Tag: “Perspectives”

Perspectives Day 4 Featuring Dennis Strissel (Colonel) “Opinion8ed”

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Opinion–8-ed

(A series of eight installments)

Number Three – Be Careful Little Feet

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By the time you read this opinion column we should be well within the season of Lent and our journey following Christ to the cross, his sacrifice, death and resurrection. For many, following the Lenten season is a wonderful and memorable faith tradition.

I must confess that I was already a responsible adult before becoming aware of this church tradition. The Army I grew up in shied away from symbols of “churchiness”. We were nonconformists, though we had our symbols and a form of liturgy, we just didn’t call it that.

I recall seeing a cartoon one day in some religious magazine with a little boy declaring to his rather religious mother, that for Lent he was willing to make the extreme sacrifice of giving up baths. I thought that fairly creative and used it as my own for many years when asked the question about my own “giving-up” during Lent.

Following that train of thought brought me to the intimate, if not embarrassing dialogue when Jesus wanted to wash Peter’s feet. Do you remember it? Let me refresh your memory…

    

John 13:6-11

 

6 Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”

7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”

8 Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!”

Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

10 Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.”  11 For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”

NKJV

When I read that I get a little twinge of guilt because I think I understand Peter’s intent and desire. I suspect I might have reacted in a similar manner… perhaps you may identify with Peter too. Peter serves as an example to his fellow and future disciples regarding our daily walk with Jesus.

The strength of translation is the translator’s ability to express the thought and context of the speaker and their words. What we miss in the translation is the correction Jesus gives to Peter through his choice of words. We are fortunate to live in an age when we do not need to be an expert in translation of languages because the experts have already captured the meaning and our software aids us in detecting nuance of terms used. It is in this exchange that we find such an example. Jesus is using the word ‎pous– ‎pou/$ that literally and figuratively mean a foot; that is, a walking around and kicking implement on the end of your leg. When Jesus answers Peter’s request he uses another word, ‎nipto – ni/ptw that means to cleanse hands, feet, and face as one might do before entering the temple for worship. That’s why we hear Jesus telling Peter that he doesn’t need an entire bath. Jesus draws this distinction for a purpose…and what would that be? I’m so glad you asked…

Do you remember this little Sunday school chorus? “Be careful little feet where you go, be careful little feet where you go. There’s a Father up above, looking down in tender love, so be careful little feet where you go.” While the chorus is very elementary, its essence was the message Jesus was attempting to communicate in this exchange.

Jesus was very concerned about the walking around, the living around, and talking around of his followers. He wanted a close and intimate relationship with his followers in the first century as much as he wants a close and intimate relationship with his followers in the twenty-first century. The first step of that intimacy is keeping our feet clean…figuratively. The world in which we live invites the believer to frame the word of God through the eyes and opinions of the current societal trends and norms. The believer whose feet are washed daily frames the world, its opinions, trends and norms through the truth of God’s word. The bathing or washing came through his shed blood, making us clean. The walk, or keeping our feet clean, is symbolism of holy living. Perhaps a different translation of the same verse might be helpful to your understanding:    

John 13:10

10 Jesus said, “If you’ve had a bath in the morning, you only need your feet washed now and you’re clean from head to toe. My concern, you understand, is holiness, not hygiene. THE MESSAGE

 And why is it so important to keep our feet clean? It’s related to keeping an intimate relationship with Jesus;”Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” (John 13:8 – NIV). End of story! If our feet are not clean that means our communion with God is nonexistent.

 There is an inherent risk in offering a list of do’s or three easy steps to a kingdom relationship, when we know that it is not about what one does as much as it is about what one is; but you might be asking now, how do I nurture that intimate (keeping my feet clean) relationship with him? Here’s a good starting point.

 1)    A daily acknowledgement that God is God and you are not. I would call that a surrendered life. It is amazing how many get off on the wrong step every day asking God to follow them rather than following God.

2)   A daily setting apart a quiet time where you can hear God speaking to you through his word. You simply cannot sustain a long term relationship without consistent communication. In this case, let God do the talking.

3)   A daily diet of healthy and nutritious input. The believer should be just as concerned about those things that go into the mind as they are about those things that go into the mouth. If we are surrounded by a spiritually unhealthy atmosphere, the chances are good for that to make of feet unclean, infecting and affecting our relationship with our Savior.

 I am certain you could come up with your own list, so why not give it a try. In the meantime, note the way the “clean feet” or (holy living) experience is contrasted with in a figurative manner by Eugene Peterson; “Lives of careless wrongdoing are tumbledown shacks;holy living builds soaring cathedrals” (Prov 14:11 – THE MESSAGE). Is your daily living providing the key to your cathedral?

 

Blessings

Dennis L R Strissel

 

Reference

Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.

