A Biblical Worry List
How’s your “worry” list? If you are like most leaders...in fact, most people...you keep a pretty good list of things to worry about. Ministry finances, personnel, relationships at work and home, compliance to regulations...the list could go on and on. And it could get personal. Debts, sickness, children and their relationships. A lot to worry about.
It dawned on me that in the Bible there actually is a list of all the things we should worry about. Really. It’s in the New Testament, and it was written by the Apostle Paul. He had a lot that he could worry about. Hated by the Jewish leaders, imprisoned, run out of town, shipwrecked, even snake bitten on the island of Malta. Based on his past, Paul could have had a big worry list for his future.
So...here is Paul’s list, from his letter to the Philippians.
Be anxious for...(and here is Paul’s list)...nothing!
What? “Wait,” you say. “I have some legitimate concerns about things in the future. I have a right to worry.” Do you?
Noted preacher Charles H. Spurgeon said, “Half our fears arise from neglect of the Bible.” Ouch. You mean I could draw a line through many of my concerns, my anxieties, my worries, by paying more attention to God’s Word? In a word, yes. And I think you could eventually learn to not worry at all.
That doesn’t mean you walk around oblivious to issues or potential problems. It means you learn to trust God in all things. I have often said that I am pretty simple in that area. You either trust God...or you don’t. There is no middle ground. And the more we can learn to leave these concerns in God’s hands, the less we worry.
Paul probably expected a bit of a shock when he wrote his “list” of things to worry about, so he quickly followed that pronouncement with a plan. I like the way Eugene Peterson puts it in The Message.
Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
Philippians 4:6-7 MSG
Leadership expert Steve Gutzler dealt with worry, like many of us have.
For years, I was plagued by worry and worst-case scenarios. I would “awfulize” (a word I made up). “Catastrophize” (another word I made up). I made a lot of mountains out of molehills.
Gutzler has a list of ways to deal with the stress of worry, and among those items is prayer. It is amazing what happens when we follow Paul’s advice and shape our worries into prayer. King David found the power of prayer and its benefits, too:
I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me.
He freed me from all my fears.
Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy;
no shadow of shame will darken their faces.
Psalm 34:4-5 NLT
Did you catch the second part of those verses? Those who pray...who look to God to take care of the things on their heart...will be radiant with joy. What an exchange! From the burden of worry to the brilliance of joy.
So... trust God, read His word, pray, and allow the Lord to take your burden. The old hymn said it well:
Take your burden to the Lord and leave it there.
God’s best...
Conflicted over Conflict
How many love conflict in ministry...or anywhere? Raise your hand! Nope...I don’t either. But there are times when the leader must step in and deal with conflict and confrontation.
Fred Smith says, “The Christian community has done a very poor job with confrontation. I am convinced the level of individual accomplishment in Christian organizations is notoriously lower (as a whole) than it should be because unlike business, the leaders confuse the presence of love with the absence of confrontation.”
Our ministries are important. The leadership we give needs to reflect that understanding. It means that the team and the mission are more important than any one individual. And if conflict arises, it needs to be dealt with for the good of the ministry and its mission. That is the role of a leader.
John Maxwell feels most people want to be part of something bigger than themselves. Leaders need to call their team to the highest level of that expectation. Maxwell says, “... most team members want to succeed at what they do. That means that if correction is handled with care, most people will be fairly open to change and improvement.”
Maxwell even has a Ten Commandments of Confrontation. The list starts with confronting in private and doing it as soon as possible. He also reminds leaders to stick to the main point, and to remember to highlight the person’s positive contributions. But...proper confrontation is critical if the ministry or organization is going to accomplish its mission.
Some may say, “Well, I don’t want to ruin a friendship in the process of confronting a team member.” Fred Smith says that is wrong thinking. He says your friendship should be the basis for the appropriate confrontation. Smith says, “Until I am willing to risk a relationship with a truthful confrontation, that relationship really isn’t worthwhile.”
I know, it isn’t pleasant to think about confrontation as part of your leadership role. But it is both critical and necessary. Think of Jesus’ leadership. Did he confront those around him? Absolutely. In Matthew 16 we see an amazing encounter between Jesus and his disciples, especially Simon Peter. Jesus asks who people say He is. Peter was the one who declared, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus went out of His way to commend Peter, calling him blessed and declaring him a “rock.”
