Psalm 139:14
I will give thanks and praise to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.
After spending time coaching and advising people in business and ministry, I have realized we often discount the role or value we play to the success of the organization. As a solo entrepreneur you may be thinking, “Ah, yeah James, of course I’m the key to my business.”
Obviously as you go, so goes your business. But what I’m talking about is simple.
Are you taking action to ensure you are the MOST valuable piece of your business?
Here’s how I know you’re not aware of your value: If you were you’d make sure you were operating at your best at all times. Instead we are typically taking care of ourselves last, if at all, and expect to get great results.
Here are a few ways to keep yourself operating at tip top shape in your spirit, mind, and body.
Spirit
As believers we know it’s important to stay centered in Christ as we deal with the stresses of life as well as running a business or ministry. But staying centered is the first thing we seem to lose. We become scattered and stop going to our Father for our peace and strength. This leads to unfocused and undisciplined thinking.
Instead we are supposed to follow the direction outlined in Ephesians 3:16 “I pray that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power in the inner man through His Spirit.” So how do we keep our inner man (spirit) strengthened? Through His Spirit which we access in prayer. By maintaining our relationship with our King we can access and receive all He has promised for us as well as stay strong in spirit.
Mind
A cluttered, distracted mind creates many of the challenges we face in life and business. Our thought life dictates what we do, achieve, and manifest in this world. Remember thoughts become things. If you focus, or think, about the negative and your mind is chaotic then all you will create is negative chaos.
We learn in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” We have the ability to decide what we think. It has been said that as small as 3–5% of people actively monitor what they think about. If this is true then it means most minds are unregulated and creating things based off of whatever pops into them.
Body
If left unchecked the stresses and challenges of life and business will have major impacts on the body. Most of us are so stressed from life we don’t know how to relax anymore.
When I left my corporate job, I had been under so much stress for so long I needed weeks of rest to recover. Add poor diets to the equation and we have become walking stress bombs, ready to detonate when we least expect it. III John 2 says, “Dear friend, I pray you may prosper in every way and be in good health physically just as you are spiritually.” By eating right, resting, and exercising consistently we can avoid many of the common health issues and be a temple our Father can be proud of.
It also makes sense financially since healthier people are more productive.
So let’s make taking care of our spirits, minds, and bodies priority one as we take on the world!
About James R. Cooper
James R. Cooper is a Business Strategist, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Maxser Consulting Group, LLC, Pastor of Restoration International Christian Ministries and author of From Crackers to Caviar: A Guide to Personal Development. James is on the board of several non-profit organizations and is also a Goodwill Ambassador for UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. For more information about James, book him to speak at your next event, seminar, or workshop, go to www.fromcrackers2caviar.com or www.maxsergroup.com.
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