What would you do if you knew a storm was coming? Would you stick your head in the sand? Would you run? Be honest with yourself: What is your tendency when trial and tribulation are clear to see on the horizon?

Now, let me ask you: What do you hope your response will be? Again, be honest with yourself; and write down your answer. Seriously, write it down.

Let me suggest two things right off the bat: First, there is more to do than we are doing (the urgent superseding the important); and, second, we have in us the Power to get it done. God is working in us to will and do to His good pleasure. He is the Power Who is capable of exceedingly abundantly more than we can think or imagine.

In this, and my next couple of posts, I want to suggest a few ways God would have us respond. But first, I want us to consider the storm that is coming. You don’t have to be a prophet to know that things are going to get worse before they get better. Only those desiring to be deceived could miss the chaos that now exists in our society; and because it has become a subculture to that society, the church in America is also suffering major chaos. There are statistics to back this up; let me know if you need to see them.

For those of you that prefer to think the best about our future, let me suggest that it will not hurt to hope for the best, but plan for the worst. This is, in fact, good and accepted business practice. Billions of dollars are spent annually on contingency planning. God does not act without first giving His people fair warning. Those willing to respond to God’s warnings are promised eyes to see and ears to hear. Do you see and hear the warnings that are all around us. Let’s talk about contingency planning God’s way.

Before we move on to a couple of preemptive responses, I need to emphasize one very important point: For the Christian Marketplace Leader, there is no safe separation of our vocations and our spiritual walk with God. His precepts and principles, His commands and promises, apply equally across all areas of our lives.

Preemptive Response #1: Be exceedingly, abundantly certain that Jesus Christ is your King; and the CEO of your business. He is a good king (Luke 4:16-21), but only for those that have come under His reign (Mark 1:14-15); and are doing His Father’s will (Matthew 7:21). He will protect what is His; and, as hard as it may sound, He is not interested in protecting anything else. Sanctifying Him in your heart, as King, is a decisive act of the will (1Peter 3:15). Prioritize this as the primary preemptive response.

Preemptive Response #2: Find your platoon; and integrate with them. The battle images of the Bible are not there coincidentally (e.g., Matthew 11:12, Ephesians 6: 10-20, 1Timothy 1:18-20, 2Timothy 2:4). Jesus prayed for the Father to make us one; in part, for our security and success in the battles we will face. There are no safe and successful lone rangers in the kingdom of God.

Let me know if you are interested in more about the gospel of the kingdom and the power of unity. It would be a blessing to supply you with the resources God has so graciously provided. Furthermore, there are platoons, already in place, that you may join. Let me know if you want to check them out.

Humbly yours and His forever,

Rob Streetman; President, inLight Consulting, Inc.