Jonah’s Whale Overrated?

 bob-maclafferty  1 Response »
Nov 012014
 

whale and graceJonah and the whale. Such a dramatic story! Most of us have heard the story since we were children. The big takeaway message in the book of Jonah is a shocking surprise.

Let’s pick up the story post-whale. Jonah is finally following God’s instruction to go preach His word to the city of Nineveh, a city known as a hot bed of evil. “Forty days and this city’s going down!” Jonah preached. He anticipated fire from heaven, or some other dramatic end to evil and evildoers. In his self-righteousness, he preached with vigor and passion!

Wow, what an uplifting message! So full of hope, grace,  and promise! NOT! And yet, somehow, God spoke to the people of Nineveh and they turned to Him en mass. Even the king proclaimed,

“Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.” Jonah 3:8 NIV.

In spite of the message and the messenger, the entire city changed their focus, reaching out for something they had never experienced.

“Then God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion….   Jonah 3:10 NIV.

 “I knew you were going to do this!” Jonah complained to God. “That’s why I tried to get out of this gig in the first place! You are so full of grace and compassion! I told them they were going to die and You saved them. I’m so embarrassed. Just kill me now!”

Jonah stalked out of the city and found a bench to sit on so he could watch the city- just in case it still burst into flame. The sun burned down on him and he started to get very uncomfortable.  Suddenly, a God-powered vine grew up next to him and over his head, giving him refreshing and cooling shade! Jonah sighed. He was very happy about the vine.

Okay, you can’t tell me that God doesn’t have a sense of humor. First thing the next morning, He sent a worm to cut the vine and it quickly withered. A hot wind blew up and the sun beat mercilessly on his head and he started to feel light-headed. “Go ahead and kill me now,” he said to God once again.

But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”

“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”

 But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight.  And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—     Jonah 4:9-11 NIV.

Over and over again, God teaches us. We ALL have sinned and come far short of his perfect plan for our lives. And yet, that fact fades into the background when overshadowed by His forgiveness and grace. Weak and wounded, faulty and fearful, He’ll take all comers, banishing all our history, mending our mangled lives, lifting us back up close to Him where He can patiently reshape us to look like Him. One crazy kind of love. Just sayin….

shared by Bob MacLafferty, devotional, Ukiah Valley Medical Center leadership, 9/29/2014.

Build Me a Stone Wall

 Uncategorized  No Responses »
Sep 072014
 

Watch excerpts from one of my favorite movies, Facing the Giants, that help set the tone for a journey I’m on this week:

The real story is no less dramatic and profound.  The people of Israel were largely in captivity. Jerusalem, their capital, lay in ruins, the walls in shambles. Nehemiah had a vision of traveling back to his homeland and rebuilding the wall, making the city strong again. By night, he inspected the wall seeing the hopeless conditions, even the piles of rubble that blocked any future construction.

Starting the next day, he rallied the residents, inspiring them with his singleminded goal, rebuilding the wall. Priests and perfume makers, daughters and sons, goldsmiths and politians, everyone had a piece of the wall assigned to them. Check it out in Nehemiah 3.

They faced strong opposition from leaders and communities around them. So much so that they were in constant fear for the lives and livelihoods. Here’s some great quotes from Nehemiah in chapter 4, NIV:

“So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.”

“Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows.”

“From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah  who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked.”

I see three takeaways that can apply to us:

  1. It is necessary to band together for strength in the face of heavy competition and opposition.
  2. We are as strong as the lowest point on the wall.
  3. It took everyone, from every background and ability, to get the job done.

No single individual, family, or profession can complete the task alone. We are not all of the same size or ability. When one part of the wall is incomplete, the enemy can still enter, making the wall ineffective. Diversity, united in a common purpose, yields phenomenal results in the face of great adversity.

What wall do you need to build? Hospitals face challenges keeping their mission focus, serving their communities with quality and efficiency. Churches lose hurting members every day, parts of the wall that need shoring up. Families are weakened when a member is weighed down with discouragement, overwork, or depression. No matter what wall you need to build, success will be achieved only by applying the Nehemiah lessons. What section of the wall around you needs help today?

But She Hit Me First! Fair or Not Fair?

 bob-maclafferty  1 Response »
Aug 302014
 

fair or not fairRANT WARNING! OK, I can’t count how many times I’ve had conversations with colleagues at work this month that were variations on, “But she hit me first!” “It’s not fair!” OMGoodness!

One deliberately slowed work down, neglected some tasks, spewed negative vibes all week, just because of a perceived wrong done to her by another. Something wasn’t fair to her. Something that was as much my fault as anyone and not really anyone’s fault.

