Learning Leadership

Who you spend time with today determines who you will become tomorrow

One benefit I am receiving from interning with Church Assistance Ministry (CAM) is that I get to spend time with men who are older, more mature, and more experienced that I am. That is a benefit to be because who I spend time with today determines who I will become tomorrow. 

As an intern with CAM I get to spend time weekly with Steve Elliott, a man who has been in ministry for almost 40 years.  I also get to spend time quarterly with other staff and board members of CAM who have been working in ministry for a long time.

There are three things I am benefiting from as a younger man spending time with these older men:

1. They give me examples of what to do: Their examples, stories, and lives show me how to effectively serve others and manage a family.  This ensures that I do the right things with my time going forward to help me become more successful.
2. They give me examples of what not to do: They have many stories of how they have failed and been unsuccessful which gives me a clear picture of what not to do.  This allows me to avoid failures in my future and serve more people without having to experience the lessons they have had to experience.
3. They give me examples of good habits to develop and maintain:  You definitely reap what you sow.  When spending time with these men I am able to see what habits they have maintained over their lives and how that has affected them long-term.  This gives me a better perspective to choose the habits I cultivate and maintain going forward in ministry.

As a result of spending time with these men who are older, more mature, and more experienced than I am, I will grow into a man who has gleaned years of examples of godly lives lived and be able to incorporate these into my own life in order to do great work. 

If you are a young leader (like I am) I suggest you find some men who are older and more experienced than you are and spend time with them. Who you spend time with today determines who you will become tomorrow.

Question: Who in your life who is older than you has had a positive impact on your life? (Feel free to share stories.)

Thoughts on the book, Made to Stick by Chip & Dan Heath

I recently finished reading a great book by Chip and Dan Heath titled, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.

If you are a communicator or leader (which I'm sure you are if you are reading the Learning Leadership Blog) you might have heard of the book or even read it before.

Made to Stick is about how to communicate your ideas in a way that they stick in the minds of your audience, and cause that audience to do an action you desire. Even though it is not a marketing book, it is a great book for a communicator to learn to tell stories and share ideas in an effective way.

The basic principles of the Heath brothers' book are:
Simple: Get your message down to the core ideas and make that idea profound
Unexpected: Pay attention
Concrete: Understand and remember it
Credible: Agree/believe
Care: Emotional
Story: Be able to act on it

What stands out to me the most is their teaching on getting your ideas to be "simple" and how to tell "stories" to teach and reinforce your ideas. 

When they talk about keeping your ideas simple, they mean getting the idea down to its most basic element in order to communicate it easily and quickly. Then, you need to make sure your idea is profound and actually says something. A personal example is when I led A Day of Hope for five years, we had narrowed down our purpose into a simple statement:

To feed families in need for Thanksgiving.

This was simple to say and easy to remember, while also being profound by communicating what we would do and not do. We were going to feed families who were in need for Thanksgiving.  We were not going to teach them anything, train them, or meet any other need besides feeding them. In addition, we were only going to do that one-time a year: Thanksgiving. Not at Christmas, Easter, or 4th of July.

We worked very hard over a long period of time to narrow our mission down to a simple and profound statement. 

The second part of their book that stands out to me is their teaching about the impact of stories. They shared that people are very likely to remember a story, but rarely will remember a statistic. Yes, statistics may prove a point in a logical conversation or argument, but when you are attempting to communicate an idea and have it "stick," you need a story to hammer the idea home.

A story has tremendous power because it paints a picture and grabs onto what the listener (or reader) can picture and see.  It allows them to understand it and view the idea in context, instead of the idea being abstractically described.

The example the Heath brothers gave was with a Subway marketing campaign. Subway started marketing their low-fat sandwiches as a healthy alternative for fast food. But the success of their marketing was very limited.  

However, as soon as they used the now famous man Jared to tell a "story" about what eating Subway did for him and his health, their sales drastically increased for years. Instead of Subway telling a fact: our food is healthy; they told a story: look what happened to Jared.

Reading Made to Stick is a required assignment for my Biblical Interpretation and Teaching class at Fresno Pacific University. Here are two questions I pose to you and my classmates:

1. What idea have you unsuccessfully communicated in the past that you can work on to make more simple and profound?
2. How can you use a story to either explain and enhance that idea? 

