Peace on Earth, Good will to men is still the goal

We sit in the airport waiting to board a plan to Houston. It is Christmas Eve 2009. The hoard of passengers we expected at the security line at 5:00 p.m. has not materialized and we expect a pleasant journey.

Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem about this time of day I imagine, They needed to find place to rest for the night. Baby Jesus must have been restless and ready to come after bouncing around on a donkey for a week as they traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem. I am amazed at how the message of Christmas then is still the message of Christmas today. The Savior has been born; He is Christ the Lord. Jesus is still the savior of the world.

Our world is still ravaged by wars and rumors of wars; people are still subjugated to others because of military might, slavery or debt; poverty is still a human condition while at the same time immense wealth abounds to others. Some children are born in the palace; others barely off the street. In the background, the airport television is on the airport version of CNN (Consistently Negative News). They are broadcasting a documentary called "In God We Trust" discussing the how people's faith affect the way they live. Of course, they have to throw in some economic news of the recession. I am quite convinced, from what I have read, the times when God chose to send His son into this world in human form was not that much different today. For sure they did not have 24 hour cable news, internet, instant messaging, digital photography, Facebook, Twitter or fax to constantly harp on the same 10 sentences over and again for 4 to 6 hours at a time.

Peace is only attainable through Christ and in Christ. We only learn to value each other from the inside out when the love of God is spread abroad in our hearts. Tolerance does not bring peace: it is too pretentious and lacks real knowledge of the other person. Affirmative action does not bring lasting peace because it values people because of their race, ethnicity or other preference; it is not concerned with what Dr. King referred to as "the content of their character". The United Nations' dismal record for peace negotiation and peace keeping speaks for itself. Some people define peace as the absence of war. If that were true, how do we explain the 1.4 millions violent crimes, including 16,000 murders, committed on the streets of America each year or in other non war-ravaged nations?

Jesus is the "Prince of Peace". His true presence in our lives, when not filtered through the lens of tradition, nationalism, race, ethnicity, political division, religious affiliation or personal preference awakens the latent capacity in us to really live in peace with each other. Jesus never asked us to agree with each other on every topic. He asked us to love Him with all our heart, soul and mind and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Most people have learned to love themselves in spite of not being perfect. What if we extended that patience to those who may not be on our favorites list?

Maybe peace is less about the absence of war and fragile human agreements and more about our relationship with God and how we love our neighbor in relation to ourselves. We only really learn to love ourselves when we come to grips with the immensity of God's love for us and how much He wants to perfect His relationship with us.

Peace on Earth to Men on Whom God's Favor Rests.

Leading or Maintaining

A couple of weeks ago I was involved in a discussion on leadership. One of the participants brought up the concept of maintaining an organization as opposed to active visionary leading. This caused me to quickly remember a basic concept of leadership: there are certain aspects of maintenance that are not compatible to visionary leadership. A leader must decide if or when they are in a leadership role or a maintenance role.

There is nothing wrong with maintain an organization if the organization has created and built the infrastructure that necessitates maintenance to keep it alive. Maintenance alone will eventually lead to the death of an organization if there is not a vibrant leadership component taking place. Many organizations are maintaining systems and infrastructure that needs to be allowed to die so that new life can be born. Others are trying to maintain systems that are not completely developed and are therefore expending energy on incomplete processes that will not bring productivity. Their people will become frustrated and eventually leave the team or organization.

There was a time when iceboxes helped preserved food by keeping it cold. They allowed for a new era of food storage and the boom an entire manufacturing segment: various sizes, colors, styles and material components. Iceboxes brought new jobs, new businesses and lifestyle changes. Eventually the success of food preservation by cooling and freezing in ices boxes led others to invent more efficient and effective iceboxes: refrigerators. There were probably some icebox manufacturers and users who swore by their iceboxes and their ability to do a good job. Some probably said that those new refrigerants and electric motors were going to ruin food and destroy an entire industry built on hardwork and dedication. Some probably set up institutions aimed at maintaining and preserving the industry and the good name of iceboxes. We all know the outcome. Visionary leaders realized change was imminent and prepared for it.

The tools required to maintain are different from those needed to lead. Visionary leaders look from the present to the future; maintenance looks from the present to the past. Leaders learn from history, live in the present and prepare for the future; maintenance preserves history. Good leaders prepare for the future while establishing processes and teams to maintain the best of what has been established. Maintaining what adds value to an organization is a requirement of leadership. Being bold and determined not to be held back or distracted by the dead weight of traditionalism, mediocrity and complacency is also a task of visionary leaders. Operating a strong, growing organization is worlds away from maintaining one that needs new life breathed into it.

