Manipulate or Lead?

I want to take some time and talk leadership.  I want you to take a few moments and read these verses form 2^nd Samuel 15 – 1 Now it came about after this that Absalom provided for himself a chariot and horses and fifty men as runners before him. 2 Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way to the gate; and when any man had a suit to come to the king for judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, "From what city are you?" And he would say, "Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel." 3 Then Absalom would say to him, "See, your claims are good and right, but no man listens to you on the part of the king." 4 Moreover, Absalom would say, "Oh that one would appoint me judge in the land, then every man who has any suit or cause could come to me and I would give him justice." 5 And when a man came near to prostrate himself before him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him. 6 In this manner Absalom dealt with all Israel who came to the king for judgment; so Absalom stole away the hearts of the men of Israel.

These verses can hardly be summed up better than to say that Absalom became a politician. He spent time among the people, promising them that he would give them what they wanted, if he were only king. He endeared others to himself by giving the appearance that he was a humble servant of the people and not an arrogant king who had no time for the little people. The people loved it; they loved him. With that Absalom managed to turn the hearts of the people away from David to himself but he did it through manipulation and not through leadership.

Absalom stole the hearts of the people. Absalom’s cunning campaign worked. He became more popular and more trusted than David.

So how does he do it? 

Let us take a moment and look at how Absalom does manipulated the people and how we as leaders should lead:

· Absalom carefully cultivated an exciting, enticing image with is chariots and horses, and fifty men to run before him. Manipulators know how to put on a show and make things look great. Leaders just do what God calls them to do – no show needed. Manipulators are great at making a scene and leaders lead.

· Absalom worked hard by getting up early each day – manipulation is hard work and manipulators many times are hard workers – just they are not working hard for the right reasons. They are working hard for their own ways and not Gods. Leaders work for God’s ways – not their own.

· Absalom knew where to position himself which was beside the way to the gate which is where everyone would be coming and going. Manipulators know where they will get the biggest audience and who will listen to them. Leaders lead and do not worry about the audience because if they are leading in God’s ways people will follow.

· Absalom looked for troubled people or anyone who had a lawsuit and He reached out to troubled people and they would hear Absalom call to them. Manipulators know what people to go after – troubled one – Manipulators many times are complainers and they find fellow complainers and they know how to get them to follow their ways. Leaders present the vision God has given and move forward – nothing else is needed when God is the center of it.

· Absalom took a personal interest in the troubled people by asking questions like what city are you from? Manipulators know how to get people on board – they have people skills – but you learn when you are taken in by them that they are not people you want to be around for very long. Leaders allow God to put people on board and the lead with integrity, grace, and humility.

· Absalom sympathized with the person by telling them your case is good and right one – you have a strong case here. Manipulators tell people what they want to hear but leaders tell people what they need to hear – two totally different things. Leaders tell people what they need to hear not what they want to hear. A hard thing in leadership is telling people what they need to hear but it has to be done – sometimes it cost leaders their jobs.

· Absalom never attacked David directly but would say that there was no one to hear you and he left the troubled person more troubled by having them thinking that no one was there to hear them. Manipulators make sure that they create a need for themselves while leaders create a need for God.

· Without directly attacking David, Absalom promised to do better by saying Oh, that I were made judge in the land, and everyone who has any suit or cause would come to me; then I would give him justice. Manipulators make themselves the answer to the problems and leaders make God the answer to the problems. Manipulators say if people would just do it my way – Leaders say we need to be doing it God’s way.

Do you see anything else here that needs to be mentioned here with manipulators or leaders?

Who is the best leader you have been able to be lead by and what makes/made them such a good leader?

Trust and Leadership

This week in the thoughts on Building Below the Waterline by Gordon MacDonald are in the realm of trust.

On page 71 of his book MacDonald writes this:

One of my theories has been that a leader really does not begin to enjoy leadership “bite” or “traction” that is necessary to get things done until he or she has been leading for about five years.  Therefore, the fifth year and beyond are years where trust is all important because novelty and newness no longer exists.  As my father used to remind me, people will follow you for a while because they picked you.  But they’ll follow you over the long term because they have learned to trust you.

I have been at the church I am at for about 2 and a half years.  I know that there are some who follow me because I am still relatively new and because they have picked me to lead them but I still wonder about the idea of fully trusting me.  Now how do I build trust with them?

