Twelve Ways to Be a Godly Leader

This blogpost was not easy to compose. Writing about godliness is never easy, for to do so is to imply you’ve figured out how to walk in holiness. I make no such claim here. I struggle like everyone else to be pleasing to God in all I do. So I write these words to myself as much as to anyone else.

Charles Spurgeon is one of my favorite writers, even though his writings often challenge me deep in my heart. These words (first directed to preachers, though applicable to all Christian leaders) are especially gripping:

It is a shocking state of things when good people say, “Our minister undoes in the parlor what he has done in the pulpit; he preaches very well, but his life does not agree with his sermons.” . . . God help us so to live that we may be safe examples to our flocks!

If you’re a Christian leader, think about these ways to be a “safe example” to the flock:

1. Prioritize the Word in your personal life. The Bible is God’s inspired Word, written by men carried along by the Holy Spirit as they wrote  (2 Tim. 3:16-17, 2 Pet. 1:20-21). Through His Word, God equips you to do His work. You simply cannot live a godly life apart from knowing and following the Bible.   Continue at Chuck Lawless

FactChecker: Are Your Kids Likely to Lose Their Faith?

A handful of Christian authors have created a bit of a cottage industry peddling the scary news that the odds are not good that our young people stay strong in their faith into adulthood. Untrue.

There are important, effective, and relatively simple things parents and Christian workers can do to substantially increase the likelihood our young people will retain a thriving faith into and through their adult years. This is revealed in very strong, sophisticated research from some of the leading sociologists of youth and religion in the world.

Influencers of Faith

 

In the National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR), noted Notre Dame professor Christian Smith and his team found:

• There are relatively simple factors that "powerfully shape" faith that remains strong through life.
• The biggest influencing factor is the faith of parents themselves and the practices they employ with their teenagers.
• These practices are simpler than many parents might imagine.

Increasing the likelihood of enduring faith in our young people is not limited to super-spiritual parents. In fact, the more "regular" and human you are the better. The factors, listed by the power of their influence, are:   Continue at Glenn T. Stanton

Examples of Mercy Ministry

In light of this series (where I argue that the church is not called to the task of social ministry to non-believers), I thought it would be helpful to describe what kind of mercy ministries am I involved in, and how I justify these ministries biblically. So below is a brief list of ministries that I regularly participate with, and a short explanation of why I see them as having a biblical foundation.

Despite the reputation those previous posts may have gotten me, I love mercy ministry. I love being able to express love and kindness toward others with the express purpose of introducing them to the Messiah. I do reject the concept that the church has as its goal the lowering of the poverty rate, correcting social ills or eradicating homelessness. The poor we will always have with us, Jesus said. But I embrace the mandate that the church has to take the gospel to the world, and in various circumstances it can be wise to use material means to gain a hearing for the gospel. There is a very real danger that food or assistance becomes associated with attending a Bible study or sermon. So for all of these ministries, there is a massive responsibility on the church elders to make sure that the method of bringing the gospel to others is not creating a culture of dependence. We love others, so we want to challenge them to change—not to maintain their situation. And we all know that there is hope for real change only in the gospel, and the radical repentance that comes with it.

As a side note, Grace Church also oversees dozens of evangelistic outreaches and ministries. Perhaps I will describe some of those in a future post. But here is a brief list of ministries that I personally work with on behalf of Grace Church.   Keep Reading...