On Followship

Many who take courses in leadership in the hope of attaining it fail because they have never learned to follow.  They are like the boys who were playing war in the street.  When a passerby inquired why they were so quiet and were doing nothing, one lad replied, "We are all generals.  We can't get anyone to do the fighting."

- J. Oswald Sanders in 'Spiritual Leadership'

On Character

The soul lives in the character.  It is its home.  In some cases the home is the mere sty of the animal; in some, the shop of the barterer; in some, the prison of the guilty; in some, the temple of the saint. 

- Rev D. Thomas (The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Cor 3:10)

An Advancing Life

Charlie Bucket, Augustus Gloop, Violet Beauregarde, Veruca Salt and Mike Teavee are the famous characters of Roald Dahl’s Charlie & the Chocolate Factory.  We all know the story - as the winners of five Golden Tickets, these children are given the chance to take a tour through Wonka’s enchanting candy-land.

At the end of the story, it is revealed that the lottery was a front for Willy Wonka's attempt to choose his successor. As the last Golden Ticket winner left standing, Charlie inherits the chocolate factory. 

Although five enthusiastic children start the tour, only Charlie Bucket makes it to the end.  The other four children become so enraptured with a particular point in the journey that they miss the blessing that comes with advancing until the end.

Dahl’s story reminds me of an event in the history of the Israelites. 

After their release from slavery in Egypt and a taxing three-month journey through the wilderness, the Israelites make camp at the foot of Mt Sinai.  This is an incredible place for the Israelites.  At Sinai God revealed Himself to Moses.  At Sinai God gave the Ten Commandments.  At Sinai the Priesthood was established and the Tabernacle built.  At Sinai the Israelites rested from their journey. 

After almost 12 months at Sinai, God speaks to Moses in Deuteronomy 1:6, saying, ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain.  Turn and take your journey…’ There is no doubting that Mt Sinai was a great thing for the Israelites, just like there is no doubting that nappies were a great thing for me…for a time.

The lesson is this: even good places become detrimental if we dwell in them too long.  Unless a person continues to grow, develop and advance they will become stale, stunted and stagnant.   

Charles Spurgeon once said:

We ought to increase our capital stock.  Are you increasing in gift and capacity?  My brethren, do not neglect yourselves.  I observe that some brethren grow, and others stand still, dwarfed and stunted…The most needful and profitable labour is that which we spend upon our own mental and spiritual improvement.

Here are four reasons why we must commit to advancement:

1. Because God's Investment Demands It

When I consider the fact that the Lamb was slain so that I could advance from my old life (Egypt) into God’s promised life (Canaan) it compels me to advance beyond my present (Sinai).  Further to this, God has also invested His Spirit within me that I have the responsibility to stir up. 

It would be the ultimate waste to receive God’s gracious investment and become lethargic with it.  Paul understood this when he wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:10, ‘His grace toward me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all…’  A fruitful, advancing life is my return on God’s investment of grace.

2. Because the Enemy is Plundered by It 

Mark 3:27 says, ‘No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.’  Therefore, if I was the devil and wanted to plunder your life, I would bind you until you are stationary and unable to advance.  Nobody is afraid of a motionless foe.

As long as I am bound up the enemy is the aggressor.  However the moment I commit to advancement, I become the aggressor and start to possess what God says is mine. 

3. Because Others are Blessed by It

If Moses had not heeded the call to advance, all of the Israelites, including Joshua and the next generation would have been stuck too.  Moses personal failure to advance would have restricted others from advancing also.  

Put simply, when my personal capacity is increased I increase my capacity to bless you.  If this is true than it is also true that a stagnant life is a selfish life.  A life committed to advancement is a life committed to increasing generosity.

4. Because a Greater Season Urges It

If I become like Augustus Gloop and allow myself to be completely enamored with the chocolate rivers at the start of the journey, I forgo the chocolate factory that awaits at the end of the journey. 

If I’m preoccupied with the good things at Sinai, I can miss out on the great things at Canaan.  As John D. Rockefeller once said ‘Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.’  

My prayer must be that I am continually reminded that God has prepared greater things in my future.  That I would often hear his voice saying ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain.  Turn and take your journey.’    

