It takes a leader to raise up a leader. Followers can’t do it, and neither can institutional programs.
“It takes one to know one, to show one, to grow one.”
The potential of an any organization depends on the growth in its leadership.
If the only reason you appointed him to leadership is because he was a great follower ... You church, reputation and organization are doomed.
Leadership is simply about influencing people. Nothing more, nothing less.
The truest test of a leader is to ask him to create positive change in an organisation.
If he cannot create change, he cannot lead.
Being a leader is not about being first, or being in charge, or being the most knowledgeable ...
Being a leader is not about holding a leadership title.
It’s not the position that makes a leader, but the ability to affect change in those who follow.
A few questions:
If no one is following you, are you still the leader?
If no one is buying into your message or methods, are you still the leader?
Leadership is like a lid or a ceiling on any organization. No church or business will rise beyond the level it's leadership allows. That’s why when a corporation or team needs to be fixed, they fire the leader.
Sadly most religious bodies who struggle under bad leadership continue to decline for years ... You can't fire incompetence in ministry.
LM
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Friday, October 11, 2013
when people no longer matter.
When politics becomes our motivation, people no longer are important.
The pharisees brought the woman who was taken in adultery, not because they cared about the woman, but because they were looking for a political cause against Jesus.
Jesus whole ministry was about ministering to the people.
He healed them, He fed them, He went out of His way to meet them where they lived.
He said " let him who would be greatest be your servant".
He was all about meeting the needs of lost humanity.
He has left His body (the church) in the world today, to reach the world with the gospel.
When politics and position becomes our motivation, people no longer matter.
This woman "was taken in the very act."
Jesus never deserted or abandoned her...
In His mind it was about her.
The politically correct thing to do was to shun her, ignore her..
Principle should always trump politics.
The pharisees brought the woman who was taken in adultery, not because they cared about the woman, but because they were looking for a political cause against Jesus.
Jesus whole ministry was about ministering to the people.
He healed them, He fed them, He went out of His way to meet them where they lived.
He said " let him who would be greatest be your servant".
He was all about meeting the needs of lost humanity.
He has left His body (the church) in the world today, to reach the world with the gospel.
When politics and position becomes our motivation, people no longer matter.
This woman "was taken in the very act."
Jesus never deserted or abandoned her...
In His mind it was about her.
The politically correct thing to do was to shun her, ignore her..
Principle should always trump politics.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
When a leader fails
When a leader fails
I’ve been thinking about leadership and hypocrisy lately, particularly in small beginnings. When a great leader starts his journey, small decisions present themselves. Who that leader is in the smallest, most unnoticed decisions is actually who he is in the larger ones.
You don’t become disingenuous overnight. You begin the slide toward hypocrisy and duplicity by choosing to fudge once, then again, then again. You begin to see yourself as invincible once you’ve succeeded in those little sins, then believe your own press that because you are helping people, you can slip here and there.
But eventually truth wins out.
"All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
When we taste power, we have a choice. We can choose to continue to make wise decisions no one sees, or we can fudge a little and justify. We can ask others to hold us accountable, to grant transparency in everything we do, or we can bully and hide our increasingly corrupt decisions. We can open our hearts to naysayers, really listening, or we can vilify anyone who questions us.
So how do we respond when a big leader let’s us down?
5 Choices.
1. See their story as a cautionary tale. None of us is outside the reach of temptations lure. We may say that we have utter integrity, but we forget how clay-footed we are.
Every new story should remind us that truth exists and pushes its way to the surface eventually. We cannot cover it up. To do so is like submerging a beach ball in the ocean for a lengthy period of time. Eventually our strength to suppress our antics subsides, and the truth pops up.
2. Make good choices in the darkness. Jesus said, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much” (Luke 16:10).
There’s no such thing as a fallen leader who made one bad, big decision. It started first with little white lies, small deceits, and underground dalliances. You always have the choice to be honest in small things, and those small decisions prepare you to have integrity as you face bigger decisions.
3. Learn to forgive. Almost every failure I know of befell a man who could not or would not let others repent or start a new. The greatest promise of the gospel is the promise of re-birth.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Wearing the failures of yesterday into today is like wearing the clothes you wore in high school for the rest of your life. At some point they don't fit and you look silly.
So is continually wearing yesterday's failures into the future.
Let your enemies change their clothes! They are not what they were yesterday either. Quit demanding they remain what they once were.
Most of the fallen leaders I am aware of, have made a living of demonizing and vilifying those who disagreed with them or somehow fell out of favor with their leadership.
Forgiving others is one of the greatest lessons you can learn
Jonah 2:8
"They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy."
Those creative lies we tell ourselves to keep the fight going, ultimately hurt ourselves more than they do those we wish harm upon.
4. Be daring enough to hear criticism, then swallow and digest it. Don’t spout off your initial reaction, but rein it in. Even if someone confronts you and 90% of what they say is wrong (in your eyes), accept it graciously, then determine to heed the 10%.