What the Book of Amos Says About Leadership and Poverty

Similar to my post from yesterday about Wisdom from Ecclesiastes, today's post features my thoughts from the book of Amos from the Bible.  Amos was a prophet in the Old Testament (before Jesus was born) and he spoke to the local people about how to act righteously and how to treat the poor.

In Amos' time, the rich people were getting even more rich, while the poor were becoming even more poor. Ironically, there is some research that shows this is also happening here in America and throughout the world.  The rich countries are becoming even more wealthy, while the poor countries are being left behind and are becoming even more impoverished.

Below are some of my thoughts from the book of Amos as it relates to the poor, and how leaders should be reacting.

a.  According to the prophecy of Amos, God holds all nations accountable, but especially the nation Israel.  Why?  Do you think the same holds true today?  If so, which nations are especially liable for their actions?

I believe God holds the nation of Israel accountable because of what He has done for them.  He gives them a series of great gifts starting with Abraham and the land of Israel, delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, giving them mighty military victories, and protecting them throughout their lifetimes.  Hence, God expects them to respond appropriately by focusing their hearts and minds on Him and keeping the covenant he made with them through Moses. 

In addition to His desire that they direct their hearts and actions toward Him, He has been very clear about what they are to do in order to honor Him.  Through Moses He gave them 613 laws to ensure their mental, physical, and spiritual health.  I believe God holds nations who know the Bible very well and/or have easy access to it very accountable also.  Nations which have many options of getting to know God, such as America, Canada, and England, will be held the most responsible for their actions. 

b.  Imagine a contemporary Amos appearing suddenly in your hometown.  What would he say about the behaviors he observed among the most well-to-do and powerful members of society?  What might be the response of religious and political leaders?  How would the news media respond to him?  Are there any “Amoses” today?

If Amos were to suddenly appear in my city of Modesto I believe he would say that our leaders are doing a pretty good job. 

Most of the rich are helping the poor, but not all are giving their time and money to help those in need.  I believe Amos would demand that the rich who do not help the poor become active and start supporting the poor with their finances and time.  The religious leaders of our day probably would agree with Amos that we are grateful for what the rich are doing, but more rich people can step up and make a difference.  News media outlets would give Amos lots of coverage, and depending on which news media it was, they would craft specific stories of how he is a brilliant thinker or a jealous criticizer.  

However, I cannot think of any Amoses in current affairs.

c. In the Book of Amos, as in a number of the other prophetic works in the Hebrew Bible, God seems to show special regard for the poor and ire against those who oppress them.  Why?  Is this still the case?

God shows special regard for the poor and ire against those who oppress the poor because the rich are often far from God with their hearts focused on themselves, while the poor have very little material goods, so they look to God to provide for their needs. 

God is a God of love who wants to care for His people, especially those who have their hearts focused on Him.  As we have learned in class, we are to love others just as God has loved us.  We see this commandment in both the Old and New Testaments when He gave the promise to Abraham, later delivering the people out of Egypt, and by speaking through John when he declared, “If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? (1 John 3:17 NLT) 

Often God gives wealth to specific people for the purpose of caring for the needy, and He becomes angry when the person whom he has blessed does not care for the poor as he has intended.

Question: Have you read the book of Amos? If so, what are your thoughts related to these questions or the topic of leadership? 

Wisdom from Ecclesiastes

In my class at Fresno Pacific University, we recently studied the book of Ecclesiastes which is about wisdom on life. These questions are from the book, An Introduction to the Bible and I have shared my thoughts below.

Some of the content is related to leadership, so I think you might enjoy it.

3.  Read Ecclesiastes 1-3; 8:16-9:18; 12

a.  Some interpreters call the Book of Ecclesiastes the most modern book in the Hebrew Bible.  Why might they say that?  Do you agree?

I agree with interpreters that the Book of Ecclesiastes is the most modern book in the Bible. 

If nothing is new and “History merely repeats itself” (Ecc. 1:9 NLT) then all the lessons taught are timeless which means no new lessons and teachings have been developed.  Since we have thousands of years of history compiled in stories, poems, and instructions, we should know all things and history will only repeat itself from here.  Because most lessons we learn and principles we apply are timeless, the only thing that changes is how we apply them and the technology used to teach them. 

