His Representatives

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." - Galatians 2:20

At the moment we are born-again, we become new creatures. Not only this, but at the moment of our conception into faith we become His representatives on earth. Now, when we say we are Christians, we are saying we are a reflection of Jesus. (Which can be challenging at times!)
 
We will never be perfect - that's for certain. That's why we needed Christ in our lives in the first place. But even though we know we're still full of flaws, it doesn't mean we aren't striving for God's reflection in our lives. The moment we are saved we become ambassadors for His kingdom, wherever we are. We become His ministers, in whatever we are doing. We grow in love as His sons and daughters. Day by day, we become more like Him, as we study His word and spend time worshipping Him. There is nothing to be afraid of - He knows we will fall short. That is why He has given us His gift of grace to help us when we make mistakes.
 
Imagine you are working for a company, one of the best in the world. This company is known for its service excellence and the way it treats its customers, employees, and the community. You have just been hired to be on the sales team, and you go through the training to learn the company rules and procedures. These policies aren't too distant from those found in the Bible. In order to keep your position however, and grow in the company, you must attempt to follow those rules and procedures to the best of your ability. Sure, there are fun days at work. Sure, challenges will happen. But, the policies and procedures will help to guide you through the business landscapes you will endure.
 
Being a Christian isn't all that different - the Bible is our guide. As we walk into our future in Him, we move knowing that our lives are a reflection of His love, grace, mercy, beauty, strength, and everything else that He is. Consider yourself a sales representative for the greatest franchise in history - the Kingdom of God. Both an exciting and sobering concept, huh?
 
May we grow in faith, grace, excellence, integrity, and most of all love, as we discover who we really are as His representatives on earth. 

Transactional vs. Relational Leadership

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." -John 15:13

Many a book has been written about the servant leadership Jesus modeled.  He said in a famous verse, "...he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves." -Luke 22:26  But, what was so special about the way Jesus led His followers?

Ford Taylor is a leadership consultant who trains leaders of leaders, and is involved in community transformation in the state of Ohio.  He teaches something called "transformational leadership", which is basically developing a relationship with someone to such an extent that they actually want to do whatever it is the leader is asking them to do.  This is also called relational leadership.

Businesses and other organizations cite fewer problems, higher revenue, and much less turnover by employing his principles.  Building relationship as being primary in leadership isn't a new concept:  Josh McDowell, the well-known youth leader and apologist has said, "Sharing truth without relationship leads to rejection. Discipline without relationship leads to anger."
 

Do you think the disciples wanted to follow Jesus?  Nobody was making them follow Him.  In fact, Jesus didn’t even pay them.  Through His relationship with the disciples, Jesus was able to change their minds about a lot of things, including who He was.  He was king of the Jews, even though He wore no crown, had no castle, and had no horse to ride upon.  But, He developed such a relationship with the disciples that they would have followed Him anywhere, and they would have died for Him.  Many did die for Him, after they realized who He was and that He first died for their sins.  It really was quite profound.

Is relational leadership something you employ?  Think about ways you can motivate those you serve by being more focused on building relationship.

Smaller Story vs. Larger Story

"Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him."  -Matthew 4:21&22

Each of us has a story.  When we have completed our lives here on earth, a story will have been written.  But, what we do today determines whether we will have lived our smaller story, or whether we stepped out into our larger story.

What is a larger or smaller story?  A smaller story is written when we accept the adversity life has handed us as reality.  We stay stuck in ruts unable to move forward due to our feelings about where we are.  We let our circumstances and past define us, instead of letting God define our now and our future.  We hold on the grudges and resentment citing other people to blame for our problems.  We accept mediocrity.  We likely don't enjoy where we are in life, but don't have much hope about the future.

In contrast, if living our smaller story is about doubt and defeat, living our larger story is all about faith and victory.  It takes much more faith to walk in our larger story, even if we believed in Jesus in the first place.  There are many people who believe in Jesus but stop there.  They don't have the faith that He can transform their lives. 

If we want to live extraordinary lives in Christ, then we have to have the belief that anything is possible, no matter what we've seen before.  This may involved a process of emotional healing and restoration, training in the things of God, and the letting go of past hurts and resentments through the power of the cross.  This may involve trying new things and stepping out into situations that are uncomfortable for us. Whatever it is, if we want to step into our larger story, discomfort and faith is defininitely a part of this process.

Which story are you living?  Are you living your smaller or larger story?  Pray and ask God today to bring you into the larger story He intends for your life.

Having a Positive Attitude

"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." -James 1:2-4

You know, in life its pretty safe to say, people don't tend to enjoy being around negative people. There is enough negativity out in the world, coming from the news, our workplaces, and perhaps even our own families. The reality is people enjoy being around people who help them feel better, to look at the positive side of a situation, and who have an "anything is possible" attitude.

The apostle James had this kind of perspective: "...consider it an opportunity for great joy..."

Of course, there are plenty of instances where being overly happy or joyful is not appropriate, such as the death of a loved one or a very trying situation. But, this does not mean we cannot be positive and at the same time empathize with someone's situation. When we're going through something hard, it's good to have good, positive people around who understand.

Winston Churchill said, "Attitude is a little thing that makes a BIG difference." (my emphasis)

Do you need to have a more positive attitude? If you're not sure, ask the people around you if you need to be more positive. One person can either buoy up or drag down an entire team, depending on their attitude.

Religion Trips Us Up

"So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses."  Galatians 5:16-18

Have you ever heard the story of the big red button?  I used to see it often in cartoons as a kid.  The cartoon character is presented with a situation in which there is a "big red button" he or she was not allowed to touch, and sooner or later they can't help themselves. 

I think this is a lot like religion versus a relationship with God.  When we're living in religion, we’re bound by a set of rules that we have to live by in order to be accepted by God and others in our faith.  The success or failure of our religion is based upon our ability to perform certain activities or refrain from certain ones based on the nature of what our faith law says.  But Jesus came so we wouldn't have do that at all on our own.  He was the fulfillment of the law, and yet set us free from it.  He came first so that we might have life, and life more abundantly.  He came to set us free! 

"When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death. But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit."  Romans 7:5&6

If we feel bound, I think it means we have not fully embraced the resurrection life that God desires for us.  Jesus sets us free from a list of rules and regulations, but we learn how to follow them when we simply place our trust in Him.  Our sanctification is God-birthed, versus self-birthed.  Sooner or later, we have no desire to press the big red button, because Jesus fills our hearts in every area that lacks.

Are you living under religion or are you led by the Holy Spirit?