Buddy, Bored, Jerk, Empowered

A year ago, I had someone use a similar graph that I included below, to talk about leadership and its influence.  At the very center of the graph is the coordinate (0, 0).  As someone grows in their RELATIONSHIP with others in a positive direction, they go up vertically.  The opposite is also true – If a leader has none or a negative relationship with people, they go down vertically.  This concept also applies for the horizontal line (CHALLENGE).  If there is no challenge, influence goes into a negative category.  Likewise, if challenge is present, influence increases.

The four categories (Buddy, Bored, Jerk, and Empowering) describe the type of influence you have with any given person. 

BUDDY – If you have a high level of relationship with someone, but relatively no challenge, you will have a “Buddy” relationship with that person.  You may be friends (or kind acquaintances) but there is no real life change occurring. 

BORED - If you have a negative relationship and no challenge, you’re considered as “Bored” or “Boring.”  People really don’t want to be with or around you.

JERK – If you are a challenging person – the type that likes to challenge people to grow in a positive manner – but you have no (or a negative) relationship with someone, you are viewed as a “Jerk.”  While you have a positive level of challenge, you have no real influence because you are missing the positive relationship.

EMPOWERING – As a leader, if you have both a positive level of relationship and challenge, you are known as “Empowering.”  As a result of having a relationship, as well as presenting challenges for personal growth, you have influence that is life changing.

This concept relates to us as a Christian.  It relates to Elders, Staff, Deacons, Teachers, Servers… to everyone in the church.  Think about one relationship you have with someone in our congregation and one relationship with someone outside of our congregation (maybe someone at work or a friend).  Where would you place yourself on the graph above in regards to those relationships?  Where do you think those people would place you?  This simple graph has helped me to take a close look at me and my interactions with people.  In the past, I admit that most of my relationships tended to be in the Buddy category.  I had high levels of relationship, but I was not challenging people to grow.  So while I had a lot of positive relationships, those relationships never produced life change (or fruit).  I had the mentality, “I will plant seeds, but I might never see the fruit.”  This mentality is the reality for anyone living as a “Buddy.”  You can plant seeds by talking positively about Jesus or the local church or about your own life, but until you present a challenge, you will not see the results. 

I have a feeling that most Christians tend to live in the “Buddy” category.  I lived there for years.  In many relationships, I’m still there.  But I have seen in my own life that as I add challenge to my positive relationships, growth happens, fruit is produced, and I get to celebrate in that harvest (life change).

Ephesians 5:8-17

"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.  Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.  It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.  But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.  This is why it is said:

“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”

Be very careful, then, how you live —not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. "

What's in a Name

What does your name mean?  Where you named after a relative or Biblical character?  Maybe your name is a combination of the two.  The way we go about choosing names for our children is very different from what we see in the Old Testament.  When we name our children, we tend to name them after another person we know or give them a name we think sounds good.  In the Old Testament, names were given based on circumstances and meaning.

This past Sunday we looked at 1 Samuel 1, specifically at the story of Hannah.  She was a woman who was unable to have children because of God.  That is correct, God was the reason she was unable to conceive.  God didn’t do this as an act of punishment, rather He had a plan and in His timing, He would be glorified by Hannah becoming pregnant.  Hannah’s son played a pivotal role in leading the people of God as well as transition the Israelites out of the “Judges” and into a monarchy. 

One thing that I mentioned in the sermon was that Hannah named her son “Samuel,” which means, “Heard by God.”  She named him this in response to God answering her greatest prayer and giving her hope.  I then asked “What are some of the Samuel moments in your life?”  I would love to hear some of your responses to this.  If you are able to post your answer to this on Facebook for others to benefit from, that would be great.  If not, I would still like to hear from you sometime this next week.

If you would like to do a little more Bible study on this, check out 1 Samuel 7.  After driving off the Philistine army, once and for all, Samuel set up stone and gave it a name.  I would challenge you to check that out and see if this reflects anything in your life!

Mothers Day

This Sunday is Mother’s Day.  We will be looking into the life of a mother whose faith allowed God to use her and her son to change the course of a nation.  If you want to get a head start, I would encourage you to read the first few chapters of 1 Samuel.  On top of looking into the life of a mother that so many can relate with, we will be doing something special to remember mothers who are no longer with us.  I believe this will be a powerful day as we worship our father and give praise to him as a congregation.  I hope to see you all here this Sunday, 10:30am. 

