Thank You … and a Gift

11492278626_73ea209749_zI want to begin today’s blog by saying thank you very much for your support. Thank you for reading my blogs and for offering feedback. My hope is that during the past year you have been challenged, as well as found help and encouragement for your life and ministry while reading my blogs. I know there are numerous choices of blogs and posts for you to read, so I offer my sincerest gratitude to you for taking the time to read my blog. As I look to next year, my goal is to remain faithful in this ministry by continuing to provide help, encouragement, and challenges for you.

Facing Opposition as a Leader

argueHow prepared are you to deal with opposition?

Too many leaders, when facing opposition, leave their responsibilities and move on to a place of less opposition. In some cases, this is because they are not prepared to deal with the hardships they come up against. Some leaders believe that leading should be without opposition because they have the authority and power to lead and make decisions; they believe people should follow them, not oppose them.

Being a leader in God’s Kingdom is never without opposition. In Matthew 5:11 we read that Jesus

Got Conflict? 3 Essential Steps for Resolving Conflict in Relationships

 

twins fight over booksTry as you may, you cannot avoid conflict in relationships. It is a natural part of our human existence. Since conflict is a part of our existence, you need to figure out how best to deal with it rather than try to avoid it.

When all you do is try to avoid conflict in a relationship, you are only allowing it to get worse. The longer you wait or the harder you try to avoid it, the worse the conflict will become.

I recall a conflict with a colleague when I worked as a manager at a call center. Rather than dealing with it immediately, I started avoiding it. The end result was I ended up distancing myself from my colleague and our relationship became rather awkward. I lacked the tools to manage the conflict. I know better now and have developed some tools, so I always try to deal with conflict as soon as possible because I value relationships.

New Beginnings, Part 2

Family timeOften, in the busyness of life certain important areas of our lives get neglected in pursuit of the urgent. While this may be true of most of us, it seems especially true of leaders in general, and in particular, those called to lead the church of Jesus Christ and her institutions.

The truth be told, God does not want us as leaders to neglect the important areas of our lives in pursuit of building of His Kingdom. Instead, He desires that we learn how to balance doing His work with taking care of the important areas of our lives, because in His economy of things, they are not separated.