 

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Perspectives – Day 3 Featuring Stephen Court “The Salvo Way: In Defence of The Salvation Army System”

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The Salvo Way: In Defence of The Salvation Army System

by Major Stephen Court

It’s not trendy. And for those who grew up with it or are quite familiar with it, the Army system, with its unique vocabulary and peculiar traditions, might even been regarded as defunct.

Corps Sergeant-Majors? Recruiting Sergeants? Quarter Masters? I mean, come on!

But our discipleship and leader training system, from junior soldiers through corps cadets, into senior soldier training and local officership and corps council, complete with orders and regulations, followed by options in candidateship and officer training, works.

Part of the problem is that we’ve forgotten what we are. As Major Harold Hill explains, in “Four Anchors From The Stern” (http://www.armybarmy.com/JAC/article2-64.html):

The Army’s own history, the history and doctrine of the church, the pattern of sociology, the Word of Scripture, all testify against any great need to be “a church”. Our own history provides us with a clear precedent for retaining our identity without resorting to denominationalism; the history and doctrine of the church provide an ecclesiological and theological base, the sociology of religious movements provides a rationale, and Scripture provides a mandate.

We are not a social agency only. We are not a church. We are not a denomination. We are an order.

And we have orders and regulations, not suggestions and recommendations.

‘Obedience to properly constituted authority is the foundation of all moral excellence’ (Catherine Booth). That is fine in regard to ethics. But Florence Booth takes it further when she testifies:

Looking back over 44 years of officership, it seems to me impossible to speak too highly of the value and importance of Salvation Army discipline… I realised very clearly that if all leaders had a truer idea, a stricter ideal, of obedience to rules and regulations, a much greater advance would be made throughout the Army world. (cited in A Field For Exploits, 2012)

This isn’t popular today. But the issue is not that obedience to Orders and Regulations has been tried and found wanting but found ‘irrelevant’ and ‘obsolete’ (and maybe a little too ‘hard’?) and not tried.

Our desperation for success has sometimes led us far astray from Salvationism. You can possibly see for yourself corps in your division more or less imitating the Baptists, Pentecostals, and Anglicans and others (including poor substitutions of ‘church’ for ‘corps’, ‘service’ for ‘meeting’, ‘pastor’ for ‘officer’, ‘offering’ for ‘collection’, ‘committee’ for ‘council’, ‘member’ for ‘soldier’, etc.). The problem is that most of these methods and terms don’t work very well when clothed in Salvationism.

We are not free to make things up on the fly. We’re part of an Army. We’re actually obligated to apply the Army system. If you aren’t applying it, you are compromising The Salvation Army and limiting the pace of advance of the salvation war.

Applying non-salvo methods and programmes with non-salvo doctrines and non-salvo theology in attempts to mimic their success while we play the role pastor and church is doomed to failure.

Strategically, it is mistaken. The significant majority of Canadians have voted with their feet that ‘church’ is irrelevant. Why would we pretend to be a church?

Biblically, it is near-sighted. There are all kinds of biblical metaphors for the people of God – body, temple, vineyard, building, flock, etc. But the Army of God is not a metaphor – it is not compared to something it is not. We are engaged in actual spiritual warfare. Biblically we are on solid ground.

So, to present as a ‘church’ is neither accurate nor effective.

What goes for church goes for its leaders. In NIV ‘pastor’ turns up once – Ephesians 4:11, though the Greek word ‘poimen’ appears 18 times in the New Testament, 17 times being translated ‘shepherd’. ‘Pastor’ is a biblically rare synonym for the much more popular ‘shepherd’, which it makes much more strategic and biblical sense to use instead of the term ‘pastor’, packed as it is with negative connotative accretions today.

…Oh wait, except that shepherd relates to flock – a metaphor, in contrast with Army, in a very real spiritual war against the forces of evil.

So, let’s agree that ‘pastor’, being unbiblical and unpopular, is another term we should avoid.

Let’s stop pretending. Let’s embrace The Salvation Army. Let’s embrace Salvationism, its leadership system and structure (for more detail on this, see http://www.armybarmy.com/JAC/article11-75.html).

We’re not embracing these things out of tradition or loyalty or some desperate insane stubbornness (or stubborn insanity). It’s just that our crucified and resurrected Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, has lavished His love on us, transforming us from dreary, hopeless ne’er-do-wells slouching to heaven into mighty warriors who live to fight and fight with love,and has commissioned us to this wonder-working, world-winning mission through this divine marvel called, “The Salvation Army… the extremity of an extraordinary imagination made history. The wildest dream of the wildest dreamer materialized” (Evangeline Booth, The World’s Greatest Romance).

