Giants and Grasshoppers

“There are giants in the land” was the report of the spies who went in to spy out the land of Canaan for the Israelites prior to their infamous mutiny from God and subsequent wandering in the desert for forty years (Numbers 13-14). For ten of the twelve spies, those giants were insurmountable barriers to taking the land. Only Joshua and Caleb saw the giants in light of God’s power and ability to take them. The rest of the spies looked at them through human and therefore fearful eyes.

All of us have giants in our lives – those people, circumstances or situations that cause fear and anxiety, wake us up at night and which we struggle with. Those giants are real; they often pose a significant threat and are not to be discounted. 

The game changer for giants, of course, is God himself, who is not intimidated by those things that cause us fear because He has the power to deal with them. His words to His disciples are encouraging to us. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33).” Wow! We know of the “many troubles” but do we live with the daily knowledge that He has “overcome the world and therefore we may live in peace?” His overcoming power trumps any trouble we could face. Not that he promises to take those troubles away but that He gives us what we need to deal with them no matter how fierce they are. 

I have a friend who recently received the devastating news of a diagnosis of mesothelioma. Not only is this an incurable disease of the lungs but it’s typical progression is rapid and its symptoms are terrible. There is nothing nice or comforting about that kind of “trouble:” and absent God’s miraculous healing it is a one way street. This friend and his wife are not despairing of this giant, as great as it has invaded their world. Rather they are facing it with courage and faith and his whole focus now is preparing to meet Jesus who he has served for many years.

Giants create fear while God gives peace and divine perspective if we will allow Him. We confront giants when we give them to God and press into Him with faith knowing that there is no giant he cannot overcome. Ironically the spies reported to the Israelites that compared to the giants “we seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes and we looked the same to them (Numbers 13:33).” What they did not realize is that compared to God’s power, the giants they faced and those we face are mere grasshoppers in God’s eyes: fearful to us, grasshoppers to Him. As Jesus said in John 16:33 it is all a matter of perspective.

I recently confronted one of my giants. The details are unimportant but realizing that God’s power was greater than my giant was everything. It was not without much prayer and faith on my part. Today the giant has been put into its proper perspective (a mere grasshopper in God’s eyes) and for that I am grateful. Our giants are very real. Only God can put them into proper perspective. Are you living with giants or grasshoppers?

Rupert Murdock and a failure of leadership

Rupert Murdock failed his ultimate leadership test this week when asked whether he was ultimately responsible for "this whole Fiasco" in British Parliament. He tersely replied "No." When asked who was he said "The people that I trusted to run it and then maybe the people they trusted (The Nation, Thursday July 21, 2011)."

Murdock failed his leadership test on three counts. First leaders always take responsibility when something goes south in their organization. His explanation that he has 35,000 employees and cannot keep track of what they do means nothing. Leaders take responsibility when there is trouble. They do not point fingers at others and blame them for ultimately the buck stops a the senior level. Further, if you are going to  blame others that you hired, who is ultimately responsible if not the one who did the hiring! And, if your senior leader ducks the blame, why should not everyone else down the chain?


This is not only a failure of leadership but a failure of courage. It is like a kid getting caught and pointing his finger at another kid and saying, "He did it." Leaders man up! They don't blame others.


Second, Murdock failed his leadership test by hiring and keeping individuals who did not have a strong moral compass. Perhaps they made money for him and that was enough. Leaders lead through the quality of the people they hire - first their moral convictions and second their business expertise. He certainly had business expertise but he failed to hire people with high moral convictions. If there is one failure common to many such situations it is that corporations have filled their ranks with many who have no moral foundation allowing the widespread practices as in this case of immoral and illegal behavior.


Third, Murdock failed as a leader by failing to set a high standard to ethical, legal and moral practices that were the expectation of all those who worked for him. It strains credulity to believe that he did not know that corners were being cut - all he needed to do was to read his own papers and it would be obvious that there was something going on. If others could figure it out, so could he. But the company lacked a moral compass that only he could both model and insist on. Obviously it was possible to work in a culture where illegal and unethical practices were either ignored or accepted.


