Words of Encouragement

The Love that Never Ends

Psalm 44:2-4 (New International Version)


With your hand you drove out the nations and planted our fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers flourish. It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them. You are my King and my God, who decrees [a] victories for Jacob.


As you read this Psalm you can understand the psalmist praises about the love of God. The psalmist tells of the wonderful things that God has done as he begins to enumerate God's blessings. The first point is that God drove out the other nations from the land and planted or placed his people there. Secondly he allowed them to prosper. The psalmist reminds the readers that it was not by the people's strength, power or ability that gave them this land and these blessings. The psalmist tells it very simply, it was because of the love of God.
 
What does this tell us today? It is a reminder that we must be grateful for the doors that God opens for us. He sees his children and he knows their needs. He removes the obstacles that stand in front of his children that keeps them from going into the places that he has set for them. He not only gives his children a place to dwell, but he prospers them in those places.
 
God does it all because of his unending love for us. God wants to take us into some places to occupy. The problem is we often do not see that we can make it and we began to complain, grumble and lose focus. We then try to work things out, we try to figure it out and use our own natural abilities.
 
Yet the psalmist reminds us that these things cannot help us to enter into the places God has for us. Though we often get in our own way, God's love for us is what keeps us. I simply marvel at how much God loves us and how he prepares for us, even when we don't always listen and we lose faith. Today I want to remind us that God knows how to prepare for our needs. He knows how to open those doors that will never be opened by our own hands and ability.

I pray for us today to stop looking at our situations and thinking we are defeated. I pray that we do like the psalmist and remind ourselves of what God can do in us, for us and through us. I pray that we enumerate to ourselves the doors God has opened in our favor that we could not only open but we did not even know how to find the door knob!

Prayer: Lord today we seek you to help us be reminded about your unending, unfailing love. Help us when the enemy of our soul comes to try and discourage us, to be reminded that you are the one that removes our enemies that stand in our way trying to keep us from entering into the places you have ordained for us. We pray today that you will help us be reminded but also to remind someone else that is feeling hopeless or discouraged to find comfort in your unending love. Amen.

The Week In Review

My Position on Women in Ministry

(This was a post I wrote in response to several other students remarks on women in ministry)


I would like to say that I have had to fight some battles regarding what God has and is calling me to do. In my pursuit of education I have fought this fight even more. I am presenting here today a response that I wrote to a "conversation" among several indviduals regarding women. I do not present it to cause fight or debate. I really want you to look at the ending of my post to see if we can challenge ourselves to carry out what I write:


Dear (name removed),



Before I answer your question, I want to go back to the scripture that is often used to show why women cannot be preachers (or to teach or be part of the internal workings of the church). 1 Corinthians 14:33-36 where it states “Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak…” Many commentators have long considered these verses to be culturally embedded statements at odds with Paul’s own practice and Galatians 3.


Now I have heard some still say, they do not believe this scripture is addressing the culture of the time but is speaking to all women today as well as yesterday that women should not be permitted to preach or teach. Then the question is, how do you reconcile Paul’s speaking earlier in this same book? 1 Corinthians 11 (especially 5 and 13) talks about women giving prophesy. It does not forbid the act of speaking but of her head being uncovered. Later interpretations made this to mean women being subordinated to men. The Greek interpretation of the word “speak” (laleo) in Corinthians is easily rendered “babble” and the word “silence” (siagao) bears connotations of desisting from chatter. This interpretation of the words would make the understanding of some commentators that state Paul was not stopping the women from speaking, but from the babbling and chatter that was taking place. Because to believe otherwise how do you reconcile women being able to prophecy but not able to speak?


Furthermore, women have been a part of the church and of God’s plan always. Early church leaders were itinerant missionaries or heads of household assemblies. The Great Commission was given without gender distinction, for if it were Jesus’ intent that women keep quiet he could have easily explained that when giving the commission. Women were the first witnesses to the resurrection and the Spirit descended equally upon men and women at Pentecost. Romans 16 for example, cites numerous examples of women in positions of leadership – Phoebe the deacon/minister, Priscilla and Aguila, co-workers with Paul, and perhaps Junia as an apostle.

Mayn contemporary scholars – Schussler, Fiorenza, Torjesen, and Kroeger, among others, have exhaustively studied this early inclusion of women in leadership. Some of the reasons for why women should be included in the ordination process from a theological issue include a theology that centers around the universal and eschatological proclamations of Galatians 3:28 that in Christ, “there is neither…male nor female.” And Joel 2:28. And also on the emphasis of the priesthood of all believers.


