Donald Trump and Christian Leadership

In the past 10 years, and in the dozens of leadership seminars that I have presented,  I have begun each and every seminar asking the participants what goal is emphasized into the theme song of Donald Trump's show "The Apprentice".

I then follow up with the question "What important subject is embedded in the entertainment? Can you remember the goal and what is the underlying show subject?

The end goal repeated in the theme song is -  Money, Money, Money, Money. The embedded subject being taught is Leadership.

If you regularly watched this program, I would suspect that most of you did not realize that you were being taught "Trump Leadership". You thought you were just being entertained. What you did not know was that the leadership worldview of power, position, fame and fortune was slowly entering and penetrating your view of valid leadership. 

May I suggest that when we watched programs like this, we were giving permission for Trump and the producers to tickle our sub-conscious interests. We did not knowingly allow this. It is all being done down in the abyss of our sinful nature. Here are examples of what is being tickled down there.

1. The desire to be a winner by any means, at the expense of others.

2. The desire to someday experience the perceived pleasure of telling someone "Your Fired!"

3. The desire to be somebody enormous in wealth or popularity.

Would it not be true if I said that while many of you are reading this, some of you already have some thought of disagreement entering your mind. Some of you might point out they should not be blanket statements, but based on the context of a person's situation. Please be careful, ... some contextual debate is simply an attempt to justify an unrighteous principle or act. Before you cast a final vote of disagreement, let's check out the situation of the one whom we Christians claim is our leader, and the one Christians claim to follow.

Philippians 2:3-7  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant.

Matthew 4:8  Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

Satan tempted Christ by raising him to high places where the view of wealth and power was visible. He then offered him a way to possess it all. He offered Him everything in view if He would only become his "apprentice" and bow down to him. Satan put on a great show, and today Trump is putting on a show in his presidential campaign. Satan tempted Christ like Trump is tempting us by making promises to make American so great that we will all get "sick of winning"! He is promising you everything a person could ever want from a president.

Satan was trying to germinate a desire that would not grow in Christ. However, Trump, in his growing campaign is bringing to life a leadership that includes the practice of revenge and the ability to deliver insulting criticism with an uncontrolled "tone". He began tickling our sinful desires and now almost every day he is massaging that desire. Friends, we must become more aware that there is an abyss in us where unrighteousness germinates and grows. The darkness of our abyss blocks our consciousness of the danger of being tickled by Trump's promises. It is in this unconsciousness, where what is wrong,  is converted by human logic, into what we think might be legitimate leadership. I write this to warn of what might be happening in our abyss. 

I believe Trump is a dangerous leader. Like what Satan did with Christ, Trump is promising 'the world' if we would only vote for him. I believe Trump trying to get us to accept what Christ refused to accept. He is teaching and spreading his venomous leadership principles where people are insulted, demeaned, and where revenge is king.

At the end of his TV show, everyone sits at the judgement seat of Donald Trump. Metaphorically, do you really want to be his "apprentice"? Several pundits and polls seem to say many Christians do. If Trump becomes president there may be some changes that might seem to benefit us. However, the president of the United States has a huge impact on the perimeters for American morals and what is acceptable behavior. Along the with immediate risk of Trump's temper and revenge regarding our adversaries, the long term damage to our children and grandchildren's view of leadership is not worth the short term gains.

I strongly encourage everyone to invest in the long term, and then seek to support and vote for another candidate where the leadership philosophy is more biblical.


P.S.  Since preparing this over a month ago, my pastor delivered a message regarding our biblical response to our governing authorities. While most difficult, I have, and will encourage everyone to pray for Donald Trump, ... that someday whether president or not, ... a testimony that "Jesus is Lord of his life" will be delivered with a believable tone.

Luke 7:47 Forgiven Little ...Then You Must Love Little?

Luke 7:47 'Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven --- for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.

At first it may appear that there is some good about being a more severe sinner than "average". It sounds like only people who sin a lot can love a lot, therefore I guess we can find some good in our sin. Since Paul also wrote (I Cor 13:13) that the greatest of Faith, Hope and Love ... was Love, then Jesus was outlining the path to great love ... was he not?

