Be a Leader Worth Following (Post by Andy Stanley)

“Your talent and giftedness as a leader have the potential to take you farther than your character can sustain you. That ought to scare you. The fact that people choose to follow you is not necessarily an indicator that you deserve to be followed. There is a significant difference between having a following and being worth following. The truth is that talented, charismatic, visionary people will almost always have a following. Whether they are worth following is a different question, predicated upon a different set of values.

There is always the temptation to look at someone and judge the amount of God’s blessing upon his life based upon the number of people who have chosen to follow him. But if numbers tell the whole story, we would have to assume that God removed His blessing from Jesus toward the end of His ministry! In the weeks prior to His crucifixion the crowds began to wane. In the end there were only a handful of faithful men and women who dared to be associated with Him. Followship is not an accurate indicator of one’s worthiness to be followed.

To become a leader worth following, you must give time and attention to the inner man. To leave a legacy that goes beyond accomplishment alone, a leader must devote himself to the matters of the heart.”

-Andy Stanley, The Next Generation Leader

"This City is Yours" (Post from Mack at Elevation Church)

This City Is Yours is honestly pretty self explainitory… At Elevation Church, we – as you may have heard – are passionate about the city of Charlotte, NC. We have seen the Lord’s hand, moving us, pushing us, as a city and community, towards redemption and freedom. It’s amazing to be a part of His work.

But God doesn’t need us to accomplish His work… He’s on the move regardless of whether or not we are a part of it. The city of Charlotte is already His – He’s just allowing us to come walk by His side and see Him work.

The choruses are just a prayer for our hearts to be aligned with His – that we would hurt for the people in our lives that don’t know the goodness of His love.

One of the most exciting parts of the song to me is the bridge. When we were writing this song – at first we went for this super singable, repetitive lyric – but then we decided to take it into an entirely different direction. I wanted to use that bridge as a build of anticipation… The feeling we get when we know God is on the verge of doing something great, and we’re witnesses.

Ultimately, this song speaks to the heartbeat of Elevation Church. That people far from God will be filled with life in Christ. We just want to be a part of that vision.

-Mack

I'm impressed with George Washington

I had a conversation on Wednesday night with a friend about the amazing example of George Washington. I am not a historian and I will not pretend to be. But, what I do know about his life is pretty impressive.

George Washington chose to shield the lures of power when it was offered to him. After the revolutionary war, the newly established country of America wanted George to be KING. He declined the offer because he knew that distant generations would have the ability to corrupt the very thing he had just spent and risked his life fighting for. He stepped down from leadership and established democracy of distributed control and freedom.

Do you think you would have done the same? When fame, power, and worldwide influence are offered to you, will you do what's best for the whole and not just yourself? After all, he had "earned" it. Right?

Despite its numerous issues, America is a great country that was founded on men that saw the big picture and were humble enough to make the right decision. We should strive to be the same in the way we live our lives.

Team in Haiti

It's only our second day here, and I think it's safe to say that every single person on our team from Heartland has forever been impacted. We all agreed that whatever it was we expected...it's different...but different in a sense that it's MORE than we expected. We're more blown away by the generosity of the Haitian people. We're more humbled by how little these people have, and yet how happy they are. Above all, we're more convinced than ever how great our God is.

From our time playing with the kids, to praying with families in their homes, to cutting down brush for a new soccer field, it has all been amazing. And what a beautiful country! Our first night here, we slept out under the stars on the roof of the mission and were blessed with the most amazing view of stars and planets any of us had ever seen.

Tomorrow our plan is to pass out some of the 650 gift bags that our church packed for the local children, which I believe is going to be the icing on the cake. Pray for us, that the time would be powerful, that the children would know they are loved, and that they would hear the gospel communicated in a clear way through our translators.

-Jon McNary and the Heartland Sun Prairie Team

Six Things That Will Take You Out of Ministry

I was reminded recently of a 6 item checklist that Mike Breaux (@mikebreaux) walked our staff at Heartland Community Church through to determine whether or not we are in danger of some pitfalls that come with being in ministry.

Here are 6 things that will take you out of ministry (via Mike Breaux):

1. Life without boundaries
2. Calendars without Sabbath
3. Words without practice
4. Giftedness without humility
5. Relationships without discernment
6. Letting your identity get tied up in our title

This list is posted in my office. It should be in yours too!