Thinking Big for a Big Change

"It can help any person in any profession."

My latest read is John Maxwell’s “Thinking for a Change” and I feel blessed to be under the tutelage of Mr. Maxwell, even if it’s only through one of his many thought provoking books. I’m only half way through the book and already it’s made me challenge myself to think bigger, listen better, learn more, and most importantly to think more about who I am and who the Lord called me to be even before He called me into being.

It’s so easy, with all the struggles, stresses, and disappointments that being a Christian doesn’t keep us from, to lose sight of the big picture of why we’re doing what we’re doing and what the end result will be.

Part of “Thinking for a Change” teaches the value of what Maxwell calls, “big picture thinking” and it makes me want to focus more on the end result of my business decisions instead of just the “here and now” daily outcomes I see.

I often find myself so caught up in something that’s not going the way I want it to that I forget what Paul’s message in Philippians 3:14 when he tells us, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (NIV)

Paul was definitely a “big picture thinker.” Even as he sat in a Roman prison, he kept his eye, not on his current circumstances, but on what lay ahead for him and for his calling to start new churches and preach the gospel to the lost. Paul could have looked around at his surroundings in that dark and depressing prison and seen hopelessness and despair, but he didn’t.

He chose instead to look past his current circumstances and to keep his eye on what he was certain God had called him to do. He committed himself fully to the belief that no matter what the outcome of his upcoming trial, his life and his decisions would represent his calling from God.

Like Paul, we also must keep our eyes on the big picture – the prize – and not allow ourselves to be caught up in the details of our current situations. If we focus inward on ourselves and the way things look for us, the picture may look very bleak. If, however, we choose to focus our thoughts, feelings, and actions on the big picture – why we’re doing what we’re doing – we’ll get a brand new perspective and a “peace that passes all understanding” about the current state of our businesses and our lives.

~ by jlstanfield7 on May 29, 2009.