iWork4Him PowerThought

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work ? The final way people feel appreciated at work is through Appropriate Physical Touch . You need to be careful when it comes to touching at work . But expressing appreciation through appropriate physical touch for someone who needs that touch can be as simple as a handshake, a high five, or a pat on the back . In some situations, it might even be a hug of celebration . Any way you look at it, appropriate physical touch must always respect boundaries . Many of those we work alongside have situations that cause them to be very cautious about physical touch . That's why respect is needed . But even hurting people can sometimes appreciate that high five or that meaningful handshake . For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work ? The 4th way people feel appreciated at work is through giving tangible gifts . Giving the gift of words , time, or service is meaningful to many people, but some people just like gifts . And a gift at work could be a simple cup of coffee, a candy bar, or a plaque of appreciation . Sometimes, a gift could be some time off or tickets to a baseball game . When somebody's appreciation language is gifts, all you need to do is find out what's important to them and match the gift . Everyone likes to be appreciated . You can hit a home run every time when their appreciation language is gifts . For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work ? The number three way people feel appreciated at work is through Acts of Service . One of the greatest ways we can show our appreciation for others is by helping others complete a project . It means so much to them when we help somebody at the end of our shift or at the end of our day to finish what they're doing . And sometimes, it's just cleaning the toilet, vacuuming, or helping unload a car full of supplies . Any way you look at it, helping others out of the goodness of your heart with a little act of service can make a real difference in the life of someone you work with . For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work ? The second way people feel appreciated at work is through the gift of Quality Time . Relationships are so important at work . But you can't just build relationships one minute at a time while talking at the water cooler . When you ask somebody how they're doing, mean it . Find out how people are doing . Spend time checking in with them to get to know them . Make sure you have lunch with people and be transparent and authentic with them . If you're a team leader, create time for your team to connect . Make it possible for people to spend time together without a deadline and work hanging over their heads . For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've all heard of the five love languages, but have you heard about the five languages of appreciation at work ? The number one way people feel appreciated at work is through words of affirmation . Words that uplift, words that encourage , words that affirm a person's worth . Words of appreciation spoken by a coworker or a boss mean so much . Almost 50% of the population at work feel that words of affirmation are a gift to them . Are words of affirmation important to you ? I bet they are . I also bet they're important to the people you work around . Make sure that those you work with know that words of affirmation build you up and keep you going every day at work And that you could use a few more every day . For more information, check out appreciation at work dot com.

We've talked about it all week . We love to work, period. It brings exhilaration to our lives . We love the thrill of the kill . The completion of a major project . The landing of a major sale . Work brings satisfaction and appreciation in ways that family life rarely can . However, work is demanding . If we let it, work can take control of our lives . If left unchecked work can destroy the relationships with the people we love, the people that we are working so hard to provide for . If we don't keep work under control, it will control us . Nobody on their deathbed has ever said I wish I had worked more and spent less time with my family . If you were lying on your deathbed today, would your life display a love for your family or a love for your work ? Protect those you love and get your work under control today.

There have been times in the 37 years of our marriage when one or both of us needed to work a significant amount of extra time to meet a deadline to keep our jobs . The issue comes when that short term becomes all the time . Jim and I started an insurance agency from scratch . We knew that for the first three years, Jim would need to work three nights a week and 4 1/2 days a week to grow the agency's sustainability . We made a point to ensure that we always had a date night and never worked weekends . We agreed together that the investment of time was necessary . But it had a deadline . If your job never stops asking for more and is hurting your family, it may be time to start looking for a new job.

I can't tell you how many times Martha and I have heard this one phrase in a marriage mentoring session . "I work hard so my family can have the things I didn't have when I was a kid." That's all fine and dandy, but usually, we are given that excuse after the spouse feels neglected . That usually spurns a conversation about not feeling appreciated for how hard one spouse works. It creates an argument about all of the stuff they own, which causes them to work so hard to pay for the stuff they own. It's all a vicious circle . You don't need to create a fairytale experience for your children . They just want you . They don't care about all the stuff . Take a step back today and see if your work is hurting the very ones you want to provide for.

I love to work . I love to jump out of bed, get ready for work, and go to work. I spend all day working and come home, and then after dinner, I like to work some more . Working brings energy to me, and working brings satisfaction . I love to work because I love to see things get accomplished . I love checking things off my list . There's a danger in loving work . It's so easy to get caught up in my work that I don't realize that I'm hurting those around me by working so much . There was a time in my life when my job required me to work 60 hours a week— even time on Sunday . Jim and I had to work through balancing my work life and family life . I love to work, but I also don't want to sacrifice everything I love because I love to work.