But just moments later as Jesus began to explain what would happen in the coming days, predicting his arrest, death, and resurrection, Peter pipes up and says, “Not on my watch!” Immediately Jesus confronts Peter in the harshest of terms. Remember?
Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”
Matthew 16:23 NLT
Jesus didn’t confront Peter’s wrong thinking because he didn’t like Peter. He did so out of love and because the cause of Christ, His mission, was so very critical.
God has placed you in a leadership role. Your most important job is not to be friends with everyone on your team. (By the way, the same is true for parents and their children.) Your greatest role is to keep the team pointed toward the God-given goal and the ministry’s mission...even if it means occasional confrontation.
God’s best...
Worried?
My dad often told a joke about a man, we will call him Bill, who worried all the time. It drove his friends crazy. They didn’t even like to be around him because he was always worried...about everything. Then, one day their friend was calm and easy-going. Everyone noticed the dramatic change in Bill. He seemed to have no care in the world. Finally, his friends could not stand it any longer...they had to ask him.
“Bill, how is it you have changed so much, going from a constant worrier to how you are today?” Bill replied, “It’s simple. I hired a man to worry for me! If something comes up, I just give it to him, and he worries for me.” Bill’s friends were amazed. “Wow! How much would you have to pay someone to do that for you?” Bill told his friends the man’s salary was $250,000.
His friends pointed out the obvious. “How can you pay him that much? You don’t make $250,000 yourself.” Bill’s quick reply: “That’s his worry!”
OK...a silly story. But there is nothing silly about those who spend their lives worrying about everything. Fred Smith called worry, “...the nagging headache of the soul.” So how do we get beyond that headache and move on to a more productive and positive life?
First, face the reality of what worry accomplishes.... nothing. Jesus said it clearly. “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” (Matthew 6:27 NLT) The Apostle Paul told the Philippian believers to just stop. “Don’t worry about anything....” (Philippians 4:6 NLT) Pretty clear direction.
Apart from hiring someone to worry for you, what can you do when you find yourself wrapped up in worry? Leadership experts like Steve Gutzler and John Maxwell list a number of things. Here are few thoughts:
- Breath in, breath out. The oxygen to your brain will help you lower your stress levels, and the pause will help you get a better focus on reality.
- Create “white space,” some thinking time to deal with the reality.
- Go for a walk, move, be active. Don’t just sit and worry.
- Change your pattern. Do something different. Instead of worrying, do something nice for another person.
John Maxwell humorously says, “Don't worry about yesterday, it ended last night at midnight.” And Gutzler says, “While I sleep, God works on my behalf.”
It’s worth repeating Paul’s admonition:
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7 NLT
God’s best...
Have you hit a plateau?
Many years ago, I read with great fascination the John Krakauer book Into Thin Air. Written in 1999, it detailed the disastrous story of a group hoping to summit Mount Everest. There is a lot you can draw from the book and the experience it chronicles, but one thing caught my attention right at the first. The teams wanting to reach the top of the world’s tallest mountain did not simply ascend to the peak. They would climb to a location, a plateau, and stop. They were acclimating to the elevation and regaining their strength from the previous climb. Sometimes these climbers would be there for days or weeks. And then they would press on to the next elevation and the next plateau. That time spent on the valley or plateau was not wasted time. It was critical if they were going to achieve their goal and survive.
Leadership expert Fred Smith once talked about the value of the plateau:
Sound development requires a program providing plateaus where our information is turned into knowledge through experience, then heading to another climb.
Smith says the wise person uses those valleys to assimilate all they have gained at that point to prepare themselves for the next climb. He said, “Those who try to go up too fast run out of steam or poorly assimilate their experiences.”
In Experiencing God Day by Day, Henry Blackaby talks about the seasons of life. He draws from the well-known verse Ecclesiastes 3:1, “To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven.” Blackaby reminds us of this important principle, and how critical it is in our personal and spiritual growth.
Just as God planned seasons in nature, He planned seasons in life as well.
In God’s perfect design for our lives, He has planned for times of fruitfulness and activity. He will also build in times of quiet and rest.
And Fred Smith summed it up this way:
Each of us must respect the principle that the food we grow in the valley (on the plateau) we eat on the mountain top (the climb).
