Friday, December 24, 2010

Managing Well

Since June of this year, I have been supervising with my office cleaning company: during the summer I was working with a team that moved furniture, various detailed cleaning, and some stripping & waxing floors. In August I was given a position as Site Supervisor over JCB, a tractor-producing company whose headquarters for North America abides near Savannah's airport. Looking back to June, I've gone through many things that tested my ability to lead; I've continued to ask myself this question daily: Am I being trustworthy of the job and resources that my boss has granted me?

In Luke 16, in the presence of the Pharisees, scribes, and the disciples, Jesus gives the parable of the dishonest manager. This comes after chapter 15 (didn't take a seminary degree to figure that one), where the Pharisees and scribes were grumbling because Jesus was receiving and eating with sinners. Jesus, in turn, gave them three parables: a) lost sheep, b) lost coin, and the c) lost son. These were aimed directly at the Pharisees and scribes, explaining that beauty is in the eye of the beholders (shepherd, woman, father), and they gave value on what they possessed--so also, who the Father extends compassion to, is not based on any self-worth in an individual or by their own merits.