Resist the temptation of getting into maintenance mode before building a strong, vibrant, effective and sustainable organization that can monitor and measure it's progress against an established mission and vision.

It's Not The Economy

Some trust in Wall Street,
Some trust in Main Street,
Some want a bail-out,
Some what a hand-out,
Some bought security in 401K,
Some look to Obama,
but we trust in the name of the Lord.

God's economic security plan is not from Wall Steet.
He does not need the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank to lower his interest rate.
God does not need the Chinese investment bankers to buy His loans.
He is the Creator of the Universe;
He is the King of Kings and the Lords of Lords;
He is the Mighty God; a strong tower; my deliverer and my provider;
He is Jehovah Jeirah.

When we say integrity does not matter, morality and values are outdated and not appropriate for the modern society;
When sharing your faith is seen as forcing values on others and
killing 3 million babies is a choice and not murder,
Who is to say that raiding companies of all their assets is wrong?
What moral compass is there to stop raiding of companies, taking $30 million dollar bonuses and wiping out saved retirement accounts?
Where are the boundaries to putting people in houses they could not ever afford and charge them interest without every applying a dollar to principal?
Is it okay to ask us to pay more takes and not pay your own?
Why does out tax money go to the bankers who hoard it in their safes gaining interest who continue to foreclose on family homes while refusing to lend to businesses to finance expansion?

The economy is not the issue. The economy is the symptom.
The disease is now manifested. It is lack of integrity. It is lack of moral compass breading the inability to know right from wrong, absence of conscience and unbridled greed. Reprobate.

I think the Bible (that not so politically correct book) calls it sin, a willful violations of known laws of God. The cure is not found in politics or economics. The French don't have it and the terrorists cannot destroy it.

This one bail-out plan cannot come from Congress:
the White House cannot change it;
Wall Street can't trade it;
Main Street can't sell it;
Congress cannot write a bill to fix it;
The press cannot spin it and the pharmaceutical companies do not have a drug for it.

The cure is repentance and a turning back to God, the true and living God and Jesus Christ his Son: a divine transformation that comes from the inside out under the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

The ecomony - an unpleasant and painful distraction.

Thanksgiving, Christmas and Memories

An article that I wrote for our newsletter at my Business Unit
November 26, 2008
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It is that time of the year refered to as the Holidays: the period from Thanksgiving to New Year’s. There are a number of holidays celebrated during this time. These include Thanksgiving, Christmas, Eid al-Adha, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Day. Some of these are celebrated by larger sections of our population than others but each serves a purpose to its followers.
Thankfulness or gratitude is an attitude that serves us well to adopt. We have much to be thankful for, not the least of which is to be living in this great country. The lifestyle and opportunities that is available to even the least privileged in the United States is a significant improvement over that in most other parts of the world. We can be thankful for freedom, peaceful elections, health, the comforts of home, our spouses, our children and extended family. Be thankful for delicious holiday meals and time to celebrate with our friends and family. We can also say a prayer of thanks for our active and inactive Service families that represent freedom in this country and all around the world at this time. I encourage you to take some time and list the things that you are thankful for and teach your kids to do the same.
In the Unites States, Christmas, of course, is the largest and most significant celebration of the holidays. Christmas is, first and foremost, a religious celebration. It has also come to include secular celebrations and economic significance for the retail businesses. Christmas has always been one of my favorite times of the year because of the celebrations, the music, the religious significance and the memories that come back each year.
Christmas is also a time to be thankful. Even though we were poor, my mother, with the resources she had, made Christmas special and significant for us. I always remember those times each year. Because I did not know any different, I thought that we had the greatest Christmas times with my seven brothers and sisters and dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins. I did not realize how poor we were since that is the only life I knew. It was also one of the two times a year we got new clothes and shoes. When school started in August we got new school uniforms and schools shoes. At Christmas we got one new set of church clothes and one pair of church shoes. They had to last then entire year. My mother never allowed us to think that we were poor and never complained about what she did not have, at least for me to hear. I now understand how she could be so thankful with so little and still find enough to share with neighbors who had less.
I remember growing up in the Caribbean and having a warm Christmas but wishing I could experience snow and a white Christmas. Now I live in Utah and wish for a warm Christmas again with a palm trees on the beach while watching the white Christmas on the television. This is the second Christmas I do not need a telephone line my mother to say, Merry Christmas. I now tell her in my prayers. The memories are just as real as before.
So in the spirit of the holidays, to all who celebrate Eid, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and those who do not celebrate, I wish you: Happy Holidays!

