To achieve extraordinary things in life, one needs more than just skill or talent. One also requires deep faith – both in oneself and in a higher purpose. The greatest artists, scientists, and leaders throughout history have married exceptional skill with an unshakable belief that they were destined for something greater.

Skill alone cannot withstand the inevitable hardships and setbacks on the path to extraordinary achievement. Faith provides the resilience and sense of meaning needed to persevere. With it, obstacles are seen as challenges to overcome rather than failures. Faith also provides a moral compass to keep one’s talents directed toward virtuous and uplifting purposes. Without it, even the most skilled individual risks misusing their gifts or squandering them on unworthy goals. In the end, the alchemy of skill and faith enables individuals to reach heights they could never attain with talent alone.


Matthew 17:14-20. Then the disciples approached Jesus in private and said, “Why could we not drive it out?” He said to them, “Because of your little faith.”

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-224: AUGUST 12, 2023]

The desire to dominate and control is a common human failing. However, letting greed and lust for power consume us to the point where we would sacrifice our own lives is clearly not worthwhile. Though momentary domination may appeal to our baser instincts, true fulfillment lies not in subjugating others, but in uplifting them.

Rather than seeking to ruthlessly impose our will and leverage everything towards our own benefit, we do better to embrace morality and compassion. These lead to lasting gains, such as peace of mind and the ability to live harmoniously with others. Sacrificing our life purely for domination’s sake is a poor trade. We must temper our ambitions and consider how we can contribute meaningfully to the world, not just subjugate it under our heels. Therein lies a path to genuine achievement and self-actualization.


Matthew 16:24-28. What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? Or what can one give in exchange for his life?

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-223: AUGUST 11, 2023]

Emergence

The weeklong International Conference on Realism is about to end tomorrow. It has been a very insightful conference filled with discussions and provocations on how to pursue flourishing in many forms no matter the discipline.

As this academic year is about to end as well, my mind wanders towards the critical realist concept of emergence. The favored example of critical realists is water – water is an emergent entity that is distinct from hydrogen and oxygen. Water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen yet is different from them.

In a way, teams are the same. A team is composed of members, but it doesn’t mean that if there are people within the same proximity they can be considered a true team already. There must be interactions – just like how hydrogen and oxygen chemically interacted that led to the emergence of water.

The concept of emergence allows for the maxim “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” to be true.

If we look at social reality or social units such as teams, organizations, family, and friendships, how do we make sense of individual identity? On one extreme, should individual identity be subsumed by the supposed greater whole? Should the individual “die” to serve the greater whole?

My answer is no. There should be a way to honor the dignity of the individual while still allowing the whole to thrive.


John 12:24-26. Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-222: AUGUST 10, 2023]

Faith that strengthens one’s resolve to act

Faith provides a wellspring of inner strength and motivation. When we have sincere faith in something greater than ourselves, like love, it emboldens us to persevere.

Our faith gives us a firm anchor so we can take risks and sacrifice without fear. We feel part of a larger purpose and calling that infuses our actions with meaning and direction.


Matthew 15:21-28. “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-221: AUGUST 9, 2023]

Reasonable doubt leads to a fuller faith

Reasonable doubt is a natural and healthy part of any faith journey. When we question elements of our beliefs that don’t make sense to us yet, it pushes us to deepen our understanding and form a more nuanced perspective. While an untested faith may be rigid and brittle, reasonable doubt strengthens faith like carbon under pressure forming a diamond.

Approaching faith with humility, we must acknowledge we don’t have perfect knowledge. As we wrestle with doubts, we force ourselves to articulate what we believe and why. We gain confidence that our beliefs are grounded in something substantial, not just inherited traditions. Reasonable doubt leads us to rely more on spiritual discernment than formulas. We learn to integrate new information and let go of faulty assumptions.

The process of working through doubts expands our worldview and helps us form a fuller faith, refined and strengthened by questioning what once seemed unquestionable.


Matthew 14:22-36. “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-220: AUGUST 8, 2023]

Sharing and sufficiency, greed and emptiness

It is one of life’s ironies that in generously sharing what we have, we find contentment, yet in greedily grasping for more, we are left empty.

When we share our time, ideas, and resources with others, we discover there is enough to meet our basic needs. We realize that by cooperating and lifting each other up, the whole community thrives. Sharing fulfills our longing for connection and meaning. It opens us to the truth that our welfare is bound up with others. There is sufficiency in living simply and giving freely.

Yet the gnawing hunger of greed drives us to take all we can, believing acquisition will bring happiness. Greed isolates us in a vicious cycle of wanting ever more possessions, money, status. No matter how much we acquire, it’s never enough to fill the hole inside us. Greed treats life as a zero-sum game, where one person’s gain comes at another’s expense. Ironically, in the end, greed leaves us empty and alone, overwhelmed by excess yet unfulfilled.

It is only through sharing life’s essential goodness that we find genuine sufficiency. By giving ourselves, we grow rich in the currency of community and care.


Matthew 14:13-21. They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over– twelve wicker baskets full.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-219: AUGUST 7, 2023]

The next generation carries our will yet have their own

The future belongs to the youth. As each generation comes of age, they inherit the values, dreams, and goals of their elders. Yet the next generation also brings something new. They face fresh challenges that require creative solutions. While honoring tradition, they must chart their own course.

The torch is passed from one generation to the next. Our children carry forth our hopes that the world may be a bit better for their presence. Though they walk in our footsteps, they blaze new trails. The next generation gives us faith that progress endures. For in their eyes we see the glimmer of possibility. While the young may follow our lead, in time they find their own voice.


Matthew 17:1-9. This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-218: AUGUST 6, 2023]

Pay attention to the price we pay

It’s easy to fall in love (or, maybe more appropriately, “fall in lust”) with something or someone, such that we fail to pay attention to the price we’re beginning to pay to satisfy our desire.

When we make a deal, is it because we want to one-up another, or is it because we want to exchange something of almost equivalent value relative to the needs of another?


Matthew 14:1-12. But at a birthday celebration for Herod, the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guests and delighted Herod so much that he swore to give her whatever she might ask for. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-217: AUGUST 5, 2023]

Providing platforms for each other

If we are truly to frame management and organizing as a two-way street, it is important to provide platforms for each other. Co-creating sounds desirable and preferable, but it is more complex to manage since it relies on each other’s agency and the belief that we share a common goal.

Good faith and trust make such platforms work. No matter how difficult this may be, the upside is that providing platforms for each other can lead to creating multiple forms of value that is truly greater than the sum of an organization’s parts.


Matthew 13:54-58. And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-216: AUGUST 4, 2023]

Inclusiveness, fairness, and opportunities

In today’s society, there is much discussion around how best to create a more equitable environment for all. Often this centers on notions of giving special advantages to historically disadvantaged groups. However, true inclusiveness is less about singling out certain groups for special privileges and more about providing opportunities for those who have faced systemic barriers to exercise their own agency and determine their path forward.

Rather than treat people differently based on gender, race or other factors, an inclusive society removes obstacles that have hindered equal access and participation.

The focus must be on empowering the disadvantaged by removing hindrances to their advancement. Special treatment for some should not be the aim – rather, the aim should be expanding opportunities and resources for the marginalized to exercise their own abilities and benefit society as a whole.


Matthew 13:47-53. The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-215: AUGUST 3, 2023]