Since Ecclesiastes is not about the history of Israel like much of the Bible is, it is made up of simple thoughts and teachings about happiness and truths of life.  And since we know there are no new things in the world, simple thoughts and teachings about happiness and truths of life are still relevant to today.

b.  The Teacher (Qoheleth, Ecclesiastes) has been described as a “believing skeptic” who questioned the common assumptions of his day about God and religion and yet still affirmed faith in God.  Do you know any such “believing skeptics”?  What might their role be in modern religious communities?

I believe the Teacher is considered a “believing skeptic” because he believes what he feels in his heart about knowing who God is, but he struggles to believe in God based on what he reads in the Bible and what he has experienced in his own life (both personally and from watching others). 

I have a co-worker who is a believing skeptic.  She believes there is a God but struggles to believe He is good because she has seen a few Christians act very differently than how she believes followers of a good God should act. 

A believing skeptic is a realist and a pragmatist.  These are often people who study scripture to see what it says and closely observe what they see happening in the world to see how world events and scripture interrelate.  They ask questions such as “Is the Bible really relevant in the world?” or, “What does the Bible say about this?”  This causes them to be very discerning and insightful. 

Believing skeptics encourage many non-believers because they show that it is ok to believe in God because of what you feel in your heart while at the same time not understanding everything you read on paper or see it lived out in the current world.

c.  On the basis of your reading of Ecclesiastes, which adjectives would you apply to the book?  As you think about the meaning of life, is Ecclesiastes a helpful book?  Why or why not?

I pick the adjective “reassuring” to describe the Book of Ecclesiastes because it confirms and clarifies what many of us already know and believe about life. 

Haven’t we heard there are only two things guaranteed in life: taxes and death.  Ecclesiastes mirrors that message.  The Teacher tells us that we are here on earth only for a season, so we need to enjoy the only two things we are required to do: eat and work. 

I find the book very helpful and insightful.  It will save me what the teacher calls “wasted time” while also saving me the heartbreak of working super hard to accomplish things in life, which I would realize when I accomplish them that nothing really matters.  I think this teaching is significant because it comes from someone who is much older and wiser than I am.  The words written in Ecclesiastes position themselves as something being written by a man of old age who has been to the top and back knowing the positives and negatives of both. 

As a result, Ecclesiastes is a book that helps me to enjoy the daily things of life such as food with others, my job, and my girlfriend.

Remind those you love that they are loved

One thing I learned in 2010 was that I need to regularly remind people that I love that I love them.

As a leader who is motivated and busy, it is important that you remind the people that you love that they are loved.  It is easy to get caught up in working, pursuing goals, and chasing a vision and forget to show the people you love that do love them.

I love my girlfriend, mom, dad, and sister.  And I do my best every day to tell my girlfriend that I love her.  And everytime I see my sister, I give her a hug and tell her.  Every phone call to my parents in Alaska is ended with "I love you."

Life is too short to live side by side with people who you know better than anyone else, and who know you better than anyone else, and to not tell them that you love them.  They put up with the good and bad of you, and the least you can do is tell them that you love them.

Question: Who in your life needs to be reminded that they are loved?

Build Trust Among Others

As a leader, the odds are pretty good that at one-time you have had a vision for something, but have it slowed down by others.

Having led many meetings for a volunteer based nonprofit program called A Day of Hope, I have experienced the feeling of wanting to move forward but having to wait for volunteers to catch my vision. These were times when I believed that I knew what was best for our program, I believed I knew what we needed to do to move it forward, but I couldn’t get the volunteers to move with me. This can be extremely frustrating when you are trying to serve people in need. 

On the flip side, there are times when my volunteers had a high level of trust in me as the leader and they followed me even when they didn’t understand everything or agree. These were times when the volunteers knew my heart was to serve and help people in need, and if I believed we needed to do something in order to do that more effectively, they would trust my discernment and insight.

I personally saw this lived out on a much higher and more influential level when observing the Church Assistance Ministry (CAM) board meeting last week. I observed a group of godly men who were faithfully following their leader, Steve Elliott. As Steve led the CAM board meeting, I was able to observe him lead a discussion about a big decision to be made. Even though a couple of the board members did not quite understand all the details and facts of the decision, they allowed him to lead and proceed with the idea because they had a high level of trust in him as their leader.