The roots of the church lie in early Israel, where women occupied a high position and had a strong influence both in the home and in the believing community. The leadership of Miriam (Exod. 15:20-21) is viewed as a special gift to Israel (Mic. 6:4). Deborah served as judge, general, and prophetess (Judge 4-5). Hulda the prophetess declared an old scroll to be indeed the Word of God and called the nation to a repentance that resulted in a great revival (2 Kings 22:8-20, 2 Chronicles 34:14-28). “Wise Women” played a considerable role in the moral and political life of Israel (2 Sam. 14:1-20; 20:14-22; Prov. 14:1). Female officials served in both the tabernacle and the temple (Exod. 38:8, 1 Chron. 25:5-6; Ezra 2:65; Neh. 7:67; 10:39; Ps 68:24-25; Luke 2:36-37). Female prophets functioned through the history of Israel (Exod. 15:20; Neh. 6:14; Isa. 8:3; Ezek. 13:17-23; Luke 2:36-37).


The first women in the church were the group of female followers who were attached to Jesus and traveled with him (Matt. 27:55-56; Mark 15:40-41; Luke 8:1-3). These are just of the examples of women and their importance and inclusion in the work of the people of God. Some would respond to this list by stating while Deborah for example is mentioned, she is the only one in a total of 13 judges. So the way women are explained away is because only a few were mentioned. But that is unfair. How many prophets and prophetess, or leaders and teachers were not listed? That we do not know so we have no true way of knowing how many more women or men for that matter were doing the things of God. Even if only a few women were mentioned, does that negate the fact that women were important to God’s plan? I do not believe this stand can be taken.

We often speak that God is the same today, yesterday and forever more. If women were allowed to have leadership roles in his people, the Israelites, why would he exclude them from inclusion in the body of believers when he in fact opened up the opportunity to more, not less?


Some writers state to take literally that women are not to speak would mean that women could not teach (even to the youth), sing, participate in the worship service in any capacity or even get saved because they could not give any confession. The point is this; there are those that stand on both sides of this issued. Both sides present scripture that they believe supports their position. I would only like to state this additional point, if any be pastors among you, how do you handle the woman that comes to you and states she has a certain gift. Will you tell her that she is mistaken, that God surely would not give her the gift of teaching especially if he has no intention of her using it to build up the body? Or what if she states she has been given the gift of prophecy, will you tell her she cannot proclaim the things of God?


I find it difficult to believe that God’s word states clearly that the Holy Spirit gives gifts as he desires, with the distinction that certain gifts are only for men (since women will not be able to utilize those gifts). I read someone’s post that stated women believing they are called to preach have an attitude of arrogance. Unless you have spoken to every woman that has accepted her call to preach, you really have to be careful making such a statement. I had no idea and no desire to preach. I was happy teaching the teens and that was where I thought I would continue to be, it was God that decided otherwise. We have to be careful to make judgments such as this. I also read someone stated that it is a “confusion” on the part of the women to go based on emotions that they are called. That also is in unfair stand. Unless you have had the opportunity to speak to every woman that has accepted her call, you cannot state she made some “emotional” decision. To assume that a woman feels a calling totally based on emotions states a belief that a woman cannot make a decision through prayer and going before the Lord. How would a man feel if someone said they based their decision to preach based on emotion or arrogance? This would not be acceptable, and therefore I do not believe it is acceptable to make that generalization against women.

The point I really am trying to make is this; I understand where both sides stand (those that believe women can preach and those that do not). I respect what each side believes as they have felt convicted. As a female preacher and one that is willing to accept the call to be a pastor if God so says it, you then know my stand. I often ask God the question, why do we believe so many different things as believers? I always come away with this same answer, it is less about what we believe differently and more about how do we get along before the world? How do we handle these differences? Do we let them pull us apart or do we rise to the level God has called us to, to love one another? I choose today and everyday to rise to the level of love. I choose to love those that do not understand nor accept my calling. I choose to love those that make remarks that are uncalled for because in doing so, I am choosing to show Christ. I choose to say to those among you that do not believe I am to preach, I love you, I pray for you and I hope that God would bless you as you seek to do his will. For when it is all said and done, I will not stand before any of you. I will stand one day before my Lord. And when I stand before him, it is my greatest desire that he finds me having been faithful to what he called me to do.


