2/8/15…Something remarkable occurred. After five years of tilling the soil, we are now seeing something special. To cap it off, our plant just won the Lean Award for the plant furthest along the journey within our global company. Of the three times we were eligible for the award, this now makes a 1st, 2nd, and 1st finish. I should feel really good about this, especially since I am the CI Manager and responsible for championing the journey. But I don’t…necessarily. The worldly me feels good. The spiritual side, not so much. After all, I don’t think God is really in this. I never heard a prayer by anyone submitting ourselves to Him. In fact what we produce are 80 million bags a year, most of which contributes to obesity in the United States, and diverts natural resources to the richest country in the world.
The only tie in I can find is we are like the ants, who in part work hard. We do provide for our families which is part of living in this world. God is not a fan of laziness and our company certainly is not lazy. Myself, I am responsible for a wife and also a son going through college. I am grateful for the company, and yet…
I started this blog five years ago. Part of reflecting on the Toil was understanding how to glorify God in my work. There are glimpses of when I tied in spiritual with work, but as of today, I see little synergy. I just see a company making profits and demanding more and more from their people. Some of this is not bad in that to stay in business we must remain competitive and ever improving. Yet sometimes, I feel we are just part of a game with every year measured against the last. And I also feel, what is the next crisis? Seems every year there is some burning platform which unexpectedly comes up and drains resources. Alas, maybe this is the manufacturing world…
Or maybe this is the Toil.
