March 7, 2023

The Way To Build — Surrendered Ownership

The Way To Build — Surrendered Ownership

The Way To Build — Surrendered Ownership

March 7, 2023
March 7, 2023

The Way To Build — Surrendered Ownership

The Way To Build — Surrendered Ownership

We spend so much of life trying to build something. We work to build lives, legacies, products, services, teams, houses, families, businesses, organizations, communities, cities, relationships, and kingdoms. When it comes to building something, we must take ownership and responsibility for what we have been given, but if we hold our ownership and authority too tightly, we can severely limit what we are trying to build.

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We spend so much of life trying to build something. We work to build lives, legacies, products, services, teams, houses, families, businesses, organizations, communities, cities, relationships, and kingdoms.

When it comes to building something, we must take ownership and responsibility for what we have been given, but if we hold our ownership and authority too tightly, we can severely limit what we are trying to build. The secret to building something that lasts is to have the right balance between ownership and surrender. And, to establish balance you must have a weighted center.

Empowered by Ownership – To Build

Have you ever heard someone say, “I wish he / she had more of an ownership mentality”? If so, you’re not alone. In fact, there is a management philosophy that teaches that if everyone operated in their role as a vested member of the team or organization, results would be better and individuals would be more personally fulfilled.

Warren Buffett, Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the 6th most valuable company on the planet, has said, “We tend to let our subsidiaries operate on their own, without our supervising and monitoring them to any degree. That means we are sometimes late in spotting management problems… Most of our managers, however, use the independence we grant them magnificently, rewarding our confidence by maintaining an owner-oriented attitude that is invaluable and too seldom found in huge organizations. We would rather suffer the visible costs of a few bad decisions than incur the many invisible costs that come from decisions made too slowly — or not at all — because of a stifling bureaucracy.”

Warren Buffett understands that to build a great organization, he must surrender some control and ownership to grant more responsibility and authority to others.

Of course, God — the owner of everything — has demonstrated empowering ownership perfectly from the beginning of time. God made us to build things, be co-creators / co-owners, have dominion, and rule over the earth (Genesis 1:26-28).

Followers of Jesus have a distinct advantage when it comes to successfully building something. This is not because of anything we’ve accomplished. Our advantage comes from the fact that our gracious God is building His kingdom through empowering His image bearers. Jesus, the most successful leader in the history of the world, continues to build the kingdom of God through people. The Apostle Paul understood this well and was inspired by the Holy Spirit to put it this way.

“For we are co-workers in God's service; you are God's field, God's building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care.” – 1 Corinthians 3:9-10

These verses not only empower followers of Jesus as owners to build what is meaningful, but also show us how to surrender our ownership to succeed at building what matters most.

Ownership Pitfalls

We know that an ownership mindset is not the only solution to build what lasts. We can all name companies, organizations, churches, and even families that have been misled by leaders who misuse the ownership, authority and responsibility of what they have been given.

Not Building For The Ultimate Owner – Everyone works for someone. A CEO works for the board, shareholders, and customers. If they don’t recognize the owner and purpose of what they are building, they will quickly get out of alignment with the owners. This is how it works for followers of Jesus too. If we don't acknowledge God as the ultimate owner, our work is worthless.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat — for he grants sleep to those he loves.” – Psalm 127:1-2

When we work to build for God and his purposes, we not only receive confirmation that what we are doing is good, we also receive rest for our heart, mind and body.

Not Building On The Right Foundation Companies built on trends or fads tend to collapse like houses built on sand. In other words, organizations that run after immediate success tend to fail quickly. On the other hand, organizations built on solid principles last longer. Jesus gave us this parable so that we will know how important it is to build on what lasts.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” – Matthew 7:24-27

Only a few things last forever — God, His word, and the souls of men and women. To build what lasts, we must build according to God's word. His word guides us to build what is honoring to God and good for our neighbors.

Not Building Our Own Kingdoms – Building for the purpose of only serving the needs of ourselves, our egos, or our organization or family is doomed to fail. This plays out in business and nonprofits every day. When we use what we’ve been given to build our own kingdoms and fiefdoms, our efforts cave in on themselves. Jesus tells this parable to help us understand.

“The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I'll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” – Luke 12:16-21

All things are from God and for the purposes of God (Romans 11:36). To build something meaningful, we must view everything we’ve been given this way. All our assets, leadership roles, and responsibilities are for the glory of God.

Surrender Ownership – To Build What Lasts

Jesus’ entire mission required surrender in order to join His Father to build the kingdom. He surrendered His equality with God, His rights, His comfort, and His life to pay for our sins — but not just to save us! He paid the ultimate price so that we can join Him in building the kingdom that never ends. Joining Jesus in building the kingdom of God comes with a cost and an even greater reward. Jesus explained it to His followers this way —

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?" – Matthew 16:24-26

Jesus invites us to join Him in a mission to build what lasts forever. He states it so clearly! He hates to see anyone go after the temporary things of this world and forfeit what will last forever.

For Joy!

Jesus surrendered some of His ownership rights for us —  so we could live forever. Jesus also surrendered some of His rights to us so we could join in the joy of building what lasts — the kingdom of God!