The Two Wings

Meditation qualifies for action; action demands new meditation.  These are the two wings, without both of which the eagle cannot rise.  "Come ye into the desert;" "Go and preach;" - these are the twin behests of Christ.

- Rev. D. Davies (The Pulpit Commentary - Deut 1:6)

Role-models... Imitate what you can!

I'm slowly reading (and greatly enjoying) The Confessions by Saint Augustine.  As a young student in approx 370AD, Saint Augustine hated studying Greek literature, including the works of poet and author Homer who often wrote about the gods.

In Roman mythology, Jupiter (Zeus in Greek mythology) was the king of heaven and Earth and king of all the Olympian gods. Jupiter's wife was Juno (Hera in Greek mythology), who was very jealous of the attention that Jupiter paid to other goddesses and women.  Put simply, we would say that Jupiter was an adulterer. 

Reflecting on the nature of education and role models of his time, Augustine writes:

Woe, woe to you, you flood of human custom!  Who can keep his footing against you?  Will you never run dry?  How long will you toss the children of Eve into a vast, terrifying sea, which even those afloat on the saving wood can scarcely cross?

Did you not give me a story to read in which Jupiter is both the Thunderer and an adulterer?  He could not possibly be both; yet so he was represented, to the end that his real adultery might seem to establish itself as deserving imitation because a faked thunderclap acted as go-between.  

... Homer did indeed make up these tales, and thereby seemed to invest the disgraceful deeds of human beings with an aura of divinity, so that depraved actions should be reckoned depraved no longer, since anyone who behaved so could pretend to be imitating not abandoned humans but the gods above.   

... (A) young man looks at a mural painting which shows how Jupiter tricked a woman by sending a golden shower into Danae's lap.  Watch the dissolute youth making use of heavenly instruction to work up his lust!  "What a god!" he exclaims, "a god who makes the temples of heaven ring with his thunder!"  Well, a poor little fellow like me can't do that, but I have imitated him in the other thing, and what fun it was!  

In the 1,700 years since Augustine wrote, few things have changed.  Just as Augustine's young mind was fed on gods who both thundered and adulterated, so too our young people grow up on the same diet.  To be sure, time has changed the details, we've replaced Jupiter for film stars and thunder for giftedness, but  the underlying message remains the same - "Your divine thunder validates your disgraceful behaviour."  

Hollywood presents our young people with role models who for 90 minutes on screen can be both thunderer and adulterer, creating a fictional world where the two attributes can happily coexist.  In fact, the thunder is so celebrated that surely the adultery is to be celebrated also.  For example, James Bond's daring exploits are so heroic and worthy of emulation, that to his captive audience, surely his sexual exploits are heroic too!  

And so today, a young man looks not at a mural but at a big screen.  He watches not a mythological god but an action hero.  He observes the hero leap from building to building and woman to woman, thinking to himself, "What a man", and then leaves the cinema to emulate all of Bond's behaviour that he can.  

 

Recommended Listening

I listened to an outstanding message today by Dr Tayo Adeyemi on 'Increasing Your Value as a Leader'.  A sharp but simple communicator, Dr Tayo is the Senior Pastor of New Wine Church in London.  His message had some great insights into personal development and leadership.  You can check out New Wine Church or purchase Dr Tayo's products here.  

Hybels on the Stakes of Leadership

... Public service is an honourable vocation.  But politicians, no matter how sincere their motivation, can only do so much.

For eight years during the decade of the nineties I went to Washington D.C., every month to meet in the foremost centers of power with some of the highest elected officials in our country.  What I discovered was not how powerful these people are, but how limited their power really is.  All they can do is rearrange the yard markers on the playing field of life.  They can't change a human heart.  They can't heal a wounded soul.  They can't turn hatred into love.  They can't bring about repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace...

Businessman can provide sorely needed jobs.  Wise educators can teach useful knowledge of the world.  Self-help programs can offer effective methods of behaviour modification.  Advanced psychological techniques can aid self-understanding.  And all of this is good.  But can any of it truly transform the human heart?