When Steve and I met after the board meeting to debrief about what I observed, he summed up my thoughts by pointing out that “When you get people who trust you, they will follow you along even if they don’t understand you.”

You too, as a leader need build trust among others. When you build trust among others, it allows you to go faster, which every leader loves!

Question: How do you build trust among others?

 

Doing God's Will

I struggle at times to know God’s will for my life, and you might too. I often have pondered questions such as:

• God, what’s your will for my life?
• God, what do you want me to do?
• God, who do you want me to serve?
• God, how do you want me to use my strengths and talents for you?

If you are like me, I’m sure you’ve also asked many of these same questions.

Bridges to Contemplative Living gives us a clear picture of what it looks like to know God’s will: “responding to the spoken and unspoken needs of others.”  This can be the need a neighbor may have for encouragement from you, or it might be a specific task your boss delegates to you at work.  Whatever it might be, when we actively do something for the needs of another person, we can be sure it’s the will of God.

I realized this to be true of my life when I started serving people in need with A Day of Hope.  Every day we were working to serve the needs of families in our community, and through that I was serving God and doing His will for that period of time. 

Bringing this back to Barbara Brown Taylor’s story in her book, Leaving Church, she appears to be doing God’s will by going to the church where there is a need for congregants to be pastored. When they offer her the job, she responds by saying, “Yes” and going there to meet the needs of the people in that community.  She, too, is doing God’s will by serving the needs of others.

Growing and developing as a Christ Follower, I have often had to come back to seeking God’s will.  And now having read this chapter in Bridges to Contemplative Living, I realize that I have done God’s will in the past, and in order to find it in the future, I need to look for needs and serve those needs.

Question: How do you know you are "doing God's will"?

More thoughts on the book, Using God's Resources Wisely

Today I am sharing more thoughts from the book, Using God's Resources Wisely by Walter Bruegemann.  If you missed yesterday's post about the book, you can read it here.

3.  Chapter four addresses how Brueggeman sees the city being rebuilt.  What is the basis for rebuilding and why does he emphasize a Sabbath?  Why is inclusion of the “other” such a struggle?

Brueggeman outlines four main characteristics as the basis for rebuilding the city: maintain justice, do righteousness, not do evil, and maintain the Sabbath.

The Sabbath seems to be the main focal point which each of the three points revolves around because the Sabbath helps people break away from the productivity and consumerism that they so easily get caught up in and that caused them to walk away from God.  According to Brueggeman, Isaiah includes the “other” to drastically show just how much God wants the Jews to follow the laws set out for them. 

God teaches us that to be connected with Him, you need to live righteously, do no evil, maintain justice, and keep the Sabbath.  That is so honoring and pleasing to Him that he gladly welcomes anyone back into his house of love and prosperity.  However, it is a struggle to include the “other” because many times the Levitical Law talks about how the Jews are God’s chosen people whom He will protect and bless. But now Isaiah is making a drastic change to show that the people of Jerusalem need to include the foreigners and the “others” by living righteously, doing no evil, maintaining justice, and keeping the Sabbath. 

4.  In chapter five Brueggemann states that a key element in rebuilding the city is redeployment of resources which requires power-sharing.  How does a fast and counter-fast contribute to this?  Summarize his four key points.  Do you think his claim about what it will take to rebuild the city is outrageous or viable?

A fast and counter-fast contributes to power-sharing because it teaches us to include others in what we have. 

Either we get more of what we have (food, clothing, shelter, etc) in order to share it with others, or we share what we have with others as a way to fast from what we have.  To be more specific, a counter-fast ends the oppression, stops derision and mocking, stops slanderous accusations against the poor, and practices neighborliness with those who need a place to stay. 

From what I have read in Using God’s Resources Wisely, I believe Brueggemann’s claims about what it takes to rebuild a city are doable. It will take a tremendous amount of work and effort from rich businessmen, political leaders, and nonprofit leaders.  Each one will need to play a crucial role in “inclusionness” of the “other.”  Rich businessmen and women will need to generously share their vast wealth, political leaders will need to give equal rights and opportunities to the poor, and nonprofit leaders will need to make sure the services they provide to the community match the people’s needs.