MacDonald lists off seven ways he has observed through the years (pages 71, 72):

1. Trust builds with consistency – consistency of message, of vision, and of the management of people.
2. Trust builds with dependability – If you make a promise, do you keep it?
3. Trust builds with openness – In trustworthy people there is an absence of slickness, slogans, and strategies that do not offer the full message.
4. Trust builds with reputation for hard work – There is a sense that the pastor is on top of the job of congregational leadership
5. Trust builds with a belief that the pastor has an impartial pastoral eye for everyone – Treating everyone from the rich to the children to the poor with the same recognition.
6. Trust builds with longevity – The Pastor hangs in for an extended period of time building relationships through ministry (funerals, weddings, baptisms, etc.)
7. Trust builds with an ever-deepening spirit – Congregations want to feel that their pastor fixes his or her eyes on Jesus.

Trust is one of those things in life and ministry that makes such a huge difference.  MacDonald I think hits on it with these seven things I believe.

What are your thoughts on trust?  Why do you trust the leader or leaders of your church?  How do you build trust and what would you add to this list of seven that MacDonald has?

This post is a part of the blogging on  the book Building Below the Waterline by Gordon MacDonald with two of the best bloggers out there – Bill Grandi from  Cycleguy’s Spin and Michael Perkins from The Handwritten .  We are sharing each Wednesday our thoughts from 2 chapters,  which means you will be able to see how God will l speak to us as individuals and then you if you read all three blogs you will see how God then weaves what we write all together.  I pray your are encouraged by the blogs.

A Leader Like Moses Or Aaron?

Been doing some leadership reading in Building Below the Waterline by Gordon MacDonald which I am really excited to be blogging about with Bill from Cycleguy’s Spin and Michael from Untitled and whomever else wants to join us in a few weeks . If you want to join us, pick up the book and let one of us know you would like to- it is an awesome book.  Anyway back to this post.  Something I read in the book about Moses got me thinking about Moses and Aaron.

I started thinking about leadership and Moses.  When you look at him, you see some mistakes, miscues, and so forth that he made along the way like any leader but you mostly see him as an excellent leader who made mostly  good choices.  Truth be told, no leader ever makes good choices every time but some make them a whole lot more than others.

Moses was certainly a reluctant leader at first and I think that helped him to lead because he was not afraid to ask for help.  When you look at  the life and leadership of Moses you see that he sought God and His direction as he lead.  Moses for the most part did what God wanted him to do. Moses was a leader who took responsibility for his actions and also stood up for those he lead.  When you look at Moses though you also see that he leads with humility.  He did not wait for others to come to him but he went to them. Another aspect of Moses leadership was that he was one who lead because he saw the pain and burden placed on others and wanted to do something about it.  When it comes to leadership, Moses really lead well.

Now Moses older brother Aaron was his right hand man as he lead.  Moses had some sort of speech issue so Aaron was his mouthpiece or spoke what Moses said as seen during the plagues with Pharaoh.  Aaron was a really good right hand man and supported his brother wholeheartedly in the ministry.  Here is the problem – he was a great at being the second in command but as for being able to lead the people for himself, well…let’s just say it was not his thing.

If you take some time and look at Exodus 32 and you will see some of the issues that Aaron had as a leader.  One of the issues that you see in Aaron is his desire to make everyone happy.  That is seen most clearly when Moses is away and Aaron just lets the people do what they want.  when you look at that you see that situation you he is being lead by them not leading them.  As a matter of fact, Aaron joined in and made the golden calf and he did so because he wanted their to be peace and no dissention among the people.  The thing an even decent leader knows is that you will never make everyone happy but that is what Aaron wanted to do.

What you do not see here is Aaron tying to get the people focused on the right things when they wanted to build the calf but he allows them to focus on the wrong things.  You do not see Aaron rebuke or even confront the people about this.  You do see him pushing them toward honoring God which is what a true leader would do but he along with them got led astray.  Something else you see is that Aaron has no moral core that he could lead from – he was lacking in core leadership and apparently lacked a spiritual core as well.  Then what you see is Aaron does not take any responsibility for his poor choices and poor leadership in this circumstance.  Aaron here really messes up but you also see before and after this he is great as a right hand man.

When it comes to leadership, are you an Aaron or a Moses?  Are you an Aaron who is a good second hand man or a Moses who has the ability to lead people?

Some other things I would like your thoughts on:  Do you think that some people are more natural in leading than other?  Do you think Moses was a natural leader or supernaturally blessed?

Wrestling? Christ, our life? Leadership?

