Nov 2010
Archive

A great dancer in China

I was famous in China once. Well, not famous. But I was respected and admired.

When I was in college, I went with a mission team to China. We served hard during the day, but at night we would occasionally go to Chinese dance clubs just to experience the culture.

For some reason, everyone there thought we were amazing dancers. Mainly because we were American and the music was so old. In reality, we were horrible. And we knew it. We were performing old school dance moves that probably would have gotten us kicked out of American dance clubs. Yet the people in China thought we were the best thing they had ever seen.

But that’s just because they had nothing to compare us to. If they had seen us next to real dancers, they would have realized we were a joke.

It goes to show you that when your standard of comparison is off, anyone can look like a superstar. And therefore anyone can develop pride.

It can happen on a Chinese dance floor. Or it can happen when you see yourself not committing awful sins like those other people do. When you don’t beat your kids like those other people do. When you don’t cheat on your spouse like those other people do. When you don’t…

That’s great. But it shouldn’t make you proud because they’re not your standard.

Jesus is. And if we ever really saw ourselves in comparison to Christ, we’d be humbled.

The truth is one day we will be. One day we will see our standard face to face. In that moment, everybody will be in the same position: on their knees and on their faces. And no one will be looking to their side to see how they compare to the people around them.

When Jesus returns, even the greatest men and women of our generation will not have their heads lifted one inch higher off the ground than any other person. In fact they’ll be trying to get lower, digging holes in the ground in which they can bury their faces even lower before Jesus.

That’s why they’re the greatest men and women of our generation. They know that compared to Jesus, their best day is pitiful. Their best efforts futile. Their righteousness, dirty rags.

Without grace, they’d be nothing.
Without grace, we’d all be nothing.

Which makes grace that brilliant and that powerful. It simultaneously humbles us and lifts us up. It reminds us that before Jesus, we’re nothing yet we have everything we need to rise above nothing. Without grace, we pale in comparison to the Standard. With grace, the Standard dwells within us and covers our failures to live up to Him.

Don’t let the trap of comparison warp your perspective. Where pride exists, a true understanding of grace can’t.

Compare yourself to the right standard.
Stay humble.
Thank God that when He sees you, He sees Jesus in you.

The Sun Stand Still Bonus Chapter Giveaway

Thanksgiving has come and gone. Now on to Christmas. And with Christmas comes the chaos of trying to find gifts for everyone you love. Or just semi-love.

I’ve got an idea to help you with your Christmas shopping for at least three people. And to impact them way beyond the holiday season.

For this week only, anyone that buys three or more copies of Sun Stand Still from any outlet will receive a previously unreleased autographed bonus chapter from Sun Stand Still.

Many of you have read the book and have been impacted by its message. We’re getting stories from across the world about people who are praying for shattered marriages to be restored. Incurable diseases to be healed. Addictions to be broken. Dreams to be realized.

And it’s happening. People aren’t just praying with audacity. They’re also seeing their prayers answered audaciously. The impossible is coming to pass. And God is being glorified.

We want more to experience what so many of you have experienced already. And from what we’ve heard from you, you do too. This is your chance, and it couldn’t come at a better time. This would be a great Christmas gift for many of those closest to you who need to hear that our God is a God who can still make the sun stand still.

A little bit about the bonus chapter: it’s called “Give Me My Rocks”, and it’s all about embracing your uniqueness. This was by far one of my favorite chapters to write. But when it came time for the final cut, it just didn’t fit into the overall flow of the book. I’m glad that it’s now going to be able to see the light of day and I believe it contains a message that could revolutionize your view of what God has put you on this earth to do.

Bonus Chapter

This is a one-week deal only, so don’t hesitate. All you have to do is email us your receipt at bonus@sunstandstill.org, and we’ll mail you your signed bonus chapter for free.

(If you previously purchased 3 or more copies, we really appreciate it, but this offer is for new purchases only. Thanks for understanding.)

Thank you for joining the movement. It’s been an incredible ride so far. Now let’s get more people onboard and continue to see God move in ways we’ve never seen before.

You might have a favorite store you like to buy your books at, but just in case you want to take advantage of this deal from home, here are a few links where you can find the book:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Walmart
CBA

Thankful for the things we don’t think about

Every year, it’s usually the same things:
We’re thankful for our family. Our health. Our home.

