Craig T. Owens

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Greg Heeres is my lifelong friend and co-host of The Craig and Greg Show leadership podcast. We have just released the first book in our series called Business by the Book. These books will help business leaders see how relevant the Bible is for the day-to-day wisdom they need to make impactful decisions for their organizations. 

I write chapters one, three, and five with a biblical example of the book’s focal point, and then Greg writes a business application of those examples in chapters two, four, and six. 

Our first book is about the CEO’s vital role of vision-casting. 

We wanted to give you a taste of what these books are all about, so here is the first chapter in this book entitled “Eyes on the Prize”—

Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained. (Proverbs 29:18)

It All Starts with You 

     It all starts with you as the leader of your organization. If you have a clear vision in mind for both your personal life as well as for your organization, your people will join you on this journey, no matter how long or difficult it may seem. 

     On the other hand, the number one cause of both personal and corporate failure is drifting away from the vision that brought success. 

     God gives vision. He doesn’t give a vision to a leader so that a leader can have a better life, but so that leader can help people get to a better place. Vision is always through the leader to the people. Solomon said, “Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained” (Proverbs 29:18). 

     Another translation of this verse carries even more weight, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” 

Eye Discipline 

     In almost every sport that involves a ball, the tried-and-true maxim is, “The ball goes where your eyes go.” 

     Greg and I first met on a basketball court. There were a group of guys that got together to play basketball every day at lunchtime. Because Greg and I were about the same height, we were almost always placed on opposite teams and I had the unenviable assignment of guarding this exceptional athlete. 

     One of the things I noticed right away about Greg’s game was how good he was “in traffic.” He could exploit a small gap between defenders and dribble the ball through that opening to give himself a good look at the hoop. That good look usually meant success in scoring. 

     I did my best to match Greg shot for shot, but I usually came out on the losing side of these match-ups. There is something about competition that causes me to focus on my task—both in business and on the basketball court. So as I guarded Greg, I studied what made him so successful. Eventually I spotted one of the main differences between us: It was his eyes. 

     As Greg drove through traffic, he kept his eyes on the basketball rim, so when he was ready to shoot, the ball went where his eyes already were. I noticed about myself that when I tried to navigate through all the bodies on the court, my eyes went down to the basketball, and only when I thought I was in the clear did I move my eyes to the rim. 

     The more consistently you keep your eyes on your vision, the better your likelihood of making it real. Your life and your organization are going to go where your eyes are fixed. You must have a clear vision for your own life, a vision that is lived out with integrity through good days and bad days, to earn the right to lead people. 

Nehemiah the Vision-caster

     The nation of Israel was being allowed to return to their homeland after 70 years in exile. The capital city Jerusalem was in a shambles—the walls had been knocked down, the gates were burned, and their temple of worship had been demolished. 

    When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he made a careful inspection of the situation. He undertook his first assessment by himself at night; he didn’t share his findings with the people right away. 

     Nehemiah was a man of personal integrity. Throughout the historical account of his leadership, we see him handling his position of authority, the funds entrusted to him for the rebuilding project, his own personal finances, and even the “competitors” that wanted the Israelites to fail, with godly wisdom and impeccable character. 

     With his personal life in order, Nehemiah then approached the people of Israel. In his journal, recorded for us in the Book of Nehemiah in the Bible, he wrote— 

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. (Nehemiah 2:17-18) 

     Because Nehemiah went first, the people readily accepted his vision of a rebuilt city: “So they said, ‘Let us rise up and build.’ Then they set their hands to this good work” (Nehemiah 2:18). 

     A mark of a godly leader is one who can inspire all sorts of people to pursue the same vision. Nehemiah did such a good job casting the vision God had given him that people from all professions and persuasions joined in. 

     Although the vision was to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem, most of those who joined Nehemiah in pursuing this vision were anything but builders. They were priests, goldsmiths, perfume makers, and merchants. They were young and old, men and women, native-born Israelites and God-fearing foreigners, those who lived in the city and those who lived in the countryside (see Nehemiah 3). With one voice they cried out, “Let’s rise up and build!” and they got down to business. 

     All these different people bought into one godly leader’s vision. 

What’s Your Vision? 

     Do you have a clear vision for your own life? What about for your organization? You need to have your eyes on a prize that will stand the test of time and will have lasting—even eternal—significance. 

     If you cannot readily identify a compelling vision for either yourself or your organization, I would like to suggest three places you could start. You could say, “My/our vision is . . . 

     (1) . . . to do good. Peter summed up the entirety of Jesus’s public ministry by saying, “Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil” (Acts 10:38 NLT). 

     (2) . . . to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. This is an exact quotation of the vision statement God gave through the prophet Micah (Micah 6:8 NLT). 

     (3) . . . to bring life where there is death and to set captive people free. This was what Jesus stated as His personal vision for His public ministry (Luke 4:18-19). 

     Find your personal vision and keep your eyes on the prize. This will give you moral authority for the vision you will share with your team. Your vision as the leader is the key to unlocking your organization’s success. 

You can check out this episode of The Craig and Greg Show where we talk more about this project. And then pick up a copy of Business by the Book: A CEO’s Vision-casting. 

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