When doing some study recently I came across a verse that has never been in my Bible before. Isn’t it funny how God does that?

Here is the verse:  Colossians 3:4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Did you notice this phrase: Christ, who is our life?  It struck me as soon as I read it and I love it when that happens.  In a very real way for believers, Christ is what life is all about or at least that is how it is to be. Christ should be our life.  Without Him we would be dead in our sins and we would be hopeless – absolutely and completely without any hope.  When we understand that Christ is our life, we have real hope and we know the Truth.  In John 14:6, Jesus said about himself: I am the way, the truth, and the life.  By realizing that Christ is the Truth we also realize that He is our life, we can have a new attitude about anything that happens to us. If He is truly our life, we have nothing to fear.  When Christ is your life – what is there to fear?  Nothing!

The problem is that too many do not have Christ as our life but we just have him as a slice of life.  Christ should not just be a slice of your life but Christ should be the center of life and touch every area of it.  If Christ does not make a difference in how you treat friends, or how you treat your spouse or children, how you behave at work or when you are out with friends – then I would have to say that He is not your life .  When Christ is your life – everything you do, watch, listen to, the way you act, your attitude – everything – it is all affected by your relationship with Christ.

These are thought that I have been challenged by the last couple of weeks and I am really wrestling with them.  Why do I at times fear when I have nothing too fear? Is it a lack of trust of Christ on my part? Do I have Christ as a slice of my life or in the center of my life that is touching every other area?  I wrestle with these questions because I see them as playing a part in how I am as a leader in the home, in the church, and in the community.

Do you ever read the Bible, find verses that have not been there, think about them, wrestle with them, and question things?  Do you have any thoughts about what I said?

 

The Original Intent

Have you ever got away from the original intent of something?

My confession to you today is have and I did  and have.  I have gotten away from the original intent of this blog.    I have been posting consistently for sometime now (I did not take the time to go back and look and see how long) and in doing so I lost the original intents of the blog.  The sub title of this blog is “my thoughts on God, pastoring, leadership, and life” and I have not shared any real thoughts in these areas in the past few months or even a year.  To me, that is sad.  Really what has happened over the past year or so is that  I have basically relegated this blog to a daily devotional.  I have nothing against a daily devotional but it is not what I feel or felt lead to do but it was something that came easy – so I did it.  So that is going to end -  NOW.

I am now intent on moving back to what my original thoughts were and so here is my plan.  I plan to write things each week that will reflect what I have in written in the subtitle.  I am going to write things in relationship to what I am experiencing in my relationship with God (including questions from the Bible).  I am going to write about what it is like to be a solo Pastor which means the only pastor on staff in a church because it brings about pressures and stresses that are different from a multi-staff church (I have worked in a multi-staff church and now and a solo pastor).  I am going to write about areas of leadership in the church, in the home, and in other areas of life.  I am going to write about life itself and how I make it through the good and the tough times.

As you can see I changed the look of the blog and I did so as a fresh start and a reminder for me to get back and stay connected to the original intent.  The question will be how often will I post – the plan is three times per week –sometimes more and sometimes less. 

I am having a number of wrestles right now with a number of things related to social media and this is the start of me getting back to what I think to be a manageable level.

Have you ever got away from the original intent of something?

Rejected by Leadership

This week I started  wrestling with Mark 8:31-33.  Here is what it says: ³¹ And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³² And He was stating the matter plainly.  And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. ³³ But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”

This rejection by the Jewish leadership is not going to be anything new because it had already begun. On more than one occasion the Jewish leaders had tried to find fault with Jesus as you can see if you read through the Gospel Accounts. As we know, the Sanhedrin would eventually reject Jesus for the final time and condemn Him to death. They would accuse Him of blasphemy; turn Him over to Rome, and demanding that He be executed. These religious leaders would lead the people of Israel to demand the death of Jesus on a cross. Even as Jesus was dying and nailed to a cross, these men would mock Him in their anger and hatred. The religious leaders in Israel would send Jesus to His death.

We would have to think that the disciples having already seen that opposition to Jesus that was growing by the day with the various things that were happening to Jesus would not be surprised. So, the revelation that Jesus shares of the Jewish leaders rejecting Him might not have been too shocking to them but what Jesus said next must have left them speechless. This is when Jesus told them that He was going to be killed! He lets them know that He, the Christ, the Messiah, would not only be rejected by Israel, He would also be put to death by them.

