“If God is your partner, make your plans BIG!” – D.L. Moody
If I haven’t had the opportunity to share with you personally, I would love to provide you with an exciting update on my personal career journey. I have recently decided to expand my business and move forward and work with a global leadership consulting organization called GiANT Worldwide – yay!
I could not be more excited to partner with GiANT as I have known for some time that I wanted leadership development and transformation within in the context of organizations to be a large part of my work. I just did not know exactly what that was going to look like, or how the timing would play out.
While I have kept my eye on various organizations that are involved with leadership development over the past few years, none seemed like the right fit – and then I was introduced to GiANT. I immediately knew I had found an organization that shared my passion and heart for leadership. GiANT’s mission is to help people become leaders worth following, build leaders worth following, and lead organizations everyone wants to work for. Further, GiANT’s values are self-awareness, ingenuity, love and heroic goals. When it comes to leadership, it doesn’t get any better than that! While I could go on at length about the many things that have impressed me with GiANT (and of course you will see updates coming to my website soon), I would like to invite you to take a closer look personally at https://giantworldwide.com.
So, I have to say, along with my decision to move forward with GiANT comes some, shall we say giant expectations, hopes, and even dreams if you will. As I continue on this journey, excited for what is ahead, God has clearly placed a few important reminders on my heart. Perhaps they will encourage you today.
1. Trust God to do big things in, through, and for you. D.L. Moody once said, “If God is your partner, make your plans BIG!” I love this. Consider for a minute that the same God who created the universe wants to do big things in your life – He is a good Father and has great plans for you. As Paul said, God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. What big…no, giant things are you trusting God for today?
2. God can make big things from small beginnings. Zechariah 4:10 says, “Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.” I believe there are times we fail to start new endeavors, or quickly become discouraged by their small start. However, God can do great things with small steps of obedience and faith. Don’t let a small start keep you from starting in the first place. Do what you can with what you have and trust God for the rest.
3. You cannot outwork God. As a born achiever with a natural drive to get things done, I have come to realize the simple truth that you cannot outwork God. While we should each work for the Lord and not for man as Colossians 3:23 explains, we need to understand that our own effort and strength cannot accomplish anything compared to God. Psalm 127:2 says, “It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.” What a great reminder. While we are to work hard and be wise stewards of the gifts and opportunities God has given us, we should never forget God can do more for us than we could ever do for ourselves…even while we are sleeping! It is God who can orchestrate circumstances, grow our network, and expand our reach far further than we could ever imagine – when we are willing to step back, get out of our own way, and simply follow where He leads.
4. Prayer is your most powerful advantage. While it is often tempting to strive, struggle and scheme to try and accomplish whatever it is we are after, we need to remember prayer is where our power lies. 1 John 5:14-15 says, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” Mark Batterson said, “The greatest tragedy in life are the prayers that go unanswered because they go unasked.” In what area of your life do you need to invite God in through prayer?
5. Worry and faith cannot co-exist. With any change, positive or negative, a certain amount of anxiety follows. The choice is then ours as to how we will handle it because worry and faith cannot co-exist. We cannot simultaneously give our cares to the Lord while holding on to them. Matthew 6:24 says, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” The reality is, change has to happen if we want to grow. We need to be willing to get out of our comfort zone if we want to become who God made us to be. If worry about the unknown is holding you back, choose faith. As Max de Pree once said, “We cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are.” If there is a step in front of you, you are worried about taking, give it to God and move forward. Remember, as life goes on, you will likely have greater regrets about the things you didn’t do than the things you did.
As I begin a new, GiANT adventure, I am keeping each of these reminders at the forefront of my mind.
What giant adventure are you on today? How can you trust God on the journey so you can become all He made you to be?