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Twitter.com/StephenCourt

 

 

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“Perspectives” Day 1 – Featuring Rhegan Stansbury “

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Day One

 

One stone at a time 

by Rhegan Stansbury 

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Taken in Turkey

 

Have you ever climbed or at least seen a mountain? Growing up in a Midwest state with wide open spaces and few hills, mountains have always been an amazing sight to me. As a teenager I got the opportunity to climb a small mountain in Colorado. A challenge, but doable, and the sight at the top was breathtaking. 

In  Matthew 21:21 Jesus says a pretty memorable thing about mountains. “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea, and it will be done.”

 When you have a mountain frame of reference in your mind and you read the words of Jesus in Matthew, it is easy to say either “yeah right!” or “I must not have very much faith” -both of which are negative, unhelpful responses. 

 

Jesus uses this reference in a few places in the New Testament. In Mark 11:23 & Matthew 17:20 the sentiment is the same as the verse we just read. Jesus is responding to the disciples after they are amazed at a miracle that Jesus had just performed. Casting out a demon, and causing a fig tree to wither. Jesus seems to be quite upset at the lack of faith of the disciples. He goes as far as to say “If you had the faith of a mustard seed, you could cause a mountain to be cast into the sea.”  A mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds- similar in size to a grain of sand. This does not seem like much faith required to move an entire mountain!

 

If we pay attention to the way Jesus spoke and taught, and apply it here, we can begin to see that the mountain Jesus spoke of was a metaphor for a seemingly impossible task. The disciples did not see how it was possible for them to cast out the demon from the boy or to cause a tree to wither by the command of a hungry Rabbi.

 

Sometimes we come upon an incident in our own life, a seemingly impossible task, and perhaps we remember this verse. We think to ourselves, if I just have enough faith, God will make this happen. So we take a deep breath, try to muster up all the faith we can, and for all intents and purposes doesn’t seem like a lot but certainly feels like more than a mustard seed and we wait. And  maybe, just maybe, that mountain is moved in a great miracle where God has shown himself and we have a story for the ages. It happens. God still does miracles in our lives. I have a story of my own. But if we are honest, sometimes, we end up feeling inadequate, lacking enough faith to move on. 

 

Part of the problem is we are trying in our own efforts to muster up enough faith to believe God can do it. When what we really need to do is let go. Real faith isn’t gathered up and lifted up to God—–real faith is letting go of all that we have to let God do His work. When we get ourselves out of the way, God can do miracles.

 

In a book I’m reading the author shared a story of some people she met in Haiti. As soon as I read the story I knew where she was going with it. And it gave me a new perspective on Jesus’ words about moving mountains. Here it is::::::

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(Jesus Feminist, Sarah Bessey, ch 9)

 

 

Sometimes in our life, we have mountains that won’t move in one fell swoop. Not because we don’t have enough faith, and not because it isn’t possible for God to make it happen. But sometimes there are mountains that need to be moved stone by stone. In acts of continued faithfulness, we move those stones.

 It takes just as much faith to continue on in a Christ honoring life, as it does to pray with all our might for one mighty thing to happen.

 David was anointed king as a young boy and yet he spent years hiding in caves until the time was right.

 Joseph was sold by his brothers, harassed, imprisoned and yet becomes great in Egypt when the time was right.

 Moses knew he was to deliver his people but he spent 40 yrs in desert as a shepherd, a far cry from a prince,  until the time was right.

 Abraham was promised children as numerous as the skies and yet he waited over 10 yrs until the time was right to see that promise fulfilled.

 These men of faith did not see their mountains moved in an instant, but stone by stone in faithfulness they followed God.

 What are your mountains? When has God moved a mountain instantly in your life and when have you felt like stone by stone in faithfulness that mountains was moving?

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Taken in Turkey

 

 

 

 

 

 

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“Perspectives” Day 5 Featuring Clive Adams (Commissioner) “Lessons from the Sports Field”

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Lessons from the Sports field

It is no secret that I am a sports fan, and that I am an avid Manchester United supporter. So, it would not surprise many to hear that, on being given the opportunity to watch them play at Old Trafford on New Year’s Day, I grabbed hold of it with rather indecent alacrity.

Many of you will know that my beloved Reds were beaten that day by Tottenham Hotspur. I was seated at the Stretford End – traditionally, the source of the most vocal support. Some of the fans around me blamed the referee; some, rather unreasonably, in my opinion, vented their frustration at the Spurs players. (I cannot describe the aggressive passion with which this ranting was expressed.) However, I saw things rather differently to many of my fellow supporters.

