Category: Leadership

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Transitions

butterfly

2009 is going to bring some exciting things! I can see some major transitions that will be taking place in the coming months and then I know there are transitions that will surprise me that I do not see coming. Some of the changes and new directions are HUGE and many details still have to be worked out before I can even talk about them with clarity. So today, I’m wondering, when you’ve had a specific upcomign transition, how did you approach it, or how do you approach it? Or, what is something valuable you have learned through a major transition in your life? Maybe it was a change of career, or a major move, a bigger step in leadership, an addition to your family, etc…Join the Conversation, today I want to learn from you…I’m all ears!

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Overcoming Obstacles in Leadership

I love this portion of John Maxwell’s, Developing the Leader Within You.

“A wise philosopher once commented that an eagle’s only obstacle to overcome for flying with greater speed and ease is the air. Yet, if the air were withdrawn, and the proud bird were to fly in a vacuum, it would fall instantly to the ground, unable to fly at all. The very element that offers resistance to flying is at the same time the condition for flight.”

I can’t tell you how many times as a leader I have thought or communicated the idea that if a specific obstacle was not standing in our way, we would be able to accomplish much more than we were able to in that moment. However, looking back on those times, I now see that without those obstacles or problems, we would have never achieved what we achieved. Erwin McManus shares that it is the very lack of resources that forces us as leaders to be more creative in achieving our goals…but many times people look at obstacles as God “shutting a door” or “God not providing.” So instead of mobilizing and moving forward towards our goal, we back down and sit paralyzed staring at the obstacle that we allowed to stand in our way. I immediately think about Joshua and the Wall of Jericho. Joshua knew what God had called him to but he had the choice to obey or to be paralyzed, we all know based on the Biblical account, he did not allow the obstacle to stand in the way. Here is what Maxwell goes on to say…

“Many of the Psalms were born in difficulty. “Most of the Epistles were written in prisons. Most of the greatest thoughts of the greatest thinkers of all time had to pass through the fire. Bunyan wrote Pilgrim’s Progress from jail. Florence Nightingale, too ill to move from her bed, reorganized hospitals of England…Bury a person in snows of Valley Forge, and you have a George Washington. Raise him in abject poverty, and you have an Abraham Lincoln. Strike him down with infantile paralysis, and he becomes a Franklin D. Roosevelt. Burn him so severely that the doctors say he will never walk again, and you have Glenn Cunningham, who set the world’s one-mile record in 1934. Have him or her born black in a society filled with racial discrimination, and you have Washington Carver, or a Martin Luther King, Jr. Call him a slow learner and retarded-writing him off as uneducable, and you have an Albert Einstein.”

So what obstacle are you allowing to be an excuse to be paralyzed as a leader? Finances, Space, Volunteers, Lack of Knowledge/Wisdom, Lack of Skill??? Sometimes the very thing we think is holding us back is the very thing that propels us forward! (By the way, if you have influence you are a leader – Christian, Business owner, parent, spouse, employer, teacher, we are all leaders in some way).

Join the Conversation: What obstacles as a leader are you facing? Is it paralyzing you or is is propelling you forward to be more effective?

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Influences (Part 2)

I’ve always told people that I feel God expects a lot out of me because I feel I have had so much invested in me. The Bible says, “To whom much is given, much is required.” I listed 7 leaders who have had influence in my life, either personally or from a distance in my Influences (Part 1) post HERE. Yet, I feel like the people I listed there and the people I will list here have been used by God to get me where I am today, but yet there are still other leaders waiting in the wings to help me get to the next level of my potential. Erwin McManus said this in Chasing Daylight, “No one moves from potential to maximum capacity without help from others. Often lost potential is the result of lack of investment.” – I never had anyone personally disciple me or take me aside and teach me leadership principles or principles for life in general other than my parents, I learned mostly by watching and observing others in action, and listening to others’ conversations and reading.

So with that, here are some of the final influences in my life, this is not by far all of them, but some key ones:

8. Rick Warren – Purpose Driven is not the only way to do ministry. In fact some churches have found that other paradigms work best for their church, however Rick Warren was key to opening my eyes to a whole new way of looking at life and ministry, simplified but effective. Who can argue with the 5 Biblical Purposes for our lives and a strong balanced focus for our ministries based on Evangelism, Discipleship, Service, Fellowship, and Worship? Rick Warren was one of the first people to help influence me in a direction away from legalism and religion.