Those things are great and you should be grateful for them. But this Thanksgiving, why don’t you try something new. In addition to the obvious things, spend some time thanking God for the things you don’t think about. The things we take for granted or the hidden blessings that aren’t as obvious. You’ll have a whole new appreciation for God’s constant grace and hand of favor in your life.

They’re not always easy to identify, so let me help you get started:

-All the little things that go right in your day.
-All the things that could have gone wrong that you don’t even know about because God kept you from them.
-You woke up today. And the day before that. And…
-Every time your child interrupts your work because they want to play with you. What a blessing.
-Every single thoughtless breath you take.
-The sin God has kept you from. It was just as much by His grace as the sin He rescued you out of.
-Being in a home where heat circulates during the cold months.
-Your five senses. None of them are guaranteed or to be taken for granted. By them you can hear music. See sunsets. Touch your wife’s hand. Taste good food. Smell her perfume.
-The fact that most of us agonize about what we’re going to eat. Not whether.
-The hardest times of your life. They’ve made you who you are today.
-Having the ability to take a hot shower.
-Being single. It’s a gift from God. Not a curse.
-Being married. It’s a gift from God. Not a right.
-When you share your faith, your biggest fear is rejection. Not persecution.
-You have job benefits. It doesn’t have to be that way.
-Your spouse doing housework.
-There isn’t a second where God’s presence doesn’t surround you.

Those are just a few of many to help you get started. You can take it from here.

I’m thankful for…

A ministry momentum killer

I have a crucial piece of advice for any ministry leader who is seeing God bless them with a current wave of momentum:

Make sure your private devotion keeps pace with your ministry momentum.

As your ministry gains speed, the demands on you are just going to become greater. You might think that once you gain the momentum you’ve been working towards, it will finally free up space in your life. But it won’t. In fact, your time will be even more constrained.

The temptation you’ll face will be to ride your own spiritual coattails.

The great prayer time you had. Last week.
The eye-opening moment you had in your private Bible study. Two months ago.
The game-changing time of fasting you engaged in. Last year.

But it doesn’t work like that. Your relationship with God is only as strong as your most recent encounter with Him.

You must never get to the point where you’re too busy ministering for God that you’re too busy to meet with God. Or you can consider yourself on the clock. For burnout. For a lack of fresh vision. For a moral failure.

And then because of those things, for losing your momentum.

No matter how great your ministry is going…
You’re never going to outgrow your need for prayer.
You’re never going to outgrow your need for study of God’s Word.
You are never going to outgrow your need for God.

He’s what gave you your momentum. He’s what’s going to maintain it. And He’s what’s going to sustain you through it as the demands on your life become greater.

Even Jesus felt the need to go off by himself and spend time in prayer as people began flocking to Him. Personally I’m not going to be the one who says I need less private time with God than Jesus.

Make the decision now. Wake up earlier. Stay up later. Clear out your schedule during the day. Whatever you do, do whatever you have to do to prioritize the presence of God in your life.

And then keep riding the momentum.

Bonus Tracks – 3 things this generation demands

I’m currently in the middle of a series called One Generation Away that is focusing on the potential of this present generation.

Some people think that this generation is hopeless. And while sometimes all the signs seem to point that way, I have to disagree. I don’t think we’ve ever seen a generation that has more possibility or promise. This generation might be in danger of losing the truth and biblical values. But they’re also the generation that could change the world.

And for that reason, it would be tragic for us to fail them by not understanding what they most need from us. The list below isn’t exhaustive. But it is essential. If you’re trying to reach this generation without embodying these traits, your impact is going to be marginal at best.

1. Authenticity
This generation can spot a fake a mile away. And they won’t follow one. If you’ve been trying to reach them by pretending to be someone you’re not, stop it. Be yourself. God made you that way. He’s going to use you that way.

They don’t need the person you’re pretending to be. If they did, God would have led the authentic version of that person to them. What they need is the best version of you they’ve ever seen.

You can give them that.

2. Authority
If this generation is lost, it won’t be because they lacked friends. It will be because they lacked leadership.

We safely assume that this generation has more potential than any other in history to change the world. We dangerously assume that they know how to unlock it. Or how to channel it for optimal impact. Or how not to get distracted by low-level pursuits.

That’s where you come in. God hasn’t called you to be their buddy. And they don’t need you to be it either. They already had tons of those when you came around.

