Peace is Work

The picture on the right is my back yard. I enjoy sitting on the porch looking at the beauty and serenity of it all. But it didn't just happen. There were no flowers, bushes, walks and little grass when we first bought this old place. The house was built in 1896 and had been abandoned (except for the raccoons) and had been close to the demolish stage. After about ten years of hard labor, we finally can see our dream place come alive.

While looking at the picture, it may be hard to visualize what it took to get the yard to this peaceful state. The work is continuous but still a labor of love for the enjoyment it brings. The job of supervising is much the same way. A well run department doesn't easily show how much you have worked to have the company dream place come alive.

I've had to put structure into the garden. I pull invasive weeds, lay brick and stone, trim trees and bushes, fertilize and prune flowers, deadhead, dig out things that didn't work, and put in new things to fill the spaces. To keep it cohesive, I've had to think about the overall plan before I started the work. I took the Master Gardener course and endlessly read what's new and what's the latest problem. Each year, each season, and often each day brings something blooming and some problem that needs attention. But, when the picture is taken it looks like perfection is an easy state of being.

To keep your employees productive and enjoying their work, you must put a lot of work into that effort. To stay ahead of the latest trends or newest problems, you must be thinking of what you want to happen in the future. The business world does not stay static any more than my garden. While you sit with your feet up enjoying the beautiful picture, the competition is still out there working. While the work force is a picture of teamwork, there is an employee needing your nourishment, your pruning, and your changes. While one project is successfully charging forward, another is coming to an end and will need to be replaced. The kind of peace you seek in the work place comes from hard work based on your knowledge of God's purpose for your work. I Peter 1:23-25 "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you."

II Corinthians 13:11 "Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect (mature), be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you."