Jan
25
2010
If we aspire to be spiritual leaders in ROTC and eventually the military, than we must decide to live as disciples of Jesus; live authentic and transparent lives. A big lie we allow ourselves to believe is that we need to have most every aspect of our lives together or at least pretend that we do. It is natural for us to hide what doesn’t look good. 
Vulnerability is not our enemy but it our greatest tool to connect to a broken world. If we desire to have an impact on others then we must share our lives with others by revealing our brokenness to others, not cover it up.
1st Thessalonians 2:8 says, Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.
- How are we able to impart our lives to others if we are hiding significant parts from them?
Often in evangelism, we ask others to take a chance and trust what we are telling them but what we are offering maybe the appearance of Christianity. “Come follow me as I follow Christ” should communicate that I too am learning how to walk, not that I have arrived (which is prideful). I used to think that if other really knew the truth then they would never listen to me. Sometimes I still default to this thinking but when I share the truth of where I am at and not fabricate the appearance of having it all together, I usually find myself identifying and connecting at a greater level with others.
It helps me to realize that it takes God a lifetime to change my heart. In a moment, I gave my life to Christ, but every day I am presented with opportunities to allow God to save me from my sinful nature.
God give me a new heart. Renew my spirit and transform my mind so that I can live for more of you and less of myself. Help me to genuinely put on love. A love that brings about perfect unity and authenticity.
Jan
8
2010
I recently had the privilege of hearing Eric Swanson speak. What really stood out to me were some remarks on passion and how they relate to evangelism and relationships:
- Evangelically, if we can connect people to the passions God created in them, then we have an entry point into the Gospel.
- Relationally, if we can connect the passions of people to the bigger story of the world’s brokenness, we can help people “change the world”.
Have you ever aske
d yourself or others if it is possible to help change the world?
Ask yourself, what are you passionate about? How has God uniquely gifted you to change the world? Many of you are heading for military service. Is the military your passion? It may or may not be. Our profession doesn’t have to have the sole ownership of our passion. But the greater question is how you can serve the Lord in what you are passionate about. It will take passion to change the world!
We are all very familiar with Eph 2:8–9:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast”.
But also with it should be read verse 10:
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
This should tell us that our salvation is not just for our security, but it is what will allow us to fulfill the purposes God created us for .
Now consider 2 Cor 5:10:
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”
God not only calls us to fulfill the good works He prepares for us, but He also equips and prepares us to do it. God has uniquely created each of us with different passion and He has prepared different works for us to accomplish. We each have a unique assignment from the Lord. Passion is an emotion that can be repressed through doubt or fear; or it can be embraced and used mightily to accomplish the tasks that He has assigned us.
Passion is an indispensable quality for any leader. Authentic passion captivates and inspires those around us. By leading spiritually, truly leading, our passion for following Christ should motivate others to catch fire.
Father help us understand how you created us for a purpose to help change the world. Help us to access the passion that you have put inside our hearts. Allow us to live unhindered from the thorns of this world and to live freely, passionately for Christ. Amen.
Nov
30
2009
I read John Maxwell’s blog post this morning and it made me think about the effect of our lives on others. Do we inspire them? Maxwell proposes this Inspiration Equation to reveal how we inspire others:
What They Know(about us) + What They See(about us) + What They Feel (about us)=(are they) Inspired
I think how we inspire others is a good measuring line for effectiveness concerning Spiritual Leadership. Breaking down this equation makes us think from others’ vantage point and should cause us to ask questions of ourselves.
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” John Quincy Adams
- Do people know that we care or just know our agenda?
- Have we sought to understand others where they are at?
- Are we trustworthy enough to confide in and be vulnerable with?
- Do we live out what we talk about?
Our ability to influence, motivate and inspire others helps us lead. No other man ever did this as well as Jesus when He poured His passion out and inspired 12 men and ultimately the world.
As we build relationships and live out our passion for the Lord, we can cause a ripple effect that motivates and inspires others to live boldly for Him.