Well of course not, but let's reconcile what it seems to be implying with the circumstances and context of when He said that. 

Luke 7:36-50  36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. 37 When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38 and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner." 

Let's take note of a few notable observations. The Pharisee was interested in Jesus enough to invite him to his house, however it also appears that he had a benign respect for Jesus by his comment “if this man was a prophet”. I suggest that the Pharisee was a skeptic leaning toward unbelief in Jesus as a qualified teacher. Also take note that even though it was public knowledge that the woman was sinful, she still was brave enough to come to the Pharisee's event. Finally, one commentary points out that Luke was narrating from the standpoint of public opinion. It is not who Luke thought she was,  it was a narration of what the public opinion was.

Let's keep reading

40 Jesus answered him,"Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said. 41 "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?" 43 Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said.

Have you ever had trouble paying your bills? Ever felt the pit in your stomach that the thought of bankruptcy might bring? Jesus was using the metaphor of debt and the pain associated with that experience to reveal to the Pharisee who he really was.

When Jesus said the Pharisee had "judged correctly" he was indicating that the Pharisee, like most of us, cannot escape measuring even our own bankruptcy against the bankruptcy of others! When Jesus asked "which of them will love him more" he was not saying which one should love him more, he was saying which one would love him more!

The reality of the story is they were both bankrupt. Both he and the sinful woman were in the same depraved condition. Most of us feel just like the Pharisee … we feel less convicted, less remorseful, and yes even less condemned when someone else’s misery and or sin is more severe than ours. 

Now Jesus describes the reality of what was happening.

44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss,but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."48 Then Jesus said to her,"Your sins are forgiven." 49 The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"50 Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

Let's acknowledge right away that the love being referred to is not not a love that generates salvation! While ultimately belief in Jesus and love for him and what He did for us does generate salvation, Jesus specifically points out that it was not the woman's deeds of washing his feet that was saving her. It was what happened to her before she washed his feet ... her love was evidence of the salvation she had already acquired. For Jesus reminded everyone of this when he said in verse 50 "Your faith has saved you; go in peace." 

The sinful woman’s tears were probably a mixture of the joy in attending to Jesus, and the painful remembrance of her prior experience of brokenness. One way to describe brokenness is when the inward momentum of sorrow & guilt reaches a level of uncontrollable remorse. Her sorrow, remorse, and her painful but joyful remembrance of her past forgiveness were being poured out by her act of agape love. 

Friends, being broken is the fertile ground where agape love rises from. This is not an every day event. However, it should not be a one time event. You may say to me, how can I be broken? I am not a prostitute nor have I reached rock bottom through some form of public humiliation. Folks, we do not have to experience public humiliation to be broken.

Paul shared his own experiencing of  brokenness. Let's read parts of what Paul went through.

Romans 7:14-24   We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 18For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.^c For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24What a wretched man I am! 

Please note that Paul was not writing about what he did before. He was writing about what he was doing!  Paul was broken more than once and we can be broken multiple times too.

Theologically accenting to our sin and depravity is fairly easy. However, accepting the hopelessness of our own ability to emerge from bankruptcy on our own apart from the sin we see in others is very hard. The Pharisee was not seeing his own sin apart from the sin of this woman. Jesus was teaching him that he needed to understand his own condition in order to begin to love like the woman. It is also a concept that we need to acknowledge and pray we can understand and embrace since it is so hard to do.

If you accept to mentally travel on this journey toward personal brokenness you will eventually become frustrated with yourself, just as Paul did. However, during this journey when you reach that place of authentic and heartfelt hopelessness and remorse ... you will at that moment, experience how massive is the grace of God … and the resulting joy and peace which is impossible to describe. It is in these moments, as we absorb the massive grace of God that the fruit of love flows from us more freely toward those who are in desperate need of love and/or in need of some form of help. 

What does our love look like?  The sinful woman?  Or the Pharisee?

The answer to that question can be directly be related to how we view the size of our debt.

