The Limits of Positive Thinking

Deuteronomy 29:19

“A person … invokes a blessing on himself and therefore thinks, ‘I will be safe, even though I persist in going my own way.’ This will bring disaster …”

A blessing from yourself to yourself is rubbish!

You cannot bless yourself and then live the way you want to. If your blessing is only an echo it is empty, even dangerous.

Imagine this. You teeter at the edge of a cliff about to jump to your certain death but first you shout across the valley: “You are mighty, you are strong, jump and live”. Then you wait for the echo. If you believe that echo, you will die. Blessing yourself is just like that.

Positive thinking can be a great thing but it has significant (and severe) limits. On the up side, it can build your self esteem, grow your capacity and improve your productivity. It is wise to be positive. But, you can’t use a positive attitude to defy God.

A blessing from beyond, on the other hand, is magnificent!

God wants to bless you! He can speak hope and promise over your life. His intentions for you are good. He is love.

God’s blessings have requirements. He wants us to live right. But these ethics concern the “gravity” of wrong living which we cannot defy by simply blessing ourselves. Positive thinkers who jump off cliffs have the same odds as pessimists! God wants to help us negotiate “cliffs” and his commands are a part of his blessing.

God speaks his blessing often. His voice is gentle and quiet. He tells the truth. As you read the bible, listen for his word of grace to you. Stop believing all the echoes of the age. Stop blessing yourself and become attentive for God.

Listen to this. “The Lord has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession … he has declared that he will set you in praise, fame and honour …” (Deut. 26:18-19). These are God’s words of covenant promise to all who follow and obey.

Here is a blessing you can trust. It is not an echo. Receive it, obey God and jump boldly into your life.

Questions

• What words of blessing have most encouraged you?
• Where do you turn for blessing?
• Please leave a comment.

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How to Sustain Sensational Leadership

Deuteronomy 17:15-20 

“Be sure to appoint over you the King the Lord your God chooses … then he and his descendents will reign a long time over his Kingdom in Israel.”

Installing a leader is risky business. Leaders can build-up or mess-up an enterprise. We really want to get the right person (or be the right person). And if we get the right leader, we really want to keep them healthy.

We want God’s choice of leader. Deut. 17:14-20 is leadership gold. It contains three brilliant prescriptions for sustaining leadership effectiveness.

1. Lead from among the people.

The greatest danger in leadership is to think you are better than those you lead. You aren’t. A leader is an ordinary person in a unique position. That uniqueness can corrupt a leader. Be careful!

Be a brother or a sister to those you lead. Whether you are appointed from within or recruited from the outside you need to remember that a “foreigner” can’t lead well. Find your common ground quickly.

Q: Where do leaders stand?

A: Leaders stand wherever necessary.

Sometimes leaders stand at the front giving direction and sometimes at the back caring for strays. Leaders will stand in the middle of the crowd teaching and demonstrating. They will climb a tree above the crowd and peer into the distance trying to understand “where to next”. They will stand close to people listening and discerning and apart from people gaining perspective and praying. A leader may even lay down his life for the many.

As the leader, please, don’t consider yourself “better”. Stand where you are needed and lead from among the people.

2. Put limits on your accumulation.

A leader who get’s rich off the people is in trouble. He can be blessed. She can be loved by her people. But a leader must not burden the people with vanity and greed.

Don’t ask the people to do special favours for you that are not in the interest of those you lead (like going back to Egypt to get more horses 17:16). Don’t let your heart be led astray by what you can get.

Beware of the triple temptation: Power, Sex and Money! Deut. 17 specifically mentions all three: the King’s horses, harems and personal treasury. Make sure there are good systems in place to help keep you accountable as a leader.

John Wesley is a good model for us. He limited his living standards to his very early income levels. As he earned more money he practiced greater generosity rather than changing his living habits. Impressive!

3. Internalise Godly values.

Know what matters most. Have deep spiritual values. Write them out. Keep them with you.

The King in Israel was instructed to write out a personal copy of “this law”, probably referring to the Pentateuch. He was then challenged to internalise it and to revere God in his leadership (Deut. 17:18-20).

As a leader you are under a higher authority. You may answer to a Boss or a Board but above that you answer to the deep rooted values of your Creator. Leaders who understand this and build systems of value compliance into their routines, will be able to sustain long-term healthy leadership.

A final word…

To leaders: Make these three commitments to your people. Ask your people to help you keep them. Plan to be in leadership for a long time. Plan to stay healthy.

To followers: Make these three requests of your leaders. Help your leaders live them out. Help your leaders succeed. Speak the truth in love and obey your leaders with joy. 

Questions

• How do you support your leaders practically?
• What accountability structures are in place for your leaders?
• Please leave a comment.

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Am I Doing Enough for the Poor?

Deuteronomy 15:11 

“There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed towards your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.”

I am committed to serving the poor! But am I doing enough? The very question can make me feel guilty. The need is huge and sometimes I just switch off. Neither response is helpful.

God is deeply concerned about the poor and verses like Duet. 15:11 challenge me to get this right. So today I did some practical planning.

Evaluate.

I wrote out seven questions to help me self evaluate. They may help you as well.

