Absolutely everything is going to be affected by the concepts outlined in this video. Hat tip to Ron McMenamy for sending this one to me.

A good friend today used terminology like “fault lines” and “tectonic plates” when referring to what’s becoming visible and starting to creak like the timbers of an old ship.

The Church. Business. Work. Life. Language. Nations.

All of these will be impacted. Lord help us to be properly aligned and positioned.

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(If you’re an e-mail subscriber, the details that were missing from your recent message are in this post. Please follow the links to read the full post on the blog.)

God has been opening the doors for me and providing me with opportunities to reach out and teach about the purpose He has for You in the marketplace through business ownership and creating financial independence.

There is an increasing demand and need throughout God’s Kingdom for this instruction, and as such I am teaching a Special Teleseminar tomorrow that I would like to invite you to attend:

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David G. Johnson presents…
“Nourish The Dream: Your Destiny In the Marketplace”

Tuesday, May 22, 2007
9:00 PM (Eastern)

There are 2 ways you can listen to my teleseminar:

Listen in Via Phone:

Dial In Number: 218-486-3693
Guest PIN Number: 5728276# (please hit # after the last number)

Listen in Via Computer:

To view the teleseminar information and/or to listen to the call via Webcast on your computer, please click here:

http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=115950

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Jesus said that if you, “…know the truth, the truth will set you free.”

I will teach you how to break out of the “ordinary” and step into the life of your dreams. I want to set you free from hopeless thinking and return to you the Truth that God created You for a powerful purpose, and not only can you find that purpose, You Can Fulfill It!

Specifically, I am going to cover…

• 3 questions God will ask YOU face-to-face
• How to reduce your stress and find fulfillment
• How to position yourself for the largest wealth transfer in history
• How to go beyond the idea of just changing your financial picture
• How to identify and destroy the limitations that are holding you back!

I am looking forward to bringing God’s message to you tomorrow (Tuesday) night at 9:00 PM EST!

I am looking to reach out and teach to as many hearts as possible. If you know of 3 people (or more!) that might benefit from my teleseminar, please forward this information to them.

Thank you for taking the time to read this note.

Blessings,

David G. Johnson
Founder & CEO, Epiphany Consulting, LLC
Associate Pastor, The Living Sanctuary

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I am seriously interested in increasing the value of eChaplain to you personally, so in a few days you’ll be receiving an e-mail from me with a quick survey about what you like best and what you’d like to see in the future.

On a side note, for any of you that have children or grandchildren and are interested in how you may be able to improve their development (particularly the mental, speech, and language aspects), I want to highly recommend a new blog that my amazing wife, Jill, is writing: BeyondBabyTalk.com. She’s compiling years of her experience as a Speech-Language Pathologist working with young children in private practice (along with lots and lots of other research) and dishing it out in nifty little bite-sized nuggets. She’s also relating some great stories about our little 2-year-old wonder… our daughter, Grace. This is a great resource for parents and grandparents! (By the way, in one of the first few articles, she gives you a tip that will stop you from making one of the most common mistakes when talking to an infant!)

Thanks, and I look forward to communicating with you shortly.

(By the way, if you haven’t signed up for e-mail updates, visit our subscribe link today to be sure you get the survey.)

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Wealth created by a lying tongue is a vanishing mist and a deadly trap. Proverbs 21:6 (NLT)

This passionately stirred me up today.

In business, we as believers have a standard to uphold that goes beyond what others may adhere to. Why? Because we believe that our covenant-keeping God honors those who demonstrate their faith in Him by following His principles.

For example, there is no excuse for deceptive sales practices. This includes blatant lies and partial truths, the latter of which we tend to excuse at times – particularly if we can’t think of a reason why anyone would be hurt by it.

But sometimes we’re not being deceptive when we make commitments. Sometimes we intend to fulfill them, and then we allow circumstances to change in such a way that our words become untrue. Sometimes, circumstances change beyond our control, but at other times, we have the ability to affect the outcomes. How do we handle this as believers?

If we say one thing and something else turns out to be true… do we have the integrity to make it right?

If not, then it’s ultimately no different than having the lying tongue that Solomon was talking about in today’s reading (above). And it doesn’t just happen in sales. Sometimes our marketing efforts are not accurate. Sometimes our customer service functions make promises we either can’t or ultimately don’t keep.

Are you or your business caught in a deadly trap?

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In a report from the Baptist Press last week, word of 4 Christian believers in North Korea being executed for their faith has reached us.  Their crimes?  Carrying New Testaments or talking about their beliefs.

North Korea is widely known to be unfriendly to religious freedom.  In some ways, this story is not surprising.  There are many places on this planet of ours that are this way… particularly toward Christians and Christianity.  This isn’t to minimize the devastation of these lives being lost, merely to state facts.