One servants humble submission.

The Week in Review

Duties of the Shepherd

What need does the shepherd met?
How do they help us to be complete?


The flock, the shepherds do feed.
They make sure we get what we need.

If we are willing to follow, the shepherds will lead,
They will follow the words God tells them to heed.

For our protection they most surely will pray,
To our supreme shepherd that gives us each day.

How to the shepherds do we show respect?
We eat what the shepherds prepare without neglect.
Jeremiah 15:16a “Thy words were found, and I did eat them, and
thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.”

We follow the shepherds as they lead us God’s way
So we will not venture from the truth and go astray.
Psalm 23:3a “He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”

We follow the protection given in their words of instruction,
It keeps us from spiritual danger and destruction.
Psalm 23:4 “yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

We honor our shepherds when the teaching of Christ we heed,
For God’s word has all that we will ever need.
II Timothy 3:16-17 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

So this day we come to honor our shepherds.
We come to feast with them, to praise them and to thank them.
Let us come and feast on the words that God gives them utterance to speak
Let us show them praise by our actions of true worship and dedication to the mission of the Lord as he directs them.

Let us show our thanks but being willing to give of ourselves to the up keep of the kingdom of God, that was founded on the one true shepherd our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.


Honor your Shepherd today!

Written By Jewel D. Williams

The Week In Review

Reflections on the Cross

We have heard many messages about the cross. Before we venture away from Resurrection Sunday can we have a brief review? Our understanding of God love tells us that the cross was on the mind of God before there was light, sea, before God said, let it be…

We were reminded that Jesus came to bear our grief, our sorrows, to be bruised for our sins and that we were healed by his stripes. We were told God made this promise when he said the serpent’s head would be crushed under the heal of the seed. Jesus is the seed of woman that crushes the power of Satan. And when you read in scripture about the “seed” of woman, this word for seed carries a feminine attachment. Whenever you read elsewhere in scripture it talks about seed, but the reference is to the man. This is simply another confirmation that God had chosen his son to come through means not of man but divine means.

Jesus fulfilled the mission that began with God. However, Jesus’ purpose did not start the day he was born, but his birth only began the process of fulfillment, of enacting the mission that you and I are now called to carry. The Holy Spirit equips you and I to carry the mission of God to a world that is in need of hearing the message of salvation.

The cross reminds us of who Jesus really is and the power of our savior. Jesus fulfilled all the words the prophets spoke of his coming. They told us he would be…the Lamb of God, The Son of man, the bread of life, the living bread, the light of the world, the gate for the sheep, the good shepherd, the resurrection and the life, the way, the truth and the life. He is the counselor; he is the true vine, he is the priest, the prophet, the Son of David, the seed, He is the prophet like Moses, he is the kinsmen redeemer and so much more.

Jesus also finished any doubt about who he was and still is. He showed his authority and power over illness and diseases, over blindness, and leprosy, over sin and demons, over nature, over history, over space, over time and the future, over the wind and the water, over death, over Satan, over religious forms and fashions, over his own future and even over our future.

When he states it is finished, he is also saying, there is nothing left to be done, I have done it all, for now and forever more. And nothing was able to keep him from finishing his mission. Mockers, liars, betrayers, the power of men, not even physical pain. Not even the feeling of separation from his father and the emotional and spiritual pain that entailed, kept him from finishing his mission.

The cross was the method used to open salvation but it was not the end of Jesus or of God’s plan…because had Jesus not gotten up it would have been simply a good man with a bad idea, because it did not work. However it was God!! Jesus did not stay in the grave. He rose!! He rose and gave us victory over all that held man captive. What Jesus finished gave you and I a new start…

What did he rise to give us…

I have to make it personal. See I was lost, but he found me,

He left his place in heaven to come and find you and I because we would not have any other way to the Father…not our goodness, not our works, nothing.

He knew your need so he bled, died and rose to take care of that need. He died to show God’s mercy.

We were empty. Lost, unable to live as we should and nothing we seek fills that void; relationships, status, nothing. So Jesus came to fill me, to fill you so we can find wholeness in Christ.

We were blind and he came to restore sight to our spiritual blindness so that we could see.

We were broken, from hurt, abuse, neglect or whatever breaks us, but he came to heal us from all sins stronghold. He stretched his hands and in one hand they nailed your sins and in the other they nailed all the sins that were done and would ever be done against you. They were all nailed to the cross. And we were set free from them all!! When we felt like nothing, he came to bring us a purpose and a mission to fulfill.

