#KP31 Unity & Harmony

Unity is not uniformity.

I find I need two words to describe this concept fully - A group of distinct individuals working together:

1. "unity" as united for a common purpose and
   
2. "harmony" as synchronizing of differences to achieve the common purpose.

Unity is about shared purpose and not about 'sameness'. Harmony is not about 'passive peace' and calmness but about appreciating each other differences and c0-operating actively together for the shared purpose.

Paul (Rom 12:5) uses a living body as an illustration - all parts of the body, the heart, hands, eyes etc, each with its unique function, working at its best, to contribute to the life and growth of the living body. Any healthy Corporate or Society should work like that.

The ingredients for success are then

1. shared common purpose - of the same mind Php 2:2. This will create the alignment of unique members toward acheive the same goal. There may need to be cascading of the higher goal to lower level goals.
   
2. discovering our unique roles and maximizing our talents to fulfill that roles.
3. the glue for harmony is "Love". Love as seen in being able to see the greater picture of the corporate body rather than self, respect for individual's differences, humility(Eph 4:2) .

The mind map is below:

This is the last posting of the series Kingdom Laws & Principles. 

Interestingly, the Ancient Chinese Classic I-Ching, the Book of Chang,
Hexagram #38 睽 Deviation– Synergy of Differences cover the same topic.

#KP30 Continuity - Old & New

With regards to things new and old, it is quite typical to find two main thought. Common among the younger generation, the thinking is "old is bad and new is good". On the other hand, among the older generation, "new is bad and old is good". They wish to return to the good old times.

• In Mat 13:52, ... Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

The person who is skilled in the Kingdom of Heaven thinking is able to draw out the best of the things old and new.

The principle is about continuity & discernment- keeping the best from the past and continues to innovate for the future. Certain structures of the past that bring harms need to be changed so that improvement and advancement can be made with new innovations.

Biblical principles - the Kingdom principles do not change with time. We need the unchanging principles to handle the ever changing new world. Unchanging principles give us the confidence and the patterns and guides to handle the unknown and changing situations. While principles do not change, the applications can be changed for different situations.

Even for high technology, TRIZ has shown technology system evolution follow certain laws and patterns. Moore's law is still applicable after different generations of technological evolution - from vacuum tubes, to transistors, to VLSI, to ... see Kurweil's presentation on Ted.com.

Jesus' teaching on "New Wineskin for New Wine" is not about throwing away the pass, old-wine-skin, but about using the right container for the right content. It is about fit for use and not about discarding the old. Paul's exhortation about the "forgetting the past and strive towards the future goal" is not about throwing away all the past but about the throwing away the dead weights of the past sins and burden. On many instances, Paul told us to remember the testimonies of the past heroes and to mimic his behavior as he followed after Christ. It is all about discernment and not about discarding.

Remember then to keep and develop the treasures of the old and continue to innovate the new and to pave the way from old to the new world.

Next: Principle of Unity and Harmony

KP#29 Human Resource Development

Most manager would like to quickly blame the lack of performance on the staff. If one is familiar with the 6-M Fish bone analysis of causes, man is one only of the six elements of Man, Machine, Materials, Methods, Measurement and Management of possible causes ( 6M came from Germany and one of the M was the Environment rather than Management. Management is the external entity that is responsible for improving the system). If one is familiar with the work of Edward Deming's system of profound knowledge, then the key cause of the lack performance could be in the system or methods.

In the Parable of the Barren Fig Tree Luke 13:6-9, the tree did not produce for 3 years and the owner wanted to cut it down. The Vine dresser however pleaded for another year. But he first want to dig around to find the causes and to add fertilizer. He was practicing a good method of finding the causes first before blaming the obvious - the tree or the man.

We can learn from the method of the Vine dresser:

1. Find the Blockages - Obstacles or Diseases for lack of Performance.
2. Empowering with Fertilizer.
   For human being, may be there should be encouragement and development - e.g. sending the person for training or coaching the person.

We can find a similar verse in John 15:2. The Analytical-Literal Translation of the New Testament gives the verse as:

Joh 15:2 "Every branch in Me not bearing fruit, He takes it away [or, lifts it up]; and every [branch] bearing fruit, He prunes clean, so that it shall be bearing more fruit.

The word airo G142, according to Thayer's, have 3 different meanings:

1. to raise up, to lift up
2. to take upon one'self and carry what have been raise up, to bear
3. to remove, carry off.

Most Bible translation just use cut-off. I prefer the 1st one - which is lift up. For development point of view, 2nd definition of carry and bear is even better. BRUCE WILKINSON, in the "Secrets of the Vine" uses the lift-up. Please read the book for the reasons of "Lift up". Essentially, vine stuck in the ground covered with dirt do not produce fruit. They need to be lifted up to get the sun and air to produce fruit.

The principle that I want to stress here is Human Resouce Development first before blaming and firing the staff for lack of performance. Please apply the 6M method to find the cause and if it is the man, coach and develop the man first. If he still can't perform, perhaps his job should be changed for his benefits.

Give Staff one more chance with Training & Support before firing.

Next: Principle of Continuity

KP#28 Excellence is Zero Defect

In the Parable of Lost Coin and The Lost Sheep, great emphasis was spent on searching and finding the lost. Why is it so? We can look at this from 2 points of view.

Firstly, from the macro view of the whole picture. A beautiful zig-saw puzzle will look awful if it has missing piece. A artifact with a missing piece is no longer a master-piece. A master-piece must have every details just right. The success of the whole body is dependent of the success of every member. The missing piece holds the last key to complete the picture. Hence, great effort should be spent in finding it.

Secondly, from the micro view of the missing sheep. The lost one has missed his calling and trying to find the way. He has lost his purpose and meaning and is likely suffering, like the Prodigal Son. Imaging ourselves being lost in the jungle or the desert without contact with others. How we long to get back to civilization to be back with friend and family. It is love that drives the effort of the search and rescue team who often put their own lives at risks to save the lost.

Lastly, if you are unhappy with "will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance" (Luke 15:7), then you may be living a performance based life like the Elder Brother in the Prodigal Son story. Why there is greater joy? The other 99 righteous persons give forth their joy too.

Here is mind map showing the details:

Next: Principle of HR Development