Standing with Uncompromising Courage

Standing With Uncompromising Courage

If we were to take a poll of heroes in the Bible, Jesus would stand out as the most courageous, even though there were many more characters in both the Old and New Testament who stood with tremendous courage. It took a lot of courage for Moses to return to Pharaoh's palace and confront him about his treatment of the Israelites. It took courage for David to stand before Goliath. And, it took the most courage to endure the cross as an innocent man – the God-man, Christ Himself.

Jesus is the true source of courage for believers. He has served as the source of courage for folks ever since the beginning of time. In our Blueprint of a Leader workshop, we focus our attention on the life of Ezra as he brought the second group of Israelites out of captivity from Babylon and back into Jerusalem.

“....so I took courage because I was strengthened by the Lord my God and I gathered Israelite leaders to return with me.” - Ezra 7:28

We get our strength from God. We get our peace through His Son, Jesus Christ. And, we get comfort from having others join us in our plight. Ezra chose other Israelite leaders to return with him to the Promised Land. In chapter 8, we find that Ezra stopped by the canal that flows toward Ahava and upon looking around, he noticed there were no Levites with him. Since the Levites were responsible for preparing the temple for worship, Ezra sent for them.

Ezra understood that the route they would take back to Jerusalem was a very dangerous route; however, his faith was in God and not in the king. As a matter of fact, he even mentions that he was reluctant to ask the king for military escorts because he had already stated that the good hand of the Lord was upon him. He called for a fast and asked for God's protection. Here are the results of his journey of faith.

“....We were strengthened by our God, and He protected us from the power of the enemy and from ambush along the way.” - Ezra 8:31

We don't hear a lot about fasting in today's society except when it comes to lab work for a doctor's appointment or doing without food due to upcoming surgery. But, during biblical times, people took fasting seriously. So did God. He honored Ezra and the people for taking time to fast and pray. I'm praying about a fast myself as we get closer to our fall leadership conference to be held at our church. I want to be spiritually aware of what God is doing in this ministry and in the lives of those who attend the conference.

Ezra chapter 8 ends on a very positive note, but quickly things take a turn for the worse. That's how Satan likes it though. Right when we experience a spiritual high, he attacks with a vengeance. Many of the very leaders who had led the people back to Jerusalem from Babylon had fallen into the sin of inter-marriage with the foreigners of the land. Ezra was devastated. He fell upon his knees and cried out to God for forgiveness on behalf of the people of Israel. Being a priest, a scribe and a teacher, Ezra fully understood the consequences of their behavior.

In the beginning of chapter 10, as Ezra continues to plead with God, an unlikely hero stands up and steps forth. Perhaps you know of such a person in your church. His name was Shecaniah. His father and an uncle had inter-married, and with great courage, Shecaniah took a stand for what was right in the eyes of God the Father.

Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel, one of the descendants of Elam, said to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by intermarrying foreign women from the peoples around us. But in spite of this, there is still hope for Israel.” - Ezra 10:2

Shecaniah took a stand for what was right. Have you taken a stand for anything lately?

“It's always right to do the right thing.”

Pastor Pat Ray

Developing an Unselfish Team

Many of us remember the horror of standing on a playground waiting to be selected by one of two captains as teams were being formed. Maybe this didn't happen to you, but I remember way too many of these moments. This can build quite an inferiority complex because it causes one to feel they aren't smart enough or talented enough for anything.

God knows better. He selects the most unlikely people (in the world's eyes) to follow Him. Just look at the first disciples. They were considered social misfits, yet they turned the world upside down with the message of the gospel.

That is the reason we have a session in our Blueprint of a Leader training workshop titled Developing an Unselfish Team. We don't claim to be experts on team-building, so we went to the greatest expert on team-building there has ever been. That's right. God. Just take a look at some of the teams He has put together since the very beginning of time.

Just imagine for a moment what an ideation session between God the Father and Jesus the Son may have sounded like regarding the creation of man. Actually, we find our answer in Genesis 1:26.

“Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness....”

This wasn't intended to be simply a human likeness, but a spiritual likeness....one of righteousness (which we can never achieve).

This next event gets debated quite a bit today; but, we can't dispute what God's Word says when it comes His the next “team.”

“Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.” - Genesis 2:22

We know Moses was a great leader, yet Moses wasn't confident at all when God called him. God even had to send Moses' brother Aaron to help him rescue the Israelites. Who's your "second in command?" Let them know how much you appreciate their willingness to work with you.

“So he shall be your spokesman to the people, and he himself shall be as a mouth for you, and you shall be to him as God.” - Exodus 4:16

Jesus was a great leader and teacher, yet he took upon Himself the role of a servant. He expects the same of us today. We are called to lead by example, just as Jesus did. What kind of leader are you?

“Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, 'If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” - Mark 9:35

The definition for teamwork is, “a number of persons associated together in work or activity.” Synonyms of teamwork are “devoted,” “giving” and “self-sacrificing.” Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived knew the value in teamwork.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.” - Ecclesiastes 4:9

Find a Christian brother or sister to team up with this week, and do something unique for the Lord together.

An Unshakable Foundation

Building on an Unshakable Foundation

“I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears
my words and puts them into practice.” - Luke 6:47

Even good leaders have a need for sound advice at times. They don't always have all of the answers. They actually have to get them from somewhere. Many turn to those who have gone before them to get advice on how to handle various situations. Even though we can get good, sound advice from our peers, good leaders also need to turn to the one true Master of everything – God Himself. Jesus is speaking here in Luke 6:47 of those who “come” to Him and “hear” His words....now, I want you to notice the key phrase at the close of this verse...”and puts them into practice.” We must put into practice what we learn from the teachings of Jesus if we are going to be an effective leader.

“He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and
laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent
struck that house but could not shake it, because it was
well-built.” - Luke 6:48

Jesus had a unique way of getting his simplest messages across to His listener. He used imagery that was common to the geographical area He was ministering in. Good teachers and leaders look for effective ways to connect with those under their leadership just like Jesus.

During the time we were taking folks through our Teaching a Bible Lesson series, we had many attendees continually ask, “What's next?” There was an obvious hunger for more material that the average lay person in the church could use to better understand their role – and to make him/her more effective.

After much prayer, God led us to the Old Testament book of Ezra. Our ministry had already been influenced by Ezra 7:10 alone, so we began to dig into this rich old book, beginning with Ezra 1:1. There are various elements of leadership woven throughout this incredible book that all of us can learn from. We can learn how to lead effectively, and we can learn of the pitfalls of poor leadership. It's all spelled out in these ten chapters. Hollywood doesn't have anything on God when it comes to plot and resolution of conflict!

“For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.” - Ezra 7:10

After about six months of study, we knew we had found a real treasure, neatly tucked away between 2 Chronicles and Nehemiah. You've got to read this book! It is incredible!

For us, the timing of reading Ezra was very special because we had just moved into an abandoned office building. As we worked on the interior of the building, I was reminded of what the Israelites were going through as they attempted to rebuild the temple. I personally drew a lot of parallels between our own journey with Center Cross Creative and the restoration of Israel as detailed in the book of Ezra. God had special blessings in each task we performed over those six months and we now have offices that we can be very proud of. We did our work “as unto the Lord”.

Even though Ezra doesn't come onto the scene until chapter seven, there are numerous instances in the next four chapters that reveal the reason for Ezra's effectiveness in leading the people.

“...the hand of the Lord his God was on him.” - Ezra 7:6

We should have the deep desire for the same to be said of us that was said of Ezra here in Ezra 7:6. We are no use to God unless we allow His hand of provision and protection to rest upon us as His servants.

Ezra encountered various people groups who were in opposition to he and the Israelites as they attempted to rebuild the temple. We will also face opposition as we attempt to serve the Lord effectively. That is why the great apostle Paul warns us in II Corinthians 13:5 to “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves......” Would you pass the test?

Purpose of This Site

This site is dedicated to sharing leadership principles that we have learned over the years. We also teach some of these principles -- and more -- in leadership workshops that we teach. True leadership is a servant style of leadership -- the kind modeled by Jesus in the Bible.

Throughout the Bible, we find all kinds of leadership models, and there are many principles to be learned by its study. Here we will explore those and share those with you.

To learn more about the workshops that we offer, check us out at www.centercrosscreative.com.