Go Deep and Alone in Prayer Encore

Encore Post - Every month the most viewed post for three years. Real then, still real today!

I Peter 3:12

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

Matthew 6:5 

And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites.... But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Throughout their time on earth, God continues to shape the lives of His leaders, and He is still shaping my time with Him. Any leader who leads for any length of time will find themselves leading or leading alongside difficult people. Today, I want to focus on a kind of growth that can occur from your deep moments with God during prayer. I am suggesting a way and time to approach God that you might not necessarily think of trying. Here are two approaches to my time with the Lord that have helped me hear Him better. I hope they might help you.

The First Approach

For five out of the last 8 days I have been awakened at 3 am with an uncommon level of alertness. Wondering what to do, each of those nights I left the bedroom and went to try to sleep on the family room couch, figuring the change would help spur some sleepiness. Each time it did not, so each time I turned the light on and spent some time in scripture and equal time in prayer.

Similarly, for a period of time in the 1990's He would "awake" me at 4 am, nudging me to meet with Him. I could not help remembering those days; thus, considered my recent "awakenings" near 3 am  nudges from God who wanted to speak with me.

If this happened to you, your first thought would probably be similar to mine: "How am I going to make up the sleep I lose if I have this devotion time?" You can probably guess what happened to quiet that protest. Each night I awoke and had this devotion time I felt rested the same day at my office. I even felt a sense of God's presence when, on those same days, I had to deal with some difficult people. Friends, our Lord is faithful and knows what we need. However, He wants you to tell Him, preferably when you and He are alone. 

"Our Lord is faithful and knows what we need. However, He wants you to tell Him, preferably when you and He are alone." 

In our American culture, it is very hard to find that time alone to spend with God. If you are having a hard time finding time in your day for this kind of prayer, try setting your alarm for 3 am, get out of the bedroom, and find a room where you can be alone. I will guarantee you will wake up in the morning rested and better prepared for the day.

The Second Approach 

(This was not and is not a sensual experience although it may be part of the reason this post from three years ago is the most often read even today. This is also NOT a group exercise as I have found on other internet posts. Do not be tempted to justify spiritually an unrighteous thought or action.)

My second experience in prayer came recently after exiting my shower. I sat on the edge of my bed and began to pray. Not paying attention to the fact I had not dressed yet, I just began to speak to the Lord about life. Only a few sentences into my prayer, I began to feel an increasingly emotion of shame and/or embarrassment before Him as I became more aware of my undress and exposure. I can now understand why Adam hid from the Lord in the Garden of Eden. However, even in this state of embarrassment I continued to pray.

Soon, my embarrassment turned to learning as I began to realize the depth of God's grace in my life. My physical exposure taught me how spiritually naked I was too. God could see everything about my spiritual life ... my mind, my past... and my present condition. As I prayed, I continued to learn and experience this truth. Then I began to wonder why He would be so gracious as to continue to listen to me. Yet I knew He was listening to me; indeed, He began to challenge me to apply His listening grace to other difficult people. My future behavior was being changed. 

Many months later I came across this passage which brought more meaningfulness to the memory of my previous experience.   "And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give an account." Hebrews 4:13 ESV

Every time I pray, I don’t get the same immediate assurance that he is listening. However, in these special times of prayer my ability to repel my own sinful nature was strengthened as He "turned His ear" toward me and let me sense that He was there. These prayer times remain a reminder of how He knows me completely, yet He continues to make himself available to listen to me. If you think about it, this really goes against every human instinct.

Transforming Your Prayer Life

There are three things that I think we all can learn from these experiences.

1. He is always near us.
2. He listens to those whose lives are lived within His favor. 
3. Deep prayer improves behavior. 

As another practical example, I cannot remember a meeting that began with extended prayer that ended with guilt and remorse over behavior in the meeting. However, I can remember many meetings when just the opposite took place. Friends, I know that prayer spurs us on toward more good behavior, good behavior spurs on more righteousness, and more righteousness keeps the ear of our Lord turned toward us. If you would like to understand this a bit more, begin to pray alone, and then maybe even pray naked.