Therefore, we “fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” – Hebrews 12:2-3

It’s All Ours Anyway

If you are a child of God, you have been given ownership privileges. As an owner you can deploy all your gifts — in full surrender —  to join Jesus in building His kingdom because God has promised that you will join Him ruling the kingdom forever.

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” – Romans 8:17

Howard Graham
Howard Graham
Executive Director

We spend so much of life trying to build something. We work to build lives, legacies, products, services, teams, houses, families, businesses, organizations, communities, cities, relationships, and kingdoms.

When it comes to building something, we must take ownership and responsibility for what we have been given, but if we hold our ownership and authority too tightly, we can severely limit what we are trying to build. The secret to building something that lasts is to have the right balance between ownership and surrender. And, to establish balance you must have a weighted center.

Empowered by Ownership – To Build

Have you ever heard someone say, “I wish he / she had more of an ownership mentality”? If so, you’re not alone. In fact, there is a management philosophy that teaches that if everyone operated in their role as a vested member of the team or organization, results would be better and individuals would be more personally fulfilled.

Warren Buffett, Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the 6th most valuable company on the planet, has said, “We tend to let our subsidiaries operate on their own, without our supervising and monitoring them to any degree. That means we are sometimes late in spotting management problems… Most of our managers, however, use the independence we grant them magnificently, rewarding our confidence by maintaining an owner-oriented attitude that is invaluable and too seldom found in huge organizations. We would rather suffer the visible costs of a few bad decisions than incur the many invisible costs that come from decisions made too slowly — or not at all — because of a stifling bureaucracy.”

Warren Buffett understands that to build a great organization, he must surrender some control and ownership to grant more responsibility and authority to others.

Of course, God — the owner of everything — has demonstrated empowering ownership perfectly from the beginning of time. God made us to build things, be co-creators / co-owners, have dominion, and rule over the earth (Genesis 1:26-28).

Followers of Jesus have a distinct advantage when it comes to successfully building something. This is not because of anything we’ve accomplished. Our advantage comes from the fact that our gracious God is building His kingdom through empowering His image bearers. Jesus, the most successful leader in the history of the world, continues to build the kingdom of God through people. The Apostle Paul understood this well and was inspired by the Holy Spirit to put it this way.

“For we are co-workers in God's service; you are God's field, God's building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care.” – 1 Corinthians 3:9-10

These verses not only empower followers of Jesus as owners to build what is meaningful, but also show us how to surrender our ownership to succeed at building what matters most.

Ownership Pitfalls

We know that an ownership mindset is not the only solution to build what lasts. We can all name companies, organizations, churches, and even families that have been misled by leaders who misuse the ownership, authority and responsibility of what they have been given.

Not Building For The Ultimate Owner – Everyone works for someone. A CEO works for the board, shareholders, and customers. If they don’t recognize the owner and purpose of what they are building, they will quickly get out of alignment with the owners. This is how it works for followers of Jesus too. If we don't acknowledge God as the ultimate owner, our work is worthless.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat — for he grants sleep to those he loves.” – Psalm 127:1-2

When we work to build for God and his purposes, we not only receive confirmation that what we are doing is good, we also receive rest for our heart, mind and body.

Not Building On The Right Foundation Companies built on trends or fads tend to collapse like houses built on sand. In other words, organizations that run after immediate success tend to fail quickly. On the other hand, organizations built on solid principles last longer. Jesus gave us this parable so that we will know how important it is to build on what lasts.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” – Matthew 7:24-27

Only a few things last forever — God, His word, and the souls of men and women. To build what lasts, we must build according to God's word. His word guides us to build what is honoring to God and good for our neighbors.

Not Building Our Own Kingdoms – Building for the purpose of only serving the needs of ourselves, our egos, or our organization or family is doomed to fail. This plays out in business and nonprofits every day. When we use what we’ve been given to build our own kingdoms and fiefdoms, our efforts cave in on themselves. Jesus tells this parable to help us understand.

“The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I'll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” – Luke 12:16-21

All things are from God and for the purposes of God (Romans 11:36). To build something meaningful, we must view everything we’ve been given this way. All our assets, leadership roles, and responsibilities are for the glory of God.

Surrender Ownership – To Build What Lasts

Jesus’ entire mission required surrender in order to join His Father to build the kingdom. He surrendered His equality with God, His rights, His comfort, and His life to pay for our sins — but not just to save us! He paid the ultimate price so that we can join Him in building the kingdom that never ends. Joining Jesus in building the kingdom of God comes with a cost and an even greater reward. Jesus explained it to His followers this way —

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?" – Matthew 16:24-26

Jesus invites us to join Him in a mission to build what lasts forever. He states it so clearly! He hates to see anyone go after the temporary things of this world and forfeit what will last forever.

For Joy!

Jesus surrendered some of His ownership rights for us —  so we could live forever. Jesus also surrendered some of His rights to us so we could join in the joy of building what lasts — the kingdom of God!

Therefore, we “fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” – Hebrews 12:2-3

It’s All Ours Anyway

If you are a child of God, you have been given ownership privileges. As an owner you can deploy all your gifts — in full surrender —  to join Jesus in building His kingdom because God has promised that you will join Him ruling the kingdom forever.

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” – Romans 8:17

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