Follower of One : Missions For The Rest Of Us

Often, we think our ministry as a call to reach people who don't follow Jesus. Sometimes we think, if everyone we work with is already a Christian, there's nothing for us to do.

Yet in many places in scripture we find examples of how we can minister to brothers and sisters in Jesus. By "minister" we mean helping the people we're with move one notch closer to Jesus. We all have a hole in our being that only God can fill. A minister serves others so they might move one notch closer to Jesus. 

Notice how Paul prays for this group of Christians that he has apparently never met. (See Colossians 1:4, 7, 9 and 2:1.) First, he prays that they may be filled with the knowledge of God's will with Godly wisdom and understanding. The purpose of the knowledge is that they would walk in a manner worthy of the calling (vs 10).

How often do you pray about circumstances? Do you pray that someone gets improved circumstances, financial, medical, or physical? Notice that Paul doesn't pray for any of those things for these people. And most Americans today have way more money, better health and comfort than most of the people Paul was writing to. Sure, they didn't have COVID, but look at what we have. Paul prayed that they would be filled with the knowledge of God.

Mike pointed out that his joy was greatest when he was closest to God. Live and walk in such a way that God makes your joy visible. God will use you in any circumstances if you are filled with the knowledge of God's will with the Holy Spirit's wisdom and understanding.

Why not make some plans for the new year now. Head over to MarketplaceMissionTrip.com learn more and sign up for the next Marketplace Mission Trip. It begins in 5 weeks. Invite a friend to join you. You'll see God working in your life when you decide to become a full-time minister where you work. 

In this week's episode of the Follower of One podcast, Mike speaks with Deb Brown Maher. Deb is a sales coach, speaker, and leadership trainer. She currently runs her company called Deb Brown Sales and a Trainer with the John Maxwell Team. Please welcome her to the community!

Episode Breakdown

1:15 - Meet Deb Brown Maher

4:50 - Becoming Aware of God's Plan

6:55 - Story of Protection

9:35 - Become Proactive 

11:40 - Appreciate Others

13:00 - Deb's story on writing Sell Like Jesus

21:00 - Sell Like Jesus Breakdown

26:35 - Deb's Training Videos on Sell Like Jesus

29:15 - How to Connect with Deb

30:40 - Deb's Advice on Faith at Work

Useful Opportunities 

God's divine plan is in everything we do. However, sometimes we overlook the fact that every opportunity we have received has been His plan from the beginning. If you are seeing an opportunity, God put it there for you to see. This is important, and I am guilty of speeding past the recognition of this as well. Are you? We must make the best out of every situation and it all starts with understanding how we got to this point. Deb speaks to this in her discussion with Mike and how having a sales role was the perfect place for her to make every situation, a situation for God. When you have something unexpected come up in your life, good or bad, where do you turn first? Knowing that each struggle, grace, and triumph is God's plan helps us build better relationships with our coworkers. 

Building Relationships Come First

Faith at work is a difficult path to get right. If you are among the group that defines your faith as a Christian, then chances are you don't work for a company that is open about their faith. Most companies today are secular and that is okay but we need to be diligent. Deb talks with Mike about how she has become successful in sharing God with her colleagues, clients, and everyone around her. It all starts with a relationship. The act of building a relationship with someone has many factors, (We encourage you to read Deb's book on this topic!) but the foundation has to be a genuine one before you can share God with them. When you want to show someone God, how do you do it? Do you just start quoting the Bible to them? Have you noticed that the ones who are more open are the ones you already have a strong relationship with? Let us know your thoughts in the comments! 

Interview Quote

"The more you pray and ask for opportunities, the more you recognize the opportunities when they happen"

Connect with Deb

Deb's LinkedIn

Deb Brown Sales Website

Deb's Personal Website

Sell Like Jesus Twitter

Sell Like Jesus Book Link

Connect With Follower Of One

Join us over in our Online Community, get social with us; Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn and subscribe to our YouTube channel. Listen to our podcast on your way to work and subscribe using your favorite podcast app. Be a part of our next Marketplace Mission Trip!

The day Jesus was born was just another day at the office. Some shepherds were spending another night isolated. They were isolated because the sheep didn't smell very good and neither did they. Out in a field, all by themselves. 

In Luke 2:9 this story begins. An angel appears out of nowhere. The shepherds are scared. The angel announces the arrival of Jesus. In verse 15, the shepherds choose their response. They decided to risk being judged, and getting into trouble, to go and see the Savior. In that moment, they chose to act. 

Today, remember that our God doesn't work on our timing. Our God works on his timing. Things happen when he says they will, not before. Watch for him and then move. Every day is like every other day until it isn't. Watch for God moving in the lives of the people around you. All of Bethlehem was unaware, but these shepherds. Rather than blow it off, or talk themselves out of doing something, they acted. 

