Has love got a hold of you?

I Corinthians 13:3-7 (The Message)

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.

If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing.

If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self.

Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut.

Doesn’t have a swelled head, doesn’t force itself on others.

Isn’t always “me first,” doesn’t fly off the handle.

Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, doesn’t revel when others grovel.

Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, puts up with anything.

Trusts God always, always looks for the best.

Never looks back, but keeps going to the end.

There is so much I need to hear, understand, learn and apply, from this passage. The phrase that stands out to me the most right now is “Love never gives up”.

Which portion of this scripture speaks to you today?

A short thought about influence..

I read toady that Sociologists tell us that 'even the most introverted individual will influence ten thousand other people during their life time.'

FLIP! If that is true, we all need to realise that our daily lives are more significant than we think. I sat back in my chair and thought about this and felt incredibly challenged. It made me think about what kind of influence I had been in the the lives of the people I was privileged to spend time with today. Not always easy evaluating yourself and being honest is it? But I think it is necessary for your growth, especially as a leader. Never forget, the worse person to deceive in life is yourself! People are God's treasure and we need to learn to value them in the same way.

I really want to influence people for good and for God as I see it as a worth while anthem to commit to for life. Image your influence being multiplied through all the lives of the people you meet; it's remarkable and very powerful. Your influence can be for good or bad, so make sure you get it right! Realising the power you possess to influence others is your responsibility.

I challenge you to think about this and be more diligent and thoughtful about the way you live your life.

We can learn a great deal from Solomon's costly mistakes. The king of Israel fervently pursued several unrelated goals in a vain attempt to satisfy himself. Ecclesiastes 2:10-11. Solomon had reached a high level of success - but he still felt empty.

We need to stay focused on what really matters to us and what really counts. What about you? A good checklist for making decisions I read recently was from John Maxwell. Here they are:

1. Is this consistent with your priorities?
2. Is this withing the area of my competence?
3. Can someone else do it better?
4. What do my trusted friends say?
5. Do I have the time?

This is good advice that I want to seek to implement in my own life and encourage you to consider doing the same.

Keep learning...keep growing!

I went to support my youngest son Mitchell and his football team today, they were playing a cup match. Boy was it cold. I was glad I took a big flask of coffee with me! His team are doing really well at the moment and are winning all their matches. It took the first 15 minutes to settle into the game and then it suddenly clicked and they started to play as a team and the goals came quickly.

Their coach is an inspiration to me and I admire his leadership, his passion for the game, his commitment and care for the boys, his desire to draw out the best in each one of them, his constant encouragement, his ability to motivate, his commitment to discipline and his constant instruction... All this pays off! The boys respect him and so do all the parents. Today I thought, if this guy was a Pastor of a church I would want to be on his team. There is so much we can learn from the people around us.

By the way we won 7 - 0. Mitchell got man of the match and I was one happy chappy!

Leadership ....

I read this article by Rick Warren today and thought it was excellent. Rick produces some excellent materials but most of all I know he is a man who lives what he preaches and lives to bring glory to God alone. He is a leader who has my attention!

Six essential commitments for leadership

Leaders are always defined by self-imposed standards. I’m not talking about standards set by other people, but standards they set for themselves. Great leaders always expect more from themselves than they do from their followers. They put forth more effort as well. That’s leadership.

If you were to look through the New Testament for the phrase “make every effort,” you’d find it six times. They represent six important vows we need to make as leaders. I believe these six vows will lead to an effective and productive ministry.

1. Vow to maintain integrity.

“Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him” (2 Peter 3:14).

God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. No one is perfect. To be spotless and blameless means to live with integrity. How do you maintain integrity if you’re not perfect? You need to be transparent. A person of integrity is not claiming to have it all together in every area. On the contrary, the person of integrity is willing to be open about their strengths and weaknesses.

Having integrity also means living what you say you believe. You model what you teach. And you tell the truth, even when it’s tough. All leadership is built on trust. And trust comes from having the reputation for living out what you believe and for telling the truth. As a pastor and leader, people must trust you.

Will you make a commitment to lead with integrity? Will you be honest about both your strengths and weaknesses? Will you commit to living your sermons out every week? Will you tell the truth to those you lead even when it’s tough?

2. Vow to forgive those who hurt you.
   
   “Make every effort to live in peace with all men. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up” (Hebrews 12:14-15).

Leaders forgive those who hurt them. You will be hurt in ministry. It’s going to happen. It’s a given. You will be hurt both intentionally and unintentionally. You will be hurt by those who recognize what they’re doing and those who don’t. You cannot be in ministry without being hurt. If you call the shots, you’re going to take the shots.

But you’ve got to be willing to forgive those who try to take you down. If you allow bitterness to build, it will choke your heart for God and your love for people until your heart just shrivels.

Will you forgive when every bone in your body wants to retaliate?

