Do you share a similar desire? Are you willing to do whatever is necessary to ensure that effectiveness?
Effective = producing a decided, decisive, or desired result; ready for service or action;
Defective = lacking; imperfect in form or function.
I'll never forget the first lawn mower Beverly and I bought. It was a red Murray push mower. We bought it at Kmart and I was excited about this first "manly" purchase. It was shiny, had a grass catcher attached to it and best of all it wasn't a hand me down.
We got it home, poured gas in the tank and I pulled, pulled and pulled the rope...but it wouldn't start. Talk about disappointing. I'm not the most mechanically inclined person to begin with, so I really didn't know where to begin. I called several people and asked for their advice...but nothing seemed to work. So, we loaded it in the trunk of our car and took it back to the store for an exchange. The good news is, the other one worked without any problem.
I'm not sure what was wrong with that lawn mower. Evidently, something was defective with it.
God wants us to be EFFECTIVE not DEFECTIVE!
In ministry, it's not any different. We're constantly looking for ways to improve what we do as leaders and what we do as a local church. Through trial, error and counsel, we've discovered ways to avoid defectiveness.
#1 Avoid the "serve me" mindset
- In a world saturated with "self" it is very easy to reach back to the nature of the flesh and settle for selfishness. Serving is paramount for any leader and Christian for that matter. We are called to "serve" not "be served." Jesus is our example in this area "...the Son of man came not to be ministered to, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." Matthew 20:28
- There are times you will be called out of your comfort zone to serve people in a way you've never served them before.
- A couple of years ago, Beverly and I were headed to lunch and witnessed a hit and run car accident. A car hit a mini-van and the van turned over on it's side. We parked our car and ran over to the van where a lady was trapped in the drivers seat. We told her that we were calling 911 and help was on the way. Then I told her we were pastors of a church down the street and begin praying for her protection out loud. (It's as if we received an extra boost of boldness) Immediately a sense of peace came upon her and we sensed the power of God all around. We stayed with her till the emergency vehicles came.
- Honestly, we didn't know what to do except PRAY. The need was in front of us and we responded. That's what ministry is...seeing a need and meeting it! If anything is "beneath" us...then we truly are not beneath Christ.
- Jesus said that the world will know we are His by the love we have for one another. The bottom line today is...Christians fight too much!
- Love must be the basis in all we do. It's easy to love the people who believe like you, act like you and share similar interests. However, what we need today in the body of Christ is an accepting love towards one another...even if we're different in our beliefs.
- Most of my family are Baptist. However, our common denominator is Jesus Christ. We may share different thoughts in our theology regarding the Holy Spirit but that does not prevent us from getting along and treating one another with the utmost respect.
- As I grow in the Lord, more and more I'm learning to love my brothers and sisters in Christ without having to agree with everything they say.
#3 Avoid Unbelief
- God is in CONTROL! Sometimes, we look at CNN or the nightly news and think, "man...this world is so messed up...what's going to happen next?" If we're not careful, fear will set in and we'll start viewing life through the lens of UNBELIEF.
- The good news is that God is still on the throne and He has never lost a battle yet!
- If you're a leader reading this, I want to tell you that God wants to see your ministry flourish even more than you do! He is the God that promised ABUNDANCE (John 10:10).
- It doesn't matter how many people act GOOFY and ruin their TESTIMONY...at the end of the day, God is still in control!
- Turn your eyes on Jesus...He's the one who has the responsibility of seeing the results. We're merely called to walk in obedience...He'll take care of the rest.
- By the way, in truth, the world needs to see way less of me and more of Him! (John 3:30)
#4 Avoid Nightmares and focus on Dreams
- Jesus said I can have what I ask for...when I ask in prayer & believing! (Matthew 21:22)
- Is it OK to ask God for BIG THINGS? Sure it is! Why is it that most Christians feel like they have to be as poor as Job's turkey in order to be humble?
- I want to DREAM BIG LOFTY DREAMS! I hope someone will accuse me of dreaming too big! I also hope they're standing nearby when the dream comes to pass!
- Some folks don't want your dream to come to pass...cause if it does, all the excuses they've been using for years of "why it can't happen"...suddenly holds no water!
- Some folks "hate ya" because they "ain't ya!"
- Isn't God the one who said He's able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think? (Ephesians 3:20)
- God wants you to dream big and He wants you to ask for more!
- You have the POWER already in you!
- You have the HOLY SPIRIT!
- With Him, you've got some incredible CREATIVITY at work inside of you!
#5 Avoid the "Disconnect"
- If we're to stay plugged in to the mind of Christ, than our personal time with Him is essential. However, a busy schedule can prevent you from having the personal time with God that you need.
- When we loose our connection with Christ, on a consistent basis, we are more likely to disobey His commands.
- My phone gets a lot of use. If I don't plug it in at night, I'll have no charge the next day. That's a lot like our walk with God. If we don't stay plugged in (connected) we'll lose charge and be limited in our ability to function.
#6 Avoid "Sick Days"
- If you're working for God...you're going to be attacked on every turn! (Especially if you're seeing results)
- Life isn't always easy. There will be ups and downs. You'll be attacked, lied on, discredited, misrepresented, misunderstood, talked about like a dirty dish rag, etc...HOWEVER...you can't give up!
- Jesus went to the cross...and He took a beating before He went. The least we can do is endure a little criticism and being kicked out of the social club at work and school!
- LEADER...if you're leading...expect to be CRITICIZED and CONDEMNED...move on...stay in the race even if you're wounded!
- The devil wants to wound you in the area God wants to use you!
- The enemy would love to hear you say, "take me out of the battle for I am wounded."
- LEADER...go to God in prayer. Talk to Him about what you're feeling. Be honest with Him.
- PASTOR...don't let an anonymous letter, tacky comment or a church member on their 5th church because they "can't find one to meet their needs" take you out of the battle! The reason people hide behind anonymous letters is because they have no GUTS!
- PASTOR...you are more valuable to the Kingdom than to let Sister Bucketmouth persuade you otherwise. Sister Bucketmouth isn't called to do what you're called to do...RISE ABOVE the critics and refuse to lower your standards.
- Don't call in sick...SHOW UP and you just might meet your Elijah in the field!
#7 Avoid being Flesh Led
- The flesh will tell you things like, "I don't feel good, I'm tired, etc." The truth is, none of us "feel good" all the time. However, we do not let our FLESH dictate our SPIRIT MAN.
- The Bible tells us four times that "the just shall live by faith."
- We walk by FAITH and not by SIGHT.
- If we have to "feel" saved to be saved, we won't be saved half the time.
- Jesus is with us...when we sleep, wake and walk through this life. We are never alone. He is constantly leading us and speaking to us...if we'll listen.
- If we're not careful, we'll make hasty decisions while in an emotional state of mind. When we do this, we usually make the wrong decision.
- (i.e., debt, dating, church, ministry, etc.)
- I've learned to wait on the Lord in a season of prayer before I make a major decision.
- I've also learned to seek the counsel of my spiritual covering in the major decisions of my life. When we seek counsel from those over us in the Lord, we are in a better posture to receive blessings that are SPIRIT BIRTHED not "MAN"UFACTURED.
- The Holy Spirit will lead us in a straight and narrow path. I've made a ton of mistakes when I've ignored the Holy Spirit's leadership.