I work hard, I make money, I pay bills, and I buy stuff . I work hard for my money . I want to bless my family with the things that they need . I have a right to spend the money I make on the things I want, right ? If you are married, then there's some caution that needs to be expressed here . The money you make because of your job should go into a common money pot for your family . All of the money that goes in there goes to paying for all the family's bills . There is no such thing as his money and her money In marriage . So when we're out to protect our marriage from our job, it starts with having the right attitude about the money that we make from our job . Don't sacrifice everything that means so much to you because of the money that you make.

We go to work so we have money. We need money to pay our bills and to buy things. Where I spend my money matters to God, especially if I know that those companies are supporting things that are actually anti- God. We work with Inspire Investing to ensure our investments are biblically responsible. We chose a mobile carrier, Patriot Mobile, because they are pro-God, pro-family, and pro-country. We select our retailers, ensuring our dollars are not being spent to support the things we fight against every day. That may mean that sometimes we must go out of our way shopping. It also may mean that sometimes we just don't buy . Christ calls on us to be good stewards. Good stewards of our time. Good stewards of our work. And good stewards of our money. Steward it all well.

In our family, I spend most of the money at retail stores. Jim spends most of the money online. When we have the choice, we choose retailers that we know are either pro-god, pro-family, pro-country, or at least neutral on these subjects. Finding neutral companies is very difficult . Our country is polarized even in our retail environment. Years ago, we took a bullseye to a certain retailer and stopped shopping there because they supported the abortion industry. Today, they are one of the largest retail supporters of alternative lifestyles. When our money walks, our money talks. Recently, a large beverage retailer made a huge marketing blunder. It cost them billions of dollars because they didn't know who their customers were. Those customers walked, and those dollars talked. As a Jesus follower, we can make sure our money is walking and talking to a place that supports our biblical worldview.

Each one of you has a workplace that is your ministry place. A mission field full of lost and hopeless people who need to meet Jesus. The people you work with and for may be blinded to all of the destruction around them to the family and to our country. Yet they may be funding it inadvertently. Many companies support organizations whose sole aim is to destroy the family or our country because of pressure from the outside. Suppose they knew there was pressure from the inside to stop supporting those organizations; that could make a difference. Ask questions. Find out how the owners, shareholders, and stockholders are asking for your company's profits to be spent. Make sure that those in charge know how impactful those dollars can be. Be a proactive voice within your organization, helping them choose places to invest their dollars within the community that supports God, the family, and our country.

How do we know if our company is pro-Christianity, pro-God, pro-family, or pro-US of A? Is it even important for us to know these things? I think it is. Almost every organization has excess dollars that they are investing in other organizations with an agenda. What is the agenda that your company or organization is supporting? Are they supporting your values, neutral on them or working against them? What we are warning about today is making sure you're not supporting companies fighting against the very things that we know and love: God, family, and country. I hope it doesn't surprise you, but there are thousands of companies and organizations in this great country that hate your biblical morality and want to destroy your family. Find out who you really work for.

It's important to know who we work for. I don't mean the name of your boss or the name of your company. I mean, who is your company? What do they stand for? What do they support with their profits? We need to know everything about the company where we invest 40 to 50 hours weekly. I'm just saying you need to be aware of the company you're working for to make sure that they're not taking your hard-earned hours and turning them into a campaign to destroy the biblical worldview that this great country was founded upon. Who do you work for, really? It is a really important question to ask. If you are already in a job with a company that does not honor God, see how you can make a difference. But if you're searching for work, choose wisely because you were called to be a good steward, including where you invest your work time.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that . How do you love the Lord your God with all your strength if you spend too much time on the internet looking and experiencing things that sap your strength ? That fills you with filth, that plagues you with guilt and shame . Living in this world makes it impossible to Love God to the fullest . The enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy; Jesus came to bring life so we can live it to the fullest . Does your internet surfing lead to life or death ? Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your strength.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that . We are called to love the Lord our God with all our soul . What's creeping around in your soul ? Is it scripture, or is it what you watched on TV last night ? Is it the latest sermon you read or the pornographic videos you ingested over lunch ? Is it your weekly bible study topic, or is it your deep desire to place a bet on the next race at the track? Your soul is a precious place, and our eyes are the windows to our soul. What are they seeing ? Choose to protect your soul and those you work with and live with . Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your soul.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that . We are called to love the Lord our God with all our mind . Are you ? What do you fill your mind with ? It is so easy with the internet everywhere, both in public and private, to fill our minds with EVERYTHING but God and His Love . We stream TV at levels like never before . Because we can binge-watch anything, we fill our minds with murder, horror, and sex . Without being careful, our minds can become a playground for evil . At work and home, protect your mind so you can fill it with HIM and His word . Stop Ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your mind.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that . We are called to love the Lord our God with our hearts, but when our hearts are distracted by the evils of the internet, God can't find a place . Do you know if your heart is safe whenever you surf the web ? What about your kids, your spouse, or your grandkids when they visit ? At work, are the people you work with struggling with a heart addiction to internet sins like pornography and gambling ? What are you doing to help protect their hearts ? Are there guardrails in place to keep the internet a healthy place at work ? Stop ignoring the dangers of the internet at work and home and put some digital armor in place like a safe internet VPN with Web filters and anti-virus and protect your heart.

