“The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft…”(Gal 5:19-20).

The envelope arrived in my mailbox with the exciting announcement on the outside: “You’ve just won $1 million dollars!” Of course, like you, I have gotten so many of these over the years that I automatically file it in my nearby deep file – the trash can. The sensational headline is used to get you to open the envelope, only to discover they are trying to sell you magazines with an opportunity to be entered into a sweepstakes drawing that could allow you to win a million dollars.

Everyday we are exposed to witchcraft in the workplace. Yes, I said witchcraft. For most of us we think of this ancient term of witchcraft as something that witches do with no relevance to modern society. However, this is not the case.

Whenever you do something that has the appearance of giving something for nothing with the intentional goal of coercing someone to take action through deceptive practices, you have engaged in witchcraft. You see this take place in advertising, marketing, and even Christian ministries.

In order to avoid engaging in witchcraft in the workplace, ask yourself if you are attempting to persuade others to buy your product by using deceptive practices. Make sure you are conveying truth about your product and what it professes to do. Don’t use gimmicky sales approaches to engage others.

Perception is not always reality. However, when it comes to promoting a product or service, you want people’s perception to match the realty of your advertising. Then you will avoid the sin of witchcraft.

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“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” (Est 4:14-15).

Esther was a Jewish orphan living in the land of Persia after her people were taken into captivity from Jerusalem. Raised by her cousin Mordecai, she lived during the time of King Xerxes who reigned over Persia that stretched from India to Ethiopia.

An edict was sent out to bring all the virgins to the king’s palace from the surrounding regions to replace Queen Vashti who found disfavor with the king and was deposed. Esther was one of the young women taken and was ultimately selected to be the next queen.

Mordecai had a high ranking position in the government that allowed him to learn of a plot by Haman, an official of the king, to kill all of the Jews.

Now, the only way this edict would not be carried out was if Esther asked for an audience with the king to request that the plot be abandoned on her behalf. However, to request an audience before the king was a serious matter. If he refused to give her audience, the penalty was immediate death.

It was at this time she made her famous statement, “If I die, I die.” Esther realized this could be the reason God created her – to save her people from destruction. However, out of concern for Esther, Mordecai explained the situation to her, “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish.” Mordecai was giving her a choice. Either she will be used by God or someone else will be used to save their people.

Everyday you and I are given a choice in our workplace. Are we willing to be the person God uses to impact the future destiny of a people? Many of us are silent Christians simply letting the status quo reign while we sit quietly by watching. Who knows that you were created for such a time as this to be a catalyst to stand in the gap for some situation in your workplace or community or nation.

Be faithful to your calling.

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“For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” (Matt 18:20).

My friend Rick Hereen shared a story about an encounter he had where prayer revealed an amazing insight into a business owner’s problem. “A friend who is a pastor told me that a couple within his congregation were having financial trouble in their business. He asked me if I would pray for them. I agreed. The day came for me to meet the couple. I listened to their story for a while and then suggested that we begin to pray.

I waited for a few moments until a word popped into my mind. The word was “Uriah.” I knew that Uriah was the husband of Bathsheba and that King David had had Uriah put in the front lines of a battle where there was a high likelihood that he would be killed. That is exactly what happened. Essentially David murdered Uriah so that he could take Bathsheba away from him. Wow! What did all this have to do with the couple who was seated in front of me?

I told the couple about the word that just popped into my mind. When I spoke that word, ‘Uriah,’ the wife immediately dissolved into tears. ‘Oh Lord,’ she cried, ‘I knew that you were going to make me confess all of these sins.’ She went on to describe how she had been married previously. At work she fell in love with another man (her current husband) and colluded with that man to extricate her from her marriage to her first husband. Once the first husband was out of the way (divorced not murdered), the two now in front of me were free to become husband and wife. They confessed all sorts of other sins that they had committed. In short, they didn’t have a business problem – they had a sin problem!

Most marketplace Christians are unfamiliar with prayer. The idea that prayer is two-way communication with God is new for many. Receiving answers to prayer is not just for especially gifted Christians. Hearing from God is for every believer.”*

Do you have a problem in your workplace? Ask God to show you the source of the problem.

