What If...

On the Grid 1

Do You See It?

People are in need all around you, not just on the TV.
God is working all around you; even when it is not through traditional means or a church program.

Do you see it?  Will you slow down long enough to?  Do the people around you matter?  God has gifted and resourced you to make a difference where you live, work, gather and play. 

You are there. 
People and their needs are there. 
God is there. 
Where are you?

Do you see it? Do you see what could be if you just open your eyes and say, "Yes."

About Cake

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About Cake, Etc. - Home.

Indy Car Chapel in Ky Today

Some of My Axioms

*Every organization becomes its leader.
*There is always a way!
*Everything can be fixed.
*People do what they really want to do.
*What you are looking for, you will find.
*The most important sermon is the sermon before the sermon.

Do you have any?

Bill Hybels - Relentless (Final Session From Leadership Summit)

Mother Theresa

God is looking for fully committed hearts.

How can we answer with just a fraction of our hearts?

M. Theresa vowed to be fully committed and also committed to the little practices of loving and treating all people with dignity.

Another little practice:  making sacrifices and serving others.

Are you lighting up the heavens by your service?

Many people want more/bigger power, influence stuff and not more of God.

If you were God, would you give you more influence?

MT was ecstatic even that God would speak to her. 

Her assignment: work with the poor & broken.  She said yes and was elated.  She intended to get after it without delay.

Sometimes God speaks to normal people and calls them to move in an instant.

When God calls do you move without delay – no matter what

God’s call vs. Security/My Life...instead of saying I will obey without delay…the scales tip and people delay and the stories don’t usually don’t end happily

Don’t let that be your story
Embrace your calling without delay
Refuse God nothing…you won’t regret it.

After MT’s “Inspiration Day” the next 16 months became hell
She shared her vision and was held up and told to go back to teaching
She decides to lead up; she continues to meet with her superior and cast the vision

She wants to say yes but can’t because of obstacles beyond her control

During these phases painful shaping often takes place?

Questions?  what price am I willing to pay?  Was it really from God?  Might I have to adjust to His timetable?  Do I really believe God can change the heart of those above me?  Can He still part waters?  Would I lay down my life to carry out the vision that God has given me to carry out?

It took MT 4 months to just get permission to even speak to archbishop about her vision who would make the call.  When he did she said no.  wait.

She was done waiting.  She started a writing campaign…for months.
And then the “let me go letter”

If it is of God it will prosper/Paul…I only care about the mission not about my life

Amazing Video:  1000 Questions

Here am I.

Craig Groeschel from Leadership Summit

What is it?

Don’t know

God makes it happen.
We can’t create it.
We can’t reproduce it.
It is rare that one person will bring it.
It is common for one person to kill it.
It isn’t a system or model.
It can’t be bought.
It isn’t in a denomination

Wherever you see it.  You see changed lives.
It gets shot at by people who don’t understand it.

The bad news:  if you have it, doesn’t mean you are going to keep it.
The good news: if you don’t have it, doesn’t mean you won’t find it.

The early church had it (guy falling out of a window & get’s up; people sold what they had to meet needs)

Acts 2:42-47 (everyone, many, all, everything, anyone, everyday, daily)

How do we get it?

Don’t know.

Qualities that are there when it is present.

1)  Laser focus
•    What Can I be the very best at?
•    What are you doing that you need to stop doing?
2)  See opportunities where others see problems
•    if Peter had the money he could have given the lame man what he wanted instead of what he needed
•    what does God want to show you?
•    What is God trying to show me through my greatest limitation?
3) Willing to fail
•    shake it off & Step up (Mule in a hole story)
•    you have everything that you need to do what he put in you to do
•    God wants to give it to you
•    What has God called you to do that you are afraid to attempt?
•    If you can do it, it doesn’t take faith; if it doesn’t take faith it doesn’t please God
4) Organizations that have it are led by people that have it.
•    Not what will bring people in but what will bring glory to God
•    When you have it inside, you give it; you draw people
•    Don’t trust in the fruit..(buildings, sermons, technology) trust in it
•    Is it time to let God break your heart all over again
•   
•   
If you don’t have it, what will you do to get it?

LifeChurch.TV

John Burke

Making and maintaining good soil is everything if you want things to grow.
What kind of soil do people need to bloom into what they were created to be.

God causes the growth.  You don’t.

