All in Leadership
I read recently an amazing thought about President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863: It was signed into law over two years before those in slavery actually had their freedom.
They were “legally” free but not “actually” free. Is that possibly happening to you?
It’s obvious I have a big family: six children and my nineteenth grandchild soon to be born. Now, we are watching our children change the world. These principles helped us to do that.
“Bushwacker” is the name of one of the fiercest and most dangerous bulls of all time.
One top rider was thrown by Bushwacker and landed broken in the hospital. His next time on Bushwacker, he defeated him…for the first time in history!
His secret? “The first time I rode him, he owned me. This time, I owned him before I went out there. He was afraid of me, not me afraid of him.”
Everybody is buying stuff that is too hard to protect. Life becomes complex. How can we simplify our possessions so that they have less of a hold upon us?
The world is crazy about self-promotion. God’s mighty power, however, is revealed through humility.
If you are battling with anxiety, here are three truths that will make it DISAPPEAR!
I love the little glass peephole installed in our front doors, hotel room doors, etc. It gives you a chance to “check out” your caller and either open the door…or run away!
We need a “peephole” in the “front door” of our minds! It seems we just “throw the door open” to any and all thoughts that come calling.
My Daddy had a famous phrase: “Keep it simple, hang loose, travel light.” Our problem is that we are carrying too much stuff with us on the journey. I remember a time I was helping my daughter move home from London. She had at least eight suitcases. We were trying to get on the subway for the airport and I found myself at the bottom of an escalator sprawled on the floor with all eight piled on top of me! WE HAVE TOO MUCH STUFF.
Fear and timidity can paralyze you. Anxiety can control your every decision. Confusion can totally derail your life’s focus. The mind is the battleground of life. You will inevitably face storms and crisis. Your mind will be pressed to the breaking point. How do you persevere until the sun breaks through again?
I hate cruise control. I hate it but I love it. But I hate it. It is so limiting. It requires me to go only at a certain pace. I love it because I can relax and just ride. I hate it because I want to get there ahead of the guy in front of me! In our world today, everyone is in a hurry. Patients are dying in hospitals because of the haste to move on to the next patient. Everyone is on the move. We are squeezing every second out of one activity to pour into the next one.
Have you ever been caught between two loyalties? Chances are, you are not in a “test”: you are in a “trap.”
Nothing destroys relationships like divided loyalties.
Look back over the people who used to be your closest friends. Now, somehow, you no longer speak.
How did it happen? Misplaced loyalties.
I have always loved Psalm 23. It is the favorite passage of many Christians for comfort in times of distress and trouble. The other day, however, I looked at it differently: “The Lord is my pastor" (same word as shepherd).
Everybody sets goals, especially in a new year. Some are attainable and some are hopeless. By now, many have abandoned their goals for the year and some never set any! As a pastor for over 40 years, I learned how to set goals that were motivated by faith.
Stress is killing people. Guilt is not far behind. In between those two extremes is a simple word: “No.” Getting that word out is the hard thing. We hint, we beat around the bush, we psychologize. We stay mad because we couldn’t say that word. We avoid certain people and events because we can’t say that word. Business leaders, parents, pastors, and politicians all have a difficult time saying that word. Your world will change when someone shows you how to say “No.” I’ve battled it for years. After all, they’re my friend. What if I ruin a relationship? Didn’t Christ teach me to serve? What if their reputation tells me that what they borrow will never be returned? How can I add another thing to an already overloaded schedule? Stress or guilt?
Having been in ministry for over 50 years, I have seen that perspiration is often as important as inspiration! People often think of their successful friends as “lucky” or “more talented.” However, they rarely make the connection between their own work-ethic and their success. A lazy, passive, self-pitying work ethic leaves you negative, blaming, unsuccessful…and usually broke! Nehemiah and his men had a “mind to work” (Neh. 4: 6). Those hard-working men built a huge wall in 52 days! They barely slept, they stayed in their clothing, they built while holding a sword, and they amazed the devil’s crowd.
Everyone wants to know how to multiply their business, their finances, and their influence. Jesus showed us the secret by having the crowd of people sit down in groups of 50 before He multiplied the bread. Order precedes multiplication.
I have observed that multiplication is wishful thinking for most leaders. They forget that God is “not the author of confusion” and that everything should be done “decently and in order.”
Everyone struggles with their tongue. Sometimes it feels like a coiled up viper, ready to strike. No matter how hard you grit your teeth to stop it, it will come flying out at a moment’s notice! James described your tongue as a runaway horse: “And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.
Ezekiel and John both saw the four awesome living creatures that stand around the throne of God. Both of them (Eze. 1: 10, Rev. 4: 7) describe their four faces: an eagle, an ox, a lion, and a man. Could these four powerful creatures give us an insight into the nature of God’s kingdom and leadership model?
How do you view impossibilities? Do they intimidate you and stop you dead in your tracks before you ever even attempt to defeat them? I have found that there are usually 2 different ways to approach an obstacle in your life.
Most leaders are struggling to “fit it all in”. From home, to work, to kids, to spouse, to church, to parents we are all trying to not leave anyone out. We feel stretched and stressed. Successful relationships happen on purpose. Here is how to prioritize the relationships in your life and make sure you are hitting the bullseye.
