WISE, INTENTIONAL

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

TITUS EMAIL

Volume 2, Number 9 – September, 2008

WILD is getting ready to head to Nepal in November. During that time WILD will be hosting a Leadership Conference for about 35 people. Marty Aubol will be going along to teach and assist in whatever way he can. We will again teach at the Bible school I taught at last year, Ebenezer Bible College. The Spiritual Leadership material will be the curriculum. I would appreciate your prayers as we prepare for this trip. As a reminder, past issues of the TITUS email are at www.myhcy.com.

Also as you have been trained and given the spiritual leadership material, do not leave it on your shelf. Take the material and teach someone else. It is imperative that we reach the younger generation with training them how Jesus taught and developed His leaders. If we do not reach the younger people, there are ideologies out in the world that want to capture the minds of those 30 years and younger!!! Mike

YOKES

Where does courageous spiritual boldness fit in the life of a spiritual leader? Somewhere, sometimes as a spiritual leader we will likely be put in a situation where we will have to boldly stand before a group of people and either obey God or man by the way we respond. That became evident as the early Church met together in Acts 15 to discuss the circumcision question.

“We have always done it this way because it is tradition.” argument was circulating among Jewish believers. The blow-up occurred in Antioch, so Paul and Barnabas were appointed to go to Jerusalem and meet with the apostles and church elders. At the meeting, some believers who were Pharisees at one time said the Gentiles had to be circumcised and obey Moses’ law to truly be believers. Peter spoke to verify that the Holy Spirit was being given to the Gentiles when they believed in the gospel. By faith, the Gentiles were accepting the good news, and it is in the heart that people are changed.

“Why put external “yokes” on people that others could not even bear?” Peter asked. It is only through grace one is saved. Without the Cornelius experience in Acts 10, Peter would not have spoken this way. He had worked through grace versus works, what was biblical versus cultural. It was difficult to be the one to take the lead to share these thoughts and convictions. He was going against thousands of years of tradition and the argument that the Jews were God’s chosen anointed ones plus Moses had given them the Law.

Paul and Barnabas shared what God was doing and James reminded the gathering of the Old Testament prophecy that the Gospel would go to the Gentiles. A couple of guidelines on sexual morality and courtesy were given. The council agreed. No yokes, rules or regulations were placed on the Gospel.

A couple of questions come to mind. What yokes do I put upon people? Just like Peter, I need to work through my faith and whatever standards I place upon myself, many can not be put on others or it is legalism or Pharisaic. How to do devotions, dress, behavior, attitudes, prejudices, denominational requirements and views on end times all can potentially become yokes.

Another question is how do you develop spiritual boldness? Like Peter, spend time with Jesus, seek the Holy Spirit’s leading and be obedient to the Holy Spirit and the Word, pray, have others praying for you and begin to stand up for Biblical truth.

How important is it for leadership to be in agreement when new ministry opportunities arise? As spiritual leaders, we need to be listening to the Holy Spirit’s leading. If the Spirit is leading, there should be agreement. This does mean that legitimate concerns can and should be raised. Often concerns arise due to a person’s spiritual gifts, procedures and plans on how to implement a vision. Vision is from God, plans are man-made. Nehemiah had to change his plans part way through in order to finish the wall.

YOUTH MINISTRY INSIGHT

COMPROMISING SAMSON

Samson is a study of contrast. In one aspect of his life he was strong, while in another, he was weak. He was strong in his physical qualities. In Judges 14 – 16 the feats he accomplished were beyond amazing. God had set him apart at birth. By not cutting his hair, he was the strongest man alive.

Where Samson came in weak was in his character. He was a Nazarite, marked at birth for something very special by God. A Nazarite was to not to have anything to do with grapes including alcohol, have his hair cut and stay away from a dead body. Basically the vow was to put God first in everything.

Samson was to deliver Israel from the Philistines as the Judge of Israel God had appointed. When someone is appointed or set aside for a special purpose by God, God still gives that person the right to make choices and not turn him or her into a robot. The Bible indicates (like 1 Peter 2:9-10) that as Christians, we are special people who are given the right to make choices.

Yet Samson who was the strongest man in the world had a difficult time making moral choices. He came in contact with carcasses, disrespectfully treated people and had a hard time controlling his love life. Sometimes we can easily think we are invincible when it comes to either being gifted, having money, good looks or some level of power over people. The 16^th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln spoke very firmly that power corrupts. Having position or special physical features does not protect you from making poor character choices. In fact, the likelihood of making poor choices increases when you are put in these vulnerable situations.

Samson compromised his position. He could have been the most powerful person both physically and as leader of Israel but rather his life ended in tragedy. As a young person you will have many opportunities to make correct, God-honoring choices. Some choices will have little consequence while others will have very clear positive or negative outcomes that will affect your whole life. Do you want to throw away what God has created you to be for a one night stand, having a poor attitude about school, getting involved in alcohol or drugs or marrying someone who is either not a Christian or does not have the same heart to serve God as you do?

Most people if not all, aspire during our young ages to become a person of some kind of significance. I have not ever spoken with a teen whose life goal was to be a low life, a dirt bag or a prisoner with a hideous record. We all want to be special in some way. Samson was special, just as everyone created in God’s image (that includes all people) and had everything going for him until he began to compromise decisions he made.

Find someone who will encourage you to make good, Bible centered decisions. Get to know how Jesus wants you to think by reading the Bible and discuss those issues with other Christians who also want to be thinking the same way as Jesus would think. Make your life count to honor God.

ILLUSTRATION

The Battleship and the Lighthouse

In the darkest part of the night, a ship’s captain cautiously piloted his warship through the fog-shrouded waters. With straining eyes he scanned the hazy darkness, searching for dangers lurking just out of sight. His worst fears were realized when he saw a bright light straight ahead. It appeared to be a vessel on a collision course with his ship.

To avert danger he quickly radioed the oncoming vessel. “This is Captain Jeremiah Smith. Please alter your course ten degrees south! Over.”

To the captain’s amazement, the foggy image did not move. Instead, he heard back on the radio, “Captain Smith, this is Private Thomas Johnson. Please alter your course ten degrees north! Over.”

Appalled at the audacity of the message, the captain shouted back over the radio, “Private Johnson, this is Captain Smith, and I order you to immediately alter your course ten degrees south! Over.”

A second time the oncoming light did not budge. “With all due respect, Captain Smith, I order you to alter your course immediately ten degrees north! Over,” came the private’s voice.

Angered and frustrated that this impudent sailor would endanger the lives of his men and crew, the captain growled back over the radio, “Private Johnson. I can have you court-martialed for this! For the last time, I command you on the authority of the United States government to alter your course ten degrees to the south! I am a battleship!”

The private’s final transmission was chilling. “Captain Smith, sir. Once again with all due respect, I command you to alter your course ten degrees to the north! I am a lighthouse!”

How often do we when in a position of authority or using the Word of God demand our way without knowing the whole story? I was once told to not let my theology get in the way of my ministry. An example of this was Jesus and the adulterous woman in John 8. The Christians in Acts 15 and Samson used their authority and if nothing else, created problems, to say the least.

QUOTES ON CHOICES

“There is a choice you have to make in everything you do. So keep in mind that in the end, the choice you make makes you.” John Wooden, legendary college Basketball Coach

“The secret of a person’s successes is discovered in their daily agendas.” John Maxwell

“Be aware that the natural tendency is to mentally set an almost unreachable standard for success while simultaneously creating a definition that is easy to obtain.” Tommy Newberry

“Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.” William Jennings Bryan