I saw where the problem lay – it was not the referee, nor could it possibly be the uncooperative Spurs team who, despite the best (read: worst!) wishes of my fellow supporters, were not sticking to the script! No, my attention was on a team that seemed to have lost its hunger for victory, that was operating considerably below its potential, seemingly content, complacent, sated by its own success. The enthusiasm and energy, the drive and determination, the commitment and competitive edge that one would expect of champions was not there for the better part of the game. These only became evident when they conceded the second goal. I turned to my friend (a Spurs fan) and expressed my concern – calmly, I hasten to add – that they only started playing to something nearing their full potential when it was too late.

A fortnight ago at Old Trafford, Manchester United’s past triumphs appeared to have become a present barrier to working with total commitment for future success. (There is a strong parallel with the England cricket team and their approach to the recent Ashes series in Australia, but I believe I have made the point without having to inflict unnecessary pain!) The very heritage United celebrates appears to have become a hindrance to their drive for new accomplishments. They seemed to be in a “that will do nicely” mode rather than “that and better will do”!

On the way home from the match, my friend, the Spurs fan, told me an interesting story. It was about rowing, and I was relieved that we had moved off the topic of football given the outcome of the match. The story featured the British 8+ rowing team which participated in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and was in stark contrast to the Manchester United experience.

Up until 1998, the form of the rowing team had been dismal. They were ranked seventh and risked not even making the final even if they qualified for the event. In 1998, the team sat down to discuss their situation. They agreed that they had three options:
1.    They could continue as usual, and expect the same mediocre results;
2.    They could admit their mediocrity and give up rowing;
3.    They could do something completely different to effect a different result.

They chose the third option.

The “something different”? They agreed that for the next two years leading up to the Olympics, they would examine everything they did – individually and as a crew – with a “litmus-test” question: “Will it make the boat go faster?” They were diligent in following this rule. “If I go to the pub, will it make the boat go faster?” or “If I spend 70 minutes on the rowing machine, will it make the boat go faster?” And, despite overwhelming odds against them – which were epitomised by the British commentators expressing doubts during the race that they could win even when they were ahead – they won gold!

Their past failures were used as a springboard in their everyday to work with total commitment for the future success they wanted.

These two stories from the sporting world have significant lessons for us. It is vital that we refuse to let our triumphs be a barrier to future success and that we use our failures as springboards to future victory.

Let us be wary of resting on our laurels, of being complacent about past success, about going through the motions, about losing our hunger for “even greater things”.

There are still people dying in the world out there who need Christ, let us make sure that we continue to be out there, in the middle of the muck which mires so many people, rather than standing on the parade ground looking smart. Let us drop the posing and get on with the practice of being whom we claim to be!

And, while we’re getting on with it, living on the edge, let us keep our focus sharp, by being diligent in applying our litmus test: “Will it make us fit for mission?”

 

Blog Source:

http://insight.salvationarmy.org.uk/lessons-sports-field?fb_action_ids=10153755536015232&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

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“Perspectives” Day 4 Featuring Dennis Strissel – Opinion8ed

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(A series of eight installments)

Number two – Lessons in Leadership

The shelves of my library are bowing under the weight of books about leadership. I know it’s an exaggeration, but I feel as though I have bought and read every possible piece of printed material that speaks to the study and discipline of leadership. In short … I am a student of leadership, still learning more every day, attempting to do my best as a leader. With that as a backdrop, I would like to humbly offer a few personal opinions relative to the leadership lessons learned over the years of service to our organization.

 Good leaders live as servants, exercising humility

    

Mark 10:41-45

41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

NIV

1)  Good leaders are focused first on others and not on themselves

Seems fundamental, doesn’t it. Unfortunately, too many want-to-be-leaders get this totally backward. I am reading the autobiography of John Dramani Mahama, current President of the West African country of Ghana. He tells about his primary school experience with a bully. The bully, who was ironically named Ezra, which means “helper”, was nothing of the sort, demanding the snacks of all the smaller boys at school. This tenuous relationship with this bully actually began as a selfless friendship and evolved in a selfish one. Leadership is not self-serving but self-giving.

2)  Good leaders don’t think less of themselves but think of themselves less

There’s an important distinction between the two. The leader must exhibit enough confidence to convince and attract followers to a goal that they believe is achievable together. The healthier part of that statement summed up in the old Sunday school chorus JOY – Jesus first, yourself last, and others in between.

3)  Good leaders live sacrificially

Boarding the SS Dorchester on a dreary winter day in 1943 were 903 troops and four chaplains, including Moody alumnus Lt. George Fox. World War II was in full swing, and the ship was headed across the icy North Atlantic where German U-boats lurked. At 12:00 on the morning of February 3, a German torpedo ripped into the ship. “She’s going down!” the men cried, scrambling for lifeboats.

A young GI crept up to one of the chaplains. “I’ve lost my life jacket,” he said. “Take this,” the chaplain said, handing the soldier his jacket. Before the ship sank, each chaplain gave his life jacket to another man. The heroic chaplains then linked arms and lifted their voices in prayer as the Dorchester went down. Lt. Fox and his fellow pastors were awarded posthumously the Distinguished Service Cross. (Today in the Word, April 1, 1992).

