Your Boss Needs You To Be…

Another Great Post from Leading Smart

Your Boss Needs You To Be…

I don't care if you work for a church, a business, or a factory. I guarantee you, your boss needs you to be…

1. A Momentum-Increaser — don't make your boss be the only one pulling up the attitude and bringing energy to the workplace.
2. A Values-Champion — No one should live out the values of the organization more than you do.
3. A Silo-Destroyer — sniff out and destroy the silos that exist in departments throughout the organization. Make sure everyone is more committed to the macro vision than their micro project.
4. A Straight-Talker — don't engage in triangle conversations or put-downs of your team or leaders.
5. A Generous-Giver — okay, this one is specific to working at a church, but I would never work for a church where I didn't believe in it enough to give as much as I possibly could.
6. An Innovative-Thinker — be solution-oriented. Don't just come to your boss with problems, but also solutions. Your attitude should be, "Economy tough? Less staff? Lower budget? No problem, we'll figure out a way to get through this!"
7. A Loyal-Friend — you don't have to hang out together, but he needs to know you are "for" him. If put in a corner, your boss knows you would defend her.
8. A Back-Protector — always believe the best. Always.
9. An Integrity-Keeper — you are who you are when no one is looking. Your boss needs you to have great character.
10. An Unbelievable-Spouse and Effective Parent — the strength of your leadership and effectiveness comes from your leadership at home.
11. A Lifelong Learner — read books, study other best practices, learn, learn, learn–then come back and apply it to your organization.
12. An Equipping-Leader…not a Satisfied-Doer — You should be building teams and reproducing teams. Take delight in the success of your team more than your own success!

What else would you add to this list? Which one is most difficult for you?

Say Goodbye to the Untouchable Preachers

J Lee Grady doesn't mince words in this piece...

Say Goodbye to the Untouchable Preachers

Al Capone once controlled all of Chicago. The notorious 1920s gangster bribed the city's mayor, bought the police and presided as king over an empire of casinos, speakeasies and smuggling operations. He dodged bullets for years and lived above the law—and earned the nickname "untouchable" because no one could bring him to justice...

I hate to compare any minister of God to a gangster. But the sad truth is that today there are a handful (well, maybe more) of unscrupulous preachers who share some of Capone's most disgusting traits. They are notoriously greedy. They are masters of deception and manipulation. They have bought their way into the charismatic religious subculture and used their uncanny hypnotic ability to control major Christian TV networks.

And, like Capone, their days are numbered. Justice will soon catch up with them.

Read more: http://www.charismamag.com/index.php/fire-in-my-bones/29039--say-goodbye-to-the-untouchable-preachers#ixzz0vedQKYzd

Promises of God?

Just received this from Greg Koukl of STAND TO REASON and thought it intriguing... what do you think? Agree? Disagree? Why?

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When I was a new believer in the 70s, part of the standard "gear" for Jesus Movement Christians was a dog-eared paperback copy of The Jesus Person Pocket Promise Book.

It seemed like a sensational idea at the time, collect God's promises, and then cash them in as needed. Now, nearly 40 years later—though the promises of God are no less "precious and magnificent" (2 Peter 1:4)—I think twice when people claim them.

Promises are frequently abused, in many cases by people who should know better. A promise not carefully tethered to the details of the text becomes an empty exercise of relativistic wishful thinking.

Knowledge—"an accurately informed mind"—is the first characteristic of a good ambassador. Ambassadors need to get the content of the message right before they can accurately pass it on to others. Since everything we offer on God's behalf consists of promises of some sort, mistakes here really matter.

A biblical promise is a binding pledge from God to do—or not do—something specific. If the promise is made to you, you have a right to expect God to keep His word. If you are not the rightful owner, though, you may not lay claim to it. It is pointless to expropriate promises made to another, and can lead to disappointment and discouragement.

But how do you know if you are the fortunate beneficiary? You find out by looking closely at the details of the promise itself and applying two simple principles.

The correct meaning of any biblical passage is the meaning the author had in mind when he wrote it. A promise is only a promise when it is used as its maker intended. We discover that intention by paying attention to the specifics—the words, the conditions, the recipient, the timing, the historical setting—the details that make up the context of the promise.

The process can be organized into steps by asking (and answering) four questions: Who?, What?, Why?, and When?*

Who? Identify the particular person or people the promise is made to. The promise may be for a specific individual, for a group, or for anyone. Ask, Am I that person? If the promise is to a group (e.g. Jews, Christians) ask, Am I part of the group?

What?—Zero in on the particulars of the promise. Specify what the promise actually commits to. Ask, What will happen (or not happen) when the promise is fulfilled?

Why?—Why will the promise be fulfilled, that is, what must happen first? Note the conditions or requirements the promise hinges on, often signaled by an if/then clause. Ask, Do I meet the requirements?

When?—This is the promise time. The promise may be for a particular time ("…at this time next year …") or for an unspecified time. Ask the question, What is the time of the promise, if any?

We can only legitimately claim a biblical promise if it is rightfully ours. If the promise is for us, and we have satisfied the conditions, and the promise is for our time, then we can count on God to keep His word.

If not, then we must leave the promise to its rightful owner and profit from the text by learning what we can from God's faithful dealings with them.

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See I told you it was intriguing! :) Greg also has written a book entitled TACTICS: A Game Plan for Discussing your Christian Convictions