When God moves, we get to choose. God will do his thing. Will you do yours? Will you act when you see God moving?

A woman of Samaria came to draw water. In one regard, you could say Jesus made a special trip to meet this woman. He was heading from Northern Israel to Southern Israel. Most Jews went around Samaria, but not Jesus. Most Jews would have hurried through, but we end up learning in vs. 40 that he stayed 2 days.

Jesus chooses who he chooses. The person we work with may be chosen of God. The irate customer, or someone we don't agree with may be hand-chosen by Jesus. Jesus doesn't tend to choose the mighty or noble as we learn from 1 Corinthians 1:26-31. Jesus tends to choose those who aren't mighty, noble or wise. 

One person is all it takes. We've been talking about "ones." In one prayer, one moment, one person can be used by God to make one huge difference. God works in ones. He is one, and one at a time, he is calling a people of his own. 

To be in the group, we probably need to plan on looking a little different or being a little different. Jesus selects those that are not. We'll talk tomorrow about the first people he told about Jesus arriving. One person, one prayer, one moment. Your actions matter. Do you think you're nothing special? That's exactly the person Jesus is looking for. He puts us not-so-special people to work all the time. 

She thought she would be healed if she touched his garments. Do you think God speaks to us? Have you ever considered that God gave her that idea? The Bible doesn't say. But here, she clearly thought it. And she was right. She had nothing to lose. In a moment, she chose to bank on Jesus.

We've been talking about moments. One moment makes a difference. These special moments are like rare pennies. When was the last time you looked at a penny? Some are worth great sums of money. But we don't look at them any more because if they're not worth much, they're worth very little. 

Moments are different. The special ones happen all the time. But we miss them. The more diligent we are at searching for special moments, the easier they are to find. This lady was lost. She had no other options. So she took a chance. What about you today? In 2 days we celebrate the arrival of our savior. The Jews waited on him for centuries. 

Will you look for Jesus today? We don't have to wait for hundreds of years. We often can see Jesus frequently if we'll only look. Keep praying for your coworkers and keep punching in. Jesus will put you to work, and you will enjoy seeing him in the lives of those around you. Don't give up.

Thank you for being a marketplace minister. Check out our friend podcasts at CareyGreen.com  iWork4Him.com and at YourFaithatWork.org .

Mary said "Here I am" to God. Beginning at verse 34, we hear how Mary interacts with the angel. In the end, she said, "I'm the servant here. May it be done to me according to your word." 

Here's a moment. Notice how Mary responds. Her humility is encouraging and humbling. Her first question is, "How can this be?" She doesn't doubt, but she humbly asks. In one moment, her life changes and soon the world will change. I read this and her psalm at the end of the chapter and I'm blown away. I'm grateful that God is patient with me. And I'm grateful that he gives me other chances. And sadly, I wonder what I've missed.

Living our faith means we intentionally invite Jesus into every moment, even, and especially, when he surprises us. It takes practice. How will you respond. As we celebrate Mary's actions and the outcome of this series of events, can we also celebrate and rededicate ourselves to invite Jesus into every moment. Start by punching in. Put yourself on his clock and give yourself an evaluation a few times every day. 

And thank you for being a marketplace minister. Why not tell a few friends about this podcast and community. Let's spend more of our moments saying Yes to Jesus.

Paul cautions us to be careful about every word to make sure it fits the moment. Every day we live through hundreds or even thousands of moments. "How are you?" "When will that project be completed?" "Your service is terrible!" 

Many moments come in interactions with others. For some moments, we see them coming. Think of a performance review, or a job interview. Others happen without warning. Many of these are water cooler conversations. One friend said that a conversation about a band saw turned into a spiritual conversation. 

We talk about being prepared when others ask us about the hope we have. Jesus can use any, one, moment. With only seconds of warning, we may have a chance to do something or say something that could matter forever. It could and it does matter forever. How many of those eternal opportunities have you missed? More importantly, how many more will you miss going forward?

We talk about integrating our faith and work. It boils down to a single question, answered every moment of your day. "Will I spend this moment with Jesus?" Will you?

When we pray for our coworkers we train our brain. We set an expectation to see God. And when we do, our perspective changes. But another thing happens. Jesus wants to answer this prayer. He wants to put you to work. He has input for you in EVERY moment if you will ask. Will you ask today? 

One moment may be all you get. But one moment can mean the difference between life and death for a coworker or a friend.

One moment the world changed. We celebrate that moment this Friday. Take some time and thank God for how he calls you and uses you. And ask him to use you more in the coming weeks and months in the lives of those you see every day.