I believe that only one power exists on this sorry planet that can do that.  It's the power of the love of Jesus, the love that conquers sin and wipes out shame and heals wounds and reconciles enemies and patches broken dreams and ultimately changes the world, one life at a time.  And what grips my heart every day is the knowledge that the radical message of that transforming love has been given to the church.  

The means that in a very real way the future of the world rests in the hands of local congregations like yours and mine.  It's the church or it's lights out...

The local church is the hope of the world and its future rests primarily in the hands of its leaders... Will the men and women who have been entrusted leadership gifts take them seriously, develop them fully, and deploy them courageously, so that the willing and gifted believers in their churches can work together to make a difference in the world?

... the Church, the bride of Christ, upon which the eternal destiny of the world depends, will flourish or falter largely on the basis of how we lead.

- excerpt from Courageous Leadership by Bill Hybels of Willow Creek Community Church

Self-focused Spiritualism

Jesus taught and modeled that 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'  Better to improve the plight of others, than to focus on one's own needs.  His followers heeded his message, lived extraordinarily selfless lives and in the process changed the world.  

'New Spirituality' teaches that it is more blessed to receive than to give.  Better to improve oneself than to focus on the plight of others.  It's followers are heeding the message of self improvement and at the same time clinging to the romantic notion that 'individual spirituality' will change the world.  From the article below, it seems that the two cannot coexist.  

Young people who embrace trendy, self-focused spiritualism are more anxious and depressed than those who believe in God or reject religion altogether, a survey shows.

A major Queensland study of 21-year olds suggests that the shift away from traditional religious beliefs to new-age religions is not making young adults happier.  The survey quizzed 3,705 people on their beliefs in God, higher powers other than God, as well as their church-going habits and other behaviours...

Dr Aird found only eight per cent of young adults attended church once a week, a trend linked to lower rates of antisocial behaviour among young men, but not females.  She said individualism was the common thread in the shift away from traditional religious thoughts to non-religious spirituality.

"This focus on self fulfillment and improvement over others' well being could undermine a person's mental health with many people feeling more isolated, less healthy and having poorer relationships," Dr Aird said.

She said so-called new spirituality promotes the idea that self-transformation will lead to a positive and constructive change in self and society.

"But there is a contradiction," Dr Aird said.

"How can one change society if one is focused on oneself?"

From article 'Trendy Spiritualism Breeds Unhappiness'.  Click here to read the full article.   

Commitment to Learning

Ravi Zacharias is one of my favourite Christian speakers and authors.  Born in India, Ravi is one of the leading Christian apologists in the world today.  He has a regular podcast called 'Let My People Think' which is well worth subscribing to.  

The following is an excerpt from one of Ravi's books 'Walking from East to West'.  This reflection from his childhood is a challenge for all of our new College students!

...at dusk, when the streetlamps came on, students came out of their homes to continue their studies under lamplight. In some homes, there was no electricity; in others, parents sent their children outside to study under the streetlamps to conserve electricity. There was often a tussle as to who claimed a lamppost first. Once that was settled, the fortunate student sat with his back resting against the post. Most of his scalp was shaved except for an area called the bodi, and he tied this part to the lamppost behind him. That way, whenever he began to doze off and nod forward, the pull on his hair kept him awake. This was the discipline of study in those days. 

Chris Hill "Adullam Discipleship" Part 2

3. Elah - The Place of Exhibition

> Elah is the defining moment when we go from obscurity to popularity; from playing a harp to running down the enemy.

> Elah is awesome, when God puts you on exhibit.  In Elah, Jonathon will see you and fall in love with you, and the King’s daughter will fall in love with you.  In Elah you move from chump to champ.

> Elah is the place of exhibition, but it is also the setup for execution

> It’s better to stay underneath the radar because when you get above the radar, then the enemy can see you.  For example, Jesus was safe for thirty years while He was hidden in God, but the moment John the Baptist put Him on exhibition He became a target for the enemy.

> Exhibition is married to execution.  The same voices that say "Hosanna" on Sunday, will say "Crucify Him" on Friday.

> Elah is a great moment, but a dangerous moment unless you have a strong relationship with God.

4. Nob - The Place of Salvation

> David’s whole world flips over.  He was rejected by his biological father, and finally says ‘My father in law loves me.  I’m going to be accepted and endorsed." and before he knows there is a spear coming at his head, from the very father he thought would replace the father who had overlooked him.

