TGIF for Men E-Book

Os Hillman

• Herausgeber: BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Seitenzahl: 566

Beschreibung

Live a life of faith at work. You may think eternal impact for God can only be made on the mission field, but God has a mission for you right where you are. He wants to use you as his employee in your profession. In TGIF for Men, Os Hillman, best-selling author of devotions about faith and work, shares 365 devotions with powerful stories of men who have impacted the world for God. Os explains how you can - walk with integrity, - overcome obstacles, - pursue the calling God has for you, and - share the hope of God in your workplace. No matter what your job title is, you can be a leader for God at work today.

Leseprobe

Those of us in the workplace need frequent reminders to keep God first. Like manna that nourished God’s people in the wilderness, Os Hillman’s new book will feed your heart, mind, and spirit each day with timeless truth and rich perspective.

—John D. Beckett, author, Mastering Monday: A Guide to Integrating Faith and Work; CEO, Beckett Corporation

For many years now, TGIF has been a daily inspirational and transformational tool that God has used in my life particularly with the scriptural applications in a workplace context. We have also used TGIF to daily encourage the members of the Coca-Cola Christian Fellowship to apply their faith in the workplace!

—Steve Hyland, former director of retail merchandising, Coca-Cola North America

Os Hillman presents a present, true word for God’s ministers in the marketplace. He reveals how the kingdom of God can be implemented on earth as it is in heaven. This is a word of truth in due season for what God is seeking to accomplish on planet earth.

—Dr. Bill Hamon, bishop, Christian International Ministries Network; author, Apostles, Prophets and the Coming Move of God

As much as we seek to honor God with our best, it’s easy to get caught up in the busyness of business. TGIF brings inspiration to our days, fresh wisdom to our work, and clarity to our calling.

—Larry Julian, author, God Is My CEO and God Is My Success

My heart is blessed and challenged each morning as a pastor when I read the Christ-honoring words of Os Hillman. Read and be blessed.

—Johnny Hunt, senior pastor, First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Georgia

God has blessed Os Hillman with a special gift of insight into Scripture, which he applies in very practical ways to everyday challenges found in the workplace. As a Catholic involved in an ecumenical workplace ministry, I find his reflections inspiring to all Christians, whatever their denomination.

—Bill Dalgetty, president, Christians in Commerce

Os Hillman is a man “touched by God” and weakened by him for service and insight. These are the kinds of men and women who change our lives, not just our opinions. Today God Is First will help make it so for its readers.

—Dennis Peacocke, president, Strategic Christian Services; author, Doing Business God’s Way

Os Hillman’s TGIF helps people succeed in the workplace while staying committed to Jesus Christ. With so many committed Christians caught between what they hear at church on Sunday and what they do at work Monday through Friday, Os Hillman connects the dots in this book by providing easy-to-read antidotes for daily workplace success. This book is a must-read for everyone who desires to see God’s grace move in the workplace. Os has hit another home run!

—Robert Watkins, founder, Kings & Priests International

Os Hillman delivers yet another masterpiece! He has gone to the diamond mines of God’s Word and pulled out treasure after treasure that will enrich your life beyond measure. God has spoken to me profoundly through his daily devotionals, building my faith, strengthening my resolve, and softening my heart. The marketplace is a better place because of the invaluable contribution made by Os Hillman and this book.

—Michael Q. Pink, author, Selling among Wolves

Os Hillman has compiled and written one of the best daily devotional books I have ever read. There is spiritual nutrition on every page. I guarantee a year full of nourishment.

—Pat Williams, cofounder, NBA’s Orlando Magic; former general manager, Philadelphia 76ers; author, The Warrior Within

Whatever your situation may be, TGIF will impact your life. It did mine. Whether you are on a wave of success or on a stony path in the valley, this book will be your highlight in the early morning hours or in the evening together with your spouse in front of the fireplace. It will encourage you, comfort you, or provide you prophetic guidance.

—Jurg Opprecht, founder and president, Business Professional Network; owner, Lenkerhof Alpine Resort in Switzerland

What a joy to have distributed more than four hundred of Today God Is First, Os’s most powerful and inspirational daily devotional book. These biblically based vignettes are moving moments with our Lord and have proven to warm hearts, inspire thoughts, and compel love and devotion to Jesus. The CEOs and presidents whom I have shared this book with have come closer to Jesus Christ as they have begun the day with prayer and a desire that God will be first that day. Thank you so much for writing a book from the lay perspective and a businessman’s insights. Your book is a winner and so are the people who read and practice its contents. May God continue to bless your efforts and mine, too, as I continue to share Today God Is First with everyone I can.

—Gil A. Stricklin, founder, Marketplace Chaplains in Dallas, Texas

In the often-lonely environment of the marketplace, God comes near as Os Hillman invades with a word of hope from the God of hope. Os’s background in business and his current calling of ministering to marketplace ministry leaders have uniquely equipped him for this task. I have been blessed over the last year by reading these meditations on a daily basis. The very concept of this book—meditations for those in the marketplace—excites me. For too long, the church system has forgotten to equip and train its members for ministry in the very place where they spend the most time—the marketplace.

Os Hillman is a leader of the growing band of those committed to bringing about change in our world through very practical means. I am confident that these meditations will bless you as they have me.

—Rich Marshall, host, God@Work TV show on GodTV

BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC

Savage, Minnesota, USA

BroadStreetPublishing.com

TGIF for Men: 365 Daily Devotions for the Workplace

Copyright © 2023 Os Hillman

9781424565214 (faux leather)

9781424565221 (ebook)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Scripture quotations marked TPT are from The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017, 2018, 2020 by Passion & Fire Ministries, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ThePassionTranslation.com. Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB). Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries. Scripture marked KJV is taken from the King James Version of the Bible, public domain. Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible, copyright © 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked RSV are taken from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP). Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. Scripture quotations marked NET are taken from the NET Bible®, copyright © 1996–2016 by Biblical Studies Press, LLC. http://netbible.com. Quoted by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked WEB are taken from the World English Bible, public domain.

