| I appreciated being sent this today by a good friend and assured my heart that The Lord hears, knows and is with us in the challenges in life we face. | ||||
| Hezekiah...spread it before the Lord. 2 Kings 19:14 | ||||
| The Bible says: 'Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: 'O Lord God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone...have made heaven and earth. Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see...save us...that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone' (vv. 15-19 NKJV). Hezekiah was in a hopeless situation. An army of 185,000 soldiers was amassed against him, planning to destroy him. But in answer to prayer, God sent an angel to wipe every one of them out. Sometimes bad news comes in the form of a letter, an e-mail or a telephone call. It can come as the sound of screeching tires and broken glass, a lump in your breast, a court date, or a pink slip at work. Bad news knows no class lines, gender or age. It comes to us all. So what should you do when you have a problem you can't resolve and can't escape? Do what Hezekiah did: take it to the Lord in prayer. Spread it out before Him. But go to Him first, not last. When you do that you honour Him as 'Lord' of the situation and He will respond to you. God's promise is: 'He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him' (Ps 91:15). |
Monday, 26 March 2012
HOW TO HANDLE BAD NEWS
Monday, 12 March 2012
Friday, 9 March 2012
7 questions that help you get unstuck
Read an excellent artilce today by Tony Morgan - Enjoy!
Feeling stuck? Here are the key questions you need to answer to help you get from here to there.
If you don’t happen to be the boss, figure out what you can change within the freedoms you do have. Start there. Change what you can change.
And if you claim to be a leader, don’t blame your boss (or your wife or your kids or your coach…). It’s not going to help you to whine about your circumstances. Not only is it not very becoming, it also just reinforces your level of stuckness.
Which of these questions do you need to answer today?
- Where are we going? This is the vision question. You can’t get unstuck until you know where you want to be. If we don’t answer this question, we tend to stay mired in our current circumstances.
- Why are we going there? This is the values question. The values and principles behind the “why” will provide the purpose and passion to pursue the vision.
- Who will go with us? This is the people question. Who will be on the team? Who will take the lead? From my experience, “who” should always precede “how.”
- How will we get there? This is the strategy question. Until you answer this question, you may have many people who buy into the vision but are left stuck guessing what to do.
- What do we have available? This is the resources question. How much will it cost? How much time will we need? What physical space is required?
- Did we make it there? This is the measures question. People and organizations who are stuck typically avoid answering this question honestly. They’re content to stay stuck or whine about their situation.
- Where are we going next? This is the re-vision question. There are plenty of organizations who have previously experienced success and then failed to answer this question. They’re the one-hit wonders.
If you don’t happen to be the boss, figure out what you can change within the freedoms you do have. Start there. Change what you can change.
And if you claim to be a leader, don’t blame your boss (or your wife or your kids or your coach…). It’s not going to help you to whine about your circumstances. Not only is it not very becoming, it also just reinforces your level of stuckness.
Which of these questions do you need to answer today?
Monday, 6 February 2012
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
A thought about Community
'We are not here to COMPETE with each other but to COMPLETE each other'.
Not one of us are smarter than all of us together! There are huge benefits and achievements when people choose unity.
Being in community is what we were made for and where we will find purpose and meaning.
Just think about the wisdom, creativity, education, value and increased effect there is when we work together.
I once heard John Maxwell say, 'Teamwork makes the dream work', I for one believe that.
Think about the way you work. Are you competing with your peers or completing your peers? Think about this. Who needs to change, you or others?
Think through the changes you can make or influence and go for it!
Not one of us are smarter than all of us together! There are huge benefits and achievements when people choose unity.
Being in community is what we were made for and where we will find purpose and meaning.
Just think about the wisdom, creativity, education, value and increased effect there is when we work together.
I once heard John Maxwell say, 'Teamwork makes the dream work', I for one believe that.
Think about the way you work. Are you competing with your peers or completing your peers? Think about this. Who needs to change, you or others?
Think through the changes you can make or influence and go for it!
Sunday, 15 January 2012
Friday, 13 January 2012
Are You A Credible Leader?
This is an absolutely brilliant post by Ron Edmondson and worthy of a read
Credibility is important in any leadership position. If a leader desires followers to willfully work with passion to reach an established vision, then he or she must be trusted. Credible leaders have followers that share the organization’s values and work hard to achieve them. When a person’s leadership is not credible, followers are less likely to be team players and will be disloyal to the organization.
Credibility in leadership is primarily established in one of three ways:
Gifted – For a brand new leader, there is sometimes a “gifting” period for credibility, at least by some in the organization. These people are willing to trust the leader until proven wrong. This period does not last long.
Borrowed – When a credible leader validates a new or existing leader it can often transfer the trust earned by the credible leader. A retiring pastor, for example, can often validate the incoming pastor who in turn receives instant credibility. This period of credibility is also temporary.
Earned – Lasting credibility cannot be demanded. It doesn’t come with a title or position. The best type of credibility is gained through time and experience by a leader that has earned it. This is the kind of credibility that excellent leaders aspire to gain and work hard to protect. It is developed through integrity, consistency and servant leadership. The truly credible leader spends time investing in others and considers the good of the entire organization when making decisions.
Are you aspiring to be a credible leader? What characteristics build credibility in your mind?
Credibility is important in any leadership position. If a leader desires followers to willfully work with passion to reach an established vision, then he or she must be trusted. Credible leaders have followers that share the organization’s values and work hard to achieve them. When a person’s leadership is not credible, followers are less likely to be team players and will be disloyal to the organization.
Credibility in leadership is primarily established in one of three ways:
Gifted – For a brand new leader, there is sometimes a “gifting” period for credibility, at least by some in the organization. These people are willing to trust the leader until proven wrong. This period does not last long.
Borrowed – When a credible leader validates a new or existing leader it can often transfer the trust earned by the credible leader. A retiring pastor, for example, can often validate the incoming pastor who in turn receives instant credibility. This period of credibility is also temporary.
Earned – Lasting credibility cannot be demanded. It doesn’t come with a title or position. The best type of credibility is gained through time and experience by a leader that has earned it. This is the kind of credibility that excellent leaders aspire to gain and work hard to protect. It is developed through integrity, consistency and servant leadership. The truly credible leader spends time investing in others and considers the good of the entire organization when making decisions.
Are you aspiring to be a credible leader? What characteristics build credibility in your mind?
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