If you find yourself in a valley or on a plateau, don’t despair. Use the time to acclimate to this new level in life and ministry. Use it to assimilate all you have learned to this point. And take time to invest in the things that will provide “food” for the next climb to the next plateau for the Lord’s purpose and glory.
God’s best...
A unique book cover...an intriguing thought
The book has been on my office shelf for a couple of decades. I remember hearing from the author at a regional gathering of Christians in media. Roy Williams has been a fixture in the marketing world for decades. The book that caught my attention the other day was Secret Formulas of the Wizard of Ads.
As I grabbed the book off my bookcase, I noticed a card I had placed there some years back...and it led me to an intriguing thought. Let me paraphrase it for us in Christian media.
“Think about the people who don’t listen to (or watch) your station. Do they not listen because they don’t know about you...or because they do know about you?”
The first part of the problem may be due to poor marketing. The second part of the problem may be because of poor imaging or branding. Or poor execution. Or poor content. There is a big difference between the two problems.
And we can easily get into the “which came first, the chicken or the egg” issue. Can you effectively market a product that will not keep the listener or viewer coming back? And can you invest in producing quality programming if you don’t have an audience?
Here’s my suggestion: Pray. Then set high standards for all your programing. If your station or ministry carries programs from outside sources, ask yourself...do these programs come up to our station’s standards? If not, tell them. When I managed a Christian radio station, there were times we had to contact the program producers of a ministry we carried to tell them that while their content was fine, their broadcast didn’t come up to our technical standards. What I usually heard was, “No one else has said anything about the quality.” We set a high standard, and our listeners came to expect that.
Of course, the saying holds true: Content is king. But quality is part of the content, too. In fact, most folks make their decision to listen or watch a program in the first few seconds. The depth of your content is not the initial determining factor. It is the quality of the program...and the sense the listener or viewer has that there is something there for them.
I grew up on the era of records and record players. And inevitably, the vinyl record would get scratched. That click was there from then on. If we really liked the song or album, we listened anyway. That is rarely true today. Those distractions can cause a person to miss something powerful and meaningful. If your audience is tuning out, then your ministry is suffering.
Roy Williams, in the short piece I read, talked about “The World Outside Your Door.” In other words, how others perceive you and your ministry. That’s why branding is so important. That’s why consistency is so important. And that is why simplicity is often the best path to follow when presenting your ministry. That doesn’t mean things are reduced to simplistic thoughts or presentations. John Maxwell explains the value of simplicity:
“It may seem counterintuitive, but if you want to take your communication to the next level, don’t try to dazzle people with your intellect or overpower them with information. Give them clarity and simplicity.”
I often think of Jesus’ parables. They were short. They were simple in their presentation. They had one main point. They were about something His audience could relate to. His topics revolved around the everyday things of life. Lighting your home. Drawing water. Building your house. Planting and harvesting. The people heard something and quickly could realize, “There is something here for me.”
So... what can you do today to make sure people know what your ministry is about, that will cause them to want to listen or watch...and stay tuned in? The impact of your ministry may depend on what you do today.
God’s best...
What leadership is...and what it’s not
Sometimes it’s good to circle back and look at the basics of what we do...what the Lord has called us to do. Leadership. Some may say, “I’m not a leader. I don’t manage a company, ministry, or group of people.” Think again. We all have a leadership role to play, even if it’s just for one person. Certainly, your leadership in your family is critical.
I recently read a blog post, and this caught my attention:
Leadership is not the ability to tell people what to do.
Yes, there are roles you may have, a position that calls you to give direction and instruction...maybe even orders. That’s often called legitimate power or organizational power.
But there is a better indicator of leadership, and a better comprehension of our role as leaders under the Lord’s leadership.
Look at this list of leadership attributes I’ve gleaned:
- Integrity in all things
- Vision
- Influence
- Proper use of power
- Praise for others on your team
- Listen...then speak
- Have empathy for your team members
One blogger said that developing these attributes, and others like them, won’t just make you a good leader, they will make you a better human.
Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges in their book Lead Like Jesus have a good description of a leader and leadership in general:
“Leadership is a process of influence. Anytime you seek to influence the thinking behavior, or development of people toward accomplishing a goal in their personal or professional lives, you are taking on the role of a leader.”
Influence is the key. And the best influence is what others gain from you willingly as they look at your life and see godly attributes. You don’t force influence on others. That never works.
