Encouragement

Voice... Request... Expectation...

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Think about the last time just the voice of a friend brought an immediate sense of calm or companionship...

What a gift the sound of that voice can be. More importantly, friends take requests for help, for prayer, or just let us grouse. And, we expect the requests to be met, the prayers to be prayed, and the grousing to be taken in stride and held safe.

In Psalm 5, verse 3, David writes:

In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice;

in the morning I lay my requests before you

and wait in expectation.

  • Wonder for a minute at what the sound of our voices bring to God's ear...

  • How He responds when we lay our requests before Him...

  • How He hopes we can wait expectantly and not fretfully...

Take a few sentences and share with God how His character, as described above, impacts our lives. What about our lives as Leaders?

As Leaders, we sometimes have to stop and focus in order to hear those we lead. In working with teams through the years- in any group, when we ask "What is the single most important quality a Leader can have?"- the word "listen" is always on the list multiple times.

Let's ask God to help us to hear our people more and receive the sound of their voices positively. Let's listen more closely to their requests. And let's follow up responsibly to meet their expectations.

"Are We There, Yet?"

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The NYC Marathon starts on the Staten Island Bridge and ends in Central Park after leading runners through every borough in the city. The first time through the course, upon turning into Central Park and seeing trees and grass, I remember thinking, "Almost there." At that point, my feet had been jogging for five hours. The truth: I was still an hour from finishing (six miles). Yet, around every turn or over every small hill, my weary self was looking for the finish line. The thought of crossing the finish line, kept me moving forward.

Without that clear picture in my head, my tired, battered feet might have given up.

In our multi-tasking, multi-layered work lives...we are usually headed toward several finish lines at a time. This week, let's ask God to show us His finish line for us and to give us a clear(er) picture of its place in His story of our lives... and keep our weary selves looking for the finish line.

 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.     1 Corinthians 9:24  NIV

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.     Acts 20:24 NIV

A New Look At A Familiar Story...

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A few years back, I took a different look at the final events of Holy Week and it really changed my view of the story. This year, thought it might be cool to back up to the Triumphal Entry and move forward to the betrayal of Christ.

So, I grabbed a sketch pad, my Easter colored pen, and began my handwritten, four column parallel look.

Here are the parallel Hosannas, as recorded in three of the four Gospels, and some reflections.

Matthew 21:9

The crowds that went ahead of of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" Hosanna in the highest!"

Look back to Matthew chapter one and get some insight into this first Hosanna- to the Son of David.

Mark 11:9

Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!" "Hosanna in the highest!"

Read the closing words of Mark in chapter 16, verse 20. You have to love how it says; "...while the Lord kept working with them..." after He had been taken up! Mark seems to have an eternal, future view of the coming kingdom.

Luke 19:37

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices, for all the miracles they had seen: "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest!"

We sing this one often. See Luke 2:13.

Luke brings the joy of Christmas to the opening curtain of history's greatest drama and the defining moment of all history...for God's glory!