He’s put you in their life to be their leader. Their mentor. Their guide.

People believe that this generation is antiauthoritarian. They’re wrong. They’re just looking for someone in authority to lead them in a direction worth following. And to be a person worth following.

Be that person.

3. Audacity
If you’re not challenging this generation to do more than what’s humanly possible, you’re wasting their time. They believe in miracles. They believe they can do the impossible.

And you know what, they’re right. With God, they can.

More than any other organization or movement on this planet, the church should be a safe haven and incubator for audacity. Everyone else talks big, but in reality they have limited resources. For us, there is no limit to what we can see God do through us other than our faith to believe Him for it.

Believe God to do big things through this generation. Challenge them to believe God for big things.

And don’t be surprised when it happens.

(If you missed it, you can catch last week’s sermon here, and you can always view the current week’s sermon at the Elevation Experience.)

So it was thought

Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph.
Luke 3:23

Brilliant. Luke is simply brilliant. What else can you say for a person who is able to say in four words what many couldn’t say in 10,000? And in a genealogy no less. You know, that part of the gospels that you skip when you come to it.

Luke is just getting started with Jesus’ lineage and of course, he begins with Joseph. But apparently there had been a misunderstanding. People in his day had come to the conclusion that Jesus was Joseph’s son. So Luke slips in a phrase to indicate that people have this low mentality of Jesus: so it was thought.

He was just the son of Joseph. Just another carpenter from Nazareth. Just another link in the long chain of human history.

So it was thought.

But Jesus wasn’t what they thought He was. He was more than that.
He wasn’t just the son of Joseph. He was the Son of God.
That’s a huge miscalculation. But Luke just continues on with his gospel as if nothing has changed.

And it’s because nothing has changed.

History is full of people who have misinterpreted and underestimated Jesus. We do it to this day. And we will be doing it to the end of time.

He was just a good man. Just a myth. Just a magic worker. Just a revolutionary. Just a man who died in his early 30s. He was just the son of Joseph.

So it was thought.

The reality is that who Jesus really is can’t be changed or altered by human opinion. While the opinions of men have come and gone, Jesus still sits on His throne. Unscathed. Unchanged. Undiminished.

He’s still the Alpha and Omega.
He’s still the Author of life.
He’s still the Lord over all Creation.
He’s still the risen Savior of the world.
He’s still the image of the invisible God.
He’s still the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords.
He’s still the hope of glory.
He’s still the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
He’s still Jesus, the Son of God.

And not one low opinion of Jesus will ever change these truths. The most ferocious opponents of Jesus can’t change a single thing about Him. Those who casually dismiss Him haven’t tarnished His character or nature in the slightest degree.

Every person who has ever underestimated Jesus has gone into the grave. Meanwhile Jesus is still risen from the grave. Not one false opinion has moved Him one inch down from His throne. Not one accurate one has moved Him any higher because He is already the Highest.

People today think Jesus is weak.
People today think Jesus is just one way of many.
People today think Jesus is irrelevant.
People today think Jesus is…

In 2000 years the truth will be the exact same as it is today.

So it was thought.

Butt dial

Sooner or later it happens to everybody. You get a call from a friend and pick up the phone thinking they want to talk. You say hello, but instead of getting a response they just start talking about random things. You keep saying their name louder and louder, but they just keep talking.

After a few seconds or moments, you realize the truth: you’ve been butt dialed. They didn’t mean to call you. It was just the pressure in their back pocket that made it happen.

Almost always, it’s just meaningless chatter. What food they’re ordering. Directions they’re taking. Plans they’re making.

But sometimes, you’re let into conversations that you didn’t want to hear. The person on the other line begins talking about someone you know. Or worse, they begin talking about you. And it isn’t the same things they would be saying if the phone was in their hand rather than their back pocket.

Or maybe the content of their conversation simply isn’t what you would expect out of them. It’s vulgar or low-level compared to the way it is when they’re talking to you directly.

Right now, this could easily turn into a judgmental or woe is me situation. But I want to flip the tables for a second.

What if the situation was reversed (because it often is)? What if your phone accidentally dialed when it was in your pocket?

Would we say the same things we say about people?
Would we have the same conversations?
Would we sound as spiritual as we did in small group or at the coffee shop?