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Cover and interior by Garborg Design Works | garborgdesign.com

Printed in China

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Contents

January

January 1: Failure That Leads to Godliness

January 2: Full-Time Christian Work

January 3: Called by Name

January 4: The Blame Game

January 5: Why God Blesses

January 6: Called to Craftsmanship

January 7: Discovering the Source of Problems

January 8: The Pitfall of Being Entrepreneurial

January 9: The False Self

January 10: Seeing Situations Clearly

January 11: Your Irrevocable Calling

January 12: God’s Messengers

January 13: A Shoe Salesman

January 14: Visions and Dreams

January 15: The Booster Rocket

January 16: Changing Our Paradigm of Experience

January 17: The Goal of Life

January 18: The Need to Control

January 19: Redeeming the Time

January 20: Mount Horeb

January 21: The Place of Obedience

January 22: When Insecurity Turns Evil

January 23: Being Left Out

January 24: God’s Double-Talk

January 25: Are You God’s Next Deliverer?

January 26: How and Where God Speaks

January 27: Seeing What Others Cannot See

January 28: Sold Out

January 29: Real Customer Service

January 30: The Ultimate Franchise

January 31: Product Testing

February

February 1: Discerning the Work of God

February 2: Fulfilling Vows

February 3: A Romans 8:14 Christian

February 4: Humble Circumstances

February 5: Validation from God

February 6: A Question of Ownership

February 7: Standing in the Gap

February 8: God’s Recruitment Strategy

February 9: Learning to Receive

February 10: Worldly Planning

February 11: Life Is Fragile

February 12: Face-to-Face

February 13: For Your Bride

February 14: Divine Setups

February 15: The Skillful Worker

February 16: Blessing Those Who Curse You

February 17: The Value of Hard Places

February 18: God’s Tests

February 19: Hindrances to Christ’s Rule

February 20: God’s Word and God’s Work

February 21: Attack on Identities

February 22: In the Zone

February 23: Discovering Your Purpose

February 24: Sacred versus Secular

February 25: Jesus Was a Workplace Minister

February 26: Sails without Wind

February 27: Secret Places

February 28: Two by Two

February 29: When a Problem Becomes a Calling

March

March 1: A Cause Greater than Yourself

March 2: The New Employee

March 3: Knowing Our Limits

March 4: It’s Time for a Funeral

March 5: The Works of the Flesh

March 6: His Work, His Way

March 7: The Power of a Mentor

March 8: Masquerading as a Dentist

March 9: Called to Someone versus Something

March 10: Greek versus Hebraic

March 11: Out of Your Comfort Zone

March 12: Forgiving Ourselves

March 13: Why Work?

March 14: Greater Works Shall You Do

March 15: God’s Economy

March 16: Creating a Memory

March 17: Manifesting God’s Power

March 18: Deep Things

March 19: God’s Proving Ground for Faith

March 20: How God Makes Fishermen

March 21: Receiving Only from God

March 22: Unwholesome Talk

March 23: Created for His Good Pleasure

March 24: Treasures in Darkness

March 25: Prosperity in Afflictions

March 26: Enlarging Your Territory

March 27: The Silver Coin

March 28: Adversity for Greater Use

March 29: “Not a Chance!”

March 30: Your Ministry to the Poor

March 31: Withholding Your Natural Gifting

April

April 1: Who Are You?

April 2: Always Watching and Listening

April 3: Microsoft Mary

April 4: Obedience-Based Decisions

April 5: Walk as Jesus Did

April 6: Fulfilling Your Purpose

April 7: When Satan Attacks Your Destiny

April 8: Stepping-Stones

April 9: Opening Our Spiritual Eyes

April 10: Her First Car

April 11: God Requests Your Donkey

April 12: Turning the Daughter’s Heart

April 13: Confirmed by Others

April 14: The Trinity’s Teamwork

April 15: John the Baptist Was the Greatest

April 16: But Master…

April 17: Going against Public Opinion

April 18: Filled with the Holy Spirit

April 19: The Judas Test

April 20: Square Peg in a Round Hole

April 21: Learning the Art of Forgiveness

April 22: Exceeding Expectations

April 23: The University of Adversity

April 24: Isn’t This Joseph’s Son?

April 25: Keeping Oaths

April 26: Comforting Others

April 27: Failing Forward

April 28: God’s Financial System

April 29: The Cost of Unbelief

April 30: Considering the Risk and Reward

May

May 1: Three-Phase Obedience

May 2: Giving Him the Key

May 3: Power Repentance

May 4: Are You a Problem Solver?

May 5: Receiving Bad News

May 6: Two Types of People

May 7: Hanging Out with Sinners

May 8: Do Not Reach for Power

May 9: Thinking outside the Box

May 10: Team Building

May 11: Receiving What God Gives

May 12: Mourning for Your City

May 13: Thinking Big

May 14: God Owns My Business

May 15: Hearing God on the Job

May 16: Live as Though You Are Dead

May 17: Spiritual Life Is Caught

May 18: Speak to Your Mountain

May 19: The Real Deal

May 20: Four Types of Christians

May 21: Asa, a Model King Until…

May 22: The Integrity Test

May 23: Can Your Boss Say This?

May 24: Balance the Natural and Spiritual

May 25: The Fertile Pasture

May 26: Promoted beyond Your Anointing

May 27: New Paradigms

May 28: The Workaholic

May 29: Closed on Sunday

May 30: Faithful to the Truth

May 31: The Black Hole

June

June 1: Trinity of City Transformation

June 2: Beware of Unusual Circumstances

June 3: Your Promised Land

June 4: What’s Your Brand?

June 5: Faith Is Spelled R.I.S.K.