*Rick Heeren, personal story shared with the author

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“For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake…. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.” – 2 Corinthians 4:11-12

It is the great mystery of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Death gives life. Jesus’ death on the cross gave life. The death of a vision brings new vision. The death of a seed gives new life. It is the central focus of God’s requirement for experiencing Him–death. When Jesus extended us an invitation to experience salvation and a relationship with Him, it came with a great cost, our very lives. Yet what we don’t realize is that until we relinquish our total lives, we really aren’t living at all. Without this death we will continue to strive, manipulate, and fret over every detail of life. It is when we finally say, “Yes, Lord, I am Yours completely,” that we experience real freedom for the first time. This is the only time when Christ is fully seen in and through our lives. Christ describes our lives as vessels – vessels for Him to be revealed in and seen by others.

How is your vessel today? When people look inside, will they see a life that is dead to all things, save the life of Christ revealed? In the workplace, we are faced with challenges each day that seek to instill fear and control at every turn, but Christ says He wants to live through your life in the workplace. He wants to reveal Himself to your fellow workers today. However, He can only do this if our vessel is free of ourselves. Ask Jesus what things must die today in order for Him to live completely in and through you.

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“If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward” (1 Cor 3:14).

Have you ever had a job performance review? If you are in the workplace, you will likely have had one. Employers want to see if you have done what was desired of you and whether you have done it in the prescribed way that has produced results. If you do well, you will be affirmed and may even get a pay raise. If you fail to live up to expectations, you could even get fired.

The Bible has its own performance review. It is called the Judgment Seat, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Cor 5:10).

The generation that came out of Egypt with Moses is going to have a bad day at the Judgment Seat because we already know God’s view on the matter. “That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways’” (Heb 3:10).

The Bible says there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end is death (Prov. 14:12). There is a way that God wants you and me to operate on the earth. He has given us His Word – our instruction manual – in order to know His ways of doing things.

How well do you know the instruction manual? Have you read only a few parts here and there? Are you well versed on the intricacies of His ways so that you will be able to have a glorious “performance review” when the time comes?

Take time every day to get your instructions for His ways of living your life. Your reward will be great.

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…”Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach of our Gentile enemies?” – Nehemiah 5:9

Nehemiah was the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes in Babylon. Jerusalem’s walls had been destroyed and word had come to Nehemiah that the remnant of his people left in Jerusalem were distressed over the plight of the wall.

Nehemiah was grieved over this situation. He appealed to his king for permission to rebuild the wall. When he got to the city, he found many problems among his own people due to an economic crisis in the region. Among the classes affected by the economic crisis were (1) the landless, who were short of food; (2) the landowners, who were compelled to mortgage their properties; (3) those forced to borrow money at exorbitant rates and sell their children into slavery. It was unlawful for Hebrews to charge interest to other Hebrews.

“Although we are of the same flesh and blood as our countrymen and though our sons are as good as theirs, yet we have to subject our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but we are powerless, because our fields and our vineyards belong to others” (Nehemiah 5:5).

Nehemiah stepped forward to admonish his people for this wrongful action on the basis that not only was it wrong, but God would respond to such action by making them susceptible to His judgment through the Gentile enemies.

Nehemiah was modeling to each of us a spiritual principle regarding sin. Whenever we sin, we give God permission to unleash the enemy into our souls to deal with that sin. Nehemiah understood this principle and warned the people of what this action would encourage from God. The people repented and returned the money gained through usury.

As Christian workplace believers we must make sure that our practices are righteous in God’s sight. If not, we can expect the enemy to be released to judge that sin. Ask the Lord today if there is any unrighteousness in your business practices that makes you vulnerable to judgment.

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“And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed.” – Joshua 5:8

Before the nation of Israel could go into the Promised Land they had to be circumcised. Circumcision is painful, bloody, and personal. God requires each of us to be circumcised in heart before we are allowed to enter and receive the blessings that await each believer in the Promised Land.

This circumcision can often be very painful. Circumcision requires losing our old way of life. The process of spiritual circumcision may mean a loss in areas that have been a part of our lives in order to draw us to the Savior. God understands this. Consequently, like the people of Israel, we must wait until we are healed before we begin to be effective in our calling. If we launch out too early, we will be ineffective and may risk infection and disease and will not be at our full capacity. God wants each of us to walk in His healing grace.

