The Presbyter's Page
Electronic Edition – November 2001
Original articles published April 1996
Section 12 - LA
District UPCI
Donald Bryan - Presbyter
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Sermon Thought: “A Time
to Keep Silent, A Time to Speak"
Leadership
- Working Smarter, Not Harder
Making
Dry Church Services Come To Life
Sermon Thought:
“A
Time To Keep Silent, A Time To Speak”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-7
“To every thing there is a season, and a time
to every purpose under the heaven: A
time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up
that which is planted; A time to kill,
and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time
to mourn, and a time to dance; A time
to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace,
and a time to refrain from embracing; A
time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to
keep silence, and a time to speak;”
The Scriptures record 57 times that God knows and observes our thoughts. But not once does Scripture say we are justified by our thoughts. Instead, Matt. 12:37 says, “For by thy words thou shalt be justified…” The process of generating a thought and speaking it generates power and responsibility. The average person will speak 350 million words in his life and God said that in the process of speaking, you’ll either be justified or condemned. What is God saying? Your words speak your heart. They speak faith or doubt. Life or death. Hope or discouragement. Love or hate. And, each word is a seed; it brings back a harvest. That’s why the scripture declares there is a time to keep silent and a time to speak.
In Joshua 6:1, God told Israel He would give them Jericho, but they were to march around Jericho for six days in silence. No words. Why? In six days of marching, they would have complained and grumbled. They would have talked themselves out of a victory! Israel had already wandered in the wilderness for almost 40 years because of complaining in Numbers 14. They spoke death and God gave it to them! It’s amazing how God gives us often what we speak. Job would not speak against God even in his suffering. His wife said, “Curse God and die.” Job said, “No.” There’s a victory unfolding. In Luke 1, the angel shut Zacharias’ mouth because he didn’t want him speaking doubt for nine months. Zacharias couldn’t speak victory, so the angel said he wouldn’t speak anything! However, Mary pondered the amazing words she heard in her heart. (Luke 2:19) She would not speak her doubts. What are the guidelines for speaking or keeping silent?
1. If you have received a promise from God, speak the promise.
2. If you have doubt or fear, don’t speak them. (Job 3:25 “The thing I greatly feared is come upon me.”)
3. Don’t speak to disclaim your position or place in God. In Luke 19:22 the servant with one talent brought judgment with his words.
4. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good. Eph. 4:29.
If you want it speak it! There is a time to speak and a time to be silent.
Leadership – Working Smarter, Not Harder
How do you evaluate your performance as a Christian leader? I hope it’s not just by how hard you work or how good your intentions are. Listed are 15 points to use as a gauge of leadership effectiveness:
1.
Leaders know their No. 1 assignment is to develop others. The find joy in giving a new skill to someone they
have a glimmer of vision for. Leaders
develop other leaders; non-leaders are interested only in self-development.
2.
Leaders understand the “WOW factor.” The
WOW factor means a commitment to a standard of excellence that goes beyond the
call of duty.
3.
Leaders see what is really going on. They
understand that parking-lot attendants aren’t just parking cars; they are
forming a first impression and winning friends. Effective preachers realize that when they are preaching,
something more is happening; They are building faith and bringing healing. Anointed musicians know they aren’t just
playing music; they are opening hearts.
4.
Leaders are people of action. They
do. They don’t just talk. This is one of the key factors that sets the
leaders apart from the followers.
5.
Effective leaders have dealt with their insecurities. Leaders make room for others.
They seldom feel threatened and are happy to make room for the growth of
those they lead.
6.
Leaders don’t care who gets the credit. The success of the cause is more important than the need for a
personal ego boost.
7.
Leaders constantly find new ways to include people in the action. Only a small portion of the work is done by the leaders
themselves.
8.
Leaders are miners for the “Big Ideal.” They paint a compelling picture of the grand enterprise at hand.
9.
Successful leaders have little interest in past wrongs committed
against them. The future is much too promising to get
bogged down in the past.
10. Leaders don’t make excuses. Instead, then accept responsibility.
11. Leaders take initiative. In contrast, non-leaders are responders and reactionaries. They don’t think of a great idea until they
are asked, and they don’t deal with a problem until it is unavoidable.
12. Leaders are not crippled by
failure. Although they are committed to excellence,
they avoid the paralyzing grip of perfection.
13. Leaders have mastered the “paper
on the floor” factor. They have discovered that
neatness isn’t necessarily equivalent to effectiveness.
14. Leaders can live with
ambiguity. They don’t freak out when everything isn’t
tidy and predictable. Instead, they
patiently make order out of chaos and bring clarity to muddled situations.
15. Leaders realize that
busyness is not the equivalent of leadership.
Working harder doesn’t necessarily ensure that leadership is occurring
either. To put it simply, Leaders work
smarter and with more Holy Spirit-inspired creativity.
Making Dry Church Services
Come To Life
Why is it that in some churches, meeting with the creator of the universe is often a boring showcase for bad music, inept preaching and poor taste? Listed are 9 perspectives I believe that will enhance the effectiveness of your services.
1.
Put yourself in the congregation’s shoes. Pastor,
how long has it been since you just sat in the congregation? How often do you really try to identify with
the needs, hopes and dreams of those in your congregation?
2.
Tell stories. Storytelling was Jesus’
primary method of teaching. He put the
most profound concepts into simple and compelling stores that captivated people
and changed their lives. Never telling
a story is a prescription for putting people to sleep.
3.
Question everything. Why do you
take up the offering the same way each week?
Why do you always sing the same hymn of invitation?
4.
Find some fresh jokes-or don’t use any. How
many of you would rather be here in church than in the finest hospital in
town? Please discard your moth-eaten
jokes. Otherwise your congregation will
start laughing out of pity, not humor.
5.
Go beyond your trusty old sermons of the past. Yes, it’s nice to have some standby messages you can rely
on. But the danger is that the more you
preach the same sermon, the more difficult it is to present it with conviction,
originality and excitement.
6.
Understand and address the surrounding culture. Jesus understood the culture that He ministered in.
7.
Know your audience. It is important to make sure
your services are appropriately targeted to the kind of people you are trying
to reach.
8.
Keep learning. Some pastors have fallen into
the trap of anti-intellectualism.
9.
Be open to the Spirit. God’s
sovereign move always brings a response.
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