Thoughts on the book, Using God's Resources Wisely by Walter Brueggemann

I recently read the book, Using God's Resources Wisely by Walter Brueggemann.  The book is a commentary on the book of Isaiah (from the Bible) talking about how city leaders should use God's resources to benefit the poor of a city.  If you have not read the book of Isaiah, some of these answers might not make much sense.

After reading the book, the folks at Fresno Pacific University asked some good thought provoking questions about how to use God's resources, wisely.

1.  Brueggemann claims, in chapter one, that the city is under a deep threat.  Describe the nature of the threat and its cause(s).  Do you agree that there is a real threat?

Because the city of Jerusalem is going down a road that is not good, the Jewish people will have to pay for those consequences.  They have partnered with foreigners, accumulated massive amounts of wealth, have lots of military power, and worship the gods they have created.  They are set up for disaster because of their poor use of the resources God has given to them through the covenant. 

As a result, everything they know and have is going to be stripped away and they don’t even realize it.  They need to make a drastic change otherwise they will face great heartache. 

2.  In chapter two the winds of newness refer to God acting in a manner not routinely experienced in society.  Describe what Brueggemann means by getting below the surface appearances to a deeper foundation.  What is the deeper foundation?  In chapter three, Hezekiah is used to demonstrate both the positive and negative aspects of the points made in chapter two.  Articulate whether you think this example is helpful for modern rulers.  Can they act faithfully as Hezekiah did?  Are they bound to fail just as Hezekiah also did?

I believe there are three possible examples of what the deeper foundation is compared to the surface appearances. 

• First, a surface appearance might be the conditions of the lives of the people living in poverty and poor living conditions in Jerusalem at that time.  It might have looked bad and been a sad sight to see so many people poor and struggling to survive on the surface level.  But if we look deeper into the hearts of people at that time, we will see that their spiritual health was just as bad, if not worse, because the people were looking to earthly gods to answer their needs and provide answers instead of looking to the one and only God, Yahweh.
• Secondly, there is the surface appearance of Assyria having influence over Jerusalem because of its military power.  However, if we look deeper we see that the people living in Jerusalem have the power of the God Almighty on their side, Yahweh, who would always protect them and guard them.  As Jews they did not have anything to fear because any threat against them was a threat against their God and His power. 
• Finally, Hezekiah saw on the surface level that his house might be taken away by the Babylonians.  He didn’t look deeper into the situation to realize not only would his house be lost, but also the house of God.  It meant a change in power because the people were not doing what honored God.  Because Hezekiah was only looking out for his own interests while he was alive, he was not thinking about and preparing for the future. 

This example is very helpful to modern readers because it shows us as leaders we need to be focused on and thinking about the future and health of what we lead beyond the scope of our time while in charge.  We need to made changes and set up systems that will continue to make our kingdom to be successful for many years without us being present.

Tomorrow I will share some more thoughts from the book, Using God's Resources Wisely. 

Stretch Your Thinking

In last week’s post I shared that who I will become is based on my ability to think and reflect. 

One of the many benefits of reading stimulating books and meeting with interesting people is that they stretch our thinking.  Good books and good people help us to see things from a different point of view.  They ask us tough questions and push us to do things we haven’t done before. 

Several of the books I've read in Christian Ministry & Leadership Degree Completion program at Fresno Pacific University have been these types of books such as The Wounded Healer by Henri J.M. Nouwen.  Being around interesting people such as Steve Elliott, my field supervisor at Church Assistance Ministry (CAM), has also helped to stimulate my thinking.  Since I am nearly 40 years younger than him, I find his thinking stretching me daily.  Not to mention, his forty years of life experiences stretch me to become more mature. 

Another way to stretch my thinking is to think early and often, which allows my work to become better, hence making me a better man.  For example, when I start working on a paper early, perhaps a few weeks before it’s due, I give myself time to think and reflect daily, and as a result, after weeks of massaging those thoughts they become well formed into a cohesive paper.  This benefits me as a learner because I learn more and I represent myself better as a student.  And it improves my confidence and competence as a writer and thinker.

With that said, who I will become is based on my ability to think and reflect. Going forward with my internship with CAM I need to make sure I take time to think through my core values, reflect daily, read good books, and work hard at thinking daily about projects.

Question: What do you do to stretch your thinking?

How we Come to know God and Ourselves

We get to know ourselves and God through experiences and prayer. 