June 6: A New Kind of Army

June 7: Recognizing the Religious Spirit

June 8: Noah’s Building Plan

June 9: Prayer at Work

June 10: The Ultimate Performance Review

June 11: Wanted: Dead or Alive

June 12: Uriah

June 13: Graduate-Level Christianity

June 14: Why the Workplace?

June 15: Manipulation in the Workplace

June 16: Godly Forefathers

June 17: When Doing Right Ends Wrong

June 18: Wrestling with God

June 19: Are You Becoming Secularized?

June 20: Two Grocers

June 21: David Fulfilled His Purpose

June 22: Freedom and Boundaries

June 23: Spirit-Led Creativity

June 24: Managing Money

June 25: Recalibrating Route

June 26: Trained for War

June 27: A Conversation in Heaven

June 28: Seven Needs

June 29: Confront and Support

June 30: The Place of Nothingness

July

July 1: You Need Power

July 2: Practicing the Presence of God

July 3: Why Does God Allow Evil?

July 4: Block Logic

July 5: Place Your Confidence in God

July 6: Oaks of Righteousness

July 7: The Eternal Sales Call

July 8: Saved from Such Men

July 9: Confronting Evil

July 10: Getting Picked

July 11: Jesus, the Carpenter

July 12: The Power of One

July 13: Responses to Adversity

July 14: The Spiritual Realm

July 15: Following His Will

July 16: Being Led by God

July 17: Come out of Babylon

July 18: Dissolving a Partnership

July 19: Resurrected Faith

July 20: Horizontal or Vertical

July 21: Moving Ahead of God

July 22: Listen to God

July 23: Removing Hindrances

July 24: Is Perception Reality?

July 25: Paul’s Disagreement with the Prophet

July 26: Understanding Our Own Calling

July 27: Three Things

July 28: Coming out of Egypt

July 29: Baptism at the Red Sea

July 30: Shedding Former Things

July 31: Josiah, God’s Leader

August

August 1: Desert Training

August 2: Hearing God

August 3: Spouses and Making Decisions

August 4: Time Management

August 5: How’s Your Joy Quotient?

August 6: One Body

August 7: Your Calling’s Depth and Width

August 8: The Lord Is Not in It

August 9: He Had Such Great Potential

August 10: Allowing God to Promote

August 11: Strongholds over Industries

August 12: Teaching versus Imparting

August 13: Who Should Be in Charge?

August 14: From Adversity to Blessing

August 15: God Restores

August 16: Higher Education

August 17: Defining Moments

August 18: Getting Refueled

August 19: Defining Your Self-Worth

August 20: God’s Tests of the Heart

August 21: Crying Out to the Lord

August 22: God Delays

August 23: A Lack of Provision

August 24: Finish the Job

August 25: You Were Made to Fly

August 26: To Know His Rest

August 27: Peace: Our Weapon against Fear

August 28: Presuming the Future

August 29: Little by Little

August 30: How Sharp Is Your Ax?

August 31: Knowing When to Quit

September

September 1: Actions Determine Your Position

September 2: Give Me Your Last Meal

September 3: God versus Mammon

September 4: When Others Disappoint You

September 5: How Solid Is Your Foundation?

September 6: Making Judgments

September 7: Intimacy with the Upright

September 8: Stephen: A Marketplace Minister

September 9: Our Staff as Our Protector

September 10: Living under Authority

September 11: Turning Tragedy into Triumph

September 12: Jesus and the Wedding

September 13: God Speaks through Circumstances

September 14: Confirming Decisions

September 15: Miraculous Signs

September 16: Seeing Thorns as Blessings

September 17: Vested Interests

September 18: Stoplight Faith

September 19: Pride That Leads to Arguments

September 20: From Pain to Destiny

September 21: The Forty-Day Fast

September 22: The Prayer Handkerchief

September 23: Gideon’s Success Test

September 24: Tamar’s Payback and Judah’s Test

September 25: When His Work Exceeds His Presence

September 26: A Great Number Two

September 27: Sharing Your Faith with Others

September 28: Know Your Customer

September 29: Giving and Receiving

September 30: Confronting Your Industry Culture

October

October 1: Concealing a Matter

October 2: Accepting My Design

October 3: Beware of Mixture

October 4: Are You Useful?

October 5: The Perfectionist

October 6: Called to the Ministry

October 7: Creating Your Niche

October 8: High Positions

October 9: Road Construction

October 10: God’s Timing

October 11: The Wizard of Oz

October 12: Affirming New Leadership

October 13: Opposing God’s Leadership

October 14: The Mercy Gift

October 15: Completing the Work

October 16: Receiving Bad News

October 17: Using Others

October 18: Innovation

October 19: Modeling Christ to Your Employer

October 20: Empowering Others

October 21: Staying the Course

October 22: The Church

October 23: God Is the God of Success

October 24: Adversity: Catalyst to a Call

October 25: You Have an Anointing

October 26: Self-Deliverance

October 27: Deliverance from the Black Hole

October 28: Studying to Give or to Know

October 29: When Others Fail You

October 30: Making Adjustments

October 31: The Valley of Baca

November

November 1: Destroying High Places

November 2: Jesus Wept for the City

November 3: Is There Hierarchy in Calling?

November 4: You’re Different Now

November 5: The Power of Influence

November 6: “Go to Christ Church”

November 7: Truth in the Inward Parts

November 8: Pray for Those in Authority

November 9: Serving Kings

November 10: The Poor and the Marketplace

November 11: Work to Acquire, Work to Play

November 12: Transforming a Workplace

November 13: Seeing Backward

November 14: Jehovah-Jireh

November 15: Coming Signs of Persecution

November 16: Reflecting the Light

November 17: We All Need Our Purahs

November 18: The Coming Wealth Transfer

November 19: Regaining the Art of Community

November 20: The Tipping Point

November 21: His Vision, His Way, His Timing

November 22: Being a Workplace Minister

November 23: Retirement or a New Assignment?