However for those of us who celebrate Christmas in its original form, there is only one way to say it:
Merry Christmas!

Historical Celebration...Then What?

Today, we have a new President: the first black president of the United States of America: Mr. Barrack Obama. What a great day in our history. The tears are flowing, the cheers are rising, the elation is sky high. We must celebrate that we as the people have risen beyond the negative and low expectations of the civil rights noise makers and the political talking-heads and chosen the candidate of our choice.
I am still amazed at how many people keep saying that they never believed this could happen in America in our life time. Why not? Are we so tied to the historical sins that we cannot look forward? Can we chant Dr. Martin Luther King's words on one hand while pushing the dream away with the other hand? Should we choose to live in racial isolation while claiming racial equality? Should we let mental and social mediocrity reign in the face of definite progress and racial integration?
Today is clearly a day of celebration. The voices of the self-proclaimed civil rights opportunists have been silenced by the actions of the once silent majority who now proclaim loudly with their feet and hands that 'yes, we can' elect an American to the highest office in the land without regard to the color of their skin. Michelle Obama was wrong; Jessie Jackson was wrong; Al Sherpton was wrong; Geraldine Farraro was wrong; Hillary Clinton was wrong; Bill Clinton was also wrong; all the super delegates who pledged their support to Hillary Clinton before the people even voted in the primaries were wrong. America is a country that can rise to an occasion in spite of those who still see the word through 'colored' glasses.
President elect Obama is the now the one chosen to lead this country. Whether we agree with his politics or not, he is now our president. We need to give him the chance to lead and show if he really can accomplish what he laid out over the last two years. He will soon find out, if he does not already know, that the President cannot do all the things that get people excited in political speeches. The President needs the other branches of government to accomplish the promises of a campaign that did not require judicial or congressional scruitiny and constitutional conformity. The chants of an enamored crowd or popularity polls does not necessarily make good public policy or fiscal sustainability. As the president, we must give him his full four years to at least try.
There is not enough money in the public troughs to feed every hand that is lining up for a handout. There is not enough wealth in the "wealthy ranks" to pay all the bills that his promises will generate. There is not enough money of wall street to pay all the bad loans made on Main Street and there is not enough people on Main Street who will be able to keep the homes that they could not afford ten years ago when the bail out is going to those who cause the problems in the first place.
So our new President will have to do what every good leader does when the honeymoon wears off: he will have to come to reality of what he can and cannot do alone and who he needs to get on his side to be successful. He will also learn that people who are not in business for themselves need to work to earn a living in jobs that are provided by those who own businesses and invest in the markets. I am sure that he already knows that success is not illegal and that remember that poverty is only glamorous during political campaigns.
When the earned celebrations are over, the streets are cleared and the inaugural staff is settled in, life in America goes on and we expect results and honesty from both Republican and Democratic Presidents, at home and abroad, socially and economically, whether they be black, white, male or female.
Congratulations President-elect Obama! Now, let's get something done that will out last your term in office. Maybe you can begin by getting the Congress to actually address critical issues in substantive and efffective ways between their book-signing tours and European trips.

A Shortage of Leaders

After years of observation and seeking, I have come to the conclusion that we are suffering from a shortage of leadership. We have an abundance of managers, supervisors and followers but leaders are few. One of the reasons, I attribute to this is the mis-definition and role of a leader. We elect people to manage systems, we hire mangers to run companies and keep them going. Managers hire supervisors to ensure that the process they manage are not interrupted. This is supposed to make our organizations successful, and in business, create profits. Unfortunately, too many businesses are unprofitable and organizations are stagnant and dying. Sadly, this can also be said of our country.

Countries, organizations and business are successful because they are led by Leaders not managed by Managers. Managers are concerned with quarterly profits (good or bad); leaders are concerned with long term sustainability. Managers are concerned with their department's success above all else; leaders are concerned with the vision. mission and purpose of their organizations so that the Managers have processes to manage and profits can be made. 