One accelerated a complaint campaign, focused on one coworker who was perceived as getting preferential treatment. Caused unrest and total communication break down among coworkers.

When confronted for slipshod performance, one got verbally abusive and excused their behavior by claiming that it was someone else’s job anyway.

Two different situations where individuals make repetitive procedure omissions, not doing their jobs completely  just because everything in their work life isn’t arranged their way. Somehow things aren’t fair.

And no, not all of these are in my department! But they are within my sight and hearing. Patience is wearing thin. Frustration levels rising. I’m talking about mine!

Fairness is one of the most abused words in the workplace. More energy has been wasted on the job by individuals trying to ensure that they do not expend one more calorie of effort than anyone else around them. It’s the perfect method to help us all do just a little less each day. Working no harder than anyone next to us. Serving no more than anyone else. Helping only those who can somehow help us to the same degree. Offering our effort, talents, and abilities only to those who somehow are judged deserving by some invisible yardstick we use.

I am SO thankful that God does not teach fairness! I am grateful that His work for us is not measured by equivalent effort from us.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 NIV.

God does not measure His actions by what we do. God does what He does because of Who He Is! No reciprocity expected. No tit for tat. No favor for a favor. No investment where there is guaranteed return. Good for goodness’ sake.

How can I model this in the workplace? How would my department or company feel if each one of us performed, cared, sweated, only measured by our ability to do so and completely independent of others actions? Forget about fair.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.  Ecclesiastes 9:10 NIV.

I challenge myself to work and care like Jesus, with no thought of fairness or what I might get in return. Just because it’s the right thing to do. Just because it is copying Him. Will you do the same? Together we can cause a revolution of unfairness that can change our worlds and inspire those around us to do likewise. As we celebrate this Labor Day, let us focus on laboring with another criteria. Let’s labor based on what we can give, not what we might get.

 

 

The Right Blood

 bob-maclafferty  1 Response »
Jul 192014
 

The Right BloodThe patient in the ICU lay dying, the offending unit of blood pulled from his IV too late. His body was tearing itself apart fighting an unseen enemy.*

The wrong blood…. is death.

Another patient. In the ER for just minutes, his heart  rapidly pumping his blood onto the floor through a huge gaping wound. Fast acting physicians, rushing nurses, racing laboratorians, all worked together to provide the blood that saved a life that night.

The right blood…. is life.

When Moses stretched his hand over the river, a river worshiped by the Egyptians, a river full of fish worshiped by the Egyptians, the river turned to blood. All of the fish turned belly up. The river no longer a source of life to the fertile countryside.

The wrong blood…. is death.

Some days later, Moses instructed the Israelis to kill a lamb and spread its blood above the door and on the door jambs signifying that they were God-followers. Later that night, when the death plague passed over them, they were spared.

The right blood…. is life.

Good or evil. Right or wrong. Helpful or hurtful. Life or death. As leaders, employees, parents, friends, we make choices every day. We have conversations. Will they uplift or tear down? We post on Facebook. Will it be positive and supporting or negative and destructive? We interact with children and youth around us. Will we affirm, value and safeguard or criticize, discard, and endanger?

And what about Jesus? Do I choose to minimize and trivialize His work for me? Choosing a path that leads far from Him? Or do I choose to accept His grace gift of salvation? Horribly expensive grace. Grace bought through His suicide on the cross. Grace shown when He acted out His choice of death over losing me.

it was not with silver or gold that you were redeemed, but with the precious blood of Christ. 1 Peter 1:18,19 NIV excerpt.

My hope is build on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.

Jesus’ blood…. is my life.

What right choices will you make today?

*Note that laboratory and nursing professionals across this country go to extraordinary lengths and use tiers of redundant safety mechanisms to ensure that patients receive safe blood every day, every time.

excerpted from Sunrise service sermon Ukiah 6/21/14

Free Healing Here!

 bob-maclafferty  No Responses »
Jun 072014
 

free giftI was telling the story of the ten lepers to a group of kindergarten kids recently. It’s the story of ten lepers coming to Jesus for healing. He simply sends them to the temple to be evaluated as healed by the priests. As they go, they are healed! One of the ten returns to thank Jesus for being healed. This story is traditionally used to teach the need to be thankful.

I told this story with as much drama as I could muster, striving to focus their attention on the need to grateful and to express that gratefulness and praise to God. Right in the middle of that, I was floored by a new thought. This story is not just about being thankful! Why hadn’t I seen this before? It is even more about Jesus freely healing, even when those who were healed were ungrateful!

When I do something good for someone, how often am I doing it while already anticipating the thanks or the recognition I am sure will follow? Am I counting on being noticed and appreciated for those good deeds? What is my motive? It is so- uh, human to do for others because we expect some good return.