These three failures of leadership are fundamental flaws that would sooner or later have come to light. Those of us who lead ought to take notice and ask if we share any of these three threats to our own leadership.

Spin control

We hear it every day on the news channels. The government, businesses or individuals who have something to explain engaging in spin control. At its best, spin control is designed to get your facts out in as favorable a light as possible, knowing that others will spin your story in highly unsavory ways. At its worst, and perhaps all too common, spin control is used to rewrite the actual facts when they are not in our favor which amounts to dishonesty and lying. It is one of the reasons that many are rather cynical when listening to people who are obviously "spinning" reality to try to convince us of an alternative reality.

It is sad that many churches and ministry organizations do the same thing when confronted with situations that they need to explain and the simple facts of the situation will make them look bad. It is sad because truth is one of the fundamental characteristics of God's character and deceit or lying is one of God's all time "hates" (see Proverbs). 

I am not suggesting that all facts about all situations must be shared. What I am suggesting is that what is shared must be consistent with the truth and would stand up to scrutiny if all the relevant parties were present. Church leaders who are not as candid as they ought to be - either because it will make them look bad - or because they don't want to deal with the fall out find that their spin goes out of control when people start to realize that they have not been given the full story - or even a truthful story. Even when done in the spirit of "we need to protect the congregation" it does not work - and that is often an excuse not to be truthful.

I know of a recent situation where allegations of sexual abuse in a mission agency's past came to light. Rather than bringing it into the open, the board simply fired the chief executive (who had nothing to do with that era of mission history). He became the scapegoat and the agency tried to hide the facts of the past. The latter will not work.

I know of a pastor who recently left his pastorate over deep conflict with his board but the situation was spun all ways to Sunday rather than simply acknowledging what many in the congregation already know - leaving the board with even less trust than they had before.

Why are we afraid of truth? Again, not everything needs to be said but people are not stupid and truth, no matter how hard builds trust while lack of transparency kills trust. Organizations that engage in dishonest spin find that they get caught in that spin for years rather than just being honest, taking the lumps and moving on. Even secular consultants will tell you to get whatever is going to get out on the table quickly, apologize where necessary, share your next steps and start to move on and rebuild trust. It is always the best way.

Covering up has to do with our pride. Transparency has to do with humility. 

Courage

Courage is one of the essential traits of anyone who desires to make a difference for Christ. Courage to follow His leading. Courage to go to places that are uncomfortable for us. Courage to change when God points out areas of our lives that need such change. Courage to try things for Him that we have not tried before. 

Why is courage so important? Because most people are adverse to change and love the comfort of the status quo. I have had people tell me in my own organization, "Do what you want to do but don't expect me to change." That is a failure of courage! Others have said, "It is hard for me to go there but I will go with you." That is a victory for courage. People fit into predictable categories of innovators, early adapters, middle adapters, late adapters and laggards (they will never change). While these may be standard responses to change, courage says, "If God calls me out of my comfort zone, I will go, no matter what." 

Those who lack courage will never make much of an impact for Christ and frankly don't belong in full time ministry. God does not take His people to predictable places but to the unpredictable. The game changer is that He never leaves us to our own devices but continually says, "Do not be afraid for I am with you." If I cannot move forward with that promise, what will help me do so?

The opposite of courage is cowardice. No one likes to have that word used for them. Yet, when we say no to God, when we refuse to go to new places, when we will not leave our own comfort zone, it is cowardice that characterizes our lives. God's workers are never called to live in cowardice but in courage. After all, we never go alone, but always with the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Many congregations and ministry organizations live with a lack of courage. There are mission agencies I know that will not pull the trigger on change because of fear. There are missionaries who will not go to new places because of fear. There are congregations who will not change what they have been doing for fifty years (mostly unsuccessfully because of fear. It is a failure of courage that results in a failure of effectiveness. 