November 24: Worship and Work

November 25: Relating to Those Different from Us

November 26: The Queen of Heaven

November 27: God Is Not about Your Success

November 28: You Think That?

November 29: Using Business for Ministry

November 30: Simply Obey

December

December 1: I’m Not Ready

December 2: Playing to One Conductor

December 3: Picking Fruit

December 4: Obedience versus Skill and Ability

December 5: Grace Abounds

December 6: The Value of Age and Wisdom

December 7: Being Led into the Desert

December 8: Marketplace Forgiveness

December 9: Preparation in Arabia

December 10: I Needed Power

December 11: Come out of the Stronghold

December 12: Made for Heights

December 13: Two Pillars

December 14: Check Your Armor

December 15: Discerning Roadblocks

December 16: Recognizing the Source of Success

December 17: Complete the Work

December 18: For Only $19.95

December 19: Going beyond Your Paradigm

December 20: Being Chosen

December 21: The Power of Serving Others

December 22: Building a Mighty Team

December 23: A Prophet without Honor

December 24: Adorned by God’s Doctrine

December 25: The Signs of the Times

December 26: Insecure Leadership

December 27: Avoid the Escape Mentality

December 28: The Marketplace Psalm

December 29: Learn from God’s Creation

December 30: Labor Alone Will Not Satisfy

December 31: Perseverance for Success

Endnotes

About the Author

Additional Resources from Os Hillman

Dedication

To J. Gunnar Olson, my spiritual father in the marketplace. Thank you for your fathering and mentorship.

Foreword

Os Hillman is a longtime leader in teaching, training, equipping, and encouraging Christian leaders in the marketplace to understand their God-given call and purpose so that they can fulfill their destiny in any sphere of influence that God has uniquely designed for them. As a result, hundreds of thousands around the world have been launched into the workplace with the understanding that they are full members of the body of Christ and that they are daily called to do their part to influence all those around them for Jesus with their gifts.

The TGIF: Today God Is First devotional has been a great influence and encouragement over the years. Now, TGIF for Men will continue that process as it is written specifically for men. I encourage every Christian man in the marketplace to read these devotionals and activate what they learn every day. This will change daily behavior and grow your influence with all those around you. When you activate what you learn and become a solution, not part of the problem, to those around you, you will have influence beyond your wildest dreams. Don’t miss out on the Great Awakening taking place globally in every sphere of society right before our eyes.

Os, thank you for your obedience over all these years by continually encouraging marketplace believers that they are not “less than” any other believers because they are not in a “traditional” full-time ministry. Thank you for showing those with faith in Jesus that they are the answer to the world’s problems.

I do and will continue to encourage all men to read and activate these daily devotionals in every aspect of their lives.

Ford Taylor

Founder, FSH Consulting Group

Founder, Transformational Leadership (TL)

Author, Relactional Leadership

Introduction

The story behind TGIF: Today God Is First began in 1994 after I went through a major crisis. I lost over $500,000 from a “Bernie Madoff” type of scam. My financial advisor called me one day and said the investments he was handling for me had been taken by a scammer who fled the country. I would not recover one penny. I was also experiencing a marriage crisis at the time that would lead to a divorce. My largest client in my ad agency refused to pay a $140,000 bill. Life went from one place to a whole other place in the space of three months. This took me into a seven-year crisis.

It was during this time I sought God for answers. I met a man in 1996 who told me I had a “Joseph Calling” on my life. He said it was a marketplace calling to be a spiritual and physical provider to others. But the key was that I would have to press into Jesus with all my heart. He became my mentor that day. Everything he said has come true. I began writing TGIF as therapy for myself. I just happened to share some of the messages with friends. One friend owned a website. He asked if I would put the messages on his website. The rest is history. I began to get emails from people around the world. The common messages were, “You read my mind today” and “You spoke right into my situation. Thank you!” TGIF is now read in 105 countries, and hundreds of thousands of readers subscribed to receive its messages daily. I pray this devotional book will be a blessing and encouragement to you.

God turned my Valley of Achor (“trouble”; see Hosea 2:15) into a door of hope for many through my crisis. He restored my finances after seven years (just like Joseph), I married Pamela many years later, and I have traveled to twenty-six countries and have written twenty-four books as a result of the process God took me through.

He can do the same for you!

Os Hillman

JANUARY 1

Failure That Leads to Godliness

All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander.

1 SAMUEL 22:2 NIV

God uses broken things to accomplish his greatest work. When David was anointed to be the next king, he was just a boy. Little did he know that he would flee from Saul’s sword for the next several years or that Saul’s failures would turn into obsessions as a leader who had fallen from God’s anointing. Perhaps David thought, Why am I living a life as a fugitive? I am the next king of Israel. Yet, his life was filled with adversity before he ever fulfilled the ultimate calling God had for him. But it was his failures that attracted others to him. It was “those who were in distress or in debt or discontented” who would be part of his army—and what an army it was!

God often uses failure to make us useful. When Jesus called the disciples, he did not go out and find the most qualified or the most successful. He found the most willing, often among everyday people.

Question

Do you sometimes confuse what success is in the kingdom of God?

Father, help me to understand that failing does not make me a failure. Help me to fail forward in my life.

JANUARY 2

Full-Time Christian Work

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

COLOSSIANS 3:17 NKJV

Jonathon was a twenty-five-year-old son of a pastor who was working in his local Christian bookstore. He started seminary but was unable to finish because of a lack of finances. He was fine with working in the store but felt it was second best. In fact, sometimes he felt he had “missed his calling.”

Then one day a young woman wandered into the store. She was distressed. She was not a believer. Her husband had just left her, and she did not know where to turn. While she was walking through the mall, she noticed the store, so she decided to walk in, not knowing why.

“Hello, may I help you?” said Jonathon.

