Abraham Lincoln’s School of Management

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Nancy F. Koehn, an historian at Harvard Business School, has written a fascinating piece for the New York Times on Abraham Lincoln as a “management guru.” In “Lincoln’s School of Management,” Koehn lays out ways in which Lincoln’s approach to management is relevant to today’s leaders. Here are a few enticing excerpts: “Lincoln’s presidency is a big, well-lit classroom for business leaders seeking to build successful, enduring organizations,” Howard Schultz, chief executive of Starbucks, said in an e-mail. Lincoln, he... Read more

How to “Face” Your Fears – Inspiration from The High Calling

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Psalm 27:1-14 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek. (NIV) Psalm 27:8 In Psalm 27, David’s poetry reflects his own struggle with fear. In the first verse, he asks “Whom shall I fear?” The answer comes in the following verses. David might fear the “wicked” who are trying to “devour” him or the “army” that is besieging and surrounding him (27:2-3, 6). He might be afraid of the “foes” who are “spouting malicious... Read more

At Your Favorite Restaurant . . . Hey, Put Away that Camera!

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

I read a fascinating little story in a recent edition of the New York Times. Helene Stapinksi reports in “Restaurants Turn Camera Shy” that growing numbers of restaurants are no longer allow patrons to photograph their food. That’s right, no more quick pics to post on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. Other restaurants are requiring customers to photograph their food in the privacy of the kitchen, rather than at their tables. Why such draconian regulations of... Read more

Must Reading for Leaders: Ed Moore on the “Sacred Bundle”

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Thanks to a recommendation from Tod Bolsinger, I just read a fascinating and wise piece on Duke Divinity’s Faith & Leadership site. I highly recommend “Sacred Bundle” for any leader. The article is written for pastors, in particular, but it is relevant for business leaders, volunteer organization leaders, political leaders, and just about anyone else. I wish I’d read this about 25 years ago! Here’s the teaser for the article: Every organization has its “sacred bundle” — the collection of... Read more

Having God as Your Kitchen Cabinet – Inspiration from The High Calling

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Psalm 25:1-22 The LORD is a friend to those who fear him. He teaches them his covenant. Psalm 25:14 The phrase “kitchen cabinet” was originally used in a derogatory sense by critics of President Andrew Jackson’s group of intimate advisors. In time, however, the phrase has come to refer to a small group of close advisors, those who are trusted by a leader and have considerable influence over that leader. According to Psalm 25:14, God can be your kitchen cabinet.... Read more

The Lord Is My Shepherd – Inspiration from the High Calling

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Psalm 23:1-6 The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need. Psalm 23:1 One of the most common criticisms of contemporary Christianity in America is its excessive individualism. Indeed, in many churches these days, you can sing songs of intimate love for God that communicate only in the first person singular: “I love you. I praise you. Etc.” There is a tendency to neglect completely the profoundly communal dimension of biblical faith, to overlook the fact that God... Read more

The Les Misérables Movie: Background on the Bishop

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

The Bishop of Digne from Les Misérables is one of my favorite characters in all of literature. In this post, I’ll explain why. Recently, I’ve been blogging on the movie version of Les Misérables (1. Fact Check, 2. Script Changes, 3. Suddenly, 4. Surprises at the End). Today, I want to step back and give a little background from Victor Hugo’s amazing novel. I will how well the musical script (both for stage and film) accurately portrays this character. But... Read more

The Les Misérables Movie: Surprises at the End [Major spoiler alert]

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Warning: If you have not seen the film version of Les Misérables and you intend to see it sometime in your life, I would encourage you to stop reading now. Instead of finishing this piece, read instead the excellent post on Les Mis by Tim Dalrymple. For me, the biggest surprise of the movie version of Les Misérables came right at the end. I suppose I would have been more surprised by the addition of the song “Suddenly,” but I... Read more

A Psalm for the End of the Year – Inspiration from the High Calling

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Psalm 90:1-17 Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. Psalm 90:12 Psalm 90 is a perfect psalm for the end of the year. For one thing, this psalm includes the word “year” more than any other psalm. In the Hebrew text of Psalm 90, the word translated as “year” (shena) appears seven times. No other psalm includes shena more than twice. But, apart from the frequency of the word “year” in Psalm... Read more

The Les Misérables Movie: Suddenly, There’s a New Song [Spoiler alert]

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 3:31 pm By Mark D. Roberts

Surely the most noteworthy innovation in the film version of Les Misérables is the addition of a new song. “Suddenly,” sung by Jean Valjean after he rescues Cosette from the Thenardiers, is a brand new addition to Les Mis. How does it function in the story? Does it help? And is it faithful to the novel? In my last two blog posts (Fact Check, Script Changes), I have been evaluating differences between the stage and film versions of the musical... Read more