Good leaders are strategic thinkers and planners    

Acts 6:1-7

6 During this time, as the disciples were increasing in numbers by leaps and bounds, hard feelings developed among the Greek-speaking believers — “Hellenists” — toward the Hebrew-speaking believers because their widows were being discriminated against in the daily food lines. 2 So the Twelve called a meeting of the disciples. They said, “It wouldn’t be right for us to abandon our responsibilities for preaching and teaching the Word of God to help with the care of the poor. 3 So, friends, choose seven men from among you whom everyone trusts, men full of the Holy Spirit and good sense, and we’ll assign them this task. 4 Meanwhile, we’ll stick to our assigned tasks of prayer and speaking God’s Word.”

5 The congregation thought this was a great idea. They went ahead and chose —

Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit,

Philip,

Procorus,

Nicanor,

Timon,

Parmenas,

Nicolas, a convert from Antioch.

6 Then they presented them to the apostles. Praying, the apostles laid on hands and commissioned them for their task.

7 The Word of God prospered. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased dramatically. Not least, a great many priests submitted themselves to the faith.

THE MESSAGE

4)  Good leaders know how to set priorities

You’ve heard the expression, putting first things first? That is all about setting your priorities. There are many things that will compete for your attention but if you allow them to get out of control you will end up accomplishing very little. Start your day by listing, in order of their importance, the responsibilities for the day and you will accomplish much more.

5)  Good leaders cast a vision of a preferable future

“Not even the most perceptive leader can think of and plan for every potential turn of events. Unpleasant surprises, unexpected emergencies, and possibly terminal threats to leadership lurk in the undergrowth along almost every path. But one thing that separates good from great leaders in the extent to which the great leaders are able to foresee the unforeseeable, and therefore are empowered to deal with the unexpected” (Jinkins, Jinkins, 1998, p.49).

6)  Good leaders build a bridge to that preferable future

I often use the terms that have impressed on me the visioning process and its importance. One of my favorite authors is Dr. Robert E. Quinn from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He uses the term “Build the Bridge as you walk on it.”  He writes in his book Deep Change; “Organizational and personal growth seldom follow a linear plan. This is an important principle to remember. When people recount the history of growth, they often tell it in a linear sequence, suggesting a rationality and control that never really existed. When we have a vision, it does not necessarily mean that we have a plan. We may know where we want to be, but we will seldom know the actual steps we must take to get there. We must trust in ourselves to learn the way, to build the bridge as we walk on it”, (Quinn, 1996, pp83-84).

7)  Good leaders are not preoccupied with the problem but press forward towards a solution

This can be counterintuitive for some people. They become so preoccupied with the problem that moving toward a solution becomes too difficult. The term I use to create a picture of possibility discovery is “opening the door.” When you think of it as opening a door, the exit from one world, (the problem), and the entrance into the next, (the solution), it may be the trigger to forward momentum and attaining a solution.

 

Good leaders are stewards of their human capital and other resources

    

Titus 1:5-9

5 I left you in charge in Crete so you could complete what I left half-done. Appoint leaders in every town according to my instructions. 6 As you select them, ask, “Is this man well-thought-of? Are his children believers? Do they respect him and stay out of trouble?” 7 It’s important that a church leader, responsible for the affairs in God’s house, be looked up to — not pushy, not short-tempered, not a drunk, not a bully, not money-hungry. 8 He must welcome people, be helpful, wise, fair, reverent, have a good grip on himself, 9 and have a good grip on the Message, knowing how to use the truth to either spur people on in knowledge or stop them in their tracks if they oppose it.

THE MESSAGE

8)  Good leaders are balanced, fair, not given to exaggeration or exploitation, and exercise the discipline of good judgment

When I think of living a life of balance, fairness, and discipline, I think of the Paul listing the fruit of the Spirit from the King James Version; “Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law”, (Gal 5:23). The New International Version would read like this; “gentleness and self-control”. Self-control is a great way to describe this important characteristic.

 

It’s way too easy to get life and all it brings out of balance. Once out of balance, it becomes more difficult to achieve balance and, in fact, often we encounter a spiral effect that leads to crisis.

 

9)  Good leaders invest, equip and encourage those they mentor

 In the study of leadership you’ll find a variety of styles and models depending on who you study or what source you find. The following is a summary: Autocratic (sometimes called authoritative), Participative (or sometimes called democratic), delegative (or sometimes laissez-fair). While, to a certain extent we utilize all of these styles, I would council a different method called transformative.

