Sacrificial Praise

Because Your loving kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name

— Psalm 63:3–4

 

A hospital chaplain kept a record of 2,000 patients who were apparently in a dying condition and showed signs of repentance. But he noted that of those who were restored to health, only two showed a marked change in their spiritual lives after their recovery. In other words, when people thought they were dying, they remembered God, but when they recovered, they forgot about Him.

Maybe you have had a crisis recently, and it got your attention. Remember to call upon God. Remember to put your trust in Him. Far too often we ask God for help, but we don't give Him anything in return. What would you think of a person who was always asking for resources and favors, but never took time to thank you?

It is one thing to give thanks when things are going well. But we can also give thanks when things are not going well. Psalm 63, one of my favorite psalms, was written at a time when David was in exile in the wilderness, running from his son, Absalom, who wanted to take over his throne. David was an elderly man at this point. Yet in the midst of his anguish and personal pain, he wrote, "Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name" (verses 3–4).

Remember to Thank Him

So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?"

— Luke 17:17–18

 

Luke 17 tells the story of some men who had a lot to give thanks for. Prior to being miraculously touched by Jesus, they were complete outcasts—the very scourge of society. These ten men had the worst disease of the time, leprosy, for which there was no cure. They couldn't get any lower in that particular time in history with this incurable disease.

Those found to have leprosy could have no contact with others. They had to leave their house and their friends and live apart from them. These men were living an isolated, miserable life. Their clothing would have been ripped from perpetual mourning. Their skeletal heads would have been uncovered. They had to cry out, "Unclean! Unclean!" wherever they went, in keeping with the Law of Moses. But they had heard about Jesus. And seeing Him in the distance, they cried out, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" (Luke 17:12–13).

Reasons to Be Thankful

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

— Psalm 107:1

It seems as though merchants really don't know what to do with Thanksgiving. They market Halloween and Christmas and make a lot of money off these holidays. But they don't really know what to do with Thanksgiving, which is really very spiritual in its origins. It was designated by President George Washington in 1789 as a national day for giving thanks to God.

In the midst of all our feasting, it is very easy to forget about the one we are celebrating. Sometimes we even forget to give thanks altogether. You might be thinking, Well, I don't have a lot to give thanks for. Maybe you are having financial troubles or health problems. Maybe there is conflict in your family. But we need to put things into perspective. As someone wrote,

Lead on…

Lead on…

Casting a vision and leading people are not easy to do.  Here are a few pointers when it comes to creating vision in the local church.

Don’t micromanage.  Create a program or system for management then simply allow others to do their job.  You may consider employing another person to do the managing.  This would be someone who is close to you and knows how to follow your orders.  Let them do the follow up, you cast the vision.

Admit mistakes.  Being the leader does not mean you are going to be right 100% of the time.  There are going to be times you make mistakes.  Admit them quickly and cast a new vision.  Allowing yourself to make mistakes will show your congregation that you are human and will enable them to feel that you are approachable. 

Lead without fear.  Fear will cripple your potential.  “We have not the spirit of fear.”  Seek your churches direction from the Lord.  While it is good to get other people’s opinion and counsel regarding the direction the church should be moving, God alone can give you Divine direction.  Seek God’s face for His will.  Once he gives you direction, move forward into it without fear of defeat or what others may think.

How to Build a Team of Leaders

How to Build a Team of Leaders

"In these days he went out to the mountain to pray; and all night he continued in prayer to God.  And when it was day, he called his disciples, and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles;"  (Luke 6:12-13)

Whether the church you pastor is a big, thriving church or it is a growing church with twenty members it is very important to have a great team of leaders.  You may only have one other person on your team or maybe you have a hundred.  However many you may have, it's important to make sure you have the right people on board and that you are all going in the same direction.  Here are a few ways to choose the right people for your leadership team.  Remember when you start out to build your leadership team to build a team that is based on Biblical principles and characteristics.

Note:  The night before Jesus chose His twelve disciples, he continued in prayer all night.  When is the last time you prayed all night before you made a decision?

Choosing the right leadership team members.
You can accomplish anything in life, provided that you do not mind who gets the credit.                                             -Harry S. Truman
Begin choosing your team members by making a list of Character Traits from the Scriptures.

       1. Use the traits Paul gives for the office of Elders and Deacons. (1 Timothy 3, Titus 2)
      

       2. Use the list given in Galatians 5:22-23 as to the fruit of the Spirit.
               

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance:"