> What do you do when they promised you it would be ‘this’, but you got there and found out it was ‘that’?  You run to Nob, the city of the High Priest, the place of salvation.

> David asks the High Priest for three things, which you need when in crisis:

1.  A word from God for you

2.   Bread from heaven for you 

3.   A weapon that you can fight with 

> You need a spiritual leader who can lay down his own agenda to get bread from heaven for you

> Church needs to be a place where people can run to, to get the bread of life that gives them the strength to keep running.  People don’t need three points and a poem, they need the bread of life that gives them the strength to fight the good fight of the faith.

> There’s a sword in the temple; it’s Goliath's sword.  

> The weapon you take from your enemy will always be yours.  When you have a victory, keep the monuments of that victory.  You need to bottle that good feeling so when going through bad things you can take a sip of the joy juice!

5. Gath - The Place of Humiliation

> If you walk with God long enough, He will put you in a situation that makes you feel like you are knee high to an ant.   

> David runs to Gath but the Philistines recognise him.  David starts scratching the wall and acting crazy, so much so that the King says ‘…that dude; he’s not a threat.’ 

> “Aren’t you the mighty man of God?”

   “Yes, but not today.  Today I’m just scratching the wall and dribbling on my beard.”

> The Place of Humiliation – where you have to disguise your true nature and come out of your comfort zone, because that’s just where you are right now...but if you can walk through it you can get to Adullam.

6. Adullam - The Place of Cooperation

> David says "I can’t stay in Gath, so I’m going to make my place in a cave...It doesn’t look nice or pretty and it’s not the palace, but I’m going to be happy here."

> "It’s not what I wanted or what they promised, but I’m going to dig in here and treat this cave like it’s my palace.  I’m going to treat this situation like it’s the very fullness of the promise of God."

> Dance in the cave.  Sing in the cave.  Worship in the cave.  Decorate the cave.  Put carpet in your cave!

> E.G. Bishop Jakes put a chandelier in his storefront church in West Virginia.  Why?  Because he had chandeliers in his spirit.

> If you can decorate the cave, others will be attracted to the vision you’re seeing, even though they can’t see it.

> 3 categories of people come to David at Adullam: 1. Distressed; 2. In Debt; 3. Discontented.

>The best place to disciple is in mean situations, in the cave; that’s the time to begin to call people to yourself. And don’t wait for Superman to come, because he’s not coming to the cave.  At the cave you get the broken, busted and the disgusted. 

> You get the messed up people in the cave.  But if you can disciple them in the cave, they go from being the rubble to being the mighty men that will change the whole complexion of a nation.  And you don’t have to wonder about them, because they’re not coming for the fish and the loaves because you didn’t have any fish or loaves in the cave.

> David works with 400 of the most messed up people.  He turned the messed up into mighty.  

> Stop looking at your situation and start zeroing in on their situation. 

> Find a kid who nobody is patting on the head, who nobody is saying ‘I see a legend inside of you…You’re going to be somebody great.’  Just a drop of love makes them blossom, because nobody has given them any moisture at all.  At the smell of moisture they will blossom and bloom, because they’ll appreciate you, so much so that they will run through troops to get you a cup of water.

> What you build today will fight for you tomorrow.  

> The cave that you’re in becomes the creative place from which they will emerge.  The situation that’s driving you crazy – God has put you there to slow you down long enough that you can disciple somebody else, because you really don’t have anything else to do anyway.  

> Discipleship is working with what you’ve got.  It is seeing what God is saying and speaking that, training that and raising that up until it emerges from the cave as a mighty army that cannot be stopped.

> Youth ministry is discipling what comes to the cave.

Apologies that the 'outline' became extensive in parts... Some things are too good to paraphrase!

Chris Hill "Adullam Discipleship" Part 1

Delegates at this year's Planetshakers Conference Brisbane enjoyed exceptional messages from some of the world's best preachers.  I was fortunate to get a copy of Chris Hill's leadership session titled 'Adullum Discipleship'.  It's an amazing message on the leadership development of David.  Do whatever you can to get hold of the CD.  In the meantime, here are some of the key points.