I know I say this a lot, but this will be a great service to invite friends and family to come along with you.  Keep your eyes open and your heart prepared for the Holy Spirit to lead you into this opportunity.  If you are willing, He will provide you the chance… guaranteed.  As Luke 1:17 say, “and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Jesus is preparing and has prepared the hearts of those around you.  He is ready to change lives in a miraculous way and He is waiting for you to respond to this call and invite others to check out this thing we call Christianity.  Don’t use the excuse that you need to develop your relationship with that person a little more.  God is READY to do something big – that person you have been praying for is READY to respond today – are you READY to act now?

Make it happen

A couple of weeks ago some college students moved in just a few doors down.  That night they had a party to celebrate their new move and the beginning of the Fall semsester at WMU.  To my surprise, they kept the noise down.  Our parking lot was flooded with cars for most the night and into the early morning hours, but by 7am most were gone.  The remenence of plastic cups on the ground and stale beer in the air was the only evidence of that night.

As I walked out to my car that morning I was a little taken back by all the trash (plastic cups and some other garbage) that was scattered around the parking lot and in the grass.  Had these students really just moved in and then trashed the place? 
...

Coming home at the end of the day, I quickly noticed how clean everything was.  All the trash was picked up, the garbage on the lawn was gone and everything looked normal.  It wasn't that these new tenants woke up and cleaned up the mess left by their celebration.  Instead, it was John.
John is an employee of our apartment complex.  I have seen him before walking around with a 5 gallon bucket and tool used to help grab trash.  Every morning he goes through the entire apartment complex (and it is huge) picking up random trash. 

After I got home I made it a priority to go to the main office and let them know that John had done a great job in keeping the area clean.  I asked if they would relay the message for me and let him know that someone has noticed the good job he is doing. 
...

This morning Danielle (my 8 month old) woke up early crying.  She has not been feeling good for a couple of days now.  At 6am she decided that she wanted to be inconsolable for the next 75 minutes.  I took her down stairs and rocked her, fed her, and Asia sucked the snot out of her nose with the one thingy.  Eventually she went to sleep. 

So... I decided to skip the morning workout and just come into the office early today to get things done and while walking outside I noticed John out picking up trash.  Yesterday I preached and one of the things I encouraged the congregation to do was to take chances that were presented to them and talk to people.  Specifically attempt to start relationships, or advance previous ones, in attempts to share love and the gospel with them.  Now i dont want to see a bunch of people shoving religion down the throats of others, but i do believe we as Christ followers need to be conscious of the fact that we are called to be light and salt in this world.  We can only be that if we act.  It would be wrong of us to merely sit by and allow the world around us to continue to go to hell.  We need to be actively and shrewdly seeking the lost.

I walked up to John and introduced myself and let him know that i noticed he had been doing a really good job.  I mentioned to him that I complemented him at the front office and before I had a chance to ask if they relayed it to him, he said, "So your the one."  With a big smile on his face, he took off his work gloves and shook my hand and shared how much he appreciated what I did.  I didn't have to complement him at the office that day a week ago.  I didn't have to say a word to him this morning either.  But I figured if I preached it, I might as well live it.

Hope you get a chance too............................. 

Cage fighters need Jesus too

This morning after working out at the gym I saw a guy I haven't seen in a while.  He is a lightweight cage fighter.  He and I have talked superficially in the past but I haven't seen him for at least 3 weeks.  It would have been really easy for me to walk out after my workout, and actually I did partially make my way to the locker room when my mind said, "Cage Fighters need Jesus too."  I turned around, went back to the cardio room to at least say hi and let him know i had noticed his absence from the gym.  I didn't expect much but I knew I have to start progressing relationships like this if I really want to put Christ first in my life. 

As I walked back into the cardio room, just by chance, his workout on the treadmill was finished.  He stepped off and looked up just as I walked in and a huge smile came over his face.  We both said hi and I asked where he has been.  Come to find out he has been recovering from 2 cage fights over the past 3 weeks.  He had some sore ribs from his last fight.  I asked more questions about his fights and how he was doing and all of that.

"Jesus" never got brought up, but I know that if I ever hope of reaching a guy like this for Christ, I have to be intentional with developing more than a superficial relationship.  I know that this Cage fighter needs Jesus.  Who's the person in your life, friend or just someone you see once in a while who you need to be more intentional with?

http://www.sermoncentral.com/pastors-preaching-articles/francis-chan-francis-chan-we-need-to-think-biblically-977.asp?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=BetterPreachingUpdate

Found this Catalyst video on a friends facebook.  Francis Chan talks about reading ourselves into the book of acts.  What do you think from this clip?

Eat this Book

• Think Biblically—It's hard for an athlete to follow a game plan if he misses all the team meetings. It's just as hard to follow God's game plan if we don't know the Scriptures (what they actually say, as opposed to what we might think they say)

                                                             (Larry Osborne - 10 dumb things smart Christians Believe - pg 67)

Romans 12:2