Your enemies and critics will tell you what your friends never would. Hidden in their lies and misrepresented tales is some truth!
5. Don’t allow one leader’s demise to demoralize your confidence in the gospel. This life is an ironman triathlon, not a hundred-yard dash. A leader falling is one part of the journey. Learn from their mistakes.
Grieve. Get mad. But persevere.
If you’ve been personally affected by the fallen leader, seek to work through your difficulty. In time, walk in forgiveness– considering yourself!
Galatians 6:1
1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
The greatest lesson is humble, silent and honest self examination.
LM
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I’ve been thinking about leadership and hypocrisy lately, particularly in small beginnings. When a great leader starts his journey, small decisions present themselves. Who that leader is in the smallest, most unnoticed decisions is actually who he is in the larger ones.
You don’t become disingenuous overnight. You begin the slide toward hypocrisy and duplicity by choosing to fudge once, then again, then again. You begin to see yourself as invincible once you’ve succeeded in those little sins, then believe your own press that because you are helping people, you can slip here and there.
But eventually truth wins out.
"All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
When we taste power, we have a choice. We can choose to continue to make wise decisions no one sees, or we can fudge a little and justify. We can ask others to hold us accountable, to grant transparency in everything we do, or we can bully and hide our increasingly corrupt decisions. We can open our hearts to naysayers, really listening, or we can vilify anyone who questions us.
So how do we respond when a big leader let’s us down?
5 Choices.
1. See their story as a cautionary tale. None of us is outside the reach of temptations lure. We may say that we have utter integrity, but we forget how clay-footed we are.
Every new story should remind us that truth exists and pushes its way to the surface eventually. We cannot cover it up. To do so is like submerging a beach ball in the ocean for a lengthy period of time. Eventually our strength to suppress our antics subsides, and the truth pops up.
2. Make good choices in the darkness. Jesus said, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much” (Luke 16:10).
There’s no such thing as a fallen leader who made one bad, big decision. It started first with little white lies, small deceits, and underground dalliances. You always have the choice to be honest in small things, and those small decisions prepare you to have integrity as you face bigger decisions.
3. Learn to forgive. Almost every failure I know of befell a man who could not or would not let others repent or start a new. The greatest promise of the gospel is the promise of re-birth.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Wearing the failures of yesterday into today is like wearing the clothes you wore in high school for the rest of your life. At some point they don't fit and you look silly.
So is continually wearing yesterday's failures into the future.
Let your enemies change their clothes! They are not what they were yesterday either. Quit demanding they remain what they once were.
Most of the fallen leaders I am aware of, have made a living of demonizing and vilifying those who disagreed with them or somehow fell out of favor with their leadership.
Forgiving others is one of the greatest lessons you can learn
Jonah 2:8
"They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy."
Those creative lies we tell ourselves to keep the fight going, ultimately hurt ourselves more than they do those we wish harm upon.
4. Be daring enough to hear criticism, then swallow and digest it. Don’t spout off your initial reaction, but rein it in. Even if someone confronts you and 90% of what they say is wrong (in your eyes), accept it graciously, then determine to heed the 10%.
Your enemies and critics will tell you what your friends never would. Hidden in their lies and misrepresented tales is some truth!
5. Don’t allow one leader’s demise to demoralize your confidence in the gospel. This life is an ironman triathlon, not a hundred-yard dash. A leader falling is one part of the journey. Learn from their mistakes.
Grieve. Get mad. But persevere.
If you’ve been personally affected by the fallen leader, seek to work through your difficulty. In time, walk in forgiveness– considering yourself!
Galatians 6:1
1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
The greatest lesson is humble, silent and honest self examination.
LM
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Saturday, June 15, 2013
My father, a great man
History is replete with men of great renown. Their names and accomplishments are chronicled in history lessons, newspapers and even in Holy writ.
Here are two examples from the Bible:
1. Samuel was a judge in Israel, a prophet and a priest. He was the only man who ever filled all three offices.
2. King David stands among the tallest of leaders excelling in economic prosperity, military dominance, and spiritual pursuit.
Both share many stellar characteristics, they were great leaders of people, they were men of renown, they were men of great influence. Their names still require respect and reverence even though they are no longer upon the stage of life.
The greatest thing they both share is that they were terrible fathers.
While they were both busy building a name and a legacy, accomplishing great feats in government and politics. Their children sadly went un-guided and un-corrected.
Sameuls life which started out with such great promise, a child of promise miraculously conceived. Ended with a nation turning it's back on Gods government and rule, because of his children's un-disciplined natures.
Thus though listed In the hall of faith ( Hebrews 11 ), in the things that mattered most, Samuel utterly failed.
Davids tragic tale closely mirrors that of Samuel. Davids moral failures and lack of self control opened the door to one of the saddest stories ever recorded. Gross immorality, murder, betrayal, broken and shattered lives, was part of the legacy David left to his children.