Apart from organizational leadership, the largest group of leaders are in a category called life-role leadership. This happens when we are in enduring relationships with family, friends, and others. According to Blanchard and Hodges, this is when we focus on growing and developing people and supporting mutual commitments.
If we are in a leadership role, and if we are a follower of Jesus Christ, there is another element of leadership. Henry and Richard Blackaby wrote about it in their book Spiritual Leadership. In the book they give the very simple and straightforward definition of this type of leadership:
“Moving people on to God’s agenda.”
That presupposes that we know God’s agenda. That’s a thought for another day.
Jesus tells us that He is the vine, and we are the branches. Apart from the vine, we can do nothing. But then He promises this:
...if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!
John 15:7 NLT
What kind of leader are you today? What kind of leader do you want to be tomorrow? Abide in Jesus...the vine. Godly leadership is worth all the effort. Jesus called it “much fruit.”
God’s best...
It’s Confession Time...
They say confession is good for the soul. OK. Then I need to let you know. I am a recovering perfectionist! There. I said it. Ingrained in my mind is the fact that there is a right way to do everything, and that ought to be our goal. This may have come from my dad telling me, “Son, there is a right way and a wrong way to do things. Why are you doing it the wrong way?” People who have worked with me are probably chuckling to themselves. They have had to put up with me asking (Telling? No, asking...) them to do something again. It needed to be right.
Actually, I prefer the term “practical perfectionist.” You see, as I look at what I do, and at life, work, and ministry in general, I realize that perfection is not achievable. At least not every time. I know I miss the mark over and over again. And I am grateful for a God of grace as He sees my imperfection and still allows me to be His servant.
A practical perfectionist realizes that perfection is not the ultimate goal. A practical perfectionist resonates with the wisdom of the legendary National Football League coach Vince Lombardi:
“Perfection is not attainable,
but if we chase perfection,
we can catch excellence”
When we begin to accept less than the best, it’s like taking our foot off the accelerator. We begin to coast, and we lose momentum toward excellence. And Aristotle clarified what excellence is:
“Excellence is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives—choice, not chance, determines your destiny.”
Yes, the practical perfectionist has to learn to live with things that are not completely perfect. But that doesn’t mean that person must lower his or her standards. Lowering standards just starts the spiral downward, and soon things that are critical and important suffer.
How do you start the spiral up? How do you reverse a trend of mediocre work and achieve excellence? Colin Powell, former U.S. Secretary of State, gives us a clue. “If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters.”
The most prolific writer of the New Testament, the Apostle Paul, talked of excellence when he commended the Corinthians. He wanted to expand their path to excellence.
But as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you, see that you excel in this act of grace also.
2 Corinthians 8:7 ESV
As I see it, the pursuit of perfection is only a pathway. It leads to excellence. While we may stumble on that path...not be perfect...we can still seek perfection in order to achieve consistent excellence.
All of this is under the umbrella of why we do anything. We do it as unto the Lord...who is both perfect and excellent.
God’s best...
Who has influenced you?
A while back I wrote about the things that are influencing us in our culture today. It seems that many care more about what movie stars and politicians say than what the Lord would be telling us. That was reflected in a recent devotional by the people at Lead Like Jesus.
“Jesus’ life reflected the Father’s influence, an influence strengthened and sustained through solitude, Scripture, and prayer. He resisted the influence of those who did not understand His call from God.”
Today, I have just a brief thought...and a suggestion.
Do you recall who most influenced you to follow Christ? It may have been a parent or a close friend. It could have been a pastor or Bible teacher. You may have even been directed to Jesus by someone on the radio or television. Do you remember?
Here is my suggestion. If at all possible, connect with that person to let them know how they influenced your life. You may even be able to share with them how the Lord is using you to be a spiritual influence in the life of another person, or many people, through your work. Call. Write a handwritten note. Or go visit. Any contact from you would be a great encouragement to them.
If it isn’t possible...that person may be enjoying the reward of heaven...then give thanks to the Lord for what that individual meant in your life. God will honor that reflection and prayer from your heart.
The Apostle Paul was good about that sort of thing. He not only remembered those whom he was able to influence, he also recalled those who encouraged him as he served the Lord.
Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.
Philippians 1:3-5 NLT
What would you say to that special person who made an eternal impact on your life? Why not tell them now?