In the work world there are many different experiences we have to go through.  We experience the honeymoon of our few first weeks at a new job, we experience difficult relationships with people, we have to learn to get along with them, and we have to experience the disappointment that comes with failure in work performance or lack of promotion when we feel we have earned it. 

But through these experiences, we come to know ourselves, much like Barbara does in the book Leaving the Church.  Through her process of becoming a priest and working extremely hard for nine years, over time she slowly begins to know herself.  To maintain her mental and spiritual health, Barbara learns what she needs as a minister and what she needs to stay away from.

In our time with God we always have something new we might discover about Him.  Our time with Him is always changing, not because God is changing, but because we are changing.  As we get to know God for who He is, He is at that very same time working in our lives and we are growing.  And when we do so, changes the picture that we might see God through.  Hence, we get to know God and feel closer to him.

 

Great people do good and face adversity

This past week I asked 13 people the question, “Who do you consider to be a ‘great’ person and why do you consider that person to be great?” 

I received many different responses, but with the same two basic themes woven throughout their answers. 

According to the 13 people I asked, they believe that a person who is “great” is a person who does good for others and faces adversity along the way.  Several of the people named who wanted to do good and had to face adversity along the way were Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Joe Montana.

What was interesting was that eight of the 13 respondents told me that the person they believe to be great is someone they know very well such as a family member, co-worker, or close friend.  Often when we think of people who are “great” we think of the people whom I have already mentioned above such as Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Joe Montana, Nelson Mandela, Billy Graham, Ronald Reagan, or biblical characters such as David, Daniel, or Nehemiah (or for the ladies, Ruth and Deborah are excellent choices).  But my respondents predominately chose people they know intimately, whom they have seen in their good times at the top and their bad times at the bottom.

Why might this be? 

I believe people in our culture today see charismatic leaders such as John F. Kennedy or Bill Clinton as good leaders who did great things, but we later found out that they had a hidden life very few people knew about.  And that hidden life deteriorated what we commonly believed about them to be great.  The great things they did in the public eye were over shadowed by the extremely bad things they did in private. 

I believe that’s why most of my respondents chose people as great whom they know intimately and therefore know they are not “fake.” In order to truly see greatness, we believe we need to be up close and personal to a person who does good things and faces adversity along the way.

Question: Who do you consider to be a great person and why?

Can the Bible be taken literally?

A good topic to follow up from yesterday's post entitled, Why I Read the Bible is the topic: Can the Bible be taken literally?

I don’t think the Bible can be taken literally because the Bible is a story. 

Yes it is much more than that—it is instructions on what we are to do, say and how to act while at home, at work, with friends, and in all walks of life.  But the Bible is first and foremost a story about how Jesus came and died for our sins to be our savior.  With that said, the Bible should not be taken literally when it comes to specific Old Testament sacrifices and rituals that were done to honor God and bring forgiveness for sins. 

Many times throughout Exodus it says believers were to sacrifice animals and bring gifts to God (Exodus 25), yet we should not take those commands literally.  That was a teaching in a specific context at a specific time.  Or in Matthew 5:27-30, Jesus teaches about reasons we might need to gouge out our own eye or cut off our own hand.  Are we supposed to “literally” do that?  I don’t believe so.  We are to take those teachings seriously and in the context of the time they were written in, but we are not supposed to do exactly what they say.

Question: Do you believe the Bible can be taken literally?

Why I Read the Bible

I see the Bible as God’s inspired word, given to us to use as the guide of our lives. 

We should use it to live righteously, as a guide to help us honor God in all that we do, and in that process attract others to a relationship with Him.  I have studied the Bible very intently for about four years now.  I started by reading through the four Gospels several times as a “seeker” who had not committed his life to Christ yet.  I was often confused, had questions, and amazed at the teachings and acts of Jesus.  Most of the context that I read the Bible through has been a context of wanting how to grow as a person and learn about leadership. 

I have loved learning about leadership because it has helped me in my work, and the best leadership lessons are found in the Bible.  Learning those lessons of leadership from the Bible has helped me to improve and grow as a man, and in the process it has brought me closer to God.  This has allowed others to see the work of God in my life by the changes I’ve made as a man of integrity and character. 

