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.

Ezekiel 33.8-9, 11-12 commands, when I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand. “But as for you, if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life….. “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares Lord Yahweh, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’ “Now as for you, son of man, say to the sons of your people, ‘The righteousness of a righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression, and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he will not stumble because of it in the day when he turns from his wickedness; whereas a righteous man will not be able to live by his righteousness on the day when he commits sin.‘ LSB 

The Scripture is clear that unless a man is born again, he cannot enter God’s kingdom. The Word of God, which has been given to us to reveal the ways of God so that we can prepare ourselves for meeting God, is clear that no one is righteous before God. All have sinned and fallen short of His requirements. All people everywhere need a Savior, and Jesus alone is God’s appointed Savior, for He alone is God.

Jesus, after dying for the sins of humanity as the sacrifice for all humankind, commissioned His followers to make known the good news that God is willing to pardon all people everywhere for all the sins they have ever committed against Him. This is the mission of every Christian, the Great Commission. Our vocation is to pay for our occupation, which is the building of His kingdom upon the earth as it is in heaven. Failure to engage in this work by the Christian is a failure to warn the wicked of their awful destiny.

It is a failure to love others as we love for ourselves, for who of us wants to live in hell, suffering in torment forever away from God and those we have loved? Can we be righteous before God and disobedient to the work God has commanded us to do? We have one purpose, for we all have one destiny. We shall all meet God. Those who obey God will live forever with God, but God will forever condemn those who deny God. The response to the gospel, which is the power of salvation for all men, determines a man’s destiny.

The Christian must share that gospel with every person until every person hears, believes, and receives Jesus as Savior and Lord so that no one perishes, but all come to everlasting life.

Our Opportunities

Meet other Christian businessmen in Lansing on October 11th to be encouraged in living out our faith in the marketplace. We meet from 7.30-8.30am at Alaiedon Collective. Register here, the event is FREE. 

Share the gospel with the men in your marketplace at the CBMC luncheon November 2nd. Learn more and register here 

Under 40? Join CBMC to learn more about being a Christian businessman with other young men on November 2nd. More information and registration here 

You can partner with us here: https://give.idonate.com/cbmc-inc/lansing 

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

October 3, 2022

Do You Have A Succession Plan?

by Robert J. Tamasy 

Many successful people take delight in being able to see and evaluate what has been accomplished through their leadership. “We could not do without you!” and similar comments can massage our egos, emphasizing our importance to the company’s or organization’s mission. The problem is, although we might seem indispensable, the time will come when we will be unable to continue to do the work – whether due to receiving a promotion, taking a new job, retiring, or even death. Who will do the work then, if it is still worth doing? 

I have known business leaders who were so central to what their enterprise did that after they left, the work could not be sustained. They were like the bottom card in a house of cards – when they were removed, the “house” collapsed. They had no viable succession plan. 

The greatest test of effective leadership, a friend of mine often said, is what happens when the leader is gone. In his book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t, James C. Collins explored the characteristics of companies that were not just good in their overall performance, but great. Even though his research team sought to discover factors that did not involve the top leaders, they realized the chief executives could not be ignored. But not for the reasons we might expect. 

Collins wrote, “The good-to-great leaders never wanted to become larger-than-life heroes. They never aspired to be put on a pedestal or become unreachable icons. They were seemingly ordinary people quietly producing extraordinary results.” These leaders had great vision and determination, but they were quick to acknowledge individual talent and to delegate responsibilities to enable people to excel. 

Throughout history, we see examples – good and bad – of leaders who understood or ignored the importance of having a succession plan. The Bible is no exception. In the Old Testament, Moses was hand-picked by God to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian captivity to the Promised Land. However, when their time of wandering was about to end, Moses passed the leadership baton to Joshua. “Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites listened to him and did what the Lord had commanded Moses” (Deuteronomy 34:9). 

The prophet Elijah had performed many miracles, being used by God to confront King Ahab and hundreds of false prophets for pagan gods. But as his time of service was coming to an end, he spent much time in preparing his successor, Elisha. When God took Elijah to Heaven, Elisha was ready to take on the responsibilities of prophet. “He picked up the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan” (2 Kings 2:13). 

Jesus Christ is the greatest example of a leader with a clear “succession plan.” After His resurrection, He spent 40 additional days with the disciples He had been grooming for three years, 24 hours a day. Then, before ascending to Heaven, Jesus entrusted His work to His closest followers: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). 

The work you do every day also is important – and hopefully you are determined to do it as diligently as you can. But the day will come when you are no longer there to perform the work. Who will succeed you? 

© 2022. 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; Pursuing Life With a Shepherd’s Heart, coauthored with Ken Johnson; 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

October 3, 2022

Reflection/Discussion Questions 

1. In your company or organization, do you know if a formal succession plan has been developed for replacing the top leaders when they are not available or no longer able to do their work? If so, what do you think that will look like? If not, what might be some problems that could result moving forward? 

1. Do you agree with the assessment that truly great leaders are not those seeking to call attention to themselves, but rather are “seemingly ordinary people quietly producing extraordinary results”? Explain your answer. 

1. If you were to leave your job today – for whatever reason – would you feel confident that someone has been properly prepared to continue the work you have been doing? Why or why not? 

1. What impact might pride or self-centeredness have in someone’s choosing not to invest time and energy in grooming possible successors? How might failure to do so be a disservice to the company’s overall mission? 

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more, consider the following passages: Proverbs 28:2; Acts 1:8; 2 Timothy 2:2; Philippians 2:12-18, 3:17; 1 Peter 2:20-21 

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