Shepherds

One thing I have found to be completely true while working as a "supervisor" or being "over" someone with the Summer Staff this summer, so far is that Shepherds (good ones at least) smell like their sheep. This is something I have been "preaching" for years, but never grasped the fullness of it, until now!

I have realized that the Staffers respond so well to someone asking them to do something, when they have seen that person literally sweating, dirty and smelling the same way they are! How dare we ever ask someone to do something we are not willing to do! Alexander the Great (who was not the greatest guy in the world, I know) was was one of the greatest leaders of all time. When he died, they examined his body and found many, MANY war wounds. Alexander was said to be the first on the battle field and the last to leave, no matter what battle it was! His men followed him, because they knew where he was going. We can not lead people to a place we aren't going.

Imagine this: I tell you to go in the woods, turn past a large oak tree, then walk forty steps to the left, then turn to the creek and walk towards it, then walk to the big pine tree and pick up all the rocks you see and bring them to me. Those are pretty good instructions, if there's only one oak tree, one pine tree, and you steps are the same size as mine. A better way to do this would be to take you to the rocks, then ask you to help me pick them up. Not only does this not take more time then explaining everything to you (plus all the questions you would have) , but this shows you that I am willing to do the work with you! That is the kind of leader people follow!

The best example of this that anyone ("Christian" or not) could find would to be in Jesus. He never sent his disciples anywhere/asked them to do anything that He didn't do Himself. Most of the time He did more than them anyway. Not only that but, He washed their feet! A servant's job! He lowered Himself to the job that the rest of the disciples probably looked down on! Instead of making them wash His feet, or hiring someone else to do the job, or barking orders at them, He took the lowest position in the room... this showed that He was the best leader possible! If you are in a leadership position and think you deserve... you may wanna' do some self-assessing... not that no one deserves the roles they hold. C. S. Lewis said it best through the voice of Aslan to Prince Caspian; Aslan said, "All the kings," and Caspian said, "I don't think I'm ready to be one." Aslan turned to him and said, "That's how I know you are."

NEW POST

So, I haven't kept up with this thing AT ALL!

Here's a quick, very brief review of my life lately:

I changed jobs at Look Up! I am now Assistant to the Program Director (Office pun intended). I have the amazing privilege/honor/blessing of working with, what I consider, the greatest/Godliest 25 college aged guys and girls in the world! We are experiencing, as close as I ever have, true Acts 2 community! God is good!

Summer started! We kicked off this past Sunday with Grace Fellowship's teen group! I am working from around 6:30 AM to Midnight, 7 days a week! I LOVE IT!

I made a 3.5 GPA this past semester in Grad School!

I got engaged... oh wait, I don't even have a girlfriend... ignore that last one... HA!

That's pretty much what's been happening my way.

I will leave with this quick thought:

"Jesus wasn't white, in fact He probably looked like a terrorist!"--Stuart Fuller, awesome guy came and spoke to us before the summer got rolling. After he made that statement, I expounded, that Jesus not only LOOKED like a terrorist, BUT WAS ONE! And definitely would be in our culture! He turned the entire world upside down. He was known as a drunkard who lied, blasphemed, and worshipped Satan! He DESTROYED the status quo! We should be about revolutionary/terrorist/rebel acts against the status quo, against the shameful white washed, blue eyed, red-haired Jesus that we have so disgracefully made! We should be about embracing this radical REBEL!!!

Chokmah

The hebrew word that we translate as Chokmah was used in the Old Testament to mean "wisdom." Our pathetic English language can not do justice to this word. There were five possible meanings of the word: skilled in warfare, wisdom in administration, shrewdness, prudence in religious affairs, and wisdom in ethical and religious matters. When Exodus 28:3 refers to this word, it means that the people will have the ability to make Aaron's clothes the right way; however, in Proverb (singular Proverb, I'm only speaking of one Proverb and not the entire book of Proverbs) 9:10 the word refers to understanding.
Another point of importance, when dealing with Chokmah, is to notice that everytime someone gains this wisdom (other times, such as in Proverbs the wisdom has already been obtained) that person or persons, is given this wisdom from God. We must realize that true wisdom, in all areas of life is a gift from God. Wisdom that can be obtained by any other means (wisdom of the world) will never be able to measure up to the greatness of wisdom given from above.
It is important to seek wisdom in God's word and to pray for God to give us wisdom. We can never gain true, Biblical wisdom by any other means than God blessing us with it. Solomon is a great example: pray for wisdom, everything else will follow suit!

One Love