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Number 11 - Nov 99 |
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WELCOME TO THE SHEPHERD'S STOREHOUSE !The promises of God take us further than we have been before, they
lift us beyond ourselves and into the boundless potential of His grace,
they change the dimensions of life. You can be certain that the promises
God has made to you will come to pass in His time and His way, and His
ways are so much higher than ours. The new millennium abounds with great
potential. |
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Let God Arise ! Psalm 47:5-6 Subject God AM
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Now Faith Is... Heb.11:1
Subject Faith M
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| Great is the Lord Psalm 48
Subject God AM
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How to Live in the Overflow 2 Kings 7:4-9 Subject Christian Living AM
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| Keys to a Fruitful Life Psalm 1 Subject Christian Living Theme Successful Christian Living Proposition 3 Keys to Successful Living Main Points
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The Last Page in the Book Rev.22:17
Subject The Holy Spirit M
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Radical Christian Living Col.3:15-17 Subject Christian Living
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Discover Your Destiny Esther 4:14
Subject Destiny
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| The Greatest of These is Love Col.3:14
Subject Love
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Never Give Up Heb.10:19-25
Subject Perseverance
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| A Matter of Life and Death Col.2:12
Subject Christian Living
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Lord, you shall never wash my feet John 13
Subject Jesus AM
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| God’s Kind of People Phil.4:1
Subject Church Life M
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Gifts for the Man with Everything Matt.2:11
Subject The Wise Men
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| Raising the Average Joshua 14:6-15
Subject Caleb AM
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Giants and Grasshoppers Num.13:26-14:9
Subject Faith M
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Taking Your Leadership to the Next Level |
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God cannot grow a church any larger than He can grow the leader of the church. The continual development of the spirit, mind and character of the leader is integral to the health and growth of the church they pastor. Before God wants your church to grow, He wants you to grow ! This demands we not only become better preachers but better leaders and better people. What does it mean to become a better leader ? Effective leaders establish goals which link the dynamics of people and tasks. Ephesians 4:12 identifies the purpose of ministry as preparing or equipping God's people for works of service. Leaders connect people with tasks and reach their goals. Two of the challenges all leaders face are growing the leadership base and raising the group identity of the church. Effective leaders raise and release others to share in leadership. The concept of 'team' is far more than the latest trend, it is as old as Moses appointing 70 elders, as David and his mighty men, as Jesus and the 12. An orchestra is far more pleasing to the ear than a one man band ! The rowing eight is meant to be eight burly rowers being steered by one little guy. Many churches have one little guy doing all the rowing while eight big guys try to do all the steering ! Effective leaders endeavour to raise the group identity. When churches are pioneered, people refer to fellowshipping at Frank's, Andrew's, Danny's. As the church grows stronger, its own identity increases, people speak about fellowshipping at Hills, Northside, The Centre. |
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| To achieve this growth, leadership experiences a cycle of transitions based around fathering and facilitating. Groups transition from infancy to adolescence to maturity. Leaders are also in transition, from founders (infancy), to fathers (adolescence) to facilitators (maturity). Founders are the reason why an infant church exists. They make the decisions, chart the course for the church and provide all the ministry. Fathers focus on raising up future leaders through equipping and releasing people into responsibilities and ministry. Facilitators motivate and inspire others in their ministry, they delegate authority and decision making. |
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| Founders are the reason why an infant church exists. They make the decisions, chart the course for the church and provide all the ministry. Fathers focus on raising up future leaders through equipping and releasing people into responsibilities and ministry. Facilitators motivate and inspire others in their ministry, they delegate authority and decision making. |
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| The transition from founder to father is as challenging as the transition from parenting an infant to parenting a teenager. If you treat your teenager as a child, you need to prepare for dissension. If you do not develop your people, they will become frustrated and fruitless, or they will fall away. Deliberately seek the help of the Holy Spirit to grow you as a father, and to help you in the equipping and releasing of people into ministry. Some leaders can never rise above the founder stage, and their churches remain small. |
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There are two errors to avoid in this transition. Founders who are people focussed want to be everyone's friend, but when tasks are ignored, little is accomplished. Founders who are task focussed become fanatics, and when the task at hand is more important than the people, sheep are scattered. Effective goals demand that people and tasks are kept in tension. Good fathers develop their team and start to release them into ministry activity. |
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The transition from father to facilitator is equally difficult. Facilitators exist for the ministry of others to blossom, sharing decision making and delegating responsibility. This in turn frees the leader to found new areas of ministry and service and begin the cycle again. We greatly admire the preaching ministry of CH Spurgeon. But in its
heyday, the Metropolitan Tabernacle had scores of ministries involving
hundreds of people. Spurgeon was more than a great preacher, he was a
great facilitator for the ministry of others. If you consider large
churches around the world today, even though they usually have dynamic
platform ministries, their focus is to release the ministry of others
and not their own. The present re-emphasis
on small groups and cell churches is significant, God wants His people
released into ministry. |
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The tension between people and tasks remains in this transition.
Leaders who continue to focus exclusively on people tend to become
flatterers of people, manipulating and ruling them rather than
motivating and releasing. Leaders who focus exclusively on tasks tend to
become ferris wheel operators, everything runs smoothly, the view at the
top is great, but you get off where you got on. Good facilitators
release people for the work of ministry which in turn releases the
leader to pioneer and found new ministries. |
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| Leaders who only focus on people move from everybody's friend to
flatterer to fire fighter. They put out one fire only to find another
springing up. These kinds of leaders are never right and sacrifice their
ministry, their marriage and their family. Leaders who focus on tasks move
from fanatics, to ferris wheel operators, to Fuhrers. These kinds of
leaders are never wrong and sacrifice the sheep. But founders who become
fathers, who become facilitators, grow great churches because they
themselves have become great people. |
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| Jesus took a small group of very average people and turned them into world changers. Make one of your goals for the coming year, the raising up of a "pastor's discipleship class." Select 12, father them, reproduce yourself in them, equip and empower them, keep in tension people and the task. Become a facilitator and make the goal of the coming year for each one of the 12 to begin their own discipleship group. | ||||||||||
KEYS TO ABUNDANT LIVINGCount your blessings, Expect a miracle Overcome your fears, Get out of that boat Dare to dream, Think big, Never give up Pray that prayer, Sow that seed, Be happy Keep on praising, Keep on believing Reach out to others, Be positive, Be daring Take that risk, Lift up your head, Smile Get out of your comfort zone, Do it now Get passionate about life, Believe for more Never think it can’t be done, for with God all things are possible Everyday declare, God is with me, Aim high Link with others who are going somewhere Ditch your doubts, Dump your depression Expect great things from God Attempt great things for God |
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"Introduction to Preaching" A comprehensive, self study guide teaching you how to develop sermon outlines. Includes, exercises, answer pages, 40 sermons. Just revised. The best self study guide on preaching. $ 15 postage paid. |
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