Nicodemus and business

In the New Testament, there is a Jewish leader named Nicodemus. In his culture, he was pretty powerful and successful. People knew him on sight and respected him and his position. If there would have been paparazzi back then, they would have followed him. I am sure when he walked down the street; people stared and talked quietly to themselves that he was coming. Nicodemus paid attention to the happenings in Jerusalem and he intently followed the activities of Jesus.

Nicodemus also listened to the teachings of Jesus and his curiosity was stoked. He wanted to meet with Jesus and he decided to meet Him at night. I am not going into the details of the meeting, but rather want to explore the reasons people do things under the cover of darkness. And, I am going to narrow that down to doing legitimate things under the cover of darkness so I won’t be discussing meth sales, extortion plans or trysts. Nicodemus visited Jesus under legitimate circumstances, so I will focus on that.

I see that night was used because Nicodemus thought he could be embarrassed if not ruined and because being seen as a friend of Jesus put him outside his comfort zone.  You have to remember, a short time after their super secret meeting, Jesus was brutally crucified. Nicodemus probably played that through his mind and thought crucifixion was just not for him. At the worst, the same people who would eventually demand Jesus’ death would strip Nicodemus of his position, wealth and stature. He had a lot to lose. Plus, his actions may forever taint his family legacy. Aside from ruination, how could this Jewish authority ever want to do something as radical as befriend this common carpenter who no one could explain?

Now, how many of us have professions, occupations or roles that are expected of us? Now, how many of us develop passions outside of those established expectations that we never share with as many as we should? But what if this new, ethical, legal and moral venture provided one with satisfaction, freedom, and lots of enjoyment? Well, most of us, if we are honest, would still sneak around and do it but would never fully or publically embrace the change. For example, I am a nurse practitioner. Ask anyone who knows me and that is how I am described. Yes, I enjoy it and I am good at being a nurse practitioner. I also desire more freedom and I enjoy real estate and health (outside of health care). I have been blessed with opportunities in each and I will meekly whisper about them as I proclaim I am a nurse practitioner. I keep it in a box and only show it to people I really trust.

Define yourself on your own terms and not by the expectations of others. That is easy to type, but hard to follow. I literally hesitated for a couple of minutes after that last sentence before realizing that I am even doing it on a blog! Yes, I am a nurse practitioner but I am also a real estate investor, a blogger and a firm believer and associate in USANA. Wow, I typed that and I did not faint or barf. And I even said it in the daylight (typing this on my lunch hour). Please, I sense that others struggle with this. Write it down, read to someone and then start telling it everyone you know. I am not Nicodemus and I will not be crucified for my new found passions.