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The “L” in Leadership is Not for “Liar”

There are several things that would disqualify a person from being a leader or at least from being considered a leader, but there are two particular reasons I want to discuss which happen to fall under the same category.

The “L” in Leadership is Not for “Liar”

Lying and/or Deception (which is essentially lying) is one of the top actions to disqualify a person from being a leader. Sure, they may posses a leadership position, but that doesn’t mean they are a leader; no more than my putting a golf ball in an egg carton makes it an egg.

Leadership is the ability to influence people towards a specific vision or goal. When an individual resorts to the art of lying or the use of deception, they are no longer considered a leader, but rather a manipulator (and that’s only if they are able to successfully maneuver people as a result of the lies).

Leadership is the ability to influence people towards a specific vision or goal. The use of lies and deception eliminates the key verb, “influence” in that definition. Lying is not influencing; its the attempt to appease another person (telling them what they want to hear) or its an effort to try and avoid difficult conversations or issues. A leader does not hide from confrontation, he addresses it head on (see Saul vs. Jonathan in 1 Samuel 13-14). A person will also be found resorting to lies and deception when they’re attempting to reach their own goal in a dishonest manner.

  • It could be a supervisor saying what they think an employee wants to hear in order to deceive them into believing they have an opportunity to retain employment when the supervisor’s goal is to keep them employed until the person they really want to work with is available.  Even if the supervisor is able to keep that employee in place until the perfect timing to replace them, the supervisor did not reach this goal through influence, rather by deceiving the current employee that they had an opportunity.
  • It could be a sales manger who promises a salesperson specific rewards or bonuses if they reach a specific sales number and then backtracks on that promise with some type of petty excuse once the salesperson reaches their goal. The sales manager reached their goal of higher sales from their salesperson, but they didn’t use influence, they used lies.
  • It could be a pastor with a specific vision or goal for his church and when facing opposition and friction from his leadership team and/or elders, he pushes harder, lies and deceives to paint a picture of horrible consequences if they do not go along with his idea. Even if the pastor gets his way, he will not have done it through any influence of his own, rather through manipulation.
  • Ditto point #2, just change the person in question with a politician and change the vision for the church to an idea for the country. I think you can figure it out.

Join the conversation: Are you a leader that’s resorted to lying and deception to get your way? Why?

Have you been in an organization where the “leader” above you used lies and deception versus influence to obtain what they wanted? What was the results?

 

 

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At Least Thirty Two Reasons to Hate Red Kettles and Bells

It’s that time of year again!

All would be okay in the Christmas season if it weren’t for a little red kettle and a tiny annoying BELL! Oh, how I hate you tiny little bell.

You can’t enter your local mall, Wal-Mart or favorite grocery store without the constant ringing of the tiny annoying bell. Not even Quietus can cure the constant ringing from everyone’s despised Christmas bell. Therefore I’ve compiled a list of reasons to hate this Red Kettle and annoying tiny bell!

32 Reasons to Hate Red Kettles & Bells at Christmas:

  1. In 2012, at least Sixteen (16) men in the Augusta, GA CSRC (residential substance abuse rehab) Program placed their faith in Jesus for Salvation.
  2. In 2012, Sixteen (16) men graduated the Augusta, GA CSRC Program. Many of which now hold jobs, have reconciled with their families and have received a new start in life. That’s an increase of 267% from 2011.

At least 32 lives transformed through one program in 2012.

See. These bells lead to no good!

It’s all the bells and kettles fault! Ridiculous! All of the donations they receive by annoying people with ringing in the ears directly funds programs like the Augusta, GA, CSRC Program.

The CSRC Program is a gospel-centered, nine month residential substance abuse program for men. We do not receive government funding for this program, we only receive private financial support because we will not teach that hope is found in a “higher power,” rather we teach that hope is found in Jesus Christ alone. In order to keep the teaching of the gospel at the center of all we do, this program at the Salvation Army is funded 100% by private finances. So, when you endure the Christmas bell from Hell and you give a generous gift in the Red Kettles, you are directly involved in these lives that have been transformed and created anew in Jesus. You are helping do that!