Spiritual leadership is all about tending soil.  God does the growing…

We have to be willing to get our hands dirty cultivating the soil of messy lives

We are the body of Christ / his actual body on earth
What should our ministry look like
What did Jesus’ ministry look like

Am I leading more like Jesus or the Pharisees?

We have to cultivate the soil with grace giving acceptance.

Earthly kings do law; God does grace
Earthly kinds want you to do things; God wants you to become

We have to look at our context and help move barriers out of the way
Every context is different; the only way you will figure out your barriers is to get your hands dirty.

Leaders must cultivate the soil with authentic confessing community.

Stay connected fruit happens

Do we constantly seek conversation with God.

60/60 Journey (alarm every 60 seconds for 60 days to remind you to talk with God)

Bill George

Are you fulfilling your leadership calling?
 Are you a light on a hill?
Are you letting your light shine?
Are you using your gifts to give back?
The parable of the talents … don’t hold back

We’ve been in a leadership crisis for 10 years.
People have lost trust in leaders 1/5 trust business leaders; /12 trust congress; 48% trust ministers

we are born to manifest the glory of God that is with in us everyone of us;
not just some step up & claim it

all anyone can ask you to be is yourself
we get pulled off of our True North when we try to be other things.

1) Align our lives in things we believe in
2) Empower others to step up & lead
3) Act as servant leaders
4) Effect the global 6 needs; it takes collaboration/no one can do it on their on

1) you must understand the purpose of our leadership
2) gain self awareness
3) follow your God given talents
4) set values
5) build a support team around you
6) lead an integrated life (be the same person in all environments)

think about the end of your life? What did people say? What impact did you make?

RFK Quote > Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total; of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.

Gary Haugen

Where are we leading people?

We are leading people some where…

(missed part)

27m people living in slavery right now.
How are they supposed to believe that God is good?
2m children held in forced prostitution
How are they supposed to believe that God is good?

God wants them to know that he is good and wants them to know love.

He is passionate about the work of justice (Psalm 11)

If he is so passionate, why isn’t he doing something about it?
How does he respond?

We are the plan.  There is no other plan that we know of.
Micah 6:8
God has given to us the work of justice in the world.

If you want your leadership to matter, lead in the things that matter to God.

We know justice matters even though it seems hopeless and dangerous but
In the happy in safe is not a place where leadership matters
Leadership that matters happens when the calling seems hopeless, scary & hard

We lead by re-centering the basis of our hope

Hope is recovered when we remember that if God is passionate about getting it done then he is responsible for getting it done.

The feeding of the five thousand…
The disciples felt hopeless and couldn’t see a way
Jesus asks…what do you have?  Will you give it to me & I’ll do the miracle!

How do we lead when the task seems scary?

Jesus didn’t come to make us safe.  He came to make us brave.
If it isn’t scary, are we following?

How sad to go on the trip but miss the adventure!

Have we chosen the visitors center instead of the adventures of the park?
How do those exhibits & movies feel now?
Do we have the stories of those who hiked, climbed, walk, swam…

Do I abandon all that I do well?

No.  these are great things from God that he wants to use.
He wants to meet us and use what he has given us.

How do we lead others on the more demanding climb?

1)    Choosing not to be safe
•    we must go to places where we need God
•    do we have a work that we can’t imagine doing without prayer?
•    Maybe we need a new life’s work? Or ours done in a new way?
•    At the visitors center we just need an infrequent check in with Dad.  On the path we need him.
•    It is safe to follow him up the mountain.
2)    Choosing deep spiritual health
•    The climb demands deep spiritual health
•    People doing the scary thing generally have to have the deep…
•    Comfortable people work the checklist
•    We can’t survive the climb without our parent’s help on the steep paths
•    On the journey for justice people need God and will run to him
•    1 hour a day of prayer @ IJM makes all the difference…one our a day doing nothing is a must in accomplishing anything
3)    Choosing excellence
•    we have settled for mediocre spirituality and creativity
•    enough of the Christian adjusted scale is enough
•    may we raise the bar of excellence!
    4)  Choosing to seize the joy!
•    The struggle is hard
•    There is something wrong if Jesus’ burden is light & mine is hard
•    Jesus enjoyed life
•    The joy of the Lord is our strength
•    These things I have spoken so that my joy may be in you…
•    Jesus is offering us a way to lead people out of small Christianity and fears.  Into a struggle that will call us out of safety, into deep spirituality, into a quest of excellence and down paths to seize joy

Why have we been given so much?