By Robert J. Tamasy
My cooking “skills” are extremely limited. I cook a hotdog, open a can of soup and heat it up, and I can fry or scramble an egg. However, I am blessed having a wife whose capabilities at cooking are much greater than she likes to admit. So, I do not lack for having good things to eat.
Even though I am not a cook, I do appreciate the value of recipes. The right ingredients mixed in the proper amounts are important. If ingredients are missing, even the most celebrated chef cannot compensate for what is lacking. It is much the same in business. A successful company is largely the product of the right “recipe,” with all the necessary ingredients mixed in proper proportions.
If you were to write down the “recipe” your organization has been using, what would it be? For most businesses, the ingredients would include people, plans, projections, preparations, productivity, and profits. In English, each of these begins with the letter P. However, it has been my observation that in many cases, one critical ingredient is left out, one that also begins with a P: Prayer.
More than 40 years ago, I joined the staff of CBMC as editor and then publications director. One of my most enjoyable – and enlightening – responsibilities was to interview and write articles about business and professional leaders dedicated to living out their faith in the workplace. All were unique individuals serving in a vast array of vocational pursuits. But in their pursuit of success, they shared one common practice: They prayed.
Most of them did not pray for tangible success or victory over their competitors. They prayed for wisdom and guidance in how to build their businesses. They prayed for their employees. They prayed for God to provide solutions to problems they encountered. Most of all, they prayed that they and their companies would serve as good witnesses for God in their communities (Acts 1:8), as well as effective ambassadors for Jesus Christ with whomever they encountered each day (2 Corinthians 5:20).
Here is just a sampling of what the Bible teaches about prayer as part of the “recipe” for our daily lives:
Prayer is continuous, not an occasional activity. We can set aside specific times for concentrated prayer and meditation, but praying is something we can do every minute of every day, regardless of the setting. “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
We can pray about anything and everything. There are no limits or boundaries for what we can pray about or how we should pray. We can freely express our needs, concerns and even fears to God, regardless of the circumstances involved. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6).
God promises to answer the prayers of His children. Jesus taught that a direct byproduct of a personal relationship with Him was to pray for whatever we needed – according to His will – and we could have the assurance of having our prayers answered. “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you” (John 15:7).
© 2023. Robert J. Tamasy has written Marketplace Ambassadors: CBMC’s Continuing Legacy of Evangelism and Discipleship; Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; Pursuing Life With a Shepherd’s Heart, coauthored with Ken Johnson; andThe Heart of Mentoring, coauthored with David A. Stoddard. Bob’s biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
- What are your thoughts about the idea of praying for your work or your company? Have you ever believed that to pray for such things was outside of the intended scope for prayer? Explain your answer.
- Who do you know – if anyone – that serves as an example of what it means to pray for their work, for their business and the various situations – even unexpected ones – that come about during a typical day?
- When the Scriptures teach that we are to “pray without ceasing” or “pray continually,” what do you think that means? Can we pray without assuming a particular posture or being in a designated place – and even when other people have no idea we are praying? Why or why not?
- How might you go about making prayer a more central part of your “recipe” for how you live and conduct yourself throughout the day, whether at work, at home or in your community?
NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more, consider the following passages:
1 Samuel 12:23; Psalm 55:1; John 15:16; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Timothy 2:1-2,8; James 5:16