"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
Better yet, what doth it profit a man if he leads the whole world and has no influence upon his own children?
Let me tell you a true story of one of the greatest men I have ever known.
He was born into a very poor home. Most of his early childhood memories included domestic violence, multiple divorces and always hunger.
His mother eventually found a new life through the power of the cross. The old hardship were replaced with new ones as his mother and he answered the call of God to ministry in the very primitive conditions of South East Alaska.
After completion of high school he went to Bible School where just prior to graduation he married the love of his life. Into this union 4 boys were eventually born.
There were three constant fears that he battled while raising his little family.
1. Fear of poverty, which he answered by doing the work of two men. By the time he retired well into his 70's. He had worked his way from manual labour on the oil docks, to a lucrative management / part owner of a oil distribution company.
2. Fear of violence, which he answered by vowing to God that his children would never even hear a verbal argument. I have known this man for 47 years and can vouch that there was never a verbal or physical altercation in his home. Out of the ashes of violence a man of peace was born.
3. Fear of the ravishes of sin, which he answered by raising his family in the house of God.
His oldest Son is 51, I am 49, my younger brothers are 46 and 33. Though not perfect we have followed in the steps of this great man.
All four of his sons have been faithfully married to one wife.
All four of his sons have worked hard to provide for the spiritual and physical needs of their families.
Two of his sons feel the call of ministry, all four are faithful in their local churches.
To date all of his Grandchildren have been baptized and infilled with the Holy Ghost.
He is my father. Outside of his immediate circle of friends, church and family no one hardly knows his name. But to me he is a giant of a man. Many a lesser man have used the hardships of their life story to repeat and reproduce the conditions of the past. My dad shook off the conditions he was raised in and created a world completely different from his up bringing. Where as all he knew was anger and violence he choose peace. Where all he knew was poverty and uncertainty he created a world of stability and hope.
Happy Fathers Day Dad! You are a giant in my world, I am proud to be called your son!
Lance Dean Meyers
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Here are two examples from the Bible:
1. Samuel was a judge in Israel, a prophet and a priest. He was the only man who ever filled all three offices.
2. King David stands among the tallest of leaders excelling in economic prosperity, military dominance, and spiritual pursuit.
Both share many stellar characteristics, they were great leaders of people, they were men of renown, they were men of great influence. Their names still require respect and reverence even though they are no longer upon the stage of life.
The greatest thing they both share is that they were terrible fathers.
While they were both busy building a name and a legacy, accomplishing great feats in government and politics. Their children sadly went un-guided and un-corrected.
Sameuls life which started out with such great promise, a child of promise miraculously conceived. Ended with a nation turning it's back on Gods government and rule, because of his children's un-disciplined natures.
Thus though listed In the hall of faith ( Hebrews 11 ), in the things that mattered most, Samuel utterly failed.
Davids tragic tale closely mirrors that of Samuel. Davids moral failures and lack of self control opened the door to one of the saddest stories ever recorded. Gross immorality, murder, betrayal, broken and shattered lives, was part of the legacy David left to his children.
"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
Better yet, what doth it profit a man if he leads the whole world and has no influence upon his own children?
Let me tell you a true story of one of the greatest men I have ever known.
He was born into a very poor home. Most of his early childhood memories included domestic violence, multiple divorces and always hunger.
His mother eventually found a new life through the power of the cross. The old hardship were replaced with new ones as his mother and he answered the call of God to ministry in the very primitive conditions of South East Alaska.
After completion of high school he went to Bible School where just prior to graduation he married the love of his life. Into this union 4 boys were eventually born.
There were three constant fears that he battled while raising his little family.
1. Fear of poverty, which he answered by doing the work of two men. By the time he retired well into his 70's. He had worked his way from manual labour on the oil docks, to a lucrative management / part owner of a oil distribution company.
2. Fear of violence, which he answered by vowing to God that his children would never even hear a verbal argument. I have known this man for 47 years and can vouch that there was never a verbal or physical altercation in his home. Out of the ashes of violence a man of peace was born.
3. Fear of the ravishes of sin, which he answered by raising his family in the house of God.
His oldest Son is 51, I am 49, my younger brothers are 46 and 33. Though not perfect we have followed in the steps of this great man.
All four of his sons have been faithfully married to one wife.
All four of his sons have worked hard to provide for the spiritual and physical needs of their families.
Two of his sons feel the call of ministry, all four are faithful in their local churches.
To date all of his Grandchildren have been baptized and infilled with the Holy Ghost.
He is my father. Outside of his immediate circle of friends, church and family no one hardly knows his name. But to me he is a giant of a man. Many a lesser man have used the hardships of their life story to repeat and reproduce the conditions of the past. My dad shook off the conditions he was raised in and created a world completely different from his up bringing. Where as all he knew was anger and violence he choose peace. Where all he knew was poverty and uncertainty he created a world of stability and hope.
Happy Fathers Day Dad! You are a giant in my world, I am proud to be called your son!
Lance Dean Meyers
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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