I have many questions that I bring to the study of the Bible. Many of them deal with the context of the time of the writings and how we translate that to applicable lessons for our own lives.  Because figures, sayings, words, and analogies are very different than they were in biblical times, I often wonder what they mean to us in our own context.

That's why I read the Bible.

Question: Why do you read the Bible?

Who you will become is based on your ability to think and reflect

If you've read the Learning Leadership Blog for a while you know that I believe in thinking and reflection.  Both are great activities every leader needs to make a habit.

Interning at Church Assistance Ministry (CAM) allows me to focus on who I’m becoming as a leader.  Even though it is early in the process, I feel that I am becoming a more wholesome leader who is working to refine his gifts to use them to serve others.  One of many things I’ve learned from my field supervisor, Steve Elliott, is that who I will become is based on my ability to think and reflect.

Thinking and reflection are key parts of any leader’s job.  This is not because thinking is super hard work—which it can be at times—but because a leader’s job is to lead.  And one of the ways he leads is by knowing himself, studying situations, and looking to find ways to move the organization forward. 

Thinking and reflection helps me to become more aware of who I am as a leader, Christ follower, boyfriend, and a man.  These practices help me know my strengths and my weaknesses, which allows me to focus in on areas that I can contribute to.  Thinking and reflection have allowed me to create a set of core values that guide who I am and have helped me become a more wholesome leader.

Almost every evening I take some time to think and reflect about my day.  I often ponder on these four questions before I go to bed:

• What did I learn today from what I read?
• What did I learn today from who I met with?
• What did I learn today from what I experienced?
• What did I learn today from what I listened to?

These are four questions that help me to reflect on the daily lessons I learn to form who I am as a leader.

If you are a leader, it is important to schedule time to think and reflect every day. Find a way to make that happen, and you will reap the benefits for a long time.

Question: How do you think and reflect daily?

Why I like to spend time with God

As I get older I become more aware of one of the reasons I love to spend time with God.  When I am with Him I am quiet, I write to connect with myself, I read His word, write to Him, and then I listen to hear what He says back to me.

I believe one of the reasons I enjoy my time with God so much is that it allows me to get back to my center.  There are many “voices” in the world that tell me what to do, what to say, how to act, and what I should be.  Often this comes from politicians, sports athletes, actors, and marketers.  Unlike God, many of these people do not have my best interest in mind.  These voices are not from God.  They are manmade to sell things and make money.

In the book, Leaving Church by Barbara Brown Taylor she shares how alive and connected with God she feels in nature.  When she is in nature away from all the things in this world, she moves back to her center where she can be herself and feel filled up.  That’s why my time with God is so rewarding and fulfilling at times.  When I get to have good time with God, I am able to listen to him, get back in touch with Him, and have a picture of who I am and what He wants me to become. 

Question: Do you spend time with God (or "a" god)?  If so, who do you like to spend time with Him?

 

Keep Dreaming

It is important that leaders keep dreaming.

We all have dreams in our heart that we want to pursue.  But with the world we live in and the economy, it is easy to get bogged down and forget about those dreams.  It is too easy to be discouraged and stop dreaming dreams.

I'm naturally a dreamer.  I like to think about what I would like to do to serve and help others, what it will look like, who I will be involved, and what difference we will make.  It is so much easier for me to dream of what could be, than it is for me to have the time to implement and pursue those dreams.

If I don't watch myself, I find myself starting to think small about today, and not dreaming about tomorrow.  I need to always make sure I'm thinking about tomorrow by dreaming.

You too, need to make sure you are dreaming.

Question: What is one dream you are working to pursue?

 

Why Rules are Good (according to Exodus)

Yesterday I posted my thoughts about leadership from the Bible book of Exodus.  Here are a few more thoughts from Exodus.  They are more "faith-based" than actual "leadership" teaching, but I still hope you find them beneficial and enjoyable.

(This questions is from the book, An Introduction to the Bible.)

2.  Read Exodus 19-24: The Sinai Covenant

a.  Are “covenants” necessary for societies and other human groups to function effectively? Make a list of the “covenants” (agreements) that affect you and your family, both those you yourself have entered into and those made by others, including national and international agreements. Which of these covenants is most important?  Why?  Which are less influential in our life?  Why?