Transformational leadership is a type of leadership style that can inspire positive changes in those who follow. Transformational leaders are generally energetic, enthusiastic, and passionate. Not only are these leaders concerned and involved in the process; they are also focused on helping every member of the group succeed as well. (http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/a/transformational.htm).

10) Good leaders surround themselves with smarter people than themselves

The good leader understands his/her weakness, is not threatened by people who excel and have specialized knowledge needed to move an event or an organization forward. What we are attempting to do through the STEPS process is create multi-disciplined teams to bring their expertise to the table to help every corps. This only happens when the leader accepts their weaknesses and compensates with people who have those strengths.

It’s difficult to choose only a few characteristics but, per my opinion, that’s my top ten leadership lessons. I suspect you could come up with your own top-ten, and I encourage you to do so, connecting the lessons to scripture. Who knows, you could become a student of leadership too.

Dennis L. R. Strissel

 

Reference

Jinkins, M., Jinkins, D.B., (1998). The Character of leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Mahama, J.D. (2012) My First Coup D’état; and other true stories from the lost decades of Africa. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.

Quinn, R.E. (1996). Deep Change; Discovering the Leader Within. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers

 

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“Perspectives” Day 2: Featuring Daniel Waite

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What was I thinking? We’ve all had those moments. Mine happened a few Saturday’s ago. I woke up with the theme song of “Mission Impossible” running through my mind. The voice-over said, “your mission should you choose to accept is to take your little blue shovel and conquer the reality of last night’s storm.”

 

We’d receive 10 inches of snow with blowing. The drift on the deck was at least waist deep. So I pulled on my overhauls, my heavy winter work coat, my 120 grain gloves, and my newly acquired ultra-warm boots. I grabbed my faithful little blue shovel and went to work against 10 inches of snow, the massively pack snowdrift, and the 10 below wind-chill factor.

 

The plan was simple I headed out the door, started digging with my trusty little blue shovel, and realized the heavy packed waist high snowdrift was not going to move.

 

Time to switch to plan B: wade through the waist high snowdrift, reach the snow thrower, start it up, and show the snow who was boss. I was determined that one way or another me and my sturdy little blue snow shovel would win the day. I reached the garage, pulled the cord to start the snow thrower until my shoulder was too sore to pull one more time. I turned around and decided to give it another hack with my previously undefeated little blue snow shovel.

 

At this point another voice-over started running through my mind. You know the one, yeah that one, the voice of the preacher quoting is most sanctimonious voice, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” [Philippians 4:13]

 

How many of us have been told over and over again that “all” means “all.” This idea has even shown up in a new diet book that suggests faith is the key to weight loss. The book starts with a hearty cheerleading session urging the reader to believe that all really does mean all. Especially when it comes to losing weight.

 

There’s a problem with this. That is not what Paul is saying. In fact if you look at the context Paul is talking about being content in whatever circumstances he finds himself in. If we were to read this from the Common English Bible we would read this, “I can endure all these things through the power of the one who gives me strength.” What? Nothing about me winning the Super Bowl, bummer.

 

The reality was without the muscle of the mechanical beast known as the snow thrower me and my very sturdy little blue snow shovel stood no chance to complete the mission. No Bible verse could change the reality that my knee, which had just endured a procedure a few days before, could possibly accomplish the mission.

 

Was the Word of God wrong? No. Just the wishful thinking of the modern church that just might be at the end of its life cycle. Think about it. Who has to take things out of context to fit the meaning of what they want to say? Lawyers, politicians, and liars. Or maybe just an old worn out man, with an old worn out shovel, and a badly worn out knee hoping beyond hope that God would part the snow like He parted the Red Sea.

 

Prayer: Dear God, never let me preach the foolishness of man as the wisdom of God.

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“Perspectives” Day 1 featuring Mark Czanderna (Captain) “The Wells of Salvation”

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“The Wells of Salvation”

 

(Isaiah 12:3)

Abraham sent servant Eliezer

To find a wife

For his son

Whose name was Isaac

Eliezer left home

Came to a well

Met a future wife

Her name was Rebecah

She was sister to Laban

She was God’s chosen

For Isaac

By a well

Isaac’s wife was found

Jacob left home

Came to a well

Met a future wife

Her name was Rachel

She was daughter to Laban

She was God’s chosen

For Jacob

By a well

Jacob’s wife was found

Jesus left Judea

Came to a well

Met a woman

Her name was Samaritan

She was repulsive to Jews

She was God’s chosen

To believe in Jesus

By a well

Jesus’ follower was found

Rebecca was the mother

Of Jacob and Esau

Rachel was the mother

Of Joseph and Benjamin

The Samaritan woman

Won many sons to Christ

With joy you will draw water

From the wells of salvation

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Featuring – Harry Read (Commissioner R) “An Inward Realm” “Perspectives” Day 6

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AN INWARD REALM

There is an inward realm transcending dreams,
Below the surface of my conscious thought,
Where God can dwell, composing mighty themes
Surpassing far those themes which I have wrought.