Jesus then told them while He must die, that He would also rise again from the dead. Yes, there was suffering, pain and death in His future, but there was also glory! He would pass through death and conquer it as well as conquer Hell and the grave for all those who would believe in Him. Now, the disciples did not understand this truth and so they were all so stunned to hear that Jesus will be killed that they are incapable of hearing Him say that He will beat death and be the eternal victor over it. In fact, they didn’t understand the Lord’s teachings concerning the resurrection until after Jesus had died and risen again. Then as they looked back and thought back about what Jesus had been saying, then they understood what He had said to them.

I wonder about the disciples hearing about Jesus dying and to me I think for them it would indicate that the things Jesus would endure were all part of God’s plan for Him which would be hard for them to understand. We understand I pray that Jesus was rejected and He died for good reasons. His death was God’s will as we can read in places John 3:16; Romans 8:32. His death was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy – like can be seen in Psalm 22; 69 and Isaiah 53. His death would satisfy the demands of God’s Law which can be seen in verses like Genesis 2:17; Romans 5:12-21; 2 Corinthians 5:21. We also can see that it was His Own will to die for sinners in verses like John 10:11; Galatians 2:20; and Mark 10:45.

What we have here is Jesus sharing His Mission. I think about this and praise Him that He willingly entered this world, suffered all that He did, died on the cross and rose again from the dead so that I might be saved – that we might all have salvation! Every step He took; every pain He suffered; every lash He endured; every single thing Jesus did, He did for me and you and I thank Him for it.

What are your thoughts concerning what I have shared today?

 

Leadership: A Title or Courage? (Braveheart)

Men don’t follow titles, they follow courage – Braveheart

This is one of those leadership quotes that is short but that speaks volumes to me.  It is one of those quotes that even when I am not watching Braveheart it will pop into my head.  In my life have seen okay leaders, good leaders, and great leaders as well as some of the poorest of poor leaders and I am sure you have too.  Those who fit into the good and great leadership areas that I have been involved with I would say are/were men and women of courage but I would also say that they were/are not into titles.  Now to  be honest, some of them did/do have titles and some did/do not have titles but it did/does not make a difference in their leadership, but their courage did/does.

I am reminded of Christ who was/is a great leader and it did it without a title but with courage.  Jesus had the courage to follow through with the plan of the Father and it makes a real difference in my life.  Jesus had the courage to give His life for me.  Jesus had the courage to say the things that needed to be said and do the things that needed to be done.

I want to be a leader who is courageous for all the right reasons and one who does not worry about having any title in life.  Because in the end it is not about the title but about the results which come because of the courage that is shown.  Being Courageous for Jesus is always the right thing to be!  Being courageous for Jesus makes a real difference.  Being courageous for Jesus is not always the easiest thing to be but it is the best thing to be.

I want to be found as one who showed great courage throughout his life – that is the leadership I respect in others and that is the leadership  I want to live out in my life.  I am praying about where I can show the most courage today in my life.  What about you, where can you show courage today?

What about you – any thoughts on this?  Are you into titles or courage?

Elephants, Leadership, and Life.

Take 3 minutes and watch the video and while watching think about life, leadership, and the church.

What do you see here?  What applications can you make about life, leadership, and about the church?

Here are a ten thoughts of mine:

1. An accident happens – the little elephant slips.  People slip and accidents happen in life all the time but how do we handle it when it happens?
2. It is so slick that the little elephant can’t get himself out although he keeps trying.  We all have things we get stuck in and we can not get out of without help.
3. At first one tries to help, then two, and then a community steps in to make a difference.  We need a community to step in.
4. Some get frustrated trying to help and walk away while others are consistent.  There will be those who do not want help or think their way is the only way but also there will be those who are consistently helping.
5. Some do not even seem to care that the little one is in trouble.  There will be those who do not care others are in trouble,
6. Help begins to work when some get on the same level as the little one.  We need to get to people level to help the out, both literally and figuratively.
7. The little one is pushed in the right direction – shown the right way to get out.  Sometime we need to push people the right way to go and allow them to step the right way as we gently guide them.
8. The little one is tired but encouraged to get to his feet and move forward.  People will be tired and want to stop but sometime they need to be encouraged because there is more in them than they know.
9. Love and care is shown throughout the whole time.  We need to be showing love and care while we help people out.
10. The little one is put in the middle of the safety of the group.  We need to not ridicule but put people in the middle and mentor them in the right way to do things.

What applications can you make or do you see here?  What about some applications to God?  Share your thoughts!