The current condition of the USA and the electoral campaigns, demonstrates our current lack of national leadership. We lack leadership in energy and environmental strategies; we lack leadership in alternative sources of oil and energy generation; we lack leadership in immigration control and protecting our boarders; we lack leadership in education reform and accountability; we lack leadership in tax policy and fiscal responsibility. Finally, we lack leadership in harmonizing our country towards common goals. So many people are so concerned by being liked by others and other countries that they are willing to give up our liberties and unique qualities to be like everyone else.

Barrack Obama is talking about change without definition and clarification . He is handsome and dynamic but lacks depth. He has a large following but they are all standing in a circle without direction. Hillary Clinton is talking about experience and health care. She has offered up credible information on neither. Their Democratic party is supposed to be the party if inclusion but only when you vote for the right people, usually Hillary. Both are vociferously critical of President Bush's policies but they have none better to offer. John McCain is so consumed with being a Republican who is moderate and independent that we no longer know where he stands. Where are the leaders?

I have come to the conclusion that most politicians are not leaders, they are power brokers. We have expected people who usually become aquatinted with critical issues from staffers and news reports and summary notes to become experts by virtue of election. 

Church select Pastors and Board members using metrics that have little to do with leadership, vision and passion. After the vote members sit around looking for the Pastors to lead and set a course for change. Every good pastor and board member works hard to come up with something that should get the church going again. Unfortunately these programs usually are centered around managing ecclesiastical processes and keeping the doors open (paying bills). These are management processes that may show short term growth but soon burn out for lack of spiritual depth, mediocre expectations and poor metrics. Title and election do not necessarily mean leadership.  

Leaders have a passion for their calling and their organizations.

Leaders manage processes when needed but soon get back to focusing on the big picture: vision, mission and purpose.

Leaders manage people and motivate them to become their very best.

Leaders succeed by helping others succeed. They are not intimidated by the success of others.

Leaders are willing to sacrifice short term bad profits in order to create sustainable and lasting successes. Success brings profits.

Leaders are not afraid to be unpopular in the face of value, principle and integrity.

Leaders call others to accomplish great things rather than call names.

Where are the leaders? We have developed a center for training new, existing and potential leaders to develop their skills, talents and hone their focus. Check us out at 

www.leaderinus.net

God has blessed us with leaders to be our mentors and challenge us to change in order to accomplish our dreams. We'd like to share it with you.

A Bright Day In America Still Requires Good Choices

This is a very bright day in America. The dream of Dr. King is alive and well. There is both an electable woman and an electable black man running for the highest office in the land. As a black man, I could not be more excited or elated that this country has the opportunity once again to show that a person can be judged by their ability and the content of their character rather than the color of their skin or their gender.

  However, I must bring my exuberance under control to remind myself that we are electing the President of the United States. We are not electing the female president, the black president or the oldest president. We are electing a president for all Americans. Do these surface distinctions rate significantly in the greater context of choosing the leader of the free world? Is either Hillary Clinton or Barrack Obama the best candidate for the president regardless of their sex or race respectively? Does McCain’s age really matter in this context?

  There are those who say that America has not been ready for this day until now. I disagree. We have been ready for this day for many years. Unfortunately, the right candidates have not stepped up until now. Geraldine Ferraro was not a viable or electable candidate when she ran for vice president. As she has recently displayed, she probably would not be a good candidate today. Neither Jessie Jackson nor Al Sharpton was viable or electable candidates when they ran for the nomination. It would not have mattered if either of them were white or older; they both carried too much baggage. What is happening today, wheather I agree with their politics or not, is that Hillary Clinton, Obama  and McCain are capable and competent enough to create a strong national campaign to be nominated for the office of President. They are at this historical crossroad because they possess enough leadership ability and personal appeal to convince enough Americans to support their individual campaigns.

There is little argument that sex, age or race can make a difference in one’s perspective, one’s world view and one’s mass appeal. That can only take one so far in leading an organization or a nation. What happens when sex, age or race takes back stage to national and international challenges? The President has to lead the country for four years. Will we still be focused on the female president, the white president or the black president if in two years we are still at an impasse on health care coverage, illegal immigration, rising interest rates, aging infrastructure, crowded highways or $5.00 per gallon gasoline at the pump? Will we still be so excited of our historic achievements if taxes increase and college tuition grows by double digits?

When all the excitement dies down and the historic markers are securely in place, I hope that we will elect best candidate for president who will help us continue to create a better America where everyone, regardless of race, age or sex can become the best that we want to be while living in freedom and prosperity.