Two Things I Am Fearful Of - Fear Part 2

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. 

Fear Part II
In Part 1 we looked at the life of Noah and watched how his holy fear of God drove him to obedience. His obedience was driven by his strong belief in God and the fear of the consequences of ignoring God's command and direction. His righteousness by faith preceded his holy fear of God.

In preparing the application of holy fear into our lives today, I ended that short study with a question for you, namely; What have you done lately out of your holy fear of God? Have you thought of anything? If not, does that concern you at all? If you are not concerned, might I gently but firmly say that you should start being concerned about it right now. To not be concerned that the creator of the universe and the Savior of the world is watching your every move and knowing your every thought is a quite dangerous position to be in. Throughout the history of man, God has demonstrated his mercy but also has demonstrated that while His grace is unlimited, his patience is not always unlimited. Our friend Noah can testify to this.

There are other less significant ways why I have a holy fear of God but I must share two of my fears so that all may understand better what I am talking about. One fear has developed within my business world and one consistently remains in my ministry life.

First, my business fear. For the last 15 years God has shifted my dominate focus back and forth; from business to ministry, and then ministry to business. For the last 4 years my business life has dominated my time. During the course of the last two years I have tried to balance the emphasis of the services of the company I own. To accomplish this I have felt for two years that I needed another location that was much more visible to the public. I even outlined the geographical area and even a stretch of the street I thought would be a great location. About two months ago a location on this street became available. It appears to be a phenomenal building and location. About 2 months ago I went and looked at it. After speaking with the owner he told me that although he had several other calls about this property, he preferred to give me first choice. The decision was mine to make.

You might ask what would generate holy fear in this? Well my friends, I am 59 years old going on 70. I feel I could just work where I am and in five years or so get out and sell and not be concerned about the 20 employees currently working for me. Many of those that work for me have been with me for over 15 years. There is a battle within me between my entrepreneurial spirit and my age. Add that to my "felt responsibility" to provide for the future of those that work for me and you find a guy looking for a new location even though many would tell me to stay put. When I finally had to choose what to do, I said to my wife that I was more fearful of NOT expanding than I was of staying where I was. When God supplies the location that you feel you need right in your lap and the guy who owns it wants me there, I then become in holy fear of refusing the blessing God is offering. If I state to the Lord in my quiet time that I love Him with all my heart, all my soul, and all my mind, ... and that loving God provides what I believe the company needs, ... how could I demonstrate that my love and faith in Him is real if I do not take the risk?  I was in holy fear and afraid NOT to.

I have a similar fear in ministry. For 15 years I have been teaching leadership, writing these articles and finding time to do seminars and meeting with anyone who wants to hear what I have to say. I have traveled to dozens of locations within the US, once to Canada, twice to Nigeria and now preparing for my fourth trip to Sierra Leone, Africa. I leave with a teaching partner November 1st.  During these times of teaching leadership I know God has uses the teaching gift he gave me. However, God also knows I detest heat and humidity. While I have developed some very good friendships in Africa, I would rather travel in comfort to Iceland! 

The blessings I receive enduring the African climate and from other opportunities teaching Christian leadership exceeds the greatest business sale or contract I have ever sold. In light of that I feel my life would be worthless if God took back the teaching gift if I refused to go. So that my friends is one main reason I will return to Africa this November. For I stand in holy fear if I don't go.

Please do not be tempted to say I am wrong to feel the way I do. Don't be tempted to tell me that I should not feel the "felt responsibility" for my employees future. Do not be tempted to say that God won't necessarily take my teaching gift from me just because I would choose not to go. Friends, do not tell me that for it makes no difference if you are right or if I am right. What is important to me, and what should be important to you is that I stand in holy fear of God and you should too .. about something. 

I believe a holy fear of God causes a change in what we do next.

What will you do next?  And why? 

Is Fear a Legitimate Tool in Leadership - Part 1

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family.