So what was our need for the cross?

We needed the cross so we could worship God in spirit and in truth… so that we can be like Jesus and give a shout of “IT IS FINISHED” when our lives are over. We can say we took up our cross and followed Christ to be the example in this world that God has called us to be. We are able to live because of the resurrected life of Christ. We were dead, but now we are alive. We live because he lives. The cross of Christ…The resurrection of the savior…the salvation of the lost…the indwelling of the Spirit…the body of believers…the fulfillment of God’s mission…all because of God’s love. This is why we rejoice on Resurrection Sunday. This is what we need to remember so that we continue as if every day is Resurrection Sunday!

The Week in Review

Servant Leadership – Purpose for Today, Impact for Tomorrow (conclusion)

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Written December 2009

Goals of a Servant Leader

Authors, Howard J. Morgan, Philip J. Harkins and Marshall Goldsmith, of the book The Art and Practice of Leadership Coaching: 50 Top Executive Coaches Reveal Their Secrets, enlighten their readers about the goals of a leader. They state, “I don’t think you can lead people unless you have a sense of where you want them to go. Leadership is about going somewhere.”[1] Therefore the first goal of a servant leader is to cast the vision for those that he or she leads. Morgan, Harkins and Goldsmith state that once your people know where they are going the next step is implementation. “That involves helping people to live according to the vision and direction.”[2] It is at this point that they state the leader shifts from directing people to serving people by guiding, supporting, and cheering them as needed. “The coaches now become servant leaders.”[3]

Caruso and Salovey support that one of the goals of a good leader is to do right by people. They state, “We have found that those higher in emotional intelligence tend to be more interested in developing and helping people. The emotionally intelligent manger, then, should be able to focus on the development of these human resources.”[4] Another goal Caruso and Salovey submit is one of communicating a vision. The goal of inspiring a shared vision is part of the communication process of an effective leader. A starting point for Caruso and Salovey in articulating the shared vision is the leader understanding others current concerns and attitudes (Caruso and Salovey 2004, 205).

Stowell explains what a servant leader should look like as it relates to the church. The shepherd that is caring is flock-focused and his primary motivation is not the interest of himself but the interest of the safety, security, and satisfaction of the flock (Stowell 1994, 180). He further adds, “And when all of this is done well, love develops a style of ministry in which not only the flock can prosper, but also from which the testimony of Jesus Christ can be enhanced.”[5] While Stowell is speaking specifically to the church there is a general application to the servant leadership style overall. When a servant leader cares for his people, he will try to motivate them through meeting their needs, which in turn may help them to be satisfied in what they are doing. When all is done well, a servant leader is able to accomplish the goal of motivating his people and helping them move forward with the vision as set forth. How can this leadership style impact our future? This writing explores what is the future for servant leadership.

The Future Impact of Servant Leadership

Manfred Waldemar Kohl in the article, “Radical Transformation in Preparation for the Ministry” writes about future developments in preparing individuals for ministry (leadership). In this section of his writing, he talks about interviews done with hundreds of graduates from seminaries. This was his finding, “…graduates of seminaries make clear that they received the greatest benefit from personal time spent with their professors discussing spiritual issues, taking time to pray, sharing values and dealing with challenges.”[6] He goes on to state that hardly any of the students mentioned the brilliant lectures they heard or the outstanding discoveries or achievements shared with them by their professors. What is the point? In education in general and Christian education specifically, there needs to be a transformation of how instructors view their roles in the lives of their students. Professors must begin to see themselves in the role of a servant leader to serve their students by helping them fulfill their needs (in education) as well as helping them to catch the vision of their future place in leadership roles as a servant leader. Specifically Kohl is seeking to transform educating so that teachers see themselves in this new light. He states, “promotion or tenure should be based not only on the number of publications produced or the number of papers presented at academic conferences but also on the depth of personal involvement with students.”[7]

Authors, Tim Taylor, Barbara N. Martin, Sandy Hutchinson and Michael Jinks, of the article “Examination of leadership practices of principals identified as servant leaders,” give what they feel are the implications for practice. They state, “If servant leadership is relevant and an effective means of leadership, as indicated by the results of this research, educational leadership programmes should be adapted to include the study and practical application of the principles and practices of servant leadership.”[8] They believe people should prepare themselves to lead and accept the opportunity to do so when it is offered. The result will be more people who serve as moral agents in our society. Additionally, they posit that modeling sets an example for others. “To model a type of leadership which exhibits personal integrity and the work ethic desired of subordinates the servant leader must set a high standard for the treatment of everyone in the organization.”[9] Spears and Lawrence suggest that continual evaluation should be done on current leaders to help future leaders. They state, “To examine our expectations of leaders in the future seems to me to be a good idea. Everybody seems to know a good leader when we see one in action. But toward what should we work in trying to make ourselves better leaders?”[10] The writers suggest that talking about leadership should continue because there are so many corners to explore. Servant leadership cannot be reduced to a formula, but it is in fact a quest, a search that never ends.

