Jon Petts

Category: Strategic Living

  • Navigating Doubt

    Navigating Doubt

    I have a confession to make.

    During my formal training for the ministry, I went through a profound season where I genuinely doubted the very existence of God. I was actively preparing for a lifetime of Christian service, studying theology, and yet internally wrestling with the terrifying thought that the God I was preparing to serve might not even be there – navigating doubt was not on my agenda!

    Questioning God’s existence felt like a bit of a taboo to say the least. However, I have since realised I was far from alone in that wilderness.

    (This is the third instalment of The Devil’s Playbook. If you have not yet read the other posts , you can find part 1 here.)

    Why your doubt might just be a vital sign of spiritual health

    Openly acknowledging doubt is actually a vital sign of spiritual health, provided we allow it to process itself into faith. It is way better than bottling it up, pasting on a fake smile, and presenting a false self to the world.

    As my dad often preached, if there were no room for doubt, there would be no need for faith.

    Faith and doubt are frequently two sides of the same coin. Doubt is not always a grand, intellectual crisis concerning God’s existence. Often, it is much quieter.

    It is wondering if God will actually come through for you in a specific crisis. We find ourselves doubting his goodness, his faithfulness, or his active presence in our daily lives.

    These moments of friction are frequently used by God to strengthen our resolve, build our character, and teach us some lessons about dependence. 

    Sometimes, it feels as though God is playing hide-and-seek simply to get us off our backsides and compel us to seek his face with genuine urgency.

    When doubt becomes a weapon

    There is a critical tipping point where doubt ceases to be a spiritual workout and becomes a weapon formed against us. 

    A 2023 study by Barna titled ‘Doubt and Faith’ revealed that exactly half of all adults with a Christian background experience a period of prolonged doubt.

    The enemy uses this extended time in the wilderness not merely to provoke philosophical questions, but to systematically separate us from our spiritual foundations. 

    This modern iteration of doubt is rarely just an intellectual exercise. It is deeply relational and institutional.

    The same Barna research highlights that for those who eventually distance themselves from their faith communities, the primary driver is the perceived hypocrisy of religious people, a factor cited by 42 percent of respondents. 

    When past institutional hurts are weaponised in our minds, the result is a quiet exit that isolates us from our communities and ultimately silences our prayer lives.

    In the Devil’s playbook, the goal of doubt is never to make you a critical thinker. The goal is to make you a deserter.

    Doubting God’s existence

    Questioning whether God is actually real rarely begins with a dramatic spiritual crisis or a sudden theological u-turn. Instead, it manifests as a gradual erosion of our worldview, heavily influenced by the environments in which we operate.

    Secularism

    When our primary daily inputs, from business strategies to social media feeds, are entirely secular, the concept of a supernatural God can quickly begin to feel like a childish myth. This gravity of secular thinking pulls constantly at our perspective.

    Suffering

    This intellectual friction is compounded by the reality of suffering. Facing profound loss, injustice, or even the sudden collapse of a life’s work creates severe logical dissonance. When we encounter deep pain in our own lives, the natural human response is to ask how a good and powerful God could possibly allow it to happen.

    Scientism

    Add to this the modern overemphasis on scientism. This is the assumption that if something cannot be quantified in a spreadsheet or proven in a laboratory, it simply does not exist. Under this weight, the foundation of faith can easily begin to crack.

    Spinning

    Ultimately, this intellectual brand of doubt leaves us with a moral compass that appears fixed but is actually spinning freely. Without an eternal framework to anchor us, our decision-making becomes entirely bound to short-term consequences. This mindset is a fast track to personal hopelessness.

    A vintage brass compass resting on modern business documents on an office desk.

    Doubting God’s character

    The second play the enemy runs is far more intimate than intellectual scepticism. It is an attack on God’s character, a phenomenon we might call the Thomas complex.

    The Thomas complex

    We often label the biblical disciple as ‘Doubting Thomas’, but that is perhaps a bit unfair. Thomas was not a cynical, modern atheist, but a deeply wounded follower. He had invested three years of his life into following Jesus, only to watch his hope publicly die on a Roman cross.

    When the other disciples excitedly claimed Jesus was alive, Thomas did not necessarily doubt the theological possibility of a resurrection. More likely, he was simply too heartbroken and exhausted to risk believing it had actually happened. His demand to see the physical nail marks was not a scientific inquiry, but a psychological defence mechanism against further devastating disappointment (John 20:25).

    I know you see this too.

    Consider the dedicated person who has poured years of prayer and integrity into a project, only to watch it collapse unexpectedly. Think of the individual who prayed earnestly for a family member’s healing, only to be met with a tragic outcome.

    In these dark moments, the enemy rarely tries to convince us that God is a myth. Instead, he whispers that God is indifferent, distant, or perhaps simply not as good as we previously thought.

    Disillusionment and neglected disciplines

    This deeply relational doubt usually stems from a disillusionment with some unwritten internal script, as we all carry a mental narrative of how a faithful, blessed life ought to play out. It is a subtle contract we create. We tell ourselves that if we work hard and pray often, God will ensure our success and safety.

    When God does not follow our script, when we face unexpected delay or crushing despondency, we are tempted to question his character. We can subtly begin to doubt his love and his power.