Within your work or ministry life, when was the last time you did something out of the fear of the consequences or penalty? Maybe you are the kind of person who is always running late and find yourself straining to show up for work on time because of the fear of your pay being docked. Maybe you have been late so much that you now strain to show up in fear of losing your job.

When you have experienced this fear, do you feel it is fair and legitimate? Do you think any organization could function well without imposing the fear of penalty or consequence? Can anyone lead people well without having the authority to deliver some form of the fear of consequence or penalty? I would suggest that you and I cannot. Here is why. God designed this when He first created man.

An important note is that God instituted this form of leadership before man disobeyed and became sinful. I believe there are those who would argue it really is not God's will that we use fear and try to support that by saying God is all about love. They would say that he brought fear and consequence in response to the sin of mankind, therefore blaming man for creating the need to have it or use it. Based on that belief it would not be a legitimate tool or model. However, prior to sin and prior to even giving man a woman companion, he delivered to man a warning and consequence. "Do not eat of this tree or you will die." God designed leadership to deliver warnings and consequences. Even if man had remained obedient, the warnings and consequences would still be a valid deterrent today, ... in keeping man obedient. The fact that we continue to disobey gives total legitimacy to using warnings and consequences in leadership today.

In our scripture above, there is a reference to "holy fear".  Was it holy because Noah was described as a righteous and blameless man" in Genesis 6?  

Genesis 6: 9 ... Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.  

The reference to Noah being "blameless" was referring to how he was described by those that lived around him, ... evil people! To them he was considered blameless! It was not a reference from God to describe his sinless nature! In a similar but different way Noah's "righteousness" was not a result of him being compared to the others of his time. No! He was considered righteous by God in the same way true believers are today ... by faith, ... by believing! The point of all this being that the holy fear referred to here is simply the same holy fear we should have on a daily basis. The fear that comes from the knowledge of God.

Noah's holy fear was as much about his fear of drowning as it was about his fear of disobeying. Both were developed because of his faith and belief in God. He was fearful of drowning because he knew it was going to rain and that he needed a boat if he and his family were to live. His fear of drowning was because of his belief in God.

In the next issue, we will look closer at the application of the kind of fear Noah had and the fear we should have. In the meantime, reflect and try to answer this question.

What have you done lately because of your holy fear of the Lord?

From What Height Have You Fallen From?

Are you scared of heights? I am. Every time I get more than 10 feet up a ladder or look down from over 1 floor of a building I get that knot in my stomach. That knot which tells me I am too high for comfort and that I could fall and do some real damage to my body, even death. I think in a lot of ways we get scared of going high with the Lord. Some of our culture holds us back, sometimes it is the tradition in us, and sometimes we just feel like our level with Christ need not elevate any further. Some begin to feel they are high enough with the Lord. If we are high enough to get into heaven, why go any higher here on earth!

There was a church that once was commended by the Apostle Paul. Paul gave prayer and thanksgiving for the believers in ancient Ephesus when he heard of the height of their faith and love for each other. In Chapter 1 of Ephesians he prays for more growth! Ephesians 1:18-19a ^“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, ¹⁹ and his incomparably great power for us who believe… “What Paul wanted was for the Ephesians to continue higher and experience the hope that would produce great power in them.

 

Later in Revelation 2, Jesus commends the believers in Ephesus for their perseverance. However, their “fall”  and lack of growth Jesus holds against them. 

In Revelations 2: 4-5 Christ says, “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. ⁵ Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 

In fact the church had fallen down to a lower foothill and found contentment in that lower height. Friends, it is at these lower heights that we will experience the LACK of the power of God. Without the power of God we find ourselves ripe for our sinful nature to take over. It is at lower heights that we will lack the power to win more battles over the devil and/or our own sinful nature.

Why is it that we such a hard time taking the next leg up in our relationship with God? I believe our religious culture holds us back and our leaders do too. I have never been able to figure out why Muslims have no problem bowing down unashamedly on mats so their heads hit the floor in acts of worship to what? … A lie!  We, on the other hand sometimes feel we have reached the pinnacle of worship when we are able to raise one hand high in worship if and when the music drives enough emotion in us… to whom?  …. The true creator and King, Jesus Christ!  Is there something wrong with that picture? Is God looking down at us and saying “Are you kidding me?”