Well Rounded Leaders?

I had the opportunity to listen to Andy Stanley (Pastor of North Point Community Church, an author, and leadership speaker) on a webcast the other day.  The webcast was about leadership and in it he talked about how the old school idea was to have well rounded leaders. The old idea was that  your weakness as a leader was something that you would work on and you would  just continue on in your strength as it was.  He then went on to tell about how he looks at it and the new school idea which is you do not work on the weakness but you focus all your attention on the strength to refine it and get stronger.  Your weak areas you delegate to someone else who has those as strength.  He had me thinking.

I came home that afternoon to wait for my son to get off the school bus and grabbed the book I have been reading Jesus Life Coach by Laurie Beth Jones.  I flip to the new chapter that I was ready to read entitled “Use Your Greatest Strength” and began to read.  I read the chapter and it is about the very same thing that I just heard on the webcast- I mean exactly.  Let me share some of what I read in the book.  In the chapter she  discusses the book Recognizing Your Strength by Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton –  she quotes them:

“Forget your weaknesses – get keyed in on your strengths.  That is how we grow.”

She then writes herself:

We still hold dear to the myths of the well rounded employee and the perfect spouse.

She writes later:

The essential thing is to realize what your strength are and then refine them.  This principle has been among the most life-changing and beneficial ones I have ever adopted.

She ends by writing:

Jesus doesn’t teach about weakest links.  He teaches about finding our highest callings and strengths, and going after them with all our hearts.

I have fought for years to be “well rounded” and to be honest there are some things that just do not come natural to me.  I have been stuck trying to fix areas rather than cultivate the ones that I have  that are strong.  In thinking this though I remembered a passage of Scripture that Andy Stanley uses on the webcast that fits well here:

Acts 6:1-7 -¹ Now at this time while the disciples  were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the  daily serving of food. ² So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables. ³ “Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task. ⁴ “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” ⁵ The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen,  a man full  of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip,  Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas,  a proselyte  from Antioch. ⁶ And these they brought before the apostles; and after praying,  they laid  their hands on them. ⁷ The  word of God kept on spreading; and the  number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the  faith.

In this portion of Scripture we read that the disciples focus their attentions on their strengths and have others do the things that they are weak in.  I think there is some real value in this idea but I am not 100% on it yet – but I am thinking and praying about it.

So after all that – let me ask your thoughts on this way at looking at leadership from Andy Stanley, Marcus Buckingham, Laurie Beth Jones?  Should leaders be well rounded or should they refine their strengths and delegate their weakness?  Do you think most people even know what their strengths are?

Leadership Qualities?

3 John 9-10 ⁹ I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say. ¹⁰ For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with wicked words; and not satisfied with this, he himself does not receive the brethren,either, and he forbids those who desire to do so and puts them out of the church.

John, earlier in this chapter, was praising Gaius for his being a good Christian and showing hospitality to the traveling missionaries, now begins to share his observations about Diotrephes.  There is little known about him except what is written here in 3rd John.  What we do know or can figure is he is most likely a deacon or minister or some kind of leader is the church.  Diotrephes means, “Foster child of Zeus”, which gives us a clue that he is probably of Greek decent.  Most people with the name Diotrephes who are found about same time are people who are of a higher social class.  Some believe that is a clue into why he is the way he is; he thinks he is better than others.  John has written a letter to him, which we do not have, and it was not well received by Diotrephes.

So what then did John have to say about Diotrephes?

1. He loves to be first – verse 9 – He liked being in charge and was prideful of his position.
2. He wants nothing to do the leaders of the church – verse 9 – He is showing others that he is in charge but what he is really showing is disrespect to those in authority over him.
3. He is slandering the leaders of the church – verse 10 – He is intentionally saying things that are harmful to those in leadership.
4. He is not showing hospitality – verse 10 – He is too worried about himself to help out others.
5. He stops others from showing hospitality – verse 10 – He does not want to be shown up by others plus that would take focus off of him, which he liked.
6. He tries to put those out of the church that show hospitality – verse 10 – He here is abusing whatever power he has in the Church.

What a list?  These are certainly not the qualities that you want in a church leader or any leader as far as that is concerned.  The qualities that any leader should have should be ones that build up others not tear them down so as to build self up.

I am asking for some real input today – tell me:  What are the qualities you are looking for in a leader?  What leadership qualities are most important for you to see in a leader?

Go ahead and share your thoughts.