For the Christian leader, Henri J.M. Nouwen in his book, In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership, offers insight on what a servant leader should look like in the future. Nouwen’s position is that future leaders are vulnerable and are in need of the people as much as the people are in need of their leaders. He writes, “From this it is clear that a whole new type of leadership is asked for in the church of tomorrow, a leadership that is not modeled on the power of games of the world, but on the servant-leader Jesus, who came to give his life for the salvation of many.”[11] Nouwen encourages his readers to understand that being a leader, for a large part means being led. Furthermore, he states the Christian leadership of the future is not one of power and control but of powerlessness and humility in which the suffering servant of God, Jesus Christ, is manifested (Nouwen 1989, 82).

John Maxwell in his book, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, writes about how a servant leader should approach the future. Maxwell writes, “Just about anybody can make an organization look good for a moment…But leaders who leave a legacy take a different approach. They lead with tomorrow as well as today in mind.”[12] The servant leader prepares for the future when they are gone. Jesus did this with his disciples. He spent time with them because he knew he would leave them to do the work that he started. Maxwell states, “‘Succession is one of the key responsibilities of leadership.’ Yet of all the laws of leadership, the Law of Legacy is the one that the fewest leaders seem to learn.”[13]

Conclusion

A leader’s ability to create change is influenced by his or her leadership style, which can facilitate the motivation of others to embrace the vision and strategy for change. This writing examined the leadership style of the servant leader. The servant leader is one who is willing to serve others in order to be powerful. This style has a distinct biblical perspective. The future for this leadership style will require others to mentor, train and prepare others to step into the roles they now hold. A servant leader is one that is willing to humble himself and seek the success of the whole over one’s personal success. When a servant leader is prepared to pass the vision on to others, he or she prepares those coming behind, and creates an environment they can grow into the future. This servant leader is more concerned with building others and leaving a legacy that will last when they are gone, whether that legacy is in the church or the business world. The organization that is run by a servant leader is one that is made better for it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1] Howard J. Morgan, Philip J. Harkins and Marshall Goldsmith, The Art and Practice of Leadership Coaching: 50 Top Executive Coaches Reveal Their Secrets (Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2005), 128.

[2] Morgan, Harkins, and Goldsmith, The Art and Practice of Leadership Coaching: 50 Top Executive Coaches Reveal Their Secrets, 128.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Caruso and Salovey, The Emotionally Intelligent Manager: How to Develop and Use the Four Key Emotional Skills of Leadership, 203.

[5] Stowell, Shepherding the Church: Effective Spiritual Leadership in a Changing Culture, 181.

[6] Manfred Waldermar Kohl. 2006. “Radical Transformation in Preparation for the Ministry.” International Congregational Journal 6, no. 1:39-51. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, (accessed December 2, 2009), 44.

[7] Kohl, “Radical Transformation in Preparation for the Ministry.”, 44-45.

[8] Tim Taylor, et al. 2007. “Examination of leadership practices of principals identified as servant leaders.” International Journal of Leadership in Education 10, no. 4:401-419. Academic Search complete, EBSCOhost (accessed December 2, 2009), 415.

[9] Ibid, 416.

[10] Spears and Lawrence, Focus on Leadership: Servant-leadership for the Twenty-first Century, 89.

[11] Henri J.M. Nouwen, In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership (New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1989), 63.

[12] John C. Maxwell, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc, 1998), 219.

[13] Maxwell, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, 221.