When the internet was created, the goal was the free-flowing of shared information for the good of humanity; what resulted was much more sinister than that . Every day, we use the internet to do our jobs, complete our shopping, and study our bible . However, if we are not careful, the internet can lead us to pornography, inappropriate relationships, gambling addictions, and more . We think we have the willpower to resist all the daily temptations on the internet, but statistics now prove we do not . Huge percentages of men and women, teens, and children have been exposed to pornography on the internet and find themselves driven to view more and more of it . Create a work and home environment where God can heal and stop this destruction . Put some digital armor in place, because the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

What does a normal Thanksgiving dinner look like for you and your family? Does it have all the fixings and smell just like grandma's house when you were growing up? Is it always exclusive to family ? There are people you work with and people you live around that will be alone this year; why don't you mess up your normal Thanksgiving and invite some of them to join you? Jim and I would like to challenge you to have your last normal Thanksgiving last year. May last year be the final year when your Thanksgiving celebration didn't include your neighbors. This year we challenge you to invite people into your life and into your Thanksgiving celebration that would otherwise be home alone, probably not even celebrating Thanksgiving. What does a normal Thanksgiving look like? It looks like the power of neighboring in action.

This whole idea of practicing the power of neighboring at Thanksgiving can cause some strife at home. Not everyone wants to open up their Thanksgiving table to strangers, or people that just aren't family. I know in my family growing up we never had anybody who wasn't family over for Thanksgiving. It just wasn't done. But at Martha's house, her parents were great at inviting people who would be alone at Thanksgiving and having them join us for a family Thanksgiving celebration. Gather your family around you and share this idea with them. Share the idea that you want to solve somebody's loneliness at Thanksgiving this year and you need their help. Once you explain this to your family, I can't imagine that they won't be on board. Maybe they can even think of some people that need to be invited. Together you can change somebody's life this Thanksgiving.

What does loneliness look like? Does it have a face? Does it always look the same? You and I have the ability to solve someone's loneliness problem at Thanksgiving this year. All around us are people, our neighbors, who don't have anywhere to go for Thanksgiving. They are either too far away from family or don't have family or they've been alienated. Can you imagine being alone at Thanksgiving? It's just a big fat bummer. Look around you. As you leave your neighborhood this morning or drive through your neighborhood this afternoon, think about all the people that you know. Are any of them going to be alone at Thanksgiving? As you walk between the cubicles or sit down for lunch, are any of those people going to be alone at Thanksgiving? Solve loneliness today by inviting a neighbor for Thanksgiving.

The power of neighboring at Thanksgiving looks like this. It begins with compassion, and it continues with intentionality. We all have neighbors, whether they are at work or in our neighborhood. They could even be in the pews sitting near us at church. But how many of those neighbors will be alone at Thanksgiving time? In my opinion, there is nothing worse than being alone during the holidays. My challenge to you today is to institute the power of neighboring right where you live and right where you work. Find out if anyone you know and care about will be alone on Thanksgiving. And then invite them for dinner. You may already have a crowded dinner table, and you may have to cook some more food, but by inviting them to be part of your celebration of Thanksgiving, you could change their life.

One day, a religious leader approached Jesus and asked him who's my neighbor? Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan. Now we know who the neighbor was in this parable. The Good Samaritan was a powerful neighbor in the wounded man's life. The power of neighboring lies within each of us—the power to transform somebody's life by loving them as we love ourselves. The power of neighboring requires selfless acts and living on the edge of comfortableness . The power of neighboring started with Jesus, and it continues on in you. You have the ability to impact somebody's life for eternity by loving them. Your neighbors, they are at work, and they are in your neighborhood too. The big question I have for you today is who is your neighbor and will any of your neighbors be alone this Thanksgiving.