lived and taught Servant Leadership. This is not an option for the
Disciple of Jesus, it is the only option. Our service, good example
and deliberate goals for empowering others, are potent tools for
positive influence.
**************************************
Week 4. Integrity as a Foundation
**************************************
Objective: Participants will review their actions and set proactive
goals for building a lifestyle of Integrity.
Key Terms: Integrity, Stewardship, Truth, discipline.
Biblical example: Jesus – Mathew 5:8 ; 2 Corinthians 8: 21
Mathew - Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Cor- For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes
of the Lord but also in
the eyes of man.
Trust is the foundation of leadership. As leaders, husbands, parents,
colleagues, pastors etc., we are faced with choices everyday. Some
choices are easier to make than others. A Servant Leader's greatest
aspiration is to be a true disciple of Jesus. He is our perfect
example of Integrity. Though tempted in every way, He never failed.
He had a firm foundation when He walked the Earth as a Human Being.
History abounds with instances of failed leadership due to the lack of
integrity (e.g. Bernard Lawrence "Bernie" Madoff ) resulting in great
loss including human life. Bernie Madoff ran one of the largest Ponzi
schemes in American history and rid investors of $17 billion in
assets, according to court documents. Like a virus, mistrust spread
through communities, affecting many people who were not directly
touched by the Ponzi scheme. Ultimately, Madoff hurt the American
economy as a whole and is now serving a 150-year prison sentence. His
son Mark committed suicide by hanging exactly two years after his
father's arrest.
The world is experiencing a revolution in ideas which can be traced
back to the ideas promoted by Post Modernism. One of the main issues
promoted by Postmodernism is the relativity of truth. Truth is no
longer an absolute but relative as perceived by proponents of the
theory. Society is redefining morality while demoting rather than
promoting man. The values being sold on TV have little or no moral
value but somehow, in this Post Modern age if you do not agree to the
ideologies promoted you are labeled as the enemy ( a bigot). The
Bible however reminds us Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He
is absolute truth and we can look to Him for the definition of what
truth is in our marriages and other leadership contexts. As a leader,
you need to consistently sow into your "Trust Bank". Those small
actions can either make or break you.
A. How did Jesus overcome temptation?
After being baptized Jesus went into a fast in the wilderness and was
tempted by the Devil in 3 areas. They can be broadly categorized
under:
1. Pride- "If you are the son of God..."
2. Lust - "I will give you..."
3. Power – "Turn these stones into bread"
In all three instances, Jesus responded with the Word of God. He had
the big picture in mind. He also had divine backing. How often do we
only want to read what we like rather than reading the whole of
scripture? These three areas represent the three areas the enemy still
tries to tempt the disciples of Jesus in. It seems as if the advent of
the Prosperity Gospel, has made it easier to tempt this generation.
These three areas have been the stumbling stone for many leaders over
the centuries. Will you be different? Let us examine our hearts
honestly before the Holy Spirit.
Answer the following questions honestly:
a. Do you have issues with pride? Do you seek to be seen by men? Do
you get angry or sad when others perform better than you? Do you feel
you are better than others? Do you always try to justify yourself? Do
you generally think your opinion is the most important?
b. Do you invite members of the opposite to be with you alone? Do you
see God as provider? Can you sacrifice anything for money? Do you
think of other women/men as more beautiful than your spouse? Do you
comment on the beauty of the opposite sex, where-as you find it
difficult to tell your spouse how beautiful they are? Can you be
trusted with money? Do you owe anyone and despite your promises you
have not yet paid back? Are you incorruptible?
c. Do you like to be served? Do seek to always impose your will on
others? In what ways do you serve your family, church, team? Are you
approachable?
The basic foundation of leadership is the leader's character. You may
have made mistakes in the past but praise the Lord we can repent and
commit ourselves to the same values held by our savior. Because there
is such a law as the law of Magnetism (Who you are, is who you
attract), or birds of the same feather flock together etc., if you sow
integrity as a leader, you will reap integrity.
B. Steps towards building a solid foundation of trust.
1. Pre-determine your values. Write them somewhere as a reminder. What
are your values as a Christian and a leader? Please write some now.
You can complete the list later.
2. Be proactive and develop a plan for managing temptations in the
area of Money, Women, Pride and Power. Being prepared is winning the
battle in advance.
3. Draw up a plan for developing personal intimacy with God and to
develop habits of personal devotion. Some activities need to go. The
activities you involve yourself in during your leisure time, may come
back to hunt you. Are you spending too much time on the Internet,
reading news or watching movies? How is this affecting your time with
the Lord, your family and His people?
4. Engage in renewing your mind and behavior to reflect God's image.
God's image refers to reason, personality, intellect, capacity to
relate, to hear, see and speak. He also chose you to be His kingdom
agent, to rule over and subdue the rest of creation including satanic
forces. Your sexual morality, handling money, power and position,
should reflect your being salt and light. This will be achieved
through your personal discipline as you remain humble (relying on
God), a visionary (setting goals) and "convictional" (always doing
right). No one else can bear your responsibility. Without me (Jesus)
you can do nothing. If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you
shall bear much fruit (John 15).
5. Develop habits of a good steward. Everything you possess is from
God. He expects you to manage, invest and use them wisely. Think about
your people, time, finance in stewardship terms. What would you change
in terms of how you mange these? You need to be an effective steward
of time ("…Redeeming the time..." Eph 5:16) for the sake of God's
Kingdom. Attached is what I wrote down as a resolution in 2008 after
taking a similar course. Read it carefully then draw your own plan for
stewardship.
6. Seek to restore wholeness to your family and local church for the
advancement of the Kingdom. As a leader bless your family and add
value to each member. Honor your wife and model (the law of picture),
submission and service rather than retaliating at each opportunity.
Develop a winning partnership with her. Discern the uniqueness in your
children and work with them to build them up as servant leaders in
their own right. Let your gifts (Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor
and teacher) bless your family and the local church.
7. Expand your horizon to apply Kingdom values to the marketplace,
society and the environment. Display an attitude of gratitude, self
control and trust in God for provision. Be honest, a good repent-er,
promoter of excellence in the marketing place and an atmosphere of
peace and harmony applying Kingdom values no matter where you find
yourself.
8. Craft a plan for continuous evaluation of your personal growth in
the Lord. This will keep you humble. Humility will keep you on the
path of integrity.
It is possible to build lasting fruits of integrity. Let your yes be
yes. Again, be reminded, "Trust Is the Foundation of Leadership". Are
you worthy of trust (Proverbs 12:22- 22 The LORD detests lying lips,
but he delights in people who are trustworthy)? Have you burned some
bridges? You now have the opportunity to regain trust. Transformation
from start from within and the Holy spirit is willing to help you.
Some Quotes:
"It is true that integrity alone won't make you a leader, but without
integrity you will never be one." Zig Ziglar
"Earn trust, earn trust, earn trust. Then you can worry about the
rest." – SETH GODIN
Integrity gives you real freedom because you have nothing to fear
since you have nothing to hide. Zig Ziglar
Assignment:
Design your plan for building a solid foundation (integrity) and self
discipline, based on the 8 points discussed above.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Philippians 4: 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true,
whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or
praiseworthy—think about such things.
No comments:
Post a Comment