We often talk about the need for the content of our lives to match the content of our speech. When it happens, it’s called integrity.
But it’s just as necessary that the content of our public discourse match the content of our private discussions. When it happens, it’s also called integrity.

What would it look like if we lived our lives as if our phone was dialing someone at all times? In other words, what if the microphone was always on?

I wish I could leave it at those theoretical questions. But I can’t. Because they’re not theoretical. The phone is always dialing. The microphone is always on:

There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.
Luke 12:2-3

Customized parenting

I was recently meeting with a pastor and he shared an idea about parenting from the verse that’s been read at probably every baby dedication or parenting series you’ve ever been to:

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
Proverbs 22:6

He told me that in the Hebrew, it literally translates “Train a child according to his way.” I checked it out and it’s legit.

The implication is that this verse isn’t simply about giving our children good structuring or sound instruction. Or negatively, about training them up to go in the way we desire. It’s also about customizing our approach to our children based on their unique DNA and gift set.

Many people are familiar with strengths-based leadership and the fact that the most effective leaders are those that focus and invest in their people’s strengths. But fewer people realize that this applies to our first and primary sphere of leadership: our families. And specifically, our children.

Instead what often happens is that we think a one-size fits all approach will work for every child everywhere, including ours. Or that the goal of parenting is to produce a well-rounded individual, so we focus on making their weaknesses mediocre rather than their strengths phenomenal. Or worse, we want our children to have our strengths, or ones we wish we had.

The problem is that your child is unique on purpose. They have their own God-given strengths and aptitudes. And it’s these that you need to call out and encourage.

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: Mediocrity is mass-produced. Destiny and excellence are custom designed.

The catch is that’s not only true with you. It’s also true with your children.
You are a peculiar person. There will never be another you.
But your child is also a peculiar person. There will never be another of them either.

God doesn’t intend for your child to be like everybody else. He already had everybody else when He made them. There’s something unique in your child. Something special. Significant. God has a calling on their life. There are exceptional abilities that only they have.

Your role as a parent is to identify and maximize them. Not change them or flatten them out. Or accommodate them to yours.

Train up your children in their strengths and they will discover the purpose for which they were created. And when they grow up, they will not depart from it.

“But” people

You probably remember what happened when the spies came back from their scouting mission to the Promised Land:

Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”
Numbers 13:30-31

There are always doubters for every dream. Naysayers for every promise. It was true for Caleb. And it will be true for you too.

In your life there will always be “but” people that will try to get in the way of what God has for you.

But you’re too young.
But you’re too inexperienced.
But that will cost money.
But that isn’t what we had in mind for you.
But it’s risky.

But God has called you to it. And that’s all that matters.

The Israelites listened to the wrong voices. So they spent forty years in the desert on the other side of their promise.

If you listen to the “but” people, you’ll always be a desert dweller. Living on the wrong side of your divine destiny. Wandering in the desert, simply trying to survive.

Don’t let the voices of negativity and doubt keep you from going where God is taking you. Determine to frustrate their doubt with your faith as much as they are attempting to frustrate your faith with their doubt. Become a “but” person to them, but the way Caleb and Joshua were to their naysayers: “but the Lord is with us” (Numbers 14:9).

But you’re too young. But the Lord is with me.
But you’re too inexperienced. But look at what God did through the disciples.
But that will cost money. But God will supply my needs according to His glorious riches.
But that isn’t what we had in mind for you. But it’s what God has in mind for me.
But it’s risky. But it’s worth it.

But you can’t do it. No, I can’t. But since when has that ever stopped God?

You can’t follow Jesus

Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me?
John 13:36-38

The propelling force behind Peter’s denial wasn’t his lack of faith. Otherwise he wouldn’t have made the claims he did. It was his overestimation of his faith. He believed he was ready to die for Jesus. But he wasn’t, and Jesus knew it.

So Jesus said the unthinkable: you can’t follow me.

That doesn’t sound like Jesus. After all, this is the Jesus who had told Peter to leave his family, profession, and home to follow Him. Now Jesus is telling Peter he can’t follow Him. Sounds schizophrenic.

But it wasn’t. Jesus knew exactly what He was doing because He knew the exact measure of Peter’s faith.

Peter had initially followed Jesus.
Peter had followed Him on the water.
But he wasn’t ready to follow Jesus to the cross.

