients. 

As an avid golfer, I realize the purpose of rules for the game I dearly love. All organized sports have rules for a reason – without boundaries there would be chaos; players would take advantage of whatever they wanted to do. Without adequate and proper rules, the result would be competitive anarchy. 

I believe this is the problem with all the cultural upheaval we have seen in recent years. Many people simply make up the rules as they go through life and do whatever they feel is right in their own eyes. In fact, this is what the Old Testament tells us. In Judges 2:10-11 we read “After the whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals.” 

Now, let me suggest we approach this from a different direction. Rather than assessing blame, I would prefer to offer what I feel is the antidote to this growing spiritual pandemic. Those of us having a personal relationship with our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ are able to appropriate His life spiritually, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us. We need to call on the Lord to fill us with His Spirit and give us the discernment needed for taking proper action to ensure that God’s message of peace and hope is communicated effectively, permeating the hearts of those around us. 

Within this context of seeking to live a counter-cultural life that honors God, I think of the words written by the apostle Paul in Colossians 3:15-17: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” 

We need to hold tightly to what we know is true and correct, with wisdom standing strong in the grace bestowed on us by our Lord. Then we can pray for healing and restoration of the culture and our people, including the men and women we encounter each day in the marketplace. 

© 2021, all rights reserved. Jim Langley has been writing for more than 30 years while working as a life and health insurance agent. In recent years, his passion has turned to writing about his relationship with God. His goal is to encourage others to draw near to Him. A long-time member of CBMC, he started writing “Fourth Quarter Strategies” in 2014. 

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

August 2, 2021 

Reflection/Discussion Questions 

1. What are your thoughts about the cultural changes we have experienced in recent years? Do you find yourself conforming to those changes, even though they might be contrary to beliefs and practices you have followed in the past? 

1. Why do you think it is so difficult to stand up for values that contradict the changing culture? 

1. In the book of Romans, we find this statement by the apostle Paul: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation of everyone who believes…. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith…. ‘The righteous will live by faith’” (Romans 1:16). How do you think we can apply that to how we deal with the ever-changing culture around us? 

1. When you consider what you know about the life of Jesus Christ, how do you think He addressed challenges with the culture in which He lived on earth? What can that teach us? 

NOTE: For more about what the Bible says, consider the following passages: Psalm 139:23-24; Jeremiah 31:33-34; Romans 8:26-27; Ephesians 5:11-17; Colossians 1:27-29