    This drift is accelerated when we neglect our spiritual disciplines. When our prayer life slips and we stop immersing ourselves in scripture, we lose the familiar sound of God’s voice. It is exactly like losing touch with an old friend, where the longer you go without speaking, the easier it is to misinterpret their silence.

    In that quiet void, the enemy’s whisper suddenly sounds much louder and far more authoritative. As a result, we stop praying for breakthroughs and start praying merely for survival. 

    The good news is that, like with a true friend, you can be away for ages and easily pick up where you left off!

    Doubting your own identity

    In the Devil’s Playbook, perhaps the most subtle play in the chapter on doubt is the attack on your identity. The enemy does not always need to convince you that God is unapproachable. He only needs to convince you that you are unqualified to approach Him.

    The trap of self-focus

    In many ways it is entirely healthy to doubt our own flesh and to have zero confidence in our human strength. But for the believer, the enemy distorts this healthy humility into a toxic lie about our standing in Christ.

    Many of us end up circling a drain of self-doubt, constantly seeking reassurance of our own spiritual worth or seeking validation from others. We tell ourselves that we would love to experience more of God, but we simply do not cut it spiritually. We allow the shadow of our past mistakes to dictate our present reality, assuming that if we keep remembering our sins, God must be remembering them too.

    When we focus obsessively on our own weakness rather than Christ’s strength, our prayers devolve into whimsical wishing. The devil effectively waters down our power by making us the centre of the conversation. 

    If your primary focus is on how flawed you are, you are fundamentally failing to focus on how good he is.

    The antidote is revelation

    The answer to this crippling self-doubt is not an injection of modern self-confidence or a better self-image, but revelation. In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul prays for something highly specific for the early church. 

    He does not pray for their difficult circumstances to change.

    Instead, he prays that,

    the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you 

    (Ephesians 1:18, NIVUK)

    Self-doubt becomes completely irrelevant when you realise your standing is based on His gracious invitation, not your flawless application. Paul also uses a string of superlatives to describe the incomparably great power available to those who believe.

    It is the exact same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him far above every rule, authority, and dominion. 

    When you finally see Jesus for who He is, seated in ultimate authority, your self-doubt becomes an absurdity. You are no longer operating on your own fragile credentials, you are operating on his. After all, you are seated with him (Ephesians 2:6)!

    Expecting a Return on Prayer

    The writer of Hebrews tells us that anyone who comes to God must believe two fundamental things. The author states that

    anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

    Hebrews 11:6 NIVUK

    Sincere prayer always expects a result.

    A farmer is not content with merely planting seeds, but waits to reap a harvest. Similarly, a marksman observes carefully to see whether his bullet hit the target, and a physician actively examines the patient to measure the effect of the medicine.

    Yet, in our spiritual lives, doubt often conditions us to adopt a ‘fire and forget’ mentality. We pray out of obligation, walking away before the words have even left our lips. If we truly believed he was a rewarder, we would stay at the door, knocking persistently until it opened.

    Help my unbelief

    Nowhere is the messy, beautiful reality of navigating doubt captured more perfectly than in the Gospel of Mark. In chapter nine, we find a chaotic scene where a desperate father has brought his deeply afflicted son to Jesus’ disciples (Mark 9:14-29). The disciples have tried and failed entirely.

    The boy is suffering, the religious leaders are arguing, and the father is watching his last shred of hope evaporate. When Jesus arrives, the exhausted father approaches Him. His opening plea is not a declaration of unwavering, triumphant faith, but a statement saturated in the trauma of repeated disappointment.

    He looks at Jesus and pleads, 

    But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us

    Mark 9:22 NIVUK

    Jesus replies, throwing the caveat right back at him. 

    ‘”If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes”

    Mark 9:23, NIVUK

    I am so glad the father does’nt try to muster up a false sense of spiritual bravado to impress the Rabbi. Instead leans into radical, vulnerable honesty. Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, 

    I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!

    Mark 9:24 NIVUK

    Is this perhaps one of the most profound prayers recorded in scripture?

    The father acknowledges the genuine belief in his heart, while simultaneously confessing the crushing weight of his doubt. 

    He admits that his faith is fractured, battered by the reality of his son’s suffering, and the recent failure of the disciples.

    This story is a lifeline

    Jesus does not scold the man for his theological struggle or demand that he go away, purify his thoughts, and return with a perfectly unblemished mindset. 

    Jesus accepts the fragile fragment of faith the man offers and steps into the gap to provide the rest. He turns and performs the miracle, healing the boy completely.

    This narrative is a lifeline for any of us navigating a season of uncertainty, proving God is not intimidated by your “What ifs.” He is not repelled by faith that has been bruised by the realities of life, business, or institutional failure. He simply asks for honesty.

    If you find doubt hovering in the background today or even facing you head on, be completely honest about it. Speak your “help my unbelief” out loud and do not let your questions silently harden into a wedge that separates you from your calling. 

    Let us get before God this week, ask him to enlighten the eyes of our hearts, and fully expect the power of the resurrection to move precisely within our messy, ordinary lives.

    Next week, we look at the third “D” in the Devil’s Playbook: Despondency. We will explore the unique dangers of the “long wait” and discover practical ways to recover your spirit when the breakthrough seems delayed.