“Well…I don’t know. I saw your sign and just came in.” Right then, she began to cry. She told Jonathon about her plight though Jonathon didn’t know why she would share such personal details with a perfect stranger. Jonathon listened and began to talk with her. Before the conversation was over, Jonathon had prayed with the woman and led her to faith in Christ.

That night Jonathon felt a new sense of purpose behind what he thought was simply a job to put food on the table until he could get to his real ministry. He confessed to the Lord his wrong view of his work. For the first time, he realized it was ministry too.

Question

Have you elevated the role of the Christian vocational worker to be more holy and committed than the person who is serving in other arenas?

God, demonstrate your power through my life so that others might experience you through me today.

JANUARY 3

Called by Name

These were the chiefs among Esau’s descendants: The sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau: Chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz.

GENESIS 36:15 NIV

Years ago, I discovered that God gave me a name that had something to do with my future call from him. I was forty-four years old and had just gone through two of the most difficult years of my life. During that time, God brought a man into my life who discipled me in areas where I had never been trained. As a result, I came to identify with the struggles of Esau and Joseph in their desire to understand their own birthrights. I’d been writing about these discoveries to help believers understand their own callings through their work. One morning my friend looked at me and said, “Do you know the meaning of Omar?”

Omar is my first name. My full name is Omar Smallwood Hillman III. Dr. Smallwood had delivered my grandfather. No one, not even my mother, knew the origin of the name Omar. They put the O and the S together to call me “Os.”

“You need to know the meaning of Omar. It has something to do with your future,” said my friend.

Startled by his assertion, that night I looked up the name Omar. Here is what I found: Arabic: “flourishing” and “long-lived” and Hebrew: “speaker.” Rooted in the Middle East. Omar was the grandson of Esau.1

I was shocked. I’d just completed three hundred pages of material on the relationship of Christian businessmen to the life of Esau. My friend quickly concluded that God had called me to free Christian businessmen and women from the “Esau life.” And he had allowed me to receive a name that related to the person of Esau.

Question

Is there a meaning behind your name that you need to know?

Father, thank you for knowing the very hairs on my head.

JANUARY 4

The Blame Game

Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the LORD has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.”

GENESIS 16:1–2 NKJV

Marriage can be difficult at times. If you are married, you already know this. Sometimes we can do what our wife asked us to do, and if the outcome is bad, we get blamed for it even if it was our spouse’s idea. Such was the case with Abram when Sarai concluded that the best way to have a son was to have it through their maidservant, Hagar.

A few verses later we see Sarai blame Abram for her actions: “Then Sarai said to Abram, ‘My wrong be upon you! I gave my maid into your embrace; and when she saw that she had conceived, I became despised in her eyes. The LORD judge between you and me’” (v. 5).

The interesting thing we see in this passage is what Abram did not say in response. Most of us would have said, “Well, you told me to do that, you know.” Instead, Abram did not bring it up. He simply advised his wife to handle it as she saw fit.

Sometimes we as husbands simply need to absorb wrongs committed and be Christ to our wives, forgiving and moving forward.

Question

Is there a wrong committed against you by someone you need to forgive?

Father, let me forgive my wife when she accuses me of a wrong I never committed.

JANUARY 5

Why God Blesses

David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel, for his kingdom was highly exalted for the sake of His people Israel.

1 CHRONICLES 14:2 NKJV

King David learned an important lesson every leader must learn if he is to ensure God’s continual blessing. He knew why God blessed him. It wasn’t because he deserved it, though he was a man who sought God with his whole heart. It wasn’t because of his great skill, though he was a great military strategist. It wasn’t because he was perfect, for he committed some horrible sins during his reign as king. No, it was for none of these reasons. God blessed David “for the sake of His people Israel.” God never blesses an individual just for that person’s exclusive benefit. God calls each of us to be a blessing to others. So often we forget this last part.

R. G. LeTourneau, a businessman who built heavy construction equipment, came to realize this only after God took him through many trials. Once the Lord had all of him, LeTourneau came to realize that the question wasn’t whether he should give 10 percent of what the Lord gave him. Rather, the question was, “What amount does he want me to keep?” LeTourneau was known for giving 90 percent of his income toward the end of his career and was a great supporter of world missions. But the Lord doesn’t bless workplace believers just for the ability to give financially.2

Question

What is happening with the spiritual fruit of God’s blessing on your life? Is it clogged, or is it freely flowing to others?

Lord, free me to be a blessing to those in my circle of influence.

JANUARY 6

Called to Craftsmanship

The LORD said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills—to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.”

EXODUS 31:1–5 NIV

Bezalel was called by God to perform a most important work for him. I am sure that Bezalel believed that he was naturally gifted with his hands to make fine crafts with gold, silver, and bronze. He probably did not associate it with God’s work. But the Scripture tells us that God chose him and filled him with God’s Spirit.

Does God call men and women into their vocations to fulfill his purposes? Have you ever thought about how the balance of interest among each human throughout the world happened? Was it by chance that we have only so many doctors, only so many accountants, only so many geologists?

Your interest in your vocation is not born of your own making. So many workplace believers and even pastors have made the mistake of encouraging those of us who have a deep desire to walk with Christ in the workplace to pursue vocational ministry. To remove us from the workplace where the greatest harvest is yet to occur would be to remove us from where God called us. Do not take the bait. Serve the Lord in the workplace where he has gifted you and called you.

Question

Do you see your work as a ministry?

Father, use me in the area of my calling to manifest your presence and power.

JANUARY 7

Discovering the Source of Problems

After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land.

2 SAMUEL 21:14 NIV

During the reign of David, there was a famine in the land for three years. So David sought the Lord regarding this famine, asking him why there was famine on this land. The Lord answered David, “It is on account of Saul and his bloodstained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death” (v. 1).