The leadership development of David can be tracked in six places:

1. Bethlehem - The Place of Initiation

> Bethlehem is a small town, but God calls forth His choice champions from small beginnings

> In this first city we see the beginning seeds of everything that God will do through David, because God doesn’t start in the big, He starts in the small.

> God puts the whole of a thing in the seed of that thing

> The Devil seeks to destroy people in the place of initiation because he sees what we will be; i.e. the lion and the bear are in the place of initiation

> God crystallizes the character of his choice Christians in the crucible of isolation.

> In dark places He develops the picture that you will become.  In the dark room of the divine He dips you in process after process until He perfects the image that He wants, and then He shows you to the world.

> In Bethlehem he receives a prophetic word that he would be a king.  God says things to us despite what we see.  When we see our situation it’s hard for us to receive His revelation.  You cannot allow your situation to speak louder than the revelation.

> In Bethlehem you receive a revelation of who you will be, before you get to be.  

> He is Alpha & Omega, and lives outside of time.  In David's life there’s a 20 year gap between the prophecy and the fulfillment.  This is called 'process'.  

> God speaks things as though they’ve already happened, because to Him they’ve already happened.  But I live in time, so I have to walk all the way to the fulfillment.

> Process prepares me for what He has called me to be.  When God deals with us He must do it through process.  If He makes us immediately into what we will be, we mess up.  For example, Saul was chasing donkeys and then became king - it messed him up.  God didn't do that to David; He gave him twenty years to become what God has said.

2. Gibeah - The Place of Introduction

> David was faithful in Bethlehem; someone heard about it and then he was promoted

> Be faithful with what God gives you.  Rock what you have here and other people will feel the ripples!

> David does something so powerful in Bethlehem that it opens the door for him in Gibeah

> Gibeah is the place of introduction, because David gets to serve what he will one day become.

> Gibeah is the place of exposure.  God gives you opportunity to be exposed to people who are already doing what you will one day do.  

> God has called David to be a king, so He exposes David to a king.  God has David there not to rule, but to serve.

> At this point in his life, David has already killed a lion and a bear; he knows how to fight but God does not give him a sword, He gives David a harp.

> If God gives you a harp, just play.  Shut up and play.  Don't tell Saul what to do and don't impose your prophecy and your calling.  Just shut up and play.

> Don't try to exert authority that God hasn't given you yet.  God has you here just to expose you, to be a fly on the wall, to see how kings operate, to see how leadership is set in array, to see the palace.

> Don’t come in with your own agenda; who cares what you think – keep your opinion to yourself.  If you have an opinion don’t give it yet, because your opinion hasn’t been processed by time.

> You don’t have any right to lead what you did not build, until God gives it to you.

> In Gibeah, God puts you in 'undercover' to be exposed to what you will become.

An outline of points 3-6 still to come!

The Confessions - #2

I am really enjoying The Confessions of Saint Augustine.  In the excerpt below Augustine encounters the apparent contradictions that arise when attempting to comprehend the complexity of God.

"What are you then, my God?  You are…supremely merciful and supremely just, most hidden yet intimately present, infinitely beautiful and infinitely strong, steadfast yet elusive, unchanging yourself though you control the change in all things, never new, never old, renewing all things yet wearing down the proud though they know it not; ever active, ever at rest, gathering while knowing no need, supporting and filling and guarding, creating and nurturing and perfecting, seeking although you lack nothing.  You love without frenzy, you are jealous yet secure, you regret without sadness, you grow angry yet remain tranquil, you alter your works but never your plan; you take back what you find although you never lost it; you are never in need yet you rejoice in your gains, never avaricious yet you demand profits…

After saying all that, what have we said, my God, my life, my holy sweetness?  What does anyone who speaks of you really say?  Yet woe betide those who fail to speak, while the chatterboxes go on saying nothing."

Spurgeon on Communication

I have been fortunate enough lately to observe some excellent communicators in action. Last Sunday night Brian Houston spoke at The Event at Kings, and I have made it to some sessions of the Planetshakers, notably Judah Smith's. This 'feast' of master communicators has got me thinking about this powerful art. What is it that makes a communicator particularly effective?

Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) is dubbed as the undisputed Prince of Preachers. Spurgeon pastored the first 'megachurch', the Metropolitan Tabernacle, in London in the late 1800's.

The following are four directives on effective communication from the Prince of Preachers:

1. Cultivate a Clear Style
"When a man does not make me understand what he means, it is because he does not himself know what he means...I believe that many 'deep' preachers are simply so because they are like dry wells with nothing whatever in them, except decaying leaves, a few stones, and perhaps a dead cat or two... It is not enough to be so plain that you can be understood, you must speak so that you cannot be misunderstood."

2. Cultivate a Cogent Style
"Our speech must be forceful. Some imagine that this consists in speaking loudly, but I can assure them they are in error. Nonsense does not improve by being bellowed...Let us be forcible by reason of the excellence of our matter, and the energy of spirit which we throw into the delivery of it."

3. Cultivate Naturalness
"...may a living, natural, simple way of talking out the gospel be learned by us all."

4. Cultivate Persuasiveness
Spurgeon admired speakers who could connect personally with each hearer, "preachers who in their sermons seem to take their hearers one by one by the button-hole, and drive the truth right into their souls." He encouraged preachers to adapt themselves to their different situations - "Suit yourselves to your audiences...The greatest master of oratory...is able to address any class of people in a manner suitable to their condition, and likely to touch their hearts."

Planet Shakers - Judah Smith

Planetshakers conference launched in Brisbane last night with guest speaker Judah Smith from Generation Church in Seattle (USA).  His message titled 'The Beautiful Affliction' was one of the most outstanding messages to a youth audience that I have heard.

Here are some snippets of the message:

"I am determined to redefine 'fun' in my city.  We have defined 'fun' as what is fun in the moment; but if it's not fun in the morning, it's not fun, it's torment"

"We have reduced purity to virginity.  However Jesus raised the bar from virginity of the body to virginity of the heart"

Speaking from Luke 7 about the deceased young man in the casket, who was carried by the city gates...  "Gates were significant; they were where the influencers sat.  The young man was carried dead by the gate, instead of sitting in the gates."  

"Jesus grabbed the young man in the casket.  Look at the zeal of God in bringing a young man back to his destiny."

 

"Jesus told the young man to 'wake up!'...Samson thought he could lounge in the lap of lust without losing his vision...Wake up!"

"The young man could have thought it was too late, but his coffin had no lid - it was an open coffin.  There is always an open coffin and hope when Jesus is around."

Looking forward to a week of hot preaching, with Reinhard Bonnke, Chris Hill, Reggie Dabbs and Jurgen Matthesius still to come!  

The Confessions - #1

A friend from of mine from our Noosa congregation, Chris Cubitt, recently gave me The Confessions by Saint Augustine.

A reflective autobiography written in the late fourth century A.D., The Confessions is acknowledged as one of the classics of Christian literature, popular for its candor and sophisticated yet accessible arguments for the Christian faith.

My favourite quote so far is a prayer by Augustine, prayed in the heat of his adolescent years, "Grant me chastity and self-control, but please not yet." It expresses the age-old experience of man who wills to do good, yet lives with the tension of opposing affections. One part of me desires self-restraint; the other part of me desires no restraint. One part of me desires purity, the other impurity. One part desires selflessness, the other selfishness. One part desires an upward call, the other a downward pull.

In Romans 7:21, Apostle Paul describes his experience in these words, "...when I want to do good, evil is right there with me." However the beauty of the gospel is that it does not simply relate to our condition, it releases us from our condition! Paul does not leave us stranded at the problem, but in verse 25 leads us to the solution - Jesus Christ, in whom we have freedom from the law of sin and the gracious gift of no condemnation (8:1).

Thank God for Jesus...and for the candid confessions of godly men!

C.S. Lewis on Jesus' Deity

When reading 'Complete in Christ' by Bob George, I was reminded again of the brilliance of C.S. Lewis.  Writing on the subject of the deity of Christ, George quotes the famous 'Liar, Lunatic or Lord?' argument from Lewis...

"A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher.  He would either be a lunatic - on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell.  You must make your choice.  Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.  You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon, or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God.  But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.  He has not left that open to us.  He did not intend to."