Peter wasn’t ready to follow Jesus everywhere. Not at that moment.
You’re not ready to follow Jesus everywhere either. Not at this moment.

And here’s the truth: Jesus isn’t expecting you to. While we definitely often overestimate our own faith, I think we underestimate the grace and patience of Jesus for our lack of faith even more. Jesus expects you to exercise the faith that you have, not the faith that you still have to develop.

There are places in your life where your faith is still lacking. There are moments where you still struggle. The question for you in those places and in those moments is the same as it was for Peter: will you really lay down your life for Jesus?

And the answer is no.
But that is why He laid down His life for you.

That’s what He was leaving to do when He told Peter he couldn’t follow Him.
And that’s what He’s done for you when you can’t follow Him.

Practice the measure of faith that you have. Follow Jesus where you can.
But know that His grace covers you when you can’t and He is patient with you while you are developing the faith to follow Him where you can’t go right now.

Say it again

And again I say unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Matthew 19:24

I find it interesting that Jesus would have to say anything again. You would think that the Son of God wouldn’t have to repeat himself for people to get the message. Once should have been enough.

But throughout the gospels there are instances where Jesus finds the need to say something again, and he then either builds on something he had said before or gives it a slightly different interpretation. It’s the same essential message. Only expanded, clarified, or taught in a new way.

I think Jesus knew something that every leader has to grasp: you can never repeat your vision too much. There isn’t a single leader who has cast their vision enough. No matter how many times you’ve said it, there’s always someone out there who hasn’t gotten it. Or someone who has lost it.

No one can hold onto any vision indefinitely without reinforcement and repetition. It doesn’t matter how compelling it is. Was any vision ever more compelling than the one Jesus laid out? Yet even he found the need to say it again.

And you’re going to need to as well.

People inevitably lose sight of why they’re doing what they’re doing. They get distracted by the practical realities of getting their work done. They lose the enthusiasm they had when the vision was fresh in their minds.

It happened to the disciples who were with Jesus day and night for three years. So it’s definitely going to happen to people you see for only a few hours a day. Or in the case of pastors, only once or twice a week.

This doesn’t mean you simply have to verbally state your vision or mission statement over and over to your people. You can repeat yourself without being repetitive. Find fresh ways to cast the same vision you have been casting for years. Explore new angles from which you can communicate the heartbeat of your church or organization.

You might have an incredible vision that has the potential to ignite passion in people’s souls and move them into action. Be excited about it. Be thankful for it. Never compromise it.

But it isn’t better than Jesus’. If Jesus had to repeat himself, what makes us think we can do anything less?

No matter how compelling your vision is, say it again.

A high-level leadership question

I want to give you a simple, high-level leadership question you can ask every day that could significantly enhance the way you lead. This question is for everybody. Corporate executives. Low-level managers. Teachers. Parents. Teenagers. Anyone who has any measure of influence.

How can I help you succeed at something today?

It’s simple, but this question could change the standard approach to leadership that many people take:

Cast vision. Set goals. Demand success. Wait for results.

Sounds good and authoritative. Something a leader would do. But the problem is that sometimes the deck is stacked against your people from the get go. Sometimes for one reason or another, they can’t accomplish what you’re asking for and what they genuinely want to give you. And because they can’t succeed, neither can the goals or vision you’re striving after.

Before the success of your goals can be realized, the success of the people you lead must be prioritized.

Servant leadership has often been misunderstood. It isn’t doing menial tasks that take you away from your sweet spot. Servant leadership is essentially about equipping and empowering. Not scrubbing toilets. It’s about doing everything in your power to put the people you lead in a position where they can succeed.

And their success benefits everyone.
They gain confidence in themselves and in your dedication to them.
You are setup for success because they have been successful.
The vision you have cast becomes attainable.

Make a commitment today to start asking how you can set others up for success.

If you’re a boss, ask your people if the systems you have in place are unnecessarily obstructing them from doing their job well.
If you’re a parent, rather than just demanding that your child do better in school, ask them how you can help them ace that upcoming test.
If you’re a husband, ask how you can create space for your wife to recharge spiritually so she can be everything she needs to be.

The question might create extra work for you. But the dividends it will pay will be worth it.

Grapes and Giants

“We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large…we can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are. All the people we saw there are of great size.
Numbers 13:27-28

The Israelites had finally reached the Promised Land. But it wasn’t what everybody thought it would be.