In this week's episode of the Follower of One podcast, Mike talks with Elmo Winters. Elmo is currently the Executive Director and Founder of Kingdom Group, International. Kingdom Group is a non-profit collaborative addressing racial and cultural issues, with emphasis on reconciliation and unity. Elmo has been in ministry for over 40 years and we are pleased to welcome him to our Community! 

Episode Breakdown

1:05 - Meet Elmo Winters 

2:05 - Elmo's Background in Ministry

4:40 - The Men's UNITY Breakfast

7:45 - New National Plan for the Unity Breakfast

10:25 - Elmo's Work in the Marketplace

11:45 - Advice on Faith at Work from Elmo

12:35 - Growing by Going - Book by Elmo

14:55 - Elmo's Thoughts on the Marketplace Mission Trip

17:00 - Building the Bridge Podcast by Elmo

19:15 - Our Faith Stands Apart

Being Unified

Here at Follower of One our very name represents the unifying structure that is our Faith. God has put all of us here on earth together. In light of recent events, it seems as though we are separated by the largest deficit in human history. This is not the case but it seems that way, right? Mike talks with Elmo on this very topic. One of the great things Elmo is doing with his work is allowing people of all different backgrounds to come together and learn from one another. We must unify under our faith to move forward and prosper. No kingdom can ever prosper if its people are fighting amongst themselves. Let's unite and fight evil TOGETHER! 

Stop Quoting and Start Living 

The main quote of this interview is such an inspiration to me here at Follower of One. Sometimes we get caught up in studying the word that we forget to live the word itself. In a world where more and more things are becoming virtual, we must let people see our faith in new and inspiring ways. One of those ways is the proverbial "walk the walk and not just talk the talk". We need to stop quoting the Bible and start living the Bible. If you are wondering how to do this, Elmo wrote a short practical book on this subject! It is called "Growing by Going". Check out the link below to the book! How are you going to start living the word today? Tomorrow? Next week? Let us know in the comments below! 

Interview Quote

" We have to stop quoting John 3:16 and start living John 3:16. Allowing people to experience the very love of Jesus Christ that comes through us. That impacts lives and then they treat you differently..."

Connect with Elmo

Elmo's LinkedIn

Kingdom Group, International 

Growing by Going - Book by Elmo

UNITY Events

Building the Bridge Podcast

Connect With Follower Of One

Join us over in our Online Community, get social with us; Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn and subscribe to our YouTube channel. Listen to our podcast on your way to work and subscribe using your favorite podcast app. Be a part of our next Marketplace Mission Trip!

Jesus gives grace. We each get his grace according to the measure of his gift. First there's each of us. You get it and I get it. I don't know much about your gift and you don't know much about mine. We may think we know, but we don't. So often we judge the behavior of others against the call and the measure of grace given to us. Let's not compare. Let's not measure ourselves against one another. There is one Lord, but 7 billion relationships. Every relationship with every individual for all time is different because every person is different. 

Additionally, the grace we receive isn't out of God's grace. We don't get a fraction of it. We get our portion according to, or in proportion to God's gift. The riches and the limitless grace of God are available to us in a measure we can't even comprehend. 

You've heard of the scarcity mindset. If I give you something, then I don't have it any more. I can't give anything away because then, I won't have anything. God's economy doesn't work that way. Everything we give away multiplies. So imagine the grace God has multiplied over the centuries. Our grace is in proportion to his grace.

Doesn't that prepare you for work today? Why not punch in with God and let him put you to work. Simply tell him you're ready and when you get an idea that brings him glory, do it. Work with him, for him. He's in charge. You will see him make a difference.

If this podcast is a blessing to you, please also consider making a year-end contribution or becoming a monthly partner. Go to www.FollowerOfOne.org and click Donate. And invite a friend to listen to this podcast, too. Thanks for taking the opportunity to join with God as he works at your workplace.

Paul explains that we have one Lord. He is calling us to unity. We have one Lord. One faith, one baptism. We're to be united in who we follow, but not how. I wonder if we don't get it backwards a bit. He mentions we have one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God.

What does it mean that we have one Lord, one God and Father, and one Spirit? Mike talked about how we must know God and Jesus claimed to be God. Therefore we must know Jesus. The better we know them, the greater the likelihood that we will do what they want and experience their presence.

In Follower of One, we want to remind ourselves daily to listen to and obey God. We see him in Jesus, and we see him in the ways the Holy Spirit interacts with us. It begins with remembering our God isn't a God of confusion. Let's learn his word, interact with his people and watch for how we can concentrate on obeying him, even if it looks different than what some of our friends might do.

While you're at it, we can always practice. Why not sign up for our next Marketplace Mission Trip, to practice how our one Lord would have you live out your faith? The next trip begins February 1. Invite one friend, too. Learn more and sign up at MarketplaceMissionTrip.com