In a busy workplace, how often have you heard, or maybe said, something like this? “I’m not helping her restock those trays. She never helps me!” “He never helps me move my patients. I’m not answering his page for help.” So human. It makes sense! Totally understandable! Logical. Reciprocal. Fair even!

What would my workplace be like if I did good, helped coworkers for free, no strings, no expectations of payment in kind? What would my home be like if I did more things for free? Doing caring acts for my wife with no expectation of a return? Even knowing that she would never do similar loving things for me.  Note to world: This would NEVER be the case in my house because I am married to the most caring woman ever! I can’t out-nice her.

Do good. Free, unreturned, good. Why? Well just for goodness’ sake! Do good because it feels good! Act with kindness just because it makes the world a better place.  Start a wave, a free good revolution. Be infectious. Do it because it makes you look like Jesus. Don’t wait for it to be deserved. Make a free gift of it to those around you.

Memorial Freedom

 bob-maclafferty  1 Response »
May 262014
 

Memorial Day freedomBeautiful and clear blue sky this morning. Birds singing. Very quiet. I’ve got a long list of to-do’s today, but it’s time to reflect a bit. It is so easy for us to take our freedom for granted. Unlike millions around the globe, I am free to work at a job I love. I am free to choose the size of my family. I am free to travel. I am free to speak about what I believe. I am free to openly worship my God in my choice of method and time.

Today, I revel in that freedom. Today I remember the heartbreaking truth. Someone had to die for me to feel that freedom. How many have died? I don’t know. Many. Freedom is very expensive. It exacts a horrible price.

It is easier to remember those who died overseas, battling an identified foe, in a famous place and time.  But that’s not enough. Remember those who will die training HARD this year to be ready. Do you think that pilots are close air support experts by spending their time cruising at 30,000 feet?  Do you think someone learns HALO online? Freedom is bought, and kept…. with blood.

While I celebrate my physical freedom, I celebrate another kind. My freedom from the penalty of my sin. I am free to do good today, not to earn my salvation, but simply because it makes my heavenly Father happy. I am free to be confident in where I am going someday because Jesus fought and died for it so many years ago. Freedom is not free. It is horribly expensive. The price is shockingly high.

My freedom as an American is measured by the lives of those who bled and died for it and those who will continue to do so even now. My freedom in Christ is measured by  the One who bled and died for it. Just One, and just once. Jesus.

 

What is in Your Hand?

 bob-maclafferty  No Responses »
May 172014
 

purposeDidn’t sleep much this week. That’s not normal for me. Usually I am asleep within minutes each night. I might wake up once or twice, hear an unfamiliar noise, categorize it or investigate it, go back to sleep.  But night after night this week, I saw each hour several times on my watch or phone.  This morning, up at three, stewing and stirring. The struggle and strain of the past week- to what purpose? 

Internalizing work stress is not unfamiliar for many of us,whether in leadership or not. However, I think the strain of struggling staff, reckoning with spreading responsibilities,  accepting ambiguous accountability or purpose, these things started taking their toll.

I felt myself wanting to push God- “I’m needing to do that?……Seriously?”

Moses had spent the last forty years taking an advances course of study in humility, trust, faith, listening. And yet when God came to him with is graduation assignment, carrying His message of liberation to a downtrodden and enslaved people, his response was, “You want me to do that?….seriously?”

Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A staff,” he replied.

The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”

Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand.  “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.” Exodus 4 NIV.

“What is in your hand?” God says to me. “I’ve given you talents and passions. I’ve given you My power to use them for good, for the benefit of My people all around you who are depending on you to do just that.”

What is in your hand? Do you have the ability to make sense of endless columns of data? Do you have the gift of putting hurting patients at ease while you serve them? Have you been given the joy of inspiring and uplifting those serving next to you?

God has a specific purpose for you. He has prepared you in a very unique way to face today. There are  those around you who are, knowingly or unknowingly, waiting for you. “Waiting for me to do what?” you might ask.

Waiting for you to willingly throw what’s in your hand into the life in front of you! Take the raw materials of your talents and passions and willingly pitch them forward, trusting God to transform them, using them for a purpose that only He can see.

What is in your hand?

 

Deeds and the Doer

 bob-maclafferty  4 Responses »
May 112014
 

Bob MacLaffertyI was blessed last week with the opportunity to preach. I shared the story of Hosea where God asks him to marry someone who would be unfaithful to him. After leaving him and their three children for a wayward lifestyle, she finds herself sold into slavery. Hosea buys her back and takes her home to be his wife.

This story is God’s love in action. Wholly unconditional love. Hating the bad choices, loving the person. Underlining the eternal value of one.