God’s best...
Life-changing practices?
Sometimes it is the seemingly small things in life that make a big difference. One of those may be the decision to put a small amount of your income into a savings account. When you start, it doesn’t look too monumental. But if you start early and keep to your plan, the result can be surprising. Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, for instance, that the greatest mathematical discovery of all time is...compound interest! Powerful. And Einstein knew the key was consistency.
What if you were to learn that, in a similar fashion, you could make some small investments in your leadership practices that will provide exponential return? Interested?
Leadership expert Steve Gutzler listed nine things that, if implemented consistently in the life of a leader, will make a lasting difference in both you and the organization you lead. Let’s look at them:
- Creating a morning routine that includes solitude, prayer, or meditation
- Setting three professional goals per day (That may be challenging.)
- Carving out time for 10 minutes of reading daily
- Showing up early and prepared
- Asking smart questions
- Keeping your workspace clutter-free (I’ve got work to do!)
- Forming one health habit monthly
- Staying focused on priorities
- Working hard and staying accountable
Let me highlight just three of these and add a bit. First, creating a morning routine is essential. And to the time of solitude, prayer, or meditation, I would add Bible reading.
I love number four...showing up early and prepared. In my many years in hosting the morning drivetime program on our Christian radio station, I tried to follow that idea. It meant I woke up at 3:15 a.m. most mornings. I read the local newspapers to see what was happening in our world and coupled that with some Bible reading for balance. Then it was off to the station to look through material that had already been prepared for that morning show. Just before we went on the air at 6:00 a.m., our team took time to pray. It was a routine...a habit...and it served us well.
The last principle Gutzler mentions is critical. Work hard and stay accountable. You may have a board over your organization to whom you stay accountable. That’s great. The ministries and companies who skip the accountability part eventually find themselves in trouble.
Of course, as Christ-followers and servants, we must be accountable to our Savior. Our daily prayer should include the confession of sin, seeking forgiveness. That may be confessing a bad attitude or ungodly spirit or response to a co-worker. It may go to the more serious areas of lust or infidelity. Whatever it is, we need to be accountable to the Lord.
The Apostle Paul reminded the Colossians of just that principle:
Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.
Colossians 3:23-24 NLT
If some of those principles from Steve Gutzler are not in your daily routine, try adding one or two each week. See what a difference it will make in your leadership...and in you.
God’s best...
Doing good...
It’s a small comment in the book of Acts. It’s easy to skip over it or not give it much thought. Yet God has often brought it to my attention. In Acts 10, Peter has been shown the importance of sharing the hope of Christ with Gentiles...way out of his comfort zone... and specifically to Cornelius. And as Peter talked with this Gentile Roman soldier, he said this:
And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
Acts 10:38 NLT
Buried in that declaration of who Jesus is came the little phrase saying Jesus went about “doing good.” Yes, He healed. Yes, He cast out demons. And Yes, He raised some from the dead. But it seems Peter is saying that as Jesus went, taught, and healed, He just did good things that were before Him.
Mentor and leadership guru Fred Smith also noted this interesting phrase. He told a group he was mentoring that Christ didn’t go about doing good just when He felt like it. It was the pattern of His life. And Smith made another interesting point:
“Christ did not go about looking for the “highest good.” He just did the good that was at hand. It is easy to become immobilized looking for the highest good because we tend to ignore the small bits all around us. What is small! We cannot measure the quality or quantity of good.”
The Bible talks of a word fitly spoken (Proverbs 25:11). Solomon says those timely words are like apples of gold in a silver bowl. Priceless to the one receiving them. Doing good may be speaking that word of encouragement to someone on your staff. It could be as simple as a smile and a greeting to someone who cleans your facilities. And it could be lending a helping hand when you see the need.
Judy and I try to always greet the security people and the cleaning crew at our church. It’s a simple thing, but through that we are acknowledging they are valuable people...people who Jesus loves and died for.
Let me challenge you (and myself) to look for something today you can do. Something right before you as you go through your tasks. Something small. Fred Smith set that goal for himself, too.
“I challenge myself each morning to see what’s around me and ask for the discernment to respond rightly. I don’t go out to be a “do-gooder,” but instead to see what is in front of me and do good.”
Let’s follow the pattern Jesus set. Let’s go about doing good.
God’s best...