Lately I have had a metaphoric knot in my stomach, and it is not because I am on a ladder while I type. It is because I remember the heights of my growth in Christ and I just do not feel as high today.  It has not resulted in any unbelief, but I can feel a loss of the power of Christ. I am writing most of this right now as I am up in Northern Wisconsin on a study/vacation break trying to re-climb the hill I was once on. Many of you know exactly what I am talking about. Your growth curve in Christ was once steep but you are now on top of a foothill and in the face of a larger mountain that you just might not climb. The view from the foothill you are on is just fine with you. You can see enough of God from that height and know that if you climbed higher the air might be hard to breath, and just feel powerless to muster another leg up. Some of you are like me, who were climbing up well; but then … through lack of study and faith regressed.  

I would love to re-climb and surpass the height of my former peak. I just wonder if any of you are getting a knot in your stomach and need to come along?

A Leader's Spouse and Family

Mark 3:24-25   If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 

I Timothy 3:2-5  Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task.  Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,  not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.  He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?)

Not enough has been written about what goes on behind the scenes in the leaders home. However, might I suggest that more be written about the danger that goes unnoticed or unchecked. Today, I have two reminders for all leaders, but especially ministry leaders.

First, like-mindedness must permeate your home. 

Secondly, your home and family must be managed well.

In our passage from Mark, the teachers of the law had accredited Jesus' healing power to the "prince of demons", namely Beelzebub. Jesus' reply in our verse above spoke to the irony and impossibility of Satan being so effective if his own kingdom contained an equally strong view that apposed himself. Jesus then brings it down to our own level by repeating the lesson in regards to our own homes. The lesson here is that the homes of leaders must contain like-mindedness.

What goes on at home can make or break a leader.  Here are three things concerning the home that you might evaluate yourself or pass on to someone that may be helped by thinking through them.

1. Are you more interested in leading others than your own family? It is hard for us leaders to admit to but there are times when thinking about vision will consume our think time, and therefore inadvertently ignoring our home responsibilities. If our spouses aren't as excited about the vision as we are, spouses can become resentful regarding the back seat they find themselves in.

2. Spouses can feel robbed of value because the unexpected "cost" of leadership. Leadership in ministry always takes more time than what expected. If the spouse of the leader cannot support the extra time the leader will be away in extra meetings and such, things will become difficult at home. A few years ago we invited the wives to a leadership class for future elders. We invited them to help them understand the "costs" of eldership for their husbands and what the Bible required of their own character and practice. I can remember how helpful it was for them to understand the expectations of their husbands and themselves. It helped some of these leaders begin with a like-mindedness at home that was worthy of note.

Be sure your children are not in control of you!

3. The children of the leader is a reflection of the leadership of the family, and therefore an indicator of the leaders qualification to lead. Managing ones family household is a journey. Be sure your children are not in control of you. There will be many mistakes, Lord knows I have made them. However, when reviewed by others there should be a foundation of home management that overshadows some of the overt mistakes we all have made. Things "under control' should far outweigh the time when things are "out of control". Behavior that is "respectful" should far outweigh and overshadow the times they were not. Fill in the blanks with other pieces of home management. You will find that effective leaders have good things happening at home. The positives at home far outweigh the negatives. 

It has been 13 years since I have been called and committed to leadership. Within those years I can remember the times when I did not lead at home because I was so exhausted from leading others. During the last 10 years I have traveled overseas teaching in Africa 5 times with another scheduled for this November. I thank the Lord that my wife has never once complained about the "costs" of these trips or other "leadership expenses", but I know she could if she was not like-minded about how God is using me. 

Some of you out there have incredible noble thoughts and desires to participate in the advancement of the kingdom of God. However, what is needed to advance your leadership lies at home. Your family needs you and you need to lead at home first and foremost, ... then let God take the good that is going on at home and then use it to lead and bless others.

How about it? Is it time for a home improvement project?