Years earlier, Joshua made a peace treaty with the Gibeonites (see Joshua 9). This, too, was an act of disobedience. When God called Israel to come into the promised land, they were to destroy all the enemies of God. Joshua failed to see through the ruse of deception when the Gibeonites portrayed themselves as travelers. The Israelites signed a peace treaty only to later discover who the Gibeonites truly were. Still, they had to honor the treaty. However, this led to intermarriages and much sorrow for Israel. Years later, Saul made a decision to kill the Gibeonites in violation of the treaty.

The nation was now receiving the punishment through a famine for their sin of disobedience. David knew that famines could have a spiritual source, so he inquired of God, and God answered. The source of the sin was Saul’s murder of the Gibeonites. Once David knew the source of the problem, he took action. He repented on behalf of the nation and made restitution. God then lifted the famine.

Question

Do you have a problem that seems to be a continually unresolved issue?

God, tell me the reason for this continual problem. If it has a spiritual root that is unresolved with you, show me that root so I may repent.

JANUARY 8

The Pitfall of Being Entrepreneurial

When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark.

1 CHRONICLES 13:9–10 NIV

The most difficult challenge a Christian believer in the workplace will face is knowing which things to be involved in and which to avoid. Many workplace believers have a great ability to see opportunity. What appears to be a “slam dunk” may come back to haunt us if God has not ordained for us to enter that arena. Still, we can be involved with many good things.

Uzzah was a good man in David’s sight. The setting of today’s verse was a time of celebration, and David and the people were transporting the ark of God. However, the ark hit a bump, and Uzzah reached for the ark to hold it steady. Upon touching the ark, he immediately died. David became very upset with God about this situation; he questioned whether he could serve God (see vv. 11–12).

God’s ways are not our ways. The most important quality God desires to develop in us is our dependence on him and him alone. When we begin to make decisions based on reason and analysis instead of the leading and prompting of the Holy Spirit, we get into trouble with God. David later learned the importance of this principle in his own life. He ran the nation successfully, but he, like each of us, had to learn the difference between “good things” and “God things.”

Question

Are you involved in anything in which God has not directed you to be involved?

God, show me how to walk with you in all things.

JANUARY 9

The False Self

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.

PROVERBS 16:25 NKJV

Whenever we are wounded, we seek to hide from our true self because our shame says we will not be acceptable to others as we are. We are driven to hide behind our fig leaf (living as our false self), which keeps us from our true self. This all happens on a subconscious basis as a built-in protection mechanism. The story of your life is a long and destructive assault on your heart by Satan, who knows what you could become and fears it. Satan wants your true heart to remain hidden behind your wounds. The marketplace encourages us to live behind our fig leaf in order to succeed at all costs.

There is a passage in Isaiah 50, described in the Amplified Bible, that expresses this issue better than any Scripture I know:

Who is among you who fears the LORD, who obeys the voice of His Servant, yet who walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust and be confident in the name of the Lord and let him rely on his God.

Listen carefully, all you who kindle your own fire [devising your own man-made plan of salvation], who surround yourselves with torches, walk by the light of your [self-made] fire and among the torches that you have set ablaze. But this you will have from My hand: You will lie down in [a place of] torment. (vv. 10–11)

The false self is a self-made fire that prevents us from seeing our own splendor in our heart. It masquerades a false heart that only causes torment.

Question

Do you ever find yourself portraying yourself as someone you are not?

Father, help me to be true to who I am, inside and out.

JANUARY 10

Seeing Situations Clearly

“I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

1 KINGS 19:18 NKJV

One of the great acts of the prophet Elijah took place at Mount Carmel, where he called down fire upon the altar of Baal and slaughtered four hundred prophets of Baal. Once the miracle took place, Elijah was forced to flee because Jezebel swore to take his life for what he did. He did what he felt God wanted him to do, but now he was faced with the consequences of his actions. He felt alone and was now fearful of what might happen.

Elijah went into depression after this event. He fled to the desert and sat under a broom tree and asked God to let him die (see v. 4). He was so discouraged because he felt he was the only prophet left in Israel. This is often what happens after God does a significant work through us. Satan comes along and wants to steal what God has done and bring the servant of God down. Satan makes us believe a lie about our situation. This was the case for Elijah.

Elijah wasn’t seeing the situation clearly from God’s perspective. He thought he was the last of the prophets. He could not see what God was doing. God informed Elijah that there were seven thousand of his prophets in the land who had not bowed down to Baal. Now give some thought to that statement. Elijah thought he was the only one left. God says there are seven thousand left! What a discrepancy between what he thought versus reality.

Be careful not to draw conclusions about your situation that may not be based in truth. God always has a plan for his servants that we may not know about. Our only role is to obey.

Question

Is there any situation you might be seeing incorrectly?

God, give me your eyes to see my situation as you do.

JANUARY 11

Your Irrevocable Calling

When God chooses someone and graciously imparts gifts to him, they are never rescinded.

ROMANS 11:29 TPT

It is dangerous to align your calling and your vocation so that they are dependent on each other. God calls us into relationship with him. That is our foremost calling. It is from this relationship that our “physical” calling results. A change in vocation never changes his call on our lives. When we define our work life exclusively as our calling, we fall into the trap of locking up our identity in our vocation. This promotes aspiration because of a need to gain greater self-worth through what we do.

Os Guinness, author of The Call, describes the great artist Picasso, who fell into this trap.

“When a man knows how to do something,” Pablo Picasso told a friend, “he ceases being a man when he stops doing it.” The result was drivenness. Picasso’s gift, once idolized, held him in thrall. Every empty canvass was an affront to his creativity. Like an addict, he made work his source of satisfaction only to find himself dissatisfied. “I have only one thought: work,” Picasso said toward the end of his life, when neither his family nor his friends could help him to relax.3

Calling involves different stages and experiences in life. Disruptions in your work are an important training ground for God to fulfill all aspects of his calling on your life. Trust in your God who says your calling is irrevocable.

Question

What happens if you lose your job? Do you lose your calling? Do you lose your identity? Do you lose your sense of well-being? No.