    Who is Jon Petts?

  • Overcoming Spiritual Distraction

    Overcoming Spiritual Distraction

    The Ice Cream Strategy

    Andrea and I learned early on in parenthood that distraction is a masterful child management tool. If you have ever tried to navigate a public park with a toddler, you will recognise this scene, which has its parallels in the realm of spiritual distraction.

    (This is the second instalment of The Devil’s Playbook. If you have not yet read the foundational audit on how the enemy operates, you can read part 1 here.)

    Scenario A

    Child: “I want an ice cream.”

    Mum: “You cannot have one, you have just had a big chocolate pudding. You will be sick.”

    Child: “Please? Just one?”

    Dad: (Tuning in late) “Er, no. Ice cream makes you… fat?”

    Child: “Has Daddy had an ice cream?”

    In this scenario, logic is failing. The “target” (the ice cream van) remains firmly in the child’s sights.

    Scenario B

    Child: “I want an ice cream.”

    Mum: “Oh look! There is a slide and some swings!”

    Dad: “I wonder how high I can push you on that swing!”

    Child: (Eyes shifting) “Swing!”

    By the time the child is flying through the air, the ice cream van is a distant memory.

    Distraction Definition:

    A distraction is any thing, action, or state that diverts attention away from a primary task, goal, or focus, often resulting in diminished productivity or mental confusion.

    In parenting, we use it to steer children away from unhealthy options. But in the spiritual realm, the enemy uses it to steer us away from our destiny.

    The Anatomy of a Distraction

    There are always two elements involved in this “play”:

    1. Your Desired Focus (for example, your Kingdom mission, health, or deep relationships).
    2. An Undesired Focus (for example, the doughnut shop next to the gym).

    As adults and professionals, we rarely grow out of this.

    We are constantly tempted by things that bring quicker, shallower results. God has plenty for us to focus on, but much of it reaps rewards we cannot instantly see. Our spiritual enemy, however, has a playbook full of “instant” distractions intended to throw us off course altogether.

    What is the Desired Focus?

    Our ultimate role as believers is to love God, love people, and make disciples. If I were to distil that role down even further, it is summed up perfectly by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount:

    “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness…”

    Matthew 6:33, NIVUK

    Note that Jesus says “Seek first”. There is not a “second”. For everything else in your life, you have two options: put it second or throw it out altogether. Or make an idol of it.

    There is an old joke about a man who pleaded with God to bring his gold to heaven; when he arrived, Saint Peter looked inside the man’s bag and asked why he had brought a lump of pavement.

    The only things of eternal value are those done with a seeking-first-the-kingdom attitude. Everything else is a distraction.

    The Forensic De-clutter

    What does seeking the Kingdom first actually look like in a professional or personal life?

    Here are some examples:

    • Decision Making: Every choice runs through a filter: What will honour God best?
    • Career Choices: A house move or job change is less about the salary and more about the “Kingdom fit”. Is there a solid church nearby? Does this job sacrifice my godly commitments?
    • Family: Success for your children is not measured by exam results or high paying jobs, but by whether they have a heart to serve God.

    Your spirit agrees with this as you read it. But your flesh, the untamed part of your nature, might be making excuses. This is exactly where the enemy’s playbook opens.

    The Three Hooks of Distraction

    In 1 John 2:16, we are given three categories of distraction that the world and the enemy use to hook us:

    For everything in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, comes not from the Father but from the world.

    1 John 2:16

    This is one of those verses we might skim over, or just see as a list of bad practices. But it holds a powerful key to understanding temptation and distraction, because we see these three mechanisms at play in the Garden of Eden during the first ever sin, where it all started. And amazingly, we also see Jesus face and defeat these parallel hooks during His temptations in the wilderness.

    At the core of every hook is an attack on identity, tempting us to forget who we are and what we already possess in God.

    Let us unpack how these ancient traps operate today.

    1. The Lust of the Flesh (Physical Cravings)

    This hook is about making yourself feel good without including God. It is the “counterfeit blessing.” It is the urge to satisfy a legitimate physical or emotional need in an illegitimate or impatient way, often by forgetting our identity as fully provided-for children of God.

    “The woman saw that the tree was good for food…” (Genesis 3:6, NIVUK).

    Eve was surrounded by a paradise of permissible food, yet the serpent planted a seed of doubt about God’s provision. Her physical appetite for this one forbidden thing was awakened. She forgot her identity as someone who already possessed everything she needed and chose to bypass the clear boundary God had set for her protection.

    Consider the story of Esau in Genesis 25. He came in from the fields completely exhausted and famished, saying to his brother Jacob,

    “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (Genesis 25:30, NIVUK).

    Driven entirely by his immediate physical craving, Esau forgot his identity as the firstborn heir. He swore an oath,

    “selling his birthright to Jacob” (Genesis 25:33, NIVUK),

    trading his entire future inheritance and spiritual blessing for a single, temporary bowl of soup.

    Looking to Jesus in Matthew 4, we see a completely different response to physical desperation. After fasting for forty days, He was genuinely starving. The devil approached Him with a direct attack on His identity:

    “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread” (Matthew 4:3, NIVUK).