There was a reward. But there was also opposition.
There were grapes. But there were also giants.

So they came to the conclusion that this couldn’t be what God was calling them to do. This couldn’t be God’s will, because God’s will had to be easier than this.

We tend to think the same way. Many people consider opposition a sign that they must not be in the will of God. We think the Promised Land is where the blessings are going to be. Being in God’s will is where life is supposed to be easy. Therefore, battle, opposition, struggle, and enemies must be a sign that we aren’t in the right place.

But apparently a sign of God’s will is not the ease with which you obtain it. Apparently the very sign of the Promised Land is giants. Conflict. Opposition.

In other words, being in God’s will doesn’t guarantee a tension-free job. Or a conflict-free marriage. Or a trouble-free life. In fact, the very presence of tension, conflict, and trouble could be a sign that you’re right where you need to be.

You might be thinking that you’re not in God’s will right now. You’re going through all this fighting and it shouldn’t be like this. It must mean you’re in the wrong place.

Not necessarily. It might mean that you’re in exactly the right place. I doubt Satan is going to put up a fight to keep you from doing what you shouldn’t be doing. What if you changed your perspective and saw what you’re facing as a sign that you’re exactly where God wants you to be, because giants live in the Promised Land?

That doesn’t make it easy. But remember:

There was opposition for the Israelites. But there was also a reward.
There were giants. But there were also grapes.

A sign of God’s will isn’t just the opposition you’re facing. It’s also the fact that with God you can actually overcome it. And the reward that you will get for sticking it out will far outshine any opposition that you’re facing.

The PIC

One of my staff recently received his piloting license. To celebrate, a few of us flew with him to one of my speaking engagements. Sort of like a road trip, but a few thousand feet in the air.

Before the trip, he told me something that reminded me of the meetings that make up a significant portion of a church’s week. Or really, the workweek of any person.

Prior to every takeoff, the command tower asks the question, “Who’s the PIC here?”

PIC stands for Pilot in Command. The PIC of an aircraft is the person who is ultimately responsible for its operation during flight. They get the plane off the ground. Keep it on course. And ultimately get it to where it needs to be.

Churches are historically known for being awful when it comes to efficiency and productivity in their meetings. We get off course by chasing tangents. Harp on problems rather than focusing on the solutions that will fix them. Or we just jump from issue to issue with no congruity or continuity.

The reason it’s this way is usually pretty simple: most of our meetings have no PIC.

No one is making sure the meeting is staying on course and accomplishing its intended purpose. No one is corralling the conversation and keeping it focused on a clear agenda. The result is wasted time and frustrated or bored people.

Some might think this isn’t a big deal because after all, it’s only a meeting. But the most impactful decisions and directions in the history of our church have been born or defined in meetings. And my guess is they have been in yours too.

Meetings are where vision is clarified. Where churches push through critical barriers. Where ideas are generated that could have the potential for reaching dozens, hundreds, or even thousands for Christ.

So we can’t afford to have them muddled because of a lack of leadership. There’s too much God-given potential in the room to let our time together be wasted by an absence of guided direction.

If you’re finding that your meetings have been getting stuck lately, the next time you have a one, ask this question: “Who’s the PIC that’s driving this thing?”

It’s a simple fix. But it will exponentially improve the effectiveness and efficiency of your meetings and take your team to a whole new level.

The first 10%

Building brand into a product at the beginning of a project is something that’s frequently taught in marketing. If you’re not familiar with the concept, it’s the idea that you have to be thinking about the presentation of what you’re creating at its genesis, not its completion.

Presentation isn’t the most important thing, but it is the first thing. Because it’s the first thing that people see.

Unfortunately presentation is what we generally put off until the very end. We get so busy with the details of getting the work done that we leave presentation to the last 10% of what we do. But then it usually doesn’t get done well.

The problem is that it’s the last 10% of what you do that becomes the first 10% of what people see. And it obscures the 90% that you worked on so diligently.

Presentation shouldn’t be the last 10% of our work. It should be the first 10%. When starting a project, you should begin with the end in mind: the presentation. This applies to food. Meetings. An excel sheet. A worship experience. Everything.

This isn’t about looking good. Presentation matters for the sake of the message.