If I but cease to struggle and to strain
And let him move the bars from round my cell,
And burst the fetters which my soul enchain
And let his touch my apprehensions quell

Then will I know the joy transcending speech,
The holiness which only Christ can give,
The faith which always seemed far past my reach:
Love’s mystery, Christ’s gift to make me live.

Lord, play your mighty music in my soul
And set me free to live in your control.

2 Corinthians 4: 14 –18
We are more mystical and practical than we imagine.

21.10.13

 

Use with permission from Commissioner Harry Read

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“Perspectives” Day 5 Featuring Dennis Strissel (Colonel) “Opinion8ed”

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Opinion–8-ed

By Colonel Dennis Strissel

(A series of eight installments)

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Number one – Jesus should have served fish & chips

That thought went through my mind as I stared down at a generous portion of golden brown, breaded cod and a fist-full of french-fries. This would have tasted a whole lot better than some dried-salted fish accompanied by an equally dried hunk of bread.

Don’t get me wrong; I love fish of any sort, prepared any way but most of all… I love fish & chips. Secretly, I rate the quality of fish & chips I have eaten all over the world. I guess you could call me a fish & chip critic of sorts. I have my favorites…like landing at a pub on a cool day riding in the Yorkshire Dales in northern England. The table, along with our quartet of fish & chip eaters, was seated squarely in front of a warm hearth as they served the tasteful treats. But my best F&C experience has to be from Hout Bay near Cape Town South Africa. It was a family excursion to the beach with lunch thrown in. There was just something special about those greasy, newspaper-bound, lookin-out-on-the-Atlantic Ocean, fish & chips! Perhaps, for me, it’s more about the taste connected to the current terra firma.

Its John’s version of the story that informs us that the two fish and five loaves was really a boy’s lunch (John 6:9) contributed as a result of Jesus’ instruction to his disciples to do something about the personal need of the thousands attending his impromptu hillside meeting. Its importance is measured by its inclusion in each of the Gospel’s, (Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9 and John 6). Since this is opinion base, then let me share one…I think too many speakers spend time expounding on the peripherals, failing to get to the point of the narrative. One could argue that the peripherals actually enhance the point but why waste the precious time you have, fifteen to twenty minutes on a Sunday morning, with waffling about the wilderness and never getting to the promise land? Here are the promise land lessons for me…

 1)    This is about servanthood – Jesus’s challenge was first to his disciples;    “Jesus replied, you give them something to eat.” (Matt 14:16), and this is echoed specifically through Mark and Luke (Mk. 6:37, Lk. 9:13) and in John it is implied in Jn. 6:5-6. Those of you who are spiritual leaders…the Spirit is speaking to you right now; “you give them something to eat.”

 Jesus’ first words about the need of the people were to the heirs of the kingdom, his disciples. Here he is pointing them to the importance of spiritual responsibility, and the challenge of every heir-apparent, to discern and meet the need of the people. In this case it was for food to sustain them while they listened and learned. One of the roles of a leader is to identify the legitimate needs of the people he/she is leading and then to meet that need. Jesus tried to do this with his disciples and in the process gets the normal reaction; “let them go in the villages and fend for themselves” or “it would take eight months of wages to feed all these people.”

  In his book, Jesus on Leadership, C. Gene Wilkes gives us a clue as to what Jesus was attempting with his chosen; “You will never become a servant leader until you first become a servant to the leader.” If the excuses sound familiar to you, it just might be because you have used the same excuses to excuse yourself from personal responsibility just like the disciples did. How are you doing in the area of servanthood? Look for ways you can meet the need of your people.

 2)   This is about satisfaction – “They all ate and were satisfied” Mark 6:42, (Matt. 14:20, Lk. 9:17, Jn. 6:12). For me, this may be the most critical need of every human being…the longing to be satisfied, fulfilled, to have a purpose to live for. Oh I know the context here…it was all about food you say? Nonsense! This is far deeper than a basket of bread…this is ultimately about the bread of life – Jesus and the search of the soul to live in relationship, finding its purpose.