Since then, I’ve been thinking- what truth does this story have for the workplace? How does it apply to relationships on the job? There has to be a lesson in there somewhere, doesn’t there?

Never fear, I think there is. I find that the stories shared in the Bible powerfully teach truths about God, His relationship to us, and how He saves us. Often, I also find applications for human-to-human relationships, how we interact with each other.

A hospital laboratory is a busy, high stress environment. There’s constant opportunity for conflict, misunderstanding and critical behavior. Relationships become strained as people feel under attack or under-valued.

Often, we are so “baby with the bathwater” focused. We can’t seem to separate the actions from the actor, the deeds from the doer. How often do we start sentences with “You are so…” or “I’m mad at you…” Or even worse, “She is such a…” or “He is totally…” In every workplace, every day, we efficiently tear each other down and damage their feeling of value and purpose.

Like a deer caught in the headlights, a coworker stands with mouth hanging open, hearing a personal attack about something she’s never thought. We freely attack each other’s appearance, character and motives, often with disastrous results.

As a leader, it is part of my role to counsel coworkers when there are opportunities for growth and improvement. It’s so easy to make statements that cut- “You are so lazy. You are careless. You embarrass me. You are a liar.”

How much better would it be if we followed God’s example when He hates the sin, loves the sinner. What if we found ways to place high value on the people within our circles at work, leaving the character assassination behind?

Notice to all my laboratorians, I may show  this imperfectly and fail regularly. However, know that I value and appreciate you as part of the family at work. You have been gifted with a unique blend of talents and passions that is true of no other. You are a critical and special part of the whole! I love how all of you can work together, providing excellent care and caring for others. I promise to separate the actions needing guidance from your value as a person. Even when I fail, know that this is my goal and intention.

Father thank You for providing such a game-changing example for me. Give me the strength and the wisdom to follow.

Model is a Verb

 bob-maclafferty  No Responses »
Apr 192014
 

Nissan_Fairlady_Z_Model_CarFacsimile. A copy. Looks just like it. Used to be that little office machine sitting on the desk- half phone, half magic curly paper. The only way to make an image move from one place to another. When was the last time you said the entire word- facsimile. Years? Now it is just the fax. A copy with the original somewhere else. A simulation of the original at a distance.

Model. A plastic toy. A replica of a favorite car. It isn’t the car. It looks like the car. It is a model, a likeness of the car. A facsimile of the car.

Last week, I had the privilege of watching a colleague speak to a group of community leaders. I saw commitment and leadership. I saw creativity and caring. At that moment, she was UVMC. Modeling and representing the best of what we want UVMC to be. A walking facsimile. A living, breathing image.

My question for you. Are you a model, the noun? a static likeness, a simulated leader? Or do you model, the verb? Letting your words, your acts, your life simulate that which others can’t see, except through you?

I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. Galatians 2:20. NIV.

Is that the way it is? When I speak, are others able to hear Jesus in me? To whom do my words point the hearer?  Am I modeling Someone greater than myself? Do I make people think of the cute little rubber tires, the pop-up hood, the plastic lights of the model? Or do they envision the real thing, the fire breathing, exhaust rumbling, tire smoking hot rod?

I imitate Christ.  1 Cor 11:1. God’s Word.

I copy Christ. I facsimile Christ. I model… in my words, my actions, my life… Christ. Is that true?
What is it that I model?
To the community
To my staff
To my colleagues
To my boss.
To my family.
excerpts shared 2/24/14 Ukiah Valley Medical Center

Unsafe but Unafraid

 bob-maclafferty  No Responses »
Apr 052014
 
Bob MacLafferty

 Derek was born with his father praying that he would be a great surfer one day. Those hopes were dashed when Derek was born blind.

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Seventeen years later, Derek determined that his father’s dream would become reality. He overcame great physical and spiritual odds and has now surfed the great waves of the world, including the Pipeline on Oahu’s North Shore.

We are in one of the most difficult industries in the world- healthcare! Increasing expenses, decreasing revenues, increasing regulation, and that’s just what we know before breakfast! 2014 may prove to be one of the most challenging years in healthcare yet.
We can’t see over the waves. We can’t even see some of the waves coming! That does sound very uncertain. Yes, even unsafe!
I am a believer. What do I believe in?
I believe in Jesus and His power to save me in spite of my self.
I believe in the mission of this hospital- reflecting God’s love
I believe in you, in the ability and passion of the leaders and coworkers around me.
I believe that we can do things we’ve never done, in ways we’ve never experienced.
I believe that the future is uncertain and unsafe.
I believe that we can embrace that future unafraid.

shared  by Bob MacLafferty, March 31, 2014, Ukiah Valley Medical Center

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