A poorly presented steak can ruin your experience of it before you ever taste it.
A poorly presented report can divert you from the content it contains.
A poorly presented worship experience can distract people from the presence of God.
And a poorly presented gospel can obscure the most important message in the world.

If those last two rub you wrong, go read the Old Testament and God’s instructions for building the Tabernacle, the Temple, and everything that went in them. Presentation matters to God because it’s a representation of Himself.

Don’t let your great work or message be lost in a mediocre presentation. If you’re going to do the hard work of creating something quality, you might as well put in the hard work to present it well.

Spend your first 10% planning how you’re going to highlight your excellence instead of hiding it.
And it will be the first 10% that everyone sees.

It wasn’t a failure

You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure.
1 Thessalonians 2:1

But it had looked like it at one point. Apparently Paul had faced strong opposition when he had first preached in Thessalonica. People had accused him of preaching from false motives.

He was just after money.
He was just trying to tickle ears.
His teaching was heretical.

When the opposition was actually happening, most probably would have called Paul’s visit a failure. A waste of time even.

But we know it wasn’t a failure. And we know because this letter exists. Paul is writing to the church he established on that visit. Apparently the gospel had taken root and the church had even expanded after he left. Paul’s work wasn’t in vain.

Many of the things that we consider failures in our lives really aren’t failures at all. They’re just stepping-stones to God’s purposes in our lives.

It doesn’t feel this way immediately. In the middle or immediate aftermath of a failure, it can feel like our efforts and time were wasted. But this is not a necessary truth. We serve a God who can work all things for our good. Who can turn failures into successes. Or use them for successes.

I’ve seen this repeatedly in my own life.

One of the most discouraging days of my pastoral career was when our church was scheduled to sign a contract to occupy a facility as an additional campus. Everything looked promising, but then we were shut down at the last minute. On the surface, it looked like a failure. But a year later we ended up getting the building when we were more ready and better positioned for optimal impact. We’ve now seen hundreds come to Christ in that building.

It wasn’t a failure.

There have been sermons I have preached that I thought I did a terrible job delivering. And then hundreds of hands would shoot up during the invitation.

It wasn’t a failure.

I’ve had speaking engagements where I had no clue why I was there. It felt like a waste of time. But then I would meet someone who years later has now significantly impacted my life.

It wasn’t a failure.

I’m not saying things don’t go wrong or according to plan. Or that you’re never going to experience failure. Because you are. Plans are going to fall through. Expectations aren’t going to be met.

But you have to keep the perspective that there is no failure in your life that is beyond God’s power to use for good and turn into a success. Your screwups can become God’s setup for what He wants to do you in your life. Your greatest disappointments can become God’s greatest display of His power to work redemption.

Your failures might not turn out to be failures after all.

The next rep

When I see people who are really great at exercising or training for sports, a lot of times I wonder how they push through. I hate exercising. I do it, but only because I have to. I’m always barely getting reps done. But then I see some people who push themselves to crazy limits. What’s the difference?

I asked someone one time how he did it and he said, “I just focus on the next rep versus thinking how many more I’ve got to do.”

In other words, doing twelve reps of an insane weight can be overwhelming. It can cripple some people from even trying, or make them give up in the middle. But by focusing on having enough strength for the next rep, you can keep going and have the strength to finish.

I think the same principle applies to our faith. Being strong in the Lord is sometimes about just doing the next rep. Focusing on the next decision. Taking the next step. Making the next sacrifice.

That’s how you grow strong in the Lord.

You don’t have to have faith for the biggest decision of your life you’re going to make two years from now. You have to have faith for the smaller decision you’re making today.
You don’t have to have the faith to finish what God has called you to do right now. Or even to take the next ten steps. Just the faith to take the immediate step in front of you.
You don’t have to have faith to sell every possession you have right now. Just the faith to do as you have been commanded and give 10% of what God has given you.

And as you do these things, your faith will be strengthened to the point where you will be able to make the biggest decision of your life. To the point where you will be able to finish. To the point where you will be able to sacrifice everything if called to.

Matthew 6:34 tells us “do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

And for this reason each has enough to have faith for.

God doesn’t expect you to be as strong today as you’re going to be years from now. Or even days from now. And you shouldn’t either. Have faith for what God is giving you today. Focus on your next decision. Take your next step. Make your next sacrifice.

Do your next rep.