The Week in Review

Complaining turns an 11 day trip into 40 years

The LORD replied, "I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth, not one of the men who saw my glory and the miraculous signs I performed in Egypt and in the desert but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times- not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their forefathers. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it. The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: "How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites. So tell them, 'As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you the very things I heard you say: In this desert your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me. Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected. But you—your bodies will fall in this desert. Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the desert. For forty years—one year for each of the forty days you explored the land—you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.' I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this desert; here they will die." – Numbers 14:20-35


Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. Then the LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in." – Joshua 6:1-5


These two scriptures show us the difference between what happens to ungrateful, complaining people and those that are grateful and obey God. In the first scripture, the children of Israel were complaining about everything. Do you get tired of people that never have anything positive to say about anything? What do you think God must feel when we refuse to be grateful for all the many blessed things he does for our lives? Because of their complaining, which in fact leads to having an ungrateful heart, which leads to a disobedient heart, God tells them that they will never enter the promise land. Their complaining and ungrateful spirit led them to be disobedient, which made them lose the things God had for them. So for 40 years they have to wonder until all those 20 years and older die off. The trip to the promise land would have taken only 11 days, yet because of their complaining they took 40 years to make an 11 day trip. The number 40 represents cleansing or perfecting.


Think of other times when we see 40. It rained 40 days and nights to cleanse the earth of the disobedient people, Jesus fasted for 40 days before he began his work here on earth. If we go back briefly in the life of the Israelites we find out that they were slaves in Egypt after Joseph had died and the new pharaoh did not know about Joseph’s record. So the people cried out to God to hear about their problems. And he did. He chooses Moses to deliver the people from bondage. They are happy about that right? No they complained that Moses messed things up because their task got harder before they were delivered. Well they were finally delivered and set free to leave Egypt, they are happy right? Wrong they complained that Moses had brought them out to the desert to die. God provided food for them and surely they were grateful for that right, wrong again. They complained that they needed meat, so God gave them meat, and we can all say it together, they complained about that. They complained when they were in bondage and they complained when they were free. They complain, they complained and they complained some more. They complained so much that they missed out on the blessing that God had for them. What’s the message for us today? Have you asked God to do something for you? You cried out and asked him to help you in some situation. Maybe to help you get to school and he did, but now you are complaining because you don’t like the arrangements, or the food, or some such thing. Have you asked God for a job and he gave it to you, but instead of being grateful, you complained that the pay isn’t good enough, or that you don’t like the people.


Let us learn today from the lives of the Israelites. If you don’t want to be on the outside looking at the blessings that God has for you, let’s learn to be grateful for everything. Yes, even when things seem to be going wrong, let’s be thankful if only for the fact things are not worse. The key message for us today is to understand that grumbling and complaining sets you up to miss the blessings that God has for you. The main reason, because you do not take the time to be thankful for what you already have. The Israelites were so focused on what they didn’t have, that they forget the miracles they were right in the midst of. The plagues that fell upon Egypt because of them, the parting of the Red sea, the pillar of fire and the cloud that guided them daily. They forgot all about the wonderful things God was doing for them right then and they become self-focused and only saw what they did not have. Let us not be like the people and forget to take inventory of what God does for us every single moment of the day. When we grumble and are unappreciative of the great things that God does for us, we often will find ourselves in a place of disobedience. This will cause you to find yourselves going around and around in circles never getting to the place that God wants for you because you have become a complainer and a grumbler. Why take a 40 year trip and never reach what God has for you, when you can be obedient and find yourself making the trip much faster and then receiving the reward.


Do you want to take the11 day route or the 40 year one, and miss your destination? If we are seeking God to do something wonderful in our lives, then we need to start this day, and at this moment being grateful to what God has and is doing for us. When we make that decision to place ourselves on the right path of making our journey into the place that God promised for us, we can see the realization of that come to be in our lives. Instead of being in an endless routine of going around and around with nothing to show afterwards, go in the path God has that will cause walls to fall down for you so that you can go in and enter your land. God has a place just for you and me, but we have to follow God’s direction to get there.


In the second scripture about Joshua, God tells them to walk around Jericho for 7 days and then the wall will fall down and they can go in and conquer the land. You might remember from the scripture from the book of Numbers that God said he would only allow two people to be able to go in and receive of the land he had promised. Those two people were Caleb and Joshua was the other. Joshua not only was able to go into the Promised Land, he was now the new leader of Israel for Moses too did not go into the new land. If you take the time to read the entire book of Joshua you will find some very interesting points. When Joshua was obedient and listened to God, the people were blessed and victorious, when Joshua did not consult God, they had problems. Joshua is faced with how to go into the city of Jericho and take what God has promised to the people.