9. Andy Stanley & Louie Giglio: When I think of Andy Stanley and Louie Giglio for some reason I think about them together. It was the Thirsty Conference in 2005 and the 2006 Catalyst Conference that I was dealing with some pretty heavy stuff in ministry. I was devistated, wounded, and ready to throw in the towel. However, at both conferences, God gave Andy and Louie the message that I needed on both occassions. I am sorry if you were one of the thousands of people there, but you were just along for the ride. 2 different conferences, 2 different years, 2 different speakers and a perfect message for some areas I was dealing with. Some of the key things I have learned from Andy is the following: #1 Leadership is a sterwardship, its on loan from God and He will hold us accountable. #2 God is soverign over the kingdoms of men and he gives them to whoever He chooses, even the lowliest of men. (I didn’t even have to look it up, its seared into my brain) and #3 The biggest temptation leaders have is to presume on God. Some of the key things I have learned from Louie is so much I cannot list them all, but a few are #1 How to love Jesus more and be who he has called us to be #2 How to pray like I am praying to a Big God and #3 The power of the cross.

10. Erwin McManus – I have never been so challenged in my life. I love his books, his podcasts, and every message I have heard from him. No matter how much I listen to Erwin, I walk away challenged and educated. I love Mosaic, I had an opportunity to visit there two years ago & it is amazing what God is doing there.

11. Larry Brown – My wife’s first pastor from birth until we got married and my pastor for several years. I never agreed with everyone he had in leadership positions at the church he pastored and the Christian school they ran, but he was a very godly man who loved Jesus and loved others, a man of integrity, a strong leader, and a great friend to my parents and my inlaws. Most of all he is a great pastor to his people and a friend to other pastors. He had a lot of influence in my life as a young person.

12. Charlie – Charlie is a friend who happens to be a superstar. Charlie is a morning show host for a Country radio station (WCOS 97.5) in Columbia, SC and last years Acadamy of Country Music Award Recipient for the Broadcast Personality of the Year for the Medium Market. I could careless about those stats though. Charlie has been an inspiration to me, I have seen him stand firm for what is right, when all others abandoned him and made him stand alone. I have seen him on the other side of the mic and see the huge heart that he and his wife have for our family and for other people in general. Charlie and his wife and their daughter Katy have been great friends to our family. Charlie is an outstanding teacher of the Bible and has greatly influenced my life through his teaching. Beyond being a great friend Charlie has been a mentor to me as a young man.

13. Dolphus Bell – Has some of the greatest integrity I have ever seen in a man. I served on a church leadership team with Dolphus and he is full of wisdom and has been a great spiritual mentor to me. I have learned so much from Dolphus I could not begin to share it all. I have seen Dolphus sit silent in some controversial meetings holding his peace, but when he spoke up at the very end, it was as if his words were straight from God. When I think of Dolphus I think of two things: #1 Wisdom and #2 He can get a hold of God; if you had a special prayer need, Dolphus is the type person you would usually want to go to first.

14. Bob Wilson – Bob and I have a special relationship. He is a great friend but also a great spiritual mentor. Bob and I have spent hours upon hours talking Jesus and ministry. Bob was our Small Groups Pastor at a former church and I was his understudy. He enabled me to learn small groups and to implement them in the ministries that I oversaw. He taught me a lot.

I believe one of the greatest things these people have taught me is character. None of them are perfect and some of the people mentioned here I have never met, but God has still used them in my life. Abraham Lincoln said, “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” I believe these men have used their power for good in my life and I am eternally thankful for it!

Join the Conversation: Who has had an influence in your life lately?

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Challenge the Process – (Quote of the Day)

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This is my dad…
This is me…

Funny, because I swore up and down when I was younger that I would never be like my dad. He was strict or at least I thought so at the time. I now find myself calling him often for advice and his opinion.

I am skimming through the Catalyst Groupzine, volume 1. (Its one of the items I picked up yesterday at STL.)

Here is Andy Stanley’s opening quote for which I relate:

The instinct to challenge the process is a fundamental quality of every leader. When God created leaders, He equipped them with an unsettling urge to unpack, undo, and unearth methods. This explains your tendency to question everything around you. It’s the reason you have such strong opinions – And such a strong desire to share them. God wired you that way.