As a ministry leader, I do not apologize for looking for courageous people. Nothing of substance is accomplished when we are unwilling to go to new places, to risk for the sake of the Gospel. And that courage must start with me as the senior leader. Are you willing to risk for the sake of the Gospel? Are you willing to live on the side of courage rather than the side of cowardice? OK that is a strong way of putting it but it is the choice each of us must make.

The Power of Unity and the Cost of Disunity

A spirit of unity is one of the most powerful forces that any team, organization, congregation or board can foster. Unity includes a common direction, great cooperation, knowing that others will support and protect you and a refusal to allow situations or people to divide you. 

In the ancient armies of Sparta, the unity of the troops gave them a powerful advantage over their foes. The lines would be closed, shield tip to shield tip. Behind the front line, the second line of shields literally fit in the small of the back of the soldier in front to support him and keep him moving forward even in the collision with the enemy. The lines could go twenty or fifty deep, moving in lockstep forward and there was no surrender and no retreat. The only way to win and survive was to fight side by side with those on your right and those on your left while being supported by those behind you. No army in the ancient world wanted to meet the Spartan troops! Even if they were to win, the cost was going to be very high.

This real life picture of a unified front illustrates the power of unity. Here is the team that sets aside its differences to move forward together toward a common goal. Here is a congregation that is willing to live up to the admonition of Ephesians 4, living in unity and love in the power of the Holy Spirit in order to see the cause of Jesus advance and His reputation held high. Here is the board that forges direction, relationships and common commitments rather than members insisting on their own way: humble cooperation rather than needing to win. 

Disunity can be characterized by lack of common direction, a higher concern for my interests rather than the interests of the group, a spirit of independence rather than cooperation and often, critical spirits toward others in the group. Disunity diffuses momentum, elevates personal agendas over a common goal and hurts rather than protects others in attitudes and words. It destroys missional momentum and is a sign of immature and pride filled believers. At its worst, Paul describes the characteristics of disunity as quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder - and he is talking about church members and leaders (2 Corinthians 12:20).

Disunity need not be malicious to be dangerous. The lack of unity is by definition, disunity. And whether caused by lack of cooperation and independent spirits or by the unwillingness to do the hard work of forging unity, the result is the same: a diffusion of impact.

If anyone doubts the theological issue inherent in unity one only needs to look at the picture of the Godhead - three in one where unity and love always reign supreme. When we live in disunity we not only hurt the mission we are committed to but we dishonor the Lord whom we serve who is the ultimate example of unity.

Paul puts the issue of unity this way. "If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your interests but to the interests of others (Philippians 2:1-4)."



Here are some indicators of unity:

• We have a common direction
• We are moving together
• We don't allow anyone or anything to divide us
• We will never hurt those we serve with
• We submit our will to that of the common good and goal
• We cooperate with one another
• We pray for one another
• We guard our attitudes toward one another
• We look not only to our interests but to the interests of others 

What makes the difference between those who live with faith and those who live with fear?

For believers this is a profoundly theological and personal question. Just think about conversations you have or hear: fear about the economy; fear about illnesses; fear that one won't have enough money in retirement; fear of travelling because of terrorism.

Then think of how amazingly cautious we can be in ministry settings from taking risks and stepping out of our comfort zone. What if we fail? We've never done that before! It's too risky! We don't have the money! And the hundred and one objections that often meet a new idea for ministry.

Why do so many people live fearful and cautious lives? Why do so many like to live in their comfort zone? Here is what they don't get. There is much to be fearful of in this world. All kinds of things can and will go wrong - I can attest to that many times over. But, when we are living with the Lord of the Universe resident in our hearts through the Holy Spirit we have no need to fear - ever. After all, we have in our lives, dwelling in us, the all powerful, all sovereign, all knowing, all loving God of the universe. There is much that we cannot handle. He can handle everything!