Joshua had a visitation from God, which simply means God spoke to Joshua on how to conquer the city. He told Joshua to walk around the city walls and for seven days they did that. On the last day, the seventh day they were to walk around the city seven times. Seven is a number that stands for completion. They were told to walk around seven days, then seven times on the seventy day and they also had seven priest. Seven was also the number of years that someone would be released from their debt; it was a year of jubilee. Another example of seven in the Bible is that the earth was completed and the Lord rested on the seventh day when his work was completed. At the final time they were to blow the trumpets, and shout with a loud voice and the walls would fall down. We do not know what they shouted, but whatever the actual words were, their shout was a “victory shout”. It was a shout of praise. Did you know that just as a spirit of complaining causes you to miss your victory that a shout of praise brings down the walls that stand against you going in and possession the land God has for you? I find the contrast between these two scriptures interesting. One we have people circling a land for 40 years to know they will never go in and possess it. The other we have people circling a wall (that seemed like a mountain to overcome) for seven days to possess the promises of God. 40 years of circling was needed to purify the people of their complaining spirit, and seven was needed to complete the process, to set them free to obtain their promise. So what is the lesson for us today? If we are going to be victorious in our lives, we have to be willing to do some things.

First we have to be willing to follow God’s instructions even if it seems unusual. How strange must it have been for the people to keep walking around a wall and simply expecting it to fall down? Yet they did not complain like their forefathers. Secondly, we have to follow those instructions with God leading the way and worshipping him through it all. The ark was always in the midst of the people, but because of their complaining, they forgot about the power of God. Joshua and the people trusted God’s power as they followed his instruction without crumbling and complaining. Which leads to the third way we have success in our lives, we have to be grateful. We have to be grateful for what God is doing and will do in our lives. And if you find yourself “circling” a wall or a mountain, don’t complain. In fact use it as an opportunity to learn. I bet when those Israelites finished going around that wall they knew every weak spot, every place where the mortar was missing and probably that big wall began to look less scary and insurmountable because they had examined it so closely. So today, let us be grateful no matter what we find ourselves facing. Let’s pray today for God to help us to be thankful and in doing so, we appreciate his leading and we commit to following with praise so our walls can come falling down and allowing us entrance into the areas God has for us. If you don’t want to miss what God has for you, then follow as Joshua did. They followed as God gave and because of it, the walls came falling down.

The Week in Review

Servant Leadership – Purpose for Today, Impact for Tomorrow (part 3)

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Written December 2009

Characteristics of a Servant Leader

After examination of what the Bible contributes to the understanding of servant leadership, it logically leads to the next step, which is to ask how does the biblical example of servant leadership present itself today in the leadership of an organization?


Woolfe mentioned that there are cynics that believe the “Golden Rules” have no place in business. In fact Woolfe writes, “They argue that the real ‘Golden Rules’ of business are ‘Them that has the gold makes the rules,’ and ‘Do unto others before they can do unto you.’”[1] He further affirms that a number of modern business leaders have found that without compassion and kindness to their employees, customers and suppliers, that short-term results do not last for the long-term. The workplace becomes a mechanistic environment where the employees become discouraged, performance lags, many “retire on the job” or become bitter and others go looking for a more human environment (Woolfe 2002, 50).


One can ascertain from Woolfe’s writing that while there are some that are not comfortable looking at leadership from the “servant leader” perspective, the results are undeniable when these Christ-like characteristics are lived out in the life of the leader. Where then does the leader start in developing a servant leadership style? Caruso and Salovey posit, “Developing others forces leaders to ask, ‘Who does a leader serve?’ Does the leader serve him- or herself first, or the needs of his or her team, shareholders and customers?”[2]

James M. George, one of the contributing writers to John MacArthur’s book, Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically writers about the character of a leader. “The Bible says much about what a leader is to be than it does about what he is to do…if he does not meet qualifications of biblical morality, he is unfit to be a leader in God’s church.”[3] George argues that the minister is far more important than what he is able to do. In the long run it is more about who one is, more so that what one can do (MacArthur 2005, 90).