God, help me to see that my identity is in Christ alone.

JANUARY 12

God’s Messengers

Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.

AMOS 3:7 NIV

You are called to free workplace believers from the Esau life.” Those were the words spoken to me years ago by someone God sent into my life. I had been in the midst of trying to understand some catastrophic events that shook my world. Years later, I was able to see that God gave this person supernatural insight that revealed God’s calling on my life.

God still uses his prophets today to reveal his plans. I have seen this Scripture proven over and over in the lives of people. It is as though God sends out his “scouts” to inform his servants of what is ahead for them. Sometimes he does this because he knows the event will require significant changes in that person’s life, so he wants to assure them of his love. I have experienced the Lord using me in this way in the life of other individuals. God did this in the life of Moses. He came to Moses at the burning bush to reveal his purposes for the people of Israel and his call on Moses to free them.

Elisha had a servant who could not see or hear with spiritual eyes and ears until Elisha prayed that they would be opened. Then the servant could see the great army of God protecting them (see 2 Kings 6:17).

Question

Has God placed individuals in your life to speak his plans for you? Are your eyes and ears spiritually sensitive so that you will know who are messengers of God?

Lord, allow me to see and hear with the Spirit should you reveal your plans for me through another.

JANUARY 13

A Shoe Salesman

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

MATTHEW 19:26 NIV

Dwight L. Moody was a poorly educated, unordained shoe salesman who felt God’s call to preach the gospel. Early one morning, his friend Henry Varley said, “The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in a man who is fully and wholly consecrated to him.” Moody was deeply moved by these words. He later went to a meeting where Charles Spurgeon was speaking. Moody recalled the words spoken by his friend, “The world had yet to see!…with and for and through and in!…A man!” Varley meant any man! Varley didn’t say he had to be educated, brilliant, or anything else. Just a man!4

Well, by the Holy Spirit in him, Moody would be one of those men. Then suddenly he saw something he’d never realized before. It was not Mr. Spurgeon, after all, who was doing that work; it was God. And if God could use Mr. Spurgeon, why should we not all just lay ourselves at the Master’s feet and say to him, “Send me! Use me!”

D. L. Moody was an ordinary man who became fully committed to Christ. God did extraordinary things through this man. He became one of the great evangelists of modern times. He founded a Bible college, Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, which sends out men and women trained in service for God.

Question

Are you an ordinary man through whom God wants to do extraordinary things? God desires that for every child of his.

God, do extraordinary things in my life. Strengthen my trust in you as you accomplish great things for your kingdom through me.

JANUARY 14

Visions and Dreams

“This is what I will do in the last days—I will pour out my Spirit on everybody and cause your sons and daughters to prophesy, and your young men will see visions, and your old men will experience dreams from God.”

ACTS 2:17 TPT

I need to meet with you,” said a man from England to me during a break at a conference overseas. We walked outside to have a coffee break and sat down. “God wants you to know that he removed your finances in order to reserve his reward for you in heaven. He has done you a great service.”

I was shocked. I’d never met this gentleman before. How would he have known I had lost a half-million dollars in the previous few years, virtually all of my financial net worth, to some unusual calamities? We shared for the next several minutes.

When it came time for the gentleman and me to conclude our coffee break, we bowed in prayer. As we prayed, the man began to describe a picture he was seeing in his mind.

“I see a picture of a large orange tree. The tree is full of large, ripened oranges. They are beginning to fall to the ground. You are the tree!”

Again, I looked at the man with shock and amazement and now tears in my eyes. “You are the third person in three years who has had a similar vision during a prayer time like this,” I told him. “The first two people were also strangers to me.”

I went back into the meeting, rejoicing that God could be so personal in my life.

Question

Has God ever used others to confirm the direction he is leading you?

Father, thank you for using the body of Christ to encourage one another.

JANUARY 15

The Booster Rocket

After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.”

JOSHUA 1:1–2 NIV

A rocket launch is truly an amazing phenomenon to me. Tons of weight is stacked vertically to the sky with thousands of gallons of fuel exploding in a matter of moments. Soon the rocket drops its take-off boosters and uses additional boosters to move the rocket to the next stage of the mission. The first engines have a unique purpose…to get the rocket to the next stage.

Joshua was known for almost forty years as “Joshua, servant of Moses.” God’s preparation for him required years of selfless service, training in the desert, and tests of faith. Those preparation years were booster rockets designed to move Joshua into each new stage of his development and his ultimate calling.

God allows each of us preparation times to lay a foundation that he plans to build on. Some of those foundation times appear to be laborious and meaningless, yet these varied experiences are what God is using to frame your life for the message he plans to speak through you. Without these foundational experiences, the Jordan River can never be crossed, and we cannot enter our promised land.

Embrace these times of seeming inactivity from God. They, too, are a rocket booster to the next stage of your walk with God.

Question

Do you feel you are experiencing delays in fulfilling your mission?

Father, give me grace to accept your timetable for fulfilling your purposes in me.

JANUARY 16

Changing Our Paradigm of Experience

Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

EXODUS 3:3 NIV

Have you ever heard someone say, “God doesn’t work that way. He would never do that”? Well, God chooses at times to confound the foolish in order to change our paradigm of experience. Moses had never seen a bush that burned but did not incinerate. It got his attention, and it drew him to God.

When Jesus appeared on the water in the middle of the night during a storm, the disciples exclaimed, “It’s a ghost!” They had never seen a man walk on water. This led to a great miracle—Peter walked on the water too. When Jesus asked Peter to catch a fish and get the coin from its mouth to pay their taxes, you can imagine what Peter must have thought about those instructions. When Moses got to the Red Sea with the Egyptian army closing in, he ran out of options. God had an unexpected solution to the Israelites’ problem. He parted the Red Sea.

