June 18, 2008

Just Do It

"See to it that you do all I command you, do not add to it or take away from it." Deuteronomy 12:32

Lord, what will you have me to do today? What does my future hold?

As leaders we are always plotting and scheming, seeking and planning, all in an effort to set up what will be our next great move. When we do this we must use caution--planning for tomorrow can be both good and bad. Often I am asked by people what I think about where they are, what they are doing and if I think they are in God's will for their lives. My first response back to them is "What do you think?". Then I proceed with an answer that I feel God wants all leaders to know and understand.

First is obedience! Plain and simple, God expects us to be obedient to Him, His calling, His Word and His direction for our lives. We don't have to attend seminary, fast and pray in sack cloth and ashes, or seek Christian counseling to understand that obedience to God is far greater than any sacrificial plan we could ever dream up. He tells us so in 1 Samuel chapter 15 and verse 22.

Second is "seeking first His kingdom" and His direction for your life. Are you asking God what He would have you do? If so, then His Word teaches us that He will tell us what He wants from us. When He tells you, you must go back to the first step and be obedient! Do it! Just Do It!! Don't look for something else more glamorous to do and just pass off what He told you to someone else for them to do. And don't start seeking the next thing until He tells you or moves you. You see, His Word to us is...

"...do all I command you...don't add to or take away from..." If you will do this my friend, you will always find yourself right smack in the middle of God's will for your life. And in doing so you will find joy and fulfillment like you have never known!

June 11, 2008

They Did Not See...

"Remember today that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God..." Deuteronomy 11:2

When you get to be my age, you can look back through the chronicles of your life and reflect on those "Narnia" like experiences when you knew without doubt or question that God's presence and intervention were the reason (and the only reason) that you were able to survive.

However, our children were not there to witness the hand of Almighty God when He broke you out of bondage, rescued you from certain death, and redeemed you from total destruction and damnation. So, how will they know and learn to trust God since they have not seen with their own eyes?

"Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit down, and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deuteronomy 11:19

Teach them...and when necessary use words!

June 10, 2008

Live, Love, Serve, LEAD...

"...what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all of His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees...for your own good?" Deuteronomy 10: 12-13.

I was reading this scripture in my daily devotion today. I believe that this scripture can be summed up in 4 words--1) Live, 2) Love, 3) Serve and 4) LEAD! If we could ever really totally comprehend the love of God, the sacrifice of Christ, and the total encompassing guidance of the Holy Spirit; then we would not only know and understand what God ask of us, but we would also completely submit to a life of obedience to what God ask of us.

You see God ask of us for our own good. He desires that we live a life of abundance while learning to fear God (and only God) and walking in all of His ways because His ways are higher than our ways. He wants us to know and accept His totally unconditional love so that we can love Him in return and also love other humans in a way that is unknown to this world. He also longs for us to wholeheartedly serve Him and other humans in a way that is unconventional and irrational to the standards of this world.

And while this uncommon, heart changing personification of Christ is occurring in our lives, God uses our foolhardy humanity to simply and passionately LEAD others to...
...live, love, serve and LEAD!
So...lead on...

June 5, 2008

Leadership Character

According to John Maxwell, leadership is influence, nothing more and nothing less. I agree with him totally on this brief synopsis. However, that influence can be either good or bad, depending on the heart of the leader who is influencing. Therefore, when discussing Christian leadership, one cannot stop with this short description of leadership. The leadership abilities of a leader ultimately come from the heart of the leader. Therefore, the heart of the leader is of paramount importance to the followers whom the leader is leading. The heart of the leader is formulated from the character of the leader. Character is probably and should be considered the most important part of a leader's DNA. Without impecable character; including integrity, honesty, trustworthiness, etc.; a leader's ability to lead in the Christian community or anywhere else for that matter has been tarnished. In an effort to discover what others consider leadership characteristics, I would like to take a survey of what you may think. Please respond back to this posting with your top 5 qualities for a leader of excellent character and tell me why you consider them so.