The following is the second post of a 2-part blog series on doing life in community; this post is a guest post by Matthew Eckert, ex-banker and Lead Executive Pastor, North Park Community Church
Did you read Darren’s blog “Iron Sharpens Iron” from last week? Do you agree? Do you believe it? Does your leadership of self, family, and business show that you believe it? Or are you deceiving yourself by trying to “do it alone”?
I was a banker, King and Bay downtown Toronto, for 12 years in both domestic and international banking. I can personally attest that life in community is critical.
For the past 17 years, I’ve been a pastor, most recently spending 6 years as Lead Pastor of a church of 2,000. I’ve seen it over and over in Christian business owners and managers - externally they appear “successful”. But in those rare moments, when I get a chance to peek inside, they usually feel lonely, hollow, and often wonder, “Is this all there is?”. No one really knows them. Not even their spouse and kids. They don’t have community. They are going it alone! I would argue that they don’t have life.
Like the warning lights on the dashboard of their vehicle, the indicators are there. They are angry, fearful, worried, lustful, greedy, self-centered - all indicators that their life is out of alignment with Jesus, but they brush them aside.
Recently, the DeliberateU Master’sMind community was confronted with the question of the impact of true community in a group call with Dr. Rob Reimer. Listen to this 3-minute excerpt from that call. Get your pen out...hit pause often...write down what strikes a chord.
Here are a few highlights from the video...
- Jesus is never nervous. So, when we are fearful, nervous, and anxious, we are out of alignment with the Prince of Peace.
- Did you get that? Are you ever nervous? Fearful? Anxious? What’s going on?
- Did you get that? Are you ever nervous? Fearful? Anxious? What’s going on?
- “If you have a bunch of secrets and you’re hiding them from that community I can tell you that your soul’s not healthy.” Say it isn’t so Rob. It is so!
- You’re not healthy if you don’t have community, if you don’t have completely open relationships and if you have unprocessed negative emotions.
- So what are you going to do about it? As one advertiser always says - If you could do it alone, you would have done it already.
Don’t just take Rob Reimer’s or my opinion regarding community. If you are a follower of Jesus, you are desiring to live life well at home and in business. Invite the Spirit of the One who made you in to inform your thinking as you reflect on these passages.
- Are you consistently meeting with godly men and women who motivate and encourage you to walk well with the Lord? Hebrews 10:24-25 NLT
- Is confession in a trusted community a regular rhythm of how you lead yourself and others? James 5:16 NLT
- Are you still trying to lead yourself, your family, and your business ALONE? Who is there, WITH YOU, helping you carry the burden of leadership? Galatians 6:2 NLT
- Who do you have that helps care for you, your everyday needs? Romans 12:13 NLT
- Who is close enough to you that can speak the truth when needed...to warn you of potential danger...sin in your life? 1 Thessalonians 5:14 NLT
- Who do you have that can celebrate and grieve with you, the realities of business leadership? Rejoice and mourn with each other. Romans 12:15 NLT
Don’t have time you say? Too busy to even think about what community might look like? Overwhelmed with the chaos of business life? Then you’d better be ready for our next series of blogs.
In the meantime, if you are a business leader who has this kind of community in place...well done!! If not, reach out and connect with us. Let’s see together what may be possible for you.
The Master’sMind communities give you exactly this. What are you waiting for?