    The enemy challenged Him to use His divine power to satisfy a legitimate physical craving outside of God’s timing. Jesus knew exactly who He was. He refused the counterfeit blessing, choosing to trust the Father for His provision rather than catering to His flesh.

    In the professional world, this manifests as greed, power plays, or taking shortcuts to satisfy an emotional craving for success or security. It is the leader who completely sacrifices their marriage and physical health to hit a quarterly target, trading foundational blessings for a temporary bowl of professional validation.

    When we feel the pull of the flesh, we must fix our eyes on Jesus. He reminds us that our identity is not found in our immediate comfort or success, but in trusting the Father for our daily bread and long-term sustenance.

    2. The Lust of the Eyes (Instant Appeal)

    This hook involves the quick-fix solution that ignores long-term consequences. It is surface-level satisfaction and the temptation to acquire whatever looks appealing in the moment, rather than waiting for what God has promised.

    “…and pleasing to the eye…” (Genesis 3:6, NIVUK).

    The narrative in Eden continues by highlighting the visual allure of the fruit. The serpent used this superficial, aesthetic appeal to distract Eve from the deadly reality of God’s warning. The sheer visual temptation overrode her memory of the consequences. She saw something shiny and new, forgetting the boundless beauty of the garden she already inhabited.

    In Genesis 13, Abraham and his nephew Lot realised their herds were too large to share the same land. Abraham gave Lot the first choice of territory. Lot

    “looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan towards Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord” (Genesis 13:10, NIVUK).

    Lot chose based entirely on immediate visual appeal, completely ignoring the deeply corrupted culture of Sodom that came attached to it. He lost sight of his identity as part of Abraham’s chosen family line, a choice that ultimately cost him everything.

    Fast forward to the wilderness, and we see the enemy attempt a similar visual trap with Jesus. The devil took Him to a high mountain and

    “showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world” (Luke 4:5, NIVUK).

    He offered them to Jesus in exchange for one act of worship. It was the ultimate visual allure of immediate, bloodless victory. It was a shortcut to the crown that completely bypassed the suffering of the cross. Jesus rejected the visually stunning solution, remembering His identity as the suffering servant who would redeem the world God’s way.

    When our organisations abandon a solid, steady mission to chase a new toy, a flashy project, or the latest tech trend simply because it looks impressive we may be chasing what looks good to the market right now, but are we ignoring whether it aligns with our core mission.

    We overcome this by fixing our eyes on Jesus. He teaches us to look past the instant visual appeal of a shortcut and focus on the joy set before us, choosing the difficult but enduring path of purposeful, mission-driven work.

    3. The Pride of Life (Reputation)

    This is the focus on how others see you, where you rank amongst them, and the intoxicating belief that you are the sole architect of your own success. It is the ultimate identity theft.

    “…you will be like God…” (Genesis 3:5, NIVUK).

    The final trap in Eden was the promise of elevated status. The serpent convinced Eve that God was holding out on her. Here lies the great tragedy: Eve was already made in the image and likeness of God. She possessed the highest identity possible for a created being. Yet, in her pride, she grasped at a counterfeit version of what she already had, desiring to be her own ultimate authority.

    King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is a prime example of this hook. Looking out over his magnificent empire, he said to himself,

    “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4:30, NIVUK).

    He forgot that God had granted him his kingdom. In that very moment, his arrogance brought severe judgement. He lost his mind and his human identity, driven away to live like an animal until he looked up and acknowledged Heaven’s rule.

    Returning to Jesus in the wilderness, we see how He handled the temptation of status and reputation. The devil challenged Him to throw Himself from the highest point of the temple, saying,

    “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down” (Matthew 4:6, NIVUK).

    This was an invitation to create a public spectacle and forcibly prove His divine status to the crowds. Jesus refused to perform for reputation. He remained completely secure in His identity without needing a flashy public display or human applause to validate His worth.

    In the boardroom, this translates to chasing the approval of peers or the status of a title over the substance of your service. It is the leader who makes decisions based on PR opportunities rather than what is best for the team. When the pride of life takes root, the business simply becomes a monument to the leader’s ego.

    The antidote to pride is again fixing our eyes on Jesus. Though He was in very nature God, He did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage. Instead, He made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant. We must root our professional identity in how well we serve others, not in how highly they praise us.

    When Are You Vulnerable?

    The enemy waits for specific “weather conditions” in your life to run these three plays.

    • When you are low on energy, you are vulnerable to the lust of the flesh. You naturally want an easy fix. In these exhausted moments, you would rather “snack” on a minor distraction or a counterfeit comfort than do the heavy lifting required to put on the full armour of God.
    • When God seems silent, you become highly susceptible to the lust of the eyes. You are tempted to chase something visible and immediate, reaching for a shiny, surface-level solution rather than waiting patiently on His timing.
    • Finally, when you are isolated and without fellowship to keep you in check, the pride of life easily takes root. It is in that vacuum of accountability that your ego begins to whisper, “I can do this on my own.”

    Our Counter-Play: Fixing the Gaze

    A compass representing the need for Kingdom leadership focus and spiritual guardrails.
    A leader’s primary defence against spiritual distraction is not more effort, but a constant recalibration of their spiritual North.

