Fire is fascinating. Fire is consuming. Fire is attractional. Fire is mesmerizing.
And it is absolutely marvelous to see when when it is contained in a person that is on fire for Jesus Christ. Last week, Lesley and I had a chance to meet such a man. His name is Nathan Giffin and he is the creative and entrepreneurial force behind Vertical Artisans, one of the most incredible crafts that I have ever seen. Nathan turns ordinary concrete into works of art that look like massive stacks of stones. You literally cannot tell the difference. We went to meet with him because we are attempting to coordinate an opportunity for him to come and work his craft at The Grove. In the meantime, his business is growing off the hook. And I think there are two primary reasons.
1. Nathan does exceptional work. During our meeting, he affirmed his tireless commitment to excellence. There are many days that he is on a job completely alone. There are few people who can currently do what he does (although he is beginning an extensive online training course that will help anyone learn. Click here for info). And as such, if he were to cut corners, who would really know? Who’s going to come behind him and critique his work since almost no one else can do it? But day after day, he lives out a dying character trait - integrity. See, Nathan knows what he is capable of. Even if no one else knows or sees…… he does. And that is enough to drive him to never give less than his best. What an incredible business testimony to build. One job done with excellence may get you another one, but if you don’t carry that trait forward, it will catch up with you. But the opposite is also true. When you never give anything less than your best, people come to know that they can trust you implicitly. And Nathan earns business simply because his reputation is flawless. Take a look at a few of these pics from the jobsite we visited:
2. Nathan honors Jesus Christ. In every setting, he stops and sits and prays for God to show him the possibilities. He has an uncanny ability to envision what is not there…to see beyond the visible. And how does that happen? Because he seeks the vision and the wisdom of God on each job. It is also his goal to purposefully seek out an opportunity to share his faith at least once during the course of each job. He exudes Jesus Christ. It is part of his speech. It is part of his thinking. It is part of his countenance. It is unmistakable. And it is inspiring. And it is why God is blessing his business.
Here’s my challenge to all of us. Are we exuding Jesus Christ in our daily lives and conversations? Are we seeking excellence in everything we put our hands too or are we cutting corners? Are we expecting God to bless us because we just want to be blessed, or because we have honored him?
Who in your life is a Nathan? Do you know one? Are YOU one? If you know one, encourage them. If you are one, then may you be blessed. We need more people like you. If you are not, then why not? Let’s let our lights shine for all to see…both in our work and in our attitudes. And then let’s see what God will do.
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