When did I last …

1. feel compassion for the poor?
2. pray about poverty?
3. give to alleviate poverty (money, time, skill)?
4. speak out about poverty (to a friend, a group, a politician )?
5. learn something new about poverty?
6. shop ethically?
7. visit or live with the poor (locally or internationally)?

Then I answered each question this way.

• Recently enough. Go to the next question.
• Too long ago. Stop and plan the appropriate action, then go to the next question.

The goal was not to make myself feel guilty, but to figure out what I needed do. I discovered three areas that needed a plan. How about you?

Act.

Here are a handful of ideas to help you make plans for each of the seven questions. Please leave comments with your additional ideas below.

• Change the background picture on your computer or phone to an image that will help you think and pray about poverty. Not necessarily a guilt-image but something that moves you.
• Write out a prayer for the poor. Revisit it from time to time.
• Search “poverty” on YouTube and give yourself a 30min education
• Read Tim Costello’s book: "Another Way to Love".
• Visit Make Poverty History or the Micah Challenge and read up. Then write to a politician.
• Speak out about poverty on your Facebook or Twitter account.
• Attend a church that cares about the poor.
• Give to your church, a mission group or an agency that you trust.
• Walk the City streets with extra cash. Be prepared and ask God to show you how to give it away.
• Loan money to micro-enterprises in the developing world. I do this through Kiva.org
• Get the Ethical Shopping App for your phone. (And don’t consider these shopping choices a hardship. See: Deut. 15:18)
• Serve in a soup kitchen or food program
• Take an awareness trip to a needy part of the world. Live among the poor.

Beyond Guilt.

Today I read my Bible and realised, “No” I am not doing enough for the poor. But I am refusing to switch off or to just feel guilty. Today I took some simple actions. My plans are not big enough to amaze anyone, but I am doing a little more than yesterday and that is good.

Questions

• Which of the seven questions is most challenging for you? And where are you doing really well?
• What questions would you like to add to this self-evaluation?
• Can you add some actions to the list?
• Please leave a comment

A short video. "What is Poverty?"

(If video does not load copy & paste this link in your browser: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL-8HPdBroc)

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A Simple Secret to Success: Don’t Fear People

Deuteronomy 1:17

"Do not be afraid of anyone, for judgment belongs to God."

Fear a fist, but not a face! People are God’s gift to us. Fear of people weakens our ability to live productive lives.

Do you procrastinate making a phone call to someone you don’t know? Do you choose not to attend a function because you’ll have to meet new people? Does it stress you to connect with someone more powerful than you? Are you afraid to confront others?

All of these responses steal joy and opportunity from our lives. They can rob us of business opportunities, new friendships or even a potential life partner.

Fear of people can make it harder for you to love your neighbour. It can silence your witness. It can even make you prone to unhealthy favouritism. (Luke 12:4-12, James 2:1-13).

A simple secret to living a more productive and satisfying life is the internal decision not to fear people.  

It is important to cut this weakness out of your life. And the sooner the better. It will take some effort and some practice but it is worth it. Nothing is gained by fearing other people.

Here are two things to remember:

You are an equal with everyone. No one is better than you in God’s eyes. Regardless how much older, richer, more educated or more powerful they are, no one is more valuable than you. Even though we may have different statuses we are all brothers and sisters under God.

Moses drives this point home when he invites members of each tribe in Israel to become judges. The only reason a person can become a judge over others is that God gives them the office. So, respect the judge when she sits on the bench, but don't fear her when she comes to the Christmas party. And always pray that all our Judges will have the same steady resolve to "not be afraid of anyone" (Duet. 1:17; Rom. 13:1-5).

"Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety." (Prov. 29:25) Bring God into every encounter with others. He is the only one you should fear.

Your fear is probably an illusion. There is no valid foundation for the anxiety you feel when you have to talk with someone powerful or impressive or unknown to you. That fear is probably coming from some unhealthy thinking inside you.

Perhaps you formed ideas in your childhood about big-people being scary. Maybe you tried to stand up once and got shot down. You might have been badly embarrassed or bullied or berated and you've decided (perhaps even subconsciously) not to get hurt again. Most people have vulnerability somewhere.

It's time to turn a corner. Push yourself to speak-up, to connect or to confront. Each successful engagement with another "scary" situation will make you stronger.

If someone is abusive or aggressive different strategies may be required. But, if the trouble is inside you, confront it and change it. You might even consider talking with a counsellor about these things if the problem seems deep.

Strategies for NOT fearing people

• Remind yourself that God made you both out of the same kind of clay. There are no platinum people.
• Rehearse what you will say. Picture yourself “looking good” and being in control.
• Remind yourself that this person is probably afraid of someone or something else that you are not afraid of. (Read the fears of 25 Celebs)
• Picture him or her as an equal. Every person was a child, eats food, has worries and needs and vulnerabilities.
• Talk to yourself. Choose confidence. Foster self respect.
• Put God first in everything.

Questions

• When or where are you most likely to fear people?
• Is there are particular type of person that intimidates you? Do you know why?
• What is potentially lost in your life by fearing people?
• Leave a comment.