I said that this is a theological issue and it is. The most repeated command in Scripture is "fear not," "do not be afraid," and it is often accompanied by "for I am with you." When Joshua took over from Moses God told him "Be strong and courageous - three times. Why? Because "the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 16:6-9)." When Jesus gave us the great commission, he finished with these words, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20).

The bottom line is that fear is a denial of God's presence, power, promises and plan for us and our world. It is a denial of His divinity and sovereignty. It is a statement that we cannot trust the One who made us and saved us. If we cannot trust him with our situation today, how can we trust him for our salvation? He is either trustworthy or He is not.

How do I combat fear and live more fully in faith?
First, acknowledge the fears you have - whatever they are. Give them to God, ask Him to forgive you for not trusting and ask Him to help you live in faith rather than fear.
Second, memorize a few key passages from Scripture that tell us to fear not for He is with us.
Third, when your mind goes to fear or doubt intentionally and immediately ask God for the faith to trust Him.
Fourth, Ask God for situations where you are forced to trust him and grow your faith. The more we learn to trust the greater the faith we have.

A word to ministry leaders. Congregations and ministries take their faith cues from those who lead them. When they are courageous their followers will be courageous. When they believe for great things, their people will believe for great things. We set the tone for the level of faith or the level of fear. Where we live on this issue will determine where our organization will live as well.

The paradox of Christian leadership

Good Christian leadership has built within it a divine paradox. Think of the qualities of a good leader: self confidence; clarity of direction; good emotional intelligence; ability to task and empower others; courage to make hard decisions; faith that God can do amazing things; and ability to chart a strategy for success. All of these qualities are marks of a good leader and they are the qualities we ought to concentrate on if we lead.

The apostle Paul exhibited these leadership characteristics. But, he also added another characteristic of great leadership which would surprise Fortune Magazine: humble weakness.

We who lead often accumulate experiences and success that fuel our confidence and that confidence allows us to lead even better. But it can also bring with it pride and the tendency to rely more on ourselves than on God: after all our success is proof of our skill and gifting. Thus the very skill that is needed to lead well can take my eyes off of the One who gave me that skill and move my inner leadership compass from God to myself which will ultimately compromise my leadership. It is a paradox and a threat to my leadership.

Paul faced the same temptation. In 2 Corinthians 12:1-6 he recounts amazing experiences he had including being given visions and revelations that would make any of us prone to pride. And good leaders all have experiences and successes that could lead them to pride.

Which is why we read this significant passage that impacted and formed the very best of Paul's leadership:

"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in  my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)."

I believe there is a pattern here for Christian leaders. Those He uses to lead, He humbles through circumstances of life. Lead well and one will experience pain - a gift from the Father who does not want our leadership success to move our focus of confidence from Him to us. Confidence in myself is simply pride. Confidence in Him and His power keeps us humble because we realize that He is the source of our success and it is His power that allows us to see that success.

Why is God's power made perfect in weakness? Because it is in weakness that we put our chips with God and humbly ask Him for success. In strength we put out chips with our ability. Here is the paradox again. When we lead out of our weakness and are forced to trust and rely on Him, His power rests on us. And it is His power that makes us the best leaders.

All this led Paul to make a statement that every leader ought to consider: "That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 

One of my leadership heroes is a pastor who has walked through amazing health challenges for many years. In those seasons when he was bringing the most change and spiritual renovation to his church those health challenges increased. Over the years I have also watched his leadership ability, courage and faith grow exponentially. Physically he could be seen as week. As a spiritual leader he is a gentle, courageous giant! He is a recipient of Paul's paradox: When he was weak he became strong. His hardships forced him to rely on God and His power rather than his skill and leadership acumen. 

So we add to the list of characteristics of a great leader: humble weakness that results in powerful strength as we lead in His wisdom and power. If you lead, embrace the paradox.