Joseph M. Stowell in his book, Shepherding the Church: Effective Spiritual Leadership in a Changing Culture agrees with George’s stand about the character of the person in leadership. “…we who are called to spiritual leadership need to expect more of ourselves and hold ourselves accountable to scriptural standards rather than societal opinions. The biblical perspective on effectiveness in leadership consistently regards character as the essential prerequisite.”[4] Stowell encourages spiritual leaders (but this wisdom can be used by all leaders) to be more concerned with their character. Additionally he states, “This is a world where it’s not what you are as a person that counts, but it’s what title you hold, what floor your office is on, and what your business card looks like.”[5] Segil, Goldsmith and Belasco add additional insight when they state, “Getting things done is important for manger performance, but doesn’t doing mundane things need to be in balance with our private lives? As a leader, you also need to be able to be yourself.”[6] They concluded from their research that leaders are not different from what they do. In their research they found that successful leaders do things in harmony with who they feel they are. They reconcile private and work life. “This is not easy, but the ‘servant leader’ doesn’t use his or her ascribed status only to help people achieve, he or she also uses it to balance family life and business.”[7]


What has been discussed thus far? A servant leader does not hold to the standard that it is every man for himself as positioned by Woolfe. The Servant leader’s character is not one that only affects his work, but it also is part of his every day life. The character of a servant leader is bigger than what he does, it is also who he is as stated by Stowell and George. This leadership style has a moral application that can be seen throughout the pages of the Bible. The servant leader influences others by his character and this is true both in the church as well as in the work environment. If a leader is uncaring, her or she cannot expect to have employees that care. Stowell states it this way, “A critical shepherd will foster a critical flock.”[8]

What are the characteristics of a servant leader and how are they developed? Burke and Cooper pose that leadership development and character development are one and the same. Character can be developed leading to habits and behaviors that result in one being a servant leader (Burke and Cooper, 2006, 14). “Servant leaders make a commitment to be the best they can be…Servant leaders gain their influence over others through their authority not their power.”[9]

Spears submits a list of ten characteristics and how they appear in the life of the servant leader. Spears list was extracted from Greenleaf’s original writings. These characteristics are listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people and building community (Spears 2004, 8-9).


Listening. A servant leader listens intently to others. The servant leader seeks to identify the will of the group and helps clarify that will. Empathy. The servant leader strives to understand and empathize with others. People need to be accepted and a servant leader does that. Healing. One of the great strengths of the servant leader is the potential for healing one’s self as well as others. Servant leaders recognize they have the opportunity to help others reach wholeness. Awareness. General awareness, as well as self-awareness helps to strengthen the servant leader. Awareness also helps the leader understand issues involving ethics and value. Persuasion. A servant leader’s primary reliance is on persuasion rather than positional authority in making decision. He seeks to convince others rather than coerce compliance. Conceptualization. Servant leaders seek to nurture their ability to dream. The ability to look at a problem from a conceptualizing perspective means the leader must think beyond the day-to-day realities. Foresight. This characteristic allows the servant leader to understand the lessons from the past, the realities of the present and the likely consequences of a decision for the future. Stewardship. Servant leadership, like stewardship, assumes a commitment to serving the needs of others. It also uses openness and persuasion rather than control. Commitment to the growth of people. Servant leaders believe people have an intrinsic value beyond their tangible contributions to work. The servant leader recognizes the tremendous responsibility to do everything possible to nurture the growth of employees. Building community. Servant leaders realize that much has been lost in recent human history as a result of the shift from local communities to large institutions as the primary source where lives are shaped.

Manz remarks about the humility of the servant leader when he states, “No longer are they the king or queen of the hill, or do they dominate the spotlight…Being a humble servant is the path to greatness that Jesus points to.”[10] These few sources show an overarching theme that a servant leader is a one that seeks to serve others through a humbling of ones on self. After examination of the character of a servant leader, the next step is to examine the goals of a servant leader and that is what this writing now addresses (come back next week for the next installment, FUTURE GOALS OF A SERVANT LEADER).

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[1] Woolfe, The Bible on Leadership: From Moses to Matthew: Management Lessons for Contemporary Leaders, 50.

[2] Caruso and Salovey, The Emotionally Intelligent Manger: How to Develop and Use the Four Key Emotional Skills of Leadership, 203.

[3] John MacArthur, Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005), 90.

[4] Joseph M. Stowell, Shepherding the Church: Effective Spiritual Leadership in a Changing Culture (Chicago: Moody Press, 1994), 148.

[5] Ibid, 149.

[6] Segil, Goldsmith and Belasco, Partnering: The New Face of Leadership, 213.

[7] Ibid, 214.

[8] Stowell, Shepherding the Church: Effective Spiritual Leadership in a Changing Culture, 164.

[9] Burke and Cooper, Inspiring Leaders, 14.

[10] Manz, Leadership Wisdom of Jesus: Practical Lesson for Today, 119.