More Reasons to Hate the Red Kettles and Bells 🙂

  1. Seasonal Employment: The Salvation Army is able to provide seasonal employment to individuals who are in financial need including the homeless and transients who are being provided some of the many Salvation Army services. Who are you impacting with your donation in the Kettle? Look at your bell ringer. You may be providing him the money he needs to extend his nights at the Emergency Shelter. You may be helping a single mom put food on the table for her children.
  2. Nightly Emergency Shelter for Transients and Homeless: Men who need shelter can receive 8 free nights in the Salvation Army’s overnight emergency shelter. After their 8th free night they can continue to stay for $7 per night (includes dinner through the soup line and breakfast). When you donate through a Red Kettle you are helping fund the shelter and when the bell ringer is a homeless or transient individual, you may be providing him an extended stay in the emergency shelter through his paycheck. The Augusta, GA shelter has an in-house professional counselor available to the men who frequently stay in the shelter to help assist them in getting off the streets and back into normal society again.
  3. Women and Children’s Shelter: The Salvation Army provides shelter for “in need” women and children and/or abused women and children for approximately 30-45 days. Social workers through the Salvation Army work tirelessly each day to help these families obtain permanent housing.
  4. Project Share and Other Social Services: The Salvation Army partners with Georgia Power, the United Way and other local agencies to help assist families who are struggling financially with utilities and rent. As the winter season approaches and utility bills go higher and higher, these services help assist families keep their power and heat on to provide a safe environment for their children.

So,  yes, those tiny bells can be annoying and we all get tired of fundraisers, but this is one opportunity that presents itself one time a year that you can look and see a difference. You can touch the difference through a handshake or a hug from a life that has been transformed. You can hear the difference in the voices of men who have overcome addictions and now teach Bible classes or in women who have come from the depths of despair and now live in a safe home with their children. The impact can be experienced through services provided by men who were once homeless but now are back on their feet and contributing to society once again.

It could be coins one day, a dollar the next; some have given large amounts and others through checks. With modern technology today gifts are given online, no matter how one chooses to give one thing remains true, people are different because of you!

*This is my personal blog. The views, opinions, and statements made within the blog do not reflect the views or opinions of the Salvation Army, they belong to me!*

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Christmas is in the Air….

It’s that time of the year and Christmas is in the air! That can only mean one thing, it’s time for the Annual Adult Christmas Party at New Passion Church. This is definitely a night at New Passion you do not want to miss, in fact, we boast a 100% satisfaction rate from all previous attendees. This is a great night of laughs, good food and opportunities to meet new people and hangout with familiar faces. You can sign-up on our Christmas Party page, just tell us how many will be in your party and what finger food or dessert you’ll be bringing.

This isn’t a threat…but you wouldn’t want to make an elf angry with your absence, there’s no telling what could happen! Check out this clip from one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time 🙂

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My Vote Doesn’t Count, or Does it?

election-mapIt’s becoming a trend…well, ever since the 2000 election. All day, yesterday I saw posts on Facebook and heard people say, “My vote doesn’t count!” Or, “The electoral process is broken” in reference to the United States’ use of the Electoral College versus a popular vote. It is perceived that because a candidate MAY win the Electoral College but lose the “popular” vote that some voting injustice has taken place or that the system is broken. That is not true and in fact four five U.S. Presidents have won the Electoral College while failing to win the popular vote. A quick fact and then a quick explanation as to how your vote actually DOES count in the electoral college process:

FACT: We are not a democracy, we are a representative republic. A democracy utilizes a federal popular vote to decide elections, policies, etc. Our country is a collection of states (the United States) and as a republic we choose representatives that are supposed to make policies on behalf of the people within their states.