    We have established that the ultimate course correction for these three hooks is to fix our eyes on Jesus. However, in the daily grind of the professional world, that phrase can sometimes feel abstract or overly spiritual. How do we translate that into practical action? Let us focus on a specific directive Jesus gave regarding where our attention should be focused.

    “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33, NIVUK)

    The key to defeating distraction is found in that second half: “…and all these things will be given to you as well.” The hooks of the flesh, the eyes, and pride all prey on the fear that we are missing out, that we lack provision, or that we must build our own empires. But your Heavenly Father knows exactly what you need. When we put Him first, He provides the rest.

    To keep your eyes practically fixed on Him this week, consider implementing three simple Standard Operating Procedures to protect your focus:

    1. Prayer: Bring Him into every moment, not just the strictly “spiritual” ones. Pray before the difficult client call, during the commute, and whilst making operational decisions.
    2. The Word: Stick to a consistent reading plan. Do not just read it; listen to it. Let Scripture set your baseline reality before the inbox dictates your day.
    3. Fellowship: Do not give up meeting with people who keep you in check. You need peers and mentors who will ask the hard questions and hold you accountable.

    Remember, we are here to win.

    The devil is simply a fallen angel, and his playbook is entirely predictable once you recognise his strategies.

    By understanding his hooks and implementing the right counter-plays, you can navigate your professional life with clear vision and undistracted purpose.

    Next week, we look at the second “D”: Doubt – The whisper of “What if?” and how to answer it.

    Who is Jon Petts?

  • When Your Lateral Career Move is Actually a Divine Setup

    When Your Lateral Career Move is Actually a Divine Setup

    The Move

    You are staring out of the window on the morning commute, looking at your schedule for the day, and wondering if any of it actually matters in the grand scheme of things.

    In Christian circles, we often talk about “calling” as if it is a booming voice directing us to a dramatic, sacrificial life. Meanwhile, in the real world, most of our major life decisions feel decidedly unspiritual.

    • We relocate to secure a place in a better school catchment area.
    • We take a lateral career move because the pension scheme is better.
    • We network with people we do not entirely agree with because it is commercially strategic. (*cringe*)

    At the end of 2023, I found myself in a similar place. I had handed in my notice, sensing a profound prompting that it was the right time to leave my current employment. I had absolutely no idea what was coming next. It was simply a step of faith for both my wife and me, letting peace, and the counsel of those around us, be our guide.

    With just three weeks to go before my final day, a text message arrived. It was an invitation to cover for an absent teacher. The catch was that it meant leaving the beautiful South Coast of Devon UK and relocating to the north of England (also beautiful in its own way!).

    In many ways, while I always look to see God’s hand at work, it felt like a purely practical, logistical career decision. Logistically it wasn’t an amazing choice as I had to stay in our my in-laws’ spare room for what turned out to be 18 months. Love ’em to bits but not an ideal situation for any of us!

    But the point is, that temporary cover was a catalyst for a life upheaval.

    It is easy to look at our pragmatic, spreadsheets-and-mortgages lives and worry that we have somehow sidestepped the grand adventure God had planned for us.

    A closer look at one of the more obscure characters of the Old Testament suggests something entirely different:

    Often, your most calculated, practical logistics are exactly what God is using to set the stage for something historic.

    A Biblical Lateral Career Move: The Pragmatic Entrepreneur of Judges 4

    If you read Judges 4, you will briefly meet a man named Heber the Kenite. The Israelites were in a state of national crisis. For twenty years, they had been brutally oppressed by a Canaanite king named Jabin and his ruthless military commander, Sisera. The Canaanite dominance was built on terrifying military technology: nine hundred iron chariots that dominated the flat plains. 

    The situation was so desperate that God raised up a prophetess named Deborah and a general named Barak to lead an unlikely, under-equipped Israelite rebellion.

    And buried in the text of this story we meet, Heber, a ‘Kenite’ usually glossed over in sermons and Sunday schools. The Kenites were traditionally allied with Israel. But Heber made a controversial decision to relocate. The text gives us the exact geographical logistics:

    “Now Heber the Kenite had left the other Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses’ brother-in-law, and pitched his tent by the great tree in Zaanannim near Kedesh.” (Judges 4:11 NIVUK)

    Heber had left the Kenites. For some reason that grabbed my attention.

    Why would he leave his family and pitch his tent by a prominent landmark near a major trade route? The historical clues point to a classic business move, further confirmed by his subsequent networking:

    “…there was an alliance between Jabin king of Hazor and the family of Heber the Kenite.” (Judges 4:17 NIVUK)

    I’m told (by Google, obviously) that the name “Kenite” has linguistic roots linked to metalworking. It’s not stretching the narrative to assume this particular Kenite did work with metal, as we will see from some of the items in his tent.

    But first, note that King Jabin (the Canaanite ruler brutally oppressing the Israelites) built his military dominance on 900 iron chariots. Is it possible that Heber essentially moved his family to the ancient equivalent of a booming tech hub to secure highly lucrative government contracts?