3. Vow to relax and trust God.
   
   “Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us therefore make every effort to enter into God’s rest” (Hebrews 4:11).

If you’re going to be in ministry, you’ve got to learn to relax. You need to be concerned about the people around you, but at the same time, you’re not God. You can’t bear everybody’s burden all the time.

How do you release those burdens? First, you’ve got to pray. Ultimately, God is the one responsible for your flock. He’s the one responsible for the growth of your ministry. Share your burdens with him in prayer.

Then you need to spend some time in God’s Word meditating on his promises. Remember what God has done in the past – in God’s Word and in your own life. God has a good track record of taking care of us. Remember that when you’re tempted to let the stress of your ministry position overwhelm you.

Will you commit to surrendering your stress to God?

4. Vow to be an encourager.
   
   “Let us make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification” (Romans 14:19).

As a Christian leader, you should build people up rather than tear them down. God has called you to be an encourager, not a discourager. Take the time to look beyond the problems and look at the potential of those you lead. People get discouraged in life; you need to be a source of encouragement.

As pastors, you are dispensers of hope. That’s what it means to be a Christian leader. You bring the hope of Jesus into a hopeless situation. You help people who seem to be helpless. You let them know they can do it.

Will you be a voice of encouragement in your community, in your church, in your home?

5. Vow to be a peacemaker.
   
   “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).

Leaders are called to make every effort to reduce conflict. Our society is filled with conflict. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” How do you make peace in such a fragmented society?

You’ve got to deal with different points of view. Not everybody is like you in your church. And that’s good. Everyone has something to contribute. The perspective of those who see the world differently can add something indispensible to your ministry.

At Saddleback we value unity not uniformity. You can walk hand-in-hand without seeing eye-to-eye on every issue. God can overlook lack of programs in your church. He can overlook a lack of ability. But God will not bless a divided church. That means one of your most important jobs is to promote unity. Ten times in the first five chapters of Acts, the Bible says the church was unified. When you have the unity of Acts, you will have the power of Acts.

Will you have the courage to unify your church when it is being pulled in many different directions?

6. Vow to never stop growing.

“Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive…” (2 Peter 1: 5-8).

Learning is the lifestyle of leadership. The moment you think you know it all, you’re dead in the water. You must never stop growing. Growing ministries require growing leadership. You’ve got to train yourself continually.

Keep reading. Get a mentor. Solicit feedback. Ask questions. Always look for ways to keep growing in your character and your skills. The very nature of leadership is tied to growth. You’ve got to grow if you are going to lead others to grow.

Take a regular look at yourself. Where do you need to grow? What do you need to learn? What’s the best way to get the training you need? Make a learning plan every year. Your future leadership depends upon it.

Will you commit to keep growing as a leader and as a person?

In trouble? Turn to God...

I Just love the band U2, their songs are full of energy, emotion and inspiring lyrics. The song for me this week that I listened to and has continued to go around and around in my head is Ps 40:1-2. This verse is amazing and is a reminder that God is able to reverse any situation in our lives in his time. David found himself sinking in a dark and desperate situation yet he chose to trust in God and his ways at this time. He learned to wait patiently and submit himself completely to God.

King David knew about suffering, particular suffering caused by his own actions. However, he knew who to run to during times of trouble. What great joy and comfort come to us when we understand that God is rich in grace and mercy. God not only forgives, but restores and redeems! God is able to step in to the deepest pit of despair we face and lift us and set us in a right standing with him and put us back on track.

When times of trouble arrive in your life, turn to God and wait patiently for his help knowing that he will never fail to bring you through.

Keeping close to God

'Draw near to God and He will draw near to you' James 4:8

I love this verse! What an invitation from the almighty.

Close to God is where we all need to be. Infact, where we belong! This is the posture of our heart and is about a relationship with God. I have always longed for intimacy with God and desired to know him better. Think about how close you are to God right now. Do you desire to be closer? Then take a walk and talk with him today. Pour out your heart to him and tell him you want to walk closely with him for the rest of your days. Tell him how much you love him and want to serve him. Open the Bible and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a fresh understanding of his word. I could go on here but be serious about your relationship with God.

Moses once cried out, Exodus 33:10 “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. WOW! This is a guy who knew above all else that he needed God in EVERY MOMENT of his life as he journeyed forward. Moses was desperate for God and drew near to him and as a result God certainly drew near to him. Moses set up a tent, a special meeting place called 'the tent of meeting where Moses met with God. All the people knew this and I believe God was using this as a strong visual aid to the Israelites and to us also today that teaches us the importance of having a regular meeting place where we seek God. Joshua, his attendant and future leader learned many things from Moses, but none more greater than the need to draw close to God.

I once heard someone say, 'God's presence is the spiritual oxygen we must breathe and know that we cannot survive without him'. Do whatever you need to do today to draw near to God.