WHY YOUR VOTE MATTERS: First, democracy does not work and our founding fathers were very wise in understanding this. Democracy paves the way for mob rule. If elections were decided based on a federal popular vote, states that have a larger population like California and New York would have disproportionate influence and would essentially make all of the decisions for the entire country since they have larger populations. If the country was not a collection of states and was one group of people with identical laws governed by federal rulers, the larger populated areas would yield no greater power than another. For example: California has a population of 37.7 Million people and New Hampshire has 1.3 Million people, that is a huge difference when it comes to deciding important issues such as the presidency.

Second, your vote does matter! Your state utilizes a popular vote along with the electoral college. Whatever candidate wins the popular vote for your state wins the appointed electors. Each state has a specified number of electoral votes based on their population. This is why New York has 29 electors and Wyoming has 3. It’s not disproportionate for Wyoming voters, rather it is proportional for the number of citizens they have within their states population. Everyone says that the battleground states are what decide elections, but that’s only half true. If George W. Bush had not won West Virginia (5 votes) or New Hampshire (4 votes), he would not have won the Presidency in 2000.

RECAP: 1. A democracy would utilize a popular vote resulting in more votes from larger populated areas. Presidents and national issues would be decided by the larger populated states. Democracies are vulnerable to being hijacked by mob rule. Democracies cannot and do not work for a system built on state’s rights 2. A republic uses a representative system which allows those states to elect our President based on the population of that state. Those representatives vote based on the popularity vote of that state. Your vote matters in determining who your state casts their vote for. This system has worked for 236 years…in fact it worked this year with President Obama winning both the Electoral College and the Popular Vote…and it will continue to work in the future.

UPDATE: Donald Trump was just elected as the 45th President of the United States. He did so by winning the Electoral College 306 electors to 232 electors, but losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton (currently) 59,938,290 to 59,704,886. The narrative has once again hit news cycles and social media platforms complaining that the Electoral College system is broken, outdated, and needs to go away. Please save your time, it’s not going anywhere! This is the system of a representative republic. To maintain state’s rights, the electoral college isn’t going anywhere. Unless the country was fundamentally changed from a representative republic to a democracy, the electoral college isn’t going anywhere! Colorado loves their recreational marijuana and California loves their gun control. That is the beauty of state’s rights. It is what makes the United States unique and exceptional. My feeling is, the people who are sad, angry, and upset that Hillary Clinton lost and Donald Trump won are reviving this issue as a means to cope with their bad news. I do not write this in support or defense of President-elect Trump; I did not vote for him or Clinton and have a neutral voice. I write this for information and educational purposes. This is basic U.S. history and government facts. The electoral college is good and right for the United States. It’s not going anywhere.

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The Explicit Gospel Campaign

This Sunday we kick-off our 3rd year as a church with the Explicit Gospel Campaign. This series will help solidify who we are as a church and why we do what we do as a church. This campaign will be transformational for many who participate. Here’s how you can best be involved in what we are doing:

  1. Buy the Explicit Gospel book by Matt Chandler and read it. It’s a powerful book and it’s content is heavy, so be prepared for God to begin speaking to you through the truth Matt shares within it’s pages. You can order the book online or at the Guest Services table on Sunday. The Kindle version is also available online.
  2. Join a Community Group and allow yourself to become vulnerable to a community of other Christians. This will be a great opportunity to go deeper in our study of the Explicit Gospel. Each group will be going through the Explicit Gospel Bible Study (available for $6 for Community Group members or $12 for non-Community members who want to go through the study on their own)
  3. Be faithful to our Sunday services. You will fall into one of two categories: 1. You need to hear these messages for a total life change, or 2. You will be reminded of the great truth of the gospel and with joy can pray for those who need to hear it’s message for salvation or for spiritual growth as a byproduct of the gospel.
  4. Invite and Pray. Ask people to join you during this campaign and pray for the Holy Spirit to open eyes and hearts to God through it.

This is going to be a great week and a great campaign. Remember, as we celebrate our 3rd Birthday, we are moving to Grovetown High School and our service time will change to 10:30 am.