    We know he was successful because of the details hidden in the Song of Deborah in the following chapter. When his wife Jael later entertains a guest, the text highlights the sheer wealth and professional standing of their household:

    “He asked for water, and she gave him milk; in a bowl fit for nobles she brought him curdled milk. Her hand reached for the tent peg, her right hand for the workman’s hammer.” (Judges 5:25-26 NIVUK)

    Heber had acquired the luxury goods of the Canaanite elite (“a bowl fit for nobles”) and possessed the heavy-duty artisan tools of a master contractor (“the workman’s hammer”).

    He thought he was just making a smart lateral move. He found a neutral location, secured a lucrative market, and built a comfortable life for his family.

    The Illusion of the Secular Strategy

    Had Heber spent years under that tree at Zaanannim congratulating himself on his political savvy and business acumen? He had after all built a safe, neutral bubble in a volatile world.

    But God had other, deeper plans.

    When the Israelite army finally clashed with the Canaanites at the River Kishon, God intervened. A sudden torrential downpour turned the battlefield into a swamp. Sisera’s terrifying iron chariots were instantly bogged down in the mud, rendering his military advantage completely useless. 

    The Canaanite army was routed, and Commander Sisera was forced to flee on foot. Exhausted and running for his life, he spotted the landmark tree and remembered the business treaty with Heber’s successful household:

    “Sisera, meanwhile, fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite…” (Judges 4:17 NIVUK)

    He stepped into the tent expecting diplomatic immunity. Instead, he walked precisely into the trap God had been setting for years.

    Heber provided the logistical framework, but it was his wife, Jael, who possessed the clarity and bravery to act.

    She did not need an army.

    She took the very tools of her husband’s commercial success (the high-status bowl to lower the commander’s guard, and the heavy workman’s hammer from the business) to deliver a definitive victory for Israel, just as the prophetess Deborah had foretold.

    “But Jael, Heber’s wife, picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to him while he lay fast asleep, exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died.” (Judges 4:21 NIVUK)

    Am I Heber?

    Sometimes we can divide our lives into the “spiritual” and the “practical”. We think our church involvement is the spiritual part, while our career moves, house purchases, and professional networking are just the practical necessity of paying the bills. 

    I think Heber’s story dismantles that divide. It tells us that God is the master of repurposing our logistics.

    When my wife Andrea and I look at our own recent relocation, something about this story rings true. That initial temporary cover in the North of England led to further work. And after an excruciating 18-month separation, we finally sold our house in Devon, and Andrea was able to join me (thank you, Lord). We still had to live with family for a while but we have now finally bought a new home and are settling into a church that our adult kids were already part of. 

    I sense we have been divinely relocated for a purpose we have not yet fully seen. So I’m choosing to see this story as prophetic for us as a couple. The logistics of the move might have been driven by the tools of my trade at the time, but I believe God uses the practical moves of one partner to position the other for extraordinary impact.

    Re-evaluating Your Logistics

    We tend to divide our lives into the “spiritual” and the “practical”. We think our church involvement is the spiritual part, while our career moves, house purchases, and professional networking are just the practical necessity of paying the bills.

    Heber’s story dismantles that divide. It tells us that God is the master of repurposing our logistics.

    • That job you took just because the hours suited your family better.
    • That neighbourhood you moved into purely because the property prices made sense.
    • Those professional skills you have spent a decade honing in a distinctly secular environmen.

    You might think you are just managing a career, but you might actually be setting the stage. God routinely uses our most ordinary, self-interested decisions to place us (or our families) in the exact geographical and professional locations required for His purposes.

    Four Ways to Repurpose Your Professional Life

    If you want to stop feeling like your 9-to-5 life is a spiritual waiting room, it is time to look at your practical logistics through a different lens. Here is how to start:

    1. Map your “Zaanannim”

    Acknowledge where you are right now. Take a piece of paper and write down your current practical logistics. Note your office location, your neighbourhood, and your kids’ school gates. Stop apologising for the practical decisions that brought you there. Acknowledge that God has allowed you to pitch your tent exactly there for a reason, even if that reason is not yet visible.

    2. Audit your “workman’s hammer”

    What are the professional skills you use to pay the bills? Project management, cleaning, financial forecasting, cooking, corporate communications, or contract negotiation? Stop viewing them as purely secular tools. They are assets for the Kingdom. Dedicate them to God today so they are ready to be picked up when a moment of crisis or opportunity requires them.

    3. Look for the hidden “alliances”

    Who are you networking with? Heber had an alliance with King Jabin. You might be interacting daily with clients or colleagues who share none of your values. Do not assume you are compromising just by being in the room. You might be the person God is keeping in place for a future intervention, a moment of grace, or a crucial shift in workplace culture. Yes, your presence can make a difference to the atmosphere in the room.

    4. Prepare for the divine interruption

    Sisera arrived exhausted, desperate, and completely unannounced.

    The Kingdom of God rarely sends a calendar invite.

    Be spiritually awake enough in your daily routine to recognise when a standard Tuesday afternoon suddenly turns into a divine appointment. When the moment walks through your door, have the moral clarity of Jael to act.

    5. Look for the shared calling

    If you are married, pay close attention to how your career moves impact your spouse. Do not assume a relocation is just about your paycheck. Your lateral career move might actually be the logistical setup for your partner’s greatest season of kingdom impact. Pray about it together.