Yes, I believe covenants are necessary for societies and other human groups to function effectively.  Covenants allow order and regularity to take place.  Covenants allow us to make pre-decisions about what to do in specific situations which helps us become people of integrity who live righteously.  Here’s a list of convents I’ve personally made, my family has made, and that I’m under as a citizen of the United States:

Faith in Christ: On November 11, 2009, I asked Jesus into my heart.  Since then I’ve made a covenant to follow Him no matter what.

Integrity: I’ve made a commitment to be a man of integrity and make sure I do what is right, no matter the cost.

Openness & Honesty: This is a covenant my girlfriend and I have made to talk about issues and problems we have.

Justice: Our nation makes a covenant of justice for anyone who does wrong to others and/or disobeys the law.  As a legal citizen of the U.S.A., I voluntarily commit to allow this justice to happen to me if I do wrong.

The most important covenant for me personally is my decision to follow Jesus.  This decision is a good gift I receive, but it is tough at times. The justice covenant is pretty menial to me. Besides one speeding ticket, I haven’t had to endure any justice.

Question: What has been your experience with rules?  Are they good, bad?

Leadership from Exodus

Recently I read Exodus chapters 1-18 from the Bible which features the famous story of Moses requesting Pharaoh (the leader of their country at that time) to let the Israelites leave Egypt for the Promised Land.

After reading that section, An Introduction to the Bible has some study questions that helped me digest what I learned and think through that section.  Here are my answers in case you'd like to learn more about the leadership of Moses and other character from the book of Exodus.

a.  Discuss and/or reflect on the portrayal of the principal characters in this narrative: Moses, his brother Aaron, the unnamed Pharaoh, and God.  Once again, choose adjectives for each.  What might this story have to say about the theme of leadership?

Moses—Tenacious: Moses was tenacious throughout the many problems he had when leading the Israelites and overcoming his own insecurities as a leader and speaker.  Even though he did not have a strong belief in his own ability, he had a big belief in God, and that made him tenacious.

Aaron—Servant Like: Aaron, the older brother of Moses always appears to be right there serving and assisting Moses to free the Israelites from Pharaoh and serve the people as priest. 

Pharaoh—Stubborn: Pharaoh was very determined to do what he wanted to do.  He believed that he was a powerful god, and it was not until the real almighty God hit him where it hurt the most (by killing the oldest sons of every Egyptian including his own) that he was finally humbled enough to allow the Israelites to leave.

God—Promise Keeper:  God is the ultimate promise keeper by first promising Abraham that he will have many descendants who will populate the earth.  Then God keeps his promise to Moses by allowing Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and God keeps them safe at the Red Sea.

This story shows me that in order to accomplish a nearly impossible task, a leader is needed.  Moses was a leader with incredible tenacity that allowed him to accomplish the nearly impossible task of leading the Israelites out of Egypt.

Question: If you have read or studied this passage of the Bible, what did you learn about leadership?

What's your spirit?

What type of natural inborn spirit do you have?

Beginning my internship with Church Assistance Ministry (CAM) has reminded me of my entrepreneurial spirit as I have seen ways I might assist their work.  When I look at CAM, I don’t see “things to do,” but I can see “things to create.” I’m naturally a pretty creative, relational, right brain dominant person.  I can come up with lots of ideas, even though many of them might not be very good.

While interning with CAM, I’ve had lots of new ideas about things we can create to help further CAM’s mission to serve and equip leaders around the world.  I’ve had the idea to create a blog to share updates on CAM’s work. I’ve thought about possible case studies I might be able to write to enhance Steve’s teachings about coaching and core values.  I’ve thought about how a book featuring CAM’s content would develop an even greater platform for CAM to reach more leaders.  These are some of the many ideas that have quickly developed after starting to intern with CAM.

Getting back in touch with my creative, entrepreneurial spirit has reminded me of the feelings I had when leading a nonprofit program called A Day of Hope that fed families in need for Thanksgiving.  While leading A Day of Hope, I was always coming up with new ideas to fundraise, recruit volunteers, and feed more families. 

Being open to a new ministry where I have some freedom to serve and support in my gifted areas has been very encouraging and exciting.  And I find myself passionate and energized by the new ideas that are flowing through my entrepreneurial spirit.

Question: Is there a "spirit" you have that you need to get back in touch with? (Leave a comment below if you'd like to respond and get some discussion going among readers.)