Some simple things.

So far I have been to Unleash three times. Each and every year, I get my world rocked by the leadership and people at NewSpring, but this year, I tried to get in the right mind before I went. I guess the inspiration behind this is the fact that John Maxwell's name has been dropped in Twitterland a few times this month, and with that, it has made me start to think about my role in life, and the areas I need to be shining as a leader.



#1 Am I being all the leader my family needs me to be?



I have always, even before attending Revolution, thought that my family should be at the top of my list, second only to God. (let me clarify family: my wife and children, in that order) I have seen all to many times, failures in the church, because a pastor has allowed his ministry to control his life, while his family is left by the wayside. When I first started my ministry, I had a good friend tell me this, and I quote "Joe, if you lose your family, you've lost your ministry." Now, I can't say I have always put this into practice, and early in my ministry I made some huge mistakes, but since attending Revolution I have learned one thing. How to say, no. You see, it took me several years, but I finally figured out, that a church will let you do as much as you want to, and I never said no, so I was constantly involved in everything. This put a huge strain on my marriage, and took away precious time with my kids. I think I did this, because I wanted to make a huge impact, but I don't believe I was very effective. This is what I have learned. If you focus solely on what God has called you to do, you can make a greater impact, with less effort. That said, I will now answer the question at hand. I could do better. I have my hang ups and problems just like everyone else. One area I feel I need to improve is my quiet time with God. No excuses, I have just let this area in my life slip. Another area I need to improve on is spending more one on one time with my bride. Just as Jesus desires to spend more time with his bride the church, since my trip to Kentucky, I have wanted to spend more time just loving on Tracy. As far as my children, I have tried to be a Godly example in their lives. I want them to have a relationship with God, better than my own. If God calls them, I want them to heed His call without question. Ultimately, I want to be a husband that makes my wife proud, and a father my children aren't ashamed to tell their friends about.


#2 Am I being all the leader God wants me to be in His church?


Big question, huh? I think so. You see, Perry Noble laid this on us last week. He said that he preached every sermon as if it were his last. Now that was awesome in and of itself, but his reason why was even better. He said that when he died and stood in front of God that he knew he would be accountable for everything he said and did while leading NewSpring, and he didn't want to go one second knowing that he had held something back. That spoke to me more than anything has in a long time. I have always had a desire to be a man after God's own heart, just like King David, I just don't think I have had much success up to this point. The fact is I have let some things hinder me from being all that God wants me to be. After what Perry said, I will not hold anything back, and I think it showed last night at Uprising. I have the privilage of leading the High School Guys small group, and last night was the best session so far. Some were opening up about things, and we had an awesome time just with each other and God. I also want to apply this philosophy in Planet Shakers. To say I was jacked up yesterday during first service, would be an understatement. I was bouncing off the walls, I could feel it, the kids could feel it, even the volunteers could feel it. I want the kids, young and old to know that having a relationship with God is the most exciting thing they will ever do. So to answer the question, not yet, but I will be!