    6. Let peace lead your logistics

    When I quit my job, I had no backup plan, only peace. Sometimes God asks you to leave a space before He reveals the destination. Do not be afraid to step out in faith. The text message that changes everything might only arrive three weeks before your deadline.

    Your current position is not a compromise. It is a setup. Be ready.

    Who is Jon Petts? Find out here...

  • The Devil’s Playbook (Reclaiming your Spiritual Focus)

    The Devil’s Playbook (Reclaiming your Spiritual Focus)

    I was almost sold

    When Andrea and I were young, newly married, and fairly impressionable, we went along to a meeting in a hotel that promised a free holiday just for attending. All we had to do was sit through a presentation first.

    By the end of the evening, we were convinced. It all made sense, and we were ready to sign up for something that would cost us every month for a long time.

    I remember holding the pen, just about to sign, when something didn’t feel right. I couldn’t quite explain it, but it was enough to make me stop. I backed out at the last moment. The salesperson didn’t hide his disappointment—and probably had a few choice words he kept to himself.

    I was almost sold.

    Looking back, I could see that I had been led through a process in someone else’s playbook. What has this to do with reclaiming your spiritual focus?

    The Playbook and You

    Have you ever felt like the world is constantly trying to sell you something? Telling you what you don’t have rather than what you do have? Have you been sold on something before and not realised it was happening?

    A good salesperson can easily take you on a journey and before you know it you’ve committed to a purchase.

    Maybe you’ve been in sales yourself and know what it takes to get inside someone’s head.

    What is a Playbook?

    The term ‘playbook’ (apart from ‘play book’ being used in the theatre and dramatic arts to mean a book of plays) originally meant a notebook containing a sports team’s strategies and plays.

    It’s now used in other lines of work and means a set of tactics frequently employed by anyone engaged in a competitive activity.

    Most sales companies’ playbooks will introduce the company goals and vision. But they will also consider the following:

    • The persona and mindset of their target audience. “Sales reps have to get inside the buyer’s head to sell” (Zorian Rotenberg, insightsquared.com)
    • The buyer journey – the steps your prospect will usually take before committing.
    • Sales process – what it takes to make a sale – call methodology, pitching the product, usual buyer questions and your answers, suggested conversation flow, call and email scripts, sound bytes, objection handling.

    In a sporting setting, the coach will spend a lot of time analysing the opposition, looking for weaknesses in their play, and devise a playbook accordingly. They might consider:

    1. What are our strengths?
    2. Which of these strengths will the opposition already know about and be prepared for?
    3. What are their weaknesses?
    4. Where are they likely to be strong in the next game?
    5. What else is going on for them? (e.g. key player dropped / injured, tired or energised from recent games, current morale, predicted weather conditions, etc.)
    6. How can we utilise the above to maximise our chances of defeating them?

    Now, imagine a spiritual enemy looking at your life, your family, or your organisation and asking those same questions.

    Strategy meeting
    The enemy may have a playbook to keep you from moving forward but by reclaiming your spiritual focus you can run with God’s play!

    Does the Devil have a playbook?

    Absolutely. Here are some verses from the bible that illustrate this, and I’ll unpack how they work later along with more about reclaiming your spiritual focus in this and future posts…

    For we are not unaware of his [Satan’s] schemes.

    (2 Corinthians 2:11)

    Do not give the devil a foothold. (Ephesians 4:27)

    For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)

    Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

    The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)

    Satan has a plan. He is a strategist of the “dark world,” looking for an opening. But we must remember: he is only a fallen angel. The all-powerful, all-loving God of the universe has a playbook, too.

    We just have to be both aware of the devil’s schemes and aligned to God’s.

    Let’s first look at God’s playbook and that of our enemy, considering our place in God’s playbook…

    Reclaiming your Spiritual Focus: God’s Playbook

    God has plans we don’t know about.

    He knows the plans he as for you.

    We know that they will prosper us and not harm us, that they are plans of hope and with a bright future. But there are lots of details he chooses to keep from us.

    Look how he told Abraham to go to a land he would show him after he’d committed to the long journey. He had a playbook for Abraham’s life but only revealed it one step at a time. And think about how he told his disciples not to worry about how God will carry out the end times. The Father knows the future. You don’t have to.

    But despite there being numerous plans in God’s heart that are unknown to us, we can still see the headlines of God’s playbook since the beginning.

    So what does God’s overall playbook actually look like? In the broadest sense, it’s already in motion. 

    1. Rescue.

    First, there’s the rescue of humanity—done. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This is the defining moment in history, the foundation everything else rests on. 

    2. Return.

    But the story isn’t finished. Jesus will return—pending, but promised. “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). 

    3. Reckoning.

    And when he does, there will be a reckoning. The devil’s end is already written: “And the devil, who deceived them [the nations], was thrown into the lake of burning sulphur… They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever” (Revelation 20:10). 

    4. Reign.

    And then comes the part that’s easy to overlook, but changes everything—we’re not just spectators in this story. Those who belong to him will reign with him. “He will reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15), and “If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us” (2 Timothy 2:12).

    So… great. Off you go then, God—we’ll just sit here and wait for Jesus to come back, shall we?