The people of Israel fought only two battles when they were coming out of Egypt. In the Promised Land they fought 39 battles. Each of us must be prepared to enjoy the benefits of living in the Promised Land. However, we must also be prepared to wage war against the enemy of our souls. Make sure the Lord has provided the needed healing to your circumcision experience before you enter the Promised Land.

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“In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat – for He grants sleep to those He loves.” – Psalm 127:2

Coming into the Promised Land in business will change the way you and I view our work. No longer will we see getting up early and staying up late as God’s way. Living in the Promised Land in work means we know that God is the source of our provision and that our work is an act of worship to Him. Provision is a by-product, not an end in itself. Work is no longer something that must be sweated and toiled upon to make ends meet. “Could this really be true?” you might be saying. God has made it clear that obedience is the assurance of provision. Whenever we go beyond the normal workday due to fear of non-provision, we are operating in unbelief. We are saying that it is up to us to make things happen. Sure, there are times when we work longer hours due to a deadline, but we must be sure the motive is not out of fear of loss or fear of non-provision. If we are obedient to what God has called us to, He will provide our every need. This can be a hard lesson for goal-oriented workplace believers.

I recall coming into this understanding. I had been a workaholic. Long hours were common. Then God shook up my world and I was challenged by a friend to examine my motives for working long hours. I realized the source of those long hours was fear. Once I came into this understanding, I refused to work long hours even though the natural man would tell me I’d never make things happen if I worked a normal work week. Again, this reasoning is based on a lack of faith. If we are obedient to what God has called each of us to, we will not lack. At times it may be less than what we might like; at other times it may be more than we deserve. These are God’s ways.

The Bible tells us to come out of Babylon. Babylon is a system of work and philosophy that is contrary to God’s ways. Are you operating in any aspect of work from a Babylonian value system? Ask the Lord to reveal this to you. Begin to walk in the freedom He has given us in our work life.

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“Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (Matt 14:29-30).

Jesus told Peter to get out of the boat. There is always a risk when we attempt something never done before. Naysayers seem to come out of the wood work. Why? Because it’s not their vision, it’s yours. Sometimes we fail the first time out. It’s a fact that most entrepreneurs fail before they are really successful.

“Success,” said Winston Churchill, “is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” Everybody fails. It’s part of the process that leads us to maturity and success. Most successful entrepreneurs don’t think of their failures as defeats. They think of them as lessons.

If you hope to succeed, learn everything you can from your failures. In The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar, Orlando Magic executive Pat Williams observed, “Our experiences may not all be triumphs and successes, but so what? Failure is usually a far better teacher than success – if we are willing to learn the lessons. As Houston Astros pitcher Larry Dierker observed, ‘Experience is the best teacher, but a hard grader. She gives the test first, the lesson later.’”*

God never gets mired in our past failures. He is constantly viewing our lives with future success in mind. “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland” (Isa. 43:19). Someone once said, “When your memories are bigger than your dreams, you’re headed for the grave.” God wants to give us new dreams that are bigger than anything that has ever happened to us in the past.

Don’t let past failures keep you from future successes.

*Pat Williams and Jay Strack, The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar (Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc., 2004), p. 103.

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“The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it” (1 Thess 5:24).

Coca-Cola is the number one “brand” in the world. Companies spend millions of dollars making their brands known in business. They want you to recognize their brand. When you think of their brand they hope you will have positive thoughts in hopes it will influence your next purchasing decision.

Every individual has a personal “brand” whether you want it or not. Cultures have a brand. Ethnic groups have a brand. Your brand is defined by your conduct. If you are always late, you’ll soon develop a brand or reputation for being late. Others will even show up late because they know you will be late. If you are a person who exaggerates the truth, others will soon fail to take you serious.

However, the opposite can also be true. Your brand can be incredibly positive. By being a man or woman of your word, who is consistent in dealing fairly and honestly with others, your brand becomes known as someone who is faithful in all aspects of life.

One of God’s most important characteristics is His faithfulness. Faithfulness means one is true to fulfilling their promises to others in the time which was committed. God is faithful to fulfill all His promises to His children.

Moses was also an example of faithfulness to his call. “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house, testifying to what would be said in the future. But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house” (Heb 3:5-6).

What is your brand among your peers? Is it a positive brand or does it need improvement? Allowing the Lord to make us more like Jesus is the only way our brand becomes trustworthy.

Ask the Lord today to make you a faithful brand in which others can trust.

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