I can’t wait to read through it…right now I’m just skimming.

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This is a great article!

Lessons Learned from a David under Saul Moment by Tony Steward

I believe that there are some of us who have the profound opportunity to follow under great leaders, and learn from their wisdom and experience, be inspired by their profound faith and grace with others, and submit to being refined by their sharp and watchful eyes. I believe most of us would leap at the chance to be under a great leader, to learn from them and grow under their mentorship and encouragement.

But, for most of us that is not the case. For many of us our most profound lessons in leadership come from seeing what one shouldn’t do vs. what one should do. We see selfish motivation spoken with spiritual language, we see manipulation and control where freedom should be encouraged, and we see insecurity and intimidation where we should see encouragement and confidence.

I have recently had a glaring example of that kind of experience that I would equate to 1 Samuel 18:9-11. “And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.…” while David was playing the harp, as he usually did. Saul had a spear in his hand and he hurled it, saying to himself, “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.

Now, before I go any further, this is not the bitter whining of a rightly whipped boy. All of us have weaknesses, and areas that we can drastically improve in – and it would always behoove us to be open to appropriate criticism and accountability. Needless to say, my recent experience falls on both sides of that fence and my hope is that I can share with you some of the lessons I have learned that have helped me to wade out to a positive and constructive resolution.

David had this same conflict of interest, in which he. He was called to a position that placed him under a leader who was doing it all wrong, and yet he still had much to learn. Event though his leader personally attacked him many times, all with the intent of killing him, David was still able to maintain an attitude of respect, honor and grace with his leader and king.

There have been three specific principles that I have pulled from David’s ability to function under Saul that I have found invaluable in my own experience:

1. Respect and Accept the Authority of the person called in Leadership over you, even if you don’t believe they deserve it. David had several opportunities to kill Saul, and if he had wanted to he could have defeated Saul and dis-honored him. And even though Saul had forsaken his commitment to God years ago; with respect and honor David still recognized the position that in which God had placed Saul in with respect and honor.

For many of us, it is really hard to look past the person to the called position. But as you serve in your call to minister, you have also been called to serve under the leadership that is present there. It was hard, but extremely helpful for me to understand my “Saul’s” authority came from God, and by respecting him I was respecting God and God’s call on my life.

2. You can only be responsible for you! David never spoke out against Saul, he never pointed out his faults, he never griped to someone else about his leadership style, he never tried to undermine him. And even though those things often put David at risk, they always pointed to a strong sense of self-awareness and humility, and the character of a true leader.

It is so hard to stay focused on yourself in a situation where someone is behaving so inappropriately. But I/you are not responsible for my/your “Saul’s” actions, he is. The same is true of me. I needed to take some of his spears and examine them for the truth that was there, and I needed to act on those things. I needed to look for opportunities to learn and grow in my profession through this that experience, because I am responsible for my actions. And if nothing else, David’s humble and incorrigible appropriateness towards Saul showed Saul’s faults and selfish behavior all the more to the people around him. The same must be true of us!

3. Be confident in your calling! No matter how Saul treated David, no matter the hardship that David faced, he never waned in his confidence in of who God had called him to be. David leaned upon God for strength and confidence in his call, especially during hardship. What started with a profound act of faith in defeating Goliath was just one of many steps that defined the life long call that God had set before him.

The same is true for us. It is so easy to question your call when you are personally attacked in ministry. It is so easy to feel like “I am no good at this whole ministry thing” and to want to just leave your ministry and your call. But just like David, we must find our identity and strength in God. We must be confident in our calling, especially in the face of people who would question and discourage us.

If I would end with anything, I would hope that those of you who are dealing with a situation similar to this wouldn’t take these lessons as a trite “how-to guide in making a hard situation fun!” Any time a leader lets us down, and especially when there is a personal attack – it hurts. These kinds of things cut us deep and wide, and stay with us a long time. But when we encounter situations like this we mustn’t must not fall into the trap of being more concerned about “being right” than “doing the right thing.” when we encounter situations like these. We must look for the positive, and ultimately be responsible for ourselves and ….

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” – James 1:2-4