In my last blog we looked at Shamgar, an Israelite leader who only really had one great moment of victory, followed by a life of failed leadership. A single gift, a great moment, a day of courage, is not enough to be truly faithful, divinely successful, lastingly fruitful. There are several things we need to…
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“After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.” Judges 3:31 There are only two mentions of Shamgar in the Bible. The first is above, where it briefly notes he attacked and killed 600 enemies with a cattle prod. Quite a character! The second…
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She asked “Do me a special favor. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me also springs of water.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs. Judges 1:15 Land without springs, is like a car without fuel. Land with water has the potential to produce crops or rear herds, but…
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Churches and ministries thrive on volunteer teams; People who consider it worship to practically work for the cause of the Church & the Gospel, for no financial gain. But leading volunteers is complex. Many great leaders in the business world find themselves surprised by their inability to lead in the volunteer sector, as they suddenly…
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Leadership is tough. Life is long. It’s easy to go off track. Make sure, somewhere along the line, your leadership emphasis doesn’t move…. ….from prayer meetings, to lunch meetings ….from the voice of God, to copying & pasting ….from the Great Commission, to great publicity ….from raising disciples, to collecting decisions ….from…
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Your brain is a mass of Neural Pathways – actual, biological paths, created by you through repetitive thought, action and behaviours. These develop and become extremely powerful. It is because of these pathways that we can walk around our house in the dark and not hit furniture, as we’re so used to the layout in…
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Mark 4:35-41 tells the story of Jesus calmly sleeping through a storm that terrified hardened fishermen: “… A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, don’t you care if…
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Jesus spoke of pathways in the parable of the sower. In Mark 4:3 Jesus says, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As He was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.” The sower then went on to sow on the rocky places, the thorns and…
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Sometimes God’s workings are like a catapult. We think we are being held back, that someone or something is resisting us. We may feel that we are being overlooked, forgotten, dishonoured, criticized or corrected. But actually when life starts to move backwards because of resistance, it is usually God doing a work in our life,…
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Failed in business aged 22 Ran for Legislature—defeated aged 23 Again failed in business aged 24 Elected to Legislature aged 25 Sweetheart died aged 26 Had a nervous breakdown aged 27 Defeated for Speaker aged 29 Defeated for Elector aged 31 Defeated for Congress aged 34 Elected to Congress aged 37 Defeated for Congress aged…
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God said to a grumpy Cain, who was jealous of his brother Abels favour, “If you DO what is right, will you not be accepted?” (Gen 4:6). He was living a sloppy life, giving God ½ hearted offerings – and was thus missing out on God’s blessings. Many people get jealous of the blessing of…
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I am not a political animal, but the wall to wall scare-monger filled broadcasting from either side of the EU debate is frustrating me! There are arguments to say we should stay, fears about leaving, those who are convinced we can be great “on our own”, and those who feel the “EU project” is collapsing…
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“Now David was clothed in fine linen, as were all the Levites…David wore a linen Ephod…” 1 Chronicles 15:27-29 King David and his priests (in fact all priests throughout the Old Testament) had to wear the correct clothing to come before the Lord and lead God’s people in worship. I want to ask worship teams,…
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Worship leading is a difficult thing, especially if we are longing for powerful times with God. Glory, passion, intimacy, the presence and the power of God moving among us are things many of us desire in our meetings. As many church services can at times be much less powerful than all that, we can quickly become frustrated,…
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I think we (me included here!) sometimes use “weakness” to relinquish responsibility. We use it as a get out clause for failure, in-discipline, procrastination, debilitating addictions and laziness. “O I’m weak, please don’t expect me to be too strong, to endure, to succeed”. Now I know, in many ways, we are indeed weak, broken, in…
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“Master, it is good for us to be here.” Peter said. “Let us put up three tabernacles, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying). Luke 9:33 Many an ageing pastor has informed me, usually with tears in his or her eyes, “We have no…
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“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” Mark 2:27 Religion is a powerful thing. In it’s negative form it can make us feel like we’re serving a machine that demands much of us. But nothing could be further from Jesus’ heart. In the build up to this verse, Jesus’ disciples picked some…
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During the time of Israel’s wanderings in the desert, with the weeping and wailing of over 300 funerals a day and the noise of a million refugees and livestock, Moses took a tent and pitched it away from the hustle and bustle of the camp. There he would meet with God in power and glory,…
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“Guard Your heart, for out of it come the issues of life” Proverbs 4:23 All the issues of your life flow from your heart. It is the spring from which all your attitudes, actions and desires stem. You are not a result of your circumstance, and neither are you the person your position or title…
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“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” Ecc 3:1 Life has many seasons. There are seasons of dreaming, periods of preparation, times of silence and eras of learning. This is true of people, families, organisations and of course, churches. It was even true of Jesus. You can’t fight it,…
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