    Not quite.

    We’re not on the sidelines watching it unfold—we’re on the pitch. 

    We’ve been given a position to play, and it’s not complicated, but it does require intention.

    Our Position in the Playbook: Our 3-Point Play

    We’ve been given a position to play, and it’s not complicated, but it does require intention.

    Here’s a 3-point play I believe God wants us all in on:

    1. Love God.

    It starts here: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” (Luke 10:27). That’s not just a nice idea—it shapes everything. It shows up in worship, in communion, in serving him, in obedience, and sometimes in sacrifice.

    2. Love people.

    Flowing straight out of that, “Love your neighbour as yourself” (Luke 10:27). In practice, that looks like doing life with others, showing genuine care, and bringing that love into your workplace, your neighbourhood—wherever you find yourself day to day.

    3. Make disciples.

    And then there’s the outward call: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15–16). This is Jesus’s great commission, and it involves every believer. We’re not just making converts to a religion—we’re helping people become wholehearted followers of Jesus, baptising them and teaching them to live his way.

    Because God’s plan is so vast and our position in it is so vital, the enemy is extra hard at work. 

    Reclaiming my Spiritual Focus meant not signing the contract!
    Reclaiming my Spiritual Focus meant not signing that contract!

    The enemy’s playbook

    Over the next few weeks, I want to explore the specific tactics he uses to get us off-track.

    We will be looking at:

    Distraction

    Shifting our gaze from the Kingdom to the temporary things in front of us.

    Doubt

    Attacking our identity and God’s character, undermining what we know to be true.

    Despondency

    Using disappointment and delay to wear us down until we feel like giving up.

    Division

    Breaking the unity that gives us strength when we stand together.

    Defilement

    Drawing us into compromise so that we slowly blend in with the patterns of the world.

    Running our Play

    Let’s go back through the five points in the enemy’s playbook and see something important: when we are working from God’s playbook, the response is always ultimately the same.

    The enemy may have multiple plays, and this list isn’t exhaustive, but we don’t need a different answer for each one. We just need to stay anchored in the same response.

    As Hebrews 12:1–2 puts it: “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith…”

    Here’s how we run our play:

    Defeating Distraction

    Distraction is often subtle—it doesn’t usually announce itself as something dangerous, it just quietly pulls our attention away from what matters most.

    We see this even with the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane. They were heavy-eyed and overwhelmed in the moment, and as a result they missed the weight of what God was doing right in front of them. When the world offers its own distractions we must keep our eyes fixed on the Lord.

    The fix? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

    Defeating Doubt

    Doubt rarely begins as full unbelief—it usually starts with a shift in focus.

    Take Peter walking on the water. His failure didn’t start when he stepped out of the boat, but when his attention moved from the Savior’s command to the storm’s roar. The moment the waves became more “real” than Jesus, doubt began to take hold.

    The fix? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

    Defeating Despondency

    Despondency often builds slowly, through repeated disappointment and delayed hope.

    After years of suffering and failed attempts to find healing, the woman with the issue of blood had every reason to give up. But in a moment of faith, she reached out—realising that a single touch of the King was worth more than a decade of human effort. Despondency dies when we stop looking at our list of failed solutions and start looking at the only answer—Jesus.

    The fix? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

    Defeating Division

    Division creeps in when our identity shifts from who we are in Christ to categories, preferences, or camps.

    We often spend our energy building fences around our denominations and differences, but at the foot of the cross, those labels quickly become irrelevant. Jesus is returning for a unified body defined by its devotion to the groom rather than loyalty to a specific banner. When He is our central focus, the walls we’ve built between one another naturally begin to crumble.

    The fix? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

    Defeating Defilement

    Defilement usually doesn’t happen all at once. It happens through gradual exposure and shifting attention.

    The world is messy, and if we spend all day looking at the mud, we’re eventually going to get some on us. Sanctification isn’t just a matter of trying harder. It is a byproduct of being so captivated by him that the allure of the shadows loses its grip on our hearts.

    The fix? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

    We fix our eyes on Jesus

    The devil might know your weaknesses.

    He might play on them.

    But we know his.

    It’s Jesus.

    This is how we reclaim our focus.

    I was praying for someone who had a relative who was severely oppressed and there was a sense that this was not just a natural problem. We were in a static caravan. The door was closed but not locked. I began to pray about the cross. I was thanking God out loud for his sacrifice, for the crucifixion, for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As I got to the end of my prayer the door flew wide open and slammed shut. There was a sense of calm from that moment on.

    So that’s the playbook.

    God has a story that is already in motion—rescue accomplished, return promised, reckoning coming, and reign secured. The enemy has his plays too, and while they show up in different forms—distraction, doubt, despondency, division, and defilement—they are not new, and they are not final. 

    And in the middle of it all, we are not left guessing what to do. Our response is not complicated, even if it is not always easy: we fix our eyes on Jesus. Again and again, in every situation, that is the play we run. 

    Because when our focus stays there, everything else begins to fall into its right place.

    Next time, we’ll take the first of those enemy plays—distraction—and look at how it quietly works its way into our lives, and how we learn to recognise it before it takes hold.

    Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy that was set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

    Who is Jon Petts?