 Richard Parrott shares a portion of a message given by an extraordinary Methodist preacher named Albert Edward Day in his book, My Soul Purpose;

 “But God is present in reality no matter what unreality our practices and our ponderings imply. He is forever trying to establish communication; forever aware of the wrong directions we are taking and wishing to warn us; forever offering solutions for the problems that baffle us; forever standing at the door of our loneliness, eager to bring us such comradeship as the most intelligent living mortal could not supply; forever clinging to our indifference in the hope that someday our needs, or at least our tragedies, will waken us to respond to his advances. The Real Presence is just that, real and life-transforming”

That day on the hill-side as thousands filled their hungry stomachs with bread that does not sustain forever, the Gospel writer John links this experience in the same chapter with the words of Jesus as paraphrased by Eugene Peterson in the Message; “I’m telling you the most solemn and sober truth now: Whoever believes in me has real life, eternal life. I am the Bread of Life. Your ancestors ate the manna bread in the desert and died. But now here is Bread that truly comes down out of heaven. Anyone eating this Bread will not die, ever. I am the Bread — living Bread! — who came down out of heaven. Anyone who eats this Bread will live — and forever! The Bread that I present to the world so that it can eat and live is myself, this flesh-and-blood self.” (John 6:47-51).  This is the bread will satisfy the longing soul for purpose and fulfillment. I hope you are sharing this bread frequently and faithfully with your people.

 

3)   This is about making something out of nothing – Jesus specialized in the impossible. How is it possible that two fish and five barely loaves could feed over five thousand people and still have more than enough left over? I wish I knew. Here’s what I do know; God can make something out of nothing! Now make it personal…that’s right…it’s for you too. He can take your humblest offering, transforming it into a gift fit for a king, making it pleasing in his sight. By the way, your humblest offering is you! That’s right…he wants you first, foremost and entirely. He wants to stretch you. Yes, it can be uncomfortable and may become difficult at times but it is also rewarding and fulfilling. Through this wonderful, life-changing relationship, he will accomplish things never thought possible. Remember, he specializes in making something out of nothing. He can make new, something that was old; clean, something that was dirty; alive, something that was dead. Nothing is impossible with him. That’s not good news…that’s great news!

 Well that’s my take on it anyhow. I am certain you can work out other lessons the Spirit reveals as important to your walk…but I still think fish & chips sound a whole lot better than fish & bread. And well….at least that’s my opinion!

 

Dennis L.R. Strissel

 

 

Reference

 Parrott, R.L. (2009). My soul purpose. Nashville, TN: The Woodland Press.

 Wilkes, C.G. (1998). Jesus on leadership. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers Inc.

 

 

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A Gift of Grace -by Marlene Chase (Lt. Colonel, R) “Perspectives” Day 4

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A Gift of Grace

by Marlene J. Chase

 

            Molly was a kind soul but a bit of an odd duck. Fifty-something and mentally challenged, she lived in a local nursing home. The Army was the only family she knew. I often picked her up on Sundays and for the weekly prayer meeting.

     She never let me forget but telephoned the day before a planned activity to remind me to stop for her. Sometimes she called more than once! And how she loved to talk. She wanted to tell me all about her day, what she had for breakfast, what activity was planned at the home. As with small children, though, she could be “tuned out” by busy, sometimes insensitive adults.

            Molly was square-shaped and plain. She loved pretty dresses and wore her few brightly-colored cotton ones proudly–often with mismatching belts or accessories. Her hair hung to her shoulders gray, straight and always with a bright ribbon tied in an ungainly bow on top. Thick glasses threatened to fall off her short nose when she walked–carefully in red and blue tennis shoes with yellow happy faces on each toe.

            One memory of Molly stands out from all the others. It had been one of those weeks when everything that could go wrong did. The demands of corps and family had pressed in on me like twin vises clamped on a delicate base. I didn’t want to hear about Molly’s week. I needed strength, endurance, a little peace. I needed grace, not Molly.

            Though shuffled from one institution to another with few of life’s comforts, Molly was always happy. That Sunday Molly was her usual cheerful self, chatting away a mile a minute.  I couldn’t find it in me to respond to her, so eventually we sat silent for the trip. It was warm, humid, ordinary, and I felt worn down to the bone.

            When we arrived, Molly climbed out in her usual awkward fashion, eager to go to church. But suddenly she stopped.

            “Oh, she exclaimed, putting one hand to her mouth and brightening like a lit flame. “Look what God gave us on the ground!”

            We had found it necessary to end the expensive contract with the lawn service, and the latest crop of dandelions were blooming like radiant suns in the green lawn. How quickly the nasty weeds had sprung up. But to Molly, her face vivid with delight, they were not weeds but exotic blossoms direct from God.

            I looked at again at the objects of her joy. They were beautiful! How is it I had never noticed?

            Suddenly my weariness and worry vanished in a gold-emerald sea. It took Molly to show me what was important, to remind me that God was still there giving His good gifts to enjoy. It took Molly to remind me of His grace.

 

To read more of Marlene Chase’s writings check out her books at Amazon – 

http://www.amazon.com/Marlene-J.-Chase/e/B001K8XP1M

Also available on: http://www.allromancewriters.com/booklist.cfm?authorID=3428

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