The shock of this story, however, brings home a question that we’re all too often afraid to ask ourselves in the West.  What about our lifestyles and our Christianity would change if we were to truly come under persecution here?  I’m not talking about being laughed at on sitcoms or teased by skeptics.  I’m talking about paying a real price — imprisonment or separation from loved ones or… even death.

Would we, like Peter, deny Him?  Or would this set us up for a deeper choice?  Would it, in fact, force us to clarify our values and re-evaluate what’s important to us?  Would it motivate us to relate to God more frequently or in more authentic ways?  Would it challenge our ability to truly trust in Him?  Would it change how we train our children and what we teach them?  Would it change how we do business?  Would it make us sharper, wiser, stronger… perhaps even more effective?

This is worth thinking about.  Perhaps it is also worth asking ourselves what might keep us from getting to this level of authenticity and reality right now.

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And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Luke 19:15 (NKJV)

Isn’t it interesting that the first question the master asked when he returned was, “What have you gained?”

Friends, God is expecting us to produce increase. He has invested valuable resources… not just the precious blood of His Son, but also giftings, abilities, knowledge and skills… in you. One question that God is asking us is… what have you gained with what I have entrusted to you?

This isn’t intended to be a guilt trip… but it is intended to provoke a little bit of thought. Here’s a question for you:

What is it about what you’re doing with your working life that is worthwhile?

Is it just a way to feed your family? Are you trying to climb the corporate ladder? Or, as my friend Eric Beck likes to ask, “Are you just trading 5 days of one thing for 2 days of another?”
Or… is there some element of calling in what you’re doing? Are you spending your days doing what you were created to do? Have you ever asked the question about what God may be doing through you? How do you fit into His plan?

Friends, I want to challenge you to spend some time answering these questions.

And, I want to let you know that some friends of mine (Michael Pink, Carlos Ramirez, Justin DeStoppelaire) and I will be discussing these questions and more like them at an event in Sarasota, Florida called Nourish The Dream on November 17th and 18th. The even is for anyone interested in pursuing God’s purpose for their lives. I hope to see you there!

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That people may know skillful and godly Wisdom…and receive instruction in wise dealing and the discipline of wise thoughtfulness, righteousness, justice, and integrity…. Proverbs 1:2-3 (AMP)

Several months ago, that phrase, “the discipline of wise thoughtfulness” jumped out at me. Discipline can be defined* a couple of ways:

• as a noun: “activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training”
• as a verb: “to train by instruction and exercise; drill.” or “to bring to a state of order and obedience by training and control.”

In other words, Solomon is implying that we should be training ourselves — and in particular, training our minds — in a consistent pattern or habit of wise thoughtfulness.

This says to me that the manner in which we think is important — not just the subject which we are thinking about. How many times have you or I said something or done something without systematically thinking it through first? Obviously, we can damage relationships, ruin opportunities, or just get less out of an experience when we aren’t thinking clearly.

If we’re taking this hint, we should cultivate the habit of living thoughtfully… of engaging our minds intentionally in focused, disciplined thought. If you’ve ever intentionally set aside time to think something through, you know why this requires training. It is hard work! But the rewards are unmistakable.

Do it today. Set an appointment and clear some time in your schedule to think through the challenges you’re facing. You’ll be glad you did.

—
*“discipline.” Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1). Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. 26 Oct. 2006. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/discipline>

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The strongest are those who renounce their own times and become a living part of those yet to come. The strongest, and the rarest.

- Milovan Djilas, Yugoslav author and politician (1911-1995)

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Many a man proclaims his own loving-kindness and goodness, but a faithful man who can find? Proverbs 20:6 (AMP)

This one has always scared me a bit. Okay… maybe a lot. It’s easy for any of us to talk about how good we are – especially when it comes to business. We’re all inclined to talk up our reliability, our good service, our integrity. But Solomon’s question here is: who can find someone who actually follows through? Where are the people who are actually faithful and reliable and trustworthy?

Even a child is known by his acts, whether [or not] what he does is pure and right. Proverbs 20:11 (AMP)

Walking in integrity has nothing to do with what you say. It comes down to what you do. Period.

Is what you’re doing reflecting who you claim to be?

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Mr. Dvorak also points out some of the typical pitfalls that believers can run into when operating as a “Christian” business, including ulterior motives (feigning genuine faith to advance one’s own agenda) and religious discrimination.

What is truly fabulous about what this article points out, but even more so about Tampa Bay Steel (one of the companies covered in the story) and C12 and so many other companies and organizations . . . is that Biblical principles, when properly applied, always produce fruitfulness and profitability. May we all demonstrate this in our daily work.

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