Each of these new paradigms was a stepping-stone of an encounter with God so that the individual would experience God in a new way. God used these times to enforce the principle that his ways are not our ways. Whenever we try to predict that God will act in a certain way, he changes the paradigm to keep us from becoming our own little gods.

Question

Have you ever been guilty of judging someone for an experience they’ve had that you’ve never had? Did you dismiss it as extreme or something not of God?

Father, allow me to be open to your activity when it is outside the box of my experience.

JANUARY 17

The Goal of Life

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

JEREMIAH 29:11 NIV

For many people in the world, real meaning in life depends on the next vacation, career success, or step up the income ladder. It is a life based on pleasurable experiences. Many a human being has toiled his whole life to gain a pleasurable lifestyle only to end up with a life that is empty and meaningless. You only have to watch television for one evening to discover that advertisers want us to believe this is the goal of life. The work-to-play theme is consistent with most advertising messages.

Solomon was a man who withheld nothing from his own appetite. He was a great builder, a great businessman, and a great lover of women. Every imaginable pleasure was his. Nevertheless, he was to discover that these things alone could not satisfy the human soul.

A recent trip to a beautiful island left me grateful that God had allowed me to understand the futile trap of the work-to-play lifestyle. It is great to experience times of refreshing and visit beautiful places as long as we don’t fall into the trap of thinking that these experiences equal a meaningful life.

Knowing Christ brings the only real meaning and purpose to the human soul. Spend time today getting to know the Lord in a more intimate way. Then you will discover real meaning and purpose in life.

Question

Where are you finding meaning and purpose in life?

Father, protect me from seeking a life of pleasure instead of building your kingdom.

JANUARY 18

The Need to Control

“You have done a foolish thing,”Samuel said.

1 SAMUEL 13:13 NIV

Through the Lord’s direction, the prophet Samuel had anointed Saul the first king of Israel. Saul was now thirty years old and was leading the nation in battle against the Philistines. The Philistines had gathered at Micmash to come against Saul and his army. Samuel instructed Saul to go ahead of him to Micmash, and he would follow in seven days. He would then make a burnt offering on behalf of the people of Israel.

The pressure began to build as the Philistines gathered around Micmash preparing for battle. The people of Israel grew fearful and began to scatter throughout the countryside. Saul was also afraid. Samuel did not show up on the morning of the seventh day. Finally, Saul, fearing the impending attack, took it upon himself to offer the burnt offering. After he had done this, Samuel showed up.

Saul believed he needed to take control of the situation. Whenever we try to take control of a situation out of God’s will, we demonstrate that fear leads us. Many a boss is so driven by fear that he attempts to manage by overcontrolling his people. This results in codependent relationships in which the employees are fearful of making the wrong decisions and are driven to please the manager at all costs. This results in a loss of respect for the manager.

Question

Do you see any signs of overcontrol in how you relate to others? Can you allow others the freedom to fail?

God, allow me to walk in the freedom of trusting in you and those around me.

JANUARY 19

Redeeming the Time

When they came up out of the water, Philip was suddenly snatched up by the Spirit of the Lord and instantly carried away to the city of Ashdod, where he reappeared, preaching the gospel in that city.

ACTS 8:39–40 TPT

Many times, I’ve heard men or women say they cannot participate in an event, a service, or activity for God because of the time it will take away from their jobs. God has called each of us to be good stewards of our time and our resources.

Philip was in the city of Samaria preaching when many miracles began to take place, and the crowds came to see what was happening. Then, in the midst of this great move of God, the angel of God spoke to Philip and told him to leave Samaria and go to a desert road that led from Jerusalem to Gaza. Imagine how Philip must have questioned the logic of this decision when he was seeing such results in Samaria. But Philip was obedient to the angel. Along the road, he met an Ethiopian eunuch who wanted to have the Scriptures explained to him. Philip explained the Scriptures to the Ethiopian—who was the treasurer of Ethiopia under Queen Candace—led him to the Lord and then baptized him in a nearby lake. A few moments later, Philip was supernaturally transported many miles northwest of his location to Azotus (Ashdod), where he preached Christ along the way toward his final destination of Caesarea.

God desires that we respond as Philip did in order to be used by him in the life of another person.

Question

Is your time available to God 24/7?

Father, help me to live moment by moment, always led by your Spirit.

JANUARY 20

Mount Horeb

He got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

1 KINGS 19:8 NIV

Elijah and Moses were men of great zeal. They were passionate about their causes. Moses sought to free the Hebrews from the tyranny of slavery by killing an Egyptian with his own hand. Elijah, after calling down fire on the evil prophets of Baal, found himself spent physically and emotionally to the point where he asked God to take his life.

After these two events, five hundred years apart from one another, both men were led to the same Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. In Hebrew, Horeb means “desolation.” This barren environment mirrored the condition of Moses and Elijah. For Moses, it was forty years of barrenness. For Elijah, it was forty days without food. Elijah became tired of standing alone for God.

As workplace believers, we often become so focused on the goal that we forget to meet God at our own Mount Horeb. This was the place God met both Moses and Elijah. It was a place of renewal, a place of new beginnings, a place of personal encounter with the living God.

To remain balanced, we must reign in and harness our zeal through strategic encounters with the living God. We otherwise become frustrated with people and discouraged with delays. Many of us become so consumed with our battles that we are no longer aware of the presence of Jesus.

Question

Do you have zeal for God? Make sure you spend time in his presence.

Jesus, teach me that intimacy with you is the greatest measure of success. Lord, guide me to the mountain of your presence.

JANUARY 21

The Place of Obedience

Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing.

ACTS 9:8 NIV

A place of obedience exists for all of us. For Paul, it was being struck blind on the Damascus road. God literally knocked him down with a blinding light. Jesus’ voice from heaven asked Paul, “Why do you persecute me?” (v. 4). When Paul arose, he could not see. Jesus told him to go to Damascus and meet a man named Ananias. There, Jesus restored Paul’s sight through Ananias.