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Episode Notes to Episode 007
Ministry Encouragement Podcast – Rev. Jim W. Hollis
Hello and welcome to the SEVENTH EPISODE of the Ministry Encouragement Podcast, an experience that will touch you at the point of one or more of your greatest needs, lift your life spiritually AND provide you with new Christ-empowered motivation to move fully into the JOY of discipleship and the ADVENTURE of ministry. I am SO appreciative of you allowing me to share in your life today through this Podcast!
I am Rev. Jim W. Hollis, the Founder and Executive Director of Proactive Ministries. This ministry has grown from a spiritual vision and a Staff of one – ME – to a ministry Staff of 22 today. Proactive Ministries has provided ministry coaching and training to more than 900 congregations across North America since 1993.
On this, the seventh Episode of the Ministry Encouragement Podcast, I will be sharing about Leadership for us as Christ Followers. Today we look at:
“5 Steps for Christian Leaders to Serve Through Divine Love”
- 1> Claiming and Modeling Divine Love as Priority One
Christian leaders, from our own personal relationship with Jesus Christ, accept the truth that nothing is more important than living out of Divine Love as Priority One. We can confess doctrines and articulate theological positions from the most conservative to the most liberal – but apart from Divine Love, they will simply not prove authentic in real life settings and relationships in particular.
- 2>Clearly Defining and Sharing Divine Love
I share a story of a church in which I served as Pastor. I had many young couples that had gone away to college or technical training schools before my pastoral assignment there. At the point I became the Pastor, many of them were moving back into community and were talking with me about doing their weddings. There was one couple I specifically remember who was very creative in how they defined love.
- 3>Demonstrating the Longevity of Divine Love
In relationships with others we can feel that love can at times, simply run out. There SEEMS to be a shortage of love to draw on for strength. Leaders who lead through Christ understand the true longevity of Divine Love. Other types of love do run out: philia (human friendship love) and eros (human romantic love) are two examples. But Agape Love does not. What does this mean for us today and in the future?
- 4>Establishing Authentic Relationships Through Divine Love
As Christian Leaders, we are called by God to establish authentic relationships that are grounded in Divine Love. This includes both the initiation of new friendships and the strengthening of existing relationships that may be little more NOW than acquaintances in a worship setting. We are charged with living out Divine Love in practical ways that will result in growing new and existing relationships with others. Faith, Hope and Love are all three related to this priority process.
- 5>Serving as Ambassadors of Reconciliation in Christ’s Love
The Divine Love of God in Christ urges us forward to understand the central message of what is referred to as The Gospel – the good news of Christ – that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live (US) might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them. Everything old has passed away and everything has become new. We are given a specific ministry – all who are in Christ.
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Our major Scripture today on Leadership is from the Love Chapter of First Corinthians 13. As we have shared the 5 Steps for Christian Leaders to Serve Through Divine Love” – let’s delve a little deeper now into the Biblical foundations for these 5 steps:
1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE… (Read vs. 4-8 aloud in first person – “God, I thank you that I am patient and I am kind. … In Jesus’ Name, Amen.)
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
We will also be including a second text today from II Corinthians 5:14-21. I will be using the New International Version translation.
14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
Finally in this Episode I will be sharing about how we provide Coaching on Leadership Development in local churches. It represents a major paradigm shift in the typical way of approaching leadership selection and development.
1) The OLD ways of choosing Leaders has been proven not to work for many years. (Looking at the open Leadership slots; thinking and talking about who we on the nominations committee can come up with to say “yes” to filling those; and then praying that God will bless what we have done.”) NEXT we then call the nominees up and try our very best to talk them into taking the positions we need them to fill.
2) We want to move to two MAJOR SHIFTS in the way we work the Leadership Selection Process
- The death of Volunteerism when it comes to major Leaders in the church – we DO want to ask for Volunteers to set up chairs, help with the yard work, or take out the trash.
- Rather than mere Volunteerism, we move to Spiritual Recruiting – based on the understanding that God personally calls individuals to ministry involvement and specific positions of Leadership. God also calls people to ministry involvement, in addition to Ministry Leadership.
- IN the next Episode, we will be talking more about how this major paradigm SHIFT takes place in local churches.
- Reflect for a moment in your own life:
- Have I been asked to serve in Leadership at my church?
- How did the invitation come to me?
- Did I really get invited to pray about taking the nomination?
- Was I being pressured or persuaded in specific ways that made me uncomfortable?
- Have I taken leadership positions before that I did not truly feel spiritually called to – but took them to help out the Pastor or someone else who convinced me that it would be the right thing to do?
- Would you leave a VOICEMAIL or send me an Email about an experience you have encountered like this.
- You may leave a Voicemail on the Blog for this podcast by clicking on the button on th right side of the page and using the microphone on your computer to record your message.
- You may also email me your responses at: jim@ministryencouragementpodcast.com
Blessings on the rest of this day. Be encouraged that God truly wants to use you to do incredible ministry going forward. Search through prayer to discover your calling in Christ.
It’s your life – your gift from God – live it to receive the fullest JOY possible!
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